Sunday, May 29, 2011

June 6th: Marriage Equality Monday!


Marriage Equality Monday!

Monday, June 6, 6:30pm - 9:30pm

Outside Marty Golden's Office
7408 Fifth Avenue
Brooklyn, NY

Show your support for marriage equality on Monday, June 6, in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Rally outside of State Senator Marty Golden's office.

Not only does Senator Golden vehemently oppose marriage equality, he now wants to stop New York State from recognizing same-sex marriages that were performed outside of New York.

Golden boldly told reporters that the people in his district "don't give a rat's ass about social issues." If his constituents "don't give a rat's ass about social issues," why is he acting like such a horse's ass about marriage equality?

Come down and let him know how you feel!!

Together we can secure the right for ALL New Yorkers to enter into legally recognized civil marriages.

Co-Sponsored by...
Bay Ridge Democrats
Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats
Lambda Independent Democrats
New Kings Democrats
(list in formation)

Friday, May 27, 2011

May 27, 5-7PM: Protest the acquittal of two NYC police officers for rape

PROTEST THE ACQUITTAL OF TWO NEW YORK CITY POLICE OFFICERS FOR RAPE

Friday May 27, 5-7pm

In front of the Manhattan Criminal Court building at 100 Centre St.

(Directions:
Take the No. 4 or 5 train to the Brooklyn Bridge Station; the C, N, R, 6 train to Canal Street; the 1 train to Franklin Street.
Take the 1, 6 or 15 bus line.)

On Thursday May 26, New York police officers Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata were found not guilty of charges that Moreno raped a woman in her apartment while Mata kept guard, despite the fact that the amount of evidence against the officers in this case was overwhelming. Instead, the jury convicted both officers of official misconduct for entering the woman’s apartment, but found them not guilty of all other charges, including burglary and falsifying business records. This despite the fact that one of the officers had been recorded on tape admitting to using a condom when having sex with the woman who made the accusation.

The cornerstone of the defense required that the woman was too drunk to have a credible account of the incident, but sober enough to consent to sex.

Join the protest. Because raping a drunk women while on patrol is more than “official misconduct”. Because calling 911 should not be an invitation to be raped. Because NO behavior, including being drunk, is an invitation to be raped. Because rapists do not deserve the protection of our tax-funded police department and city officials. Because we recognize this incident as part of the NYPD's long, horrific history of violence - sexual and otherwise - often and disproportionately against people of color. Because the people of NYC will not accept victim-blaming, cronyism, and a culture of silence that allows rapists to roam free, without consequence.

Read more about the case here:

and here:

Direct questions about the protest to Lori@feministing.com,
heidivanderlee@gmail.com or laveye@gmail.com

Stop Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation
No More Stolen Lives!

Gil Scott-Heron, April 1, 1949 - May 27, 2011

The sound of the next stage of the revolution will be missing one of its great voices & will definitely not be televised.

The Daily Swarm - RIP Gil Scott-Heron...

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Mavi Marmara Memorial Exhibit

May 31 – June 3, 2011.
Mavi Marmara Memorial Exhibit
Alwan for the Arts,
16 Beaver Street,
Opening
May 31, 7:00 p.m.

(The exhibit will remain on display until Friday, June 3rd, 6 PM.)

Join in commemorating nine peace activists (Turkish citizens, including Furkan Dogan, also an American citizen) who were killed aboard the Mavi Marmara by Israeli soldiers when they sailed on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla on May 31, 2010. The Mavi Marmara Memorial will mark the one-year anniversary of the attack on the flotilla. Our common goals are peace, prosperity, and equal opportunities in the Middle East and everywhere across the globe.

Briefly Speaking:
Alborz Ghandehari, a filmmaker, actor, director, writer, and doctoral candidate at UC San Diego.
Jane Hirschmann, a member of Jews Say No! in NYC and one of the organizers of the US Boat to Gaza.
Remi Kanazi, a Palestinian-American poet and activist.
Kristofer Petersen-Overton, a doctoral student in political science at the CUNY Graduate Center and an adjunct lecturer at Brooklyn College, where he teaches Middle East politics. His job was briefly eliminated when right-wing figures labeled him unqualified, but it was quickly restored after a firestorm of protest.
Exhibit curated by Hulya Kartal, on behalf of Brooklyn For Peace.

On Exhibit:
Documentary – Alborz Ghandehari's film "Steel Dove: Stories of Art and Occupation” is the culmination of an undergraduate research project exploring the work of Palestinian artists.
Drawing – Necdet Yilmaz studied art in Istanbul. His illustrations have won awards in Turkey and around the world, and has also been exhibited in NY, London, Italy, Brazil, Cyprus, Pakistan, and Korea
Poem – Nihal Ozlem Kucukdonmez is a Turkish poet. She resides in Istanbul.
Posters – Dogan Arslan is an artist, designer and educator. He spends his time between Turkey and New York.
Sculptures – Marcia Bernstein has had solo shows in many venues and has been selected for large juried exhibits. She exhibits frequently with the National Association of Women Artists, the American Society of Contemporary Artists, Women in the Arts, and Art from Detritus.
Quilt – Hulya Kartal, who was raised in Istanbul and now lives in Brooklyn, is president of a non-profit organization to empower women.

(SUBWAY: 4/5 to Bowling Green;
J/M/Z to Broad St.;
R/W to Whitehall St.;
1 to Rector St. or South Ferry;
2/3 to Wall St.; A/C to Broadway-Nassau)

Questions? E-mail Memorial@brooklynpeace.org or 718-624-5921
www.alwanforthearts.org

Brooklyn For Peace www.brooklynpeace.org

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Issa Responds to Public Outcry over Baker Departure, Questions FCC

WASHINGTON -- House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski questioning the conduct of outgoing Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker, who announced last week she would be leaving the agency to become a lobbyist for Comcast-NBC. Issa’s letter suggested that the FCC’s approval of the Comcast-NBC merger was so closely timed to Baker’s announcement that public trust in the integrity of the Commission had been damaged.

Since Baker’s announcement, Free Press and CREDO Action have collected more than 130,000 letters seeking a congressional investigation into Baker’s departure and apparent conflict of interest.


Issa Responds to Public Outcry over Baker Departure, Questions FCC

Sunday, May 22, 2011

May 27 & 28th: “Rhythm in the Kitchen” Music Festival

The Hell’s Kitchen Cultural Center, Inc.

212.765.8446
Proudly Announces
The Fifth Annual
“Rhythm in the Kitchen”
Music Festival

Friday, May 27th, Saturday, May 28th 2011
@ The Church for All Nations
417 West 57th Street
(between. 9th and 10th Avenue)
www.cfan.net
NYC
$15 General Admission
$12 Seniors/Students
$25 Festival Pass


Friday, May 27th

7 PM – Neal Kirkwood Trio: Lindsey Horner (bass); Sunny Jain, (drums); Neal Kirkwood, (piano).

8 PM – Francois Grillot’s Contraband: Catherine Sikora (tenor sax); Roy Campbell, (trumpet); Anders Nilsson, (guitar); Daniel Levin, (cello); Jay Rosen, (drums); Francois Grillot, (bass).

9 PM – Elise Wood-Hicks Trio: Tony Hewitt, (voice); Marvin Horne, (guitar); Elise Wood-Hicks, (flute, alto flute)

10 PM – Jay Rosen Trio: Michael Marcus, (clarinet); Francois Grillot, (bass); Jay Rosen, (drums).

11 PM – Ellery Eskelin Trio: Drew Gress, (bass); Gerald Cleaver, (drums); Ellery Eskelin, (tenor sax).


Saturday, May 28th

7 PM – Chris Chalfant Tree-Oh! Joe Giardullo, (soprano sax), Ken Yamazaki,(drums/percussion); Chris Chalfant, (piano).

8 PM – Tom Hamilton: “Off-Hour Wait State.” Bruce Arnold, (lap steel guitar), Brian Groder, (trumpet), Ras Moshe, (tenor sax), Al Margolis, (objects); Ralph Samuelson, (shakuhachi); Tom Hamilton, (electronic soundscape).

