CONTENTS:

PHILLY AREA ACTION:

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL ACTION:                                   

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Monday, September 21, 2009:  Important Anti-Gun Vigil at Colisimos (between 9th and 10th on Spring Garden St.), 4-6 p.m., marking the International Day of Peace.  The Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia AGREED to sponsor this event.

 

Wednesday, September 23, 2009:  Regular Monthly Vigil against the Army Experience Center, 4 to 6 PM, near Franklin Mills Mall on the corner of Knights Road and Woodhaven Blvd. More information from patrickelder@verizon.net or mermaid423@aol.com.

 

NORTHWEST GREENS ANNOUNCEMENTS.

Always call or email to confirm that the event is still scheduled.

            September 16, 23, 30. Every Wednesday, a vigil for peace, 7:00-8:00 p.m. (in any and all weather) at the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike in Chestnut Hill. More information from

215-843-4256 and nwgreens@yahoo.com.

            September 20. War on Terror Peace Event, 23 peace groups (including Northwest Greens) will demonstrate from 2:00 until 4:00 p.m. near Senator Arlen Specter's home on West Schoolhouse Lane (between Henry Avenue and Gypsy Lane) in East Falls. They want Specter to cut off funding for the U.S. occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan and to bring the troops home now. On this date in 2001, President George Bush II declared a "War on Terror," to a joint session of Congress. This was later used to justify preemptive wars and human rights abuses (including torture) by the U.S. For more information, please contact nwgreens@yahoo.com and 215-843-4256.

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September 25. Bail Out People Peace March, http://bailoutpeople.org/,

Vans to Pittsburgh for G20 ( see below for more info)

 

  We will definitely have a van going to Pittsburgh, leaving Philly sometime the late afternoon/early evening of Thursday, Sept. 24 and returning the following night. There is still room in the van!  If you are interested, email gpop@gpop.org.  Please forward to other interested parties. If you are interested in this, please email gpop@gpop.org.  Please give

your name, email, address, and likelihood of participation.  If you have

a preference about whether it's overnight or one long day, email that

too.  And feel free to forward this to friends and colleagues.

hillary, GPOP Treasurer

-

Go to Pittsburgh, Young Man, and Defy Your Empire By Chris Hedges

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090831_hedges_pittsburgh_g20_defiance/

 

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            October 7, 14, 21, 28. Every Wednesday, a vigil for peace, 7:00-8:00 p.m. (in any and all weather) at the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike in Chestnut Hill. More information from

215-843-4256 and nwgreens@yahoo.com.

            October 2. First Friday rocks!  Remind people that there is a war (or two) going on. Philly Code PINK  will have its usual table on Second Street north of Market Street in Old City Philadelphia. More information from dzubow@pccy.org.

            October 7. End the U.S. occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, demonstration at 5:00 pm, west side of Philadelphia City Hall, Fifteenth and Market Streets in center city. More information from Brandywine Peace Community, brandywine@juno.com and 610-544-1818.

            October 8. Northwest Greens monthly meeting, 7:00 pm, in the Weavers Way Meeting Room, 555 Carpenter Lane (near Greene Street) in West Mount Airy. More information from 215-843-4256 and nwgreens@yahoo.com.

            October 10. Peace in Space/Peace on Earth, noon vigil at Lockheed Martin, Mall and Goddard Boulevards (behind King of Prussia Mall), Valley Forge, PA. More information from Brandywine Peace Community, brandywine@juno.com and 610-544-1818.

            October 10. "View from a Grain of Sand," 2:00 p.m., Recreation Room, Stapeley in Germantown, 6300 Greene Street (at Washington Lane). More information from Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), doryloder@verizon.net and 215-438-5323.

            October 10. Beef and Beer for Christine Oliger, www.friendsofchristine.com, from 6:00 until 10:00 pm with dancing, music, dancing, raffles and dancing. Please reserve your tickets today by sending a check or money order for $25/person to "Christine Oliger Trust," Chestnut Hill Friends Meetinghouse, 100 East Mermaid Lane, Philadelphia, PA  19118.

