CONTENTS:
PHILLY AREA ACTION:
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
ACTION:
COMMENTARY:
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PHILLY AREA ACTION:
Call to a Moratorium:
United for Peace and Justice,
Delaware Valley Network
Wednesday, March 19/ Fifth
Anniversary of the War in Iraq:
No Business as Usual!
We urge peace supporters to change their usual weekday
activities. Take a full or half-day-off from your work, school or other
activities. Instead, make a clear statement.
Five Years Too Many
Not One More Death, Not One More Dollar
Each day the war and occupation are funded and allowed to
continue is another day that:
• Costs Lives:
Nearly 4,000 US soldiers and over 500,000 Iraqi civilians
have been killed; and another 50,000 American soldiers and untold numbers of
Iraqis—many of them children—have been wounded or disabled.
• Ruins Our Economy
The US is falling into an Iraq Recession. The War costs
$8,300 per second, $1,500 per US household per year. This drains our economy of
billions of dollars that are desperately needed to fund health care, education,
job creation, clean energy, and other vital needs
Demand that President Bush really support the
troops. Every year, we can send Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to college
for less than 3% of the proposed stimulus package, and for a tiny fraction of
the costs to continue the War in Iraq.
We CAN do something about this. See the reverse for
specific activities and contact this office for information about what YOU can
do.
GO TO: http://www.ufpj-dvn.org
** Suggestions for observing the Moratorium **
We call on peace supporters to spend the March 19
Moratorium Day
in one of more of the following ways:
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The Coalition for Peace Action's planning for the Bucks
County and E. Montco observance of the March 19th 5th anniversary of the start
of the Iraq War
Here are the main points:
We are calling on you to observe-- so far as you are
able-- a Moratorium on work, or going to school or college-- so you are free to
participate in this mid-week event. We will have armbands to mark the day's
emphasis as it is being observed nationally: "5 YEARS TOO MANY"
HERE ARE OUR PLANNED EVENTS:
Vigil at 9:30 A.M. at Murphy's
Bristol office is ccordinated by Bill
Deckhart 215.380.6804
7:30-9 A.M. Morning Rush Hour
Rally on "Trenton Makes" Bridge
we hope to reach the minds of many, many people by being
present at the entrance to the bridge with signs that
(a) make them aware of the fact that the war
started 5 years ago today; and
(b) inform them of CFPA's noontime rally on the steps of
the N.J. Statehouse
We have much to be grateful for in Rep. Murphy having
consistently voted to stop funding for the war, and we want (a) to express our
appreciation for his votes and (b) to call on him to take equally far-seeing
positions on funding efforts for peace and challenging the gross imbalance of
the military budget
Noontime: Joining Philadelphia area activists at
•
Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia demo of
"clothes-washing" at "The Clothespin"
at 15th & Market, across from City Hall
•
Rally at Federal Building to protest continued funding of
the war and to call Sen.
Arlen Specter on his continual votes to keep the Senate from true and fair
debate on
war-related issues
3:00 Newtown "teach-in" on corporate
profiteering from the war
in this educational event-- in the
Fireside Lounge of Rollins hall at Bucks County Community College in Newtown,
we will hear a panel of informed activists discuss how our corporations are
making obscene profits from war making. We will learn how the corporate giants
lobby Congress and how they brought it to commit itself to fund the kind
of war the corporations want us to fight. We will talk about how this has led
the country to incur enormous deficits, helping to bring on the recession, and
how it's forced the government to cut needed programs for health, education,
and other social needs. We will learn how to challenge their promotion of war
making, and how it was done in the previous generation by some strong Bucks
County women
4:30-6 P.M. 5th
Anniversary Anti-War Protest at Lockheed-Martin on the Newtown
Bypass As the evening rush hour traffic passes by, we will
raise our voices-- and our signs-- to protest how corporations such as Lockheed
are making billions of dollars, in seen and unseen ways, on this war, and
how they promote the U.S.'s continuing decisions to wage this kind of war.
6:30 Evening Candlelight vigil at
Rep. Murphy's Doylestown office-- our Central Bucks Chapter, working with the
Doylestown Friends' Tuesday Peace Vigil, will mount a vigil at Patrick Murphy's
office at 60 N. Main St.
