ACLU's topics - tribe.net

Back UP, Obama fannies:

Bob — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:20:50 GMT

Piper Bam tried to LOSE, to Sam Joe Worse, III. Schmoe is on Debate III, for A HALF-HOUR! Experienced Bush-pilot John out-dove K-Bam! President 44 is due to take a round from Clint's magnum of doom, probably by losing a bolt into AF1 and AF2, both. Why is Hillary laughing?

Jews are from Ethiopia. Oreo-gobbling plumbers are from Ohio. Cane toads might turn up, in the White House, at parties, at the inauguration, IN THE OVAL OFFICE.

Down goes Barack, 2011.

So why do any retards think Christians get to agendize volunteerism, coerce Rothschilds and Disraeli to sedition, and then gather against their own laws, to undermine due process in the USA, and then fund a Bureau of Idiot Affairs, with Chinese dollars, having suppressed how the Ming White Fleet sailed around, dropped arrowheads, crossbows, and wrecked sailors off in the 1430s, so the killing fields pf Europe caused Isabella to send Columbus, to find Chinese, AND YOU SUPPRESSED HOW THE I-CHING, MAYAN CALENDAR, AND PANMUNJON DOOM CHINESE CREDITOR HOLDINGS, IF THEY INTRODUCE NO REFORMS, in the riotous USA?

Christians are doomed, evil idiots, illegally affecting Judaism and Islam, the other tainted Abrahamic rioters, which fail to litigate, in error.

So what prayer do YOU have, if you will not protect borders or jurisdictions, you have armed the rioters, and now, you illegally crusade, to incite riot, in the several nations, for your favored Queen Beth of Death, her Saudis, her Davids, and Blair's Vatican?

Illegal establishment begat royal favors exclusion clause violations, aggravated to SEDITIOUS CONSPIRACY, since Title 18 was in effect!

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

AU: URGENT Action Alert

Rocky — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:09:08 GMT

AU: URGENT Action Alert

"URGENT: The Senate will vote on the Nelson-Hatch amendment TOMORROW! Please take action NOW!

A few weeks ago, the House of Representatives passed the destructive Stupak-Pitts amendment thanks to the powerful influence of the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. The Bishops demanded a new ban on abortion coverage in any insurance plan participating in the new insurance "exchange," and the Church hierarchy even threatened to use its clout in Congress to derail the entire healthcare reform package unless its particular religious view was enshrined in the legislation.

Now, the Senate is poised to vote on an identical amendment proposed by Senators Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and a number of co-sponsors. Please remind your Senators that this restrictive language is unacceptable. For those of us who believe deeply that religion and government must function separately, this is hese events are highly disturbing. As supporters of Americans United, you are well aware that the Constitution mandates a separation between church and state. Yet recently, the Catholic bishops have used their immense power to undermine constitutionally guaranteed rights.

This is unacceptable, and your Senators need to hear from you. We simply cannot allow the interests of a politically powerful religious denomination to undermine the rights guaranteed by the Constitution to Americans of all faiths and none. Your Senators will vote tomorrow -- so please share your views NOW!

Tell Your Senators to OPPOSE the Nelson-Hatch Amendment

--------------------

Keep Religious Doctrine Out of the Law

"A few weeks ago, the House of Representatives passed the destructive Stupak-Pitts amendment thanks to the powerful influence of the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. The Bishops demanded a new ban on abortion coverage in any insurance plan participating in the new insurance "exchange," and the Church hierarchy even threatened to use its clout in Congress to derail the entire healthcare reform package unless its particular religious view was enshrined in the legislation.

Now, the Senate is poised to vote on an identical amendment proposed by Senators Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and a number of co-sponsors. Please remind your Senators that this restrictive language is unacceptable. For those of us who believe deeply that religion and government must function separately, this is hese events are highly disturbing. As supporters of Americans United, you are well aware that the Constitution mandates a separation between church and state. Yet recently, the Catholic bishops have used their immense power to undermine constitutionally guaranteed rights.

This is unacceptable, and your Senators need to hear from you. We simply cannot allow the interests of a politically powerful religious denomination to undermine the rights guaranteed by the Constitution to Americans of all faiths and none. Your Senators will vote very soon -- so please share your views NOW! "

http://www.capwiz.com/au/issues/alert/?alertid=14439586

* Join the Separation of church and state tribe
http://separationofchurchstate.tribe.net

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posted in ACLU - 0 replies

DEJA VU, see Ming Dynasty's WHITE FLEET, and wonder why PRC lets the USA invade and administer Bureau of 'Indian' Affairs, hahahaha, shazzle.

Bob — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 00:56:48 GMT

At a riot, with no lawyers but those Tim Daly inhales up his corporate butt, events are predictable.

Got Clint? His movies are hot prophecy, layered, artistically.

Got Stanford? Seen Josey Wales? FLYBOYS? Dogs named 'Bo?' Hounds named 'Mac?' Safety, FIRST?

No, you do NOT have SAFETY, FIRST, but hey, pull Rudy back from the ondeck circle, ONE TIME, or suck a Zep into the deck, ruthlessly demolishing the new house, of the Bronx bombed-out bombers, to be.

Yanked down, Stanford football is on the way, back upward, after Walsh's demise. Clint spans DeShaun Jackson, for 'DJvu,' in Dirty Harry, see also THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES, where young Jeff Bridges spans all the engineer-student blonde buddies I had, at CAL, dressed in an old-style version of today's Key West Dude Shirt, which was an invitation, for a bullet strike.

Got WAR? The bad, old railroad is hauling cattle, meat, and ashes, all night and day.

Sure you do, WWII and a half. Got each other? Sure we have!

Check me out. I am an anti-punk media person, for reform of fascism, or deconstruction, of illegal persons and media, LIKE ISRAEL.

The NSA and CIA prevented the FBI from noting how the 911 terrorists were IN THE USA, ready to do dirt, known.

GET DEJA VU, or lose all.

I know THIS: The Ming Empire decommissioned its White Fleet, April 6, 1437.

They left an armorer with the UK, to share triangular arrowheads, in use since the 1st Emperor, with Elizabeth I.

Liz didn't pay very well, so off to France went the crossbow, also in service since Emperor I. But this caused a real stir, as in European War.

Isabella of Spain sent Columbus, who reported Chinese and a way to Cathay, pronto. But this explained why all the gunpowder, plus.

The European thieves took gold, land, and all the natives they could kill, and wonder why the Mayan Calendar is so like the I-Ching. Duh.

When that calendar is up, in 2012, look to get sued by PRC, since you rioters kept calling the natives, 'INDIANS,' while abusing them.

PRC suffers standing US invasion, since the CIA ran B-24 Liberators, from Tibet and Taiwan, inciting the Korean War and taking of Tibet.

Since Panmunjon talks stalled, PRC acquires US debt in bad faith, since Inchon and the retreat by the UN, to Parallel 38.

Natives in America and Chinese in Taiwan and PRC need to get to ME, to sue, if you need standing or an explanation, about class actions.

I support S142192 CSC, den.12/13/2006, with C07 01399 SBA, USDC Oakland, which must issue, on hearing, against bills of attainder and all illegal construction, anywhere!

So where are YOU? Do you shake-up, and SUE? Push it up, game on, shing-a-lingers.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Legalize Hemp and Cannabis in California

Fully — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:07:25 GMT

Hi Family,

Consensual crimes which do not harm anyone who is not an adult and a willing participant are not really crimes. Abraham Lincoln agreed.

Right now there are two competing signature drives to put Cannabis legalization initiatives on the ballot in California in

November 2010.

One is found at www.taxcannabis2010.org

The other is found at www.CaliforniaCannabisInitiative.org

Please look carefully at the text of both laws (the text of each is finalized) and make up your own mind which one you support.

I am supporting www.CaliforniaCannabisInitiative.org because our law will protect Cannabis users from discrimination in

healthcare, employment, and housing. It is a full legalization measure for industrial hemp and recreational cannabis which will restore full human rights to Hemp farmers and Cannabis users all across California. Of course supplying Cannabis to children will remain illegal just as it is today. Driving vehicles under the influence will remain illegal just as it is today. Cannabis users will still be fired from their jobs if they show up to work impaired.

There are two parts to our plan. The first part is to publicly post and personally distribute our "Freedom Lover's Call to Arms" in order to recruit volunteers. This document is available here-

www.imgur.com/dbU83

The second part of our plan is to ask everyone who volunteers to make a pledge for how many signatures they can collect in

the next 30 days or so. 15-30 signatures is a good number. If enough volunteers show this level of commitment we can succeed. You can probably get that number from your family members, friends, co-workers, and neighbors without having to solicit in public too much. This is an "out of the closet" movement. We will have to proudly advocate human rights for responsible, honest, hard-working Cannabis smokers in order to convince legitimate people to support us. I can supply stickers equivalent to each persons pledge number. These stickers can be used to generate interest and be given to voters who sign the petition. Here is the sticker design-

www.imgur.com/2cjvb

Feel free to distribute and use these images. Just don't copyright them.

We have 145 days in order to get the number of signatures that we need. Our petition is hot off the press on 9/11 and we

have started collecting the first signatures yesterday 9/12.

We are polling 56% public support for Cannabis legalization in California which menas that this is an initiative which is not doomed. Its time has finally arrived; we are at the tipping point right now. Now is the time to do this and to do it right. We may only get one chance. If a law which is not exactly what we want is implemented then we may lose our critical mass and our ability to set it right.

I believe that less adults will smoke cannabis after it is legal. This is the case in the Netherlands where it has been

available over-the-counter for 30 years yet only half as many citizens (percentage-wise) smoke as do citizens here. My economics professor has taught for years that prohibition has not succeeded in decreasing usage by increasing penalties. Instead it has destroyed lives and families without substantial benefit to society. After legalization hard-drug usage will decrease due to a "separation of the markets," a decline in the price of Cannabis relative to hard-drugs, and the restoration of honesty and common sense in drug education. Violence, thievery, and the incarceration of honest people will decrease as well. I also believe that a well regulated market will decrease the availability and appeal of cannabis to children. In fact teenage Cannabis use in California has fallen steadily since the passage of Proposition 215. Furthermore the adults who smoke Cannabis after legalization will be better able appreciate the majesty of nature in peace and unity without learning to fear and disrespect authority figures. This will be better for their spirits and better for society. Finally the human rights of legitimate medical Cannabis patients will be better protected than they are today. Legalizing Cannabis will create a safer, healthier, and more humane California for us all to live in.

If you want to help us in any way please contact the CCI campaign at www.CaliforniaCannabisInitiative.org or write me at

deep_space_underground@yahoo.com I give you my encouragement to modify this message if necessary and distribute it to anyone who might help on any forum or by any mechanism.

Love,
-Fully Committed

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Happiness is warm bowl........Supreme Court Hands Medical Marijuana Major Victory

lowball — Tue, 19 May 2009 02:24:57 GMT

It's about time!!!!

www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/0...81.html

Supreme Court Hands Medical Marijuana Major Victory

Posted: 05-18-09 12:30 PM

The U.S. Supreme Court handed medical marijuana patients and advocates a resounding victory on Monday, refusing to hear a case brought by San Diego County, which has long chafed at implementing statewide medical marijuana laws.

The state of California, in an effort to systematize the 1996 voter-approved initiative, required localities to implement identification card programs for patients with doctor approval in 2004. Such ID cards are required to enter medical marijuana shops in California and can be shown to police officers who find patients in possession of marijuana.

San Diego County, however, argued that the federal ban on marijuana trumps the state law, meaning they are not required to follow the state law. The county filed suit in 2006. Both the San Diego Superior Court and the Fourth District Court of Appeals rejected the argument, which was followed by the California Supreme Court's refusal to review the case in 2008.

The San Diego Board of Supervisors voted to appeal to the Supreme Court.

"The courts have made clear that federal law does not preempt California's medical marijuana law and that local officials must comply with that law," said Joe Elford, chief counsel with Americans for Safe Access (ASA), a national medical marijuana advocacy group with a large presence in California. "No longer will local officials be able to hide behind federal law and resist upholding California's medical marijuana law."

It is not the job, in other words, of local cops or municipalities to enforce federal laws. In fact, the federal government has never made such an argument. The California counties acted on their own.

The Supreme Court ruling, following the Obama administration's decision not to raid medical marijuana clubs acting in accordance with state law, removes one of the last barriers to full implementation of the state law.

ASA has now given notice to 10 conservative holdout counties (Colusa, Madera, Mariposa, Modoc, Mono, San Bernardino, San Diego, Solano, Stanislaus, and Sutter) of their legal obligation to implement the ID card program. In January 2009, ASA, something of an industry trade group, filed a lawsuit in January against Solano County for its refusal to implement the state ID card program.

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

Prove Christ exists, judge orders priest

Rocky — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 18:50:54 GMT

It's Interesting that this is happening in Italy -- home of the Vatican.

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Prove Christ exists, judge orders priest
From Richard Owen in Rome

AN ITALIAN judge has ordered a priest to appear in court this month to prove that Jesus Christ existed.

The case against Father Enrico Righi has been brought in the town of Viterbo, north of Rome, by Luigi Cascioli, a retired agronomist who once studied for the priesthood but later became a militant atheist.

Signor Cascioli, author of a book called The Fable of Christ, began legal proceedings against Father Righi three years ago after the priest denounced Signor Cascioli in the parish newsletter for questioning Christ’s historical existence.

Yesterday Gaetano Mautone, a judge in Viterbo, set a preliminary hearing for the end of this month and ordered Father Righi to appear. The judge had earlier refused to take up the case, but was overruled last month by the Court of Appeal, which agreed that Signor Cascioli had a reasonable case for his accusation that Father Righi was “abusing popular credulity”.

Signor Cascioli’s contention — echoed in numerous atheist books and internet sites — is that there was no reliable evidence that Jesus lived and died in 1st-century Palestine apart from the Gospel accounts, which Christians took on faith. There is therefore no basis for Christianity, he claims.

Signor Cascioli’s one-man campaign came to a head at a court hearing last April when he lodged his accusations of “abuse of popular credulity” and “impersonation”, both offences under the Italian penal code. He argued that all claims for the existence of Jesus from sources other than the Bible stem from authors who lived “after the time of the hypothetical Jesus” and were therefore not reliable witnesses.

Signor Cascioli maintains that early Christian writers confused Jesus with John of Gamala, an anti-Roman Jewish insurgent in 1st-century Palestine. Church authorities were therefore guilty of “substitution of persons”.

The Roman historians Tacitus and Suetonius mention a “Christus” or “Chrestus”, but were writing “well after the life of the purported Jesus” and were relying on hearsay.

Father Righi said there was overwhelming testimony to Christ’s existence in religious and secular texts. Millions had in any case believed in Christ as both man and Son of God for 2,000 years.

“If Cascioli does not see the sun in the sky at midday, he cannot sue me because I see it and he does not,” Father Righi said.

Signor Cascioli said that the Gospels themselves were full of inconsistencies and did not agree on the names of the 12 apostles. He said that he would withdraw his legal action if Father Righi came up with irrefutable proof of Christ’s existence by the end of the month.

The Vatican has so far declined to comment.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1967413,00.html

posted in ACLU - 25 replies

This Week on The New American Dream

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 22:47:25 GMT

http://www.newamericandream.net/index.html

The New American Dream
... well ... because we're dreaming of Dick Cheney and George Bush in a big black car limousine motorcade with those little American flags on the front quarter panels on their way to prison

... we're dreaming of a USA truth commission and Cub Scout tours of the "secret" FBI and CIA

and some other stuff

This Week's Feature Interviews:

Monday - Timbre Wolf, a musician who moved from Tulsa to Hawaii

Tuesday - Al Markovitz, of Norfolk, Virginia, the Tulsa of the east coast, editor of the Blue Collar Review, "journal of working class literature"

Wednesday - Aimee England, the mayor of Tulsa — no, actually, Aimee lives in Michigan and spent over twenty years working in an independent, radical bookstore

Thursday - Lee Rayburn, radio show host, formerly of Air American Radio and also Madison, Wisconsin. [never been to Tulsa.]

Friday - Bartcop, of Bartcop.com, from where else? Tulsa.

Columns:
Steve Clemens of the Twin Cities
Lydia Sems from Atlanta

Poetry:
More from Ava Bird of Berkeley

and some other stuff

Thank you.

The Dream Team
http://www.newamericandream.net/index.html

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Hague v. CIO, 1939- Why do cities still require permits

Sun, 12 Apr 2009 03:56:30 GMT

After the Supreme Court ruling in 1939, that sustained the claim to first amendment rights in Hague v. CIO, why do municipalities continue to require permits for rallies? I can understand a march (parade) where streets have to be shut down completely or partially, but most cities require a permit to hold any sort of rally. Some, as in the case of the town in Oklahoma where the Halliburton shareholders meeting was held several years ago, even charge a fee for the permit. Why are we required to get permission from a city government, sometimes even to pay, for our constitutional rights? Where does the ACLU stand on this, and why have they not put an end to it through the courts? I sat in a courtroom in Crawford, Texas (the american Tikrit), baffled at the fact that several defendants were convicted of protesting without a permit. I was even more amazed when the police chief there testified that, according to the city ordinance, he could arrest one of the accused just for walking down the street because he had peace symbols tattooed on his arms, thereby constituting a parade/demonstration. I kid you not. Where does this end?

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Dreaming the NEW American Dream

Sat, 04 Apr 2009 17:32:00 GMT

California poets Ava Bird & Rex Butters, and....

Santa Cruz artist Russell Brutsche - Karen Kwiatkowski of Virginia

Protests to stop immigration raids ... and more.
____________________

http://www.newamericandream.net

The New American Dream

What's New?

* Karen Kwiatkowski column
* Ava Bird poetry
* Rex Butters poetry
* Gary Mennie poetry

Columns:
Sherwood Ross — why not shut down a few prisons in the United States as well?
Mickey Z — Americans are cowards, too comfortable, will never-ever-not-in-one-million-years revolt-or-even-bother-to-stand-up — no matter what the rich folks do to them.
Lydia Sems — It's The American Dream that is the problem.

and more from Jack Saunders ...

Resistance:
* Planned civil disobedience in Minnesota to stop raids against immigrants
* Protests at Creech AFB against U.S. drone terroristic activity
*100 days of protest against Guantanamo to culminate

All this, Northern Exposure, The Big Lebowski, Paradise by the Dashboard Lights ... a certificate for free toast ... and more.

Join us.

The New American Dream
Dude.
... because ... Sister Mary Anne told us, "There are no wrong questions, if you don't know the answers."

... from the Dream Team

http://www.newamericandream.net

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Harmonized ?

草泥马 — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:37:58 GMT

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/12/world/asia/12beast.html?ref=world

Will tribe "harmonize" me ?
~Tsow nee mah

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Help Support Geert Wilders Civil Rights

Rocky — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 02:30:27 GMT

Dutch MP refused entry to Britain
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7885918.stm?lss

"Lord Ahmed's comment: When Lord Ahmed recently threatened to advance to Westminster with 10,000 Muslims, the number was not “just” a number. In fact he referred to the advance of Mohammed in 630 to Mecca with 10,000 followers, and with whom he conquered that stubborn city once and for all. And what’s more, this encouraged them to conquer the rest Arabian Peninsula and beyond as well."

"A Muslim lord, Nazir Ahmed, and other Muslim leaders had vigorously protested Wilders’ visit, causing an initial invitation to be rescinded. It was reported that Ahmed had even threatened to mobilize 10,000 fellow Muslims to block Wilders from entering Westminster..."

"...What disturbs Wilders supporters even more is the hypocrisy surrounding the Dutch filmmaker’s expulsion. In the past, Great Britain has allowed in true preachers of hate like Muslim Brotherhood personage Yusuf al-Qaradawi, invited by London mayor Ken Livingstone in 2004. Al-Qaradawi has justified suicide bombings and condoned the killing of Israeli women and children because they are “militarised.” A more recent example is Ibrahim Moussawi, who was allowed to enter England last November despite his describing suicide bombers as martyrs and his having broadcast a 30-part series on the Protocols of the Elders of Zion on the television station he heads."

A Chamberlain Moment
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=F4BF2126-0D78-48E0-B463-5F7D645E19B6

"Re Lord Ahmed's comment: When Lord Ahmed recently threatened to advance to Westminster with 10,000 Muslims, the number was not “just” a number. In fact, he referred to the advance of Mohammed in 630 to Mecca with 10,000 followers, and with whom he conquered that stubborn city once and for all. And what’s more, this encouraged them to conquer the rest Arabian Peninsula and beyond as well."

Help Support Geert Wilders Civil Rights
http://www.geertwilders.nl/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

Geert Wilders's "Fitna: The Movie" A Review
http://truthbeknown.com/fitnareview.html

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Immigration Gumballs

Rocky — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 05:31:54 GMT

The ILLEGAL immigration issue is a serious issue in the US that must be dealt with and I hope the Obama admin. will do the right thing and finally enforce the laws already on the books and more.

Immigration Gumballs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WJeqxuOfQ

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5871651411393887069

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posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Obama's orders leave torture, indefinite detention intact

Steven — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 06:50:34 GMT

Obama's orders leave torture, indefinite detention intact
By Tom Eley
23 January 2009

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/guan-j23.shtml

On Thursday, President Barack Obama issued executive orders mandating the closure of the Guantánamo Bay prison camp in a year’s time, requiring that Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and military personnel follow the Army Field Manual’s prohibitions on torture, and closing secret CIA prisons overseas.

While the media is portraying these orders as a repudiation of the detention and interrogation policies of the Bush administration, they actually change little. They essentially represent a public relations effort to refurbish the image of the United States abroad after years of torture and extralegal detentions and shield high-ranking American officials from potential criminal prosecution.

In cowardly fashion, Obama staged his signing of the orders in a manner aimed at placating the political right and defenders of Guantanamo and torture and underscoring his intention to continue the Bush administration’s “war on terror.” He was flanked by 16 retired generals and admirals who have pushed for the closure of the prison camp in Cuba on the grounds that it impedes the prosecution of the global “war” and reiterated in his own remarks his determination to continue the basic political framework of the Bush administration’s foreign policy.

The continuation of the ideological pretext for wars of aggression and attacks on democratic rights ensures that the police state infrastructure erected under the Bush administration will remain intact. This is further reinforced by Obama’s assurances that his administration will not investigate or prosecute those officials--including Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales and others—who were responsible for the policies of torture and illegal detention.

The orders signed by Obama do not undo the Bush administration’s attacks on constitutional and international law. They do not challenge the supposed right of the president to unilaterally imprison any individual, without trial and without charges, by declaring him to be an “enemy combatant.” Nor do they end the procedure known as “extraordinary rendition,” by which the United States during the Bush years kidnapped alleged terrorists and shipped them to foreign countries or secret CIA prisons outside the US, where they were subjected to torture.

They do not affect the hundreds of prisoners--600 at the Bagram prison camp in Afghanistan alone—incarcerated beyond the barbed wire of Guantanamo. If and when Guantanamo is closed, the US government will simply ship alleged terrorists caught up its international dragnet to other American-run prison camps.

On the question of so-called “harsh interrogation techniques,” i.e., torture, Obama’s orders leave room for their continuation. White House Counsel Gregory Craig told reporters the administration was prepared to take into account demands from the CIA that such methods be allowed. Obama announced the creation of a task force that will consider new interrogation methods beyond those sanctioned by the Army Field Manual, which now accepts 19 forms of interrogation, as well as the practice of extraordinary rendition.

Retired Admiral Dennis Blair, Obama’s nominee for director of national intelligence, told a Senate confirmation hearing that the Army Field Manual would itself be changed, potentially allowing new forms of harsh interrogation, but that such changes would be kept secret.

Obama also announced a second task force that is to consider the fate of the 245 detainees remaining at Guantanamo. Earlier this week he suspended the military commission procedures at the prison camp, but has not abolished the military commissions themselves.

The new administration has ruled out the only constitutional remedy for those who have been held under barbaric conditions, without due process, for years—either releasing them or giving them a speedy trial in a civilian court, with all of the accompanying legal protections and guarantees. There has been a great deal of speculation that the administration may support the establishment of a special National Security Court within the civilian court system to try Guantanamo prisoners and other alleged terrorists. This would represent yet another attack on civil liberties, setting up a drumhead court system to railroad those charged with terrorism—something that could in future be used to repress political opposition.

According to NBC Nightly News on Thursday, the administration is considering keeping some 20 Guantanamo detainees, including the five alleged 9/11 conspirators currently facing military commission trials, imprisoned indefinitely without charges in a military brig within the US.

Commentators have noted that the Obama administration wants to prevent noncitizens detained as terrorists from being able to exercise habeus corpus rights.

Two separate measures taken Tuesday and Thursday by Obama point to a further major consideration behind his moves to close Guantanamo and finesse the issue of torture. On Thursday the administration requested a stay in the habeas corpus appeal to the Supreme Court by the only alleged enemy combatant now held on US soil—Ali al-Marri, of Qatar, whom Obama has called “dangerous.” Al-Marri’s lawyers are challenging the right of the president to arrest and jail individuals by declaring them enemy combatants, and it was expected that the Supreme Court’s hearing of the appeal would force Obama to reveal his position on the issue.

This followed Tuesday’s request for a stay from the Federal District Court in Washington in similar appeals that could affect the cases of more than 200 Guantánamo prisoners.

Thus, the immediate effect of the new administration’s moves is to halt civilian trials that could prove immensely damaging to the government by revealing systematic torture of the detainees and could potentially entangle high government officials.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Atheists' Holiday sign stolen/ found at Xian Radio Station

Rocky — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 01:49:20 GMT

Atheists' Holiday sign stolen/ found at Xian Radio Station

A sign similar to these photos in this link -
http://www.ffrf.org/news/2008/reasonsgreetings_madison.php

reads:

“At this season of the Winter Solstice, may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.”

The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF.org) co-president AND former Preacher of 20 years, Dan Barker flew to Olympia, Wash. to dedicate the first Winter Solstice display at the Washington State Capitol.

It was STOLEN Dec 5th and later found supposedly in a ditch and brought to a Christian radio station.

Another FFRF co-founder said:

"The incident will not stifle the group's message, Gaylor said. Before reports of the placard's recovery, she said a temporary sign with the same message would be placed in the building's Rotunda. Gaylor said a note would be attached saying, "Thou shalt not steal."

"I guess they don't follow their own commandments," Gaylor said. "There's nothing out there with the atheist point of view, and now there is such a firestorm that we have the audacity to exist. And then [whoever took the sign] stifles our speech."

Washington State Patrol Sgt. Ted said police are checking security cameras.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/12/05/atheists.christmas/?iref=mpstoryview

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posted in ACLU - 1 reply

get involved in separation of church and state issues

Rocky — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 18:25:30 GMT

With the US Presidential election just a couple weeks away - I just wanted to post a reminder to get involved in separation of church and state issues by being informed on what's going on.

One way to be informed immediately about issues as they're happening right now is by signing up for the Action Alerts by e-mail. Here are the some in no particular order that I highly recommend signing up for and considering getting a membership:

The Secular Coalition for America
http://action.secular.org/signUp.jsp

Americans United for Separation of Church and State
http://www.au.org/site/PageServer?pagename=fld_getinvolved

Freedom From Religion Foundation
http://www.ffrf.org/contact/FFRFnewsjoin.php

"... both Senators McCain and Obama have vowed to continue President Bush's White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives. Obama has even promised to expand it. However, this program has become a patronage mill for political allies. There is little effort to ensure that taxpayer subsidized programs do not involve proselytizing, and religious discrimination in hiring is widespread. In spite of Obama's pledge to clean up this unconstitutional mess, it's unlikely anyone can salvage a corrupt, multi-billion dollar government bureaucracy that stretches across twelve federal agencies. Further, this program not only deprives effective secular organizations of needed funds for social services, it actually privileges religious groups by giving them a special status and special access to federal dollars. The candidates should tell us why they are unwilling to shut down this corrupt, discriminatory program."

http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/guestvoices/2008/09/secular_values_voters_and_the.html

Get involved and join the "Separation of Church and State" Tribe -
http://separationofchurchstate.tribe.net

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Black File 7001: The Rosetta Stone of U.S. Government Mind-Control and Torture Matrix Programs [Lee Vin Bah, unknowing human test animal since 1999]

Lee Vin Bah — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 06:43:57 GMT

Sunday, October 12, 2008 [Revised: 10.14.2008]

FILED ELECTRONICALLY

Jeffrey Tignor, Acting Chief
Consumer Inquiries & Complaint Division
Consumer & Government Affairs Bureau
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street SW, Room CY-B514
Washington, DC 20554
1-866-418-0232 [fax]
fccinfo@fcc.gov

Re: [Removed] T-Mobile Account No. [Removed]. Please note that the following three FCC file numbers have been truncated by follow-up addendums and are all pertaining to the same matter that falls under national security; FCC File Numbers: [Removed]; [Removed]; [Removed].

Dear Mr. Tignor:

THIS IS A CLASSIFIED MATTER UNDER TITLE 18 OF THE UNITED STATES CODE, THE FEDERAL IDENTITIES ACT, THE CRIME CONTROL ACT, AND THE U.S. PATRIOT ACT: Congressman, Elijah E. Cummings [D-MD] has communicated in a letter that I should speak with you directly. Since I was unable to locate the specific FCC forms and the filing fee amount due for implementing a “FORMAL” COMPLAINT AGAINST T-MOBILE, INC. [A German Corporation] from the information sent to me by your office, please produce that necessary FCC form and any fee amount required.

In the above referenced matter, I am in receipt of your letter dated 09/22/2008 and am concerned that my original complaint and subsequent response to T-Mobile’s letters were never read or have been processed by an FCC staffer lacking the scope of knowledge necessary to understand the extreme criminal and genocidal nature of this matter.

There is evidence in my possession that will laminate a case together against T-Mobile, Inc. for warrantless wiretapping and data mining that has occurred since on or before January 20, 2006. Whether or not T-Mobile, Inc. has been granted immunity for these crimes as a telecom, T-Mobile, Inc. is nevertheless culpable for their coconspiratorial use of “leaked” classified and federally sealed government information that alone constitutes multiple federal felony counts punishable by up to 5 years in prison, a $5,000.00 fine or both for each under Title 18 of the United States Code; Section 3521 [a], [b] and other violations with respect to national security laws that similarly parallel the Valerie Plame Wilson matter.

My original FCC complaint and subsequent response spoke of national security violations and federal crimes of the highest level, which in turn caused a mitigative and false response from T-Mobile, Inc. that communicated a deceptive ad nauseam message in their attempt to avoid culpability by reversing the blame and painting me as a disgruntle customer. Nothing could be further from the truth; I am an American citizen and a disabled veteran of covert national service who for the past eight years has been subjected to individual and compounded acts of psyops terrorism and genocidal “no-touch” invisible physical torture techniques through actionable offenses of political retribution by agents and agencies of the U.S. Government under the Bush-Cheney administration. Multiple federal felonies have been committed and in that respect and others I have been denied my fundamental right to life as an American citizen existing in a parallel democracy that is most accurately described as adjunct human slavery within a virtual death camp environment.

A “formal” FCC complaint must be filed against T-Mobile, Inc., and a full investigation must be implemented by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice through the U.S. Attorney General. T-Mobile, Inc. has coconspiratorially participated in the “unlawful use of a communication facility.” T-Mobile, Inc. continues to commit multiple federal felonies in violation of Title 18 of the United States Code, the Federal Identities Act, the Crime Control Act, and the U.S. Patriot Act through their corporation being leaked classified and federally sealed government information supplied by outlaw agents and agencies of the U.S. Government under the Bush-Cheney administration. These actionable offenses committed in political retribution have outed my covert status while additionally serving as methods to cause “no-touch” invisible physical torture and psyops terrorism against an honorable American citizen with a covert protective person’s status.

Having previously operated in an undercover assignment for five years with the FBI as an agent of the federal government, U.S. Attorney General, Janet Reno recognized that my life would remain in emanate danger and granted me a Protective Person’s Status under Title 18 of the United States Code; Section 3521 [a] and [b], which carries the same intended purpose as a “Protected Class” or “Protective Person’s Status” within the conventions cited by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR].

Since 1999 with the rise of the Bush-Cheney administration, myself and possibly several thousand others have repeatedly been subjected to human rights violations by culpable actors within the U.S. Government infrastructure and retroprosity for those of us with a Protective Person’s Status under Title 18 of the United States Code is being sought from the office of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. This has become my mission as placed before me by the universe and the only master that I now serve. A positive affirmation for asylum with retroprosity in Canada will help me to expose an unseen Holocaust occurring on U.S. soil and help to prevent further harm to innocent human beings who continue to parish as Targeted Individuals [TIs] through the practices of “slow kill” and “silent kill” systemic genocidal techniques.

This matter is groundbreaking and ironically has been reverse validated by the Bush-Cheney administration through their conveyed telephonic threat not to publish my book or face the government’s “invention” of a criminal charge over fears the truth will destroy their clandestine programs. The American people and the world know who really attacked our mothercountry on 911, they “fully understand” the indefensible connections. With the U.S. military invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq that followed September 11, 2001, had America implemented the Bush-Cheney plan following the December 7, 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Empire of Japan, the U.S. military would comparatively dropped A-Bombs on Tibet and Mongolia; after all they’re all Asians aren’t they?

Like David, I stand alone against Goliath while virtually blacklisted from humanity. My constitutional right for legal redress has been denied by the ACLU’s Washington, D.C. office already having been issued national security letters in four previous matters brought on behalf of other parties. The Bush-Cheney administration has made duplicitous use of national security protocols to subvert the rule of law, prevent legal discovery and to shield the culpable while avoiding their own impeachment. The corporate news media has become a propaganda ministry that erodes our constitutionally entitled free press. The majority of the progressive media has an agenda or is drinking from the same corporatist well to affect a good cop verses bad cop scenario. Few of my fellow writers and journalists are assisting me in this matter. My elected representatives, Senator, Ron Wyden; Congressman, David Wu; Oregon Attorney General, Hardy Meyers; Oregon Governor, Ted Kulongoski; and the majority of the U.S. Congress refuse to communicate after hundreds of notices and I am therefore left without a representative government or legal representation of any kind. The only elected representatives to meaningfully communicate with me regarding this FCC complaint and the larger matter remain Senator, Barack Obama our next U.S. President; Congressman, Dennis Kucinich; and Congressman Elijah E. Cummings. It seems that in America, G-d and maybe Oprah are my two best hopes for justice and the rescue and recovery of the many unknowing human test subjects who have reached out to me from their psychological isolation caused by U.S. Government black projects in mind-control and torture.

T-Mobile, Inc. is a coconspiratorial criminal participant within a larger matter that began in 1999 when I unknowingly became a human test animal within a shrouded U.S. Government black project in mind-control, genocidal “no-touch” invisible physical torture and psyops terrorism. With T-Mobile, Inc. as a culpable actor in the broader scope of this matter, each of the ongoing multiple actionable offenses committed by those mandated with my protection and others within the U.S. Government, results in the outing of my covert status and the willful creation of a mortal threat environment around my geographic location to further serve as the U.S. Government’s passive sanction for my assassination.

Many of the same federal laws and mandates that applied in CIA officer Valerie Plame Wilson’s outing are realized tenfold in this matter by the ongoing commission of repeated actionable offenses that could extend to a charge of treason under the Federal Identities Act. The degree of harm caused by the culpable agents and agencies of the U.S. Government under the Bush-Cheney administration will equal or exceed the events still occurring within Abu Ghraib Prison, Iraq. The only difference between the evolution of the CIA torture matrix in Iraq and my firsthand true story that remains the Rosetta Stone of U.S. Government torture programs is that the atrocities being committed are being targeted against honorable American veterans of voluntary covert national service on U.S. soil by the same clandestine groupthink committing crimes against humanity oversees.

To understand how our nation has reached this place, this only requires an exploration into the wake of history back to 1920 with George Herbert Walker and former U.S. Senator Prescott Bush laundering the financial assets of what became the Nazi military industrial complex throughout WWI, WWII and the Jewish Holocaust; the Rockefeller protégée, John McCloy, High Chancellor to Occupied Germany overturning 75% of the Nuremberg Tribunal verdicts for the importation of 1600 Nazi SS war criminals to America under the CIA’s “Operation Paperclip” where they continued their genocidal experimentation through MK-ULTRA; and from there the genocidal octopus grew many tentacles that touch every thread within the fabric of our existence as a nation of human beings experiencing its systemic conversion into a peasant class and toxic society.

The FCC portion of this formal complaint against T-Mobile, Inc. and as it applies to the larger matter, requires the FCC to notify or remand this matter over to the U.S. Attorney General for criminal investigation. A copy of this letter will be communicated to my contact with the FBI.

Through a slow progression of recognition caused by my own denial and willing suspension of disbelief, I came to realize that the government I once served, has continued to systematically and systemically target me with political retribution and the methods of mind-control, “no-touch” invisible physical torture techniques, the tactics of psyops terrorism, and most recently an Electromagnetic Pulse [EMP] weapons attack using clandestine military psychotronic technologies.

This matter has eroded me as a human being and placed my life in constant danger while again necessitating immediate Asylum in Canada with Retroprosity requested for my Protective Person’s Status as a Protected Class under Title 18 of the United States Code; Section 3521 [a], [b], and as recognized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees with respect to the Conventions of Torture.

The individual acts committed in this matter might not always be viewed in and of themselves as an act of psyops or torture, but when laminated together they collectively recognize the CIA torture matrix that first evolved within the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps [built by Karl Rove’s grandfather], MK-ULTRA, KUBARK, and the additional components ordered into development and testing by Donald Rumsfeld within Abu Ghraib Prison, Iraq. Abu Ghraib Prison where an estimated 115 PUCs died with 35 deemed homicides.

CRITICALLY IMPORTANT: Additionally, I am willing to submit to a Polygraph Examination and would encourage T-Mobile’s representatives to follow suit in that regard. Especially as that pertains to their use of the classified numeric “7001.” *Before T-Mobile’s use of that very significant number, I had never previously spoken or published that 7001 numeric beyond classified and cryptic communications with U.S. Government personnel possessing the required security clearances. T-Mobile’s use of that classified 7001 number demonstrates corruption within the U.S. federal government and an egregious violation of national security protocols that must be investigated by the FCC, the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice.

Under Title 18 of the United States Code and as it relates to my outed covert status, U.S. Attorney General, Michael B. Mukasey must authorize in writing, my release of the names and contact information relating to the culpable actors within the U.S. Government. Currently the only name authorized for release is John W. Dubois. Dubois was a federal agent who the USDOJ requested investigated with my requested assistance for the Theft of Government Funds in Portland, Oregon. Dubois was sentenced to federal prison. When Dubois was later released from prison the culpable actors within the U.S. Government allowed Dubois to stalk my home and person, make veiled death threats and eventually accosted me by the arm in an area Costco store while I was near death from cancer treatments. Over 36 security reports regarding Dubois went unanswered by a classified federal government office.

As a note, the events involving Dubois surround the larger overlapping culpabilities within this matter there a strata exists pertaining to a corrupt and truncated Social Security Disabilities Benefits claim pending a ruling in the Federal Civil Division, Seattle, WA. That coconspiratorial SSA case, washed in political retribution has also deliberately outed my covert status under Title 18 of the United States Code and more from January 8, 2001 until July 14, 2008 when U.S. Attorney, B.I.H. suddenly motioned to reseal a commingled classified government file that was illegally unsealed by culpable agents of the federal government to passively sanction my assassination. The coconspiratorial actionable offenses committed by classified U.S. Government offices, have prevented my ability to find employment, complete my university degrees and enjoy a fundamental right to life. By comparison, like so many incompetents and criminals rewarded under this administration with the Medal of Freedom and Billion Dollar bailouts, John W. Dubois, now a convicted federal felon was able to secure employment as a mortgage loan officer where he continues processes the private financial records of Oregon citizens.

Unfortunately, too few within our elected government seem willing to fight for me with the same chutzpa that the American people recognized through my voluntary covert national service, which resulted in two trauma accidents that left me disabled and subsequently a Targeted Individual [TI] for torture and psyops by the traitors infesting my government; cowards who I am determined to expose before the American people while recovering the other victims whose stories are horrific.