More information from 215-843-4256 and info@friendsofchristine.com.

            October 17. March and rally to end the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq, begins at11:00 a.m., west side of City Hall, 15th and Market Streets. Endorsed by Northwest Greens. More information from Philly Against War, phillyagainstwar@gmail.com and 609-558-1869.

            October 18. Stop the Draft Peace Event, 23 peace groups (including Northwest Greens) will demonstrate from 2:00 until 4:00 p.m. near Senator Arlen Specter's home on West Schoolhouse Lane (between Henry Avenue and Gypsy Lane) in East Falls. They want Specter to cut off funding for the U.S. occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan and to bring the troops home now. On this date in 1967 thousands of young people defied the U.S. occupation of Vietnam by turning in their draft cards at induction centers around the nation. For more information, please contact nwgreens@yahoo.com and 215-843-4256.

            November 4, 11, 18, 25. Every Wednesday, a vigil for peace, 7:00-8:00 p.m. (in any and all weather) at the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike in Chestnut Hill. More information from

215-843-4256 and nwgreens@yahoo.com.

            November 28. Heal the War-Torn Economy, Thanksgiving demonstration for justice, noon at Lockheed Martin, Mall and Goddard Boulevards (behind King of Prussia Mall), Valley Forge, PA. More information from Brandywine Peace Community, brandywine@juno.com and 610-544-1818.

 

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"The Private Health Insurance Industry: An Insider Speaks Out:

A TOWN HALL MEETING WITH WENDELL POTTER, Former Chief of Corporate Communications, CIGNA

 

Saturday, September 19, 2009, 11AM to 1PM

The Free Library of Philadelphia, Parkway Central Library , 1901 Vine Street

Montgomery Auditorium, Philadelphia, PA

      Sponsored by: Physicians for a National Health Program, Philadelphia PSR, Health Care for All Philadelphia, Health Care 4 All PA, www.OpEdNews.com, Health Care for America NOW!, National Physicians Alliance.

Free and Open to the Public

For more information, contact Henry D'Silva (267) 679-0617 or Marc Stier (215) 880-6142

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The Communist Party of Eastern Pennsylvania & Delaware presents

SOCIALISM ; People Before Profits -a 3 part Educational Series on Socialism

 

Session 1:  September 17, 2009 at 7 PM

Socialism in Cuba- A presentation on a recent trip

 

Session 2:  October 1, 2009 at 7 PM

Socialism around the world:

The History of Worldwide Struggle- Panelist/Group Discussion

 

Session 3:  October 21, 2009 at 7 PM

Socialism in the USA How do we get there?  What will it look like? 

 

All session will be held at the

W.E.B. DuBois Center, 4515 Baltimore Ave. Philadelphia, PA

For more information and reservations, please call 215-222-8895

or email us at rperna@cpusa.org

Donations: $5 per seesion/$10 for all 3 (No one turned away for lack of funds)

light refreshments will be served

_________________________________

 

Tackling True Reform: Why Philadelphia Must Innovate:

From: Committee of Seventy [mailto:lpillsbury@seventy.org]

 

Tackling True Reform: Why Philadelphia Must Innovate 

Short-term solutions to the city’s budget crisis – like hiking the sales tax or delaying pension payments – will not be enough to bring about true recovery.  In “Tackling True Reform: Why Philadelphia Must Innovate,” we challenge Philadelphia leaders to take on the genuinely hard work of creating a more effective government.     We believe Philadelphia can emerge from the Great Recession with a government that functions far more effectively and less expensively and the solid foundation for a more prosperous, vibrant city.This report is part of our on going commitment to promoting innovative thinking about government reform. The full report can be found on our website www.seventy.org.

We invite you to read and share the report. We want to hear from you! Write us with your thoughts on creating a government that works for Philadelphians.  