6:30 P.M. Interfaith Service and
Candlelight Vigil at Ambler Church of the Brethren
The Interfaith Service, consisting of words from
interfaith clergy, as well as instrumental music, poetry and song from local
artists and musicians.
will mourn the loss of lives on all sides of this
conflict and encourage those attending to work for peace.
The service will be followed by a silent candlelight
vigil lining the street outside the church. Luminaria will be placed along the
vigil path. This vigil will be a silent, reverential event, not an occasion for
expressions of anger, but a time of reflection on this sad anniversary.
Ambler Church of the Brethren is located at 351 East
Butler Ave., at the intersection of Butler and Rosemont Avenues, one
block from Bethlehem Pike.
Contact Liz West at cfpa08@yahoo.com for more
information.
Evening candlelight vigil in Quakertown-- as the sun goes
down, our Upper Bucks CFPA chapter will assemble across Rt. 309 from the
Richland Friends' Meeting for a candlelight vigil for peace
For further info: cfpabuxmont@verizon.net or
check out the website: www.ufpj-dvn.org
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Engage in a Teach-Out
• Use materials developed by the
Coalition for Peace Action on their web site,
• Use materials on the United for
Peace and Justice, Delaware Valley Network Website,
• Prepare ahead. Make
leaflets, stickers, and signs.
• Contact the media. Call
radio talk shows, write letters to the editor, go on cable TV,
write in blogs and on the Internet
*** Organize and participate in Vigils at the
Congressional Office near you
• Most
vigils will be between 6:30 and 7:30 PM. Everyone can do this, whether or
not they have taken the day off work. Check the web
site for up-to-date information.
• Bring posters appropriate to
the Representative in your District—praise the ones who have
opposed the war; criticize the ones who have supported
the war. Demand that they give no more blank check funding.
• Close
the Vigils at 7:00 p.m. with candlelight.
• Meet with your
Representatives. But have a vigil, too, for public witness.
Participate in Nonviolent Civil
Disobedience in Washington DC
• To learn more
or to sign up, contact the office.
• Check the
National Office of United for Peace and Justice at their web site:
www.unitedforpeace.org
• Have a
send off for those going to DC. Invite the press.
We can/MUST end this war before thousands more die
needlessly!
www.ufpj-dvn.org
__________________________________
Bryn Mawr Peace Coalition VIGIL
Wednesday, March 19, 5:00 - 6:30
p.m.
Intersection of Bryn Mawr and Lancaster Avenues in Bryn
Mawr.
Posters specific to the event which is titled "Five
Years Too Many" will be
especially effective. The group holds meetings at the
Ludington Library,
preceded by a half hour vigil, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. on
the first Monday of
each month. All are welcome to join the vigil and
attend the meetings.
After the vigil participants are encouraged to
attend a gathering in
the large meeting room of the nearby Ludington
Library. The
gathering, sponsored by Penn Action, will feature
speakers with direct
knowledge of the conflict such as Iraq War veterans.
Email Robin Stelly <rstelly@pennaction.org> for
more information.
=================
March 27 seminar/ Peace
Coalition to Hold Seminar
on the Role of the Media in
Promoting the Invasion of Iran
7 to 9 p.m. in Bartley Hall, Room 1011,
Villanova University, Ithan and Lancaster Avenues, Villanova, PA.
"Media Service in War Propaganda: It's Roots
and Effects
Iraq, Iran and Beyond," the program will include
excerpts from
Bill Moyers' Buying the War, a presentation by Edward S.
Herman, PhD.,
and a "questions from the audience"
session.
The acclaimed PBS video Buying the War describes
how the media failed
to challenge government liars and served as cheerleaders
for a
fraudulent war.
Dr. Herman is Professor
Emeritus at the Wharton School of the
University of PA and has written extensively on media
analysis. He is
the author of 22 books including Manufacturing Consent
with Noam
Chomsky.
There is free parking
available in the main University lot on the
South side of Lancaster Avenue, just across the street
from Bartley Hall.