9 PM – Dick Griffin Duo: Warren Smith, (percussion); Dick Griffin, (trombone, piano, voice).

10 PM – William Hooker & JD Parran Duo: JD Parran, (reeds); William Hooker, (drums).

11 PM – Michael Marcus Duet: Charlie Taylor, (percussion); Michael Marcus, (clarinets).

June 14, 4:30PM: DC37 Rally @ City Hall


Stand Up - Let Your Voice Be Heard

Tuesday, June 14, 4:30 pm
at City Hall
(Broadway & Barclay Sts)

Save Jobs
Stop the layoffs
Save Civil Service
Stop the Service Cuts in
Our Communities
Stop Contracting Out and Privatizing



On Tuesday, June 14 beginning at 4:30 p.m., DC 37 plans to rock City Hall with its biggest demonstration ever.

On June 14, DC 37 members will be joined by allies to stand up for our rights and economic needs, fight back against the fiscal assault on our public schools and public health care, and raise our voices against the drive to crush public employees' rights from coast to coast.

DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts called on members to “rally at City Hall...to protest like our basic democratic rights are at stake – because they are. The right-wing effort to destroy union rights is a cancer that will spread unless we stop it.”

“At City Hall June 14 we will stand up for our families and our communities. Bring your co-workers, your families, your neighbors and everyone you can from every community and religious organization you are part of," Ms Roberts urged. “They will be proud to march with us against the city's immoral effort to sell off our public health care system, cripple public education and shred the public services that prevent child abuse and keep rats from running wild in New York City."

DC 37 and its allies will also stand in solidarity to protect the libraries where so many immigrants learn English, where so many of the unemployed use free computers to search for jobs, and where so many children - especially the city's record 43,000 homeless children - do their homework. They will speak out for the public parks and pools, the only free recreation available for working families.

DC 37’s giant fightback rally June 14 will also shout NO to the mayor's continuing effort to contract out jobs, freeze pay, cut benefits and wipe out public services for the communities we live in.

Mayor Bloomberg has squandered taxpayer money by throwing away three-quarters of a billion dollars on the CityTime payroll project (where the contractor is also accused of stealing $80 million from the city), failing to collect business taxes that are owed to the city, and continuing to waste some $10 billion on 18,000 private contracts for work city employees could perform. If his administration can waste that kind of money, then the Mayor can afford to cancel the service cuts and layoffs, stop the attacks on public employee benefits and get real about raises for dedicated, honest workers.

Friday, May 20, 2011

May 21: New York City Labor Chorus Spring Concert

In case they have the date wrong this is just a reminder about the New York City Labor Chorus's Spring Concert also scheduled for
Sat., May 21, 2011

the Peoples' Voice Café
40 E. 35th St.,
(between Park & Madison)

8:00 pm;
doors open at 7:30
Suggested contribution $15;
pay what you can.

www.peoplesvoicecafe.org
Click here for a flyer.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Quote of the day

From an AlterNet comment from alan 8:

"This President DID GET ELECTED because the American majority thought he
was really aware of the critical issues our minorities and lower income
citizens are facing! We were so wrong!" (from a comment by Kathy Grinslade @ AlterNet)

alan 8 responds to Grinslade:


"No, you were right! He WAS aware! He SHOWED the people he was aware. He "Clintoned" you!

"Clin·ton verb:
1. To show people you understand a problem with the intent to mislead them that you're actually going to do anything to solve it. [or you make it worse].

"Clinton said 'I feel your pain!', talking about economic hardship in the US. And the people ate it up! Not only did Clinton not do anything about their economic hardship, he made it worse. He eliminated welfare (one of the Republican goals), and he passed NAFTA, which drained (and continues to drain) US jobs to low-wage countries."

Monday, May 16, 2011

IMF chief denied bail in sex case (Al Jazeera English)


IMF chief denied bail in sex case
(Al Jazeera English)


Dominique Strauss-Kahn is being held without bail at least until his next court appearance on Friday.

I have heard some people suggest that he is being targeted because he's a socialist. It would seem to me if he's being targeted at all it's because he was planning to run against Nicolas Sarkozy in the next French presidential election and seemingly had a chance of winning. But it should also be said that just because someone is targeted that doesn't preclude the possibility (as in the case of Julian Assange) that he is guilty of the crimes with which he's charged. I would also ask the question: what is a Socialist doing as head of one of capitalism and imperialism's key institutions, the IMF. One could also ask why a Socialist would travel around the world in the luxury that Strauss-Kahn seems to do. I know politically France is a peculiar country, but even there "socialist" must mean something or maybe not.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Quote of the day

"Someone asked [Bill Moyers] why I invited Jon Stewart to be the first guest on the Journal's premiere in 2007. 'Because Mark Twain isn't a available,' I answered."

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Demand that Congress investigate Baker’s conflict of interest.

Say No! to the FCC/Comcast merger
FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker is leaving the FCC to become a lobbyist for Comcast – just four months after she voted to approve the Comcast-NBC merger.
Help us close the revolving door. Demand that Congress investigate Baker’s conflict of interest.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Today (May 12) on Wall Street: Report from the May 12th Coalition

May 12 on Wall Street

Be patient you'll have to scroll down a couple of pages to get to the Report

Today: Peace Teach-in

May 12, 4PM:
Peace Teach-In
Assembly Site: New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial
(55 Water nr. Coenties Slip & South St.0

(R (not N!) to Whitehall St.-South Ferry;
#1 to South Ferry/Whitehall-South Ferry;
J (not M!) to Broad St. (south exit to Exchange Pl.);
#2, 3 to Wall St. (at William);
M5 bus via Broadway;
M15 bus via 2nd Av., Allen St. & Water St.;
M20 via 7th Av. So., Varick St. & WFC.)

Monday, May 09, 2011

May 27 & 28th: “Rhythm in the Kitchen” Music Festival



The Hell’s Kitchen Cultural Center, Inc.
Proudly Announces
The Fifth Annual
“Rhythm in the Kitchen” Music Festival

Friday, May 27th & Saturday, May 28th
@ The Church for All Nations
417 West 57th Street
(between. 9th and 10th Avenue)
www.cfan.net
212.333.5583

(www.hkculturalcenter.org,
212.765.8446)

$15 General Admission
$12 Seniors/Students
$25 Festival Pass

Friday, May 27th

7 PM – Neal Kirkwood Trio: Lindsey Horner (bass); Sunny Jain, (drums); Neal Kirkwood, (piano).

8 PM – Francois Grillot’s Contraband: Catherine Sikora (tenor sax); Roy Campbell, (trumpet); Anders Nilsson, (guitar); Daniel Levin, (cello); Jay Rosen, (drums); Francois Grillot, (bass).

9 PM – Elise Wood-Hicks Trio: Tony Hewitt, (voice); Marvin Horne, (guitar); Elise Wood-Hicks, (flute, alto flute)

10 PM – Jay Rosen Trio: Michael Marcus, (clarinet); Francois Grillot, (bass); Jay Rosen, (drums).

11 PM – Ellery Eskelin Trio: Drew Gress, (bass); Gerald Cleaver, (drums); Ellery Eskelin, (tenor sax).


Saturday, May 28th

7 PM – Chris Chalfant Tree-Oh! Joe Giardullo, (soprano sax), Ken Yamazaki,(drums/percussion); Chris Chalfant, (piano).

8 PM – Tom Hamilton: “Off-Hour Wait State.” Bruce Arnold, (lap steel guitar), Brian Groder, (trumpet), Ras Moshe, (tenor sax), Al Margolis, (objects); Ralph Samuelson, (shakuhachi); Tom Hamilton, (electronic soundscape).