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“THE KEY IS JUSTICE; THE TIME IS NOW” AMERICAN JEWS FOR A JUST PEACE

2009 ANNUAL MEETING, PHILADELPHIA, PA

 

Conference Dates: Friday, October 16 through Sunday, October 18, 2009

Conference Location:The Carriage House, campus, University of Pennsylvania

                    3907 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA

 

Jeff Halper’s Keynote Address, "New Strategies for an Old Conflict: Israel/Palestine 2010"

Friday Night, October 16 at 7:30

Ben Franklin Room, Houston Hall, University of Pennsylvania, 3417 Spruce Street, Phila, PA

 

On Friday evening the public is invited to attend the opening talk, by Jeff Halper, Director of the Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (ICAHD), working partner and ally of American Jews for a Just Peace. The conference will consist of two days of substantive workshops, including the ongoing participation of Jeff Halper and other noted activists throughout the weekend.  Workshops will be moderated by members of American Jews for Just Peace and invited guests, including:  Adam Horwitz (Mondoweiss),  Hannah Mermelstein (co-founder Birthright Unplugged and Students Boycott Apartheid).

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[sustain] boycott stickers are in!

 

SUSTAIN has ordered 1000 of the attached "Boycott Israeli Apartheid" stickers. They are 3x5 and suitable for indoor and outdoor.  The stickers cost about $150, so any donation you could make toward the cost would be most helpful.

 

If you would like a stack, please email katezaidan@gmail.com with:

1. How many

2. How much, if anything, you are able to contribute

3. When and where is a good time to drop them off.

      Thanks so much!  Kate , 267-455-9279

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Take Action: The Respect for Marriage Act Introduced to Repeal DOMA

 

Great news for all those who believe in full equality under the

law for same-sex couples. Today Rep. Jerrold Nadler, with 91

additional co-sponsors from the United States House of

Representatives, introduced legislation to repeal the Defense of

Marriage Act (DOMA) in its entirety.

      Four Congessman from Pennsylvania signed-on to co-sponsor The

Respect for Marriage Act of 2009: U.S. Representatives Robert

Brady (D - 1st Dist.), Chaka Fattah (D - 2nd Dist.), Joe Sestak

(D - 7th Dist.), and Michael Doyle (D - 14th Dist.) The Respect

for Marriage Act would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act

(DOMA), which singles out lawfully married same-sex couples for

discriminatory treatment under federal law, denying them more

than 1,100 federal protections and responsibilities that would

otherwise apply to them once legally married like all other spouses.

      Among the 1,100 federal protections and responsibilities denied

to legally married same-sex couples are the ability to: file

joint taxes; receive spousal, mother's and father's, or

surviving spouse benefits under Social Security; take unpaid

leave to care for a sick or injured spouse; receive

employer-provided family health benefits without paying an

additional tax that different-sex spouses do not pay; receive

the same family health and retirement/pension benefits as fellow

married employees; and be protected by the safe harbor

provisions in bankruptcy law, Medicaid rules and other federal

statutes that secure some resources and the family home when

debts of one spouse threaten to leave both financially

responsible spouses destitute.

      The Respect for Marriage Act does not obligate any person,

religious organization, locality, or state to celebrate or

license a marriage between two persons of the same sex. The

First Amendment protects the right of churches and religious

bodies to determine the qualifications for religious marriage,

and the Respect for Marriage Act cannot and will not upset that

centuries-old protection.

 

Since DOMA was signed in 1996, six states? Massachusetts,

Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont have moved

to recognize same-sex marriages. According to Rep. Jerrold

Nadler, prime sponsor of this legislation, the Act repeals DOMA

in its entirety, and ensures that same-sex couples living in

states where their marriage is not recognized can go to another

state to marry and qualify for federal benefits when they return home.

      Take Action and ask YOUR Congressman or Congresswoman to support

and co-sponsor the Respect for Marriage Act of 2009 today!