The Bryn Mawr Peace Coalition holds meetings at the
Ludington Library in Bryn Mawr,
Preceded by a half hour vigil, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. on
the first Monday of
each month. All are welcome to join the vigil and
attend the meetings.
~ CONTACT: Karen Barton at
(610) 525-3784 or email <astrique@aol.com>
____________________________________
BENEFIT TO HELP THE WOMEN OF
DARFUR
Germantown Jewish Center on 400 Ellet St in the Maslow
Auditorium
Sunday, March 2 at 9:30 am
_________________________________________________________________
On Wednesday March 5 the
Anti-Apartheid Palestinian Non-violence Speaking Tour
Mansour Mansour is a Palestinian from Biddo. His
movie "Bil'in Habibti" won the Wolgin Award for Full Length
Documentary Film at the Jerusalem International Film Festival 2006.
Temple University,
Philadelphia,
Student Faculty Center
room B7, 3340 North Broad Street, 6-8:30 p.m.
http://www.temple.edu/studentaffairs/studentcenters/sfc/about/directions.html
Also, there has been a website set up for the tour here -
http://stopapartheid.org/.
________________________________________________________________________________
Sex, Lies and Constitutional
Issues: HIV Prevention at Home and Abroad
An educational forum
sponsored by the ACLU Greater Philadelphia Chapter
co-sponsored by Phila NOW, BEBASHI, Phila. FIGHT and Phila Chapter NAACP
March 5, 2008:
6:30-8:30 p.m.
Temple University, Ritter
Hall, Walk Auditorium,
13th St between Montgomery
& Cecil B. Moore Avenues
Presenters: Dr. Marla Gold, Drexel U School
of Public Health
Monica Ruiz, PhD., M.P.H., Acting Dir. Public Policy of amfAR
Ronda B. Goldfein, Esq., E.D. AIDS Law Project
contact: scoburn@aclupa.org; 215-592-1513x117
______________________________________________________________________
Join Philadelphians on March 8 -
Celebrating International Women's Day
-- 100 Years of Women & Girls Fighting for Justice --
This day long event starts at 10:30 AM with a Rally at
City Hall, a March to UNITE/HERE. Please see the attached leaflet with
the details and invite your friends and neighbors to participate. For
more information call 215-242-5047 email: PhillyIWS@gmail.com
____________
ANNOUNCEMENTS: (Always call or email to confirm that the
event is still scheduled.)
Every Wednesday, two
vigils for peace: #1) at 5:00-6:00 pm
(only in fair weather) on Lincoln Drive outside of the Unitarian
Society of
Germantown, 6511 Lincoln Drive in West Mount Airy; and
#2) at 7:00-8:00 pm
(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>.
March 5, 12, 19, 26. Every
Wednesday, two vigils for peace: #1) at
5:00-6:00 pm (only in fair weather) on Lincoln Drive
outside of the
Unitarian Society of Germantown, 6511 Lincoln Drive in
West Mount Airy; and
#2) at 7:00-8:00 pm (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>.
March 6. Northwest Greens
monthly meeting, 7:00 pm, in the Weaver's Way
Meeting Room, 610 Carpenter Lane (near Greene Street) in
West Mount Airy.
More information from 215-843-4256 and
nwgreens@yahoo.com.
March 9. Anti-war Fest:
music, poetry, theater, and voices of peace and
hope. Pot-luck supper at 4:30 pm, program at 5:30 pm, University
Lutheran
Church, 3637 Chestnut Street, University City,
Philadelphia. More
information from Brandywine Peace Community,
<brandywine@craftech.com> and
610-544-1818.
March 13. There will be
nine days of resistance around the fifth
anniversary of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. You can find
the details on two
websites: www.5yearstoomany.org and
www.resistinmarch.org.
March 15. Demonstrate with
Lancaster Coalition for Peace and Justice: noon
rally with procession to County Office and town-hall
meeting to voice
opposition to U.S. occupation of Iraq. Speakers at the
town-hall meeting
include: Andy Hoover, American Civil Liberties Union, and
live-feed of the
Winter Soldier testimony by Iraq Veterans Against the
War. More information
from 631-512-3018 and info@lancastervoice.org.
