13
Mai
2005

US-held detainees at risk of torture

Amnesty International: Prisoners detained by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere are still at risk of torture and ill-treatment, Amnesty International said on Friday.

http://snipurl.com/evdj


From Information Clearing House

More evidence on why the Iraq war is a George Bush folly

At least it finally settles this ridiculous debate about how Dear Leader Bush just wanted to bring democracy all along and we did it all for George Washington.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0505120037may12,1,4263103.story


From Information Clearing House

Losing hearts and minds

On Wednesday, National Public Radio broadcast a piece that made it appallingly clear that we have not cleaned up our character in Iraq. Humiliation remains a primary weapon. For all the soldiers who have a heart, a lot also appear to have lost their minds.

http://snipurl.com/evd4


From Information Clearing House

America’s honor and prestige at the lowest point ever

The family released a statement...

"Mass round-ups and detentions of innocent civilians, torture and abuse of prisoners and detainees, America’s honor and prestige at the lowest point ever, and investigations that whitewash the president’s men and blame it all on the enlisted personnel.

by Michael Gillespie

The obscene spectacle of the grieving families at funerals forced by the president’s dishonesty to defend the honor of their dead even as they mourn: Small wonder that the president, desperately attempting to hide behind a façade of rigid religiosity that glorifies war and false patriotism that exalts the very evils it claims to despise, never attends the funerals of those who have died in the line of duty. How could he?"

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8830.htm

Ausstieg aus der zivilen und militärischen Nutzung der Atomtechnologie sofort und weltweit

Öffentliche Bemerkungen zur Veranstaltung anläßlich des ersten Spatenstichs für die Biogasanlage in Jameln am 13. Mai 2005 mit Bundesministerin Renate Künast, Avacon (Atomstrombetreiber) und Opel AG:

(Heute informieren Ministerin Künast, AVACON und Opel AG über ihre Vorstellungen von Agrarwende und Energiewende! – Unsere Ziele gehen weit darüber hinaus!)

Agrarwende?

Doch wir sehen:

· Ausweitung der Agrarwüsten (Bäume und Hecken werden verstümmelt, abgeholzt und gerodet),

· Verseuchung von Böden, Grundwasser und Luft durch Pestizide und Agrarchemie,

· Abgase, Bodenverdichtung und Lärm durch immer gigantischere Agrarmaschinen,

· unaufhaltsames Vordringen der Gentechnologie (mit nicht mehr rückholbaren Schäden und einer weiteren Beschleunigung des Artensterbens),

· mangelhaften Verbraucherschutz (seltene Kontrollen als Alibi?),

· pestizidverseuchtes Obst und Gemüse (Menschen als „Gift- und Schwermetall-Endlager“),

· Einknicken der Regierung vor den Profitinteressen der Agrarmultis und „Lebensmittelindustrie“: u.a. Verabschiedung eines vor Ort wirkungslosen Bundes-Naturschutzgesetzes!

Energiewende?

Doch es gibt weiterhin:

· einen Ausbau der Atomindustrie (Erweiterung der Urananreicherungsanlage in Gronau, Bau neuer Reaktortypen etc.),

· das tägliche Risiko eines atomaren Infernos für uns alle (grundgesetzwidrige Zumutung!),

· Weiterbetrieb der AKW’s – ohne Endlagernachweis,

· keine versprochene fundierte Endlagersuche!,

· radioaktive Verseuchung der Umwelt im Ausmaß „eines sich jährlich ereignenden großen kerntechnischen Unfalls“ durch die Wiederaufbereitungsanlagen in La Hague und Sellafield im „Normalbetrieb“ (WISE Paris, Studie für die EU 2001),

· keine Aufklärung über die Unfälle, Pannen und Vertuschungen in Atomanlagen weltweit (Beispiel: Leukämiefälle bei Geesthacht/Krümmel, jüngster Plutonium-Unfall in Sellafield),

· unkontrollierte Subventionierung der Atomkonzerne, Profitabsicherung und Machterhalt durch unangetastete Mrd.-„Rückstellungen“ und EURATOM-Vertrag (im Bundestag mit der EU-Verfassung gerade bekräftigt!),

· Festhalten an Öl und Kohle,

· keine echten bezahlbaren Energiesparautos (trotz technischer Möglichkeiten),

· keine konsequente Energie – Spar – Politik!

· bundesweite Pressezensur für Kritik an Atomtechnologie!