 

Please consider supporting the work of Equality Advocates

Pennsylvania! If you're interested in hosting a house party in

any part of Pennsylvania, just contact Jake at

jkaskey@equalitypa.org, and please consider contributing to

Equality Advocates by making a tax-deductible donation today:

http://www.equalitypa.org/contribute/contribute_form.php?donation_type=one-time&donation_method=paypal

 

Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this.

http://eqfed.org/campaign/respectformarriage2009_clone_2/forward/wxbiw6g2fjjji6dj?

 

We encourage you to take action by October 11, 2010

Repeal DOMA! Support The Respect for Marriage Act of 2009

 

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA THE WEB:

If you have access to a web browser, you can take action on this

alert by going to the following URL:

http://eqfed.org/campaign/respectformarriage2009_clone_2/wxbiw6g2fjjji6dj?

 

Your letter will be addressed and sent to:

Your Congressperson

            ----THIS LETTER WILL BE SENT IN YOUR NAME----

Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

 

When DOMA was enacted in 1996, it rejected the right of states

to ban marriage discrimination of same-sex couples. As more and

more states affirm marriage equality, DOMA prevents legally

married couples from fully protecting their families, caring for

their loved ones, and being full and equal members of our society.

 

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people have families and

want to provide those families with security, just like every

American. But same-sex couples don't have the same rights or

obligations under federal law that other couples and families have.

 

It is time to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. Please take a

courageous stand for equality by cosponsoring The Respect for

Marriage Act of 2009.

 

Without DOMA, religious institutions, states, or localities are

still free to choose which marriages they'll recognize and

celebrate. But without DOMA, loving same-sex couples will be

able to fully nurture and support their families. Without DOMA,

America is a fairer place.

----END OF LETTER TO BE SENT----

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The 40th Anniversary Season Begins NOW

As the Painted Bride embarks on its 40th Anniversary Season, we’re firmly grounded at the intersection of Culture and Creativity.  This season’s line-up continues our strong tradition of showcasing world-class and groundbreaking work from around the globe, with Cynthia Olvier’s Rigidigim De Bamba De:Ruptured Calypso, a raw exploration of the Caribbean Diaspora through dance, myth, history, spokenword, and calypso. All tickets are ON SALE NOW via paintedbride.org.

 

Big Things Happening This Fall!  ON THE VINE *NEW SERIES* Season Kick-Off Party!

Saturn Never Sleeps

Saturday, September 26, 8pm | Tickets: $20

King Britt and Rucyl Mills curate a journey through musical and visual space with Saturn Never Sleeps, a new monthly Bride event that stretches the limitations of genre, rhythm and concept.

 

Atypical  ; New Artist Showcase Series

Sunday, October 25, 7pm | Tickets: $10

In the new series Atypical, we’re working with co-curators who have their fingers on the pulse of the next big thing in Philadelphia’s artists, and putting them on the Bride’s stage. Three performances will be showcased at each event.

 

JAZZ ON VINE

 

Arturo Stable Quintet

Saturday, October 17, 8pm

Tickets: $20 | 20% Off for Crush Card Holders

The winds of change are blowing through Latin jazz, signaling the arrival of the next generation of innovators. In the vanguard of the movement’s young trendsetters is Arturo Stable and his genre-bending quintet.

 

 

New York Hieroglyphics Orchestra

Saturday, November 14, 8pm

Tickets: $25 | 20% Off for Crush Card Holders

Before the term “world music” was commonplace, Peter Apfelbaum’s Grammy-nominated, Bay-area Hieroglyphics Ensemble became renowned for its adroit fusing of African, Indian and Middle Eastern rhythms with avant-garde jazz.

 

WORLD MUSIC

 

Masters of North & South Indian Music

Ustad Shahid Parvez - Sitar and Maestro Shashank - South Indian Flute

Saturday, October 3, 7pm

Tickets: $25 | 20% off for Crush Card holders

This evening’s concert features an adventuresome collaboration between two of India’s most accomplished instrumentalists; Carnatic master flutist, Shashank and Hindustani master sitarist, Ustad Shahid Parvez.