March 16. Fifth
Anniversary Peace Event. To kick off a week of resistance
in Philadelphia, 24 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 to
bring the troops home now. For more information, please
contact
<nwgreens@yahoo.com> and 215-843-4256.
March 19. Fifth
Anniversary Peace Vigils. Our weekly vigils on Wednesday
evening will be very well attended because they fall on
the 5th anniversary
of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Please join us if you
oppose the occupation
and what it is doing to the U.S. -- i.e. the Iraq
Recession. Details of the
two vigils can be found above.
March 19. Fifth
Anniversary Congressional Vigils. Stake out your
Congressperson's office and demand that they oppose the
U.S. occupation of
Iraq. For information on the time and place, please
contact United for Peace
and Justice Delaware Valley Network, www.ufpj-dvn.org.
March 21. Good Friday: A
Trail of Mourning and Truth, noon, at Lockheed
Martin (#1 war profiteer), Mall and Goddard Boulevards,
(behind the King of
Prussia Mall), Valley Forge, PA. More information from
Brandywine Peace
Community, <brandywine@craftech.com> and
610-544-1818.
_________________________________
Free Income Tax Filing Assistance
United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania and Solutions for
Progress, in partnership with the Campaign for Working Families, are offering
free income tax filing to residents of Southeastern Pennsylvania whose annual
household income is less than $54,000.
Residents can file both
their federal and Pennsylvania state taxes through our website
(http://www.uwsepa.org/freetaxfiling/uwff_splash.html), as well as claim the
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), Child Tax Credit, Child & Dependent Care
Credit, Hope Education Credit, Life Time Learning Credit, Student Loan Interest
Deduction and more. The online tax program is part of The Benefit Bank,
the only online system available that can process federal and state tax returns
as well as a range of federal and public sponsored health and social service
benefits.
The Campaign is part of a
national movement to promote EITC, to provide free or low cost tax services,
and to protect taxpayers from rip-offs, including Holiday, Pay Stub and Refund
Anticipation Loans (RALs), sometime called “Instant Money” or “Rapid” Loans.
For more information, call the Campaign for Working
Families Help Line at 215-851-1886.
_______________________________________________________
Time to volunteer for the Primary
Election!
Looking for volunteers for a very exciting Primary
Election, for the Presidency and especially for the State Senate and
Representative races. By volunteering just a few hours of your time, you can
help safeguard the integrity of the election and ensure that all eligible
citizens can freely exercise their right to VOTE! Please see below for details
about volunteer opportunities for the April 22, 2008 Primary Election.
Volunteer Opportunities on Election Day:
Citizen Field Volunteer:
Work on a team of 2-3 members (including one driver) and
will be assigned to a specific geographic area in Philadelphia. The team
travels between polling places, monitoring activity, answering voters'
questions, helping to settle minor disputes and directing more complicated problems
to the proper authorities.
Office Volunteer:
Work in Seventy's office, answering calls from voters,
poll officials and Seventy Volunteers. Office Volunteers will be helping voters
find their polling places, giving basic assistance with Election Day rules,
directing problems to the correct authorities, and documenting problems that
will be responded to by field teams.
Legal Volunteer:
This opportunity is for legal professionals and law
students. Legal team volunteers will work on a team of 2-3 members (including
one driver) and will be assigned to back up Citizen Teams in a specific
geographic area (3 - 4 wards) in Philadelphia. In addition to traveling between
polling places monitoring activity, and answering voters' questions,
Legal Teams are assigned to more complicated problems that may require the
assistance of a legal professional.
All volunteers are required to attend a one-hour training
session prior to Election Day. At training, volunteers will receive necessary
materials and information for their assignment. We will begin scheduling
trainings during the second week of March. Trainings will be held at our Center
City office, unless otherwise noted. If you have a group of 15 or more people,
we can schedule a time and location convenient to you!
For more information on these volunteer opportunities, or
to register go to www.seventy.org/volunteer. If you have any questions about
these opportunities please call Nina Bloch at Committee of Seventy at (215)
557-3600, ext. 124 or e-mail at nbloch@seventy.org.