9 PM – Dick Griffin Duo: Warren Smith, (percussion); Dick Griffin, (trombone, piano, voice).

10 PM – William Hooker & JD Parran Duo: JD Parran, (reeds); William Hooker, (drums).

11 PM – Michael Marcus Duet: Charlie Taylor, (percussion); Michael Marcus, (clarinets).

Torchwood/Doctor Who

Every day I try to learn something new. Today's discovery: Torchwood is an anagram of Doctor Who.

For anyone who doesn't know, Torchwood is a spin-off of Doctor Who.

Sunday, May 08, 2011

Relics of the Past on the Sunday Morning shows

Today the Sunday morning shows turned over a few rocks & found some antiques to display in the aftermath of the killing of Osama bin Laden. Fox News Sunday exhumed former VP Dick Cheney, Christine Amanpour on ABC turned up former Secy of State Condoleezza Rice, Face the Nation on CBS brought back former Sec'y of Defense Donald Rumsfeld & to top it all off returning for a moment from well-deserved oblivion former NYC Mayor (before much to NYC's relief he became America's mayor) Rudolph Giuliani appeared on NBC's Meet the Press. The one thing each of these guests have in common is the word "former" before their name. They are all relics of the Bush era. Of course, the other thing they have in common is that they have nothing new to add to our knowledge of what just happened in Pakistan, but self-justification to spout, lots of 'splainin to do. If the morning shows weren't themselves relics they would have chosen to look to the future instead of regurgitating the past.

Friday, May 06, 2011

Tony Kushner likely to be awarded CUNY honorary degree despite Zionist diatribe

C.U.N.Y. proposed awarding an honorary degree to one of America's best playwrights, Tony Kushner. An "impassioned speech" by one Zionist trustee, Jeffrey S. Weisenfeld, sidetracked the award until the Trustees began to think clearly. Board Chair Beno Schmidt said the decision not to award the degree to Kushner was "a mistake of principle and not merely policy." The Zionist cabal in the U.S. never stops trying to impose its version of reality on everyone else. This time it didn't work, but all too often it does.

Is Obama taking to many victory laps?

Someone needs to tell Obama to shut up. He's taken enough victory laps, there is a point at which what seems to work to his political advantage will provoke more response than we are prepared for. Any time now I expect him to make a speech under a "Mission Accomplished" banner. Bush was wrong on May 1st 2003 and Obama is wrong today. I know he wants to get re-elected, but that won't happen if his victory laps further anger Al Qaida and they attack. Clearly they will spew their hate whatever Obama does, but I think he needs to take a few steps back.

Thursday, May 05, 2011

Obama Admin to Propose Lower Corporate Tax Rate

According to this morning's (Thurs. 5/5) Democracy Now!
Obama Admin to Propose Lower Corporate Tax Rate
Just what an economy struggling with heavy deficits needs - a lower corporate tax rate - but then Obama is running for re-election. This only works in the fantasyland in which Obama & Geithner live, in which Republicans will follow the president's lead & not undercut him. I wonder what our good friend, Rep. Michael Grimm (R-SI), will have to say about the American taxpayer not being an ATM for corporate welfare. But I guess Mr. Grimm believes in fairy tales.

Wednesday, May 04, 2011

Quote of the day

"The American taxpayer is not an ATM for ObamaCare."
---Rep. Michael Grimm (R-SI)

But he doesn't seem to have any objection when the American tax payer is an ATM for Wall Street & the oil companies. I wonder whose paying his bills.

Osama's strategy vs. the U.S. was economic not military

This is a very interesting article from the Washington Post by Ezra Klein on Osama's real strategy vs. the U.S. & to what extent he succeeded. Klein writes:
For bin Laden, in other words, success was not to be measured in body counts. It was to be measured in deficits, in borrowing costs, in investments we weren’t able to make in our country’s continued economic strength. And by those measures, bin Laden landed a lot of blows.
It seems clear that Osama couldn't have succeeded even to the extent that he did w/o the collaboration of the rapacious banksters on Wall Street & the utter stupidity of the U.S. government in the aftermath of 9/11, the attack on the World Trade Center was surely the catalyst for much that followed. Although when you set historical events in motion - as Osama did on 9/11 - it is impossible to predict with any certainty what will happen (I doubt that anyone in Al-Quaida could have imagined that the U.S. would use 9/11 as an excuse to invade & occupy Iraq, a mission that the Neo-Cons had been planning for 10 years prior to 9/11), it is nevertheless true, as Klein quotes Linda Blimes & Joseph Stiglitz as stating that invasion cost $3 trillion and as he says, we have spent another $2 trillion in Afghanistan & more on domestic anti-terror activity. He also points out that although the latest capitalist crisis wasn't a direct result of 9/11, the behavior of the economic regulators in response to it, was in part a response to the attack on the World Trade Center.

Klein concludes by writing: "But then, we can learn from our mistakes. He [Osama] can’t." If anyone truly believes that we will ever learn anything from our mistakes, I have a sure-fire war to sell you.

Sunday, May 01, 2011

Cuba. News - Radio Rebelde.

Cuba. News - Radio Rebelde.

May Day - Cuba


May Day 2011 in Cuba

This May Day, International Workers Day, hundreds of thousands of young people in the traditional parade march organized every year millions of men and women in the Plaza de la Revolucion "Jose Marti. Unit, productivity and efficiency!

Saturday, April 30, 2011

May Day: Union Sq. to Foley Sq.

MAY 1st WHERE? UNION SQUARE!

GATHER AT 12:00 NOON AT UNION SQUARE

(14th St. & Broadway)

MARCH TO FOLEY SQUARE FOR CLOSING UNITY RALLY

The New York City Labor Chorus will perform @ Foley Square (1st time since return from Cuba)

May 12: Bring Wisconsin to New York - Protest on Wall Street




Enough is Enough.

On Thursday May 12, 2011 we’ll be bringing some of that spirit of Wisconsin to Wall Street when thousands of people, from all walks of life, converge in a unique and inspiring action in the heart of the financial world — Wall Street.

Join us — because it's time to make the Big Banks and Millionaires pay!

The Big Banks crashed our economy, destroying jobs, foreclosing on millions of homes and wrecking cities and states budgets across the country. After trillions in taxpayer funded bailouts, Wall Street is making billions in profits and giving away record bonuses to CEOs. But our communities are still hurting. Here in New York City, tens of thousands have lost their homes and their jobs. Now, Billionaire Mayor Mike Bloomberg is proposing devastating budget cuts as the only solution to the economic crisis that Wall Street caused. Enough is Enough.

Starting at 4:00 PM, orientations will begin in public assembly sites throughout Lower Manhattan. Each one will have a different theme: housing, jobs, education, children/youth, peace, human services, and more. These will be followed by a march into the Financial District where we will stage the city’s largest teach-in and educate Wall Street and all New Yorkers on what it will take to rebuild our economy. We will close by discussing our next steps to insure that Mayor Bloomberg makes a commitment to a strong and fair economy for all.

Friday, April 29, 2011

Orlando Bosch - the very definition of "terrorist" - is dead

One of he true monsters of the 20th Century is dead. Orlando Bosch died at 84 in Miami on Wednesday. According to the NYT, the U.S. Department of Justice said of him that he had "repeatedly expressed and demonstrated a willingness to cause indiscriminate injury and death." That's the true definition of a "terrorist." When we read about the people who shoot classmates at schools and blow up hospitals, they are the symbolic children of Orlando Bosch. Although he was eventually cleared of responsibility for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people, a CIA report, according to the NYT, quoted his accused co-conspirator, Luis Posada Carriles, as saying, "We are going to hit a Cuban airplane" and "Orlando has the details." The Times also cited an FBI report that noted a Venezuelan informant who said one of the bombers phoned Bosch with the message, "A bus with 73 dogs went off a cliff and all got killed." The NYT also reports that "In recommending in 1989 that he be deported, the justice Department said he had committed 30 acts of sabotage in the United States, Puerto Rico, Panama and Cuba from 1961 through 1968."

Thursday, April 28, 2011

FAIR's 25th Anniversary Celebration Live Online! Tonight

If unlike me, you don't have a meeting this evening, here's a real alternative to TV:

Watch FAIR's 25th Anniversary Celebration Live Online! April 28th at 7pm.