Eighteen years ago I began a book and film research project as my academic prospectus following my return to the university environment after a massive life changing trauma accident that occurred in 1994 while employed by a government laboratory. That first trauma caused my death with an out-of-body experience and my relearning how to walk a second time. When I began the project, nowhere in my mind could I have imagined being tortured by the U.S. Government.

Recently I published an article comparing the 1953 staged suicide and later proven murder of Dr. Frank Olson [CIA MK-ULTRA] to that of the 2008 alleged suicide of Dr. Bruce E. Ivans; both were scientists from the top secret facility at Fort Detrick’s, MD. Additionally, I commented on a source close to the U.S. Secret Service revealing that former President George H.W. Bush ordered the clandestine testing of an EMP weapon on New York City from a military A-6 Intruder jet bomber that subsequently killed American citizens. The matter was covered-up by a Senatorial Investigation headed by Senator John McCain who scapegoated a power company engineer for the regional blackouts caused by the use of classified U.S. military weapon technologies on the American civilian population.

EMP WEAPONS ATTACK: At the beginning of the 2008 Republican National Convention where over 800 peaceful protestors and journalists were arrested by the local police department acting as a private entity while insured by the RNC, I increasingly began experiencing technical difficulties communicating with the media and while transmitting press statements that I equated to electronic scatter hell tactics. During the release of the above mentioned story in a group of faxes, I immediately received a telephone call from a Maryland number that left no message. Later that same night, a clear sky evening free from natural atmospheric disturbances, I was targeted by an Electromagnetic Pulse weapons attack that caused damage to my home, electronic equipment [wireless router, switch, external hard drive, computer, battery clock, and T-Mobile cellphone], my vehicle [the battery burned out a cell while parked in the driveway having worked perfectly the evening before – service personnel stated it was most unusual], and person by causing headaches and optical migraines [slow cooked with microwave radiation]. Those events are well documented in a timeline not included within this communication, but now in the possession of a few trusted Congressional members, the World Court and one U.S. Supreme Court Justice; et al.

Please provide the FCC formal complaint form and fee amount requested. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or if I may be of some service to you.

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Illegal Immigration and the Mortgage Mess

Rocky — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 14:32:31 GMT

Illegal Immigration and the Mortgage Mess

September 24, 2008

The Mother of All Bailouts has many fathers. As panicked politicians prepare to fork over $1 trillion in taxpayer funding to rescue the financial industry, they've fingered regulation, deregulation, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Community Reinvestment Act, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, both Bushes, greedy banks, greedy borrowers, greedy short-sellers and minority home ownership mau-mauers (can't call 'em greedy, that would be racist) for blame.

But there's one giant paternal elephant in the room that has slipped notice: how illegal immigration, crime-enabling banks and open-borders Bush policies fueled the mortgage crisis.

It's no coincidence that most of the areas hardest hit by the foreclosure wave -- Loudoun County, Va., California's Inland Empire, Stockton and San Joaquin Valley, and Las Vegas and Phoenix, for starters -- also happen to be some of the nation's largest illegal alien sanctuaries. Half of the mortgages to Hispanics are subprime (the accursed species of loan to borrowers with the shadiest credit histories). A quarter of all those subprime loans are in default and foreclosure.

Regional reports across the country have decried the subprime meltdown's impact on illegal immigrant "victims." A July report showed that in seven of the 10 metro areas with the highest foreclosure rates, Hispanics represented at least one-third of the population; in two of those areas -- Merced and Salinas-Monterey, Calif. -- Hispanics comprised half the population. The amnesty-promoting National Council of La Raza and its Development Fund have received millions in federal funds to "counsel" their constituents on obtaining mortgages with little to no money down; the group almost succeeded in attaching a $10-million earmark for itself in one of the housing bills past this spring.

For the last five years, I've reported on the rapidly expanding illegal alien home loan racket. The top banks clamoring for their handouts as their profits plummet, led by Wachovia and Bank of America, launched aggressive campaigns to woo illegal alien homebuyers. The quasi-governmental Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority jumped in to guarantee home loans to illegal immigrants. The Washington Post noted, almost as an afterthought in a 2005 report: "Hispanics, the nation's fastest-growing major ethnic or racial group, have been courted aggressively by real estate agents, mortgage brokers and programs for first-time buyers that offer help with closing costs. Ads proclaim: "Sin verificacion de ingresos! Sin verificacion de documento!" -- which loosely translates as, 'Income tax forms are not required, nor are immigration papers.'"

In addition, fraudsters have engaged in massive house-flipping rings using illegal aliens as straw buyers. Among many examples cited by the FBI: a conspiracy in Las Vegas involving a former Nevada First Residential Mortgage Company branch manager who directed loan officers and processors in the origination of 233 fraudulent Federal Housing Authority loans valued at over $25 million. The defrauders manufactured and submitted false employment and income documentation for borrowers; most were illegal immigrants from Mexico. To date, the FBI reported, "Fifty-eight loans with a total value of $6.2 million have gone into default, with a loss to the Housing and Urban Development Department of over $1.9 million."

It's the tip of the iceberg. Thanks to lax Bush administration-approved policies allowing illegal aliens to use "matricula consular cards" and taxpayer identification numbers to open bank accounts, more forms of mortgage fraud have burgeoned. Moneylenders still have no access to a verification system to check Social Security numbers before approving loans.

In an interview about rampant illegal alien home loan fraud, a spokeswoman for the U.S. General Accounting Office told me five years ago: "[C]onsidering the size of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Houston and other large cities throughout the United States known to be inundated with illegal aliens, I don't think the federal government is willing to expose this problem for financial reasons as well as for fear of political repercussions."

The chickens are coming home to roost. And law-abiding, responsible taxpayers are going to pay for it.

http://www.amren.com/mtnews/archives/2008/09/illegal_immigra_51.php

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Political dissent as terrorism: “Minnesota Patriot Act” charges filed against RNC Eight

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 00:22:52 GMT

Political dissent as terrorism: “Minnesota Patriot Act” charges filed against RNC Eight
By Tom Eley
11 September 2008

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/sep2008/minn-s11.shtml

The charges of terrorism leveled against the eight youth who had sought to organize protests and civil disobedience against the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Minnesota last week sound an alarm that political opposition in the US is on its way toward being criminalized.

In what may be the first case of its kind, American citizens have been arrested and charged as terrorists for no other act than planning to protest and obstruct a political event. In this case the occasion was the nominating convention of a party chiefly responsible for policies detested by the majority of Americans, including the war in Iraq and the enrichment of a tiny layer of the enormously wealthy.

Even a casual review of the case reveals that the charges are a baseless frame-up, carried out in the name of constitutionally dubious “anti-terrorist” legislation enacted since 2002.

More alarming than the case itself, however, is the fact that it has gone virtually unnoted by the national news media. This reporter could also find no mention of the case on the web sites of left-liberal publications such as the Nation, the Progressive, or In These Times. No major politician from either party has commented on the case, including Minnesota’s Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar. Attempts to contact the campaign and Senate office of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama revealed that he had not released a statement on the arrests.

This silence on the case is no indication of its lack of importance. In essence, the terrorism charges against the RNC 8 show what the World Socialist Web Site has long warned: that anti-terrorism laws like the Patriot Act—enthusiastically supported by both major parties—have never been about protecting the American people from terrorism. They were put into place to create the legal framework for the suppression of basic constitutional and democratic rights of the population.

The eight members of the anarchist group Republican National Convention Welcoming Committee (RNCWC) were arrested the weekend before the RNC began and charged with the felony “conspiracy to commit riot in the second degree in furtherance of terrorism.” They have since been released on $10,000 bail. If convicted at trial, the RNC Eight could each face five years in prison plus a $10,000 fine. A ninth individual has been named in the police complaint, but has yet to be charged.

Bruce Nestor, president of the Minnesota chapter of the National Lawyers Guild and attorney for Monica Bicking, one of the eight defendants, told the World Socialist Web Site that the authorities have shown no indication that the charges will be dropped.

The charges are predicated on an a priori assumption of guilt; not on what actually happened, but what might have happened had no arrest been made.

Furthermore, the charges are almost entirely based upon the evidence of two confidential paid informants.

Nestor pointed out in an earlier interview with the Minnesota Independent that “the most outrageous allegations made by the authorities are not supported by any evidence other than the statement of the confidential informants. They’re not supported by the evidence seized.”

The physical evidence gathered by law enforcement was even more threadbare than the purchased testimony of informants. “We have the sheriff displaying a single plastic item that he claims was a shield,” Nestor said, “as if one shield was going to protect demonstrators from 3,500 armed riot police who have projectile-tear-gas weapons.” In addition, police seized a rusty hatchet, nails, lighters and other common household items as evidence, and rather ludicrously reported discovering “weaponized urine.”

This is the same method the Federal Bureau of Investigation has used in its attacks on Muslim organizations and other “terrorism” suspects. In such scenarios, anonymous police infiltrators enter an organization, create a provocation or even a crime itself, and then turn over uncorroborated testimony, thereby implicating an entire group of people

Lawyers for the RNCWC members have also pointed to the climate of fear created surrounding their clients by the very charge of terrorism. “All they do is they label people as terrorists and anarchists, and at that point what people are actually saying and the content of their views has no meaning anymore,” said attorney Jordan Kushner.

Nestor told the WSWS that the arrests are “part of an overall law enforcement strategy to intimidate people from exercising political rights in the streets and to intimidate people from political organizations, to put citizens outside of the realm of acceptable behavior, to limit acceptable protest to voting and writing letters, and anything else is dangerous and potentially criminal.”

The arrests are based on a 2002 law enacted with overwhelming bipartisan support in response to 9/11 and the adoption of the national USA Patriot Act. According to Nestor the Minnesota law is a version of the latter. According to the law, “a crime is committed to ‘further terrorism’ if the crime is a felony and is a premeditated act involving violence to persons or property that is intended to: (1) terrorize, intimidate, or coerce a considerable number of members of the public in addition to the direct victims of the act; and (2) significantly disrupt or interfere with the lawful exercise, operation, or conduct of government, lawful commerce, or the right of lawful assembly” (emphasis added).

In other words, the statute lays out a legal framework for the categorization of protest as “furthering terrorism.” Police could quite easily determine that a protest aims to “coerce” “members of the public” or “interfere with” the operations of government, industry and meetings. In a broad sense, that is precisely what public demonstrations have always aimed to do.

The passing of the 2002 legislation was not the only, or most recent, preparation made by the government for the repression that has unfolded in St. Paul.

It has been revealed that the city government of St. Paul and the Host Committee of the Republican National Convention—which organized the event and solicited corporate donors—worked out a bargain whereby the Host Committee would assume the first $10 million in liability resulting from lawsuits civilians might launch against the city’s police. This agreement gave a signal to police that financial liability need not serve as a deterrent to police repression of protests.

Police preparation in the Twin Cities was elaborate. Because the RNC, like the Democratic National Convention, was declared a “National Security Event,” the local police were placed under the supervision of the federal government through the Secret Service and combined with numerous other state and federal police and military agencies.

It has also become clear that the media, especially independent media, were targeted for harassment and arrest during the convention. This included the unlawful search and seizure of filming equipment, computers, and cell phones.

As the scope of the arrests and police brutality has begun to take shape—multiple reports have emerged of police beatings, gassings, denial of medical treatment, and use of mace and taser guns on protesters and those already detained or arrested—it appears increasingly unlikely that this was simply an overreaction, as some liberal commentators have claimed.

The goal of this repression—which most assuredly would be a central preoccupation of the mainstream media had it taken place in, for instance, Russia—was only secondarily aimed at intimidating or squelching the RNC protests. Instead these measures were cut from the same cloth as the sort of massive repression carried out in third world police states. The massive police operation’s primary aim was to benumb, intimidate and silence the population as a whole.

It also provided the opportunity for a trial run of large-scale repression against the mass opposition to war and social immiseration that will inevitably emerge in the coming months and years.

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House Approves Unconstitutional Surveillance Legislation

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 21:05:11 GMT

House Approves Unconstitutional Surveillance Legislation (6/20/2008)
http://www.aclu.org/safefree/general/35740prs20080620.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: (202) 675-2312 or media@dcaclu.org
Washington, DC - Following a vote in the House of Representatives sanctioning warrantless wiretapping and handing immunity to telecommunications companies for their role in domestic spying, the American Civil Liberties Union expressed outrage at representatives who voted for the unconstitutional legislation. The bill, H.R. 6304, or The FISA Amendments Act of 2008, passed the chamber by a vote of 293-129, and is expected to be voted on in the Senate next week.
The following may be attributed to Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU's Washington Legislative Office:
"It's Christmas morning at the White House thanks to this vote. The House just wrapped up some expensive gifts for the administration and their buddies at the phone companies. Watching the House fall to scare tactics and political maneuvering is especially infuriating given the way it stood up to pressure from the president on this same issue just months ago. In March we thought the House leadership had finally grown a backbone by rejecting the Senate's FISA bill. Now we know they will not stand up for the Constitution.
"No matter how often the opposition calls this bill a 'compromise,' it is not a meaningful compromise, except of our constitutional rights. The bill allows for mass, untargeted and unwarranted surveillance of all communications coming in to and out of the United States. The courts' role is superficial at best, as the government can continue spying on our communications even after the FISA court has objected. Democratic leaders turned what should have been an easy FISA fix into the wholesale giveaway of our Fourth Amendment rights.
"More than two years after the president's domestic spying was revealed in the pages of the New York Times, Congress' fury and shock has dissipated to an obedient whimper. After scrambling for years to cover their tracks, the phone companies and the administration are almost there. This immunity provision will effectively destroy Americans' chance to have their deserved day in court and will kill any possibility of learning the extent of the administration's lawless actions. The House should be ashamed of itself. The fate of the Fourth Amendment is now in the Senate's hands. We can only hope senators will show more courage than their colleagues in the House."
For more information, go to:
www.aclu.org/fisa
To read the ACLU's letter on H.R. 6304, go to:
http://www.aclu.org/safefree/general/35735leg20080619.html
--
"There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why....
I dream of things that never were and ask why not."
--George Bernard Shaw
******************

OBAMA VOTES IN FAVOR OF EXPANDING BUSH'S DOMESTIC SPY POWERShttp://www.nj.com/njvoices/index.ssf/2008/06/obama_caves_to_bush_on_domesti.html
* * * * * * * * * *

Obama Caves to Bush on Domestic Spying
by Bill Wolfe
Friday June 20, 2008, 4:44 PM

This is not the change we were promised

Bill Wolfe

Obama speaks at Harrisburg Pa. primary campaign rally.

Today the House voted to approve a FISA bill that would provide retroactive immunity for criminal domestic spying violations by Telecom companies and expand Bush domestic spying powers. Here is a link to the vote tally - NJ Republicans Ferguson, Freylinghuysen, Garrett, Saxton and Smith were joined by lone NJ Democrat Sires to vote yes in support of the bad bill - Democrats Andrews, Holt, Pallone, Pascrell, Payne, and Rothman stood up for the Constitution and opposed the bill.http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll437.xml

Waiting until after the vote to take a position on the bill, Obama has finally come forward and issued a statement - looks like Obama reversed his prior strong opposition to both retroactive immunity for criminal acts by telecoms and expanded domestic spying powers. According to Glenn Greenwald at Salon:http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/

"Barack Obama got around to issuing a statement and -- citing what he calls "the grave threats that we face" -- he just announced that he supports this warrantless eavesdropping and telecom amnesty bill:

"Given the grave threats that we face, our national security agencies must have the capability to gather intelligence and track down terrorists before they strike, while respecting the rule of law and the privacy and civil liberties of the American people. . . .

"After months of negotiation, the House today passed a compromise that, while far from perfect, is a marked improvement over last year's Protect America Act. . . .It is not all that I would want. But given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay. So I support the compromise, but do so with a firm pledge that as President, I will carefully monitor the program, review the report by the Inspectors General, and work with the Congress to take any additional steps I deem necessary to protect the lives -- and the liberty -- of the American people." [end Obama statement quote]

"Telling Americans that they have to give up basic constitutional rights in order to save ourselves from "the grave threats we face" sounds awfully familiar. Obama has obviously calculated that sacrificing the rule of law and the Fourth Amendment is a worthwhile price to pay to bolster his standing a tiny bit in a couple of swing states."
[end Greenwald quote]

* * * * *

Link to Obama statement:
http://utdocuments.blogspot.com/2008/06/statement-of-barack-obama-supp

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Habeas Corpus Defended - Justices Rule Terror Suspects Can Appeal in Civilian Courts

Phoenix_Fire_Nectar — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:07:50 GMT

Habeas Corpus Defended - Justices Rule Terror Suspects Can Appeal in Civilian Courts
June 13, 2008, New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/washington/13scotus.html

The Supreme Court ... delivered its third consecutive rebuff to the Bush administration’s handling of the detainees at Guantánamo Bay, ruling 5 to 4 that the prisoners there have a constitutional right to go to federal court to challenge their continued detention. The court declared unconstitutional a provision of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 that ... stripped the federal courts of jurisdiction to hear habeas corpus petitions from the detainees seeking to challenge their designation as enemy combatants. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy said the truncated review procedure provided by a previous law, the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, “falls short of being a constitutionally adequate substitute” because it failed to offer “the fundamental procedural protections of habeas corpus.” Justice Kennedy declared: “The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times.” The decision, which was joined by Justices John Paul Stevens, David H. Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen G. Breyer, was categorical in its rejection of the administration’s basic arguments. Indeed, the court repudiated the fundamental legal basis for the administration’s strategy, adopted in the immediate aftermath of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, of housing prisoners captured in Afghanistan and elsewhere at the United States naval base in Cuba, where Justice Department lawyers advised the White House that domestic law would never reach.

Note: For many disturbing reports on threats to civil liberties from major media sources, click here:
http://www.wanttoknow.info/civillibertiesnewsarticles

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Islam in America's public schools: Education or indoctrination?

Rocky — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:04:09 GMT

Islam in America's public schools: Education or indoctrination?

"With fatal terrorist attacks on the decline worldwide and al Qaeda apparently in disarray, it would seem a time for optimism in the global war on terrorism. But the war has simply shifted to a different arena. Islamists, or those who believe that Islam is a political and religious system that must dominate all others, are focusing less on the military and more on the ideological. It turns out that Western liberal democracies can be subverted without firing a shot.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the educational realm. Islamists have taken what's come to be known as the "soft jihad" into America's classrooms and children in K-12 are the first casualties. Whether it is textbooks, curriculum, classroom exercises, film screenings, speakers or teacher training, public education in America is under assault.

Capitalizing on the post-9/11 demand for Arabic instruction, some public, charter and voucher-funded private schools are inappropriately using taxpayer dollars to implement a religious curriculum. They are also bringing in outside speakers with Islamist ties or sympathies. As a result, not only are children receiving a biased education, but possible violations of the First Amendment's Establishment Clause abound. Consider the following cases: "

Please read the full article:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/06/11/cstillwell.DTL

;

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Judge Maldonado: "The Relevance of Nuremberg to Bush Policies"

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:06:57 GMT

“The Relevance of Nuremberg to Bush Policies”

Presented by

The Honorable Albert H. Maldonado

Judge

Superior Court of California, Monterey County

In this talk, you will learn about the Bush Administration’s Interrogation Procedures on the battlefield and in prisons—a conflict with the Geneva Conventions, United Nations Charter, and Nuremberg Trials—an intercession by the United States Supreme Court. Judge Maldonado believes that judgment at Nuremberg in 1947 is highly relevant to American policy on torture, Geneva Convention, and International Law.

3pm – 5pm
Sunday, June 15th
490 Aguajito Road in Carmel

East side of Hwy 1 @ the PG/PB/Hwy 68 exit

Unitarian Universalist Church (www.uucmp.org)

There will be a question & answer period. Snacks provided. This is a no-cost event.
Please remain after the program to share your interests on peace matters.
Join others who share your desire to create a more peaceful world.

Sponsored by the Peace Coalition of Monterey County

www.peacemonterey.org

Community Meetings are held on 3rd Sundays, every other month. All are welcome.

For more information, contact Karen Araujo at LetsBePeace@cs.com

PEACE COALITION OF MONTEREY COUNTY:

MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS

African-Americans Against US Intervention
Barrios Unidos of Salinas
Carmel Valley Women's Network
Code Pink – Monterey/Seaside
Continuing the Peace Dialogue
Democracy Unlimited
Green Party, Monterey County
Humanist Association of the Monterey Bay Area
Libertarians for Peace
Monterey Bay Central Labor Council
Monterey County Citizens for Middle East Peace
Monterey County Democrats
Monterey Cuba Friendship Coalition
Monterey Peace & Justice Center
National Lawyers Guild, Monterey County Chapter
Peace and Social Concerns Committee of the Monterey Peninsula Friends Meeting
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Monterey County
Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Monterey Bay
Salinas Action League
Unitarian Universalist Church of the Monterey Peninsula, Social Justice Committee
United Nations Ass./USA of Monterey County
Veterans for Peace, “John Steinbeck IV Chapter” of Monterey County
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom - Monterey County Branch

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Police Break 60 Year Old Homeless Woman's Arm

Sat, 10 May 2008 18:56:30 GMT

[Donna Deiss is a politically active homeless woman in Santa Cruz, who was also an advocate for tenants rights before she was unfairly evicted. The homeless in Santa Cruz, as well as activists who criticize the local government, are often victims of police harrassment, false arrests, and police violence. -Steven Argue]

60 Year Old Homeless Woman Says Police Broke Her Arm
by Robert Norse
Saturday May 10th, 2008
Donna Deiss called in last night to report that yesterday around 5 PM, Officer La Moss (Badge #114) assaulted her, broke her arm, and then put her in handcuffs when he attempted to question her at Three Tree Lot near Lighthouse Field. Deiss was taken to the Watsonville hospital, had to wait hours for x-rays, whichconfirmed her arm was broken.
Deiss reported the following to me in a phone message last night and an e-mail this morning:

She was talking with friends yesterday on Westcliffe Drive near her RV. An undercover police officer, whom she later identified as Officer LaMoss, arrived in a black unmarked car and said he wanted to talk to her and others in the group. She read La Moss a statement from the ACLU about the rights of community members vis a vis the police and walked to her RV.

The cop followed her. She got in and tried to close the door. Le Moss, not saying she was under arrest or detained, reached in and grabbed her right arm, pinching the skin as he twisted it behind her back, breaking it. She screamed her arm was broken, but his response was to call for backup. 4 more police cars arrived. She continued screaming for 911 and finally paramedics showed up.

The police said they were impounding her RV, which she lives in.

She was taken to Watsonville hospital, waited hours for x-rays and painpills. She is charged with battery and an additional charge. X-rays confirm her arm was broken. She needs an attorney and community support.

This is an account from Donna Deiss (with someadditions from her friend Shane). Donna has previously been harassed by rangers as part of the 'clear out the hippies' campaign at Three Tree Lot and the other lots around Lighthouse Fields. Recently the City's Parks and Recreation Department had its 'No RVs' signs painted over by state Rangers, for apparently violating state law and policy regarding parking (i.e. RVS are allowed to park).

See related stories: 'Harassment of Homeless in RVs, a Letter from Donna Deiss' at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/10/08/18452903.php ,

'Superintendant Hammack Stonewalls on RV Ban in Coastal Parking Lots' at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/09/12/18447267.php , and

'Coastal Access Denied to Motorhomes and Trailers in Santa Cruz' at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/08/30/18444952.php for related stories.

HOMELESSNESS AND POLITICAL REPRESSION, THE GREEN PARTY FAILS THE TEST IN SANTA CRUZ by Steven Argue
http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2001/12/5085.shtml

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Media Blackout on so-called "Military analysts" planted on major media for war propaganda

Phoenix_Fire_Nectar — Thu, 08 May 2008 03:59:55 GMT

Media Blackout on so-called "Military analysts" planted on major media for war propaganda
~~~
Pentagon's Propaganda Documents Go Online, but Will the TV Networks Ever Report this Scandal?
http://www.prwatch.org/node/7299 (for full links within story below)

Submitted by John Stauber on Tue, 05/06/2008 - 13:53.
Topics: democracy | ethics | Iran | Iraq | journalism | lobbying | media | politics | propaganda | pundits | terrorism | third party technique | U.S. government | war/peace

Eight thousand pages of documents related to the Pentagon's illegal propaganda campaign, known as the Pentagon military analyst program, are now online for the world to see, although in a format that makes it impossible to easily search them and therefore difficult to read and dissect. This trove includes the documents pried out of the Pentagon by David Barstow and used as the basis for his stunning investigation that appeared in the New York Times on April 20, 2008. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/washington/20generals.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

The Pentagon program, which clearly violated US law against covert government propaganda, embedded more than 75 retired military officers -- most of them with financial ties to war contractors -- into the TV networks as "message surrogates" for the Bush Administration. To date, every major commercial TV network has failed to report this story, covering up their complicity and keeping the existence of this scandal from their audiences.

News of the Pentagon's online posting of the documents came from Joe Trento of the National Security News Service, who notes that NSNS provided the New York Times "limited information about a military office early in the reporting process."

Here is the official Pentagon website with the 8,000 pages of documents, the most interesting and revealing of them previously secret and only available to the Pentagon and the New York Times:

http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/milanalysts/

More than two weeks after the New York Times reported on the Penatgon's military analyst program to sell controversial policies such as the invasion of Iraq, the broadcast television news outlets implicated in the program are hoping to tough out the scandal by refusing to report it. Recently Media Matters of America (MMA) reported that, according to a search of the Nexis database, "the three major broadcast networks -- ABC, CBS, and NBC -- have still not mentioned the report at all."

The Pew Excellence in Journalism project has a chart showing that " there was virtually no mainstream media follow up to The Times' expose" with the only national TV coverage being the introduction segment and live debate featuring CMD's John Stauber on the PBS NewsHour.

Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro and three dozen colleagues have sent a letter to the Department of Defense Inspector General calling for an investigation of this "propaganda campaign aimed at deliberately misleading the American public."

John Stauber's blog | login or register to post comments | printer friendly version

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It's in Our Hands -Save the Internet!

Phoenix_Fire_Nectar — Fri, 02 May 2008 20:38:54 GMT

It's in Our Hands -Save the Internet!
[phoenixphoto: Broken Hard Drive 5.2.08}

WATCH the video:
Save the Internet!
/www.SavetheInternet.com WINNER of a 2007 Webby People's Voice Award!...net neutrality save the internet media independence day savetheinternet.com
www.youtube.com/watcH

READ and CLICK:
Get the facts from the first link and then click on the 2nd link below to lend your voice to the Congressional debate.
from Save the Internet:
~~
Don't Let Congress Ruin the Internet

Dear Friend,

Big phone and cable companies are trying to get rid of Net Neutrality, the fundamental principle that prevents them from discriminating against your favorite Web sites and services.

Here are the facts and answers to your questions:
www.savetheinternet.com/=faQ

Unless we speak out to our members of Congress, they could move to allow large telephone and cable companies to control what you do, where you go and what you watch online.

Visit the URL below to learn more about what's at stake and send a loud message directly to Congress:

www.secure.freepress.net/site/Advocacy

~~~

JOIN the Save the Internet Coalition:
The SavetheInternet.com Coalition is more than a million everyday people who have banded together with thousands of non-profit organizations, businesses and bloggers to protect Internet freedom.

The Coalition believes that the Internet is a crucial engine for economic growth and free speech. We are working together to urge Congress to preserve Network Neutrality, the First Amendment of the Internet, which ensures that the Internet remains open to new ideas, innovation and progress.

From its beginnings, the Internet has leveled the playing field for all. Everyday people can have their voices heard by thousands, even millions of people. The SavetheInternet.com Coalition -- representing millions of Americans from all walks of life -- is working together to ensure that Congress passes no telecommunications legislation without meaningful and enforceable Network Neutrality protections.

https://secure.freepress.net/site/SSurvey?ACTION_REQUIRED=URI_ACTION_USER_REQUESTS&SURVEY_ID=1161

ATTEND the National Conference on Media Reform
Thousands will gather June 6-8 in Minneapolis-St. Paul for the 2008 National Conference for Media Reform. This inspiring event will offer bold visions, new ideas and concrete solutions to building a better media system. Please join us and add your voice.

www.freepress.net/conference

SPREAD the WORD:

www.savetheinternet.com/=promote

~~

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Judge Orders FBI to Reveal 'Watchlist' Status for Americans

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 15:52:14 GMT

[Lest you become too euphoric at this ruling note that the judge in question is a low-ranking Federal "Magistrate Judge" whose ruling will no doubt be appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Also note that the ruling applies only to the 10 named plaintiffs. I am anxious to find out whether my name appears on the TSDB Database of "200,000 names or persons who are claimed by the government to have "any degree of terrorism nexus". Guess that I won't know until I am stopped from returning to the U.S. after flying abroad, taken into custody and wake up in Guantanamo naked and hooked up to a high amperage source of electricity. For those of you who might not be familiar with my strange humor the above is meant only partly as a joke. ]
------------------------------------

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-23-2008/0004798613&EDAT

Judge Rejects Bush Administration's 'State Secrets' Claim; Says FBI and Department of Homeland Security Must Reveal 'Watchlist' Status for Americans Seeking End to Unnecessary, Unlawful Border Stops

CHICAGO, April 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a case challenging repeated, lengthy and abusive border stops of American citizens upon their return to the United States after traveling abroad, a federal magistrate judge in Chicago has ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to disclose to the named plaintiffs whether or not their names appear on the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB). In making his ruling, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sidney Schenkier rejected the Bush Administration's assertion of a "state secrets" privilege. Under the order made public for the first time last week, the government must produce documents indicating whether the ten named plaintiffs in the case, including lead plaintiff Akif Rahman of suburban Chicago, are listed on the TSDB.

In rejecting the government's argument that revealing any information about the plaintiffs' status on the TSDB would reveal "secret" information, Judge Schenkier wrote that "courts may not uncritically accept the government's assertion of the state secrets privilege." After reviewing arguments on both sides, Judge Schenkier noted that the government "on certain occasions has disclosed to persons information that would tend to confirm or deny their TSDB status." Judge Schenkier's reference was to several letters written to members of Congress who inquired about the repeated stops of their constituents.

The Bush Administration repeatedly has invoked a claim of "state secrets" as a shield against judicial review of various surveillance and other policies secretly implemented in recent years. The Administration, as an example, invoked "state secrets" to block litigation brought on behalf of Khaled El-Masri, a German National who was kidnapped while on vacation in Macedonia, secretly transported to Afghanistan and subjected to beatings and torture. In response to this case and others, legislation was introduced in both the U.S. House and the Senate to regulate the assertion of the "state secrets" privilege, calling for judicial review of the actual materials claimed to contain state secrets.

"We are gratified with the judge's decision," said Harvey Grossman, Legal Director of the ACLU and lead counsel in Rahman v. Chertoff. "The government should not be able to end litigation and escape accountability for mistreatment of our fellow citizens simply by asserting that the case will result in the revelation of state secrets."

"Judge Schenkier has provided a process where our clients get their day in court and national security is protected," added Grossman.

The redacted ruling issued last week is the latest development in a lawsuit filed on behalf of Mr. Rahman in June 2005 asking the federal government to implement changes to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) and the policies of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to ensure that he no longer was subjected to detentions and harassment by federal officials when re-entering the United States. Since March 2004, Mr. Rahman was detained and questioned by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials on multiple separate occasions as he re-entered the country after business or personal trips abroad, detentions lasting unreasonably lengthy times -- up to six hours. On one occasion, Mr. Rahman was subjected to unnecessary excessive force during a body search, and painfully shackled to a chair for approximately three hours while isolated from his wife and children.

The federal court has allowed Mr. Rahman and the nine other named plaintiffs to represent a class of thousands of U. S. citizens who are wrongly detained according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. These citizens and their family members are stopped, questioned, abused and harassed at points of entry to the country each year -- action that results from flaws in the TSC. According to reports of the Inspector General of the Justice Department, the TSC administers a database with more than 200,000 names, persons who are claimed by the government to have "any degree of terrorism nexus." The reports identify the two major flaws in the system which is the focus of the lawsuit. First, the process for classifying these individuals is flawed, resulting in many individuals being "over-classified," considered dangerous when they pose no real threat to our nation. Second, mistakes in the database operated by the TSC cause many individuals to be "misidentified," and subject to terrorist screening for no reason whatsoever. As a result of these two problems, the plaintiffs in today's lawsuit collectively have been stopped and questioned on more than thirty (30) occasions, despite the fact that they are law abiding citizens, always cleared for re-entry to the U.S. after these recurring and punitive detentions.

Three recent public reports by the DOJ's Inspector General found other serious deficiencies in the operation of the TSDB, in addition to systematic misidentification and over-classification. The reports found, for example, that after the FBI closes an investigation that leads to someone being placed on the watch list, the FBI often fails to remove the investigated persons from the watchlist; that the watchlist indicates that
many people are "armed and dangerous," even though there is no factual predicate for the claim; and, that the watchlist's quality assurance system is weak, suffering from inadequate operating procedures and insufficient training, resulting in the failure to detect and correct errors.

Judge Schenkier's ruling also requires the FBI to produce for his review any investigative files it has related to the named plaintiffs. The Judge found that information in the files can be withheld as a state secret if it related to "sources and methods" of intelligence collection, but said that court would review the materials in chambers and determine whether any of the information can be shared with the plaintiffs.

"We look forward to moving forward and vindicating the rights of our clients," added Grossman.

A copy of the Judge's decision can be found on-line at

http://www.aclu-il.org/news/archives/rahman2008.pdf.

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Mexico worries about its own southern border

Rocky — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 22:46:52 GMT

"Three Afghans Arrested at Indian Airport Trying to Pass as MEXICANS"
February 13, 2008
http://www.immigrationwatchdog.com/?p=5794

"Mexico worries about its own southern border"
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/18/america/web.0618mexico.php

"Mexico's Forgotten Southern Border: Does Mexico practice at home what it preaches abroad?"
http://www.cis.org/articles/2002/back702.html

"How Eisenhower solved illegal border crossings from Mexico"
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0706/p09s01-coop.html

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Call for Art, Art Outside 2008, Austin TX

earth2LL — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 06:34:52 GMT

Calling ALL Artists For The 4th Annual Art Outside Brouhaha! March 6th – 16th 2008.
To take part in AO|08 Go Here- http://www.artoutside.org/

Ladies and gentlemen of the art world, we are seeking any and all creative humans who use their skill and imagination in the creation of aesthetic objects, environments, or experiences that can be shared with others. That is, we are looking for those whose life is art, and everything they do is DIY. We are searching for those who are creating the Hand-Made Nation. We are calling !ALL! make-believers, dreamers and reality re-arrangers. We are searching hi and low for lowbrow-urban-contemporary-pop-surrealism, pop art, op art, hard-edge, lyrical abstraction, post minimalism, which might be interpreted by some to mean that we are looking only for painters, but that is most definitely not the case. For you see, of course, we need masters of typography, sketchers, illustrators, satirical stencilers, screen printing is way cool, and yes, you too, graffiti fools. Least we forget every culture jammer in the hood. Do you manipulate earth/land/sand/plants/junk into art? Then we have a home for you.

Now, we know some of you may be thinking “What about Dadas’ Dadaists, though?” To this we say, but of course we are calling all inspired by DADA- for where would art be without fluxists, productivism, neoplasticism, pittura, metafisica, arbeitsrat and bauhaus. Well, we are looking for all of “you” from then and now, if any of you still are around. And one may wonder… What about the cubists? We say, “But of course.” Conceptualists? Indeed. Installationists? Please! One might ask if we are seeking anything that might fall under postmodernist modernist who are not distracted by abstractionists and other IST’S. Of course there is always impressionism, post-minimalism, pre-contemporaryism, and expressionism. Are you working in symbolism or surrealism or any of the other -isms that we have not yet mentioned? Well come on out. But wait that’s not all, that could not possibly be all this call for ARTE is all about? Well, Dali you’re right,

This call goes out to all kinetic sculptors, fire sculptors, sound artists bending invisible waves, and video projectionists playing with light. We must invite the minds of the poets and their spoken slam voices, along with improv comedians who mimic the true history of time. Or was that the klown? How can we forget about the klowns! Mimes? Performers “performing” art, puppeteers with their puppets, musicians making sounds. Oh, and least we forget outsider artists wanting to be outside.

In short, we invite all the conceivable movements, modes, and theories of art known to wo/man kind. We say to you, the Artisans of the world who wish to unite because the world needs ART, because the world’s not right. It is time, Your window of opportunity is now. Our space is your blank canvas. Your dreams are our inspiration. You and your art are invited to take part in this epic artistic endeavor.

The world may be going to hell… So let’s make some art.

To take part in AO|08 Go Here- http://www.artoutside.org/ao08faq.htm

P.S. If we happened to have forgotten any form of ART in this call for art then we do deeply apologize. Please note that you too are invited.

To take part in AO08 Go Here www.artoutside.org
& befriend us on myspace....
http://www.myspace.com/austinenchantedforest
http://www.myspace.com/artoutside

and on tribe...
http://tribes.tribe.net/austinenchantedforest

and check out...
http://www.austinenchantedforest.com

Support our Benefit For VALENTINES, Feb 14th and 15th
@ the United States Art Authority

http://www.austinenchantedforest.com/valentines.html
http://www.austinenchantedforest.com/antivalentines.html

and to truly stay “in tha know” sign up for our lo-fi no spam mailing list
http://www.austinenchantedforest.com/email_list.html

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Free Gary Tyler

Mon, 24 Dec 2007 21:17:59 GMT

Free Gary Tyler
http://www.freegarytyler.com/writings/gary-tylers-lost-decades.html

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PRESS STATEMENT: Revised 12.06.2007, Black File 7001, Freelance Journalist inside the Federal Witness Protection Program as a Non-Criminal Federal Witness.

Lee Vin Bah — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:11:49 GMT

PRESS STATEMENT: Revised 12.06.2007, Black File 7001, Freelance Journalist inside the Federal Witness Protection Program as a Non-Criminal Federal Witness.

Freelance Journalist inside the Federal Witness Protection Program as a Non-Criminal Federal Witness. “Black File 7001” is a work of investigative journalism that initially began in 1994. Early in 1999, I completed a covert assignment with the FBI lasting five years after having been previously requested to stand-down from a fulltime university curriculum with an inactive law enforcement background for possibly twelve months. Immediately thereafter I entered the Federal Witness Protection Program (WitSec) and ever since have continued to experience the U.S. government’s use of psychological torture practices and political retribution by the named agents and agencies of the U.S. government under the Bush-Cheney administration. Multiple actionable offenses have been committed under state, federal and international law while the culpable agents and agencies remain shielded from civil and criminal prosecution by the administration’s threat or issuance of national security letters, which prevent legal discovery and subvert the rule of law. The U.S. government does torture, I am one of its American victims and am requesting a humanitarian intervention before it is too late.

EDITORIAL FOREWORD:

Producing the report titled “Black File 7001” has experienced the threat or issuance of national security letters by the Bush-Cheney administration, a subordinate agent directly under the administration threatening me with the invention of a criminal charge if I publish and the suppression of this story by the same Democratic Congress that falsely promised an end to the money laundering operation in Iraq that remains perpetuated by the insidious genocide of our American military service members and other innocent human beings throughout the world.

As a former lifelong humanitarian member of what use to be the Republican Party until 2000 and a person who also voted for Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, I charge the neoconservatives with having filled the bowels of this Trojan Horse Republican Party with the stench of operating a continuing criminal enterprise under the guise of bringing democracy to the world.

The U.S. government infrastructure has been overthrown and this administration has declared constitutional civil war against the United States of America. The American people must organize in a lawful and peaceful revolution that mirrors and surpasses the civil rights era. We must march on Washington, D.C. and picket the corporate offices of the propaganda ministries to force their coverage of your protests and displayed messages.

It is critically important that before the next election we must demand Democratic Congressional members to openly support publically funded elections; not for profit universal healthcare; free or affordable higher education for all citizens; the meaningful development alternative fuel sources; the abatement of the conditions causing the honey bee populations from disappearing from around the world (later in the primary story I will invite you to read why noticing the smallest of G-d’s creatures holds the largest messages); and the criminal investigation of the named agents and agencies of the U.S. government under the Bush-Cheney administration regarding the Black File 7001 report.