· Zurückhaltung von Sicherheitsgutachten durch BfS und RSK!

Wir fordern die AVAVON auf, aus der lebensbedrohenden Atomtechnologie auszusteigen und alle frei werdenden Mittel einzusetzen für Investitionen in erneuerbare Energien!

Wir fordern die Opel AG auf, endlich bezahlbare saubere (recycelbare) Energiespar-Autos auf den Markt zu bringen (statt zur Profitsicherung Arbeitsplätze abzubauen und das Lohnniveau abzusenken)!

Wir fordern die Bundesregierung und die Europabgeordneten auf, den EURATOM-Vertrag umgehend aufzukündigen!

Wir fordern die Bundesregierung auf, die Milliarden-Rückstellungen der Energie- und Atomkonzerne in einen öffentlich-kontrollierten Fond einzubringen!

Wir fordern: Ausstieg aus der zivilen und militärischen Nutzung der Atomtechnologie sofort und weltweit!

Schluß mit der Zementierung des ungeeigneten Salzstocks Gorleben als Endlager-Standort!

Weg mit der „Veränderungssperre“! - Keine weiteren Castor-Transporte!

Eine Initiativgruppe des wendländischen Widerstands gegen die Atomenergie (Lüchow-Dannenberg, Jameln, 13. Mai 2005/ T.: 05864-986 422)

Wir fordern ALLE zu sofortigem Stromwechsel auf (hin zu einem Anbieter mit ausschließlich regenerativen Stromquellen)!! – siehe auch: http://www.attac.de/wendland

Liebe Freundinnen und Freunde,

wir fordern Euch auf, an der nächsten Auftaktdemo im November 2005 (voraussichtlich: Anfang Nov. 2005) und – nach Euren Möglichkeiten - an den weiteren Protestaktionen gegen die Atommülltransporte im Wendland teilzunehmen (etwa von Sa. bis Di./Mi.). Eure Solidarität mit dem Widerstand gegen die Atomindustrie ist enorm wichtig!

Wir protestieren gegen die Atomenergie,

Ø weil diese umweltzerstörend und todbringend ist,

Ø weil sie überflüssig und ungeheuer teuer ist,

Ø weil sie die dringend erforderliche Energiewende behindert,

Ø weil sie zwangsläufig einen demokratiefeindlichen Polizei- und Überwachsungsstaat mit sich bringt,

Ø weil sie auf’s Engste mit der Atombombe und der globalen Verseuchung verknüpft ist (Uranmunitioneinsatz in Jugoslawien, Irak),

Øweil weltweit das Entsorgungsproblem nicht gelöst werden kann (der Salzstock Gorleben ist –gutachterlich untermauert- u.a. durch Laugeneinbrücke im Deckgebirge völlig ungeeignet),

Ø weil die Regierungen die Profite der mächtigen Energiekonzerne schützen und dafür unsere Grundrechte opfern,

Ø weil das Gerede vom Atomausstieg eine Lüge ist, vielmehr wird die Atomindustrie nach wie vor hoch subventioniert,

Ø weil Milliarden dafür ausgegeben werden, die besser für unsere Kinder und soziale Aufgaben eingesetzt würden.

Wenn der Castor rollt, herrscht im Wendland der Ausnahmezustand: 20.000 Polizisten gegen 50.000 Einwohner. Die Medien-Öffentlichkeit wird weitgehend ausgeschlossen oder polizeilich gesteuert. Das darf es nicht mehr geben!

Gegen Kriminalisierung und den Abbau der Grundrechte hilft nur eins:

Kommt alle im November ins Wendland, wenn der Atommüll aus dem französischen La Hague in nicht genehmigten Behältern quer durch die Republik nach Gorleben rollt. Denn, lieber mit Spaß aktiv, als todtraurig radioaktiv. Der wirksamste Schutz der Grund- und Freiheitsrechte besteht darin, sie aktiv wahrzunehmen und zu verteidigen.

Im Wendland ist der Widerstand lebendig. Es ist für alles gesorgt: Übernachtungsmöglichkeiten in Camps oder Familien (manchmal auch bei der Polizei), Verpflegung, Musik, Spaß und Aktion…Wir fordern: Schützt uns, nicht die Atomindustrie! Sofortige Stillegung aller Atomanlagen weltweit! Suche eines geeigneten Endlagerstandortes sofort!