FAIR's 25th Anniversary event in New York City is sold out--but you can watch the live Free Speech TV webstream on FAIR's website on Thursday, April 28th at 7pm.
Renowned activist and scholar Noam Chomsky, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman, Salon.com columnist Glenn Greenwald and Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore are all coming together for a special evening to support FAIR.

Watch it here--and join them in supporting FAIR today!

Monday, April 25, 2011

Rebellion: Smashing stereotypes of Arab women by Soumaya Ghannoushi

Rebellion: Smashing stereotypes of Arab women by Soumaya Ghannoushi (Al Jazeera English)

"Women have been at the forefront of various Arab uprisings, forging their own identity in the process." Stereotypes aren't all these rebels are smashing, but creating new images is a crucial aspect of any rebellion.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Koran burner gets job back, Americans vote to throw out the 1st Amendment

A NJTransit worker was fired for burning the Koran. The Daily News reported today (4/23/11) that he has gotten his job back & $25,000 in back pay. The News polled its readers and got these results:

Poll Results

Should the transit worker who was fired for burning the Koran have gotten his job back?

Yes, absolutely, his freedom of speech was violated. 9%

Yes, but he should not have gotten $25,000 in back pay. 2%

No way, he could have sparked a holy war, he's a menace. 90%

Although I disagree completely with Derek Fenton's action. I also believe that if the U.S.Constitution means anything (and from the poll above it clearly doesn't) freedom of political expression is inviolate. If we have the Right to burn the American Flag, the Constitution, the Bible, he has the right to burn The Koran no matter how despicable (and reminiscent of Fascist book burnings) the act may be. Although we have not always held to our own standards as a nation (some might say, "When have we?"), as Fenton says: "This is the very essence of the First Amendment.") The numbers in the above poll are actually far more frightening than his burning of The Koran. It also occurs to me that if the question was firing someone for burning a Christian Bible or the U.S. Constitution, Fenton would probably be in the 90%.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

California GOP official & Tea Party activist "apologizes" for racist e-mail

When people like Tea Party activist & OC County GOP official Marilyn Davenport apologize it means absolutely nothing. First of all, they are just trying to save their asses, they certainly don't mean any of it. But more importantly their original action or comment has revealed how they really think or who they really are.


**UPDATE 4/19*** Tea activist and OC County GOP official Marilyn Davenport has apologized for sending out a racist image of President Obama.

According to KABC, Davenport issued a statement late Monday in which she apologized, but stopped short of addressing her future on the committee.

"I humbly apologize and ask for your forgiveness of my unwise behavior," the statement said. "I say unwise because at the time I received and forwarded the email, I didn't stop to think about the historic implications and other examples of how this could be offensive."
In the statement, Davenport also quoted the Bible and said she was "an imperfect Christian" who tried to "live a Christ-like honoring life."
"I would never do anything to intentionally harm or berate others regardless of ethnicity," she said. "I will not repeat this error."
--

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) -- The California NAACP is demanding an apology from an Orange County GOP official who sent out an e-mail picturing President Barack Obama's face on the body of a baby chimpanzee.

In a statement Monday, the organization called on Marilyn Davenport to resign from the Orange County Republican Central Committee.

Several other black leaders were also holding a news conference to demand Davenport be thrown off the committee.

The message shows an image, posed like a family portrait, of chimpanzee parents and child, with Obama's face superimposed on the young chimp.

The text reads, "Now you know why no birth certificate."

Davenport's number rang busy on Monday. She has sent friends and supporters an email saying she won't resign.

Monday, April 18, 2011

The Battle Is About Giving More Money to Rich People, Not About the Size and Role of Government

This is from Dean Baker's Beat the Press column, which is one of the best critiques of mainstream economic reporting. It's about the "Let them eat cake, but don't make us pay for it" boys from Wisconsin. How did Wisconsin go from "Fighting Bob" La Follette to Scott Walker and Paul Ryan?

The Battle Is About Giving More Money to Rich People, Not About the Size and Role of Government

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Israel biased Cantor works to undermine Obama - Al Jazeera English

I don't understand why an American - House member or not - who works with a foreign head of state to undermine the President isn't committing treason and shouldn't be arrested. If one of us did it we'd certainly be called a traitor & held accountable.

Israel biased Cantor works to undermine Obama - Al Jazeera English

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Saturday, April 09, 2011

Director Sidney Lumet Dead at 86 - indieWIRE

With Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen, Sidney Lumet was the true film chronicler of New York City. He was nominated for four Oscars but never won one until they gave him the compensation prize of Lifetime Achievement. We will always have his films to remember him.

Director Sidney Lumet Dead at 86 - indieWIRE

Egypt army to 'use force to clear protesters' - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

If anyone actually believed that turning the country over to the military was a solution should know better now. The Egyptian military is behaving exactly like the despotic regime that was overthrown. Quelle suprise!

Egypt army to 'use force to clear protesters' - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Wisconsin Judicial election

The challenger liberal Anne Kloppenburg leads in the Wisconsin Supreme Court election
What's most interesting is that the incumbent right-wing justice should have won with ease
Wisconsin is saying NO! to Gov. Scott Walker

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

April 15: Malalai Joya and Eve Ensler

South Asia Solidarity Initiative and War Resisters League in association with Center for Place Culture & Politics at CUNY present

An evening with Malalai Joya featuring Eve Ensler:
Women Facing War in Afghanistan, and the Need for U.S. Solidarity

April 15, 7 - 9pm

CUNY Graduate Center, Recital Hall
(Ground floor, 365 Fifth Ave at 34th St)
[BDFV & NQRW trains to 34th St, 6 train to 33rd]

This event is free and open to the public.
There may be a FULL HOUSE so arrive early to guarantee admission!

Everyone is encouraged to make a donation to support the cost of Ms. Joya's tour, her health clinic in Farah Province, and her office in Kabul.
The donations should be made at the following link
(Please be sure to indicate "Malalai Joya" in the "order comments" section).

Copies of Ms. Joya's memoir will be available for sale at the event.
RSVP on Facebook:

For more information: prachi@southasiainitiative.org

As the U.S.-NATO occupation of Afghanistan approaches its 10th anniversary this year, the U.S. anti-war movement is in dire need of clarity and momentum. The Afghan people still face overwhelming oppressive obstacles to creating movements toward social justice and self-determination -- obstacles empowered by the context of foreign intervention and war. Please join us for a rare opportunity to hear from the one of the most courageous voices for justice and peace in Afghanistan, Malalai Joya. She will be joined by the acclaimed U.S. artist and activist Eve Ensler, to discuss the experiences and resilience of women (and all people) in Afghanistan -- and what people in the U.S. can do to raise their voices and support their struggles.

Speakers:

Malalai Joya is the youngest person to have been elected to Afghanistan's parliament, and an outspoken activist against military occupation and for women's rights in her country. She has been called the most famous and bravest woman in Afghanistan by BBC News. She was selected among the "heroes" for the Time 100 [TIME magazine, 2010] -- and she was just selected among the top activists of the world's Top 100 Women by the UK Guardian newspaper. Her memoir, "A Woman Among Warlords," was just published in paperback by Simon&Schuster, with a new chapter on Afghanistan in the Obama era. She just wrote a piece for the Guardian on the U.S. soldiers' "kill team" and atrocity photos, a story that has returned U.S. news attention to Afghanistan this March-April.*

Joya was supposed to arrive in the U.S. on March 18 to start a nationwide speaking tour, but at the last minute her visa was denied. A quick mobilization of media attention, activist petitioning and pressure on the State Department turned it around! [See articles in TIME magazine and the San Francisco Chronicle.] She arrived in the U.S. on March 25, joining Noam Chomsky to address a crowd of over a thousand people at Harvard. Having spoken all across the U.S, her tour concludes in New York City on April 15 at this event.