Career politicians, regardless of political affiliations who fail the muster of the American people should be removed and replaced with genuine representatives before the next voting cycle.

Americans must become the partisans of liberty to reclaim the dream and promise of America and our inalienable rights as human beings. The jackbooted fascists of today must be prevented from emulating the treason of U.S. Senator Prescott Bush through their perversion of peace for the profits of war. The American mainstream has already been herded towards the invisible and tangible death camps of democracy. In those places you will endured conditions far worse than any physical torture where other Americans like me have been left for dead for over thirty years. These human beings of whom I speak are not criminals or terrorists; they are honorable American citizens who answered their country’s call to duty for special covert government service only to become a disposable population and the hidden dirty secret of the U.S. government.

Since 1970, one thousand and eighty (1,080) American citizens have existed as something cousin to death camp victims from the destructive effects of the Federal Witness Protection Program. These non-criminal federal witnesses and American veterans of voluntary covert government service became the unknowing test subjects in a clandestine torture experiment that exists as the precursor model for converting a freethinking U.S. civilian population into a self-consuming enslaved society. Within the death camp known as “WitSec” these human beings are subjected to the insidious methods of psychological torture that systematically erode the individual sense of self-identity until the will to live has been lost.

ABOUT ME:

My WitSec No. is 7001, I am a husband, father, writer, and freelance journalist who remained inside the Federal Witness Protection Program as a Non-Criminal Federal Witness and am now ready to surface under guarded conditions with the firsthand story of how a minority group of honorable American citizens are being psychologically tortured and politically persecuted by the U.S. government. Immediately I am seeking the support of the American public and progressive news media; the representation of a listed creative agent; contract negotiations with book publishers and the motion picture industry; a university initiative with an accredited school of journalism to include lecturing options and the sanitized conversion of my college records; and communication platforms with Ms. Oprah Winfrey and Mr. George Clooney via the Smoke House Studio.

By comparison to the physical injuries that I have endured from trauma and other accidents, the lasting effects of psychological torture are far worse. This form of torture is sourced from the fascist mindset of the named agents and agencies of the U.S. government under the Bush-Cheney administration through their commissions of actionable offenses and political retributions. As a veteran of voluntary covert government service who operated undercover for five years while contracted by the FBI as an agent of the federal government, I state unequivocally and categorically that the U.S. government does torture human beings. As an American citizen and non-criminal federal witness let the record show that I am declaring myself as a torture victim of the U.S. government. With my soul dying and the body giving signs that it wants to follow I offer that no truer words have ever been written than “give me liberty or give me death” or that “the worse death is a life without hope.”

Having previously been blessed with an out of body experience during trauma that was caused by the U.S. government and prior to my recovery in advance of relearning how to walk, I am not frightened by a natural death. The experience of dying for me confirmed the Socratic belief that the human soul is made of two parts with one half being a physical finite and the other a non-physical infinite. Life as seen from the eyes of the body is an illusion or one half of a duality. It was possible to see from two separate and paralleling perspectives at the same time. The physical world appeared normal while my body felt the tremendous force of being pulled into the earth. Initially from within the spiritual realm there was no ugliness, no beauty, no gender, and only muted colors with humanoid forms. Before I lost the sight of my physical body, the last human emotion that I felt was an all encompassing global pity that literally enveloped the earth with my living sentient energy. Soon I was sitting in space and the beauty of the earth returned with the comforting tenderness of a loving mother and at my back was the warmth of wisdom and strength from a fatherly sun. A few moments passed and my two halves were made whole again to continue the journey that brought me to this place of inhuman suffering.

In self-definition I am a Humanitarian-Universal-Infrastructuralist or a person who has spent a lifetime identifying and interrelating the commonalities between myself and all known sentient beings and other components within the universe from which to become more human.

My views of the current U.S. President and Vice President find them culpable for treason, egregious crimes against humanity and international terrorism while wearing a mask of insipid divinity. Clearly these judicially selected ten cent millionaires are criminal sociopaths who function from a series of learned behaviors used to produce a desired result while being incapable of recognizing any genuine sense of right and wrong.

These individuals and their followers bare the marks that brand their names with the gamatria of the most inhuman and deceptive beings that walk among us on the earth in legion with what some would call the antichrist. Although I have never considered myself worthy of the blessings, respectfully I believe that throughout my life there have been a number of occasions when my being was touched by the many faces of G-d. With all of that said, one should never confuse spiritual currency with political capitol since the latter is most often sourced from the abyss of false profits, which brought the genocide over six million Jews, Gypsies and homosexuals in Nazi Germany; the slaughter of tribal nations in America; the turning of human beings against their brothers and sisters throughout history; the selling of children, women and men as slaves; the gang rape and victimization of Arabic women who are then whipped as criminals; and the 911 terrorist attacks used to perpetuate war profiteering and oil piracy for those who drink from a rivers of human blood and suffering. Considering my temporary acquaintance with death, I believe the purest form of spiritual worship that collectively joins us with the universe is simply the individual act of at least attempting to recognize the human being in all people.

BLACK FILE 7001:

“Black File 7001” is a work of investigative journalism that began in 1994 as an academic prospectus with the goals of publishing books, producing movies, film documentaries, and developing a lecture syllabus with the thinking who better to teach than a person with skin in the game. While in a fulltime academic setting and shortly after beginning this protect, I discovered actionable intelligence that was brought forward for case installation at the federal level. Already possessing an inactive law enforcement background and specialized skill sets where few if any training manuals exist, the FBI requested my voluntary assistance for a projected twelve months. Five years later I completed the FBI undercover group one investigation having successfully penetrated four organized crime groups while never being afforded one day off for that entire period of time. Since other federal law enforcement agencies are not equipped to handle long duration personal security operations, I entered the Federal Witness Protection Program (WitSec) as a Non-Criminal Federal Witness in 1999. Nearly immediately after entering the WitSec the named agents and agencies of the U.S. government under the Bush-Cheney administration unthinkably began outing my active covert status. Since exiting the WitSec in good standing early in 2001, political retributions by the U.S. government have continued to terrorize me with actionable offenses and the tactics of psychological torture. These culpable acts additionally serve as a passive sanction for the assassination of an American citizen and a former covert agent of the federal government. This story is uncharted territory and I am unaware of any other writer/journalist who has actually penetrated this fraudulent clandestine federal program, which shrouds itself beneath an undeserved veil of secrecy that exists in the absence of public scrutiny and meaningful congressional oversight. The latter might explain why multiple action notices regarding this investigation have gone unanswered by the craven Democratic Congress that I helped elected to office with their false promise of ending the corporatist money laundering operation in Iraq.

Within the next 30 day or by New Year’s Day 2008, I will publish an extensive sanitized report that has been redacted from a much larger work. Please communicate with me and contact your local election campaign committees to demand that your congressional members take action in this matter.

American citizens are being used as the unknowing test subjects in a clandestine torture experiment shrouded within the Federal Witness Protection Program (WitSec). Non-Criminal Federal Witnesses (1,080) are a special minority class of American citizens in title only who are being used as a laboratory control sample for the applied tactics of terrorism and psychological torture (psyops) on a U.S. civilian population by the U.S. government.

Writing remains one of my two fragile anchors holding me to this world and a federal agent (L.H.M.) directly under the Bush-Cheney administration has telephonically communicated “you have a lot of people in high places afraid to death that you are going to destroy their programs…and if you publish a book, the government will invent a criminal charge against you.” After refusing not to publish with an invitation to that federal agent’s handlers to “go pound salt up their asses”, a series of actionable offenses were committed against me in political retribution under state, federal and international law. These same entities on several occasions have outed my classified status that with each culpable act, serves to intensify what has become a standing passive sanction for the assassination of an American citizen and former covert agent of the federal government.

As a physically disabled person from two trauma accidents caused by the federal government or incurred in the line of duty during covert government service, I applied for Social Security Disability Benefits (SSDB) through the required classified channels. This process required that I utilize my second WitSec Inspector (A.S.) and the Social Security Administration’s Sensitive Operations Division (SOD) that was established for persons in covert-ops, the CIA and the U.S. State Department working oversees. The Social Security Disability Benefits were authorized, but following my refusal not to publish the WitSec and SSA’s SOD conspired to punitively withdraw my SSDB. This occurred prior to beginning treatments for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer in 2004. The government’s own federal court judge who heard the SSA case issued several letters of complaint to the Sensitive Operations Division, charging that office had provided the court with erroneous information and that the SOD’s delay in responding was contemptuous to the point of preventing a fair hearing. Two months past while the SOD and WitSec crafted their evidence and my SSDB’s claim entered the appeals stage. During the initial SSDB process, repeated telephonic conversations had been made with and between the WitSec and the SOD to insure that the production of the SSA documents would not out my covert status. After multiple assurances that complete security would be maintained, the WitSec and SOD deliberately or at the least through total gross incompetence filed documents that outed my covert status by commingling my identities in violation of several federal laws and a federal court seal. After the matter was sent to the SSA Hearing and Appeals Board where it remained for two years that federal agency notified my private attorney they had lost my classified government file in violation of the same laws allegedly protecting my covert status. A copy was returned by my attorney and two weeks later my benefits were denied again. The SSDB matter is pending on civil appeal to the federal court where I am certain it will be again denied by the government’s crafting of the evidence. Lastly the WitSec and SOD conspired to deconstruct my only viable work history by purging a covert front business located in Texas from the regular SSA computer system and additionally failed under contract to sanitize and convert my previous Social Security records into my new Jewish name. Allegedly I had been employed by that Texas front business for over a decade as a construction estimator that for all I knew might have found Dick Cheney answering the telephones on an earlier occasion. Following the WitSec and SOD’s punitive acts of political retribution, during two subsequent visits to the local SSA office the computer screen was so void of information that the office staffers contacted their supervisors to report they believed their computer system had been penetrated by hackers.

Prior to 911 and before the USDOJ had been prostituted by this corrupt administration, I was able to assist in the covert criminal prosecution of my first U.S. Deputy Marshal/WitSec Inspector (J.D.) for his theft of government funds.

After 911 and following my refusal not to publish under threat of the invention of a criminal charge by the U.S. government that same former WitSec Inspector/federal felon was released from prison and allowed to stalk me. While near death from chemotherapy and radiation treatments for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer that same federal felon physically accosted me by the arm inside of a warehouse superstore. Thirty-six security notices went unanswered by the U.S. Marshals Service’s Federal Witness Security Program Headquarters.

The second WitSec Inspector (A.S.) eventually came to my home with a regular deputy marshal who did not have a WitSec security clearance, which further outed my covert status and sarcastically laughed that he had forgotten to tell me that the WitSec Headquarters’ mailing address had been changed after 911 and that under the new U.S. Patriot Act my only means of communicating with headquarters was directly through him. That WitSec Inspector continued to smile while stating that my classified information and security notices had been circulated by several staffers without WitSec clearances before it got to where I thought it was being sent. When asked about the other Deputy Marshal’s security clearance, the WitSec Inspector stated “owe I use non-WitSec personnel all the time to handle WitSec matters.” This same WitSec Inspector has committed multiple actionable offences and has outed my covert status numerous times while creating a growing mortal threat environment around my geographic location.

Many of the public self-aggrandizing claims and testimonials given before the U.S. Congress and published by the Federal Witness Protection Program will soon be debunked within my Black File 7001 report.

Following the WitSec and SOD’s removal of my work history with their deletion of the covert front business from the SSA computer system and even though I am a very capable and multitalented individual with strong skill sets, given this act and the government’s failure to perform under written contracts, I have been unable to find employment after submitting over 3000 job applications. However by comparison and in direct contrast to my own personal situation, the first WitSec Inspector (J.D.) after his release from federal prison for the theft of several thousand dollars in U.S. government funds is now gainfully employed and processing the private financial records of American citizens as a mortgage loan officer. Under this administration criminals and traitors are rewarded and the good servants of the American people become part of a disposable population.

Out of 18,000 federal witnesses, 16,920 are criminal and custodial federal witnesses and 1,080 of that total number are “non-criminal federal witnesses.” The six percent who are non-criminal federal witnesses are comprised of honorable American citizens from every cultural identity within our society. These same veterans of voluntary covert government service took that extra step above and beyond the call of duty to participate in our system while defending our constitutional democracy and the American people. Within that minority of six percent I am an even smaller number of non-criminal federal witnesses who entered covert government service with an inactive law enforcement background and specialized skill sets of a nature that possess few if any training manuals.

The ACLU of which I am a member has tried to bring four previous cases involving non-criminal federal witnesses through the Washington, D.C. office. With each lawsuit brought by the ACLU, the Bush-Cheney administration has issued national security letters to prevent the legal discovery of evidence and thus subverted the rule of law. However, in my possession is the actual physical evidence that includes but is not limited to federal court documents proving the outing of my covert status; the federal court documents of the first WitSec Inspector (J.D.); lawfully produced audiotape recordings of WitSec personnel and others; and the proof of warrantless wiretapping, data mining, the electronic theft of intellectual property; et al. One should remember General Douglas MacArthur’s island hopping campaign during WWII. As that relates to this matter, I am bypassing a slugfest with Goliath that would only serve to hold me in stasis with my foot in the courtroom door. Instead I invite all freethinking human beings to a Greek debate in the court of public opinion. Criticism and contemplation are necessary to keep a flourishing democracy alive. Let the U.S. government bring forth its best criminal cowards to stand on the square with me in open examination before the American people and the world.

THE TREASON OF CONDOLEEZZA RICE:

It is also my intention to challenge the blatant lies told before the U.S. Congress by Condoleezza Rice regarding the administration’s knowledge of events prior to 911 – the FBI and CIA did have operational joint counterterrorism taskforce offices since the mid 90s.

“A litany of lies about 911, Iraq and now Iran – There is one point that I am compelled to insert within this document beyond the scope of its primary focus and here seems as good a place as anywhere. A covert FBI Special Agent and former teammate in charge of two special operations groups who worked in the field with me and whom I supported in the hunt for Eric Robert Rudolph also known as the Olympic Park Bomber, revealed during the mid 90s that both the FBI and CIA had established joint counterterrorism taskforce offices to exchange foreign and domestic intelligence. This fact directly contradicts Condoleezza Rice’s testimony before congress regarding the August 6, 2001 PDB Briefing Report titled “Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S.”, during which Rice stated that a fractionalization existed between federal agencies, which prevented intelligence information from being communicated to the Bush administration. The most blatant lie came when Rice stated that no joint FBI/CIA taskforce offices existed before or during that time, while alleging joint taskforce offices were being established forthwith. Further supporting a charge of perjury against Condoleezza Rice and I believe grounds for treason, appears to be former CIA Director, George Tenet’s public testimony regarding actionable intelligence in July 2001 regarding Osama bin Laden’s plan to attack American targets using commercial jetliners. July 2001 marked the last time that I flew on a commercial aircraft on my way to lecture at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia and an occasion when I exchanged passing remarks with former U.S. Senator Gary Hart sitting near me. The actionable intelligence was clearly suppressed by the Bush-Cheney administration. In other words, given these facts and the known associations between the 911 Terrorists; the family of Osama bin Laden; the Saudi Arabian Royal family; the United Arab Emirates (poised to purchase 25% of Citibank and 40% of the U.S. and British Stock Markets); and the oil trading partners, personal friends and business associates within the Bush-Cheney syndicate it appears that the United States of America was allowed to be attacked by a foreign enemy to act as a protagonist event for the perpetuation of war profiteering and oil piracy. Therefore I strongly believe that if the unveiled enemies of the American people were not politically shielded, they would have already been prosecuted for treason, conspiracy, racketeering, money laundering, operating a continuing criminal enterprise, international terrorism, and crimes against humanity.”

SPECIAL NOTE CONCERNING IRAN:

Before the 2006 election the U.S. Intelligence agencies already knew that Iran did not have a “secret nuclear weapons program.” That report was presented to the Bush-Cheney administration and was politically suppressed with instructions given between the lines to craft new evidence. The facts are that Iran’s nuclear enrichment program has not been able to achieve a greater rate than 3.8% enrichment, which is even a lower percentage than what is required to bring a peaceful nuclear power plant online and far less than the enrichment level needed to produce a nuclear weapon. The psychology of substituting sexuality for the creation of illegal wars with oil rich sovereign nations, seems the iconic aphrodisiac of this administration when laminating that over sixty-eight elected Republican politicians have been charged and convicted of sexual crimes against children; that George W. Bush, a known cocaine user (sexual stimulant), deserted his post in the Air Nation Guard when they began drug testing; that both Bush and Cheney took multiple deferments from military service during Vietnam so that other Americans could die in their places; that Dick Cheney made use of a Freudian phallic extension in the form of a shotgun to shot his friend in the head during a hunting expedition; that Dick Cheney has a pneumatic penile implant to achieve an erection; and that the nude photograph of George W. Bush in college displays an unremarkable penis. Add these factors together with the absolute power over the U.S. military and the world will recognize a six headed monster with twelve hearts that numbers 666 and produces the political fodder that destroys the sovereign thought process, creates a toxic society and consumes the collective human soul. Plainly stated devil cannot exist without followers.

MY REQUEST TO MEDIA, UNIVERSITIES, PUBLISHERS, MOVIE PRODUCERS, AND THE WORLD OF HUMAN BEINGS:

While my reaching out might become the closing scene in a lifelong journey to become more human, knowingly I choose my own death over remaining a torture victim and slave within an uncultivatable existence where self-nurturing and remaining true to one’s own nature is an impossibility. The Democratic Congressional members that I helped elect have remained silent with the full knowledge of this matter and only a handful of good human beings seem to be listening for the moment. Already a subordinate federal agent directly under the Bush-Cheney administration has telephonically threatened that if I publish a book the government will invent a criminal charge against me. This is not the America that I defended and have nourished. Nevertheless if we are to remain a world of human beings, we the people must publically exam the U.S. government’s ongoing psychological torture of up to 1,080 Non-Criminal Federal Witnesses who are American citizens and your good neighbors. Currently I have established online locations on YouTube, Tribe.net, Comcast, and have posted on the message board at The Ed Schultz Show website where these American citizens can share their stories with other human beings and possibly begin to reclaim their individual sense of self-identity through these communication platforms. One non-criminal federal witness has already communicated they are hiding outside the U.S. to protect themselves from U.S. government torture. Recently I attempted to communicate with a well known actor’s movie studio and was informed that I must have a listed creative agent to represent my story before they will be legally able to communicate with me. Therefore and in as much that I would dare to hope to restore my own life back to the place where it should have already been, I am seeking the representation of a listed Creative Agent, Business Negotiations with members from the Publishing and Motion Picture Industries, and a University Initiative from an accredited School of Journalism where I might combine all of these components within a flourishing academic setting to create a lecture syllabus and continue writing. Please do not think me a selfish person, because I have remained one of the most extroverted and giving human beings you could ever know. This academic and professional prospectus has endured as my long-range plan since beginning this journalism project and is one of the few reasons why I have not ended my own life after experiencing something cousin to an extraordinary rendition to a clandestine blacksite torture facility that exists invisibly within the plain-sight of American society. Please do not let this story die with me and challenge the validity of any member of the Democratic Congress for their repeated failures to respond to several action notices regarding this matter.

Beyond the above I wish to offer one final piece of personal information. When I relocated to this area I had no intention of becoming involved with anyone and had anticipated reclaiming my academic standing to achieve my goals in life. While visiting a local bookstore and coffee house, I met the finest human being whom I have ever known and today that person is my wife. Together we raised our young child from her previous marriage and I have been blessed by the experience of being a father. Had it not been for my wife’s medical insurance I would not be here today writing this story. My wife retires at the end of this year and our child is now attending a university. What that means for me living on a fixed monthly annuity income and having been waited out by the WitSec while my saving depleted is that I will not be able to afford the additional $600.00 a month for my portion of the medical insurance policy. Further I have been unable to move in any direction to build the life that I wanted from the resulting harms caused by the WitSec cocoon that I will address in detail within the redacted report that follows. To protect my family and legally separate myself from my wife in the event of recurring illness, I am preparing to file the divorce papers on my desk. Never will I forgive or forget that the U.S. government under the Bush-Cheney administration has systematically deconstructed my family and prevented my equality as a person and an American citizen while psychologically torturing me in ways that have already killed other Americans who are non-criminal federal witnesses through suicide and medical neglect. This deconstruction of my family unit is comparatively symbolic to the overthrow of the U.S. government infrastructure by the international crime consortium and the same coconspiratorial war profiteers who attacked the United States of America on September 11, 2001. Having lived so long as the shell of an American citizen in title only, if I am unable to be made whole again in America, then as a torture victim and dissident under political persecution I am prepared to request asylum from the government of Canada. Should that fail and if I cannot be restored then I am ready to leave this world for the peace of oblivion and wish each of you mozel tov.

THE QUESTION HAS BEEN ASKED BY A GROWING NUMBER OF HUMAN BROTHERS AND SISTERS, WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP YOU?

First please do not attempt to send any money I believe that it is possible to earn a living with the years invested in this story and I prefer paying my own way, which has remained the purpose of my labors while enduring U.S. government torture. Profoundly from a place of extreme isolation your concerns are priceless gifts that have touched me deeper than words could possibly express and I truly feel your human warmth and compassion.

Beyond that human inclusion the most important act of support is not to let this story die from a lack of response or another empty promise by the congress just so this matter will be “disappeared” like the 1,080 American patriots who are non-criminal federal witnesses in the Federal Witness Protection Program. Please meditate for the good energy of the universe to encompass the lives of all human beings and continue to contact any person or organization who will if nothing else at least feel the truth of this torture story: Democratic Party headquarters around the nation; elected representatives who truly wish to remain in office; U.S. and international human rights organizations; members of the progressive news media (The Ed Schultz Show, Air America Radio, Democracy Now, The Nation Magazine, I.N.N. International News Net, Studs Terkel, the ACLU, Civil Rights Attorneys; etc.); the free and independent sovereign nations of the world (Vancouver BC, Canada, UK, Italy, Spain; etc.); the International Court of Justice aka the World Court and Cour internationale de Justice; and any other conduit of communication that might wish to know, share or actuate this true story.

Ms. Oprah Winfrey and Mr. George Clooney are two people whom I admire for their humanitarian and creative contributions to the world. With their support this story will not be silenced and human lives will be saved. Please send each of them “one” simple note requesting their support of the “Black File 7001” story and include my website and e-mail addresses. The movie “Syriana” spoke to me at a very personal level with Bob’s betrayal by the government he served that ultimately resulted in his death. Oprah Winfrey's all-girl leadership academy in South Africa is only one of the endless humanitarian contributions made to the world by this great human being. The education system has played a significant part of my life with a trilingual professional educator in my immediate family, a child currently attending a university and my own employment with the FBI in the third year of a fulltime academic curriculum. The purpose of that covert government service was initiated to prevent national and international organized crime organizations from distributing methamphetamine within the public school systems and throughout the United States of America.

For a time I prevented the false prophets who professed a love of children and humanity from preying on the innocent, but the “war on drugs” like the “war on terrorism” are only political mantras meant to perpetuate and fatten the cash cows of government profiteers.

PLEASE CONTACT MR. GEORGE CLOONEY WITH ONE LETTER ONLY:

Agent:
Mr. George Clooney
C/o Bryan Lourd
Creative Artists Agency
2000 Avenue of the Stars
Los Angeles, CA 90067
424.288.2000
424.288.2900 fax

Publicist:
Mr. George Clooney
C/o Stan Rosenfield & Associates
2029 Century Park East
Suite 1190
Los Angeles, CA 90067 USA
310.286.7474
310.286.2255 fax

Movie Studio:
Smoke House
Attn: Mr. George Clooney
C/o Warner Bros.
4000 Warner Blvd., Bldg. 15
Burbank, California 91522 USA
818.954.4840
818.954.4860 fax

PLEASE CONTACT MS. OPRAH WINFREY WITH ONE LETTER ONLY:

The Oprah Winfrey Show
Attn: Ms. Oprah Winfrey
http://www.oprah.com/email/email_landing.jhtml

BLACK FILE 7001 CONTACT INFORMATION:

E-mail:
BlackFile7001@comcast.net

Tribe.net:
http://people.tribe.net/49395906-0c49-4c98-b92a-79f37b7927cb

You Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/BlackFile7001

Comcast: Currently blocking my ability to establish a website online.

The Ed Schultz Show (Message Boards – “The Media” Section)
http://www.bigeddieradio.com

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Banning Sharia (Islamic) Law in the US

Rocky — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 22:43:02 GMT

Banning Sharia (Islamic) Law in the US

"A proposal to deal with the threat posed by Islamic Jihadists residing in America and the security risks associated with open or effectively open borders.

SNIP

"Whereas, Islam is a political ideology combined with certain religious beliefs; further, this political ideology and religious belief system is based historically and traditionally on Shari’a or the Islamic Way, the full corpus of Islamic law dealing with all aspects of a Muslim’s personal and social life and political society.

Whereas, Islam as a political ideology is maintained, supported, and promulgated by Shari’a, which in turn requires all Muslims to actively and passively support the establishment of a political society based upon Shari’a as a replacement of any political entity not governed and governing by Shari’a.

Whereas, Islam requires all Muslims to actively and passively support the replacement of America’s constitutional republic with a political system based upon Shari’a.

Whereas, Islam and Shari’a in particular includes a war doctrine known as Jihad, which is an organic, intrinsic and central feature of the laws and traditions of Shari’a.

Whereas, Jihad and Shari’a are inextricably linked, with Shari’a formulating and commanding Jihad, and Jihad being waged for the purpose of imposing and instituting Shari’a.

Whereas, the unchanging and ultimate aim of Jihad is the imposition of Shari’a on all states and nations, including the United States; further, pursuant to its own dictates, Shari’a requires the abrogation, destruction, or violation of the US Constitution or the destruction of the national existence of the United States of America.

Whereas, the imposition of Shari’a on non-Islamic states is to be brought about both by criminal and violent means, including terrorism, and by lawful and non-violent means, including immigration-fed population growth and the resulting increase of Islamic political influence and power.

Whereas, adherence to Islam as a Muslim is adherence to Shari’a and to Jihad;

Whereas, adherence to Islam as a Muslim is prima facie evidence of an act in support of the overthrow of the US Government through the abrogation, destruction, or violation of the US Constitution and the imposition of Shari’a on the American People.

THEREFORE, IT IS RESOLVED THAT:

[1] A “Muslim” shall be defined as any person who adheres to Islam or acts in support of the adherence to Islam or who makes any written or oral declaration in support of the adherence to Islam. The “Muslim Nation” or “Umma” shall be defined as all Muslims.

[2] “Adherence to Islam” shall be defined as any act, including any written or oral declaration, in support of Shari’a or in furtherance of the imposition of Shari’a within any territory of the United States of America. “Territory of the United States of America” shall be defined as any territory under the civilian or military control or governance of personnel acting for and on behalf of the US Government.

[3] “Shari’a” shall be defined as any set of rules, precepts, instructions, or edicts which emanate directly or indirectly from the god of Allah or the prophet Mohammed and which include directly or indirectly the encouragement of any person to support in any way the abrogation, destruction, or violation of the US Constitution or the destruction of the national existence of the United States of America. Any rule, precept, instruction, or edict arising from the extant rulings of any of the five authoritative schools of Islamic jurisprudence (the Hanafi, the Maliki, the Shafi'i, the Hanbali, or the Ja’afariya school or fiqh) are prima facie Shari’a without any further evidentiary showing.

[4] It shall be a felony punishable by 20 years in prison to knowingly act in furtherance of, or to support the, adherence to Islam.

[5] The Congress of the United States of America shall declare the US at war with the Muslim Nation or Umma.

[6] The President of the United States of America shall immediately declare that all non-US citizen Muslims are Alien Enemies under Chapter 3 of Title 50 of the US Code and shall be subject to immediate deportation.

[7] No Muslim shall be granted an entry visa into the United States of America.

[8] Congress shall appropriate sufficient funds to seal all of the borders of the United States of America. The Executive shall be empowered to apply those funds to accomplish the task within a time certain or face criminal penalties.

[9] Special criminal camps shall be constructed for convicted illegal immigrants. Any illegal immigrant convicted of knowingly entering the US illegally will be imprisoned for 3 years and then deported. Any alien convicted of knowingly overstaying a visa will be imprisoned one year and then deported. Any US person or entity which knowingly employs illegal aliens shall be guilty of a felony and fined no less than $50,000 and subject to one year imprisonment for each offense. Catch-and-release programs will end immediately.

[10] Illegal aliens in the country now will be given 60 days to exit the country without prosecution. Any illegal alien caught after the 60 day grace period shall be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. After the passage and enactment of this Act in its entirety, Congress and the Executive shall be free to devise a special worker entry program for temporary workers if the program has a fully computerized and digitalized bio-metric program for monitoring the work forces' entry and exit."

http://www.saneworks.us/SANE-Immigration-Proposal-article-379-1.htm

http://www.saneworks.us

---------------------------------------------

The Truth About Islam - blog

"We hear so much folderol these days about Islam being a "peaceful religion." The fact is that Islam is anti-human and anti-woman - the most anti-human and anti-woman ideology on the face of the earth today. We need merely repeat a number of quotes from the Koran itself in order to prove these points."
http://tbknews.blogspot.com

"The Roots of Islam: Is Islam a religion of peace? What are the origins of Islam? Who was Mohammed?"
http://www.truthbeknown.com/islam.htm

"Quotes on Islam: What does the Koran say about "infidels?" Is Islam a "religion of peace?"
http://www.truthbeknown.com/islamquotes.htm

* DHIMWIT - "dhim·wit (dmwt ) - A non-Muslim member of a free society that abets the stated cause of Islamic domination with remarkable gullibility or guile. A dhimwit is always quick to extend sympathy to the very enemy that would take away his or her own freedom (or life) if given the opportunity."
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/Pages/Dhimwits.htm

- I have yet to come across any Independent news sources detailing the "Peacefulness" or the "Beauty" of Islam. It's always from Muslims or "DHIMWITS" spreading propaganda trying to convince us of it.

;

posted in ACLU - 5 replies

Top Ten “Fry Mumia” Myths Debunked (Myth #1) “Five eyewitnesses saw Mumia shoot officer Faulkner.”

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 04:10:05 GMT

Top Ten “Fry Mumia” Myths Debunked
(Myth #1) “Five eyewitnesses saw Mumia shoot officer Faulkner.”

By Steven Argue

The following is the first in a series of ten articles I have written answering the top ten myths being circulated by those who advocate execution or continued prison for Mumia Abu-Jamal.

(Myth #1) “Five eyewitnesses saw Mumia shoot officer Faulkner.”

In the preliminary hearings, Mumia made requests for a line-up. This is not the kind of move one does if they are guilty. Part of Mumia’s reasoning was that eyewitnesses that were lying would have a harder time with their conscience if they actually saw him in the flesh.

Interestingly enough, the prosecution didn’t want a line-up and argued their point saying that none of the witnesses had actually seen Mumia shoot Faulkner. Judge Sabo denied the line-ups on these grounds. Yet two “eyewitnesses”, Cynthia White and Robert Chobert, did claim they saw Mumia shoot Faulkner, so Mumia was unfairly denied a line-up.

Supposed Witness To Mumia Shooting Faulkner Number One…
Prosecution Star Witness Cynthia White

Despite the false claims by the prosecution used to deny a line-up, Cynthia White did testify that she saw Mumia with a gun in his hand, that she saw him shoot Faulkner twice in the back, and that she saw Mumia standing over Faulkner as shots were being fired. Overwhelming physical and eyewitness evidence proves that this was perjured testimony.

The prosecution’s version of events, largely dependent on White’s testimony, claims that Mumia stood over Faulkner repeatedly shooting and missing until he hit Faulkner’s head. Yet the physical evidence says this is not true. No divots or marks were left on the sidewalk from these missed shots. Later articles will explore this and other physical evidence further.

As a prosecution witness, Cynthia White gave two extremely different versions of events at two different trials. One version was given at William Cook’s trial, and a differing version at Mumia’s trial. At Cook’s trial she said there was a passenger in Cook’s VW. At Mumia’s trial she claimed there was no passenger.

In the case of Mumia, eyewitnesses have said that the passenger in Cook’s VW was one of the actual killers. Yet Mumia was not riding in the VW and the prosecution claims that Mumia was the lone killer. So in Mumia’s trial, it was useful for the prosecution to disappear the passenger from the testimony, despite White’s other testimony that there was a passenger. These two differing versions, obviously including perjured testimony, were cynically used by prosecutors to fit differing prosecutions.

There is also physical evidence of a passenger in the VW, evidence that was illegally suppressed by the prosecution for 13 years. That evidence was an ID found on the body of Officer Faulkner. It was in the name of Arnold Howard. As a result of this evidence, Arnold Howard was arrested by the police and tested to see if he had fired a gun the night of the shooting. Arnold Howard told the police that he had loaned his ID to Kenneth Freeman. (Transcript for August 11, 1995, pp. 130-131.)

In addition, Arnold Howard testified at that post conviction hearing that Kenneth Freeman was also arrested that night, and that Howard personally witnessed a woman picking Freeman out of a line-up. Like Arnold Howard’s ID, police reports of this arrest and line-up of Kenneth Freeman have also apparently been suppressed, but in this case have never been released.

The VW driver, William Cook, also placed Kenneth Freeman as the passenger in the VW. In Cook’s signed declaration of what happened he also says Freeman was carrying a .38 that night. Cook went on to say, in that declaration, that after the shooting,

“Poppi [Kenneth Freeman] talked about a plan to kill Faulkner. He told me that he was armed on that night and participated in the shooting. He was connected and knew all kinds of people. I used to ask him about it but he talked but never said much. He wasn't a talker. I didn't see Poppi [Kenneth Freeman] for a while after that. Poppi [Kenneth Freeman] had been in Germany in the army. That night he was wearing his green army jacket.”

Eyewitness William Singletary says that a man in a green army jacket got out of the VW, shot Faulkner, and ran. Mumia Abu-Jamal was not wearing an army jacket that night and not riding in the VW. Nor did Mumia run away, he was shot and ran nowhere. The jacket Mumia was wearing is in evidence and it is a red quilted ski jacket with a couple blue stripes. Nor was William Cook, the driver of the VW, wearing a green army jacket.

The prosecution’s version of events denies anyone on the scene wearing a green army jacket. Besides Singletary and Cook, five other eyewitnesses also put a man in a green army jacket on the scene. These were stake out Officer Forbes (the putative first officer to arrive), Officer Stephen Trembetta, Robert Magiltan, Michael Scanlan, and Arnold Beverly, who has confessed to being one of two people that killed Faulkner. Beverly states in his confession that he was also wearing a green army jacket that night as well.

In addition, the prosecution’s version of events denies anyone running from the scene.
Six eyewitnesses contradict this by saying they saw men running from the scene. These would have been the real shooter or shooters. Those eyewitnesses are Dessie Hightower, William Singletary, Veronica Jones, Robert Chobert, Arnold Beverly, and William Cook.

So the prosecution’s star witness testified for the prosecution that there was a passenger at Cook’s trial, and said there was no passenger at Mumia’s trial. Eyewitness testimony and physical evidence suppressed by the prosecution shows there was a passenger wearing a green army jacket that shot Faulkner and ran. That passenger, Kenneth Freeman, murdered Officer Faulkner either by himself or with the help of Arnold Beverly. On May 14, 1985, according to the testimony of Arnold Howard, Kenneth Freeman’s naked corpse was found outside in the cold handcuffed. No investigation was carried out on Freeman’s death and the coroner reported the cause of death to be a heart attack.

So it is established, with her contradictory stories, that Cynthia White was not telling the truth. This would be bad enough. But, in fact, none of the nine eyewitnesses that testified at the trial and subsequent hearings can remember seeing Cynthia White at the immediate scene at all. None, this includes the other prosecution witnesses.

William Singletary states that he saw her earlier down the street. When he saw her she said, “Hey, how you doing? It's cold out here.” Then noticing his car she said “a brand-new Cadillac Eldorado, 1982 model, wow, that's a great car! You ain't that bad-looking either. But I don't date black guys.” To which Singletary says he responded, “And I don't date prostitutes.” Singletary says that she then walked down the street and didn’t actually see the shooting. ("Witness: Abu-Jamal didn't do it" Philadelphia Daily News Dec. 8, 2006)

In fact, Cynthia White confessed to both Pamela Jenkins and Yvette Williams that she did not see the shooting and that the police put the screws to her to lie. In addition, a mountain of testimony shows a clear pattern by the police to try to get similar perjured testimony from other people.

In a hearing after the trial Pamela Jenkins testified, “I know that Cynthia White worked as a prostitute in the Center City area, specifically at Locust and 13th Street, during 1980 and 1981, and that she was a prostitute, police informant, and turned tricks for the police officers in the district.”

If in fact Cynthia White was a police informant, and this information was withheld from the defense by the prosecution, that alone would be legal grounds for a new trial, but it gets much worse.

Jenkins testified at hearings in 1997 that Police Officer Thomas Ryan tried to make her testify that she saw Mumia shoot Officer Faulkner at the original trial, even though she was not at the scene of the shooting. Jenkins, 15 and a prostitute, was the girlfriend of Officer Ryan at that time. She also testified that she worked both as a prostitute for police and as a police informant for the corrupt Center City Police.

Jenkins also testified that Cynthia White told her in late 1981 that she was also being pressured to testify against Mumia, and that White was afraid for her life.

In a signed affidavit Jenkins states,

“Tom Ryan, Richard Ryan and other police officers pressured me and asked me if I had seen the shooting of the police officer and whether I had been in the area of the shooting that night. When I said 'no' they pressured (me) some more and asked me was I really sure that I hadn't been on the street that night and seen the shooting. It was clear to me that Tom Ryan and Richard Ryan wanted me to perjure myself and say that I had seen Jamal shoot the police officer."

Despite showing a clear intention by the police to frame Mumia, no jury has been allowed to hear Jenkins’ testimony in Mumia’s case. Not only is Pamela Jenkin's testimony essential evidence of a deliberate police conspiracy to frame Mumia by manufacturing perjured evidence, it also helps to destroy the testimony of the prosecution’s star witness, Cynthia White.

Jenkins' credibility has, however, been bolstered by the fact that she was a key witness used to unravel the massive police corruption in Center City District. Her testimony was instrumental in reversing the decisions of hundreds of cases and helped lead to the removal of the entire team of cops that led the “investigation” of Mumia’s case due to their corruption and mob connections.

Other eyewitnesses have said the same thing as Jenkins. In a signed affidavit Yvette Williams has stated,

“I was in jail with Cynthia White in December of 1981 after Police Officer Daniel Faulkner was shot and killed. Cynthia White told me the police were making her lie and say she saw Mr. Jamal shoot Officer Faulkner when she really did not see who did it.”

Later in the Affidavit Yvette Williams states,

“When Lucky [Cynthia White] told me she didn’t even see who shot Officer Faulkner, I asked her why she was “lying on that man” [Mumia Abu-Jamal]. She told me it was because for the police and vice threatened her life. Additionally, the police were giving her money for tricks. “The way she talked, we were talking “G’s” [$1,000.00]. She also said she was terrified of what the police would do to her if she didn’t say that Mumia shot Officer Faulkner. According to Lucky, the police told her they would consolidate all her cases and send her “up” (Muncy), a women’s prison, for a long time if she didn’t testify to what they told her to say. Lucky told me she had a lot of open cases and out-of-state warrants and was scared of going to Muncy. She was scared that her pimp “would get pissed off” at all the money he was losing when she was locked up, and off the street. She was afraid that when she got out he would beat her up or kill her.”

According to legal papers filed by the defense,

“in the days after the shooting, [White] was arrested at least twice for prostitution. Her picture was posted in the 6th District with instructions for arresting officers to 'Contact Homicide'. Each time police picked White up and took her statement, she revised her story [on Faulkner's shooting]. Without explanation, bench warrants against her were not prosecuted.”