 

Tabla Ecstasy: Composed by Pandit Divyang Vakil

Saturday, October 24, 7pm

Tickets: $25 | 20% off for Crush Card holders

Tabla Guru Pandit Divyang Vakil is renowned for his composing brilliance and teaching excellence. With thousands of compositions to his name, his works represent a contemporary adaptation of the tabla tradition. Tabla Ecstasy is his latest masterpiece showcasing pure tabla playing.

 

DANCE WITH THE BRIDE

Cynthia Oliver /Coco Dance Theatre

Rigidigidim De Bamba De: Ruptured Calypso

Thursday-Saturday, October 8-10, 8pm

Tickets: $25 | 20% off for Crush Card holders

Rigidigidim’s international cast of artists layer myth, history, the spokenword, and calypso dancing to deliver calypso’s subversive truth telling, innuendoand rawness to raucous and downright unrespectable levels.

 

ARTIST ACCESS: Danco on Danco

Thursday, October 22, 8pm

Friday, October 24, 8pm

Tickets: $25 | 20% off for Crush Card holders

Over the last 40 years, The Philadelphia Dance Company (PHILADANCO) has featured dancers and the apprentice company D/2 in 'Danco on 'Danco.

 

Dignity Transforms: Semilla Arts Initiative

September 4 – October 16th

First Friday Receptions: September 4 and October 2

In Spanish, the word “semilla” means seed. And the Semilla Arts Initiative are seeds for change in their North Philadelphia barrio. Their artistic collaborations with community members are a means of cultural preservation as well as individual and community empowerment. 

 

I’ll Teach Your Grandma to Grow Gills: An installation of paintings by Ashley Payne

September 4 – October 16th

First Friday Receptions: September 4 and October 2

I'll Teach Your Grandma To Grow Gills presents a selection of new work by Philadelphia based artist Ashley Payne with a process-oriented approach and invoke a sense of improvisation and surreal inventiveness.

 

Greetings from the Welcome House: Conceived and curated by Marianne Bernstein

November 4-December 18

First Friday Receptions: November 6 and December 4

In October, a group of artists will each spend a day living in a glass cube in Philadelphia's Love Park, recording their experiences and creating new work based on their interactions with passersby. This gallery exhibition features selections resulting from this unique experiment.

 

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NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL ACTION:

 

Afghanistan - A Petition to Take Action Against the War

http://gopetition.com/online/30533.html

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Friday, September 25, 2009:  People's March on the G20 Summit, Noon to 5:00 PM in Pittsburgh. 

 

People's March on G20 Summit

Friday September 25, 2009, 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Notes:

Thousands to March to the G20 Summit to Bring the Peoples’ Demands: Money for Human Needs, Not for Wars and Occupations –- Environmental Justice for the Earth and its Inhabitant –- Jobs and Health Care for All

 

WHAT: Permitted rally and “Peoples’ March” to G20 Summit

WHO: Thomas Merton Center Antiwar Committee and 40+ endorsing groups (including Northwest Greens and Philly Against War)

WHEN: Friday, September 25, 2009, 12:00pm - 5pm (opening rally starts at 12:00pm)

WHERE: The plans for Friday are:

• 12:00 pm – Opening Rally at the corner of Fifth and Craft Avenues in Oakland.

• 2:00pm – Protestors will march down Fifth Avenue to the City County Building Downtown for a speak-out.

• 3:00pm – They will march down Grant St. to the Federal Building for another speak-out.

• 3:30pm – They will march down 10th St. to a block from the G20 and then conclude the march.

More information from Philly Against War, phillyagainstwar@gmail.com and 609-558-1869.

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Gaza Freedom March - more info - new statement, posters, new endorsers!

 

Who is coming. We have more than 100 marchers registered from around the world -- and we are still more than three months out! (Note that we are encouraging everyone to register now, since flights at the end and beginning of the year fill quickly.) So far the following countries are represented: Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Jordan, Lebanon, Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Syria, Tunesia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Yemen. Among the wonderful marchers is Duraid Lahham, one of the most well-known actors in the Arab world. We are delighted that he and his wife will participate in the march.