Eve Ensler is an acclaimed playwright, performer and activist. She is the award-winning author of The Vagina Monologues, which has been published in 48 languages and performed in over 140 countries. Eve's work, I Am An Emotional Creature: The Secret Life Of Girls Around The World (2010), made the New York Times' best-seller list. She is the founder of V-Day, a global movement to end violence against women and girls, which has raised over 80 million dollars for the cause. Ensler has traveled to Afghanistan, and built relationships of solidarity with activists for justice and peace there.

*Afghans for Peace, a group of Afghan youth leaders against the occupation based in US and Canada, has started a Petition and a "Video Response" project to the "Kill Team" photos.

Please show your support for their organizing for justice by:

1. Signing the petition to Stop War Crimes Against Afghan Civilians

2. Sharing your feelings by posting a "Video Response" to this video created by Afghans for Peace:

Allen Ginsberg died April 5, 1997



One of the iconic photos of the 20th Century Allen Ginsberg with Jean Genet in Grant Park, Chicago, 1968. (no photo credit available)

Allen Ginsberg died on this day in 1997.

Monday, April 04, 2011

April 5: Protest American aid to Israel

Protest American aid to Israel
Tuesday, April 5 at Noon
The White House

Today President Obama is hosting Israeli President Shimon Peres for a working lunch. Join us in telling President Obama to *STOP AID TO ISRAEL!*

Contact (310) 920-8248 with any questions!

Don't forget about the upcoming discussion of Jen Marlow's "The Hour of
Sunlight: One Palestinian's Journey from Prisoner to Peacemaker."

*Author Jen Marlowe discusses "The Hour of Sunlight: One Palestinian's
Journey from Prisoner to Peacemaker."*
Wednesday, April 6, 6:30pm
Jerusalem Fund, 2425 Virgina Ave NW Washington, DC 20037

In peace,

Ali, Chris, Joan, Medea, Shaden, Tighe and CODEPINK DC
[image: empowered by Salsa] < http://www.salsalabs.com/?email>

Gael Murphy
202 412 6700
www.gazafreedommarch.org
www.unitedforpeace.org
www.codepink.org

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Justice for Betty Dukes against Walmart?

The campaign of the corporate oligarchy to destroy all working peoples rights is in full swing in this crucial gender discrimination case against Walmart. Here's what Liza Featherstone writes in the current issue of The Nation:
Dukes v. Wal-Mart’s opponents are united in their desire to suppress the ability of workers and consumers to sue large companies.



Justice for Betty Dukes?

Monday, March 28, 2011

April 7th: Aurora Barnes @ The Bitter End

Please join us at the Bitter end on Bleeker St. to applaude our friend Aurora Barnes April 7, 7:30PM

Libya: War of Conquest, NOT Humanitarian Operation

Michel Chossudovsky appeared on one of my favorite radio programs WBAI's "Law and Disorder" this morning and argued that the military operation in Libya is for control of oil and not to save lives.

Libya: War of Conquest, NOT Humanitarian Operation

Saturday, March 26, 2011

April 9, Noon - National March & Rally: Bring the Troops Home Now

April 9, Noon @ Union Square, NYC
National March & Rally: Bring the Troops Home Now

No to Racism
No to Attacks on Muslims
No to Attacks on Immigrants
No to Attacks on Unions

The United National AntiWar Committee
UNAC 518-227-6947/646-998-6103
UNACpeace.org
UNACpeace@gmail.com

Britons rally against budget cuts (from Al Jazeera English)

Wisconsin, Egypt, Libya, Britain: a new world is emerging. We need to be united and in solidarity.




Britons rally against budget cuts (from Al Jazeera English)

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

"The change we can believe in," but not here

"The change we can believe in" is happening, but not here. But as we can see throughout the Middle East and North Africa change comes from the bottom, it's not handed down from above. The State will always protect itself, only the people - sometimes at great cost - can change the world. If the people of Libya and Bahrain don't complete their mission today, it is only a setback not a defeat. It will happen.


http://blogs.aljazeera.net/middle-east/2011/03/14/audacity-change

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

AIPAC's newest strategy - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

It's a regular old double play: Marching orders from Netanyahu to AIPAC to Congress & the Obama administration and the Palestinians are out. In fact the U.S. policy in the broader Middle East & North Africa is made in Jerusalem.

AIPAC's newest strategy - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Friday, March 11, 2011

April 28: FAIR's 25th Anniversary Benefit





FAIR's 25th Anniversary Benefit
April 28, 2011, 7:00pm
symphony space
2537 Broadway at 95th Street
New York City

Please join renowned activist and scholar Noam Chomsky, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and Salon.com columnist Glenn Greenwald for a special evening to support FAIR.

Tickets are $45
On sale NOW at
symphonyspace.org
or call 212-864-5400 (box office hours 1-6pm EST)

RESERVE THE BEST SEATS IN THE HOUSE: Special LIMITED reserved seating available for $100 and up. Your name will appear in the event program as a Silver Anniversary supporter. For reserved seating, please contact Deborah Thomas at dthomas@fair.org, or call 212-633-6700 ext 18.

All proceeds to benefit FAIR, the national media watch group.

Noam Chomsky is a prolific writer, speaker and path-breaking media critic. Best known for books like Manufacturing Consent, Chomsky is among the most important public intellectuals in American life.

Amy Goodman is an award-winning investigative journalist and syndicated columnist, author and the host of Democracy Now! airing on more than 900 public television/radio stations worldwide. Goodman is the author of four New York Times bestsellers. Her latest book, Breaking the Sound Barrier, proves the power of independent journalism in the struggle for a better world.

Glenn Greenwald is one of the most astute and penetrating media critics of our time. He is a columnist at Salon.com and the author of the bestselling books A Tragic Legacy and Great American Hypocrites.

Foreign intervention in Libya?

As you can see from the photos below (from: Al Jazeera English) there are differences within the people's movement in Libya with regard to foreign intervention.
























(Image credit: AFP)

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

What's controversial about saying the Republicans & their Tea Party allies are racist?

I'm sure you have already heard that NPR CEO & President Vivian Schiller has resigned following the resignation of NPR Senior VP for Fundraising Ron Schiller (no relation) due to "controversial" comments he made:
Tea Party people aren't "just Islamaphobic, but really xenophobic, I mean basically they are, they believe in sort of white, middle-America gun-toting. I mean, it's scary. They're seriously racist, racist people."
What I don't understand is why telling the truth is controversial.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/03/09/134358398/in-video-npr-exec-slams-tea-party-questions-need-for-federal-funds

King hearings on Muslim Radicalization Decried as a New McCarthyism

Has anyone else been wondering when the demonic ghost of Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisc) took over the body of Rep. Peter King (R-NY3)? Clearly, the McCarthy & King witch hunts were/are designed to stir up fear across the land.

Hearings on Muslim Radicalization Decried as a New McCarthyism (from Democracy Now)

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

Monday, March 07, 2011

Is the Libyan rebellion coming to a head?

It looks to me like the Libyan rebellion is coming to a head. Usually when there is this much confusion, something is happening.


6:04am
Libyan state television has denied a report by Al Jazeera and two Arab newspapers that Colonel Gaddafi has sought a deal with the rebels that would see him step down with certain guarentees.

It was reported that a Gaddafi representative made the proposal to the opposition's so-called "National Council" based in Benghazi. The council apparently rejected the offer.

for more here

Libyan forces strike back at rebels (Al Jazeera English)

Here's the latest from Libya. The rebels are asking for a "no fly zone".
The rebel forces say they will be outgunned if the government continues to unleash its air attacks on them and are pleading for the international community to impose a no-fly zone to prevent this.

"We don't want a foreign military intervention, but we do want a no-fly zone," rebel fighter Ali Suleiman told AP. "We are all waiting for one,'' he said. The rebels can take on "the rockets and the tanks, but not Gaddafi's air force''.

Libyan forces strike back at rebels - Africa - Al Jazeera English.