Pamela Jenkins has publicly asked Cynthia White to tell the truth stating:

“We know we can bring this down to a nutshell if you just come forward. We've all lost a lot by coming forward, I've lost somebody I love dearly... Just do it this one time, one favor, that's not asking a lot. Then maybe you can clean up your past, like the rest of us are doing.”

The prosecution does seem to be afraid of Cynthia White coming forward to tell the truth, and have presented false testimony of evidence that she is dead. In a hearing in Judge Sabo’s court, a Philadelphia police detective testified that the FBI had "authenticated" that a corpse had the same fingerprints as White. Yet the fingerprints the DA withheld at that time, and later finally produced for the now cremated corpse, don’t match the fingerprints of Cynthia White.

Cynthia White’s own mother stated that the same corpse was not Cynthia White. Other eyewitnesses, that the defense attempted to have testify, testimony denied by Sabo, had seen Cynthia White alive and walking around during the time she was supposed to be dead. Yet instead of hearing defense witnesses that stated that Cynthia White was alive, the only testimony Sabo would allow was the false testimony of the Philadelphia detective claiming “authenticated” fingerprints. Sabo snapped, “As far as I’m concerned she’s dead. I’m making a ruling. We’re finished.” Evidence has never meant much in Judge Sabo’s court, if the prosecution says she’s dead, she’s dead.

So the evidence on Cynthia White shows that she could not have seen the shooting; that Mumia was wrongly denied his right to a line-up; that the police intimidated White and others to testify against Mumia; that the police that “investigated” Mumia have been kicked off the force for corruption; that Cynthia White had a motive to lie; that the police possibly withheld information that Cynthia White was a police informant; that the DA illegally withheld physical evidence for 13 years that showed that White’s testimony was perjured and that showed that Mumia did not commit the crime; that the DA knowingly used testimony from White that was perjured; and that claims of the prosecution and police were accepted without evidence or witness rebuttal in Judge Sabo’s court.

Essential Eyewitnesses Ignored By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number One, Pamela Jenkins

I include Pamela Jenkins in this list, not because the “fry Mumia” camp includes her among the eyewitnesses that supposedly saw Mumia kill Faulkner, but because they don’t, and why they don’t. As was shown in the section on Cynthia White, the police tried to pressure here into testifying that she saw Mumia kill Faulkner, even though Jenkins was not at the scene of the shooting, but Jenkins refused to do it. The honesty of Jenkins is the only reason why the prosecution did not use her, and this also why she is not mentioned in the “fry Mumia” literature as seeing Mumia shoot Faulkner.

Essential Eyewitnesses Ignored By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number Two, Veronica Jones

Veronica Jones also is not mentioned in the fry Mumia literature, but she is also a very important eyewitness. Jones, while being called by the defense in 1982, testified for the police and prosecution.

Before the trial, Veronica Jones gave a completely different version of events than was contained in an earlier police report. In her original version of events, contained in a report she gave to police, Veronica Jones said she saw two men running from the scene. Yet at the trial the two men running were missing from her testimony. This came as a complete surprise to the defense because Mumia’s supposed attorney, Anthony Jackson, did not even bother to interview witnesses before the trial. Earlier in the trial Mumia was denied his legal rights when his attempt to fire Anthony Jackson was denied by Judge Sabo.

Jones retracted her 1982 court testimony in 1996, saying that her original police report was the truth, and that she was coerced by the police into saying she didn’t see anybody running from the scene. She gave this testimony despite being forcefully reminded by Judge Sabo that her testimony could be seen as an admission of perjury and could land her seven years in prison. She was in fact arrested from the witness stand, but for a bounced check from a different state, being served with an insufficient warrant by out of state New Jersey State Troopers.

Despite the police harassment, and a review of her entire criminal history on the witness stand, including her life as a prostitute, Jones brought her children to court to learn from her mistakes. She explained that she was relieved to be setting things straight because what she did to Mumia with her false testimony had been eating her up inside over all those years.

On the stand, admitting to perjury, Jones explained that she was awaiting trial for an unrelated robbery charge in 1982 when police detectives approached her in her cell offering to give her a deal by changing her story as a witness in Mumia’s case. She had originally stated that she heard two shots, looked around the corner, and saw two men running from the scene. The two men running fit the version of William Singletary where he saw someone else shoot Mumia and run, but it didn’t fit the police/prosecution story being woven against Mumia. Mumia was unable to run because he was shot.

She explained that the deal offered by the police was that she could go to prison for five to ten years and loose custody of her two young children or she could get out of the predicament by lying for the police saying that nobody was running from the scene.

Despite the importance of the testimony of Veronica Jones in Mumia’s case, both in corroborating eyewitnesses that say the actual killer or killers ran from the scene, and as another witness testifying to a clear pattern of police intimidation to acquire falsified testimony, Sabo ruled in 1996 against her testimony being heard by a new jury trial.

Likewise, in the original trial, Sabo ruled in favor of prosecution objections when Veronica Jones was already admitting to being the target of the police in their attempts at gaining false testimony:

"I had got locked up [together with other prostitutes] I think it was in January [1982]. […] I think sometime after that incident. They were getting on me telling me I was in the area and I seen Mumia, you know, do it, intentionally. They were trying to get me to say something that the other girl [Cynthia White] said. I couldn’t do that."

As Jackson continued this questioning Veronica Jones said, “we had brought up Cynthia [White]’s name and they told us we can work the area [as prostitutes] if we tell them [what the police wanted to hear].” At this point Judge Sabo ruled in favor of prosecutor McGill’s objections and would only allow further questions of Veronica Jones on what she saw the night of the shooting. As from the beginning of the trial, ruling after ruling has declared, police misconduct is not open to scrutiny and a court of law is no place for evidence of Mumia’s innocence.

Supposed Witness To Mumia Shooting Faulkner Number Two, Michael Scanlon

The use of Michael Scanlon’s name in “fry Mumia” literature as a witness to Mumia committing the murder is nothing but the purest cynicism. Michael Scanlon did not identify Mumia as the person who shot Faulkner, and could not say that the person he saw shoot Faulkner was Mumia. At the trial, when asked by prosecutor Mcgill, “Are you able to identify anybody, either the driver, or the man who ran over and shot the police officer?” Scanlon replied, “No, sir.” (trial transcript, 6/25/82).

Michael Scanlon’s testimony actually puts further holes in the prosecution’s story by placing someone in a green army jacket in the immediate scene of the shooting around the VW. According to the prosecution only Mumia, Cook, and Faulkner were present at this location, but the evidence shows that one or two people were present wearing green army jackets that killed Faulkner before Mumia arrived. The jackets Mumia and Cook were wearing are in evidence and they do not resemble green army jackets.

Supposed Witness To Mumia Shooting Faulkner Number Three, Albert Magiltan

Like Scanlon, Magiltan is used in the “fry Mumia” literature as a witness to Mumia committing the murder, and like Scanlan, Magilton did not identify Mumia as the person who shot Faulkner. When Magiltan was asked at the trial, "you don't know who fired the shot at him, do you?" Albert Magiltan responded, "I never said I did, no." (trial transcript, 6/25/82). Magiltan didn’t even see the shooting.

Magilton did, however, report to defense investigators that he saw a person run from the parking lot wearing a green army jacket. This fits the confession of Arnold Beverly, who says he ran out from the parking lot, wearing a green army jacket, to shoot Faulkner.

Essential Eyewitness Ignored By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number Three, Police Officer Stephen Trombetta

Police Officer Stephen Trombetta reported that the suspect was wearing a green army jacket as opposed to Mumia’s red and blue ski jacket.

In addition, Trombetta rode with Mumia in the van to the hospital. Inspector Alfonso Giordano, the senior officer on the scene in charge of the Mumia “investigation”, reported that on that van ride Mumia had confessed to shooting Faulkner. Giordano was removed from the Philadelphia Police and prosecuted for corruption immediately after Mumia’s trial. P.O. Trembetta was with Mumia during that entire van ride and, in direct contradiction to Giordano’s claim of a confession, reported that Mumia made no comment.

Essential Eyewitness Despised By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number Four, William Singletary

While William Singletary did sign a statement saying that Mumia did it, he later stated that he signed that statement under the duress of police threats. Of that statement he says, “That's what they made me say, I stayed in there [in a police interrogation room] from 4:30 to 9:30 a.m. and when I left, I felt like I had been raped.”

William Singletary has since stated, "Mumia Abu-Jamal didn't shoot Daniel Faulkner. The passenger in the right-hand side of the Volkswagen got out of the car and shot him [Faulkner]. When Mumia came on the scene, we [Singletary and another man] were on the police radio trying to radio for help." ("Witness: Abu-Jamal didn't do it" Philadelphia Daily News Dec. 8, 2006)

Despite signing the statement, Singletary refused to lie for the police during the trial. Yet the “fry Mumia” camp often cite Singletary as an eyewitness against Mumia stating that his statement (that he says the police typed up and told him to sign) was so similar to those of the other “eyewitnesses” that his first signed statement had to be the truth and that what Singletary has been insisting for the past 25 years is a lie.

Singletary says that he is willing to take a lie detector test, but he is afraid of coming to Philadelphia. He says the Philadelphia police harassed his business to the point that it went under while also threatening him and warning him to get out of town. He did eventually move to North Carolina and says, “I'm not coming to Philadelphia unless y'all got Wells Fargo and Lords of London" for protection.

Supposed Witness To Mumia Shooting Faulkner Number Four, Robert Chobert

In his initial report taken by Inspector Alfonzo Giordono, five minutes after the shooting, Robert Chobert stated that the man that shot Mumia ran away. Mumia, who was shot at the scene, never did any running.

Later, Robert Chobert changed his story to that of the prosecution. The shooter no longer was running away and the jury was never allowed to hear Chobert’s original report.

Robert Chobert, a convicted arsonist that was driving on a suspended license and was on felony probation at the time of the shooting, has also recanted his testimony according to a sworn statement by Mark Newman.

At the time of Mumia’s trial, Chobert was on felony probation for the firebombing of a school. Revocation of that probation could have meant over 20 years in prison. Chobert was in fact violating that probation by unlawfully driving his taxi on a suspended license that night. Thus, Chobert would have been easily manipulated by the police and/or by the prosecution.

Under penalty of perjury, Mark Newman stated in a signed affidavit that, “Chobert told me that he did not see anyone standing over a prone Officer Faulkner, firing shots at the officer. Chobert said that what actually happened was that he was sitting in his taxi when he heard gunfire.” And that he did not actually see the shooting.

According to that signed affidavit of Mark Newman, Chobert didn't see Mumia shoot Faulkner, wasn't parked behind Faulkner as he said he was at the trial, and that Chobert gave the police that false testimony they wanted to avoid having his parole revoked.

Physical evidence, as well as eyewitness testimony, proves that Chobert's cab was not parked behind Faulkner's as Chobert claimed in court. This evidence includes 31 recently released photos taken by photojournalist Pedro Polakoff just minutes after the shooting. These photos clearly show that Chobert's cab was not parked behind Faulkner’s police car as Chobert had claimed in court.

This corroborates the testimony of Mark Newman when he states, "Chobert told me that on December 9, 1981, he had actually been parked, in his taxi, on 13th Street, north of Locust (contradicting his trial testimony that he was parked behind Officer Faulkner's police car on Locust St., east of 13th Street.)" This is also relevant to Chobert not having the vantage for seeing the shooting.

Newman’s testimony is also corroborated by Chobert’s legal troubles and a clear pattern by the police to offer similar deals to other witnesses including three eyewitnesses, Pamela Jenkins, William Singletary, and Veronica Jones, stating publicly, and Cynthia White also stating privately, that they were coerced, threatened, or otherwise offered deals by the cops to give false testimony.

The police officer that got the “identification” of Mumia from Robert Chobert was Alfonzo Giordano. In the original police report that has the shooter running from the scene, Robert Chobert is said by Giordano to say it was the guy from MOVE that did it. Giordano was removed from the force and prosecuted for corruption related to the mob, a corruption probe that turned over many other police/prosecution convictions. In addition, Giordano had been involved in political operations against Philadelphia MOVE and the Black Panther Party. As such, Giordano would have instantly recognized Mumia, a former Black Panther and an independent journalist that had exposed police wrong doing against MOVE.

In a revealing set of moves Giordano was never called as a witness at Mumia’s trial. This despite Giordano providing testimony at Mumia’s preliminary hearing of a “confession” in the van, despite his being the senior officer at the scene, despite his supposed firsthand identification of a witness, and despite his testimony of finding the “murder weapon”. During the trial Giordano was removed from active duty and assigned to a desk. The first working day after the trial was over Giordano resigned from the Philadelphia police force. In 1986 Giordano copped a plea on federal charges based on receiving tens of thousands of dollars in illegal payoffs during the 1979-80 period but didn’t spend any time in jail.

In addition to Giordono’s corruption, under racist Police Chief Frank Rizzo, Giordono was in charge of the Stake Out Unit of the Philadelphia Police that carried out repression against the Black Panther Party from 1968 –1970. Giordono also played a supervisory role in the 1977-78 police barricade and attack on the MOVE organization under Mayor Frank Rizzo. That police attack had followed earlier murders by the Philadelphia police of MOVE members and followed a long starvation blockade by the Philadelphia Police against the MOVE headquarters. In the police attack two MOVE members were shot, nine MOVE members were framed by the Philadelphia Police, MOVE children were stolen, and, as film footage shows, Delbert Africa was kicked and stomped by the police as he lay on the ground. In addition, Officer Ramp was shot and killed.

While nine MOVE members were railroaded to prison for the death of Officer Ramp, the evidence does not fit. The one bullet that killed Ramp came from behind and had a downward trajectory. Yet Ramp was facing the MOVE headquarters where MOVE members were in the basement and any bullets would have had an upward trajectory and hit him from in front.

Presiding over the kangaroo court that convicted the MOVE 9 was Judge Malmed. Shortly after the trial and conviction of the MOVE 9, Mumia, as an independent journalist, called in to a talk radio show where he asked Judge Malmed, “Who shot James Ramp?” Judge Malmed honestly answered, “I haven’t the faintest idea.”

In the attack on MOVE the police and Mayor Rizzo claimed that the first shots came from the MOVE headquarters, but the independent eyewitnesses including a number of journalists present, confirm what MOVE members and the physical evidence says, that the first shot came from across the street and not from the MOVE headquarters.

At Mayor Frank Rizzo’s victory press conference on the 1978 police attack, Frank Rizzo directly threatened Mumia Abu-Jamal when Mumia asked him a question. Mumia was present as a freelance journalist and asked the gloating Rizzo, “What about the brutality?” Instead of answering Mumia’s question Rizzo responded angrily with a threat: “They believe what you write, and what you say, and it's got to stop. And one day, and I hope it's in my career, that you're going to have to be held responsible and accountable for what you do.”

In addition to commanding this attack against MOVE, Giordono, earlier, then under Police Chief Rizzo, carried out surveillance of leftists including the Black Panther Party.

With Mumia having been a former member of the Black Panther Party and a high profile critic of police actions against MOVE, there is no question that officer Giordono would have instantly recognized Mumia at the crime scene. This would be one of the motives for Giordono to want to falsify testimony and other evidence to pin the murder on Mumia.

A number of other well-known political frame-ups have occurred in the United States. The prosecution of Mumia fits the pattern of the FBI’s COINTELPRO program against the Black Panther Party, where local law enforcement worked with the FBI in murdering some BPP leaders in cold blood, such as Fred Hampton in Chicago, and knowingly framed and prosecuted other innocent BPP members, such as Geronimo ji Jagga in LA who spent 30 years in prison before he was exonerated of the false charges against him and freed.

A possible additional motive for framing Mumia can be found in the confession of Arnold Beverly. Beverly stated, “I was hired, along with another guy, and paid to shoot and kill Faulkner. I had heard that Faulkner was a problem for the mob and corrupt policemen because he interfered with the graft and payoffs made to allow illegal activity including prostitution, gambling, drugs without prosecution in the center city area.”

Things that Beverly said are corroborated by, among other things, police corruption, three separate FBI investigations of police corruption in the Center City area at the time, evidence of fear that Faulkner was an FBI informant, evidence that Faulkner was an FBI informant, and the murder of other witnesses involved in cases against the Center City Police at that time. One of those murders was of Bertram Schlein, an eyewitness that testified against Central Division Chief John DeBenedetto. A suspect in that murder was Kenneth Schwartz, a former police officer and reported associate of Inspector Alfonzo Giordono.

A former Philadelphia Police Officer turned mob hit man, Ronald Previte, has testified as government informant on mob killings. Previte stated that during his ten years as a Philadelphia cop he “learned more about being a crook” than any other time in his life.

If the police were in fact involved in the murder of Police Officer Faulkner, this would mean that they would not be interested in finding the actual killer. They would want to pin the murder on someone else, and who better in the eyes of Giordano than his journalistic critic, Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Whatever the exact motive or motives, the mountain of police, prosecutorial, and judicial misconduct in this case proves that the criminal “justice” system both had (and has) no interest in finding the real killer or killers while at the same time desiring to execute an innocent man.

It is funny that when presented with this evidence, “fry Mumia” fanatics counter that if it was indeed a frame-up, why was it so sloppy. Why would Giordano have included that the shooter was running away in his original report? The irony is that if the frame-up wasn’t so sloppy we’d be asked why the case is so airtight. Yet I think that answers to the question of why there are so many loose ends lies in the fact that the police were accustomed to being sloppy and getting away with it. Even though the truth of the shooter running away was included in the original report, this was no problem for the police or prosecution, since the judge did not allow the original report into court anyway. All that was allowed was the lie that Chobert saw the shooting and that it was Mumia that did it.

The deeper irony is that when the “fry Mumia” fanatics admit that there are so many loose ends, they are admitting that Mumia is innocent by the essential legal standard of “guilt beyond a reasonable doubt”.

Essential Eyewitness Despised By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number Five, Dessie Hightower

College student Dessie Hightower saw someone running from the scene. This is what Hightower told police 80 minutes after the shooting, and Dessie Hightower has never changed his story. Hightower’s report of one or more people running is the same as eyewitnesses William Singletary, Veronica Jones, Robert Chobert, Arnold Beverly, and William Cook. This corroborates William Cook when he said, “Freeman ran from the scene after Officer Faulkner was shot”. It also corroborates William Singletary when he says, “The passenger [Freeman] in the right-hand side of the Volkswagen got out of the car and shot him [Faulkner]” and ran. Hightower also said that he saw no gun in Mumia’s hand.

Supposed Witness To Mumia Shooting Faulkner Number Five, Robert Harkins

Harkins was not seen as a credible witness by the prosecution at the trial. Harkins was never called to testify at the trial against Mumia by the prosecution. Yet in “fry Mumia” literature the name of Robert Harkins has begun to occasionally pop up as an additional supposed eyewitness to Mumia shooting Faulkner. Like other supposed eyewitnesses of the “fry Mumia” crowd that “saw Mumia shoot Faulkner”, Harkins did not identify Mumia as the shooter.

The Harkins testimony is at odds with the physical evidence and that of all of the other eyewitnesses, including prosecution witnesses. Harkins, a known child molester, could have easily been manipulated by the police and prosecution, as was done with other eyewitnesses. If so, the police and prosecution succeeded in destroying a potential defense witness, but did not produce a useful witness for their frame-up.

Essential Eyewitness Despised By “Fry Mumia” Fanatics Number Six, Terri Maurer-Carter

Terri Maurer-Carter, an official court stenographer in the courts where Mumia was framed, has come forward stating in a signed affidavit,

“Judge Sabo and another person were engaged in conversation. Judge Sabo was discussing the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. During the course of that conversation, I heard Judge Sabo say, ‘Yeah, and I'm going to help them fry the nigger.’ There were three people present when Judge Sabo made that remark, including myself.”

These words Maurer-Carter heard from Sabo sum up the blatant nature of the racist and political crime carried out by Sabo, the prosecution, and the police against Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Conclusion

There are a large number of other important eyewitnesses that will be looked at in future articles, but let us review a few key points of what has already been established.

“Fry Mumia” fanatics claim that Mumia shot Faulkner. Yet, not a single eyewitness saw Mumia shoot Faulkner. Cynthia White and Robert Chobert claimed they saw Mumia shoot Faulkner, but neither saw the shooting. Michael Scanlon, Robert Harkins, and Robert Magiltan, despite “fry Mumia” lies, never claimed they saw Mumia shoot Faulkner.

Four eyewitnesses say in no uncertain terms that Mumia did not shoot Faulkner. These are William Singletary, William Cook, Arnold Beverly, and Mumia Abu Jamal.

Five eyewitnesses contradict the prosecution’s version of events by saying they saw men running from the scene. These would have been the real shooters or shooter. Those eyewitnesses are Dessie Hightower, William Singletary, Veronica Jones, Robert Chobert, and William Cook. The prosecution version of events denies anyone running from the scene.

Five eyewitnesses have stated that they were threatened, coerced, or otherwise offered favors for testimony against Mumia. These are Veronica Jones, William Singletary, Pamela Jenkins, Cynthia White, and Robert Chobert.

The prosecution’s version of events denies anyone on the scene wearing a green army jacket. Yet all evidence points to one or two men on the scene wearing green army jackets shooting Faulkner. Seven eyewitnesses saw a green army jacket. Those that saw green army-jackets were William Singletary, William Cook, stake out Officer Forbes (the putative first officer to arrive), Officer Stephen Trembetta, Michael Scanlan, Robert Magiltan, and Arnold Beverly.

Kenneth Freeman, the real killer, or one of the real killers, was linked to the crime scene by physical evidence that was illegally suppressed by the prosecution for 13 years.

Not only did nobody see Mumia shoot Faulkner, the body of evidence shows overwhelming prosecutorial, police, and judicial misconduct pointing to a clear frame-up of Mumia Abu-Jamal, and backing Mumia’s claim that he is innocent.

Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner in the United States, with what could be the final decision on his legal appeals possibly coming down this summer. That decision could give Mumia his freedom, life in prison, or execution. It is time to turn up the heat against this injustice. Free Mumia Abu-Jamal!

This is the first in a series of ten articles on the top ten “fry Mumia” myths that will be published at Liberation News.

Subscribe to Liberation News:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/liberation_news

Copyright Liberation News, noncommercial verbatim distribution of this article in its entirety, including this notice, is allowed without special permission. Publication in any commercial form may require payment and requires special permission.

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Day of Action in Washington, D.C.

Jason — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 15:09:32 GMT

Americans have had enough.

Enough of Guantanamo Bay, detentions without trial, torture, racial profiling, secret prisons, and needless violations of our rights and freedoms in the name of national security.

The time has come to take our message straight to the top and demand the restoration of the rule of law!

On June 26th, thousands of ACLU members and activists from around the country will descend on Washington, D.C. to rally at the steps of the capitol and lobby Congress to restore our constitutional rights.

Please join us in Washington for this historic day of action. Lawmakers need to hear from you that the time for restoring our constitution is now.

There will be free NYCLU buses leaving from various locations throughout New York State that will take you straight to Washington and back again on June 26th.

Our demands—putting an end to torture and extraordinary rendition, restoring habeas corpus and repealing the Military Commissions Act of 2006, closing Guantanamo Bay prison, and ending warrantless wiretapping of Americans—cannot wait any longer.

Get on the bus! We’ll save a seat for you.

To sign up to participate in the June 26th Day of Action to Restore the Rule of Law, follow this address: http://www.nyclu.org/dayofaction/

To sign the nationwide petition calling on Congress to restore habeas corpus and fundamental due process rights, follow this one:
https://secure.aclu.org/site/SPageServer?pagename=june_petition

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Pro-War Democrats Battle for the Presidency

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 16:20:32 GMT

Pro-War Democrats Battle for the Presidency

By Steven Argue

Every four years the American people are subjected to the farce of bourgeois democracy, a “democracy” where only the candidates chosen by the very wealthy have any chance of being elected. That season of nicely dressed pathological liars and false hopes is now upon us.

Since the corporate media of the United States has long ago abandoned any semblance of reporting on anything of substance about candidates such as voting records and actual political views, it is up to the journalists of the left press and Indy-media to do so.

A front-runner in the race is pro-war Democrat Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton has voted for every war the United States has carried out since she came into office in 2000. Those pro-war votes include the Iraq war. She also voted to take away our civil liberties by supporting the “Patriot Act” and its renewal. Hillary Clinton, like many Democrats, pounds the war drum for the racist Zionist state of Israel even louder than the Republicans. In addition she voted for the anti-immigrant wall.

In her recent successful run for Senate Hillary Clinton amassed more than 22 million dollars, making her the biggest campaign finance recipient running for Senate in the country. Her money came from such corporate interests as drug and hospital conglomerates, Wall Street finance interests, real estate developers, and rightwing corporate media mogul, Rupert Murdoch.

Barack Obama

Another front-runner and “rising star” of the Democrat Party is Barack Obama. Like Hillary Clinton, Obama has voted for the Patriot Act by voting to renew it in 2006. He also voted for the racist anti-immigrant wall as well as the “guest worker” program that denies immigrants rights, but allows them to come to this country to be exploited and under-paid. Obama also voted for the so-called “Class Action Fairness Act” that makes it harder for the people to sue corporations.

One might think that Obama, as a black man in racist America, might have something to offer on issues dealing with the suffering caused by the racist police state, mass incarceration of the poor, lack of healthcare, and dramatic drop in the standard of living of the multi-racial working class and poor. Instead Barack Obama plays into racist stereotypes, blaming the victims of racist America rather than the corporate criminals, stating:

"Such wisdom might help us move beyond ideological bickering and serve as the basis of a renewed effort to tackle the problem of inner-city poverty. We could begin by acknowledging that perhaps the single biggest thing we could do to reduce such poverty is to encourage teenage girls to finish high school and avoid having children out of wedlock. . ." Barack Obama, The Audacity of Hope, pps. 255-256

The inner cities of America have, by and large, been abandoned by the same capitalists that got rich off of the jobs they have now exported, just as the victims of hurricane Katrina were left to die by this same racist system. Yet the best thing to do according to Barack Obama is for black girls to stop having children out of wedlock.

In his book Uncle Obama not only lets this racist system off the hook, but he praises one of the worst anti-working class reforms of the Clinton administration stating, "we should also acknowledge that conservatives-and Bill Clinton-were right about welfare as it was previously structured." Bill Clinton’s welfare reform has caused homelessness, hunger, and less access to other basic necessities for the poor in America, but Barack Obama says Bill Clinton and the conservatives were right.

Both Obama and Clinton have voted for war appropriations. The fact that they both decided at the last minute to vote against war appropriations in the most recent vote on supplemental war appropriations is a symptom of the fact that the war has not gone as planned. The war has not gained the desired oil loot for U.S. corporations and has caused a number of growing problems for U.S. imperialism including internal dissent in the United States. And while Clinton and Obama have finally voted against war appropriations this time, their pro-war Democrat Party garnered plenty of other votes to keep the imperialist war going.

In his book, Barack Obama makes clear his support for the billions being squandered on lining the pockets of the military contractors stating, “given the depletion of our [military] forces after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we will probably need a somewhat higher [Pentagon] budget in the immediate future just to restore readiness and replace equipment.” (Barack Obama, The Audacity of Hope, p 307).

Joe Biden

Another Democrat candidate is Joe Biden. Unlike many Democrat presidential candidates that have tried to distance themselves from the war that they voted for to begin with, in the most recent vote on war appropriations Joe Biden voted with the majority of the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate putting billions of dollars towards the continued U.S. imperialist slaughter of the Iraqi people.

John Edwards

Another presidential candidate with a pro-war record is John Edwards. Edwards voted for the war against Iraq and campaigned as a vice presidential candidate on the pro-war John Kerry ticket. At that time both candidates defended their votes for the war. John Edwards has since apologized for his vote for unprovoked military aggression and mass murder (without using that wording and without recognizing that his vote for war was a criminal act).

Yet when Edwards was running for the position of vice president in 2004 this what he had to say on his pro-war vote:

“We need to stick to this [defending their Iraq war votes]. We should stand by our votes, say we would vote that way again. If you admit a mistake, it shows weakness in time of war. That's what the Republicans want us to do.” (John Edwards's changing tune on the Iraq vote, Scot Lehigh, The Globe, April 17, 2007)

Bill Richardson

Another candidate trying to paint himself as an antiwar candidate of the people is presidential candidate and New Mexico governor Bill Richardson. Richardson doesn’t call for immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq, but instead calls for a slow withdrawal. In the early 1990s he did vote against the U.S. war to reinstate the anti-woman pro-U.S. corporate oil monarchy in Kuwait, but later said he regretted that vote. In addition Richardson is a strong supporter the pro-corporate anti-worker NAFTA, GATT, and WTO.

As U.N. Ambassador under Clinton, Richardson enthusiastically endorsed and continued the brutal sanctions against Iraq. When asked in a recent interview on KUNM (a Santa Fe public radio station) as to whether or not the deaths of half a million Iraqi children due to the sanctions was worth it he answered "yes".

On the death penalty Richardson, like many Democrats, says it is a good thing. Hundreds of inmates in the United States have had their convictions overturned as a result of new DNA evidence being brought to light, with some of these being death penalty cases. Still prosecutors have fought against the use of DNA evidence to overturn old convictions, even when the lives of innocent people are on the line. In racist America, death penalty juries are always more likely to convict because all who oppose the death penalty are excluded from these juries, making them juries that are more biased towards supporting the prosecution. Blacks often face all or mostly white death penalty juries. These are juries likely to contain a number of people who think that all Black people are criminals, making these jurors incapable of weighing the evidence and understanding the concept of reasonable doubt even in those rare circumstances when the evidence is fairly presented.

Why would anybody support the death penalty being carried out by a system that has been proven to make so many mistakes? The answer lies in the fact that the death penalty is an instrument of terror used by the American ruling class against the working class, poor, and people of color. On the one hand when such innocent people are executed it has no importance to the likes of Joe Biden because to them the lives of the poor and people of color are cheap. But for the ruling class, the added bonus of the death penalty is when it is used in political cases to silence dissent such as with the executions of Nicola Sacco, Bartolomeo Vanzetti, Julius Rosenberg, Ethel Rosenberg, the Haymarket martyrs, and the threatened execution of Mumia Abu-Jamal. As governor, the fact that Bill Richardson has no problem with the death penalty means that he already has blood on his hands.

Dennis Kucinich

Likewise Dennis Kucinich is portraying himself as the standard bearer of peace, love, and liberalism, but has voted in favor of the frame-up of Mumia Abu-Jamal. The resolution Kucinich voted for falsely claims, “Mumia Abu-Jamal stood over Officer Faulkner and shot him in the face, mortally wounding him…” Yet this is not what the eyewitnesses said. For instance eyewitness William Singletary says, "Mumia Abu-Jamal didn't shoot Daniel Faulkner. The passenger in the right-hand side of the Volkswagen [that Faulkner had stopped] got out of the car and shot him. When Mumia came on the scene, we [Singletary and another man] were on the police radio trying to radio for help." ("Witness: Abu-Jamal didn't do it" Philadelphia Daily News Dec. 8, 2006)

In the last presidential election Dennis Kucinich portrayed himself up as an anti-war candidate of the Democrat Party. Yet on his web site the Kucinich campaign stated that Kucinich, “Supports a strong and efficient military. He believes that the current practice of procuring ever more costly weapons has the effect of weakening military readiness. As the cost of new weapons systems rise, the cost of merely replacing aging weapons with new ones becomes prohibitively expensive. As a result, U.S. military forces shrink, while they become at the same time more expensive to maintain and more prone to failure.”

So Kucinich advocates more frugal and efficient spending on imperialist terror and murder.

This is the same position taken by two U.S. generals waging the war in Iraq. During the U.S. invasion of Iraq General Stanley McCrystal complained, "It was enough for the enemy to show a little resistance and some creative thinking as our technological superiority begun to quickly lose all its meaning. Our expenses are not justified by the obtained results. The enemy is using an order of magnitude cheaper weapons to reach the same goals for which we spend billions on technological whims of the defense industry!"

Similarly General Richard Mayers commented on precision-guided munitions, "The rate of their use is incompatible with the obtained results. We are literally dropping gold into the mud!"

The contradiction here was purely limited to the difference between the pure profiteering of the military industrial complex and the desire for actual cost effective results for imperialist victory on the battlefield.

Dennis Kucinich spoke to a gathering of the Southern California Americans for Democratic Action claiming, "We [he and the congress] did not authorize an eye for an eye. Nor did we ask that the blood of innocent people, who perished on September 11, be avenged with the blood of innocent villagers in Afghanistan. We did not authorize the Administration to wage war anytime, anywhere, anyhow it pleases. We did not authorize war without end. We did not authorize a permanent war economy. Yet we are upon the threshold of a permanent war economy."

Yet that is exactly what Kucinich and the rest of the congress, with the exception of California Democrat Barbara Lee, agreed to with their votes authorizing Bush’s endless war on the world. The entire Democrat Party in both the Senate and Congress, with only one exception, voted for Bush's war.

Since a different vote was later taken authorizing the US war in Iraq, the most practical application of this vote by Kucinich was to authorize the US war in Afghanistan.

In stark contrast to Kucinich’s vote for war Mumia Abu-Jamal wrote on March 2002:

“When U.S. President George W. Bush spoke about an "endless war," some took it as mere political speech, or rhetoric designed to gain the top spot on the evening network news. I did not. "W" is an agent of his class, the wealthy oil merchants of the land, and his intentions are to press for an ever-wider war in all corners of the earth, to make the world safe for capital exploitation and unbridled commerce. This will eventually become a war that reaches into a slew of countries in the Middle East, on behalf of the rich and powerful elites who rule. Make no mistake: this is a war that has nothing to do with democracy. The U.S. enters the region, armed to the gills, not to defend democracies, but to defend theocracies; to defend kings, princes and sultanates; to defend U.S. access to vast oil resources in the region.” Mumia Abu-Jamal

The U.S. war in Afghanistan has in fact killed tens of thousands of civilians and brought the Afghan nation back to the chaos of fragmented warlord rule last seen after the various U.S. trained and financed Mujahideen forces defeated the Soviet backed PDPA government.

The day after the September 11 attack this author wrote:

“Today the clerical fascists of the Taliban rule Afghanistan. The CIA put them in power with billions of dollars in U.S. military aid. This massive U.S. intervention in Afghanistan was in opposition to the revolutionary PDPA government that came to power in 1978 on issues of promoting women’s rights and land reform. Literacy campaigns began teaching the poor and women how to read and write.

“Foreign religious fanatics and wealthy defenders of the old feudal system came together in a terrorist organization called the Mujahideen (from which the Taliban were later formed). With billions of dollars in assistance from the U.S. [starting under the Jimmy Carter presidency] these fanatical cutthroats waged a holy war that included killing woman for teaching little girls how to read and write and throwing acid into the faces of women who had become liberated from the veil. The Taliban came to power as a result of this U.S. intervention.

“Will a U.S. war now against the Taliban and former CIA aid recipient Osama Bin Laden set things straight? No. It will be the people of Afghanistan who suffer death and destruction from war as the U.S. attempts to install a puppet government friendly to U.S. corporate (oil) interests” Steven Argue, Liberation News, September 12, 2002

Kucinich, the “peace candidate”, as much as he may now want to deny it, voted for the war in Afghanistan and played his part in making it happen.

On the war in Iraq Kucinich now states, "There is only one way in which the United States will withdraw from Iraq, prior to the end of President Bush's term: Congress must vote to cut off funds." (Rep. Kucinich, The Huffington Report) This position not only ignores the role of the people of the United States, Britain, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere rising up and resisting the war and imperialist occupations, but it is also is being put forward by a politician that voted for the war in Afghanistan, wants a leaner meaner imperialist military, voted for the racist legal lynching of Mumia Abu-Jamal, and who has worked hard to bring the anti-war movement back into the pro-war Democrat Party.

Some may argue that Kucinich is not perfect, but he’d make a better president than Bush. Yet it is unlikely that Kucinich has any intention of winning the presidency. His role is one of bringing the anti-war movement and others who are breaking from the establishment and the twin parties of war and racism back into the fold of the pro-war Democrat Party. Kucinich makes this point clear when he states, "The Democratic Party created third parties by running to the middle. What I'm trying to do is to go back to the big tent so that everyone who felt alienated could come back through my candidacy" (Counter Punch, April 2003).

Yet that tent Kucinich speaks of is one that, despite its name, is not democratic. It is a tent dominated by big capital and the politicians subservient to it. It is under this tent that the ruling class would like to swallow up the legitimate opposition of the people towards war and turn us into the water boys for the “responsible” politicians of the Democrat Party.

It is such "responsible" politicians, including Kucinich, that voted in their vast majority to back the racist legal lynching of Mumia Abu-Jamal. It is outrageous that that the Democrat party would vote in its House majority to condemn a French city for daring to make an issue of this racist legal lynching, while at the same time doing nothing about the liar and killer, Bush. But then again that should be no surprise either since the Democrat Party voted in its majority for the war in Iraq.

Hillary Clinton

In a press conference on August 21, 2006 George Bush Jr. finally admitted what Liberation News has been pointing out since before the U.S. invasion of Iraq. That Iraq had nothing to do with September 11th. Yet Bush had used a supposed connection as a pretext for the U.S.’s unprovoked aggression against Iraq. In addition, Bush Jr. also admitted that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction.

Most of the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, Hillary Clinton included, supported going to war with Iraq. Today Hillary Clinton has no remorse for that murderous decision stating, "Obviously, I've thought about that a lot in the months since. No, I don't regret giving the president authority because at the time it was in the context of weapons of mass destruction, grave threats to the United States, and clearly, Saddam Hussein had been a real problem for the international community for more than a decade." Hillary Clinton: No regret on Iraq Vote, CNN.Com

In trying to let themselves off the hook many Democrats claim that Bush “did not fairly represent intelligence”. Feeble cries by these politicians today that their votes for war weren’t their fault because they were lied to by Bush not only make them look stupid, they are an insult to the intelligence of the American people. Clinton, however, is worse in not even distancing herself from this “justified invasion” and “weapons of mass destruction” lies.

While the Democrats helped promote the lie that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and that Iraq had no right to defend itself, Liberation News pointed out that it is the United States that has the weapons of mass destruction. Instead we supported the right of Iraq to acquire the weapons necessary to defend themselves from U.S. aggression. There can be little doubt that if Iraq had acquired those weapons they might not be in the mess they are now.

Yet for Bush Jr. and Hillary Clinton Iraqi weapons were never the real motive for mass murder in Iraq. The capitalist ruling class, and their Democrat and Republican representatives, thought that they could use their superior military power to quickly move into Iraq and establish by force a stable neo-colonial puppet regime, and then make massive profits from the privatization of the Iraqi economy, especially oil. It is the failures of this imperialist plan, in the face of Iraqi resistance and growing unpopularity at home, that has forced some Democrats to try to rethink, or at least distance themselves from, the Bush policies they have supported.

Just as Liberation News opposes the U.S. occupation and corporate looting of Iraq, we also denounced the starvation blockade that was carried out through the UN by the Bill Clinton administration. That blockade, partially due to the capitalist nature of the Iraqi economy under Saddam Hussein, cost the lives of about a million people, many of them children. While a socialist economy like that of Cuba could have made sure that everyone in Iraq had food, blame for this mass murder should also be put on the Bill Clinton administration. Likewise, it was this Clinton starvation blockade that also weakened Iraq for the Bush invasion.

Today, while the U.S. occupation of Iraq has murdered well over 655,000 people and the U.S. starvation blockade of Iraq murdered a million or more, the U.S. government and its puppets in Iraq had the nerve to put Saddam Hussein on trial, and execute him, for propaganda purposes. Yet the worst crimes of the Saddam Hussein regime were also carried out when he was directly backed by the United States. In the 1980’s the U.S. was giving massive military assistance to Iraq to help Saddam Hussein commit genocide against Kurds and carry out a bloody war with Iran at a time when Saddam Hussein was being used as an asset of U.S. imperialism in the Middle East. Likewise the CIA helped Saddam Hussein’s Ba’ath Party come to power, supplying them with the names of 5,000 socialists and labor leaders that the Ba’athists subsequently rounded up and executed.