Übrigens, den persönlichen Atomausstieg kann jeder sofort –ohne Mehrkosten- vollziehen: Wechsel des Stromanbieters - hin zu atomenergiefreien Versorgern mit Strom aus regenerativen Energien! Info:
http://www.eurosolar.org
http://www.robinwood.de
http://www.lichtblick.de
http://www.ews-schoenau.de
http://www.greenpeace-energy.de

Bürgerinitiative Umweltschutz Lüchow-Dannenberg e.V., Drawehner Str. 3, 29439 LüchowTel.: 05841/4684 – Fax: 05841/3197 – e-mail: bi-luechow@t-online.de – Internet: http://www.bi-luechow-dannenberg.de, http://www.castor.de, http://www.widersetzen.de, http://www.attac.de/wendland


Jürgen Kruse

How Real ID will affect you

http://news.com.com/FAQ+How+Real+ID+will+affect+you/2100-1028_3-5697111.html


Informant: Simo Hayha

The latest on Bolton

A funny thing happened on the way to John Bolton's confirmation as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

First, 55,986 of you sent Senator Lincoln Chafee a strong message in a petition we delivered to his office Thursday morning, urging him to live up to his reputation of having an independent streak and vote against John Bolton.

Senator Chafee didn't take a stand during Thursday's Foreign Relations Commitee hearing -- but believe it or not, after see-sawing back and forth, he is still holding open the option of voting against Bolton on the floor of the Senate. The Senator could have been a real hero to reasonable people everywhere by killing the nomination in committee, but that wasn't to be.

However, I know that the overwhelming lobbying effort you made -- including thousands of phone calls and petition signatures -- has kept hope alive as to Senator Chafee's final vote on the matter.

Second, Republican Senator George Voinovich of Ohio gave an incredibly masterful speech against Bolton in the Committee. Voinovich called Bolton "the poster child of what someone in the diplomatic corps should not be" and went on to say: "We have sought to appoint an Ambassador to the United Nations who himself has been accused of being arrogant, of not listening to his friends, of acting unilaterally, and of bullying those who do not have ability to properly defend themselves."

Because of Voinovich, the Foreign Relations Committee on which I serve was unable to vote out Bolton with a positive recommendation. Committee Republicans were only able to muster enough support to vote him out without recommendation, a highly unusual thing -- only the sixth time this has happened since 1988.

Of course the Bush Administration, including Secretary of State Rice, is trying to put the best face on it, and it is true that the fight goes on. But that's the point: Despite Republican control of the Senate, we're still in this fight, and we will not shrink from it!

John Bolton is a man who has nothing but disdain for the United Nations, someone who would politicize intelligence and stretch intelligence to create phantom "imminent threats" -- a very dangerous man indeed. Further, Bolton has been called a "serial abuser" in terms of his relationships with those over whom he held power, and he tried to fire hard-working, independent intelligence analysts who didn't and wouldn't agree to give him the false information he was requesting.

Earth to George Bush: Can't you please find someone who deserves this job to represent us at the United Nations?

Well, the answer to that question is clearly no, and so we continue the fight. I have placed a "hold" on the John Bolton nomination, meaning that we won't proceed to debate his nomination by unanimous consent and must have a vote before we do so. I have placed this hold because there are several important documents requested by Committee Democrats which we still have not received. We don't know what these documents will reveal, but we do know that we deserve to have them. Until we do, my hold stands.

So hope springs eternal, mostly because you give me the strength to step out and do what my job requires on behalf of the people I represent -- to ask the tough questions, get the answers, and cast the hard votes.

While I continue to do everything I can to stop Bolton in the Senate, there's much more that you can do as well:

* If you haven't already, please email your Senators, urging them to oppose John Bolton. http://ga4.org/campaign/bolton/b85g574q5jen57?

* Then send an email to the White House, urging President Bush to send us a new common-sense UN nominee who can receive bi-partisan support in the Senate -- and across America. http://ga4.org/campaign/new_nominee/b85g574q5jen57?

* Plus, don't forget to invite your friends and family to email their Senators, and tell them to email President Bush as well.
http://ga4.org/campaign/bolton/forward/b85g574q5jen57?

Stay in close touch with me on this. I will be back to you as issues unfold.

In Friendship,

Barbara Boxer

Email your Senators
http://ga4.org/campaign/bolton/b85g574q5jen57?

Email the White House
http://ga4.org/campaign/new_nominee/b85g574q5jen57?