Sunday, March 06, 2011

Battle for Libya intensifies (from Al Jazeera English)

Here's the latest from Libya. Although we really don't know what's happening in Tripoli at this point, it seems obvious that the rebels are advancing in some areas and holding their own in others. The last thing anyone needs right now is for the U.S. to turn Libya into another Iraq. If the rebels ask for our help, we should be prepared to provide it. But at this point, they don't seem to be asking. At this moment the U.S. bull should stay out of the North African & Middle East china shop. It seems to me the Libyans know what they are up against and are choosing the course they're on. We need to give them all the support we can, w/o interfering.

Battle for Libya intensifies - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Thursday, March 03, 2011

One of NYC's hidden treasures: Free concerts at Lincoln Center

Last night we discovered one of New York's hidden treasures: free concerts (and other events) @ Lincoln Center's Bruno Walter Auditorium.

The star of the evening was a wonderful violinist, Shem Guibbory, who played two solo pieces, Grazyna Bacewicz' Solo Sonata #2 and Johann Sebastian Bach's Sonata in g minor, BWV 1001. Not surprisingly, the Bach was a thousand times better than the Bacewicz.

The other two pieces were duets. And the supporting players were every bit equal to Guibbory. The first for violin and percussion, Slowly She Turns by Douglas J. Cuomo, opened the evening. It included an absolutely brilliant percussionist, Rex V. Benincasa, and in some ways was the evening's highlight. All the performers were wonderful but I loved Benincasa. What he did with percussion was unbelievable.

The last piece was Brahms' Sonata in d minor, op. 108. Pianist Craig Ruteberg, who was originally scheduled to play got sick on Tuesday. Kathleen Tagg replaced him with essentially two days to prepare and she knocked it out of the park. (I couldn't help but wonder where pianists get their page turners. I guess with Julliard across the street, it's probably not hard.)

All in all it was a wonderful evening. And the best part was that it was FREE.

After the concert we went to O'Neal's, which has morphed into the Atlantic Grill. As I understand it O'Neal's, which started life as the Ginger Man 46 years ago and itself "closed during renovations on the building and reopened as O’Neals’," went out of business last May.

The Ginger Man, for NYC restaurant-history buffs, was named after a movie starring the owner Michael O'Neal's brother Patrick. But I heartily recommend the Atlantic Grill. The scallops were wonderful. And they have draft beer from my new-favorite brewery, Brooklyn's Six Point. And I got to try one of their brews I had not previously tasted, Bengali Tiger. Another winner for Six Point.

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

Prof. Horace Campbell: Peace & Justice Movement Should Oppose U.S.-Led Intervention in Libya

This morning on Democracy Now, Prof. Horace Campell said:

We have seen, from the testimony yesterday from, the Senate Armed Services Committee, that [U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen], the chairperson of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is very uncomfortable with military intervention. [ Defense Secretary Robert M.] Gates is uncomfortable with military intervention. And [Gen. James N. Mattis] the head of the U.S. Central Command said that a no-fly zone is a prelude to military activity. And then, on the other hand, we have John McCain, Joe Lieberman, Hillary Clinton and those forces calling for a no-fly zone and military intervention.
And as you know these three have never seen a military intervention they didn't like. Remember the three musketeers were key supporters of the invasion of Iraq.
It is up to the peace and justice movement in this country to stand with one voice to say that at this point any kind of humanitarian intervention must be through the United Nations
For more of Cambell's interview with Amy Goodman this morning, click here:

Prof. Horace Campbell: Peace & Justice Movement Should Oppose U.S.-Led Intervention in Libya

March 12 & 13: 4th Annual New York Peace Film Festival

4th Annual New York Peace Film Festival

Sat. March 12 & Sun. March 13, 1:00pm-9:00pm

All Souls Unitarian Church
1157 Lexington Avenue (at 80th Street)
(Subway: #6 Line 77th St Station)

2 World / 1 US / 3 New York Premiere Films!!

Starts with Kick Off Party!
Friday, March 11, 2011 at 7:00pm-9:00pm
Seating is Limited! Reserve your spot now!
RSVP info@nypeacefilmfest.com

2 day Peace Film Festival
Sat. March 12 & Sun. March 13, 2011 at 1:00pm-9:00pm

F I L M S
A Thousand Cranes / Flash of Hope: Hibakusha Traveling the World / Standing Army
Another Courage / Twice Bombed, Twice Survived: the Legacy of Tsutomu Yamaguchi
Beating the Bomb / Death & Taxes / Free World
Billboard from Bethlehem / The Children of Adam / Silent Screams
Un Pokito De Tanta Verdad (A Little Bit of So Much Truth)

Images and Trailers are available at nypeacefilmfest

Special Free Event:
Japanese Storytelling "Kamishibai" on Sat. March 12 at 1:00pm-2:00pm
For Age 3 and up!

1 day all day ticket: advance $16, $18 at the door (cash only)
Advance Tickets are now on Sale!

Co-Sponsor: The Peace & Justice Task Force of All Souls Unitarian Church
Partners: American Friends Service Committee, NY Metro Region; Granny Peace Brigade;
Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW); New York War Resisters League;
Pax Christi, New York; Peace Action New York State (PANYS); and Resistance Cinema

Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Republican women: "Keep the government out of my doctor's office"

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy



As always Rachel gets at the core of the debate. But one thing she doesn't mention is that all the Republican opponents of the government looking over the doctors shoulder are women standing up for their right to privacy in the doctor's office.

On the possibility of U.S. military intervention in Libya

Latest on the possibility of U.S. military intervention in Libya as of March 1, 5:41 PM (From Al-Jazeera English)

It seems to me that the only reason the U.S. is not taking military intervention off the table is its concern about the oil. If we were concerned about defending lives against genocide, we would have long ago protected Palestinian lives in Gaza.

Monday, February 28, 2011

Let same-sex marriages continue during the Prop 8 appeals process - latimes.com

The L.A. Times, one of California's major papers, called for equal rights for gay men & lesbians now. Here's the editorial.

Proposition 8: Let same-sex marriages continue during the appeals process - latimes.com

GOP Attacks Women : Weiner Responds | Video Cafe

GOP Attacks Women : Weiner Responds | Video Cafe

"Freewheelin" Suze Rotolo, 1943-2011


In the '60s in the Village in and around the Limelight (which was then a bar on 7th Ave. just below West 4th St.) I knew a young woman named Carla Rotolo. But you know her younger sister, Suze, better - especially if you are a Bob Dylan fan. Suze was the young woman in the iconoic photo taken in February 1963 by Don Hunstein on Jones Street. a one block side street connecting West 4th and Bleeker, which became the cover of Freewheein Bob Dylan. Suze Rotolo died last weekend at 67.

Suze and Carla - who were Red Diaper Babies - befriended Dylan when he first arrived in New York. Suze was Dylan's girlfriend from 1961 to 1964 and he wrote several of his early love songs to her, Don't Think Twice, It's Alright; Tomorrow is a Long Time; and Boots of Spanish Leather. While they were together Suze (and Carla) influenced his move to the Left. They had a bad breakup, caused partly by his burgeoning relationship with Joan Baez and Suzi's unhappiness with being as she put it "the sixth string on his guitar." It was their breakup which caused him to write, Ballad in Plain D, which he later said he was sorry he wrote. But then we all say things we wish we could take back. We usually can't.

According to Wikipedia,
Rotolo was associated with civil rights work and protests against the travel ban against Cuba. She worked for a time for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). She traveled to Cuba in June 1964, with a group, at a time when it was unlawful for Americans to do so. She was quoted as saying, in regards to opponents of Fidel Castro that, 'These gusanos [worms] are not suppressed. There can be open criticism of the regime. As long as they keep it to talk they are tolerated, as long as there is no sabotage.'
In 2008, she wrote an autobiogaphy - after refusing to discuss Dylan for many years - A Freewheelin'Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties.

Suzi was a painter, teacher and a book illustrator, according to Rolling Stone.

Suze Rotolo died in the arms of her husband Italian film editor Enzo Bartoccioli whom she met on a trip to Italy in 1962. They had a son named Luca.