Yet to those who claimed that an invasion of Iraq would be a chance for the U.S. to finally set things straight and set up a democracy in Iraq, Liberation News responded before the U.S. invasion saying:

“In the 1970s Iraq nationalized its oil fields. This helped the Iraqi people by taking a chunk of the profits made off of oil out of the hands of the international oil monopolies and instead keeping them in Iraq. This money helped pay for free healthcare and education. As such this was a socialist measure carried out by Saddam Hussein’s capitalist government. It was also a measure that stood up to the interests of the rich and powerful nations. For both reasons socialists supported the nationalization of Iraqi oil while those measures infuriated the imperialists...

“While defending Iraq against imperialist attack and supporting their right to defend themselves socialists also recognize that Saddam Hussein is a capitalist leader and that the Iraqi people have their own scores to settle with him. Yet any government set up by a US occupation army will not be democratic and will only lead to the privatization of the resources that American oil monopolies intend to steal...”

“U.S. imperialism will never solve the question of women’s liberation in the Middle East. Unlike all of the US supported governments and forces in the Arab World, Iraqi women have many rights found nowhere else in the Arab World except in the Asian republics of the former Soviet Union. Over 50% of Iraqi doctors are women. Iraqi women are allowed to walk unescorted in the streets. They are allowed to drive. Iraqi women can even freely criticize men. In addition Iraqi women have the right to work and control their own funds. This is in stark contrast to the treatment of women under the repressive U.S. backed governments of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia where women have no rights what-so-ever.

“The U.S. ruling class hates governments like Iraq, Libya, and Venezuela who use the profits of their oil resources partly to benefit the people with social programs. Likewise they love governments like that of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait that strip the people of all their rights and keep the oil profits in the hands of the international oil monopolies and their corrupt local servants. Today in the United States we face unemployment, homelessness, and a lack of health care. The billions of dollars the U.S. will squander on killing Iraqis to steal their resources should be spent to benefit the working class and poor of the United States instead.” -From Liberation News: What Is Socialism, and Why We Oppose The Invasion of Iraq

What was predicted is reality. Those predictions were not from a crystal ball. They were accurate because they were based on the past behavior of U.S. imperialism. Today in Iraq the U.S. has set up a puppet Islamic government with functioning death squads and torture chambers. Socialists have been excluded from participating in elections and unarmed demonstrators have been shot down and murdered in the streets by U.S. troops and troops of the puppet Iraqi government. The puppet Islamic government also opposes women’s rights and women’s rights have deteriorated dramatically since the U.S. invasion. The rebuilding of basic infrastructure, such as electricity, has lagged way behind what was rebuilt by Saddam Hussein after the massive U.S. bombardment of Iraq in 1992.

With the exception of the privatization of Iraqi oil, all of the predictions have shown themselves to be true and the only reason that Iraqi oil isn’t completely under the direct control of U.S. oil monopolies now is because of the union resistance of 23,000 organized oil workers as well as the general resistance by the Iraqi people to the idea of Iraq’s resources being looted by U.S. corporations.

For the working class in the United States there is ever growing frustration with a war that is costing many lives and billions in dollars while needed programs for healthcare, jobs, the environment, and disaster relief do not get the funding they need. Just as the new imperialist masters of Iraq have shown a criminal lack of interest in the rebuilding the Iraqi infrastructure, so too they left the people of New Orleans.

Yet for the ruling class their failure in Iraq is not in the murderous, undemocratic, and anti-woman puppet regime they have set up and the money that has been squandered in doing it, but in the failure of that regime to deliver the stability needed to acquire the oil loot. They complain that oil production in Iraq is below prewar levels and the occupation by U.S. and British troops serve as targets for the insurgency.

The words of Hillary Clinton, an icon of Democratic Party liberalism, makes abundantly clear that what she opposes is not the oil war itself, but the fact that Bush is not winning it:

“Let us not confuse the leadership’s failures with either the remaining mission in Iraq or the war on terrorism or with our support for our troops. What we have here is a failure of leadership to accomplish that mission. What was hailed as our shortest war has now become one of our longest. What was hailed as a model of democracy teeters on the brink of complete anarchy. What was the leadership that quickly claimed credit for success has been lethargic in the face of misjudgments and setbacks.” Hillary Clinton

As a result of imperialism’s failure in Iraq some Democrats that voted for the war like John Kerry have called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of this year. Yet the Kerry-Feingold plan actually calls for keeping troops in Iraq that are "critical to completing the mission of standing up Iraqi security forces." The Kerry-Feingold plan also calls for "an over-the-horizon" troop presence in the region that could come to the aid of a failing puppet government in Iraq as well as intervene elsewhere in the so-called war on terror. (Lawmakers begin Bitter Debate on U.S. Troop Withdrawal Plan for Iraq, FOXNews, online report, June 2, 2006)

Hillary Clinton even opposed the Kerry-Feingold plan and voted against it arguing against any withdrawal timeline.

Unlike Hillary Clinton and the leading Democrats, Liberation News sees nothing good that can come from the continuation of the U.S. war against Iraq. The U.S. occupation of Iraq is doing nothing for anybody except the capitalists that are profiting from the war and the tax dollars of the American people. We call for no support to the Democrats and we demand: Iraq to the Iraqis! U.S. Out Now!

Liberation News calls for ending the war through building the mass movement in the streets; striking against arms producers; hot cargoing war materials on the docks, trains, and trucks; and building towards a general strike against the war. Likewise we support the right of military personal to refuse orders and resist this war. We support students, such as those at UC Santa Cruz that have repeatedly driven military recruiters off campus. And we call for building the socialist movement to end imperialism through socialist revolution.

The Role of Peace Action (Formerly Sane / Freeze)

Hillary Clinton’s record is clearly pro-imperialist war. Yet the group “Peace Action” gives Hillary Clinton the passing grade of voting for peace 89% of the time. Other Democrats are given similar scores by these political hacks.

“Peace Action” is deceiving the anti-war vote. Why? Because Peace Action is a pillar of the status quo that sees no alternative to delivering votes to what they see as the “lesser evil” Democrat Party, even when the Democrats are equally pro-war. This strategy has made “Peace Action” an obstacle to peace and a pillar of the status quo of war.

Every few years the ruling class of the United States parades its selected representatives in front of the American people to give us the chance to vote for their so-called “lesser” and “greater evil” representatives in the Democrat and Republican Parties. The corporate media and liberal pro-war groups like “Peace Action” ignore the real anti-war candidates and back pro-war Democrats by misrepresenting their records to the people.

Liberation News urges all of the super-exploited workers that go door to door raising money for the Peace Action bureaucracy to quit your meaningless jobs and look for better work while looking for ways to hook up with the real anti-war/anti-imperialist movement that is marching in the streets. Likewise we urge all of the liberal and leftist minded people that give money to Peace Action to stop doing so and instead participate in the mass anti-war movement in the streets with your bodies, minds, and your money if you can afford it.

No to the twin parties of war and oppression! Yes to the independent organization and mobilization of working people!

Obama, Clinton, and Richardson, Supporters of Racist Israel

Hillary Clinton, like many Democrats, has pounded the war drum for the racist Zionist state of Israel even louder than the Republicans. The U.S. gives Israel billions of dollars in military aid every year and Senator Clinton’s vote backs that money for death. Israel is a racist settler state established in 1949 that has denied the original inhabitants, the Palestinians, many basic rights, often including the basic right to live. Besides denying Palestinians the same rights to travel, jobs, housing, and education as allowed Jews, the racist and religious Zionist State has used massacres and other forms of terror, wars, and torture to drive out the original Palestinian inhabitants.

Likewise Israel is always at war with its Arab neighbors. Israel’s recent attack against Lebanon where their aerial bombardment of the civilian population murdered 1,150 people and destroyed vital infrastructure is only the latest such terrorism by Israel. Yet Hillary Clinton recently told a pro-Israel rally “We will stand with Israel because Israel is standing up for American values as well as Israeli ones.”

She’s got it wrong, the mass murder and racism of Israel are in league with the values of American ruling class, as has been seen in Iraq, but these are not the values of the American people.

Claims of Israel being the victim, bombing and invading Lebanon on the pretext of two Israeli soldiers taken prisoner do not hold water in light of the fact that Israel is holding 2,000 Lebanese prisoners in their torture chamber dungeons from their previous invasion of Lebanon. In addition numerous reports say those two Israeli soldiers were captured in Lebanon, not in Israel. Those reports are from such sources as AP, Hindustan Times, and AFP.

On Israel “anti-war” Richardson shares Hillary Clinton’s views stating, “I am firmly committed to one of the United States' closest and most important allies - the State of Israel. Throughout my career, I've steadfastly supported Israel, obtaining a consistently pro-Israel voting record in Congress and defending Israeli interests as Ambassador to the United Nations.”

Barack Obama also backs racist Israel stating, “The United States and Israel share important interests - promoting a peaceful Middle East, combating terrorism, and encouraging reform in the Arab and Muslim world.” Likewise as a senator he has backed the massive military aid the United States gives Israel every year and says he will continue this policy as president stating he will, “insist on fully funding military assistance to Israel”.

For Socialist Democracy!

Let me be clear on this point, Obama and Clinton, and the rest of the pack will not betray us. They cannot betray us because they were never with us. Under the current politics most Americans would never have heard their names if they were on our side.

A truly democratic society would eliminate corporate control of the elections by nationalizing the corporate media and allowing all candidates equal access to the airwaves, cable, and print. Likewise a truly democratic society would carry out a sweeping “campaign finance reform” through the nationalization of the means of production (using that wealth for human and environmental needs rather than decadence and deception).

Up against the likes of Hillary Clinton, with her millions of dollars in corporate bribes, a sympathetic corporate media, growing police state, and increasing electoral fraud, it will take a socialist revolution to bring democracy to the United States.

How we can all resist:

Tell the truth!

Build the mass movement in the streets!

Strike against arms producers!

Become ungovernable!

Hot cargo war materials on the docks, trains, and trucks!

Build towards a general strike against the war!

Support the right of military personal to refuse orders and resist this war!

Drive military recruiters off campus!

No tolerance or excuses for the pro-war, racist, and capitalist Democrat Party!

Build the socialist movement to end imperialism, racism, environmental destruction, and capitalism!

End U.S. imperialism through socialist revolution!

Subscribe to Liberation News:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/liberation_news

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Gay discrimination in Tennessee

codyinnebr — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 03:24:33 GMT

This story is about me, I was the victim of discrimination in Columbia Tennessee, Please help me out anyway you can, I need to fight this on principle alone. Please repost this on your blog and lets get this all the way across tribe. If you are able to help me out with legal advice or whatever else please do so.

Hello guys and gals,
I am writing this letter to everyone I know to remind you all that racism and prejudice still exist in our country, let me tell a story. AS most of you know now I live in a small town in the South and have since September, as we all know the South is still very much behind the times as far as being liberal and open to anything other than white church going people, if you are Gay, Black, Hispanic, Middle Eastern you more or less are not welcomed into the community and for the most part treated like crap. I never really realized how rampant it still is. Here is my story. Last night March 24th against my better judgment I went to a local establishment with two other friends, and my sister, apprehensive to go I went anyway, as soon as we went in, we were started down by most people in the bar. As we retrieved a drink, Jeff my friend, and Brian and myself found a nice little corner to chat and talk along with my sister. Brian was our Designated Driver for the evening, so he was drinking coke. We stayed about 1 1/2 hours and then it started, about 10 police officers came into the bar, some stood on the other side watching us and others and two circled our table and stood there for roughly 20-30 mins while, the three of us chatted and talked, my sister was out mingling and dancing so the three of us gay men kept to ourselves, we were, not loud, offensive, or causing any trouble. I believe the Police were earring into our conversation and really feel they were told to watch us and find a reason to get us out. After a while the police officer a good OLE southern boy, leaned over and said you three have to leave, shocked and wondering why we asked and he stated we were publicly intoxicated...OK wait hold on a minute what's wrong with this picture, three men, quite, minding there own business in a BAR having a few drinks uh..isn't that what you do at a bar?? Meanwhile other people in there were running around, Loud, obnoxious and causing a scene were allowed to run freely around and nothing was done. As the officer asked us to leave we of course did not resist and rounded up my sister and began to walk out of the bar, again we asked why we were being asked to leave and told again we were intoxicated. OK wait our friend who was arrested was drinking coke and our DD, as we went out the door 6 officers followed and arrested my friend FOR NO REASON none at all, we were confused on why he was being arrested and I KNOW it was because we were gay, and my friend with no offense to him was the most obviously one, he lives in San Francisco so needless to say not used to this type of treatment, nor am I having always lived in liberal cities. The cuffs went on so fast you would have been as confused as I was.
One thing they failed and did not due was a sobriety test, does anyone wonder how you can get arrested for being intoxicated but yet there is no proof he was drinking? And had they done a sobriety test would have realized then there was no cause for the arrest and they would be arresting him for exercising his right to free speech, and to being openly gay. They would have had to let him go had they done a sobriety test. DOES THIS PISS ANYONE ELSE OFF?? After he was arrested the police who sat back and watched and innocent man get arrested asked US why was your friend arrested we didn't see him do anything?? UH hello anybody home what's wrong with this picture?? Of course they could have cared less since apparently it is standard Practice in Tennessee to arrest people for being gay, and speaking there mind. OK fine we were asked to leave but wouldn't anyone know else want to know why. OK the point of the matter as I was talking to a friend is yes they have the right to refuse service, but only because we were gay and not wanted there fine we were leaving but we didn't have time to leave before he was arrested. So now I begin a long battle, I will be an activist on this matter, I now understand racial profiling to a T. and it is sad that it took something like this to make me get involved, and take charge of a country that I live in. I think it's time that America wake up and realize that as a gay CULTURE we contribute more to this country then most people realize, it's time to people realize this, and help stop hate and bigotry, racial issues, cultural issues and the like. To all my friends regardless of your beliefs think of this as happening to you, I had become complacent thinking this attitude no longer existed, dead wrong it does and this is something I am going to start devoting a lot of time to now, how can we say we live in a land of the free and home of the brave if we really can't be free or brave for fear of repercussions.
Please Please I am asking all of you to Forward this to as many people as you can, for my friends sake, mine and yours.
I have contacted the ACLU already and will pursue this with a passion, it is the principle of the matter, people before me made the way for us to be free and open and now we actually have gay channels and are allowed to go to our own events and the like, but more needs to be done, I suspect his happens more than anyone knows.
Please send me you comments and send this to as many people as you can because it is just plain wrong and something needs to be addressed and people stop being so complacent it does still exist and needs to be wiped out, we should all have the same rights, regardless of our beliefs.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

American Express applies for patents to put RFID tracking chips in cards--fight back!

ambrozia — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 19:49:05 GMT

Executive summary -- Amex applied for patents as part of its plans to use RFID chips in its credit cards "to identify people, track their movements, and observe their behavior." Just carrying a credit card so equipped would be sufficient for this system to track you.

Kind of gives a new, ominous, 1984-ish meaning to the tag line, "Don't leave home without it."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 9, 2007

AMERICAN EXPRESS ADDRESSES RFID PEOPLE TRACKING PLANS
Promises Full Patent Review, Tracking Notice, and Chip-Free Option

The top brass at American Express, chagrined at the discovery of its people tracking plans, met with CASPIAN (Consumers Against Supermarket Privacy Invasion and Numbering) last week to discuss the issue. One outcome of the meeting was a promise by American Express to review its entire patent portfolio and ensure that any people-tracking plans be accompanied by language requiring consumer notice and consent.

The meeting was organized after CASPIAN called attention to one of the company's more troublesome patent applications. That patent application, titled "Method and System for Facilitating a Shopping Experience," describes a Minority Report style blueprint for monitoring consumers through RFID-enabled objects, like the American Express Blue Card.

According to the patent, RFID readers called "consumer trackers" would be placed in store shelving to pick up "consumer identification signals" emitted by RFID-embedded objects carried by shoppers. These would be used to identify people, track their movements, and observe their behavior.

The patent also suggested such people-tracking systems could "be located in a common area of a school, shopping center, bus station or other place of public accommodation."

Allegations of American Express people-tracking blueprints first came to light at a conference sponsored by the Consumer Federation of America in Washington, D.C. last month. There, Dr. Katherine Albrecht, Founder and Director of CASPIAN, revealed the patent pending plans that she and her "Spychips" co-author Liz McIntyre uncovered in their ongoing RFID research.

Soon thereafter, American Express arranged for four of its vice presidents, including the vice presidents of Contactless Payments and Public Affairs, to meet with CASPIAN leaders in a phone conference.

"We are pleased that American Express responded to our concerns," said Albrecht. "It's clear the company is thinking about privacy issues and wants to address them constructively. However, we had hoped that American Express would renounce its people tracking plans altogether and be more sensitive to the fact that placing RFID tags in consumer items, like credit cards, puts consumers at risk for surreptitious tracking by others."

In response to CASPIAN concerns, American Express also promised that it would make a chip-free version of its credit card available to concerned consumers who ask for it.

"Offering a chipless credit card is a positive step and should serve as an example to the rest of the industry," said McIntyre. "Consumers don't like RFID technology. Contrary to American Express ads, most people would rather leave home without it."

The complete text and excerpts from the American Express people tracking patent application can be found at:
http://www.spychips.com/press-releases/american-express-tracking-patent.html

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Bong Hits for Jesus!

Bong Hits for Jesus — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:27:23 GMT

Hi There,

Ok I didn't make the banner or take the case to the Supreme Court. But I did start a tribe for discussing this topic. I imagine this Supreme Court case is going to generate some comical headlines and hopefully some serious discussion regarding Freedom of Speech and our rights as Citizens of the USA. This is intended to be a serious topic handled in a humorous manner.

Please check out my tribe dedicated to this topic and consider posting to it.

http://tribes.tribe.net/bonghitsforjesus

This is regarding the Freedom of Speech case before the Supreme Court. This case has Liberal activists lining up with the Religious Right going against Kenneth Starr, fighting for the rights of some teens to display a banner that read "Bong Hits for Jesus".
Could be the most important Freedom of Speech case that this Court will hear.

No I'm not making this up.

Peace,

Also I am accepting everyone as a friend (so if you are looking to up your friends count...)

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Legal to Ask For ID?

klg — Sun, 31 Dec 2006 03:35:31 GMT

I was carded when I went to buy a bottle of wine the other evening at Long's, and while I suppose most women my age would probably be flattered, I was not, for various reasons. I was particularly annoyed when the clerk (who didn't even look 21 herself) told me that it's store policy to ask everyone up to the age of 40 for ID when buying alcohol.

On the way home, I realized that what was bothering me is I've always been under the impression that it is illegal to randomly require people in this country to show ID, and I felt like my civil rights had been violated.

I don't look my age (50) - but no one would ever mistake me for even still being in my 20s or probably even my 30s any more. A recent case in Denver that the ACLU handled dealt with the issue of police harassing a woman who refused to show them her ID on a public bus on her way to work when randomly told she had to do so or get off the bus - and she ultimately prevailed. "Papers, please" was apparently held to still *not* be a desirable - or legal - way of doing things in these parts.

So, can I presume would this apply to stores as well, like this situation? Can anyone tell me what law I might cite to the store manager in the letter of complaint I intend to write?

Carding people to make sure they are *at least* whatever the local drinking age is one thing, of course - if they actually look like they might be anywhere near that age - but I'm a middle aged woman, for heaven's sakes, and I look it. There was simply no rational or defensible reason to require me to show ID.

And the request was clearly specifically related to buying the wine, not even for providing ID for my payment. She asked me for it before she even rang up the sale, the moment I got in front of her and she saw the wine.

Wendy

posted in ACLU - 2 replies

Congress Votes 368-31 to Back Mumia’s Racist Frame-up

Sun, 17 Dec 2006 17:18:05 GMT

Congress Votes 368-31 to Back Mumia’s Racist Frame-up

By Steven Argue

On December 6th Congress voted 368 to 31 to back the racist frame-up of Mumia Abu Jamal by condemning the decision of the French city of St. Denis to name a street after the innocent death row inmate. This anti-Mumia resolution, HR 1082 (also called HR 407), asks the French government to intervene against the city.

Voting against the resolution were members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including Congressperson Robert Scott. He argued that the case was still being decided in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and that it was inappropriate for Congress to take a position.

In reality Mumia’s case is such a blatant and outrageous frame-up that it should be considered the responsibility of Congress to intervene on behalf of Mumia Abu-Jamal in particular and against the racist death penalty in general. Yet under the current racist government of Democrats and Republicans Robert Scott is correct in opposing Congress’s intervention. As Pam Africa, chair of the International Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, has pointed out, “the House action is designed to weigh in on and promote an atmosphere in the U.S. judiciary that is prejudicial to Mumia's receiving any form of justice today.”

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals will be hearing arguments in January. This is Mumia’s final appeal. It will decide if Mumia is set free, given a new trial, held in prison for life, or executed.

The resolution falsely claims, “Mumia Abu-Jamal stood over Officer Faulkner and shot him in the face, mortally wounding him…” Yet this is not what the eyewitnesses said. For instance William Singletary says, "Mumia Abu-Jamal didn't shoot Daniel Faulkner. The passenger in the right-hand side of the Volkswagen [that Faulkner had stopped] got out of the car and shot him. When Mumia came on the scene, we [Singletary and another man] were on the police radio trying to radio for help." ("Witness: Abu-Jamal didn't do it" Philadelphia Daily News Dec. 8, 2006)

Five California Democrats in Congress voted nay while 23 voted for the resolution. Those voting against were Lynn Woolsey, Barbara Lee, Fortney Stark, Michael Honda, and Maxine Waters.

Joining in the racist lynch mob voting for the blood of an innocent black man were California Democrats C. Thompson, Doris Matsui, Nancy Pelosi, Ellen Tauscher, Tom Lantos, Anna Eshoo, Zoe Lofgren, Dennis Cardoza, Lois Capps, Jim Costa, Linda Sanchez, Brad Sherman, Adam Schiff, Henry Waxman, Hilda Solis, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Jane Harman, Juanita Millender-McDonald, Grace Napolitano, Joe Baca, Loretta Sanchez, Bob Filner, and Susan Davis. Not voting were Diane Watson, Howard Berman, and Xavier Becerra.

Also voting for blood were California Republicans Walter Herger, Daniel Lungren, John Doolittle, Richard Pombo, George Radanovich, Devin Nunes, William Thomas, Elton Gallegly, David Dreier, Edward Royce, Jerry Lewis, Gary Miller, Ken Calvert, Mary Bono, Dana Rohrabacher, John Campbell, Darrell Issa, Brian Bilbray, and Duncan Hunter. Howard McKeon didn’t vote.

Nationally, among those voting for the anti-Mumia resolution was Democrat House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi. She has also announced that she and the other Democrats will continue funding the war in Iraq. In voting against Mumia Abu-Jamal Nancy Pelosi has voted for the death of an actual anti-war and anti-racist leader of the people, while her career has been firmly planted atop the corpses of over 650,000 dead Iraqis by her continuation of the slaughter.

It is outrageous that that the Democrat party would vote in its House majority to condemn a French city for daring to make an issue of a racist legal lynching, while doing nothing about the liar and killer, Bush. But then again that should be no surprise either since the Democrat Party voted in its majority for the war in Iraq.

The Democrat Party was also involved in the frame-up of Mumia Abu-Jamal from the beginning. Democrat Ed Rendell was the Philadelphia district attorney that successfully worked to frame Mumia Abu-Jamal in 1982. Later, with a lynch mob attitude created by the lies of the corporate press, he successfully ran for mayor of Philadelphia on a platform that included promoting the murder of Mumia Abu-Jamal. He was Mayor from 1992-1999. Bill Clinton then helped get him the position of chair of the National Democratic Committee. Since 2003 he has been the Governor of Pennsylvania. In addition Ed Rendell is a member of the Fraternal Order of Police that is calling for Mumia’s blood while his wife is an appellate judge on the Third Circuit US Court of Appeals that is going to hear Mumia's appeal. Besides framing Mumia, Rendell also presided over the police bombing of the MOVE home in Philadelphia in 1984, resulting in 11 deaths and 65 homes destroyed.

Nationally eight voted “present”, including California Democrats George Miller and Sam Farr, choosing not to vote for or against the resolution. In effect Miller and Farr, while present in the mob, chose silence while the United States Congress was transformed into a racist lynch mob calling for the blood of an innocent black man and political prisoner.

Sam Farr cast his “present” vote despite sending this author a letter promising to back the Congressional Black Caucus’s position, that having been a position in support of framed political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal. Sam Farr also sent me a copy of a letter that he sent to the Congressional Black Caucus with the same promise. These promises, as it turns out, were nothing but lies.

This vote by the racist US Congress was also an affront to the people of St. Denis that have chosen to support and honor Mumia. Would Sam Farr stand aside in a similar way if a resolution came before him that called for action against his constituents in the City of Santa Cruz, where the city has also passed resolutions in favor of Mumia Abu-Jamal?

Mumia is innocent, and much of the world knows it.

Here is the response the City of St. Denis had to earlier attempts to coerce them into ending their support for Mumia Abu-Jamal:

“The city hall of Saint Denis denounces the manipulations of certain ultra-conservative pressure groups, and reasserts its commitment in favor of Mumia Abu-Jamal

“The city hall of Saint Denis re-affirms yet again its support to the women and men who are demanding Mumia Abu-Jamal be treated with fairness and justice. The picket this 30th day of November 2006 has been organized to protest against the pressure brought to bear on the city of Saint Denis by members of the American extreme right in order to bring about the cancellation of our decision to name one of our streets after an African American militant who has been unfairly incarcerated and sentenced to the death penalty.

“This ultra conservative pressure group, based in Philadelphia, has not hesitated to make use of the grossest manipulations. Thus, the widely disseminated information according to which the city of Philadelphia is suing the cities of Saint Denis and Paris, because of their commitment in favor of Mumia Abu-Jamal - is nothing but a lie. The Mayor of Philadelphia, as well as the president of its city council, informed the city of Saint Denis that they never intended to file any kind of suit, and have absolutely nothing to do with this campaign.

“This manipulation was unmasked, and it should be know that the Philadelphia politician who initiated it, though a member of George Bush's party, was defeated during the recent American elections.

“Whatever the case may be, the city hall of Saint Denis is proud to have named a street of this city in honor of Mumia Abu-Jamal, who has become one of the symbols, of the struggle for justice and the abolition of the death penalty in the US and throughout the world.

“It is not the first time that an international mobilization has taken place in favor of American citizens who are unfairly sentenced in their own country. Such was the case for Nicola Sacco, and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, between 1920 and 1927, for Julius and Ethel Rosenberg who died on the electric chair in 1953, and subsequently in 1972 for Angela Davis initially sentenced [sic, she was actually never sentenced] for murder, before being acquitted of all charges.

“The city hall of Saint Denis will steadfastly pursue the struggle to save Mumia Abu-Jamal, so that this man incarcerated for a quarter of a century for a crime he has always claimed he did not commit - be reinstated in his human rights.

“Saint Denis 30th of November 2006”

The people of the world should not forget this hypocritical act of the US Congress, a governing body of a nation that falsely claims to uphold the values of human rights on a world scale. Likewise this once again exposes the need for the American people to build a socialist alternative to racist and repressive Democrat and Republican Parties.

As Mumia Abu-Jamal says, “Conventional wisdom would have one believe that it is insane to resist this, the mightiest of empires. But what history really shows is that today's empire is tomorrow's ashes, that nothing lasts forever, and that to not resist is to acquiesce in your own oppression. The greatest form of sanity that anyone can exercise is to resist that force that is trying to repress, oppress, and fight down the human spirit...”

Mumia stands up for unions, against war, against racism, equality for gays and lesbians, for the poor, and against the many injustices of the so-called criminal justice system. Mumia speaks up on many of the issues ignored, lied about, or glossed over by the corporate media and the corporate politicians. We need Mumia, yes we need him alive, but we also need him free. Yet all of the evidence shows that Mumia won't get justice in America unless we turn up the heat.

********************
Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner in the United States on death row. For more information on Mumia's case and how to get involved, check out the following web sites:

Yet Another Witness Comes Forward and Refutes The Frame-Up Of Mumia
Abu-Jamal!
http://www.freemumia.com/policecoercion.html

Labor Action Committee To Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
http://www.laboractionmumia.org/

International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal
http://www.mumia.org/freedom.now/

Free Mumia Coalition, NYC
http://www.freemumia.com/

San Francisco Free Mumia Site
http://www.freemumia.org

Chicago Committee To Free Mumia Abu-Jamal
http://www.chicagofreemumia.org/

This is an article of Liberation News, subscribe free:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/liberation_news

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

State Constitutions & Discrimination against atheists

Rocky — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 21:16:46 GMT

State Constitutions & Discrimination against atheists

"The owner of a coffee shop near Birmingham, Ala., has banned members of a secular group for atheists, agnostics, and other questioners from meeting in her cafe.

"It's not OK to discriminate on the basis of race or sexual orientation anymore, but it's perfectly valid for someone to say I would never vote for an atheist for president," says Mel Lipman, president of the American Humanist Association."

Discrimination against atheists -

52% of Americans claim they would not vote for a well-qualified atheist for president. [3] More recently, a 2006 study at the University of Minnesota showed atheists to be the most mistrusted minority among Americans.

State Constitutions

Some States' Constitutions in the US require a religious test as a qualification for holding public office:

The Bill of Rights of the Texas Constitution (Article I, Section 4) last amended on September 13, 2003 states that an official may be "excluded from holding office" if she/he does not "acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being."

North Carolina's Constitution, Article 6 Sec. 8 states "Disqualifications of office. The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God...."

South Carolina's Constitution, Article 6 Section 2: "Person denying existence of Supreme Being not to hold office. No person who denies the existence of the Supreme Being shall hold any office under this Constitution."

Tennessee's Bill of Rights: Article 9, Section 2: "No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state."

Atheism still has pejorative connotations arising from attempts at suppression and from its association with practical atheism; as mentioned above, godless is still used as an abusive epithet today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

-------------

"Why do Atheists care about Religion?" - VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4fQA9mt-Mg

;

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

Supreme Court Accepts Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation

Rocky — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 13:29:14 GMT

Right to Sue over White House's "Propaganda Vehicle for Religion"

Supreme Court Accepts Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation

Dec. 4, 2006

(MADISON, WIS.) The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a lawsuit filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation challenging the government preference for religion shown by the creation of the White House Office of Faith-based Initiatives. The Supreme Court has agreed to consider the Bush Administration's claim that it can use taxpayer money to support religion without complaint by taxpayers.

The high court on Dec. 1 accepted the Bush Administration's attempt to stop the Freedom From Religion Foundation's taxpayer lawsuit, challenging the White House Office of Faith-based Initiatives.

The Foundation, along with its three taxpayer plaintiffs--Dan Barker, Annie Laurie Gaylor, and Anne Nicol Gaylor--filed suit in 2004, challenging the faith-based office at the White House and at several Cabinets. A federal judge dismissed the challenge, saying that Barker and the Gaylors did not have standing to sue over something the executive office did with general appropriations, if Congress had not designated those actions.

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals earlier this year reinstated the lawsuit, holding that tax money raised by Congress, which then goes to executive officials, cannot be used to support religion in violation of the Establishment Clause. The Bush Administration appealed the Foundation's victory to the Supreme Court.

"We believe that the Court of Appeals was correct in its decision," said Dan Barker, Foundation co-president. "We welcome the Supreme Court's review to eliminate any doubt. If in fact Congressional appropriations can be used by the Administration in disregard of the Establishment Clause, then Congress and the American public should know that.

"If we were to be denied standing, the court would be saying no citizen has the right to challenge such violations, and that executive-branch violations are not subject to court review."

Foundation co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor noted there is some confusion about the lawsuit. It does not challenge the entire "faith-based initiative," she said, because that initiative has been created in such a way that one general challenge is not possible.

Nor does the question before the Supreme Court deal with the merits of the lawsuit. At question is simply whether taxpayers have the right to challenge the White House faith-based office and its religious activities. Its main action has been hosting faith-based conferences for the benefit of religious groups seeking funding that, in some instances, have been compared to "revivals."

The standing question centers on three Supreme Court precedents, two in the Foundation's favor:

Flast v. Cohen (1968) permitted a taxpayer challenge of federal assistance to religious schools. The court ruled that challenges could be heard that question the use of "the taxing and spending power . . . to favor one religion over another or to support religion in general."

Bowen v. Kendrick (1988) also upheld taxpayers' standing to challenge grants by a federal agency to religious institutions. The court ruled that taxpayers must simply show that Congressional taxing and spending were necessary for the violation to occur.

In a third case, Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church & State (1982), the Supreme Court denied standing of taxpayers to sue over transfer of an army hospital to a religious group. This was the case cited as prevailing by the lower court judge who threw out the Foundation's federal lawsuit.

Judge Posner of the 7th Circuit, in his decision reinstating the lawsuit, wrote:

"The present case is governed by Kendrick. The taxpayers here are complaining about the use of money appropriated by Congress under Art. I, Sec. 8, to fund conferences that various executive-branch agencies hold to promote President Bush's 'Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.' This is a program that the President has created by a series of executive orders."

". . . since the program itself is challenged as unconstitutional, the fact that it was funded out of general rather than earmarked appropriations--that it was an executive rather than a Congressional program--does not deprive taxpayers of standing to challenge it," Posner concluded.

Posner wrote that it must be left to judges to decide whether the initiative and conference amount to "propaganda vehicles for religion."

The case is one of nine lawsuits the Foundation has taken challenging various parts of the faith-based initiative. So far, the Foundation has won five significant victories in federal court, with four additional ongoing lawsuits, including major challenges of the infusion of faith and religion into the Department of Veteran Affairs, and at the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The Foundation is also awaiting judgment in its federal challenge of a 24/7 bible-based residential program at a prison in New Mexico.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, based in Madison, Wis., is a national association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics) that has been working since 1978 to keep church and state separate.

http://www.ffrf.org/news/2006/supreme.php

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

ACLU supports the right of KKK and NAZI parties

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 04:45:40 GMT

The ACLU has repeatedly gone to bat to protect the First Amendment rights of the Klan and the American NAZI party to hold rallies, give speeches, conduct parades, etc.

They believe in the right of free speech, even if they don't agree with the content of the speech.

I am a member of the American Socialist Party.

I just joined Tribe.

I give it three days before they unsubscribe me, even though you will not find a single statement by me that violates any Term of Use. Now you go and watch me get unsubbed for supposed racist statements, even though I won't engage in any hate speech.

They will unsubscribe me simply because of my political affilication and my views, even though the things I say are not less controversial or inflamatory than the things said by thousands of hard core leftists and anarchists on Tribe.

You just watch and see.

posted in ACLU - 6 replies

You may

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 21:18:26 GMT

want to watch this.

I think we need more voices like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En9eAMATXBc

~MTS~

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

'Hey, Kids: Spying Is Fun!'

Rocky — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 14:57:12 GMT

'Hey, Kids: Spying Is Fun!'

Using cartoons, games and kid-friendly websites, the federal intelligence community is seeking to win the hearts and minds of America's children.

Sparking an interest in the cosmos for a target audience of kindergarteners, first- and second graders shouldn't be difficult. As Bowers points out, kids are already excited by outer space, especially by aliens. The twist here is translating that purely exploratory interest into a desire to spy on friends and neighbors. And ultimately, Bowers says, the website is about security. "It's all about protection," she says.

It's not just government snoop organizations that blur fiction and fact, imagination and reality on their child-friendly sites. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms website, for example, features the essay "I'm a Bomb Dog Now!"--a first-canine account by Truman, an explosives-sniffing Labrador retriever who works with ATF Special Agent Joe Harrington in New England. Truman's job is essential to national security, he says, because "sometimes people do bad things to try to hurt others. I can help stop that from happening, or, if it has already happened, I can find evidence to help law enforcement officers find out who did it so that the person can never do it again."

With cartoons, games and anthropomorphic animals, America's intelligence community is ensuring security for the next generation. How safe do you feel?

http://www.alternet.org/rights/31929/

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

H.R. 2679, The "Christian Supremacy Act"

Rocky — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 16:58:13 GMT

H.R. 2679, The "Christian Supremacy Act" -

"Our job is to reclaim America for Christ, whatever the cost. As the vice regents of God, we are to exercise godly dominion and influence over our neighborhoods, our schools, our government, our literature and arts, our sports arenas, our entertainment media, our news media, our scientific endeavors -- in short, over every aspect and institution of human society." - D. James Kennedy
http://dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/9/14/235444/282

http://www.aclu.org/religion/gen/26254prs20060726.html

http://www.theocracywatch.org/

Say hello to your new, modern type of Inquisition soon to come

Be afraid - very afraid

posted in ACLU - 4 replies

Pro-Patriot Act Diane Feinstein, What Are The Alternatives?

Sun, 10 Sep 2006 06:14:28 GMT

Pro-War Diane Feinstein, What Are The Alternatives?

By Steven Argue

In California pro-war incumbent Democrat Diane Feinstein has a lead of around 20% over Republican challenger Richard Mountjoy. There are also three socialist candidates running in California for the Senatorial seat now held by Feinstein. Of these, the two that Liberation News is giving critical support are Jeff Mackler of Socialist Action and Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party. In addition International Socialist Organization (ISO) member, Todd Chretien, is running as a Green Party candidate.

Feinstein has voted for every war the United States has carried out since she came into office in 1992. Diane Feinstein also voted to take away our civil liberties by supporting the “Patriot Act” and its renewal. She voted for the 1996 Anti-Terrorism Effective Death Penalty Act speeding up the government’s ability to carry out the racist death penalty and ignore evidence of innocence. And she has supported expanded wire tapping as well as a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning.

Feinstein is a capitalist politician, representing a capitalist party. She also has a personal net worth of 50 million dollars, so she benefited directly when she voted to eliminate the estate tax. Ironically Feinstein has also stated, “Food stamps for the poor are cut ... so that millionaires can have a tax cut.'' Indeed, while this statement was directed at the Republicans, it also applies to her. (Feinstein Urges Regime Change, San Francisco Chronicle, March 21, 2006)

Diane Feinstein, like many Democrats, has pounded the war drum of the racist Zionist state of Israel even louder than the Republicans.

And just as she is no defender of human rights in the United States she has voted for continued military support to the right wing death squad government of Colombia.

Diane Feinstein: Supporter of Imperialist War

In a press conference on August 21, 2006 George Bush Jr. finally admitted what Liberation News has been pointing out since before the U.S. invasion of Iraq. That Iraq had nothing to do with September 11th. Yet Bush had used a supposed connection as a pretext for the U.S.’s unprovoked aggression against Iraq. In addition, Bush Jr. also admitted that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction.

Most of the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, Diane Feinstein included, supported going to war with Iraq. As anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan has pointed out, “She voted for the war. She continues to vote for the funding. She won't call for an immediate withdrawal of the troops." (Cindy Sheehan May Challenge California Senator AP, Jan. 26, 2006) Cindy Sheehan’s son was a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq.

In trying to let herself of the hook Diane Feinstein claims that Bush “did not fairly represent intelligence”. Feeble cries by these politicians today that their votes for war weren’t their fault because they were lied to by Bush not only make Feinstein look stupid, they are an insult to the intelligence of the American people.

While the Democrats helped promote the lie that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and that Iraq had no right to defend itself, Liberation News pointed out that it is the United States that has the weapons of mass destruction. Instead we supported the right of Iraq to acquire the weapons necessary to defend themselves from U.S. aggression. There can be little doubt that if Iraq had acquired those weapons they may not be in the mess they are now.

Yet for Bush and Feinstein Iraqi weapons were never the real motive for mass murder in Iraq. The capitalist ruling class, and their Democrat and Republican representatives, thought that they could use their superior military power to quickly move into Iraq and establish by force a stable neo-colonial puppet regime, and then make massive profits from the privatization of the Iraqi economy, especially oil. It is the failures of this imperialist plan, in the face of Iraqi resistance and growing unpopularity at home, that has forced some Democrats and Republicans to try to rethink, or at least distance themselves from, the Bush policies they have supported.