Anti-US Protests Rage from Afghanistan to Pakistan

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051305Y.shtml

Four M-Class Flares in Last Two Days

May 13th 2005

EARTH CHANGES TV NEWSLETTER

Well it appears NASA and Dr. Hathaway may need to re-think their formula as it pertains to solar cycles. This weeks activities would certainly get in the way of the notion of a calming Sun. In fact, today’s sunspot count reached 110, not far below NASA’s predicted “maximum” of 150.

Stop Everything - This just in…

As I’m writing this article, a new M-Class flare just fired off. It appears a large CME has followed and may be Earth directed. The M-Class flare appears to have measured a M8, this is just a few points from being an X-Class flare. Evidently there is something out there that is charging the Sun. In fact, this is the premise of my second book coming out next spring (working title) “Cosmic Rain”, which is the next sequence of my research following my current book due to be out before Christmas titled “Solar Rain”.

“Cosmic Rain” takes us one step further than “Solar Rain” which identifies the Sun-Earth Connection. In “Cosmic Rain”, we look at what causes the solar cycles themselves. Here is a sneak preview….It appears the conductor of solar cycles, is two fold. First, there is the currently known ‘pole reversals’ which happen every (approx) 11 years, but then there is a second more pronounced cause to extended solar cycles with I call “Mega Cycles”. This is in part, is caused by “cosmic gamma ray burst, as well as other less known charged energy fields. And yes, my hypothesis suggest the! re is a “rhythm” to such gamma ray burst (GRB). It is not just from pulsars or imploding stars. There is much more to this story.

Take a look at the magnetic flux. It suggest quite the storm could be heading our way.

Magnetic Flux: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/rt_plots/elec_3d.html

Here is a snap shot of the M8-Class flare fired off just moments ago.

GOES X-Ray Flux: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/rt_plots/xray_5mBL.html

Here the Kp Index show the geomagnetic storm already hitting the Earth’s magnetic field from the first series of M-Class flares.
Kp Index: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/rt_plots/kp_3d.html

What does this all mean? First off, it means the theory of our being on the down hill slope to a solar “minimum” appears to have some serious flaws to this premise. It also means we may have some pretty nasty weather coming our way in the next 48 to 72 hours. Watch for extreme temperature shifts, sudden hail storms, straight-line winds, micro-burst, and wind shears. Also watch for the possibility for sudden tornadoes.

Equation:

Sunspots => Solar Flares => Magnetic Field Shift => Shifting Ocean and Jet Stream Currents => Extreme Weather and Human Disruption (Mitch Battros)

Pfingsten: 41. Montagsdemonstration in Leipzig gegen Agenda 2010 und Hartz IV

13.05.05

Am kommenden Montag findet in Leipzig erneut eine Demonstration und Kundgebung gegen Hartz IV und die Agendapolitik der rot-grünen Bundesregierung statt. Es ist die 41. Montagsdemonstration seit dem August des Vorjahres. Seitdem finden die montäglichen Demonstration mit anschließender Kundgebung auf dem Augustusplatz getragen von einem breiten Aktionsbündnis ohne Unterbrechung statt.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet:

http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=11060

Better Late Than Never

The Washington Post finally reports on the earthshaking Downing Street Memo...12 days after it was released.

http://tompaine.com/uncommonsense/index.php#4883

A Tribute To Right Power

by Nick Penniman, TomPaine.com

Last night's party for DeLay shows just how willing conservatives are to sacrifice principles for power.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/20050513/a_tribute_to_right_power.php

The GOP's Attack On Voting Rights

by Rep. John Conyers Jr., TomPaine.com

The only election reform bill Republicans want to advance is one that does nothing—or takes us backwards.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/20050513/the_gops_attack_on_voting_rights.php

A Systemic Approach to Occupational and Environmental Health

Part 1 of 2:
http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?issue_ID=2499


RACHEL'S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH NEWS #818
http://www.rachel.org

May 26, 2005

Part 2 of 2:

The Structure of Harm

A Systemic Approach to Occupational and Environmental Health

By Skip Spitzer*

[In this second part of a two-part series, activist campaigner Skip Spitzer continues describing "the structure of harm" -- some of the institutional and cultural features of U.S. society that make large-scale harm inevitable. Corporate power and economic concentration, patriarchy, racism, governments beholden to corporate wealth, media that reflect and reinforce the corporate system, and an international trade regime that has weakened governments' influence on corporate behavior -- make up the "structure of harm." We will all want to continue working locally, but if we can tie our local work to a bigger-picture analysis -- and to a growing global justice movement with a common agenda of democratic inclusion; environmental sustainability; class, racial, and gender justice; diversity; and fundamental change -- perhaps we can transform the "structure of harm" itself into something life-affirming and life-sustaining. That is the hope. --Editor]

Government safeguards the basic needs of industry

That corporate wealth buys broad influence in law and public policy is well documented and widely acknowledged.[1] Yet much government predisposition toward industry is less direct.