In Don't think Twice, It's Alright, Dylan wrote:
I once loved a woman, a child I'm told/I gave her my heart, but she wanted my soul.

A tea party for the ages

In a new book, Out of Our Heads: Rock 'n' Roll Before the Drugs Wore Off, George Case begins with the "infamous tea party" at the Hotel Delmonico in 1964 when Bob Dylan introduced The Beatles to "the wonders of weed."

Now that's my kind of tea party. And one that I would surmise some current Tea Partyers might do well to try.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Feb. 28th, 12:30pm protest Trader Joe's, 2075 Broadway (72nd St. & Broadway)

Monday, Feb. 28th -- 12:30-2:30pm
Trader Joe's -- 2075 Broadway (72nd St. & Broadway)

Join the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) on the beginning of their "Do The Right Thing Tour" in demanding supermarket retailers get on board with the Campaign for Fair Food and sign an agreement with the CIW to pay farmworkers a fair wage and end modern day slavery in the fields of Florida!!

Monday, Feb. 28th -- 12:30-2:30pm
Trader Joe's -- 2075 Broadway (72nd St. & Broadway)


Stand with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) to demand Trader Joe's join Whole Foods and the many others (Subway, Taco Bell, Sodexo, etc.) who've signed with the CIW. Tell Joe, slavery is not sustainable!

For those of you that want to know more about the campaign, read the letter below from Nely & Silvia, members of the CIW, and check out this 1 minute video http://www.youtube.com/user/CIWvideo


Message to the Fair Food Movement
February 1, 2011

Dear compañeras and compañeros, friends, allies, and Fair Food activists across the country —

When our struggle for dignity and respect began in the streets of Immokalee fifteen years ago, we knew it would take a long and arduous journey to realize our dreams. The mentality that reigned for so long in the agricultural industry — typified by one grower who dismissed six of our compañeros on a 30-day hunger strike by scoffing “the tractor doesn't tell the farmer how to run his farm” — seemed as solid and unmovable as a great stone wall.

But today, that wall is tumbling down.

Today, as a result of our Campaign for Fair Food, there are amazing changes underway in Immokalee. We say our because this movement belongs to all of us: farmworkers and students, consumers and organizers, fighters and dreamers.

But our journey is far from complete.

As farmworkers, as members of the CIW, and as mothers who want to leave a better world for our children, we make this appeal today on the verge of one of our most important mobilizations ever to all of our allies to do whatever it takes to join us for the upcoming “Do the Right Thing” actions in Boston and Tampa.

As we work tirelessly in Immokalee on the implementation of the Fair Food Code of Conduct for which we have fought all these years, we ask that you too organize in your community — talk to your friends, hand out flyers, organize fundraisers, coordinate caravans — join us in Boston and Tampa.

We invite you to walk with us as we demand Ahold and Publix join with the CIW and with the Florida tomato industry to ensure human rights and dignity for the men and women whose backbreaking labor makes it possible for these stores to line their shelves with fresh produce and to make record-breaking profits year after year.

The transformation underway in our community has brought us stories of a new climate of respect in the fields; of parents telling us what it's like to walk their own children to school for the first time ever. These and many other changes that were unimaginable just a few months ago are starting to take root today.

But Ahold and Publix continue to stand in the way of more humane conditions in the fields by refusing to participate – instead callously dismissing the abuses we have faced in the fields and refusing to join nine other corporations in paying their fair share and conditioning their tomato purchases on the Fair Food Code of Conduct. Ahold and Publix threaten to blunt and undermine the progress we're making toward the end, finally, of the Harvest of Shame.

If you support the Campaign for Fair Food, if you support our dreams of a better world, you must join us and tell Ahold and Publix it's time to "Do the Right Thing!"

-Nely and Silvia
Coalition of Immokalee Workers

Check out Community/Farmworker Alliance news and events!

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Toy Story 3: a review


Well, just under the wire for tomorrow night's Oscars we saw "Toy Story 3." That's what movies should be. It's moving, funny & good triumphs over evil. We sure need more of that.

Rarely do sequels equal the original, but this one does. No one who has been a kid could not love this film about the tribulation of toys. I'll bet you never expected to see (& hear) a Spanish speaking Buzz Lightyear. I could go on, but here's the bottom line, if it weren't for "Winter's Bone" I'd pick it as the best movie of the year. Once upon a time Peter, Paul & Mary sang "Puff The Magic Dragon," with all due respect to Randy Newman, Puff is the essence of "Toy Story 3"
A dragon lives forever but not so little boys
Painted wings and giant rings make way for other toys.
One grey night it happened, jackie paper came no more
Well, Andy came once more and the toys found a new home. It's about growing up. Growing up may be overrated but it does happen. Tell me which other movie this year has that reach. If you've ever been a kid & had toys you loved, this movie is about the toys not about us. Well, as Ann reminds me it's really about us. Watch it. I promise you'll love it.

Will banksters get away with it? - Opinion by Danny Schechter

Will banksters get away with it? - Opinion by Danny Schechter from Al Jazeera English

It seems to me that, although calling for the prosecution of Wall Street criminals is a very good organizing tactic, believing that the corporate oligarchy is going to allow itself to be punished for stealing billions (maybe trillions) from the people is to assume that capitalism is a sane & principled system (LOL). Its only raison d' etre after all is to make this theft possible.

Quote of the week

In a column in the NYT Business Section today (Saturday) in which Joe Nocera ("Talking Business") explains why none of the Wall Street bigwigs will likely be prosecuted for any of their misdeeds causing the latest capitalist crisis. Focussing mostly on Angelo Mozilo, co-founder & for nearly 40 years head of Countrywide Financial until its "astonishing fall," Nocera quotes from a "lengthy interview with Mr. Mozillo conducted by investigators working for the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission"
[Mozilo's] voice rising passionately, he said finally, 'Countrywide was one of the greatest companies in the history of this country.'

Which is a final reason Mr. Mozilo would have been difficult to prosecute. Delusion is an ironclad defense

Friday, February 25, 2011

Movie Award Weekend: Oscars, Independent Spirit Awards, Razzies

Well, this is Oscar weekend (tonight, 8 PM) but there are two other movie awards being handed out this weekend: The Independent Spirit Awards (Sat. 10PM IFC) & The Razzies.

I think the most important piece of information about the past year is that (according to Box Office Mojo)
2010 closed as the second highest-grossing year of all time, but it still couldn't shake an air of disappointment. Not only did 2010 end with a whimper, estimated attendance was the lowest in 15 years.
I know that sounds like a contradiction but higher prices = higher grosses, not greater attendance. Higher grosses are a result primarily of the 3D rip-off, which it seems has had its 15 minutes and a general increase in prices.

We'll come back to 3D films. Well, how about now: There's a special Razzie Award this year. "The Worst Eye-Gouging Mis-Use of 3D." The nominees are Cats & Dogs #2: Revenge of Kitty Galore; Clash of the Titans, The Last Airbinder, Nutcracker 3D, Saw 3D (AKA Saw VII). In other words, slap 3D on a film (especially for kids) and make more money. I think that scam has run its coarse.
The winner of the Razzie: "The Last Airbinder"

Since we are talking about the Razzies (which were given out yesterday (Saturday), let's stick with them. They're the most fun anyway:
Worst Picture of the Year: "The Last Airbinder"
Worst Performance by an Actress: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrell, Kristen Davis & Cynthia Nixon in "Sex & the City 2"
Worst Performance by an Actor: Ashton Kutcher in "Killers" & "Valentine's Day"
Worst Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Jessice Alba in "The Killer Inside Me,'" "Little Fockers," "Machete," & "Valentine's Day"
Worst Performance by an Actor in a supporting Role: Jackson Rathbone in "The Last Airbinder" & "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse"
Worst Screen Couple/Ensemble: The Entire Cast of "Sex & the City 2"
Worst Prequal, Remake, Rip-off or Sequal: I'll bet you can guess: "Sex & the City 2"

Yesterday Afternoon, on the beach in Malibu, the Independent Spirit Awards were handed out. found these awards very disappointing. First of all "Inside Job," which most people I know & respect have lauded, wasn't even nominated. From there on out who cares who wins, if the best isn't nominated. "Inside Job" is nominated for an Oscar tonight.