            Some great new materials. The accomplished Canadian artist Michael Thompson has designed some wonderful posters/graphics for the march You can see all his new designs plus a flyer you can download at: http://www.gazafreedommarch.org/article.php?id=5027 .

 

Look at our new Frequently Asked Questions <http://www.gazafreedommarch.org/article.php?id=5061> We have hopefully addressed a lot of your questions/concerns. Let us know if you have more.

 

      Want to join our team and help? Whether or not you can join the march, there are LOTS of ways you can help. Check out our committees <http://www.gazafreedommarch.org/article.php?id=5034>  and contact the committee head. Or write us at info@gazafreedommarch.org with your suggestions or offerings.

 

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

                    Endorse the Gaza Freedom March! Sign the Pledge!

      http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/424/t/9750/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=2055

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

                                      

Donate, donate, donate. Our greatest need now is funds. The vast majority of this work is being done by volunteers, but we need to pay people’s expenses. We have a group leaving for Gaza on September 15 to help lay the groundwork for the march. And we need to raise funds for our partners in Gaza who are making great sacrifices to help organize the march. You can make secured donations online here https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/424/t/9750/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=5136 or send a check to Gaza Freedom March, 2010 Linden Ave, Venice, CA 90291. Thank for your generosity.

      We are excited by the momentum, and grateful for your support. Let’s show the Palestinians of Gaza that we are with them and determined to lift this inhumane siege.

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CALL FOR: THE SEVENTH WEEK AGAINST THE APARTHEID WALL, NOVEMBER 9 – 16 2009.

 

The Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, its popular committees and member organizations call on activists to launch a week of global mobilization against the walls of apartheid in the West Bank and Gaza from November 9 to 16 2009

 

We call on all organizations, networks, institutions, unions and concerned media to mobilize during the 7th Week against the Apartheid Wall and to:

 

• Protest the overarching Israeli policy of ghettoization behind a system of walls that targets the Palestinian people, whether in Gaza or the West Bank, isolating them from each other and the Palestinians inside the Green Line.

 

• Protest the criminal repression of the people resisting these walls.

- Protest the inhumane siege on Gaza imposed to force its people to surrender their dignity and struggle.

- Protest the repression of the communities struggling against the Wall in the West Bank. The current wave of violence has reached alarming highs, and education and awareness raising around this issue is critical. Stop the Wall and Addameer have published Repression allowed, resistance denied, an extensive report on the repression of the grassroots movement against the Wall.

 

• Continue BDS efforts. Launch campaigns against companies building the Wall and complicit in the siege of Gaza. BDS campaigns have already made important inroads, especially against transportation giant Veolia’s project in Jerusalem and settlement builder Lev Leviev. Campaigns are being built up against those involved in the construction of the Wall, such as CRH which is involved in supplying concrete and Elbit Systems, which equips the Wall with sensors and other hi-tech equipment while at the same time producing the drones that kill Palestinians in Gaza.

 

• Put the Wall back on the agenda. Pressure your government representatives to follow their obligation to ensure the walls in Palestine are torn down and the siege on Gaza is ended. Governments have to respect the ICJ decision and not to aid the construction and maintenance of the Wall. They have to stop their complicity through silence in the siege on Gaza.

      On November 9 1989 – exactly 20 years ago – the Berlin Wall fell. The event was celebrated as a victory of the ‘Free World’. Today, however, the same powers back the construction of walls which are destroying Palestine.

      Five years ago – the International Court of Justice ruled that the Wall is illegal and has required that it be torn down and all laws and orders related to it be reversed. The Court has reminded the international community of its obligation not to render any aid or assistance to the Wall and to ensure the implementation of international law. To date, the international community has not promoted any tangible move towards the ruling’s implementation.

 

The hypocrisy must end – justice has to prevail.