Holders of high office themselves frequently have significant ownership in large corporations and other corporate ties and histories. For example, virtually every member of the Bush cabinet has extensive corporate connections,[2] including outgoing Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman, who was a director of the biotech company Calgene[3] (now owned by Monsanto) and served on the International Policy Council on Agriculture, Food and Trade, a group funded by Cargill, Nestle, Kraft, and Archer Daniels Midland.[4] Many Clinton cabinet members had similar ties.[5]

Governmental bias toward industry is also based on the state's dependence on economic growth as a generator of tax revenues and creating conditions favorable to perpetuation of political power. This structural position of the state is reflected in a general nonpartisan orientation of government toward ensuring a prosperous business climate, particularly for the largest companies. Clinton Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman, for example, reflected this "What's good for General Motors is good for the rest of America"[6] perspective when he said that the good news about economic concentration in agriculture is that it means that "We're strengthening our global competitive edge."[7]

Media and other institutions reinforce corporate values and ideas Institutions of beliefs and knowledge-such as the mass media, public relations, science and education-also reflect the exigencies of the corporate system. As with politics, there are direct avenues of corporate influence, including: legal threats; lobbying, flak and other manipulation of journalists; and funding university research, research institutes and think tanks. In education, corporations provide schools with curriculum, funding, teacher training, advisors, exhibits and contest programs to, in the words of one industry newsletter, "get them started young."[8]

Interestingly, while many acts of corporate influence are orchestrated in-house, the market itself generates goods and services for extending corporate influence. For example, Lifetime Learning Systems develops "corporate sponsored" materials for schools and asks corporations to "Imagine millions of students discussing your product in class. Imagine their teachers presenting your organization's point of view."[9]

Many mechanisms of ideological influence are less direct. In science, for example, many researchers sit on corporate boards, own stock or have other financial ties to the companies to which their research relates. One member of a National Academy of Sciences panel on agricultural biotechnology acknowledged, "It would be kind of hard to find [scientists] who didn't have some funding from biotechnology groups."[10]

In media, likely the most important institution of beliefs and knowledge, there are numerous ways in which the structure of the industry passively shapes the range of news and entertainment content. For example, media is itself an extremely concentrated industry and depends on the good graces of business advertisers. Journalists and writers are selected from the ranks of the mainstream.[11] Larry Grossman, former president of NBC News, put it this way: "the press are terribly conventional thinkers.... and that's why they are there. That's why they reach millions."[12]

The general effect of direct and indirect corporate influence is that the mass media portray the world in ways that are consistent with the basic needs of industry. For example, a recent Associated Press story on biomonitoring[13] for pesticides and other industrial chemicals concluded "There's still debate among advocates over which of the 75,000 chemicals to specifically look for when biomonitoring. And even when chemicals are found, there's little an individual can do."[14]

In fact, the more significant discussion among advocates is how best to challenge the chemical industry by mobilizing the public with this new documentation of corporate "chemical trespass." A study of sources for U.S. TV network news found such bias across the board, concluding that there is "a clear tendency to showcase the opinions of the most powerful political and economic actors, while giving limited access to those voices that would be most likely to challenge them."[15]

Much debate about news media focuses on the issue of liberal vs. conservative bias. This framing misses the point that what liberal and conservative outlets have in common is that they rarely question the systemic role industry plays in causing social and environmental problems or its extensive institutional influence, or describe what the public can do to change the structure of harm.

Patriarchy and racism

While the structural features sketched above focus the corporate power, patriarchy and racism are also systemic sources of harm, which interact with the market dynamics.[16] Patriarchy refers to male dominance in a society, a universal condition that predates and is influenced by the market economy. For example, gender relations changed dramatically as industrialization broadly shifted economic production from the home to separate workplaces, and again with the relatively recent mass entry of women into the paid economy.