My other bitch about the spirit awards is about The Best Actress & Best film. Natalie Portman & " Black Swan." Whatever you may think about Portman's performance or "The Black Swan" as a film, they should not have been nominated for the Independent Spirit Awards. "Black Swan" was produced & released by 20th Century Fox. That is the opposite of an independent film. The very definition of independent film is one that is not produced & released by a major studio. So I'm still rooting for "Winter's Bone."

The Oscars are on now & I'll say what I think about them later. Go "Winter's Bone" & Jennifer Lawrence.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

How about "Mubarak" Walker

Guest Monica Crowley told Fox "America Alive" host Megyn Kelly that Obama's decision not to defend the Constitutionality of the "Defense of Marriage Act" (DOMA) as akin to a “dictatorship” calling the president “Mubarak Obama.” ( “To me, it’ s a form of dictatorship, That’s Mubarak Obama. You cannot just pick and choose which law you will enforce when you are president of the United States or the Attorney General.”)

Crowley took great exception to the Justice Department’s decision, calling it “beyond belief” before passionately stating that its the president’s responsibility to enforce the law that is on the books, not, in her words “to decide ‘well I don’t like that law so I’m not going to enforce it.’” Crowley then claimed that this was a “form of dictatorship” before referencing the president as “Mubarak Obama.”

There are a number of things one might say about this typical Crowley nonsense. First of all, the President took an oath to defend the Constitution, not acts of Congress. I would challenge Ms. Crowley to point to one complaint she made against George W. Bush's challenges to 232 statutes through signing statements. I'll bet she never questioned one of them.

I also wonder what she thinks about Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's comments. For example, "Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has laid down an ultimatum to the 14 state Senate Democrats who've gone AWOL to stop Walker's union-busting budget from going forward: come home, vote on a budget or I'll start laying off state workers. Like, next week," according to TPMDC He also has said he believes the Wisconsin protesters are from out-of-state. And now we know from the prank phone call that Walker was talking about bringing thugs into attack the potesters.

Perhaps we should be talking about "Mubarak" Walker.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

A political bait & switch or I have a bridge to sell you

What's happening in the U.S. today is beyond belief. It's the greatest political bait & switch operation I've ever seen.

As we all know, the latest capitalist crisis was brought about by the banksters on Wall Street. It was brought about by their greed & incompetence. So when the roof fell in, what did they do? They sent one of their key hitmen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs. Henry Paulson. who Time Magazine described as the "face [of] this financial debacle," to Washington. And what did he do? This paragon of the free market said to Bush & Chaney, "we screwed up, save us we're too big too fail." At that moment, if they had any integrity, W & Cheney would have said, "sorry Henry, you screwed up, it's time to pay." But, of course, as we know they didn't. They went along with this absurd violation of anything a free market could possibly mean. They gave trillions of our dollars to these thieves. Why did they do this? Well, they looked at each other - W & Dick - and said "If we give this money to the bankers on Wall Street, what will they do with it?" They knew that a substantial portion of the money would be funneled through the Wall Street banks to the Republican Party. So, in fact, the trillions given to Wall Street in the aftermath of the latest capitalist debacle was actually a laundering operation of our money, through the treasury department, to Wall Street, (with a substantial payoff to them) and into the Republican Party coffers. Just in case this might cause any judicial questions, the puppet Supreme Court made the infamous "Citizens United" decision, which made corporations the equivalent of individuals & therefore entitled to free speech protection. What's quite amazing is that when Obama (a Democrat) became president he didn't say, "enough is enough, no more funds for the Republican Party." But in what may be the biggest political gaffe of all time he went along with the Republican give away to Wall Street. If Obama loses in 2012, it will be to a large extent his own fault. He gave the banksters the money to defeat him.

With all this in the background. prepare for the greatest feat of political prestidigitation ever attempted. Josef Goebels would be impressed, no Mexican drug cartel could pull it off, it would be beyond even the imagination of any real gangster organization. The same Republican Party which engineered the hold up of the U.S. Treasury, has made the public employees and their unions the villains of the piece. So the Republicans in power gave our money to the too big to fail banksters, they, in turn, gave a substantial portion of it back to the Republican Party (laundered through the Chamber of Commerce). Now when it's time to pay the piper, the Republicans (Scott Walker liar-in-chief) are trying to stigmatize public employees and, in the process, destroy the unions (a key source of funds for the Democrats). In other words, it's the public employee unions who caused the latest capitalist crisis. If you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

The war against unions in Wisconsin

Nothing is inevitable. Only very rarely do we not have choices. When Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker claims he has no choice in his efforts to overcome the state budget shortfall other than to eliminate state workers rights to collective bargaining he is lying. As Rick Ungar writes in Forbes:
The bill introduced in the Wisconsin state legislature that would strip state employee unions of their collective bargaining rights, require members to vote to organize every year, allow members to avoid paying dues and put pay raises to a public vote, represents the opening salvo of the final battle in the war against unions in America (continued below)



If you still have any doubts about what's happening in Wisconsin, in another piece Ungar writes (2/18/11):
This afternoon, Marty Beil, executive director of the Wisconsin Public Workers Union, sent a message to the Governor’s office agreeing to the cuts to pension & welfare benefits sought by Walker in his bill. The governor’s response was “nothing doing.” He wants the whole kit and kaboodle – the end of the collective bargaining rights of the public unions.
Of course, this is nothing new. The corporate oligarchy in the U.S. has used its bought & paid for politicians to try to smash unions virtually from their inception as guilds. This came to fruition for the oligarchy with the passage in 1947 of the Taft-Hartley Act. Ungar shows clearly how the nefarious Koch brothers are directly behind the anti-union developments in Wisconsin. And as we well know, where there's Koch there's fire.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Republican responses to Obama budget

Well I guess the GOP memo went out this morning. Here are some prominent Republicans responding to Obama's budget. I always admire right-wing original thinking

House Budget chair Paul Ryan:
"In this critical test of leadership, the President has failed to tackle the urgent fiscal and economic threats before us."

Republican Study Committee chair Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH): "The President failed a crucial test of leadership by ignoring the need for reforms that will preserve Medicare and Social Security for future generations."

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn): "The president has missed an opportunity to show real leadership on the number one issue threatening our country's future. Getting spending under control and reducing our deficit will be difficult without presidential leadership."

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX): "President Obama's timid budget proposal represents a missed opportunity to lead."

Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Pitchers & catchers

Whateever is going on in the world, there are some things that are important. The news tonight reported: 13 days until pitcher & catchers. There's something pure about the beginning of a new baseball season.

"The Social Network:" A review

"The Social Network," which I have referred to as the Facebook movie, is the ultimate capitalist movie. It seems to be primarily about a bunch of white men fighting over who's going to profit from the creation of Facebook, a means of connecting people with each other, first at Harvard and then the world. This story seems to mirror the tale of Bill Gates and the founding of Microsoft. Although Facebook may have originally been intended by its creators as a way of getting laid, ultimately as everything in capitalism it becomes a fight over who's going to profit. From the film, it's quite hard to tell the difference between these guys, who seem to spend most of their time in court. And it's also hard to tell why we should care.

Aaron Sorkin, who created one of my all-time favorite TV series, West Wing, adapted the screenplay from Ben Mizrach's The Accidental Billionaires. It's a perfectly serviceable if unexciting script. The acting is pleasant, but I don't think anyone from The Social Network will take home one of the upcoming Oscars. Speaking of Oscar, it's interesting that The Social Network won many of the critics awards but seems to be fading fast in the Oscar race to its main competitor The King's Speech.

It might have been interesting to learn more about these characters outside of their connection to Facebook, but then from what we do see, it might not.