Feinstein herself has directly profiteered from the U.S. imposed misery in Iraq. Her husband, Richard Blum, is a billionaire investor that together with CEO Ronald Tutor own investment companies that hold 75% of the voting stock in a company called Perini. On March 12, 2004 Perini was awarded a $500,000,000 contract for rebuilding the electrical infrastructure of southern Iraq. So Feinstein is profiting from the U.S. bombing of the Iraqi infrastructure as well as its inefficient rebuilding by private U.S. contractors. Perini also received the contract for the construction of facilities to support the First Brigade of the Afghan National Army. These include barracks, dining facilities, a power plant, a water treatment facility and a wastewater treatment plant. Diane Feinstein not only voted for the wars and occupations that made these contracts possible, she also sits on the Appropriations Committee and the Select Committee on Intelligence. (Perini Corporation, The Center For Public Integrity)

Just as Liberation News opposes the U.S. occupation and corporate looting of Iraq, we also denounced the starvation blockade that was carried out through the UN by the Clinton administration. That blockade, due to the capitalist nature of the Iraqi economy under Saddam Hussein, cost the lives of about a million people, many of them children. While a socialist economy like that of Cuba could have made sure that everyone in Iraq had food, blame for this mass murder should also be put on the Clinton administration. Likewise, it was this Clinton starvation blockade that also weakened Iraq for the Bush invasion.

Today, while the U.S. occupation of Iraq has murdered over 100,000 people and the U.S. starvation blockade of Iraq murdered a million or more, the U.S. government and its puppets in Iraq have the nerve to put Saddam Hussein on trial for propaganda purposes. Yet the worst crimes of the Saddam Hussein regime were also carried out when he was directly backed by the United States. In the 1980’s the U.S. was giving massive military assistance to Iraq to help Saddam Hussein commit genocide against Kurds and carry out a bloody war with Iran at a time when Saddam Hussein was used as an ally of U.S. imperialism in the Middle East. Likewise the CIA helped Saddam Hussein’s Ba’ath Party come to power supplying them with the names of 5,000 socialists and labor leaders that the Ba’athists subsequently rounded up and executed.

Yet to those who claimed that an invasion of Iraq would be a chance for the U.S. to finally set things straight and set up a democracy in Iraq, Liberation News responded before the U.S. invasion saying:

“In the 1970s Iraq nationalized its oil fields. This helped the Iraqi people by taking a chunk of the profits made off of oil out of the hands of the international oil monopolies and instead keeping them in Iraq. This money helped pay for free healthcare and education. As such this was a socialist measure carried out by Saddam Hussein’s capitalist government. It was also a measure that stood up to the interests of the rich and powerful nations. For both reasons socialists supported the nationalization of Iraqi oil while those measures infuriated the imperialists...

“While defending Iraq against imperialist attack and supporting their right to defend themselves socialists also recognize that Saddam Hussein is a capitalist leader and that the Iraqi people have their own scores to settle with him. Yet any government set up by a US occupation army will not be democratic and will only lead to the privatization of the resources that American oil monopolies intend to steal...”

“U.S. imperialism will never solve the question of women’s liberation in the Middle East. Unlike all of the US supported governments and forces in the Arab World, Iraqi women have many rights found nowhere else in the Arab World except in the Asian republics of the former Soviet Union. Over 50% of Iraqi doctors are women. Iraqi women are allowed to walk unescorted in the streets. They are allowed to drive. Iraqi women can even freely criticize men. In addition Iraqi women have the right to work and control their own funds. This is in stark contrast to the treatment of women under the repressive U.S. backed governments of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia where women have no rights what-so-ever.

“The U.S. ruling class hates governments like Iraq, Libya, and Venezuela who use the profits of their oil resources partly to benefit the people with social programs. Likewise they love governments like that of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait that strip the people of all their rights and keep the oil profits in the hands of the international oil monopolies and their corrupt local servants. Today in the United States we face unemployment, homelessness, and a lack of health care. The billions of dollars the U.S. will squander on killing Iraqis to steal their resources should be spent to benefit the working class and poor of the United States instead.” -From Liberation News: What Is Socialism, and Why We Oppose The Invasion of Iraq

What was predicted is reality. Those predictions were accurate because they were based on the past behavior of U.S. imperialism. The U.S. has set up a puppet Islamic government with functioning death squads and torture chambers. Socialists have been excluded from participating in elections and unarmed demonstrators have been shot down and murdered in the streets by U.S. troops. The puppet Islamic government also opposes women’s rights and women’s rights have deteriorated dramatically since the U.S. invasion. The rebuilding of basic infrastructure, such as electricity, has lagged way behind what was rebuilt by Saddam Hussein after the massive U.S. bombardment of Iraq in 1992.

With the exception of the privatization of Iraqi oil, all of the predictions have shown themselves to be true and the only reason that Iraqi oil isn’t completely under the direct control of U.S. oil monopolies now is because of the union resistance of 23,000 organized oil workers as well as the general resistance by the Iraqi people to the idea of Iraq’s resources being looted by U.S. corporations.

For the working class in the United States there is ever growing frustration with a war that is costing many lives and billions in dollars while needed programs for healthcare, jobs, the environment, and disaster relief do not get the funding they need.

Yet for the ruling class their failure in Iraq is not in the undemocratic and anti-woman nature of the puppet regime they have set up and the money that has been squandered in doing it, but in the failure of that regime to deliver the stability needed to acquire the oil loot. They complain that oil production in Iraq is below prewar levels and the occupation by U.S. and British troops serve as targets for the insurgency.

As a result some Democrats that voted for the war like John Kerry have called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of this year. Yet the Kerry-Feingold plan actually calls for keeping troops in Iraq that are "critical to completing the mission of standing up Iraqi security forces." The Kerry-Feingold plan also calls for "an over-the-horizon" troop presence in the region that could come to the aid of a failing puppet government in Iraq as well as intervene elsewhere in the so-called war on terror. (Lawmakers begin Bitter Debate on U.S. Troop Withdrawal Plan for Iraq, FOXNews, online report, June 2, 2006)

Senators Harry Reid and Carl Levin have put forward a similar proposal, rendered meaningless with similar loopholes to Kerry-Feingold’s, but their proposal calls for the [partial] withdrawal of troops by the end of 1997.

Diane Feinstein supported the Levin-Reid proposal. Defending the proposal Feinstein said, “Our amendment is not about cutting and running. Rather, our amendment acknowledges that staying the course is a strategy that shows no promise of success, and it is time to change that strategy.” (Video clip shown on CNN’s O’brien Show, online transcript, June 23, 2006)

Unlike Feinstein, Liberation News sees nothing good that can come from the Levin-Reid proposal of staying at full war with the Iraqi people for another year and then carrying out a possible partial Iraqification of the war the year after. We disagree with Feinstein when she says, "We all know we can't cut and run, what I'm talking about is changing the nature of this mission. We have to say to Iraq that it's time for your soldiers and police forces to take over.'' (Feinstein Urges Regime Change, San Francisco Chronicle, March 21, 2006)

The U.S. occupation of Iraq is doing nothing for anybody except the capitalists that are profiting from the war and the tax dollars of the American people. We demand: Iraq to the Iraqis! U.S. Out Now! On this issue we agree with the campaigns of Jeff Mackler of Socialist Action, Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party, and Todd Chretien of the Green Party that are all calling for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq:

“More than 2,250 young American troops and over 100,000 Iraqis have died with no end in sight. If we want to stop the dying and respect the Iraqi people's right to run their own country, then we must immediately withdraw all American military forces from Iraq and the surrounding countries.” -Todd Chretien, California Senate candidate of the Green Party

“Immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq, Afghanistan and the rest of the Middle East!”
Marsha Feinland, California Senate candidate of the Peace and Freedom Party

"Immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq! War is an inherent part of capitalism and the ultimate solution to the internal contradictions of the profit-driven and competition-driven system. The U.S. military-industrial complex is organized and designed to maximize profit rates for the corporate few and to serve the imperial economic and political interests of the war-making class—regardless of the capitalist party in power. Socialists acknowledge our fundamental obligation to challenge the U.S. war-makers and their twin parties and to defend the rights and struggles of all those who resist imperialist domination and oppression.” -Jeff Mackler, California Senate candidate of Socialist Action

Liberation news agrees with these calls for U.S. troops out now. In addition we call for the labor movement to break from the Democrat Party of war and exploitation and to end the war through building the mass movement in the streets; striking against arms producers; hot cargoing war materials on the docks, trains, and trucks; and building towards a general strike against the war. Likewise we support the right of military personal to refuse orders and resist this war. We support students, such as those at UC Santa Cruz that have repeatedly driven military recruiters off campus. And we call for building the socialist movement to end imperialism through socialist revolution.

The Role of Peace Action (Formerly Sane / Freeze)

Diane Feinstein has never seen a pending imperialist war she didn’t like. In her entire time in office she has voted for them all. Likewise Feinstein voted for the “Missile Defense System” and other “defense” boondoggles meant to line the pockets of the military industrial capitalists. Yet the group “Peace Action” gives Feinstein the passing grade of voting for peace 89% of the time.

“Peace Action” is deceiving the anti-war vote. Why? Because Peace Action is a pillar of the status quo that sees no alternative to delivering votes to what they see as the “lesser evil” Democrat Party, even when the Democrats are equally pro-war. This strategy has made “Peace Action” an obstacle to peace and a pillar of the status quo.

Every few years the ruling class of the United States parades its selected representatives in front of the American people to give us the chance to vote for their so-called “lesser” and “greater evil” representatives in the Democrat and Republican Parties. The corporate media and liberal pro-war groups like “Peace Action” ignore the anti-war candidates and back pro-war Democrats by misrepresenting their records to the people.

Liberation News urges all of the super-exploited workers that go door to door raising money for the Peace Action bureaucracy to quit your meaningless jobs and look for better work while looking for ways to hook up with the real anti-war/anti-imperialist movement that is marching in the streets. Likewise we urge all of the liberal and leftist minded people that give money to Peace Action to stop doing so and instead participate in the mass anti-war movement in the streets with your bodies, minds, and your money if you can afford it.

In response to the reformist call of, "Anybody But Bush," Socialist Action candidate Jeff Mackler aptly replied, "No to the twin parties of war and oppression!" and "Yes to the independent organization and mobilization of working people!"

Feinstein, Supporter of Racist Israel

Diane Feinstein, like many Democrats, has pounded the war drum for the racist Zionist state of Israel even louder than the Republicans. The U.S. gives Israel billions of dollars in military aid every year and Senator Feinstein’s vote backs that money for death. Israel is a racist settler state established in 1949 that has denied the original inhabitants, the Palestinians, all basic rights. Besides denying Palestinians the same rights to travel, jobs, housing, and education as allowed Jews, the racist Zionist State has used massacres and other forms of terror, wars, and torture to drive out the original Palestinian inhabitants.

Likewise Israel is always at war with its Arab neighbors. Israel’s recent attack against Lebanon where their aerial bombardment of the civilian population murdered 1,150 people and destroyed vital infrastructure is only the latest such terrorism by Israel. Yet when Senator Bill Frist introduced a bill backing Israeli / U.S. aggression in Lebanon Diane Feinstein voted for it along with Senate Democrat colleagues John Kerry (Mass.), Barack Obama (Ill.), Harry Reid (Nevada), Maria Cantwell (Wash.), and Edward Kennedy (Mass.).

Claims of Israel being the victim, bombing and invading Lebanon on the pretext of two Israeli soldiers taken prisoner do not hold water in light of the fact that Israel is holding 2,000 Lebanese prisoners in their torture chamber dungeons from their previous invasion of Lebanon. In addition numerous reports say those two Israeli soldiers were captured in Lebanon, not in Israel. Those reports are from such sources as AP, Hindustan Times, and AFP.

In contrast to Diane Feinstein and her pro-war Democrat colleagues, here is what the candidates to the left of her have to say:

“Israel is a racist state. It has separate laws for Arabs and Jews. The leader of the South African trade union COSATU recently stated that he thinks that the Palestinians face worse conditions than Blacks faced during South African Apartheid. There will never be peace in the Middle East as long as the Zionist state is given a blank check from the United States to treat the Palestinian people as less than human. Israel is part of the American empire and is key to US plans for permanent domination of the Middle East. If we ever want to see our troops come home from Iraq, then the anti-war movement must fight to cut off all American aid to Israel.” -Todd Chretien, California Senate candidate of the Green Party

“As a Jewish American, I chose to run for U.S. Senate partly as an act of conscience in support of the rights of Palestinians in Israel and the occupied territories. The wall which impedes people from conducting a normal life must come down. Israel should abandon the settlements and retreat to its pre-1967 borders. I do not condone any violence against civilians, and favor full rights for all people in any state…End U.S. aid to Israel until it withdraws to its 1967 borders.” -Marsha Feinland, California Senate candidate of the Peace and Freedom Party

“For a democratic and secular Palestine! End all U.S. aid to apartheid Israel! Stop the bombing of Lebanon and Gaza! For a united socialist federation of the Middle East! Socialists reject the legitimacy of the Zionist colonial settler state of Israel, just as we do all colonial settler states. We see no difference between the imperialist colonization of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East of yesteryear and today’s U.S.-backed Zionist conquest and occupation of Palestine. Israel today serves as the chief U.S. instrument for the imperialist domination and exploitation of the Middle East”. -Jeff Mackler, California Senate candidate of Socialist Action

All three candidates of the left take the correct and most important position of ending U.S. aid to Israel, but there are important differences in building an international movement.

While Todd Chretien holds a good position on Israel, the Israeli Green Party is a Zionist capitalist party that holds the position of deputy mayor of Tel Aviv. In a recent letter to the Green Party of the United States by Green Party chairman and deputy mayor, Pe’er Visner, the closest he got to recognizing any crimes by the Israeli government was saying, “We are “sorry” that the Israeli army prevents Palestinian suicide bombers from “expressing” their “human rights” to bomb themselves among Israeli citizens.” This racist response to the suffering of the Palestinian people should serve as a warning to Green Party members in the United States of what happens to parties that fail to put forward a revolutionary program for the overthrow of capitalism as well as fail to be a tribune for all of the most oppressed and exploited in society.

Unlike Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party, Liberation News does not call for a withdrawal of Israel to its conquered borders of 1967. We instead call for pushing Israel back to its 1948 borders for a democratic, secular, and socialist Palestine within the 1948 borders with a separation of religion and state and equal rights for Palestinians and Jews including the Palestinian right to return, a society to be formed by the multi-ethnic working class through socialist revolution.

This is our context of demanding an end to U.S. military aid to racist Israel as well as to the repressive capitalist governments of Egypt and Jordan. Such a cut off is not intended to pressure Israel into a better two state “solution” as Marsha Feinland asks the U.S. government to do, but to allow the people of the Near East self-determination and revolution without the interference of billions of dollars in U.S. military aid to murderous regimes.

Jeff Mackler, in seeing Socialist Action as part of an international socialist movement with an international revolutionary program, has proposed a similar revolutionary program to that of Liberation News, but missing a key ingredient:

“Zionism is an ideology of racism and apartheid segregation. It is a deathtrap for the Jewish people, a central source of almost 60 years of war and oppression of the Palestinians. Socialist Action supports the creation of a democratic and secular Palestine, where Jews and Arabs can live together as equals in a new society, a society predicated on the immediate right of return of all dispossessed Palestinians. In this society, revolutionaries will fight for the construction of an egalitarian socialist state.” -Jeff Mackler, California Senate candidate of Socialist Action

Missing from this formula is the understanding that only socialist revolution, led by (a) secular multi-ethnic socialist party or parties will be capable of solving the national and democratic questions of Israel, Palestine, and Jordan. The capitalists and their parties, be they Kadima, Likud, Labour, Shas, Hamas, Fatah, or the Hashemite King Hussein of Jordan base their rule on capitalist exploitation and are incapable of providing any real solutions. Liberation News disagrees with the idea that democratic secular revolution should occur now and provide the basis for a later struggle for socialism, pointing out that this is the essence of Stalin’s Two-Stage Theory of Revolution when we instead hold high the banner of Trotsky’s Theory of Permanent Revolution.

It was this Stalinist Two-Stage Theory that provided the political basis for the Communist Party of South Africa putting all of their resources into building the African National Congress (ANC) as the democratic alternative to the racist apartheid government of South Africa. Yet by building a political party and movement that supported the continuation of the capitalist system they created a new capitalist party that now rules South Africa for the rich white capitalists at the continued expense of the super-exploited and poor black majority workers, minus overt racist laws. Strikes for healthcare and other workers’ demands have been broken by the ANC for the capitalists, HIV-AIDS goes untreated, and the massive mineral wealth of South Africa continues to go into the pockets of the capitalists instead of their potential of benefiting the workers, environment, and world revolution.

So when is the Communist Party of South Africa going to set about fighting for the next stage of the revolution? The answer is never. They are now part of the capitalist apparatus and part of the problem. It will take the other socialist parties of South Africa, the Trotskyist parties, to lead the socialist revolution.

While Stalinism has done much to stifle workers’ democracy in the deformed workers states under Stalinist control, it has also greatly sabotaged the world socialist revolution through Stalin’s Two-Stage Theory. Socialist Action is not a Stalinist organization, but they appear to have adopted part of their program.

So what would be Socialist Action’s ANC for Palestine? Fatah? They’ve already discredited themselves. They’ve sold the Palestinian people out with the Oslo Accords placing the Palestinian people on tiny Bantustan’s without a real basis for an economy. Would their ANC be Hamas? The imposition of Islamic law could hardly be considered a democratic secular revolution. Would they then suggest that Palestinian and Israeli socialists build a party with a purely democratic secular program, abandoning the socialist program as the Communist Party of South Africa did? Let’s drop the nonsense, build for the socialist revolution! For a democratic, secular, and socialist Palestine!

Liberation News rejects Stalin’s Two-Stage Theory of Revolution. We instead hold up the banner of Trotsky’s Theory of Permanent Revolution. It was through this theory that Trotsky explained that the democratic and the socialist revolutions are inseparably linked.

Yet the differences between Liberation News and Socialist Action as well as our differences with the Peace and Freedom Party on these questions do not prevent us from giving critical support to both in this election.

The Role of the Green Party

While Todd Cretien of the Green Party has good immediate positions on the war, Liberation News does not support Green Party candidates because the Green Party is a capitalist party. In Santa Cruz, where the Green Party has elected their party member Tim Fitzemaurice to office, Tim Fitzemaurice has backed the fears of local shop owners by voting for anti-homeless laws such as the law that makes it illegal for the homeless to sleep at night. While criminalizing those who cannot pay the high rent Fitzemaurice refuses to take a stand for rent control. Likewise Tim Fitzemaurice has refused to take any stand against police violence used against anti-war protesters in 1999 and other repressive measures against activists including my arrest and beating for distributing literature and the police murder of homeless activist John Dine. Recently Fitzemaurice did take a stand against police infiltration of the organizers of a Santa Cruz anti-war parade, but his stated reason for doing so was an attempt to maintain the credibility of the Santa Cruz police.

Tim Fitzemaurice is not a leader for change in Santa Cruz. He is instead a pillar of the status quo. This is the future of all political parties and politicians that do not have a clear program for the overthrow of the capitalist system.

The Green Party is clear in their program. They state that they are for a system of small capitalism. Yet the small capitalists commonly have a smaller profit margin and often exploit workers worse than the big capitalists. In opposition to such a vision of small and inefficient capitalist exploiters, Liberation News looks to labor struggle and the nationalization of industry under workers’ control as the way to fight and neutralize the corporate exploiters and bring justice for the working class.

On a national level the Green Party generally is not even seeking power, but pressure and reform of the Democrat Party. Yet the policy of many Greens in promoting votes for Democrats when the vote between the Democrat and Republican is close only promotes further illusions in the Democrats. Likewise promising votes to Democrats when it looks close does nothing to pressure the Democrats and their super rich backers to move to the left.

It was a massive and fighting labor movement led to large extent by socialists that forced the American ruling class and Franklin Delano Roosevelt to carry out the New Deal reforms in the 1930’s. This was out of fear of further unrest and potential revolution. It is the position of Liberation News that the most meaningful reforms do not come from reformism, such as that of the Green Party, but from revolutionary and working class struggle.

While making these criticisms Liberation News does recognize that there are differences between the program of Todd Chretien and that of the Green Party. If Todd Chretien was also speaking out for the Green Party to adopt a socialist program we could possibly give him support, but he is not. By running as a candidate and being a spokesperson for a party with a capitalist program Todd Chretien is helping build that capitalist party and program, so we must respectfully withhold our support.

Critical Support To The Socialist Candidates

Liberation News is giving critical support to Jeff Mackler of Socialist Action and Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party. These are two socialist parties that hold socialist programs (for the most part) and are also active in the anti-war, free Mumia, and labor movements. To a large degree they represent the kind of political alternative that Liberation News promotes in opposition to the Democrats and Republicans.

Jeff Mackler of Socialist Action

Jeff Mackler is a long time socialist that has done much in organizing protests against imperialist wars, for the freedom of Mumia Abu-Jamal, for socialism, and other leftist causes.

Jeff Mackler and other expelled members of the Socialist Workers’ Party (SWP) were part of establishing new groups that continued on in some of the better traditions of the SWP, a party that led the 1934 Teamster’s Strike (a turning point in U.S. labor history), a party that was a major leader in the anti-war movement of the 1970’s and 1960’s, and a party that helped establish the world Trotskyist movement and expose the crimes of Stalinism.

Yet Jeff Mackler’s group, Socialist Action, was also born with a few programmatical errors. One was their abandonment of Trotsky’s concept of Political Revolution. The call for political revolution in the deformed workers states, such as the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, was a call for overthrowing the repressive Stalinist bureaucracy and institutionalizing workers’ democracy without overthrowing the nationalized planned economy itself. While Trotskyists call for political revolution in the deformed workers’ states, we also defend those socialist economies from imperialist attack and internal counter-revolution. The failure of Socialist Action to understand the true nature of the counter revolutionary movements in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, and Afghanistan led to important mistakes.

In supporting Solidarnosc in Poland Socialist Action backed a political movement that had a clear program for capitalist counter revolution and joined ranks with the CIA, the Pope, and Ronald Reagan in backing Solidarnosc’s rise to power. After taking power Solidarnosc’s program became even clearer with the outlawing of abortion (that used to be free on demand) and privatizations of the economy that led to 50% unemployment. Yet despite how clear it is today that Solidarnosc led a capitalist counter-revolution as opposed to a socialist political revolution (that would maintain the socialist economy, but oust the Stalinist bureaucracy and institute workers’ democracy) Socialist Action has not changed their position on Solidarnosc.

On Black liberation we at Liberation News advocate Richard Fraser’s Theory of Revolutionary Integrationism as opposed to the Black Nationalism promoted by Socialist Action. Socialist Action’s advocacy of Black Nationalism has brought them to the point of even promoting the religious and pro-capitalist Nation of Islam of Louis Farrakhan. Liberation News sees the promotion of Black Nationalism as a dead end. There is no geographical area that we can point to on a map and say by its demographics that it would make sense to set up Black nation there. Even if it were possible or desirable to set up a separate Black Nation in the United States the pain and suffering such an adventure would cause in terms of dislocations of the working class would not be worth the price. Liberation News, in contrast, calls for the overthrow of the racist capitalist system and the building of an egalitarian socialist society that guarantees racial equality, full employment, and access to health care for all.

Liberation News does, however, see Socialist Action’s campaign for Senate as a supportable campaign that, despite its mistakes, is promoting socialism as the alternative to the capitalist Democrats, Republicans, and Greens.

Here are some of the demands that Mackler is putting forward with his campaign:

1) Immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq! No U.S. aid to Israel! Israel out of Lebanon and Gaza! Shut down Guantanamo! U.S. hands off Cuba and Venezuela! End the Cuba blockade!
2) Tax the rich, not working people! Jobs at top union wages for all! Shorten the work-week with no cut in pay! For a revitalized and fighting labor movement! For a Labor Party!
3) Human needs before capitalist profits! Nationalize so-called bankrupt corporations under workers’ control.
4) Free quality health care and education for people of all ages! Build schools not jails! Quality affordable housing for all!
5) An emergency program to combat global warming! End our dependency on fossil fuels! No to nuclear power and weapons!
6) Stop the attacks on civil liberties! Repeal the Patriot Act! End police brutality! Support the right of marriage for same sex couples!
7) Defend a woman’s right to control her own body! Ready access to abortion is a fundamental right!
8) Immediate amnesty, legalization, and equal rights for all immigrants! No to La Migra! Demilitarize and open the border! Self-determination for oppressed nationalities! Affirmative action with quotas to remedy past discrimination! Support to Black and Latino independent political action!
9) For a government of, by, and for working people and the oppressed! For socialism!

While Liberation News agrees with many of these slogans we see a couple as too transitional. We do not see any good reason for limiting calls for nationalization to so-called “bankrupt corporations”. Perhaps this is in imitation of the economic crisis of Argentina and the many “bankrupt corporations” that have been taken over and run by workers as part of a miniature workers’ economy that employs about 10,000 Argentinean workers.

Liberation News sees no reason for limiting the nationalization of companies to those that the capitalists don’t want anymore, companies that the capitalists are no longer making super profits from. The exploitation of workers’ and the environment have produced all wealth, and the revolutionary movement of the working class wants it all back! We want the railroads, the banks, the health care industry, and of course oil! Only a society with a planned economy can meet the needs of the working class, can end war for capitalist profit, and can begin to save the environment. Revolution takes bold vision; we want it all; leave the conservatism to the Democrats and Republicans!

Imperialism has caused the poverty of Mexico, and an open border is the only right thing to do. Yet an open border would be coupled with a massive influx of immigrants and should be combined with the call for a socialist economy that guarantees jobs for all. Only socialism can solve the national question.

Jeff Mackler’s campaign for senate, despite its errors, does help show the way forward by pointing to socialist demands and solutions.

Due to the undemocratic laws of the state of California making it very difficult for third parties to gain ballot access Jeff Mackler will not be on the ballot so if you choose to vote for him you will have to write in his name.

Marsha Feinland of the Peace and Freedom Party

The Peace and Freedom Party (PFP) is the only socialist party in California that does have ballot status. Liberation News is also extending critical support to the PFP candidacy of Marsha Feinland. Here are key points of Marsha Feinland’s campaign:

1) Withdraw troops and advisors from Afghanistan, Iraq, Haiti and Colombia
2) End aid to Israel until it withdraws to its pre-1967 borders
3) Raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour
4) Create universal health care with a "single payer" (Canadian type) system- no insurance company profits
5) Shorten the work week with no loss in pay and guarantee paid vacation time for all workers
6) Repeal the Taft-Hartley Act - restore the right to strike and end "right to work" laws
7) Abolish the death penalty
8) End the phony "war on drugs" - legalize marijuana and decriminalize drug use
9) Fully fund the U.S. government share of education costs, particularly special education
10) End the war on children - stop the government mandated testing craze in public schools
11) Protect the National Forests and other public and native lands from corporate exploitation
12) Abolish the Senate and the Electoral College - one person, one vote

In this platform Marsha Feinland raises a number of good points, including opposing the undemocratic nature of the Senate itself stating, "Abolish the Senate and the Electoral College - one person, one vote." This is in reference to the way that the senate has equal numbers of representatives from each state, regardless of that state’s population. On a similar issue Diane Feinstein has been criticized by activists in Washington D.C., a district where the people do not get representation in the Senate, for supporting Washington D.C. school vouchers that were undemocratically crammed down their throats.

In the United States more than 45 million Americans have no health coverage. These include 9 million children. Millions of others have inadequate coverage. It is a crime that the richest nation (rich due to imperialist exploitation of the world) leads in medical technology, but has the worst access to healthcare of any developed nation. Marsha Feinland’s call for single payer healthcare of the Canadian model, covering everyone and getting rid of the insurance industry middlemen would be a welcome change. And yes, despite the propaganda, government programs are always more efficient than private profiteering with its stockholders, overpaid CEOs, and advertising. But the Cuban model with nationalized healthcare and no private hospitals or pharmaceutical companies profiteering from illness works even better. It is this healthcare model that Liberation News advocates.

In fact Marsha Feinland’s platform is not just missing a full socialized medicine program, it is missing another key ingredient. Besides calling for eliminating the private insurance industry through single payer, nowhere in her platform or other materials does she call for the nationalization of the capitalist economy. She has no reference to the expropriation of big oil, industry, and finance capital or even any calls for the nationalization or municipalization of the generation, distribution and sales of electric power. Without such a socialist program it will be impossible to neutralize the power of the capitalist class and meet the needs of the working class.

Liberation News also strongly disagrees with the Peace and Freedom Party’s practice of endorsing Democrats in city elections. In Santa Cruz this has meant that the Peace and Freedom Party has helped elect some of the most anti-worker, anti-homeless, and pro-police oppression Democrats such as Mike Rotkin. Rotten Rotkin publicly opposed the bus drivers when they went on strike, is currently campaigning against a city initiative to raise the minimum wage, has voted for and supported every anti-homeless law in Santa Cruz, and has backed the police in every act of repression, violence, and spying that they have carried out against the left in the city. The local PFP may not support Rotkin anymore, but they did help get him elected, and they continue to help elect other Democrats and Greens in Santa Cruz that have virtually identical programs to that of Rotkin. Liberation News says: No to support for Democrats or Greens in local or national elections! Yes to the socialist candidates!

It will take a massive working class movement for good socialist candidates to actually win elections. An important element of this will be breaking the labor movement from the Democrat Party. By backing the candidates worth voting for today we at Liberation News feel that we are helping build the foundations of that movement today and into the future as people get more and more fed up with capitalist exploitation and wars. Ultimately the ruling class will use ever more violence to try to maintain their grip on power and a revolution will be necessary for the working class to actually seize power and transform society.

Liberation News:
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/liberation_news

Marsha Feinland, California Peace and Freedom Party Candidate for Senate:
http://feinlandforsenate.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

Jeff Mackler, California Socialist Action Candidate for Senate:
http://www.socialistaction.org/macklerforsenate/index.html

Todd Cretien, Green Party Candidate for Senate:
http://www.todd4senate.org/

posted in ACLU - 2 replies

Give Peace A Vote-Please Sign!

Code Pink — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 19:58:06 GMT

Dear Friend:

Aren't you ready to let the politicians know that we, the majority of Americans, want an end to the ongoing war in Iraq? Then please join me, along with Yoko Ono, Susan Sarandon, Alice Walker, Dolores Huerta, Cornell West, my friends at CODEPINK, and MANY MORE in signing Give Peace a Vote.

This is a Voters Pledge that we will only vote for candidates who publicly call for a speedy withdrawal from Iraq and will keep us from engaging in future unjustified wars. Let's send a clear message this November and beyond, that we believe in international law and diplomacy over aggression.

Please sign the Voters Pledge and ask at least 10 of your friends to sign as well. With millions of peace voters, we can elect leaders who will Give Peace a Chance. That's all we are saying.

Simply copy and paste this url in the address bar of your web browser to sign up NOW: http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/codepink/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=295&t=GPV.dwt

Thank you for taking action!

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

aclu may block free speech by its board

acoustichrmny — Thu, 25 May 2006 20:52:59 GMT

The American Civil Liberties Union (A.C.L.U.), a longtime champion of free speech, may block free speech by its board. The group is weighing new standards that state "a director may publicly disagree with an A.C.L.U. policy position, but may not criticize the A.C.L.U. board or staff." One former board member said of the proposal: "I can't think of anything more contrary to the reason the A.C.L.U. exists."
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http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/24/us/24aclu.html?ei=5094&en=9a8b9549e98abc4c&hp=&ex=1148443200&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
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May 24, 2006
A.C.L.U. May Block Criticism by Its Board
By STEPHANIE STROM

The American Civil Liberties Union is weighing new standards that would discourage its board members from publicly criticizing the organization's policies and internal administration.

"Where an individual director disagrees with a board position on matters of civil liberties policy, the director should refrain from publicly highlighting the fact of such disagreement," the committee that compiled the standards wrote in its proposals.

"Directors should remember that there is always a material prospect that public airing of the disagreement will affect the A.C.L.U. adversely in terms of public support and fund-raising," the proposals state.

Given the organization's longtime commitment to defending free speech, some former board members were shocked by the proposals.

Nat Hentoff, a writer and former A.C.L.U. board member, was incredulous. "You sure that didn't come out of Dick Cheney's office?" he asked.

"For the national board to consider promulgating a gag order on its members — I can't think of anything more contrary to the reason the A.C.L.U. exists," Mr. Hentoff added.

The proposals say that "a director may publicly disagree with an A.C.L.U. policy position, but may not criticize the A.C.L.U. board or staff." But Wendy Kaminer, a board member and a public critic of some decisions made by the organization's leadership, said that was a distinction without a difference.

"If you disagree with a policy position," she said, "you are implicitly criticizing the judgment of whoever adopted the position, board or staff."

Anthony D. Romero, the A.C.L.U.'s executive director, said that he had not yet read the proposals and that it would be premature to discuss them before the board reviews them at its June meeting.

Mr. Romero said it was not unusual for the A.C.L.U. to grapple with conflicting issues involving civil liberties. "Take hate speech," he said. "While believing in free speech, we do not believe in or condone speech that attacks minorities."

Lawrence A. Hamermesh, chairman of the committee, which was formed to define rights and responsibilities of board members, also said it was too early to discuss the proposals, as did Alison Steiner, a committee member who filed a dissent against some recommendations.

In a background report, the committee wrote that "its proposed guidelines are more in the nature of a statement of best practices" that could be used to help new board members "understand and conform to the board's shared understanding of the responsibilities of its members."

But some former board members and A.C.L.U. supporters said the proposals were an effort to stifle dissent.

"It sets up a framework for punitive action," said Muriel Morisey, a law professor at Temple University who served on the board for four years until 2004.

Susan Herman, a Brooklyn Law School professor who serves on the board, said board members and others were jumping to conclusions.

"No one is arguing that board members have no right to disagree or express their own point of view," Ms. Herman said. "Many of us simply think that in exercising that right, board members should also consider their fiduciary duty to the A.C.L.U. and its process ideals."

When the committee was formed last year, its mission was to set standards on when board members could be suspended or ousted.

The board had just rejected a proposal to remove Ms. Kaminer and Michael Meyers, another board member, because the two had publicly criticized Mr. Romero and the board for decisions that they contended violated A.C.L.U. principles and policies, including signing a grant agreement requiring the group to check its employees against government terrorist watch lists — a position it later reversed — and the use of sophisticated data-mining techniques to recruit members.

Mr. Meyers lost his bid for re-election to the board last year, but Ms. Kaminer has continued to speak out. Last month, she was quoted in The New York Sun as criticizing the group's endorsement of legislation to regulate advertising done by counseling centers run by anti-abortion groups. The bill would prohibit such centers from running advertisements suggesting that they provide abortion services when they actually try to persuade women to continue their pregnancies.

Ms. Kaminer and another board member, John C. Brittain, charged that the proposal threatened free speech. "I find it quite appalling that the A.C.L.U. is actively supporting this," Ms. Kaminer told The Sun.

The uproar their comments produced at the April board meeting illustrates how contentious the issue of directors' publicly airing dissent with policies and procedures has become at the organization.

Some directors lamented that Ms. Kaminer and Mr. Brittain had shared their disagreement with the paper, and Mr. Romero angrily denounced Ms. Kaminer. "I got frustrated and lost my temper," he said yesterday. "In retrospect, that was a mistake."

At the meeting, Mr. Romero did not denounce Mr. Brittain. But board members said he had demanded that Ms. Steiner step outside the meeting room, where he chastised her for the look on her face when he was criticizing Ms. Kaminer.

"Anthony went on to say that because I was Wendy's 'friend' and did not appear ready to join him in 'getting rid of her,' (by, among other things, lobbying her affiliate to remove her as its representative) I was no better than she was, and then stormed off angrily," Ms. Steiner wrote in an e-mail message to the board.

Later in the meeting, Mr. Romero asked another board member, David F. Kennison, to step outside after Mr. Kennison apologized for failing to object to Mr. Romero's attack on Ms. Kaminer.

Mr. Kennison reported in an e-mail message that Mr. Romero "told me that he would 'never' apologize to the target of his outburst and that his evaluation of her performance as a member of this board was justified by information he had been accumulating in a 'thick file on her.' "

When Mr. Kennison asked whether Mr. Romero intended to start such a file on him, "he asked me what made me think that he didn't already have a file on me," Mr. Kennison wrote.

Mr. Romero said Mr. Kennison had provoked him. "I do not have a file on Wendy," he said.

In a telephone interview, Mr. Kennison said his biggest concern was the relationship between the board and the A.C.L.U. staff.

"I think of the board as the brain and the staff as the fang and the claws," he said, "and the brain should govern the fangs and claws rather than the other way around."

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

aclu sues over security for bush protest

acoustichrmny — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 20:24:48 GMT

ACLU Sues Over Security for Bush Protest
The Associated Press

Thursday 06 July 2006

Medford, Ore. - The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Thursday alleging the U.S. Secret Service and state and local police protecting President Bush during a 2004 campaign appearance discriminated against protesters when they cleared the streets outside where the president was eating dinner.

The class-action lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court contends that police acting on orders from the Secret Service used unreasonable force to move some 200 people peacefully protesting against the Iraq war in Jacksonville while allowing pro-Bush demonstrators to remain standing on sidewalks.

"Our primary motive is to prevent this kind of activity from happening again in the future," said David Fidanque, executive director of the Oregon ACLU.

On Oct. 16, 2004, President Bush made a campaign speech at the Jackson County fairgrounds and later had dinner on the patio of the Jacksonville Inn within earshot of protesters before spending the night at an inn cottage.

Protest organizer Shelley Elkovich said they took pains to talk to police to be sure the atmosphere would be safe and were told that everyone would be fine if they stayed on the sidewalks. Demonstrators told the ACLU that about 40 police officers in riot gear moved them away from the inn.

Jacksonville Police Chief David Towe's testimony in a criminal case against two demonstrators that police moved under orders from the Secret Service gave them the evidence they needed to file the lawsuit, Temple said.

Spokesmen for the Secret Service, state police and the town of Jacksonville said they would have no comment on pending litigation.

The plaintiffs are seven protesters and the Jackson County Pacific Green Party.

The lawsuit seeks an injunction barring the Secret Service and police from discriminating against protesters in the future. It also seeks unspecified compensatory damages for demonstrators who were injured, and punitive damages for those who were denied their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and assembly.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

"Da Vinci Code" vs. "Left Behind"

Rocky — Mon, 22 May 2006 02:37:33 GMT

"Da Vinci Code" vs. "Left Behind"

Ya know, I was just thinking. Nobody seemed to care about the mass genocide of non-believers during the apocalypse , armageddon in the infamous "Left Behind" series.

There appears to be a monumental double-standard going on here. It's perfectly fine to bash & destroy nonbelievers & send them to an eternal suffering & torment in Hell but when someone like Dan Brown writes a fiction he & his movie & book are attacked. The Fundies are preparing for the new, modern Inquisition as we speak. Many fundies believe "Left Behind" to be nonfiction since it is about the 'end times' as described in 'Revelation' the last book in the bible.

It gives xianity the opportunity for the largest human mass genocide in history to rid itself of non-believers so that the entire world may then finally agree with them. Xians claim that everything changed with the new testament - even though it started off with their god allowing the execution of his only begotten son as a blood-ritual sacrifice & ends in "Revelation" with an apocalypse / armageddon. The bottom line is, If you're not a believer in jesus/christianity, you go to hell. Religion has been used to justify war, slavery, sexism, racism, homophobia, mutilations, intolerance, and oppression of minorities. - there is no moderation there whatsoever.

The Religious Tolerance website says:

"...during the second coming of Christ, Christ "will exterminate one third of the earth's population in a massive genocide. It will be numerically the largest mass extermination of humans in history".
http://www.religioustolerance.org/rapture.htm

Enjoy this 'A Brief History of the Apocalypse'
http://www.abhota.info/end1.htm

Maybe non-believers need to start protesting before it's to late???

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

PDX Pro Choice Party tonight....Did you see us in the Portland Mercury?