Today, women in the U.S. workforce face unequal pay, hiring standards, working conditions, training opportunities, prospects for promotion, participation in workplace decision-making, as well as segregation in lower-level occupations. These factors lead directly, and through lower social status, to negative occupational health and other impacts. Assessments of "safe" levels of pesticide and other chemical exposure, for example, have typically relied on male subjects and generally ignore women's greater sensitivity to exposure.[17] For women, patriarchy also results in domestic violence, disproportionate shares of poverty and household work (even when holding a paid job) and other impacts.[18]

Likewise, racism occurs independently of and is influenced by the corporate system. Racism, in the broadest sense, refers to prejudice or discrimination based on race (i.e., perceived physical differences) or ethnicity (i.e., socially defined cultural characteristics), and to institutional discrimination (i.e., differing treatment regardless of individual attitudes about race and ethnicity). Racism plays a significant role in education, occupational, health and other disparities. For example, African American, Latino, Native American and Asian American communities are disproportionately impacted by hazardous waste sites, landfills, incinerators, and polluting industries. In fact, race is the most significant variable associated with the location of hazardous waste sites.[19,20]

Culture

The most general expression of the structure of harm is a dominant culture that reflects and reinforces values, beliefs, actions and lifestyles that are essentially consistent with the corporate system. A citizenry engrossed by individualism, the mythology of the free market and the measurement of personal success by wealth, and that is consumption-fixated, inwardly focused and often unaware and too busy for political engagement, enables business and politics as usual and undermines public action. It is difficult, for example, to mobilize the U.S. public in opposition to court appointments given that, according to a recent national poll, 64% of respondents could not name a single member of the Supreme Court, but 66% could name all three characters used to market Rice Krispies cereal.[21,22]

Global dimensions

Of course, the social structures of harm discussed above have important international dimensions. U.S. corporations have remarkable global reach. Exports of goods and services in July 2004 alone were roughly $96 billion[23] and private investment abroad for 2003 was about $7.8 trillion.[24] One result of international investment is the ability of corporations as a group to influence public policy in weaker economies on threat of capital flight.[25]

Likewise, the U.S. government pursues a wide range of foreign political, economic and military policy, often to advance corporate interests. For example, international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are mechanisms through which industrial powers are able to influence national policy, principally within the global South. As conditions of lending, these institutions impose Structural Adjustment Programs, which typically require shifts to export production, slashes in social spending and other terms that prioritize expansion of markets for foreign firms and servicing debt held by foreign banks.[26] Similarly, corporate rights are globalizing through powerful new international trade and investment agreements such as those of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and a battery of new regional and bilateral pacts. These emphasize "freeing" the market through sweeping limits on regulatory policy, while granting corporations new intellectual property and other rights and largely ignoring the anti-competitive nature of multinational corporations.

Military policy is also geared toward corporate interests. Extreme lobbying and other influence by the arms industry to promote military spending and shape U.S. foreign policy constitutes a "military- industrial complex," about which outgoing president Eisenhower warned.[27] Some have argued that this has lead to a "permanent war economy," in which military spending and intervention play a central role in national economic stability.[28] At a minimum, it is clear that in most cases, geopolitical concerns, access to resources and markets, and corporate positioning underlie official pretexts for intervention. In Iraq, for example, the Bush administration brought in business leaders to head up reconstruction (such as former Cargill executive Dan Amstutz in agriculture) and established a neo-liberal interim government with U.S. advisers in all departments.[29] U.S. corporations are acquiring reconstruction contracts (more than $20 billion so far), ownership of Iraqi resources (including oil and water)[30] and intellectual property protections[31] (playing a key role in the corporatization of the nation's agriculture).

Corporate activities overseas, foreign policy, international institutions and military action profoundly exacerbate social and environmental problems. Looking at just pesticides and the WTO, for example, free-trade rules undermine national policy-making and international environmental agreements which can reduce pesticide use, and foster the industrial agricultural model at the center of pesticide-reliant farming.[32]

Seeing structure

Although social structures are by nature difficult to see, the above sketch should begin to form a picture of key underlying institutional features that are the context of contemporary change making. In sum:

** Corporations are pervasive, economically and socially powerful actors compelled to pursue narrow self-interests in a system that drives economic concentration, generates socially and environmentally harmful models of production and requires perpetual growth.