 

Gaza has been imprisoned by walls and razor wire for 15 years. The wall and its no-go zone confiscate almost 25% of the prime agricultural land of the starving Strip. About 15% of Gaza’s farmers are barred from working their farmlands, while tens of water wells and about 50% of livestock shelters and other related industry in the east part of the Gaza strip have been destroyed. Many farmers have been killed while tending to their land or have been displaced and forced into overcrowded urban centers.

      In the West Bank, the Apartheid Wall carves out today’s Bantustans. It curves around settlements, which continue to grow despite disingenuous talks of a “settlement freeze.” So far its path has isolated 78 Palestinian villages, trapping them between walls, settlements and/or the Green Line while stealing land, water and other resources from hundreds more. Jerusalem remains isolated by the Wall and settlements, and an increasing number of Palestinians have found their homes demolished or taken over by settlers.

      In response, the international community has put a veil of silence over these crimes – yet another Nakba for the Palestinian people.

      In spite of this, Palestine resistance to the Wall has grown. Protests have been a weekly undertaking in a number of West Bank villages. In an attempt to uproot what they have termed “a dangerous phenomenon”, Occupation forces have employed increasing violent means against protesting communities, in particular youth. In barely more than a year, 6 have been shot and killed by soldiers, hundreds have been injured and dozens arrested in the villages struggling against the Wall.

      Gaza has seen much worse. In response to their resilience under siege, the people of Gaza have faced an overwhelming military onslaught. More then 1,500 were killed as a result and thousands more injured this past winter when Occupation forces laid waste to the small costal territory.

      In their struggle, the Palestinian people shall not stand alone.

Unite against apartheid!

Thank you for you continued support,

Iyad Burnat- Head of Popular Commitee in Bilin

co-founder  of Friends of Freedom and Justice - Bilin

Email- bel3in@yahoo.com Mobile- (00972) (0) 547847942 Office- (00972) (2) 2489129

Mazin Qumsiyeh, PhD A Bedouin in Cyberspace, a villager at home, http://qumsiyeh.org

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 17,000 Physicians for a national health program: Uninsured figures show mandate-based health reforms don't work ; From: Physicians for a National Health Program [mailto:info@pnhp.org]

 

Uninsured figures show mandate-based health reforms don't work

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:   Quentin Young, M.D., (312) 782-6006 David Himmelstein, M.D.  Steffie Woolhandler, M.D., M.P.H. Don McCanne, M.D.  Mark Almberg, PNHP, (312) 782-6006, mark@pnhp.org New uninsured figures show Massachusetts, touted as model for national reform, is failing to cover the uninsured. 17,000-member organization of physicians says latest numbers understate the problem and show urgent need for single-payer health reform.

 

Official estimates released this morning by the Census Bureau showing a marginal increase in the number of Americans without health insurance in 2008 - now estimated at 46.3 million, up from 45.7 million in 2007 - masks the true dimensions of the problem, a national doctors' group said.

Significantly, in Massachusetts, where an individual-mandate health reform law, much like what President Obama is proposing on a national scale, was passed in 2006, at least 352,000 people, or 5.5 percent of the population, remained uninsured in 2008. That number was actually (but non-significantly) higher than the number of uninsured in 2007, before strict enforcement of the individual and employer mandates

Census officials cited a drop of 1.1 million in the number of persons who were covered by employer-based insurance, continuing an 8-year trend. Whereas 64 percent of Americans had employer-based coverage in 1999, only 58.5 percent had such coverage in 2008.

Dr. Quentin Young, national coordinator of PNHP, said had it not been for a leap of approximately 4.4 million people newly covered by government programs like Medicaid and Medicare, the overall uninsured rate would have set a new record.

Young said the "tragic and painful persistence" of tens of millions of uninsured persons in the country is "completely unacceptable" and underscores the urgency of enacting a Medicare-for-all program.

"The only way to solve this problem is to insure everyone," he said. "And the only way to insure everyone is to enact single-payer national health insurance, an improved Medicare for all. Even President Obama has acknowledged this fact."