Kevinw66 — Fri, 12 May 2006 16:19:54 GMT

Did you see we made the Portland Mercury? I’ve been working on this fundraiser with some great volunteers the last couple months. The Portland Mercury thinks you should spend your Friday night with us, and so do I. So do it, come out and spend some time with us and support Choice

PRO-CHOICE PARTY! (Portland Mercury page 17)
Being pro-choice in 2006—as states like South Dakota outlaw abortion and President Bush appoints pro-life Supreme Court Justices—isn't all doom and gloom. Tonight the folks at NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon are putting on their third annual "Debutante Ball," a tongue-in-cheek send up of old-fashioned Southern balls, with a feminist, pro-choice twist! AJ Dante's, 1 SW 3rd, 8 pm, $15
www.portlandmercury.com/portla...usyWeek

PS: If you come out and we haven’t met yet be sure to introduce yourself. I’ll be wearing a western style brown shirt with an orange peace patch that I sowed on myself…easy to spot.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

torture petition

acoustichrmny — Wed, 10 May 2006 18:14:42 GMT

If you agree with me that torture, indefinite detention and secret government kidnapping are un-American, I think you’ll be interested in a petition that I just signed.

These practices should not represent the United States of America. But today, two years after the truth was exposed about government-sponsored torture and abuse, the U.S. has failed to reverse the policies that led to this abuse -- and has yet to hold a single high-ranking official responsible.

After the horrors of World War II, our leaders helped draft universal principles that prohibit torture and protect human rights. I hope you join me in defending that legacy by signing the petition and speaking out against torture.

Please join with thousands of others and sign the petition today: http://action.aclu.org/tortureisunamerican

posted in ACLU - 5 replies

Help is needed for Susan Lindauer

jbfields — Sun, 07 May 2006 00:49:08 GMT

Some of you may remember, in March of 2004, Andy Card's second cousin being arrested for letters she wrote to him conveying infomation from Iraq diplomats. Because of those letters, and her accepting expense reimbursements for trips to meet with those diplomats, the Bush Justice Department accused her of being an unregistered agent of Iraq Intelligence Service. Currently, she is in prison without having been tried and convicted.

Her court appointed attorney and the prosecutor agreed to argue that she was incompetent to stand trial. The court then sent her to Carswell FMC, in the Federal Bureau of Prisons to see whether she could be made fit for trial. Last Thursday, a hearing began in Judge Mukassey's Federal Court, the Southern District of New York, to approve the Justice Department's request to forcibly medicate her. Obstensibly, this is to render her fit for trial. However, it is somwhat clear they have no specific diagnosis for her other than "psychotic not otherwise specified" and literally proposed, in court, that as they could not determine a cause for her condition could only treat the symptoms. It gets worse. They went on to describe medications that had been proven 50% effective in two studies treating similar symptoms of patients with different diagnosis: one study with 15 people, another with only 1. Under cross-examination, they admit that some of the side effects of such medication are known to be fatal.

It seems that the Republican party and the Justice Department, in order to punish somebody who had the temerity to work for the end of sanctions and the suffering it was causing in Iraq (she had studied under a professor at Smith who argues against the effectiveness of such methods), is attempting to do to Susan what they did to Martha Mitchell during Watergate.

We need donations.

Liz Fink, a famous lawyer who defended the Attica inmates and recently won a substantial judgement for them, is interested in representing Susan. We need to raise about $25,000 so that she can say that she really is Susan's attorney, and so that we can get the public defender whose poor choice of a twinky defense (over Susan's objections and requests for a regular trial and traditional defense) out of the mix. We also will need the funds to get her into a Private facility, somewhere, and that can run another $100,000 a year! But first things first.

If you want to donate to my gas and travel expenses, you can do that over PayPal, but please don't send money until we know what to do with it. Just let me know if you can help, please.

I've posted links to news about Susan on my web site www.jbfields3.com/jbf.htm and am blogging her affairs at http://jayspolitics.blogspot.com

Any other ideas are welcome.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

HURRY, SAVE FREEDOM ON INTERNET

petunia — Sat, 06 May 2006 04:29:55 GMT

Hi,

Do you buy books online, use Google, or download to an iPod? Everything we do online will be hurt if Congress passes a radical law in upcoming days that gives giant corporations more control over what we do and see on the Internet.

Internet providers like AT&T are lobbying Congress hard to gut Internet freedom. They would allow AT&T to choose which websites open most easily for you based on which site pays AT&T more. If this law passes, almost every popular site—from Google to eBay to iTunes—must either pay protection money to companies like AT&T or risk having their websites process slowly. That why over 400,000 people have signed a petition opposing Congress' effort to gut Internet freedom.

We can all do our part to save the Internet—can you sign this petition to Congress? Click here:

http://www.civic.moveon.org/save_the_internet/?id=7482-3714763-xoomZYcJ1ClqzSHawt2MRA&t=5

This petiton will be delivered to Congress before the House of Representatives votes in several days. When you sign, you'll be kept informed of the next steps we can take to keep the heat on Congress.

If you want more information, here are two really good places to look.

SavetheInternet.com Coalition Web Site
http://www.savetheinternet.com/

New York Times Editorial—"Keeping A Democratic Web"
http://www.freepress.net/news/15263

Thanks.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Romero's hit the big time (Colbert Report)

Debmocracy — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 04:46:26 GMT

Exec. Director of ACLU, Anthony Romero, was on the Colbert Report last night:
http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_colbert_report/index.jhtml

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

AUSTIN ACLU lovers: Candidate's Forum Monday, 4/24

Debmocracy — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 04:50:07 GMT

ACLU-Central Texas Chapter CANDIDATES' FORUM

MONDAY, APRIL 24, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Come hear city council candidates' positions on police accountability and larger civil liberties issues, and find out who supports/opposes Proposition 1, the open government charter ballot proposition, where there is sure to be much-heated debate and hopefully a little truth!

LOCATION: Cafe Caffeine, 909 W. Mary (at S. 5th)

INFO: Debbie Russell 512.573.6194

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Study: Atheists Most Discriminated Minority

Rocky — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 16:22:44 GMT

Study: Atheists Most Discriminated Minority

University of Minnesota study of 2006: (Would you want your daughter to marry an Atheist?)

University of Minnesota researchers conducted a telephone survey of over 2,000 households in early 2006. 7 They found that:

"...Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in 'sharing their vision of American society.' Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry."

Lead researcher, Penny Edgell, noted that Atheists:

"...offer a glaring exception to the rule of increasing social tolerance over the last 30 years....It seems most Americans believe that diversity is fine, as long as every one shares a common 'core' of values that make them trustworthy—and in America, that 'core' has historically been religious....Americans believe they share more than rules and procedures with their fellow citizens—they share an understanding of right and wrong. Our findings seem to rest on a view of atheists as self-interested individuals who are not concerned with the common good'." 6,7

It would appear that Atheists have a major public relations job ahead of them.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/atheist5.htm

---------

However, you'll be glad to know this bit of info -

"The Secular Coalition for America is the new (first one ever!) Washington-based lobbying organization for atheists, humanists, freethinkers, and other nontheistic Americans. Our mission is to increase the visibility and respectability of nontheistic viewpoints in the United States and to protect and strengthen the secular character of our government as the best guarantee of freedom for all."

http://www.secular.org/

http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/ath1.htm

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"Wake Up America" Ad Campaign Runs on National Air America

FFRF Takes Message to Combat Theocracy to the Air Waves

April 3, 2006

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a national watchdog group whose members are atheists and agnostics working to keep church and state separate, is taking its "Wake up America" message to national airwaves.

Beginning today for three months, the Foundation will run a series of paid radio advertisements (read ad transcripts here) warning of the religious right's assault on America. These are scheduled during four nationally syndicated "Air America" talkshows.

In one ad, comedian Julia Sweeney, the Saturday Night Live alum ("Adrogynous Pat") whose new play is "Letting Go of God," identifies herself as an atheist and asks others to "join me and the Freedom From Religion Foundation in waking up America to the growing dangers of theocracy." Her spot will air daily for 12 weeks during the "Al Franken Show."

Additionally, the Foundation is airing paid "voice endorsements" recorded by three Air America hosts to run daily during their programs. Janeane Garofalo, also an comedian, actress and SNL alum who co-hosts "The Majority Report," asks: "Are you tired of right-wing politicians who desperately want to impose their religious beliefs on the rest of us? I know I am! That's why I'm asking you to support the Freedom From Religion Foundation." Garafalo signs off: "Proud to be an atheist!"

Laura Flanders, RadioNation host, asks: "Are you as alarmed as I am about the religious right's assault on our secular government and private lives?"

Mike Malloy, of the Mike Malloy Show, notes: "I fully support the Freedom From Religion Foundation as it takes the lead in challenging the growing threat from the religious right in the United States."

"We have never been in greater danger of losing our secular republic,"says Foundation co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor.

"Theocrats are in charge of our two branches of government, and just gained a narrow foothold on the third--the U.S. Supreme Court. We witness daily assaults by religionists seeking to unite church and state, such as the flood of federal faith-based funding to support proselytizing religious groups." The dangers to civil liberties are demonstrated by South Dakota's religion-instigated ban on abortion and religion-led efforts to bar same-sex marriage and civil unions, Gaylor noted.

The ads invite sympathetic listeners to phone or visit ffrf.org, the Foundation's website.

http://www.ffrf.org/news/2006/airamerica.php

---------

http://www.au.org/site/PageServer

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Please join & become a member of these great organizations.

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

Please help

mentalfreedomne1 — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 01:51:58 GMT

please go to this website to send a fax to the related US
congress and senate members to Request a Congressional Hearing on the
Sujiatun case. it's a very easy to Fill out form, With just a click, the fax will be sent.
thank you,
joshua

here is the link:
http://publicpetition.unvcc.com/UN/index.php

there is more information about Sujiatun on the website:
http://www.theepochtimes.com/211,111,,1.html

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Where can I obtain legal assistance ????

jamesfreaksurfer — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 06:13:19 GMT

I was illegally imprisoned by the state of AZ. for civil contempt of court for 9 months. So far I the only assistance I could get is from the Ambassadors from Cuba, political asylum. Yes the judge told me that my mental problem was mine and not hers. She refused to allow me to attend a mental health therapy program at the VA hospital. And only forced me to be a SLAVE for the state of AZ. After 9 months she advised me that I would be in a forced labor camp for 3 to 5 years longer. At which point I felt that suicide was my only alternate to all my physical and mental pain. My Dr, at the phoenix VA hosp. advised me to leave the state. So did several Jail detention officers. I never commited a crime, but yet imprisoned. Now in cali Im recieving welfare and a VA pension and have been declared non working status. Due to my mental condition, but now I willing to fight for anybody who will take out the GOVERNMENT of AZ. and any govt who feels that they can imprison some one is no threat to society on civil contempt. And denie us our civil liberties.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

New Witness Confirms Existence of Chinese Concentration Camp, Says Organs Removed from Live Prisoners

mentalfreedomne1 — Sat, 18 Mar 2006 02:54:24 GMT

Please help to end this horrible persectuion. knowledge is our greatest weapon, please share this information. together in peace we can make a difference. Falun Dafa is a peaceful meditation practice that teaches putting others before yourself, kindness, always telling the truth and being tolerant of others. We are literally being killed for being good people. The national media has been of little help because of trade issues with China. It is up to us to let the world know. Please help us.

By Ji Da
The Epoch Times Mar 17, 2006
www.theepochtimes.com

The witness, a former employee at the Liaoning Thrombosis Treatment Center of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, and says the bodies of Falun Gong practitioners are cremated immediately after the organs are removed. (The Epoch Times)
[High-resolution image ] A former employee of Liaoning Provincial Thrombosis Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine told The Epoch Times during a recent interview that the Sujiatun Concentration Camp in China was actually a part of a hospital. The concentration camp has engaged in taking organs from Falun Gong practitioners when they were still alive and selling the organs. Since 2001, the concentration camp has secretly detained approximately 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners, none of whom have been able to leave the camp alive. The hospital removed many kidneys, livers, and corneas from the practitioners. After the organ removal, the practitioners were thrown into an incinerator, which was converted from a boiler. Their ashes were dumped together with burned charcoal.

Organs from Three Quarters of the 6,000 People Were Removed
Those whose organs were removed were in various states of health. Because many of the victims were illegally detained, there was neither an arrest warrant nor identification as to who these people actually were. Often after their organs were removed, nobody claimed the bodies. Sometimes their bodies were picked up by crooks who pretended to be their family members.

About three-quarters of the 6,000 people died after their hearts, kidneys, corneas, or skin was removed; their bodies were then burned. This witness, whose family member participated in the removal of Falun Gong practitioners' organs, said that approximately 2,000 Falun Gong practitioners remain in the hospital. She was afraid that the authorities would kill all of them to destroy evidence.

The Liaoning Provincial Thrombosis Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine is located at 49 Xuesong Road, Sujiatun, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, China. It was the first hospital in China to specialize in the heart, the brain, and surrounding blood vessels. The hospital is composed of several organizations, including the Liaoning Traditional Chinese Medicine College Teaching Hospital and the Shenyang Thrombosis Treatment Center.

Concentration Camp Details
The hospital site is 21,087 square meters, with 17,564 square meters of building area. It employs 460 people in 24 departments and 20 specialized offices. Information from the Chinese government shows that the hospital was established in December 1988, and was formerly named the Shenyang Research Institute of Thrombosis and Liaoning Province Thrombosis Treatment Center of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine. In June 1998, it was renamed China Traditional Medicine Thrombosis Treatment Center.

The Chinese Business Morning View said in a story on July 4, 2004, that a farm worker died of abnormal causes in Sujiatun, Shenyang and was later cremated. The death certificate was provided by the Chinese Medicine Thrombosis Treatment Center in Sujiatun. The news caused a stir in China.

A copy of the death certificate. (The Epoch Times Archives Photo)Below is the transcript of an Epoch Times reporter's interview with the former staff member of the Liaoning Provincial Thrombosis Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine in Sujiantun, Shenyang City. Questions were posed by the reporter and answered by the staff member being interviewed.

Epoch Times: Did the hospital's medical staff inside the concentration camp know about this?

Answer: This hospital has a small number of officials and some doctors involved secretively in the operation of organ harvesting. Some other staff in the hospital knew about this, but this is absolutely a taboo [to talk about]. They all are afraid of being killed or courting trouble, so they all avoid the issue. Only those highly trusted doctors could be chosen to be the surgeons for organ harvesting operations.

ET: Were Falun Gong practitioners alive when their organs were harvested? Did their families know about this?

Answer: Falun Gong practitioners who were imprisoned there came mostly from Dabei Prison, Masanjia Labor Camp, and other prisons in Shenyang, or they were Falun Gong practitioners arrested in parks or residential homes. Because they refused to denounce Falun Gong, they were arrested without formal warrants, and their families did not know their situation. Many did not even have their names [recorded]. In addition, since the Chinese authority exercises a policy of "not being responsible" for killing Falun Gong practitioners, the death of Falun Gong practitioners is not a very big issue for prisons. The Chinese Communist Party persecutes Falun Gong, [but] these medical personnel were told Falun Gong practitioners were facing death because they killed people, or they were sentenced to death because of crimes, or they had become insane from practicing Falun Gong.

Those Falun Gong practitioners whose organs were harvested came from several types.

Organs harvested from live bodies are worth far more than organs taken from dead bodies. Many Falun Gong practitioners were still alive when their organs were taken. After their organs were cut out, some of these people were thrown directly into the crematorium to be burnt, thus leaving no evidence. For some others, after their organs were stolen, the doctor sewed up the wound and asked the family or family representative to give a signature for cremation. Family members did not know at all that the dead had their organs taken out.

Furthermore, there were some healthy Falun Gong practitioners in prisons in other areas who were injected—without their knowledge—with psychoactive drugs that made their minds confused. They then were transferred to Sujiantun concentration camp to suffer further torture, till in the end their organs were harvested and their bodies were cremated in secret.

Among the Falun Gong practitioners whose organs were harvested, some were weak and some were healthy. Since most of them were illegally arrested, there were no arrest warrants or identification cards. After their organs were taken out while they were still alive, no one came to claim their bodies; or [sometimes] people using fake identities claimed their bodies.

None of these people have come out [of the concentration camp] alive; three-quarters of these 6,000 people have died, having their hearts, kidneys, retinas, and skins harvested and their bodies disposed of. I think now about 2,000 Falun Gong practitioners are still in this hospital, and I am afraid now that the authority will destroy all evidence and kill them.

Question: How did you know these things? Were you yourself a doctor involved in organ harvesting?

Answer: I worked at the Liaoning Provincial Thrombosis Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, Shenyang. This is exactly where this concentration camp is located. One of my family members was involved in the operation to harvest Falun Gong practitioners' organs. This has brought great pain to our family.

Question: Please tell us what you knew about.

Answer: From 2001, our hospital started to detain Falun Gong practitioners. At the beginning, these people were detained in the single-storey houses in the back yard of the hospital. Later, the hospital authorities demolished the single-storey houses, and it was unknown where in the hospital the Falun Gong practitioners were transferred. Many staff of the hospital discussed in private that these Falun Gong practitioners had been secretly transferred to the underground chambers of the hospital. According to some people working inside the hospital, the hospital has a huge system of secret underground chambers.

At the time when we went to work there, the person in charge of logistics and purchasing in the hospital said that the quantity of disposable sterile gloves used for operations and daily supplies that the hospital authorities asked to be purchased had increased dramatically. The logistics people estimated based on the scale of purchases at that time that there were at least 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners detained in this hospital.

These Falun Gong practitioners were not detained in the 4-story building under the in-patient department and administration at the front of the hospital, in order to keep the hospital staff from seeing them at all. We only occasionally saw Falun Gong practitioners being sent on a mobile intensive care bed to the first floor for physical examinations. These people were very weak. For the majority of the Falun Gong practitioners, nobody knew where they were being secretly kept. While they still did not know where these people were kept, some staff inquired to the hospital authorities about why so much food and so many sterile gloves and daily supplies were purchased. The hospital authorities said, "You only need to do your job well. There is no need for you to ask any other questions."

Starting in 2001, a family member of mine participated in organ-harvesting operations. My family member tried to keep me from knowing about this at the beginning. The hospital authorities selected doctors they trust in different aspects to perform the secretive operations. After a period of time, I found that my family member was in a lot pain, often had nightmares, and appeared panic-stricken. After repeated inquiries, this family member told me the truth. The leader of the hospital had asked my family member to participate in the organ harvesting operations on Falun Gong practitioners as early as 2001. It was 2003 when my family member confessed. A few years after, my family member felt so much pain from participating in this incident that it was impossible to continue with the evildoing. My family member decided to go abroad to get away from this matter.

My family member also told me: "you don't understand my suffering; those Falun Gong practitioners were alive. It might be easier for me if they were dead, but they were alive."

Question: Were there any other doctors from the hospital taking part in the operations of cutting out Falun Gong practitioners' organs?

Answer: I know there were some. All these things have been carried out secretly. Many doctors at our hospital involved were practicum doctors transferred from other hospitals. Because the government does not want to be responsible for Falun Gong practitioners' bodies and lives, their lives are treated as garbage by the regime, and their bodies were used in experiments by new doctors doing their practitcums.

Many doctors came and left the hospital because they suffered a lot after having been involved in these kinds of things. They either requested to be transferred to other places, or changed their names. Some might have been killed to eliminate the evidence, their identity files were taken out from the hospital's filing system, or their names were changed. Nobody knows where the doctors have gone.

The hospital staff all know that the rear part of the hospital is forbidden. It is always watched. The staff avoids talking about the place.

Question: It is said the hospital is equipped with an incinerator. The person whose organs were removed will be burned when he or she is still alive. Is that true?

Answer: The employees in our hospital call this place "the incinerator." Actually, it is a boiler room. Some poor farmers from nearby places were hired to work in the boiler room. They were penniless when they first came here. But they could scrape up some watches, finger rings, necklaces, and so on. The amount is not small. It is said by the employees in the hospital these jewelry and watches were collected from the Falun Gong practitioners whose organs had been removed when they were about to be thrown in the boiler to be burned. It is also said by the employees in the hospital, some were still alive when being thrown into the boiler.

Question: Do they get injection of anesthetic when in surgery?

Answer: Yes. There is a cap to the anesthetic quantity used in mainland China's hospitals. Generally, the supply of anesthetic was determined according to the accommodation of the hospital. To the public, the number of patients in our care appears to be very small, and publicly reported number of surgical procedures performed is quite low. But the equipment and articles used in surgery are abundant. Because the amount of anesthetic is limited, these secret surgeries could not use the normal anesthetic doses. In order to save anesthetic, they economized on the anesthetic used in surgeries on these Falun Gong practitioners. The amount of anesthetic used was very small. However, many whose organs were removed were still alive. You can imagine the pain suffered by the Falun Gong practitioners whose organs were removed.

Question: Are there any survivors among the 6,000 people detained since 2001?

Answer: Nobody has come out alive. The number of them gets smaller and smaller. The Falun Gong practitioners detained at Sujiatun are fewer now than before. But I believe that the sin of removing the organs of the Falun Gong practitioners is still continuing.

Question: Where are these organs usually sold to? Do the higher authorities in the government know about this?

Answer: They are mainly sold to Thailand, but I believe they are also sold to other regions of the world. Nowadays, there are many patients in China who need human skin, corneas, and kidneys for organ transplant surgeries. Many patients have to wait in line to purchase organs. Currently, a kidney can be sold up to the price of 30,000 to 100,000 U.S. dollars. The profit from selling organs is simply too great. The people who benefit from this are not only the top leaders of hospital and the officials of the Chinese Communist Party's Heath Department. This is a crime present across the entire nation. People ranging from government officials to doctors to organ sellers are all involved in this and are profiting greatly.

Question: Why did they target Falun Gong practitioners as the source of organs?

Answer: Because relatives of many Falun Gong practitioners don't even know that their family members were arrested. So if the Falun Gong practitioners are killed, there will be no one to come and claim their dead bodies.

Question: Why did you want to expose this? This may bring great danger to you.

Answer: I know that there are many Falun Gong practitioners who are currently detained at the hospital. I would like to expose this to the international community, so those who are not yet killed can be saved. Also, I would like to expose this as an atonement for my family.

I am not a Falun Gong practitioner. But as a former staff member of the hospital, I have the responsibility to expose the truth, and let the world to save those Falun Gong practitioners who are still alive. Organs of some Falun Gong practitioners are still living on patients' bodies. I would like to call on all society to pay attention to this issue and stop this shocking crime.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

How can I sue Christianity?

Rocky — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 17:36:12 GMT

How can I sue Christianity?

I'd like to create a list of laws christianity has broken. Don't we also have laws against fraud, forgery & deceit of the population?

If you weren't aware of the case in Italy here it is -

"AN ITALIAN judge has ordered a priest to appear in court this month to prove that Jesus Christ existed."

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1967413,00.html

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1811332,00.html

http://www.luigicascioli.it/home_eng.php

"Debunking the Historical Jesus: What the Bible-Belt Media Didn't Tell You in Covering Italian Lawsuit" -
http://www.ffrf.org/news/2006/debunkingJesus.php

-----

I have sufficient evidence to prove that most of the worlds most popular religions today especially the Abrahamic religions are actually Solar Mythology & Astrotheology. The case above got dismissed. It can be very difficult to prove a negative in the case of god or the jesus of the bible. So, I'd like to create a case in which there is an enormous amount of evidence & historicity dating as far back into history as one can go right up to this very day.

Enjoy the "Solar Mythology ~ Astrotheology" tribe for ancient photos of artifacts, articles, videos etc - http://tribes.tribe.net/solarmythologynastrotheology?_click_path=Application%5Btribe%5D.Tribe%5Bcdfc5730-2b2d-4b50-9a3d-205d6ea091a0%5D

;

posted in ACLU - 25 replies

Missing

Sat, 04 Mar 2006 05:40:54 GMT

Part and parcel of the current state of things..

Some National Archives Documents Removed By ELISABETH GOODRIDGE, Associated Press Writer
Fri Mar 3, 4:01 PM ET

Intelligence officials will meet with the county's top archivist early next week to discuss the withdrawal of historical documents from the National Archives' public shelves, Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein said Friday.

He said he requested the meeting following disclosure last month of a program in which thousands of documents, previously declassified, were being removed from public access. Historians protested the practice, saying they had access to many of the documents in past years.

"The key here is not whether records are being classified or reclassified," Weinstein said. "It is whether or not it is appropriate to do so."

On Thursday, Weinstein called for the meeting "to ensure the proper balance of agency authority to restore classification controls where appropriate and the Archivist's obligation to ensure maximum access to archival records consistent with law, regulation and common sense."

He also called for the intelligence community to stop removing documents and to restore papers previously taken.

Citing the confidentiality of the matter, Weinstein could not confirm which agencies would participate.

The New York Times, which disclosed the reclassification program last month, reported that archivists have said the agencies involved include the Central Intelligence Agency, the Air Force and the Defense Intelligence Agency.

"The CIA has a close long-standing relationship with the National Archives and looks forward to discussing this initiative with our colleagues there," said CIA spokesman Tom Crispell.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060303/ap_on_go_ot/reclassified_records&printer=1;_ylt=Ak04LEHZAsFzIuSkIO9jBYp2wPIE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3MXN1bHE0BHNlYwN0bWE-

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Terrible new Abu Gairab pictuers come out on Ausie TV-appear to be those long sought by ACLU.

Thu, 16 Feb 2006 01:07:24 GMT

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/02/15/D8FPKRPO0.html

posted in ACLU - 4 replies

TAKE ACTION: Gonzales Dodges Questions About Illegal NSA Spying

djapollo2k — Tue, 07 Feb 2006 20:30:53 GMT

Gonzales Dodges Questions About Illegal NSA Spying

Our attorney general is supposed to uphold the interests of the
American people. But yesterday Alberto Gonzales stood with his boss,
the president, by refusing to answer even the simplest questions about
the government's illegal spying on Americans.

From the left and the right, senators on the Judiciary Committee
expressed skepticism and frustration over the lack of real answers
from Attorney General Gonzales.

The administration's stonewalling is part of a pattern of abuses
of power by the White House, and is a glaring reminder of the need for
judicial oversight.

Americans across the political spectrum are demanding the truth about
President Bush's domestic surveillance program. Attorney
General Gonzales needs to provide answers.

Please add your voice and join thousands of others concerned about our
diminishing freedoms under this administration. Tell your Senators to
demand thorough and impartial investigations into illegal domestic
spying:

http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=nCU-YHgRFwYhduj6CkSq4w..

Congress must fulfill its obligation to the American public and fully
investigate this matter.

Some Questions for Attorney General Gonzales:

* When the president says this program is 'legally right,'
which laws is he citing?
* Does the attorney general believe that the president, and not
the Supreme Court, has the job of interpreting the law?
* How many Americans have had their conversations or e-mails
monitored by the warrantless program?
* How much money has ended up wasted on inquiries into the private
lives of innocent Americans?
* Are there any limits to the broad powers that the president has
claimed?

Take action today. Respond to the inadequate Gonzales testimony by
urging the Senate to order a thorough investigation of Bush's NSA
spying program. Go to:

http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=NczXoWgwhHLzuKwfUI1prw..

You can also call your senators right now at (202) 224-3121 and
tell them your concerns about illegal spying on Americans.

Sincerely,

Caroline Fredrickson
Director, ACLU Washington Legislative Office

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

P.S. Here are some more ways to get involved:

Choose Facts, Not Myths: Read our Top Ten Myths About Illegal Spying.
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=wxoa-yqg8GHfNuQsXaeF7w..

Listen Up: Hear new audio from clients in the ACLU v. NSA lawsuit
responding to recent White House spin.
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=QyPvj3UOw4w_OWSihF3RTg..

Learn More: Read about the ACLU's efforts to uncover the truth about
Department of Defense spying on peaceful protest activities.
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=Dcd2b3WWxLbKiRDpoGUqsA..

Spread the Word: Urge your friends to speak out with a "Stop the
Illegal Spying" email card.
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=a9RDaXv7dQDFJopl-S5VLw..

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

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

"Could it be any clearer - The President violated the law" a letter from legal scholars to Congress

Sat, 04 Feb 2006 01:09:08 GMT

http://www.e-thepeople.org/article/50811/view (Chicago Sun Times Extract reprinted below)
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/18650#fnr14 (Full article and list of scholars)

Dear Members of Congress:

We are scholars of constitutional law and former government officials. We write in our individual capacities as citizens concerned by the Bush administration's National Security Agency domestic spying program, as reported in The New York Times, and in particular to respond to the Justice Department's December 22, 2005, letter to the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees setting forth the administration's defense of the program.[1] Although the program's secrecy prevents us from being privy to all of its details, the Justice Department's defense of what it concedes was secret and warrantless electronic surveillance of persons within the United States fails to identify any plausible legal authority for such surveillance. Accordingly the program appears on its face to violate existing law.

The basic legal question here is not new. In 1978, after an extensive investigation of the privacy violations associated with foreign intelligence surveillance programs, Congress and the President enacted the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Pub. L. 95-511, 92 Stat. 1783. FISA comprehensively regulates electronic surveillance within the United States, striking a careful balance between protecting civil liberties and preserving the "vitally important government purpose" of obtaining valuable intelligence in order to safeguard national security. S. Rep. No. 95-604, pt. 1, at 9 (1977).

With minor exceptions, FISA authorizes electronic surveillance only upon certain specified showings, and only if approved by a court. The statute specifically allows for warrantless wartime domestic electronic surveillance—but only for the first fifteen days of a war. 50 U.S.C. § 1811. It makes criminal any electronic surveillance not authorized by statute, id. § 1809; and it expressly establishes FISA and specified provisions of the federal criminal code (which govern wiretaps for criminal investigation) as the "exclusive means by which electronic surveillance...may be conducted," 18 U.S.C. § 2511(2)(f) (emphasis added).[2]

The Department of Justice concedes that the NSA program was not authorized by any of the above provisions. It maintains, however, that the program did not violate existing law because Congress implicitly authorized the NSA program when it enacted the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against al-Qaeda, Pub. L. No. 107-40, 115 Stat. 224 (2001). But the AUMF cannot reasonably be construed to implicitly authorize warrantless electronic surveillance in the United States during wartime, where Congress has expressly and specifically addressed that precise question in FISA and limited any such warrantless surveillance to the first fifteen days of war.

The DOJ also invokes the President's inherent constitutional authority as Commander in Chief to collect "signals intelligence" targeted at the enemy, and maintains that construing FISA to prohibit the President's actions would raise constitutional questions. But even conceding that the President in his role as Commander in Chief may generally collect "signals intelligence" on the enemy abroad, Congress indisputably has authority to regulate electronic surveillance within the United States, as it has done in FISA. Where Congress has so regulated, the President can act in contravention of statute only if his authority is exclusive, that is, not subject to the check of statutory regulation. The DOJ letter pointedly does not make that extraordinary claim.

Read the full letter here.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

The Danger of American Fascism

Enrika — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 23:06:42 GMT

I just thought this was really interesting. Enjoy. :)

-----------------------------------------------------

The Danger of American Fascism
Henry A. Wallace
An article in the New York Times, April 9, 1944.

http://newdeal.feri.org/wallace/haw23.htm

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

School District Challenges Liberty Counsel’s Bogus ‘Christmas War’

Rocky — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 16:46:27 GMT

Christmas Calumny: School District Challenges Liberty Counsel’s Bogus ‘Christmas War’

Fox News Network has moved beyond its nightly carping about a so-called “war on Christmas,” and the holiday season is fast fading into memory. But one skirmish remains from the recent Christmas conflict.

A Wisconsin public school district is boldly fighting back against a Jerry Falwell-affiliated Religious Right group that spread lies about the school’s holiday policies and programs.

The Dodgeville School District has demanded that Liberty Counsel issue a public apology for a press release it issued in early December claiming that Ridgeway Elementary School officials had secularized the lyrics to numerous religious songs, such as “Silent Night,” in the school’s holiday programs. The district is also asking for $23,899.48 in compensation for costs that officials incurred in refuting the lies about their community.

“Your dissemination of false and misleading information and your threats of specious and frivolous litigation resulted in enormous cost the district,” wrote school attorney Eileen A. Brownlee, in a letter last week to Liberty Counsel. “You have yet to present the facts either through a press release, one of your ‘alerts’ or through any other means. You used this red herring to attempt to collect money through the form of donations.”

http://blog.au.org/2006/02/christmas_calum.html

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Specter's 15 questions to Gonzales re; NSA FISA broken down and analyzed

Tue, 31 Jan 2006 20:34:37 GMT

http://www.digitaldivide.net/blog/JMDowney/view?PostID=10631

Jim Downey's Rants & Raves

Sen. Arlen Specter's Letter To AG Gonzalez RE: Domestic Surveillance
Senator Arlen Specter has sent a letter to Attorney General Gonzalez regarding the domestic spying issues. Specter asks 15 questions that need to be answered to satisfy the concerns of congress on the apparent grab for power and unlawful wiretapping.

(1) In interpreting whether Congress intended to amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by the September 14, 2001 Resolution (Resolution), would it be relevant on the issue of Congressional intent that the Administration did not specifically ask for an expansion for Executive powers under FISA? Was it because you thought you couldn’t get such an expansion as when you said: “That was not something that we could likely get?”

Specter is asking President Bush, through Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, if he a) circumvented the intent of congress and b) if he understands that legislative intent (one of the criteria used by judges when interpreting and applying a law).

(2) If Congress had intended to amend FISA by the Resolution, wouldn’t Congress have specifically acted to as Congress did in passing the Patriot Act giving the Executive expanded powers and greater flexibility in using “roving” wiretaps?

Here Chairman Specter is asking a question many of us have been asking ourselves: Where does the SPECIFIC authority for the no-warrant surveillance and wiretapping exist in the statutes and resolutions passed by congress? Specter is an experienced member of congress and lawyer. He understands the provision of the Tenth Amendment of the Bill of Rights that reserves powers, rights and authority not specifically delineated by the Constitution to the states and the people. Specter knows that Constitutional authority to act is ordinarily required to be SPECIFIC and narrowly constructed

(3) In interpreting statutory construction on whether Congress intended to amend FISA by the Resolution, what is the impact of the rule of statutory construction that repeals or changes by implication are disfavored?

Again, the specific issue of narrow construction, interpretation and application of a law or resolution is being questioned. The principle of “stare decisis” (literally, “let the decision stand”), which is the principle that requires courts to rely upon precedents set by case law, requires that laws be narrowly defined and applied. In fact, laws that are not narrowly defined and constructed are often determined to be unconstitutional because they are overly broad, vague and unclear.

(4) In interpreting statutory construction on whether Congress intended to amend FISA by the Resolution, what would be the impact of the rule of statutory construction that specific statutory language, like that in FISA, trumps or takes precedence over more general pronouncements like those of the Resolution?

Specter is asking why the Bush administration has chosen to ignore the specific language of FISA in order to circumvent the specific limits delineated in FISA by broadly interpreting and applying a theory of legislative intent that is incongruous with established law and precedent. Indeed, this very same rule of statutory construction would apply to other pieces of legislation, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 (ECPA), 18 USC Section 119, §2515, 18 USC Section 119, §2516, and at least a dozen other laws.

(5) Why did the Executive not ask for the authority to conduct electronic surveillance when Congress passed the Patriot Act and was predisposed, to the maximum extent likely, to grant the Executive additional powers which the Executive thought necessary?

This question is actually an allegation that the Bush administration has made an unwarranted grab for powers and authority specifically granted to the Legislative Branch (Congress) by the Constitution. It is congress that has the authority to declare, fund and authorize military and intelligence actions under the provisions of the Constitution. The Executive Branch has the authority to command the military and set into motion specific military and intelligence operations (operational control), but like a Board of Directors for a corporation, congress is the only governmental body that can authorize such action. Congress is the civilian authority to which all military operations must answer to in all matters.

Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution states:
The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;….

- To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water;
- To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years;
- To provide and maintain a navy;
- To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces;
- To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions;
- To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the states respectively, the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress; …
- To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof.

This is part of the system of “checks and balances” that is essential to keeping us a “nation of laws, not of men.”

(6) Wasn’t President Carter’s signature on FISA in 1978, together with his signing statement, an explicit renunciation of any claim to inherent Executive authority under Article II of the Constitution to conduct warrantless domestic surveillance when the Act provided the exclusive procedures for such surveillance?

Mindful of the history of the Watergate scandal during the Nixon administration, congress specifically put restrictions on wiretapping and other forms of electronic surveillance (given the technology of the time). President Carter’s signing FISA into law was an overt recognition of the fundamental constitutional principle that the Executive Branch must answer to the Legislative Branch, and an admission that domestic spying was inherently a breach of constitutional rights. FISA set forth a precedent. Under US jurisprudence (the practice and application of law), precedents cannot ordinarily be overruled without a) an overwhelming compelling interest and b) due process. Specter is making the case that the Bush administration has violated the Fifth Amendment, which guarantees due process as a right.

(7) Why didn’t the President seek a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court authorizing in advance the electronic surveillance in issue? (The FISA Court has the experience and authority to issue such a warrant. The FISA Court has a record of establishing its reliability for non-disclosure or leaking contrasted with concerns that disclosures to many members of Congress involved a high risk of disclosure or leaking. The FISA Court is at least reliable, if not more so, than the Executive Branch on avoiding disclosure or leaks.)

The FISA Court operates with discretion to consider matters of national security in secret and has a 27 year record of serving national security interests without compromising due process, civil liberties or acting in a slow fashion that would put the nation at risk. It has given wide latitude and discretion to law enforcement and cooperating intelligence agencies on matters of national security. Sen. Specter is asking why this court and process were insufficient and why this administration chose to ignore long-standing precedent, a successful record of effectiveness, due process and the law. He is also calling attention to the fact that the FISA Court has proven more reliable and trustworthy than any administration or member, committee or house of congress in matters of keeping national security secrets.

(8) Why did the Executive Branch not seek after-the-fact authorization from the FISA Court within the 72 hours as provided by the Act? At a minimum, shouldn’t the Executive have sought authorization from the FISA Court for law enforcement individuals to listen to a reduced number of conversations which were selected out from a larger number of conversations from the mechanical surveillance?

FISA has an emergency provision that allows law enforcement (not military or intelligence agencies) to conduct a limited amount of surveillance—up to 72 hours—and then seek a warrant after the fact. While we may not agree with this before-the-fact use of electronic surveillance, it does point out a significant flaw in the Bush administrations arguments in support of warrantless electronic surveillance. Given that there is such a before-the-fact authority to conduct a limit amount of surveillance under emergent conditions, how can the administration justify the end-run around the constitutional and statutory prohibitions against domestic surveillance, the use of military as law enforcement, and violation of rights and due process?

Specter also questions why the administration did not even seek to pay MINIMAL attention to the legal and logistical issues involved.

Mechanical surveillance, referenced by Specter, is the use of cameras, video equipment, mirrors, and other physical means of observing and recording events, conversations and documentation. We now live in a society where such surveillance is rampant and usually installed in public places or in private business establishments, all of which is readily available to law enforcement by permission or subpeona. A review of some of the legal issues can be found at http://www.zetetics.com/mac/partisan/021200.htm.

The Electronic Freedom Foundation (www.eff.org), the Electronic Privacy Information Center (www.epic.org), the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School (http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/home/) and the Stanford Law School (www.law.stanford.edu) all have pertinent information on the legal, moral economic and social issues involved in electronic surveillance.

(9) Was consideration given to the dichotomy between conversations by mechanical surveillance from conversations listened to by law enforcement personnel with the contention that the former was non-invasive and only the latter was invasive? Would this distinction have made it practical to obtain Court approval before the conversations were subject to human surveillance or after-the-fact approval within 72 hours?

Basically, Specter is continuing to ask how the administration arrived at the decision to bypass law, due process and the issues of technology and go forward without consulting the courts. Specter also hammers away again at the issue of the 72 hour window.

(10) Would you consider seeking approval from the FISA Court at this time for the ongoing surveillance program at issue?

Specter is asking if President Bush and his administration are willing to come back into compliance with the law and the Constitution.