===============================
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
ACTION:
Current Legislation To Promote
#1. New Diplomatic
Offensive for Iraq Act / House Resolution: HR 3797
To require the President to seek to institute a regional
diplomatic plan for the Middle East
This bill has 42 co-sponsors.
Could bolster the efforts of those in the Bush
administration who argue in favor of diplomacy and against an attack on Iran.
Action suggested:
Write or call your congress person and ask them to
cosponsor the New Diplomatic Offensive For Iraq Act
(PA Co-sponsors: Brady, English, Altmire, Gerlach,
Sestak, Murtha, Schwartz, Dent) We need to get Fattah to do the same. -
Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs (10/07)
----------------------
#2 Senate Bill S. 2426 Require
Congressional Oversight of US Basing Agreement in Iraq
Requires President to bring any base agreements before
Congress for approval.
This bill would require the President to seek
congressional approval for any agreement that would extend the US occupation of
Iraq. This bill asserts that Bush has announced a "Declaration of
Principles" for a long term US military presence without consulting
Congress, and would require the administration to "report for justification
for denying congressional role". It also would assert that no funds may be
used for any military basing agreement not approved by Congress.
Sponsored by: Hillary Clinton
9 Co-sponsors-include Bob Casey and Barak Obama- Referred
to Committee on Foreign Relations
(Committee on For Relations has Dems and Reps; Chair is
Biden.
Other Dems on this committee: Dodd, Feingold, Boxer,
Nelson, Obama, Menendez, Casey, Webb, Carden) Richard Lugar heads the
Republicans on the committee.
ACTION SUGGESTED
Urge Senator Specter to co-sponsor this bill.
Senator Casey already does. Urge members of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee To put the bill up for a vote.
----------------------------
#3 “Diplomatic Surge in Iraq”
Bill S 2130
(10/07) non-binding sense of Senate.Referred to Foreign
Relations Committee
Casey is original sponsor .
---------------------------
#4 Military Budget The 2009
military budget proposed by the president will surpass one trillion dollars.
Action Suggested:
Write your congresspersonS today and urge them to write a
letter to the chairs and minority leader of the budget committee urging them to
make room in the budget for programs that will prevent future wars and address
poverty and human needs at home.
-----------
#5 HR 4959, Iraq Strategic
Agreement Review Act of 2008
To provide for congressional consultation with respect to
any long-term security, economic, or political agreement with the Government of
Iraq and to ensure that any such agreement is in the form of a treaty with
respect to which the Senate has given its advice and consent to ratification
under Article II of the Constitution of the United States
______________________________________________________________________
Common Cause is cosponsoring the
event, "The Folly of Attacking Iran"
Please RSVP today at
www.commoncause.org/IranDiplomacyPanel. Here are all the details:
When: Thursday, February
28th at 7:00pm
Where: Columbia University
School of International and Public Affairs, Faculty Room 1501,
420 West 118th Street
The event is part of a national tour featuring Stephen
Kinzer, a longtime New York Times correspondent and author of the book,
"All the Shah's Men." It also features Christopher Hedges, award
winning New York Times foreign correspondent and noted author; Professor Ervand
Abrahamian, renowned scholar of Iranian history and author; and Bill Berkeley
of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism
_________________________________________________________________________________
Please Friends,
Must See Kucinich Fight Back TV
Spot, Will Knock Your Socks Off, Please Link Widely
In this last week before the primary election in Ohio,
Kucinich is
putting out a TV ad that will absolutely knock your socks
off, and
you can see it on this page.
Kucinich Fight Back Video:
http://www.usalone.com/thank_you_dennis.php
This is the Dennis we will always remember. This is the
Dennis we
love. This is the Dennis we must KEEP in the U.S. House
of Representatives.
There are only six days left, and your contribution right
now can
shine the light of truth on just what Dennis stands for,
and blow
away all obfuscation like it was so much the smoke that
it is.
Dennis has consistently been the strongest voice in all
of
Congress for every progressive policy initiative. And
that is why the
corporate special interests are so desperate to knock him
out.