Young noted that Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., is introducing an amendment to the House leadership's health reform bill, H.R. 3200, which would essentially delete its present language and substitute the language of Rep. John Conyers' single-payer bill, H.R. 676. "It's not too late for Congress to do the right thing," Young said.

State-by-state data on the uninsured from 2005-2009 can be found here: http://www.pnhp.org/uninsured2008/Uninsured-by-State-2005-2008.pdf

For more information on Massachusetts, see:

http://www.pnhp.org/change/Why-MA-style-Reform-Wont-Work.pdf

      Physicians for a National Health Program (www.pnhp.org), a research and educational organization of over 17,000 physicians, supports a single-payer national health insurance program. To contact a physician-spokesperson in your area,

visit www.pnhp.org/stateactions or call (312) 782-6006. 

Physicians for a National Health Program

29 E Madison Suite 602, Chicago, IL 60602, Phone (312) 782-6006 | Fax: (312) 782-6007

www.pnhp.org | info@pnhp.org

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Michael Moore Premiers "Capitalism, A Love Story" At AFL-CIO Convention & Urges Support For National March For Single Payer :  http://blip.tv/file/2603612

Filmmaker Michael Moore premiered his new movie "Capitalism, A Love Story" at the 2009 AFL-CIO Convention in Pittsburgh PA on 9/14/2009. He also urged that AFL-CIO call a national protest day in Wash. DC to fight for healthcare and the unemployed. He & many other delegates at the convention are also pushing for the AFL-CIO to call for single payer at its national convention.

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* http://socialistworker.org/2009/09/11/mad-as-hell-doctors

> Mad As Hell Doctors head out

> Paul Dean and Steve Leigh report from Portland and Seattle on the kickoff of the Mad As Hell Doctors cross-country tour to demand genuine health care reform.

 

* FAST TIMES AT RECRUITMENT HIGH By Andy Kroll

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan invited the Pentagon into Chicago's

schools.  Will he promote military schools nationwide? ** Mother Jones

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2009/08/fast-times-recruitment-high

      When Arne Duncan stepped down as the head of the Chicago Public Schools to

become the secretary of education in January, the school district he left

behind had little to brag about.  While Duncan served as its chief executive

officer, CPS received mostly average or below average rankings in "The

Nation's Report Card," a Department of Education assessment of the country's

largest urban school districts.  Its high school graduation rates lingered

at around 50 percent, well short of the national average of 70 percent.  And

since 2004, CPS has failed as a district to meet No Child Left Behind's

"adequate yearly progress" standards.  In one area, however, Chicago's

schools stood out:  In large part to Duncan's efforts, they were -- and

remain -- the most militarized in America.

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* Naomi Klein Boycotts Life As Normal in Israel

By Cecilie Surasky, AlterNet

Posted on September 1, 2009, Printed on September 1, 2009

http://www.alternet.org/story/142341/

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A 1918 statement by the President of the US that remains valid-

 

“The settlement of every question, whether of territory, of sovereignty, of economic arrangement, or political relationship, rests upon the basis of the free acceptance of that settlement by the people immediately concerned, and not upon the basis of the material interest or advantage of any other nation or people which may desire a different settlement for the sake of its own exterior influence or mastery.  If that principle is to rule, and so the wishes of Palestine’s population are to be decisive as to what is to be done with Palestine, then it is to be remembered that the non-Jewish population of Palestine – nearly nine-tenths of the whole – are emphatically against the entire Zionist program.  The tables show that there was no one thing upon which the population of Palestine were more agreed upon than this.  To subject a people so minded to unlimited Jewish immigration, and to steady financial and social pressure to surrender the land, would be a gross violation of the principle just quoted, and of the People’s rights, though it is kept within the forms of law.” (President Woodrow Wilson speech on Independence Day July 4, 1918, text in Tannous, Izzat. 1988. The Palestinians: Eyewitness History of Palestine Under British Mandate. I.G.T. Company, New York, p. 72.)