(11) How can the Executive justify disclosure to only the so-called “Gang of Eight” instead of the full intelligence committees when Title V of the National Security Act of 1947 provides:

SEC.501.[50 U.S.C. 413] (a)(1) The President shall ensure that the congressional intelligence COMMITTEES are kept fully and currently informed of the intelligence activities of the United States, including any significant anticipated intelligence activity as required by this title. (Emphasis added)

(2)(e) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authority to withhold information from the congressional intelligence COMMITTEES on the grounds that providing the information to the conressional intelligence committees would constitute the unauthorized disclosure of classified information or information relating to intelligence sources and methods. (Emphasis added)

The “Gang of Eight” is the leaders of the House and Senate as well as the heads of the intelligence panels of both houses of congress. Specter rightly calls the administration to task for not fully disclosing to each of the intelligence committees in full as required by law, pointing out that nothing in any subsequent law explicity or implicitly relieves the Executive Branch from such requirements. In fact, as Specter notes in the letter, the administration doesn’t even have the authority not to disclose on the basis of classification, secrecy or national security.

(12) To the extent that it can be disclosed in a public hearing (or to be provided in a closed executive session, what are the facts upon which the Executive relies to assert Article II wartime authority over Congress’ Article I authority to establish public policy on these issues especially where legislation is approved by the President as contrasted to being enacted over a Presidential veto as was the case with the War Powers Act?

The War Powers Act (War Powers Resolution: Public Law 93-148, 1973) specifically requires “the collective judgement of both the Congress and the President” is required before any military action or resource can be utilized, that the powers of Congress are rightly reserved to Congress itself. It re-asserts the provisions of Articles I and II of the Constitution of the United States, assuring the separation of legislative and executive powers, authority and functions.

Specter also makes the point that this was a bill signed into law with the consent, and acknowledgement of its legitimacy, of the then sitting president, without the need for a veto override. The specific meaning of this issue is that the War Powers Act was a mutually agreed upon law that reaffirmed the separation of authority and functions of the Executive and Legislative Branches and confirmed the structure provided by the US Constitution. Specter is asking for a full and fair explanation of how this law—and the Constitution—can be violated by Executive authority alone.

(13) What case law does the Executive rely upon in asserting Article II powers to conduct the electronic surveillance at issue?

As a well-practiced lawyer and member of congress, Specter knows that the case precedents in federal District, Appellate and Supreme Court levels have consistently ruled against the Executive Branch in matters where past presidents have usurped powers that are exclusively held by the Legislative or Judicial Branches. The most renowned of these precedents is Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952), in which the Supreme Court ruled against the federal takeover and nationalization of the steel industry ordered by President Truman through his Secretary of Commerce, Charles Sawyer.

But the precedent also exists in Marbury v. Madison (1803). In this landmark case the Supreme Court asserted the principle that the Judicial Branch has the authority, power and duty to determine what is the law (according to the actual text, legislative intent and legislative history) and not the province of the Executive Branch.

"It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. Those who apply the rule to particular cases, must of necessity expound and interpret that rule. If two laws conflict with each other, the courts must decide on the operation of each." – Chief Justice John Marshall

(14) What academic or expert opinions does the Executive rely upon in asserting Article II powers to conduct the electronic surveillance at issue?

While this is a straight forward question regarding the legal scholarship involved in the Bush decision to conduct domestic spying, it also slaps the administration in the face because Specter obviously knows that any legal opinion that cannot satisfactorily answer all of the above questions is faulty, false and flawed.

(15) When foreign calls (whether between the caller and the recipient both being on foreign soil and the other in the U.S.) were routed through switches which were physically located on U.S. soil, would that constitute a violation of law or regulation restricting the NSA from conducting surveillance inside the United States, absent a claim of unconstitutionality encroaching on Executive powers under Article II?

Specter is asking how the Bush administration can legally spy on US citizens when there are specific legal prohibitions upon the NSA (as well as military and other intelligence agencies) using any of its personnel or resources for domestic surveillance. He is making the case that once those electronic signals passed through a switch located anywhere in US jurisdiction, the laws of the United States applied and were applicable to the Executive Branch.

Someone should be sending Arlen Specter a thank you note.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

NSA DIrector Hayden to Congress on FISA in 2000

Wed, 25 Jan 2006 16:27:24 GMT

Statutory Restriction on Electronic Surveillance in the U.S. -- Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)

http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2000_hr/hayden.html
...
"Under FISA, NSA may only target communications of a U.S. person in the United States if a federal judge finds probable cause to believe that the U.S. person is an agent of a foreign power. Probable cause exists when facts and circumstances within the applicant's knowledge and of which he/she has reasonably trustworthy information are sufficient to warrant a person of reasonable caution to believe that the proposed target of the surveillance is an agent of a foreign power. Under the statute, a judge may determine a U.S. person to be an agent of a foreign power only if there is information to support a finding that the individual is a spy, terrorist, saboteur, or someone who aids or abets them. "

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Bush crimes against humanity

Rocky — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 16:34:10 GMT

The International Commission of Inquiry On Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration begins today.

"When the possibility of far-reaching war crimes and crimes against humanity exists, people of conscience have a solemn responsibility to inquire into the nature and scope of these acts and to determine if they do in fact rise to the level of war crimes "

http://www.bushcommission.org/

-----

An extraordinary Tribunal came together on October 21-23 to indict the Bush regime for crimes against humanity. The First Session of The 2005 International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration brought four indictments against the regime:

1. Wars of Aggression
2. Torture and Indefinite Detention
3. Destruction of the Global Environment
4. Attacks on Global Public Health and Reproductive Rights

And it held a hearing into a fifth indictment--around Hurricane Katrina and the crimes of the Bush regime that have emerged surrounding this disaster.

http://rwor.org/a/021/tribunal-testimony.htm

Now, where are all of the website links on this topic?????

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

Sam Alito Supreme Court Nominee Heavily Invested in Slaughterhouses

veganesh — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 17:32:54 GMT

Sam Alito Supreme Court Nominee Heavily Invested in Slaughterhouses

Sam Alito twice broke his promise to recuse himself from
Vanguard lawsuits in which he is heavily invested. Vanguard is perhaps of publicly investigated mutual funds the one most heavily invested in several kinds of slaughterhouse operations.

Slaughterhouse, safari hunt and other money has in some cases gone underground with private equity funds. The British are less forthcoming
about stockholders than Americans.

www.senate.gov
202 224 3121
God defeat this nomination.

VANGUARD: INVESTED IN ANIMAL SLAUGHTERHOUSES

Vanguard manages more than US $700 billion and has
more than 5000 institutional investors. It is invested
in many slaughterhouse and war operations.
1 It is the major investor in the world's most corrupt bank,
Citibank whose chairman helped jailed Bernie Ebbers buy Canada's
biggest cattle ranch with stolen MCI customer money.
2 It is a major investor in McDonald's (and since NPR has 200 million
in McDonald's stock,
... the 'public radio' network promoted Vanguard)
28,385,755 2.24 $883,932,410 31-Mar-05
3. It is a major investor in Yums, owner of the boycotted KFC
www.kfccruelty.com and of Taco Bell which finally settled with
unions.
4. It is a major investor in Lonestar Steak House which causes
cancer, heart disease, slaughterhouse agony, and deforestation.
(THE) 409,292 1.99 $11,832,631 31-Mar-05
5. It is a major investor in Triarc (Arby's beef)
6. Wendy's Vanguard is a major investor in the world's
3rd largest cowslaughter fast food chain
7. Vanguard is invested in SBC, a pricegouging conglomerate illegal
in Teddy Roosevelt's days
8. It is invested in Dominion, a gas company which has
been pricegouging the poor with doubling of charges.
9. It is a major investor in ConAgra.. 'butterball' turkeys
and other slaughterhouse items.
10. It is invested in Goldman Sachs, neocon warmonger.

John Bogle its CEO has been touted on NPR
because both are heavily invested in McDonald's. NPR was
allegedly left 200 million in McDonald's stock by Joan Kroc.
It is indeed humorous that Bogle would write a book on
business ethics.

Some of the other funds heavily invested in animal agony: Barclay's, J P Morgan Chase,
Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, Charles Schwab

------
Those who are not vegetarian or vegan might consider that
the incubation period of Mad Cow, Mad Deer, Mad Pig, Mad Chicken,
Mad Fish etc is 50 years according to Dr David Heymann of the CDC
speaking on the CBC... Heymann is one of the few truthtellers
at the pharmaceutically dominated CDC. Any investment in animal
flesh is unwise.

The British are less forthcoming
about stockholders than Americans.
Quote:

Republicans always find it hard
to get out the numbers... in some
cities they hand out tickets to Democrats
when their high paid speakers paid for
with public money come
to town.. in order to swell the audience

Yesterday, as unelected Bush nominee
Sam Alito was questioned by senators,
there were Rent A Republican mobs
outside. It was a hastily done affair..
virtually
everyone with the same sign.

Neocon CNN owned illegally by Neocon
Time Warner... gave frequent flash coverage
to this small group of people.

Poster saw this standing in line
at a grocery store.

www.senate.gov

God end now all violence to any being.
St Francis and Leonardo, two animal rights activists, want
this nomination defeated.

_________________
www.worldanimalnet.org
www.alitosamerica.org
www.internationalanswer.org
www.network54.com/forum/460325
news108.forumup.org

With the string of state murders in the US ratified by the 'Supreme' Court,
one can only describe the 5 judges who have executed with their
pens... 'serial killers'. They have ratified torture, installed an unelected
pawn of war profiteers, ravaged our earth.
The Supreme Court is the only 18th Century institution unchanged.
Since 1776, the Senate has become popularly elected (in theory..
although Diebold ESS Sequoia Pacific Triad etc. have changed that
www.whatreallyhappened.com/vote...html)
The US is one of the few socalled democracies not electing its high court.
Reformers have suggested an 18 year term, with 1 justice elected
every 1 or 2 years.

One way to find in what investments a corporation, mutual fund
etc. holds... go to finance.yahoo.com type in the symbol
for that entity, and then scroll down on left to 'major holders'.

MSN has such a service too with more listings.

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

aclu v nsa

acoustichrmny — Wed, 18 Jan 2006 17:01:03 GMT

For over eighty-five years the ACLU and its members have been there to stand up for freedom when our leaders disregard and defy the Constitution.

We follow in that tradition today with the filing of ACLU v. NSA, a lawsuit seeking an end to the secret program of illegal electronic surveillance, authorized by President Bush.

Our lawsuit claims that this spying program violates Americans' rights to free speech and privacy under the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution and that the president has exceeded the limits of executive authority under separation of powers principles.

The suit was filed in federal district court in Michigan, on behalf of several prominent journalists, scholars, attorneys, and national nonprofit organizations (including the ACLU) who frequently communicate by phone and email with people in the Middle East.

Though our president claims he can authorize warrantless spying on Americans, this surveillance program is illegal. The ACLU has launched an intensive effort to put an end to the program and restore lawfulness to government and law enforcement activities.

In addition to the ACLU v. NSA lawsuit, we've launched a multi-channel ad campaign, a widespread call for congressional hearings, and are urging the appointment of a special counsel who can independently investigate the actions of this administration and prosecute any and all crimes committed.

In the coming days, watch for news about our suit and other continuing efforts. Partisans in Washington have already been scrambling to undermine inquiries into the NSA scandal, but this lawsuit is grounded in our most basic American principles, and not driven by the tides of politics or spin.

Please continue to stand with us. Look for our advertisements in print and on the Web. Join our call for a special counsel and urge your friends to do the same. Your support has been, and will continue to be, fundamental to our success.

I'm never more proud to lead the ACLU than on days like today when we take the bold steps needed to preserve fundamental Constitutional principles. Through our actions, we will see that justice prevails.

Sincerely,

Anthony D. Romero
Executive Director

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

ineligible for student aid

acoustichrmny — Wed, 18 Jan 2006 17:02:09 GMT

The ACLU Drug Law Reform Project will soon file a lawsuit challenging the federal law that denies student aid to people with a drug conviction. If you are--or will be next year--ineligible for student aid due to a drug conviction (or know someone who is) will you please contact the ACLU immediately? Their contact info is as follows:
hea@aclu.org; 1-866-4-HEA-FIX.

This is a lawsuit that needs to be filed, and they look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thank you for your help on this important issue.

Sincerely,

Allen St. Pierre
Executive Director
NORML

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

"Jesus Christ is the REAL reason for the season"

Rocky — Thu, 24 Nov 2005 15:35:36 GMT

"Jesus Christ is the REAL reason for the season"

Nothing could be further from the truth.

I just happen to drive past a local church the other day & out front was a HUGE sign that read "Jesus Christ is the REAL reason for the season". The real reason for the season - is due to the SUN & earths tilt not the son.

The sun "dies" for three days on December 22nd, the winter solstice, when it stops in its movement south, to be born again or resurrected on December 25th, when it resumes its movement north. Many of the world's crucified godmen have their traditional birthday on December 25th . This is because the ancients recognized that (from an earthcentric perspective) the sun makes an annual descent southward until December 21st or 22nd, the winter solstice, when it stops moving southerly for three days and then starts to move northward again. During this time, the ancients declared that "God's sun" had "died" for three days and was "born again" on December 25th. The ancients realized quite abundantly that they needed the sun to return every day and that they would be in big trouble if the sun continued to move southward and did not stop and reverse its direction. Thus, these many different cultures celebrated the "sun of God's" birthday on December 25th. Jesus Christ and all the others upon whom this character is predicated are personifications of the sun. - http://www.truthbeknown.com/origins.htm

"The bible makes no mention of a birth date for baby jesus. Jesus was not the reason for the season. Christmas as we know it is another example of christian plagiarism and crusades. They stole the holiday from the Pagans to wipe out the competition by creating the myth of a fake birth to a virgin. So enjoy the holidays with family and friends, it is a special time, the beginning of Winter, the shortest day of the year (in the northern hemisphere), but please do not insult nonbelievers with the christian fabricated myth of the reason for the season." - http://www.valleyskeptic.com/xmas.html

The “Put Christ Back in Christmas” signs are associated with a growing Fundamentalist movement that are mostly ignorant of ancient winter solstice celebrations. 44% of xians believe that christ will return within their lifetime. The precursor for his return is global conflict, the Apocalypse/ Armageddon.

"A Brief History of the Apocalypse" - http://www.abhota.info/end1.htm

December 25th (or the winter solstice) has been celebrated as the BIRTHDAYof the SUN god for well over 4000 years. This SUN god was called Krishna (Vishnu), Mithra, Osiris, Horus, Hercules, Dionysus (Bacchus), Adonis, Jupiter, Tammuz, Saturn, Buddha, Frigga, etcetera. (see S.E. Titcomb's Aryan Sun Myths, the Origin of Religions, pp.37-128). - http://www.british-israel.us/18.html

The Latins called the 25th of December "Natalis invicti solis," or the birthday of the "unconquered son." Siprian called Jesus Christ "sol verus," or "the true sun." Ambrose spoke of Jesus as "Sol novus noster," or "our unique sun." Many other writers of this period waxed eloquent, utilizing such rhetoric in supposed honor of Jesus Christ, linking him to the "sun" of the heavens. http://www.cgi.org/booklets/christmasfacts.cfm

Saturnalia, which Pagans and Romans celebrated, incorporated many of the same traditions. In ancient Babylonian times, they celebrated the birth of the God Tammuz on the winter solstice. The God Nimrod (symbolized with the FISH, like jesus) also born on December 25th, would visit the evergreen trees of the people and leave gifts upon them.

Solar Mythology Lesson # 1 - http://members.cox.net/deleyd/religion/solarmyth/day.html

Isn't odd how nobody ever mentions putting Mithra, Osiris, Horus, Hercules, Dionysus, Adonis, Tammuz, Saturnalia or the solstice back into Xmas?

How about getting "Christ" out of our winter solstice? Ever think of that one?

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posted in ACLU - 5 replies

An Impeachable Offense? Bush Admits Authorizing NSA to Eavesdrop on Americans Without Court Approval

Rocky — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 17:39:31 GMT

Monday, December 19th, 2005

"An Impeachable Offense? Bush Admits Authorizing NSA to Eavesdrop on Americans Without Court Approval"

"President Bush has admitted he secretly ordered the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans without ever seeking court approval. Famed constitutional attorney Martin Garbus and former intelligence officer Christopher Pyle both say it is an impeachable offense. We also speak with investigative journalist James Bamford about the history of the NSA. Plus, The New York Times exposed the story, but why did they hold it for more than a year? [includes rush transcript] President Bush has admitted he secretly ordered the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans without ever seeking constitutionally-required court approved warrants. Under the program -- authorized in the weeks following the 9/11 attacks -- the agency has monitored the international phone calls and e-mails of hundreds -- and possibly thousands -- of people inside the country. The New York Times broke the story Friday. Hours later, Bush was interviewed by PBS' Jim Lehrer.

* President Bush, interviewed on PBS' NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, December 16, 2005.

Bush later reiterated he would not comment on the program because doing so would: "compromise our ability to protect the people." But less than twenty-hours later, after a storm of public criticism, he reversed his position. This is President Bush, in his weekly radio address Saturday.

* President Bush, radio address, December 17, 2005.

The disclosure has led to bi-partisan calls for a congressional investigation. In response, administration officials pointed out both Democratic and Republican congressional leaders had been briefed on the program. But former Democratic Senator Bob Graham, who attended the briefings as chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told the Washington Post he was never informed of the two key issues to arise from the disclosure. Graham says he was never told the government was eavesdropping on U.S. citizens and foreign nationals in the country, nor was he told it was bypassing the special courts imposed by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA.

Under FISA, the government can obtain warrants directly from a special court that requires almost no evidence or probable cause. Passed by Congress in late 1970s, FISA describes it itself and the criminal wiretap statutes as "the exclusive means by which electronic surveillance . . . may be conducted."

Several analysts have questioned the administration's decision to not seek court-approved warrants when FISA courts have almost never rejected them. According to the Electronic Privacy Information Center, FISA courts have rejected only FOUR of over 15,000 warrant requests made since 1979. That number includes over 4,000 warrant requests since the 9/11 attacks.

The Washington Post notes the revelation marks the third time in as many months the Bush administration has been forced to defend a departure from previous restraints on domestic surveillance. Most recently, NBC News reported last week the Pentagon has been conducting domestic intelligence on peaceful anti-war protesters and others... "

please read the full transcript &/or view the video from "Democracy Now"

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/12/19/1515212

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posted in ACLU - 1 reply

More Courts Are Upholding First Amendment Right Not To Mow

veganesh — Sun, 18 Dec 2005 04:34:11 GMT

http://dontmow.blogspot.com

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Patriot Act provision renewal blocked in Senate

Electric_Panther — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 18:36:51 GMT

Well, I don't know if it was the petitions or just disgruntled Senators, but the Senate just rejected reauthorizing expiring provisions of the Patriot Act.

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/12/16/D8EHFJI82.html
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2005-12-16T175338Z_01_SIB572032_RTRUKOC_0_US-SECURITY-PATRIOT.xml&rpc=22

If you signed any petitions or phoned your Senators, GREAT WORK! Your medical, library, video rental, business records, etc, are a whole lot safer because of it (I think). Your vigilance is appreciated and your children will thank you in the future.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

ACLU, O'Reilly and "Child Pornography"

Electric_Panther — Mon, 07 Nov 2005 21:50:55 GMT

Hey, I don't know if anyone has heard any clear and specific counter-arguement to Bill O'Reilly's contention that the ACLU is "for" Child Porn, but I have some crazy religious family members who believe that without question and I would like to arm myself with knowledge before the holidays. Does anyone have a link on the wen they could provide me with to study stating that they are indeed NOT protecting our right to view child pornography? Thanks!

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

Radical militant librarians v. the FBI

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 19:41:48 GMT

No kidding. That is what has been frustrating the FBI's ability to use the USAPATRIOT Act to track down terrorists: Radical militant librarians.

Check this story in the New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/11/national/nationalspecial3/11patriot.html

When reality is transformed into parody, irony really is dead!

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

SFPD -- Many Scandals, No Action...

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 07:24:48 GMT

Story I wrote on the SFPD video scandal with my colleague Susan Sward in Sunday's SF Chronicle:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/12/11/SFPD.TMP

We raise the question that has been around for the last 70 years: Why is is that there is scandal after scandal for the SFPD but nothing ever seems to change there?

Does anybody out there have an answer?

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Innocent until proven guilty -- maybe!

Wed, 23 Nov 2005 08:30:02 GMT

Heres your irony for the day: during a press conference on the long awaited filing of criminal charges -- ANY criminal charges -- against U.S. citizen Jose Padilla, the alleged "dirty bomber" who has been imprisoned for more than three years, US Attorney General Gonzo Gonzales said Padilla was entitled to the presumption of innocence.

Right -- after Padilla has been denied those rights by being held in a military prison for three years and denied normal representation by a lawyer.

Check my blog item on the charges against Padilla at

http://people.tribe.net/liars_guns_and_money/blog

You will suspect, as I do, that Padilla is simply a pawn in a Propaganda ploy to win renewal of the U.S. Patriot Act.

Review the indictment:

http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/padilla/uspad111705ind.pdf

No evidence of a crime.
No dirty bomb.
No nuclear terror on Washington DC.

In short, just another junk terrorism charge designed to keep the citizenry in fear and whip up public enthusiasm for eliminating Constitutional rights...

Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?

posted in ACLU - 2 replies

Truth, Torture, and the American Way

Rocky — Sat, 22 Oct 2005 23:17:59 GMT

JENNIFER HARBURY ON C-SPAN-TV - A MUST SEE!!!

The director of UUSC’s STOP Campaign will be featured on C-Span/Book-TV this weekend discussing U.S.-sponsored torture and her new book. On Saturday, October 22 at 6:00 pm and Monday, October 24 at 7:00 am

http://www.booktv.org/General/index.asp?segID=6228&schedID=382

Her new book is titled - "Truth, Torture, and the American Way: The History and Consequences of U.S. Involvement in Torture"

Description: In “Truth, Torture, and the American Way” author Jennifer Harbury charts the history and consequences of American involvement in torture. The author draws on testimonials from torture victims in Latin America, Vietnam, and Iraq. She also tells the story of her husband, working with the Mayan resistance in Guatemala, who disappeared in 1992 and was subsequently murdered. The book also delves into the cases of detainees abused in Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq and Gauntanamo Bay, Cuba. The author is critical of the government’s response to terror as well as the history of the CIA’s conduct towards prisoners of war.

Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly:

When torture photos from Abu Ghraib became public in spring 2004, Americans reacted with revulsion: how could our military commit such horrible acts? In fact, Harbury's well-documented volume reveals, American representatives abroad have been involved in torture for decades, much of it in Central America, where U.S. agents apparently encouraged the kidnapping, maltreatment and murder of left-wing fighters and their suspected sympathizers. Harbury's own husband became one of the Guatemalan victims-she described his fate in Searching for Everardo-and this new volume alludes to his story repeatedly. Its central chapter compiles testimony from Latin American torture survivors, making a case for U.S. involvement in "torture by proxy." Harbury accompanies her evidence with passionate if unsurprising denunciations, calling torture not just inhumane and illegal but ineffective: since tortured suspects confess to anything, she says, their statements may be worth nothing. Making use of her Harvard Law training, Harbury suggests legal avenues through which even federally sanctioned torturers may be held responsible. If her book holds few surprises for those who have followed these stories closely, its cases will certainly stoke the fires of outrage. Radio host Amy Goodman, of Pacifica's Democracy Now program, contributes a foreword (not seen by PW).

Book Description:

Jennifer Harbury"s investigation into torture began when her husband disappeared in Guatemala in 1992; she told the story of his torture and murder in Searching for Everardo. For over a decade since, Harbury has used her formidable legal, research, and organizing skills to press for the U.S. government"s disclosure of America"s involvement in harrowing abuses in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. A draft of this book had just been completed when the first photos from Abu Ghraib were published; tragically, many of Harbury"s deepest fears about America"s own abuses were graphically confirmed by those horrific images.

This urgently needed book offers both well-documented evidence of the CIA"s continuous involvement in torture tactics since the 1970s and moving personal testimony from many of the victims. Most important, Harbury provides solid, convincing arguments against the use of torture in any circumstances: not only because it is completely inconsistent with all the basic values Americans hold dear, but also because it has repeatedly proved to be ineffective: Again and again, "information" obtained through these gruesome tactics proves unreliable or false. Worse, the use of torture by U.S. client states, allies, and even by our own operatives, endangers our citizens and especially our troops deployed internationally.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0807003077/002-3818054-7760806?v=glance

Also checkout - http://www.uusc.org/

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posted in ACLU - 0 replies

High Court Blocks Prison Abortion Order

jessica — Sat, 15 Oct 2005 18:00:47 GMT

http://www.heraldnewsdaily.com/stories/news-0086134.html

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Wiccan priestess loses in high court - anybody paying attention?

Rocky — Fri, 14 Oct 2005 04:49:01 GMT

This is an outrage, is anybody paying attention?

Hexed: Wiccan priestess loses in high court:
She challenged county that won't let her deliver prayer at meetings

Oct. 11, 2005

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court rejected an appeal on Tuesday from a Wiccan priestess angry that local leaders would not let her open their sessions with a prayer.

Instead, clergy from more traditional religions were invited to pray at governmental meetings in Chesterfield County, Va., a suburb of Richmond.

Lawyers for Cynthia Simpson had told justices in a filing that most of the invocations are led by Christians. Simpson said she wanted to offer a generalized prayer to the “creator of the universe.”

Wiccans consider themselves witches, pagans or neo-pagans, and say their religion is based on respect for the Earth, nature and the cycle of the seasons.

Won first round
Simpson sued and initially won before a federal judge who said the county’s policy was unconstitutional because it stated a preference for a set of religious beliefs.

Simpson lost at the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which found that the county had changed its policy and directed clerics to avoid invoking the name of Jesus.

The Supreme Court is already hearing one religious case this fall. That case raises the question of whether federal agents can stop a church from using hallucinogenic tea in its religious services. But this case would have provided a better opportunity for the court and new Chief Justice John Roberts to deal with government and religion.

Simpson is a member of a group known as the Broom Riders Association.

Discrimination alleged
The county “issues invitations to deliver prayers to all Christian, Muslim, and Jewish religious leaders in the country. It refuses to issue invitations to Native Americans, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Wiccans, or members of any other religion,” justices were told in her appeal by American Civil Liberties Union lawyer Rebecca Glenberg.

The county’s attorney, Steven Micas, said that the county’s practice was in line with the Supreme Court’s endorsement of legislative prayer as long as it did not proselytize, advance or disparage a particular religion.

The case is Simpson v. Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors, 05-195.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9661790/#storyContinued

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posted in ACLU - 0 replies

One adverse ruling away from absolute dicatorial faciscm.

Sat, 10 Sep 2005 15:53:16 GMT

As it stands now, the President can declare somone an enemy of the state, aka an enemy combatant, a less than criminal for whon no laws of the land apply, and who could presumably be tortured or killed, which no one would know about because they are in indefinate incommunicado dettention, perhaps their arrests never even publicly acknowleged or known about outside of the Executive Branch.

And since no courts, press, or public access are being allowed in this proccess by the President, only he knows who has been tortured and killed, and who has not.

Do not be confused about Jose Padilla having lawyers now. He is in icommunicado detention by order of the President and can not speak to or hear from "his lawyer." Currenntly, there are lawyers representing the general interest in the rights to court access or visitis from lawyers, which you are not entiteled toa anyway, but how can they be Padilla's lawyer when he can see or hear from them, nor them from him? He is being held by military force away from anyone.

Is he still alive? Are "confessions" being tortured out of him? Why would it matter, since the President says he will never be entitled to any trial or court appearence of any type. Even if the President was feeling in a benevolant mood, and allowed a military tribinul to hear his case in say a few years, the President has already said the normal civilian rule of evidene wont apply, so the beaten confession could probaly come in during his secret trial. And as far as trusting in the President's benevolance on the use of torture, we have seen enough based on even what we do know.

With the President have absolute facist authority to declare enemies of the stat eand imprison in secret military prisons indefinately and incommunicado, no other law of the land matters. Everybody (including the Congress and Judges)exists at the will and the whim of the President, and if he decides to disaapar you, good luck because you may never be heard from again, and that will be the law of the land.

This is the "law" as the President sees it now. And it is not even time of war. The two countries we fought long ago were wiped out and replaced by freindly governments. We are at most in peacekeeping now.

Will the Supreme Court formaly allow the suspentio of court access for such "disappeared" citzens to stand for good? If so, it is the last of the matter, the courts will have defered to the President that they have no authority to help or act in maters of enemies of the state, and that will be that.

We may never hear from Jose Padilla again. He may be dead, who knows. Who else has the President done this to? Who else will he if the courts give him the go ahead to continue doing it? If the President can continue doing this what other law of the land, like free speach, right to face our accusers, rights to a speedy trial or a trial at all, secret militry or otherwise. They are all gone, all meaningless, are declared irrelant by the President.

It is the taproot of facism. Dear god, hope and pray the courts do not back down to him, and give him this "auhority" permantly. The courts are afraid of being percieved as interfeering with the Presidents. Do we need a letter writing campaign to the Supreme Court that we value the Court and the constitution far more than we value George Bush?

Padilla may already be gone. What "hate speaker" or "inciter against the Government" will be next?

posted in ACLU - 6 replies

Addendum To Eds' Posting

Bob — Thu, 29 Sep 2005 07:11:51 GMT

I originally posted this as a reply to Ed's Post, but thought it might be more germane to make it seperate. Hope that was alright Ed.

The USA Patriot Act; prepared by the Justice<Gestapo> Department and signed into law by bush<Der Fuhrer> after being passed by Congress<Rubber Stampers> and deemed legal by the Supreme<Kangaroo>Court; and its attendant laws go much further than one would think.
Not only do they completely invalidate Habeas Corpus but they also do away with the "Right to Assembly"<Check and see how many protesters have been illegally detained>,"Right to Privacy"< read about the new "Sneak & Peak" Law>, Right To Be Secure In Our Persons And Possessions>. Bush now wants to eliminate the Posse Comitatus Act and start using the "Standing" Military as Police on American Soil. Anyone who thinks that is not a mistake waiting to happen has totally forgotten about Kent State<although to be fair that was technically the National Guard after being Federalized>. If you really want to read some things to keep you awake at night, I have several postings on my Tribe Site that should scare the pants off you.
Bob From: www.tribes.tribe.net/freedomguardians

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

New DNA legislation:

missadventure — Wed, 28 Sep 2005 14:23:46 GMT

Adios Civil Rights!

Time to renew your membership to the ACLU

You no longer have to be convicted of a crime to be forced to give a DNA sample:

Bill Would Permit DNA Collection From All Those Arrested

By Jonathan Krim
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 24, 2005; Page A03

Suspects arrested or detained by federal authorities could be forced to provide samples of their DNA that would be recorded in a central database under a provision of a Senate bill to expand government collection of personal data.

read the whole article:

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...65.html

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

N.C. Judges Say No To Koran, Yes To Bible

Rocky — Sun, 24 Jul 2005 16:45:37 GMT

July 20, 2005
Religion In Court: N.C. Judges Say No To Koran, Yes To Bible

Some North Carolina county judges are revealing the constitutional pitfalls of requiring religious oaths in courtrooms.

When a Guilford County Muslim woman went before Judge Tom Jarrell regarding a domestic family dispute, she requested to be sworn in on the Koran, but neither the judge nor the courthouse had one available. She was told either to swear herself in as a witness by placing her hand on the Bible and promise to tell the truth or raise her hand and give affirmation to be honest.

Syidah Mateen did not forget that experience and has mounted a campaign to allow citizens to be sworn in before court proceedings on other religious texts, specifically the Koran. At her suggestion, the Al-Ummil Ummat Islamic Center offered Korans to the Guilford County courthouses in early July only to be rebuffed by the county's top judge.

Guilford Senior Resident Superior Court Judge W. Douglas Albright, according to the News & Record , told the Islamic group "An oath on the Quran is not a lawful oath under our law."

One of the county's judges, however, told the Islamic group that it could donate a Koran or two to the courthouse law libraries.

This already muddled picture was not helped by the Administrative Office of the Courts in Raleigh, which issued a preliminary opinion during the same week Albright declined the Korans. The AOC's opinion stated that North Carolina law does allow citizens to be sworn in using the Koran or other religious text rather than a Bible.

The ACLU of North Carolina joined the fray with a letter to the AOC arguing that state Supreme Court precedent recognizes the validity of faiths other than Christianity and that state officials "must allow all individuals of faith to be sworn in on the holy text that is in accordance with their faith."

The easier solution would be to dump religious oaths from court proceedings. Traditions do die, some with great difficulty and consternation. Citizens before their public courts should be required to tell the truth under penalty of law; they should not be required, pressured or even asked to take a religious oath before engaging in business before those courts.

Indeed, a judge presiding in two other North Carolina counties has realized as much. Last year Judge James M. Honeycutt ordered court officials to remove all references to God in the courtrooms and during oaths. Honeycutt's action caused uproar and stirred the state Supreme Court to get involved, ordering Honeycutt to reverse his policy.

-- Jeremy Leaming

http://blog.au.org/2005/07/religion_in_cou.html

-------------------------------

How, why & when did swearing on the bible begin? What should a non-believer say or do when in court or taking office, asked to swear on the bible?

Mat 5:33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said
by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself,
but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:

Mat 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither
by heaven; for it is God's throne:

Mat 5:35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool:
neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great
King.

Mat 5:36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because
thou canst not make one hair white or black.

Mat 5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay,
nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

and

Jam 5:12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not,
neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by
any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and [your]
nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Court broadens police search powers in Illinois case

Mon, 24 Jan 2005 17:42:41 GMT

Reported in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

http://www.startribune.com/stories/484/5201984.html

Am I to understand that having air freshener in your car is enough to justify a search?

posted in ACLU - 1 reply

Get REady For National ID card

Fri, 06 May 2005 23:35:31 GMT

While in open debate this issue had a chance to go no where along with a plan to have a National Database that each state must supply to. Well it was thought not a very good idea had a good chance to be stalled not wish to take chances Bush % Co did this.

However the debate is over it was sliped into a budget for our support of the troops and so called war efforts .Come May 8th 2008 we all will have to get our cards as far as I know from birth. Think it a lark? Full Story here
news.com.com/FAQ+How+Rea...+will+affect+you/2100-1028_3-5697111.html

Then on July 4th 2008 we can celebrate the loss of America and our rights not to be botherd by our goverment all in the name of the bad guys. We all must give up our privacy and endure endless checks and lest not forget while they may catch a few bad guys they will also turn around and sell alll their tracking info to marketing people.

Never thought I'd live to see the end of the USA now the end is indeed in sight. If our President would endourse such a plan subject the people of this nation on an unproven means and only belief it will make us more safe is crazy he has sold out his Nation the people that support him are selling out whole sale the rights of the American people to live unencumbered by Goverment if they so choose.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Government divining of social, religous, and political inclanations by data mining

Mon, 31 May 2004 02:55:50 GMT

I find a disturbing trend in "the war on terror," actually a bunch of them, but for now, I would like to rant and rave about data mining.

One of the whole models the constituion was built on was privacy from goverment until and unless of criminal activity, and then and only then, still under the presumption of innocence, goverment intrusion.

We are now trying to "pre-cog" criminals and criminal intent through data mining designed to model profiles of criminals, then test for match based on everything from consumer spending data, travel data (which raises freedom of association issues,) socio-ecominic, race, and religous affiliation data.

Matrix, CAPPS II, and programs like take it all to a whole new level. What is quietly being placed out in the media now is "beware the dissafected, disenfranchised americans who are being recruited by Muslim exremeist for terrorism, especialy in the prison systems.

What they are saying, is beware the poor black already frustrated in society, but who can not be tracked like foreign nationals, their latest concern on thier ability to track terrorism. Like most "wars" against the outside, the goverment now turns its sights inside for "domestic terrorists."

It has never been terribly difficult to track "the criminal type" or wonder who placed an ad for legal services in a phone book catering to Muslims, or who made what were intended to be humanitarian contributoins to orgs they did not know as much about as they should have.

The chilling effect, is this goverment divining of secret watch lists is that in the end, profiling people in general for potential "terrorist ties" can be chilling in a democracy. Note the terrorism recent advice to cops to keep an extra eye out for foreigners with map books.

I believe sophisticated profiling of the population, even with publicaly available data, lends itself to abuse and to chilling effects. Political inclanations and affiliations, religous affiliatoin snd sympathies, all of it is too easily discerned by goverment through these techniques.

If these sysmtems are required, such as No Fly Lists, I think those who made the list should be notified of why, and the metholody made "blind" to the police or operators such as the data being tied to anonomously generated IDs unless for some reason police action is required. Other than that, the data in the mine should not be visible to anyone, including the police, and the algorythyms should also be public.

On the other hand, though it will never happen, just wipe out the data mines completely. Too bad, but int he information age, data is just going to become available, even to government, and the costs of large data mines is going to drop to the point society finds them irresistable.

posted in ACLU - 2 replies

Escondido California Action Alert.

joseffar — Wed, 29 Dec 2004 05:43:45 GMT

Friends,

The city of Escondido has been playing christmas music from Downtown City hall. Below is a link to the North County newpaper announcing what they're doing.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2004/12/29/news/community/12_27_0419_38_43.txt

To quote the paper:

"The carillon began playing Wednesday and chimes on the hour between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. Prerecorded chimed Christmas carols, part of a collection on the carillon's computerized control panel, also play occasionally between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. until Sunday"

Please write to the Mayor and Pro Tem Mayor of Escondido to protest this form of state sponsered religion.

I've included thier information below.

Mayor: lpfeiler@ci.escondido.ca.us
Ed Gallo, Mayor Pro Tem egallo@ci.escondido.ca.us

ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties
Executive Director:
Nancy Sasaki
P.O. Box 87131
San Diego, CA 92138-7131
Phone: 619-232-2121

I'm also including a sample letter that can be cut and pasted to facilitate easy action..

Thank you!

Joseph
Dear Honorable Mayors,

It's come to my attention that the city of Escondido has been playing Christmas music at it's downtown city hall via a carillon.

I'm sure you're aware of the numerous cases where the separation of church and state has been upheld by the supreme court.

As a Californian and a Non Christian I must send this letter to protest this sort of exclusionary state sponsorship of the Christian religion.

I've taken the liberty of phoning the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties and informing them of your actions. I sincerely hope that the music you choose for your fair city in the future will include everyone in your community.

For your reference, I've included the contact information for the local ACLU.

ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties
Executive Director:
Nancy Sasaki
P.O. Box 87131
San Diego, CA 92138-7131
Phone: 619-232-2121

Regards,

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Card Carrying Member

Fred — Wed, 14 Apr 2004 05:27:22 GMT

I used to be a Card Carrying Member of the ACLU. I still pay my dues, but I lost the card :)

I had been meaning to join for years, but did so after the Patriot Act was passed.

posted in ACLU - 4 replies

Guantanamo daily report from ACLU Director

pmdvs — Fri, 27 Aug 2004 04:22:11 GMT

Anthony Romero is observing the preliminary hearings of so-called "enemy combatants" in Guantanomo Bay, Cuba.

He is posting a report of his experiences daily:

http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=16309&c=207

posted in ACLU - 0 replies

Papers please

DeweyHS — Tue, 22 Jun 2004 17:45:24 GMT

I'm surprised that the ACLU hasn't made any statements about the recent SCOTUS decision which allows states to require people to present id to police officers. While reasonable suspicion must be met, this is still a big hit on civil rights.

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

MI-5 for US

David — Wed, 14 Apr 2004 13:15:36 GMT

Heard this discussion the other day on a news program. (American Domestic intelligence agency, british MI-5 style) My wife and I were discussing it and thought I wonder if anyone at the ACLU has thought about this as a way to keep the FBI from pulling the "terrorism" excuse to skip due process on drug dealers and other inappropriate instances. If ther were an American MI-5, every time they tried that justification, they would be out of their jurisdiction.

I thought it was an interesting angle.

posted in ACLU - 3 replies

Gay Marriage

Asher — Wed, 19 May 2004 02:56:04 GMT

Isn't everyone on here so excited about what is happening in MA?

posted in ACLU - 9 replies

Logo

David — Sat, 17 Apr 2004 06:00:10 GMT

Ashton,

Thanks for the logo.

posted in ACLU - 0 replies