Please send the link above to absolutely everyone who
cares
about saving out democracy.
____________________________________________________________
Sign the petition to steer Whole
Foods in the right direction
Thousands responded when we wrote you about the Country
Natural Beef sold at Whole Foods Supermarket. Unfortunately Whole Foods has not
taken action. We need you to take the next step and sign a petition. Beef North
West workers will turn in the signatures to Whole Foods headquarters in Austin
TX on the week of March 17.
Workers at the feedlots that include Country Natural Beef
cows have been demanding UFW representation for the past eight months. Beef
North West is on the same Oregon compound as Threemile Canyon Farms and Willow
Creek Dairy. The Beef North West workers have seen the power a union contract
has on their friends and want the same things: Dignity and respect in the
workplace, a family medical plan and a voice on the job without repercussions.
However, Beef North West is no closer to agreeing to
recognize the UFW as the workers' union than they were when this campaign
began. This is despite Oregon's governor asking that both sides sit down and
resolve the dispute--which the union has been willing to do from the beginning.
Whole Foods reportedly sells 60% of all Country Natural
Beef.
This retailer--the largest chain of "natural
food" stores in the US--has refused to take any action to resolve this
situation. We would hope that when Whole Foods sees the groundswell of support
for the workers at the feedlot where Country Natural Beef cows are fattened,
they'll use their influence to ensure a just resolution of this dispute and a
boycott will not be necessary.
We need to increase the pressure on Whole Foods to do the
right thing.
Sign the petition today! Go to:
http://www.ufwaction.org/campaign/wholefoodspetition/5gggws9a8ixwmm?
Tell-A-Friend: Please forward this petition to as many
friends as possible and encourage them to sign ASAP. Go to:
http://www.ufwaction.org/campaign/wholefoodspetition/forward/5gggws9a8ixwmm?
____________________________________________________________________________________
On April 4-6, 2008, the Second
Continental Conference Against "Free Trade" and Privatizations will
be held in Mexico City at the hall of the Mexican Electrical Workers Union
(SME).
Delegations from throughout the continent will be
gathering to organize the fightback against the corporate "free
trade" agenda, which is destroying the rights and gains of working people
and the oppressed throughout the continent -- from north to south. Please
contact us at the OWC Continuations Committee if you are interested in
participating in this important conference.--- Alan Benjamin and Ed Rosario,
OWC Co-Coordinators
OWC CAMPAIGN NEWS -
distributed by the Open World Conference in
Defense of Trade Union Independence & Democratic
Rights, c/o S.F. Labor
Council, 1188 Franklin St., #203, San Francisco, CA
94109.
Visit our website at www.owcinfo.org
___________________________________________________
• The "(IRAQ)
Recession" is going to force states to cut back their budgets. Most
likely, the cuts are going to affect the services that working families need
and depend on.3
• Meanwhile, the war is costing
Americans more than $338 million a day. 4 That money could be spent to help out
the folks who're hurting most now. For less than what we're spending on the
war, we could pay for affordable housing for hundreds of thousands of families,
health care for children, or scholarships to help folks pay for education. 5
• Gas prices are close to double
what they were before the war began. The cost of oil is still hovering around
$100 barrel. 6
• We're borrowing $343 million
every day to finance the war in Iraq. 7 Our skyrocketing debt will be a bigger
and bigger drag on the economy—slowing recovery and burdening future
generations.
The truth is that economic forecasts are going to
continue to be grim as long as we continue to dump billions into a reckless war
that has no end in sight. Please write a letter to the editor of your local
paper today:
http://pol.moveon.org/lte?campaign_id=88&id=12164-8786124-.copvC&t=84
... Thanks for all you do, The Move-On Folks
______________________
Letter To John Conyers (send
yours to him & the editor of local newspaper)
Send to: http://www.johnconyers.com/contact, or
Conyers for Congress
1831 Bay Street, SE
Washington, DC 20003
Representative Conyers:
I have trusted and
respected you over these many, many decades for your principled stands on
behalf of common people. I have respected your stand against state and
corporate oppression and abuse of power which harms all of us. And now, I
am told, you refuse in your role as head of Judiciary, to begin impeachment
proceedings against Cheney, who would be considered a criminal in any system of
justice and in any country which lived by the rule of law, rather than one-man
rule. Please begin impeachment hearings, now, against Cheney and I would beg,
against Bush for his absolutely treasonous betrayal of the American people, for
his evisceration of the US Constitution and the liberties it embodies, for his
flagrant disregard of international treaties signed by the United States, for
criminal malfeasance in office, and for his total contempt for the will of the
US Congress when it has chosen to exercise that will against Bush’s one man
rule.
If, in sum, aggressive and unfounded wars against
nation-states is a crime, if the aggressive evisceration of the US Constitution
is a crime, if the abandonment of the “rule of law” is a crime, then surely the
Judiciary Committee must begin its inquiry with due speed. Absent
impeachment proceedings, Bush and Cheney will continue to escape the people’s
appropriate demand for public accountability and the US Congress will have
failed in its duty to the US Constitution and in its duty to protect the
American people against authoritarian rule.
Representative Conyers. At this late stage of life,
after all these years of steadfast and principled work, why would you betray us
now? Please begin impeachment proceedings on behalf of the American people
against Cheney and against Bush. Thank you.
Rita Addessa. Philadelphia. PA. USA
Addessa@verizon.net 215-817-1100
27 February 2008
_____________________________________________________________________________________
American Water & Energy
Savers, of Florida, a list of 10 of 49 ways to save water.
1. Never put water down the drain when there may be
another use for it, such as watering a plant or
garden, or cleaning.
2. Verify that your home is leak-free, because many homes
have hidden water leaks. Here’s how to test: Read your water meter
before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter
does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.
3. Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your
faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to
waste 2,700 gallons per year which will add to the cost of
water and sewer utilities, or strain your septic system.
4. Check for toilet tank leaks by adding food coloring to
the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear
in the toilet bowl within 30 minutes. Check the toilet for worn out,
corroded or bent parts. Most replacement parts are inexpensive, readily available
and easily installed. (Flush as soon as test is done, since food
coloring may stain the tank.)
5. Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily. Dispose of
tissues, insects and other such waste in the
trash rather than the toilet.
6. Take shorter showers. Replace you showerhead with an
ultra-low-flow version. Some units
are
available that allow you
to cut off the flow without adjusting the water temperature
knobs.
7. Use the minimum amount of water needed for a bath by
filling the tub only one-third full. Stopper the tub before
turning on the water. The initial burst of cold water can be warmed
by adding hot water later.
8. Don’t let water run while shaving or washing your
face. Brush your teeth first while waiting for water to get
hot, then wash or shave after filling the basin.
9. Operate automatic dishwashers and clothes washers only
when they are fully loaded, or properly set the water level for the size of
load you are using.
10. Store drinking water in the refrigerator rather than
letting the tap run every time you want a cool
glass of water.
... Go to www.americanwater.com to read the other 39 ways to save water.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
IMPORTANT INVITATION
TO ALL GRANDMOTHERS
From Grandmothers Peace Groups in
the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN.
- Please Join Us for the
Republican National Convention
- Held in St. Paul & Minneapolis
LABOR DAY September 1st through 4th – 2007
- Planned Events (more to come)
- Monday Sept
1st: 12:00
Mass Demonstration & March from
o State Capital to
Convention
Center
.
- *Tuesday
Wednesday Peace Island Conference
• Hope In A Time Of Crisis
• A Solutions Driven Conference
• Concordia College
Campus, St.
Paul, MN.
Thursday
Active Resistance
- *includes time for Grandmothers
to come together for hospitality and the opportunity to discuss future events.
Our housing committee is working hard to find host beds, so far we have 300
available and it is only February.
- Our theme as part
of the mass march is Grieving Grandmothers
are welcome)(Grandfathers
- We will wear Black and have
signs available to wear on our backs.
o Grandmothers we need you, your
creativity, your voice, yourselves.
Please pass this on to your friends and peace groups you
are in touch with.
~Mary Lou Ott mlott1923@comcast.net Home:
952-922-5636,Work 612-871-0005
===========
COMMENTARY
* MEXICO - No to NAFTA-ASPAN! Half a Million
Peasants and Workers, with their Organizations, Demonstrate for a Break with
NAFTA
Last January 31, close to half a million Mexican peasants
and workers came from all parts of the country to demonstrate in the capital of
Mexico City. They gathered together in the immense plaza, the Zócalo, facing
the governmental palace, and demanded the immediate break with NAFTA.
This treaty literally
strangles Mexican agriculture and industry, opening the whole country to the
U.S. multinationals, while, on the other side of the border, in the United
Sates, the same multinationals do everything possible to make U.S. workers pay
for the survival of a system in crisis, which the subprime crisis has just
deepened.
The Mexican media reported
that the main demands of the demonstration. called by all the Mexican peasants
organizations, as well as most of the workers' unions, were: "Break with
the Agricultural Chapter of NAFTA!", "No to the Privatization of the
Energy Sectors!", "Repeal the New Law on Social Security!", and
"Without Corn, there is No Country!"
The peasants are fighting against a policy that is
liquidating the production of corn, the main food staple of millions of
Mexicans, for the benefit of the big U.S. companies interested in the
production of ethanol from corn.
-- Democratic Independent Workers Party
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
* United Nations experts welcome Australia's apology to
indigenous peoples
18 February 2008
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of
human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people; the UN Special
Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia
and related intolerance; the UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as
a component of the rights to an adequate standard of living, and on the right
to non-discrimination in this context; and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary
Detention issued the following statement today:
We warmly welcome the speech delivered by Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd at the Federal Parliament on 13 February 2008, offering an apology
to Australia's indigenous peoples for the pain and indignity they have endured
as a consequence of past laws and policies. We are specially moved by the
apology offered to the members of the Stolen Generation and their families,
victims of a deliberate policy of assimilation of the Aboriginal culture that
contradicted the basic human rights principles of equality and dignity. We
welcome the Australian Government's commitment to build a common future with
the indigenous peoples of the country based on mutual respect. Australia's
efforts to acknowledge historical injustices and to promote reconciliation set
an example of how to enhance harmonious and cooperative relationships between
indigenous peoples and States, in the spirit of the UN Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This apology will strengthen the moral fabric of
the country and reinforce the Aboriginal contribution to Australian society.
-----
The UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of
racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; the UN
Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the rights to an
adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this
context; and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention have made official
visits to Australia in recent years. The Government of Australia is encouraged
to benefit from the analysis and recommendations of these mandate holders in
taking forward practical measures to protect and promote the rights of
Aboriginal peoples. The reports of special procedures can be found at
http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/chr/special/
---------------------------------
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights-Media
Unit
Rupert Colville, Spokesperson, +41.22.917.9767
Praveen Randhawa, Information Officer: + 41.22.917.9602
Yvon Edoumou, Information Officer, + 41 22.917.9383/
+41.78.826.3552
For inquiries and media requests: press-info@ohchr.org
_______________________________________________________
* Ex-Israeli Generals Denounce Checkpoints By AP/LAURIE
COPANS
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1712838,00.html
(JERUSALEM) — A group of retired Israeli generals has
launched a campaign urging the army to remove West Bank roadblocks, warning on
Wednesday that the travel restrictions sow Palestinian hatred of Israel and
stymie the peace process.
The 12 top former commanders say the hundreds of
checkpoints dotting the West Bank are excessive and other military means can be
used to prevent suicide bombings in Israel.
* Poultry series exposes a new, silent subclass Neglect
of workers has ugly precedent in Carolinas history The Charlotte Observer
http://www.charlotte.com/poultry/
* From NAFTA to the SPP, Katherine Sciacchitano
Here Comes The Security And Prosperity Partnership, But
What Security? Whose Prosperity?
January/February 2008 issue of Dollars & Sense: The
Magazine of Economic Justice http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2008/0108sciacchitano.html
* Cuba Changed History Fidel Steps Aside By Saul Landau,
Counterpunch
http://www.counterpunch.org/landau02212008.html
* Nader Runs, Obama Responds Wisely, John Nichols, The
Nation