** Those charged with public policy are fundamentally compelled by corporate influences and the primacy of economic growth to safeguard corporate interests.

** Mass media, public relations, science, education-and the dominant consumption- and wealth-oriented culture as a whole-significantly reflect and reinforce the corporate system.

** Patriarchy and racism are sources of harm that interact with the corporate system.

** Corporate interests are projected internationally through economic, military, political and other activity, including a rapidly developing trade and investment framework undermining the ability of governments to control corporate behavior.

From this vantage point, strategies for moving beyond near-term, issue-based action can be more easily assessed. For example, it is clear that there is nothing about incrementalism that necessarily transforms the structure of harm.

Making systemic change

How can those engaged in near-term, issue-oriented approaches advance systemic change? Fortunately, this is not a matter of "reform or revolution." It is true that partial victories and reformism can drain potential for mobilization (as when banning residential uses of a pesticide, while leaving only farmworkers and other marginalized communities affected). This is an important strategic point. However, the notion that conditions should be allowed to worsen so that mobilization for systemic change can more readily take place overlooks the fact that in many ways conditions for deep change already exist. One useful reconciliation of the reform/transformation question is to integrate the near-term with the transformative, such that issue-based action explicitly functions to advance systemic change. This approach accommodates the reality of urgent harm that cannot be ignored. It also maintains a focus on concrete entry points for engaging and mobilizing the public. The point, however, is not that both orientations are useful; it is that they can be integrated so that they are mutually reinforcing.

The following are a few practical points for furthering this integration.

Building a broad, global movement

One crucial insight drawn from a structural perspective is that movements must be bigger, multi-issue and international. Fortunately, if there is anything opportune about the structure of harm it is that it is emerging as a unifying concern of people and progressive movements around the world. For example, most toxics groups in the U.S. taking a "NIMBY" (Not In My Backyard) position in the early 1980's developed at least a perspective of the larger context of harm.[33] Today there are truly global movements (such as the anti- or alternative-globalization movement and Via Campesina[34]), processes (like the World Social Forum[35]) and statements of unity (like the "Rio Earth Summit Declaration of Principles"[36])-all of which emphasize common themes of democratic inclusion; environmental sustainability; class, racial and gender justice; diversity; and fundamental change. There are ample opportunities to tie near-term change efforts to these expressions of the unifying global progressive movement.

Making connections and deeper alliances

Alliance-making based on common near-term goals is an obvious strategy. Yet identifying connections based on a common structural perspective can provide a basis for deeper alliances, fostering new synergies and broader movements. For example, the equitable distribution and growth of organic foods, which often cost more than conventional counterparts, suggest additional reasons for raising prevailing wages. The role of pharmaceutical companies provides a deep connection point for joint action between AIDS and other healthcare activists, opponents of genetically engineered foods and sustainable agriculture advocates. Issues such as corporate power, intellectual property rights and the production of drugs using transgenic "biopharm" crops will appeal to target audiences of multiple movements, which can be mobilized in new ways.

Building alliances between labor and other movements is particularly important. Human labor plays an essential role in production and therefore has the potential to disrupt it. This is a special form of resistance, but one that has been plagued by anti-labor policy, union cooptation, and undemocratic practices and narrow focuses by unions. Fortunately, there is a resurgence of the idea of "social movement unionism," in which the labor movement makes linkages between workplace, civil society issues and the larger structure of harm.[37]

Solidarity and agenda broadening

Deep alliances require deep solidarity-acts of mutual support that extend beyond a group's specific mission or objectives. One way to achieve greater solidarity is to reexamine organizational agendas. Most groups with a particular focus are run and supported by people concerned about a wide range of issues. Reconsidering a group's work in light of the structure of harm can suggest useful restatements of mission that make deep solidarity a more explicit goal, without losing particular focus.

Reframing problems

Another way to integrate systemic change is to recast the problems a group seeks to remedy. Pesticide reform groups, for example, frequently make the case that pesticides are harmful and need to be banned or restricted, and that pesticide manufacturers undermine the regulatory process. A broader framing, however, might include that:

** Most of what happens in the food system is based on the decision- making of an increasingly small set of increasingly large corporations (such as DuPont, Conagra, Kraft Foods and Wal-Mart)-which, by design, pay little attention to externalities such as pesticide poisonings, genetic contamination, excessive energy use, abuse of farm labor and obesity;

** these companies have created an ecologically and socially devastating model of food production and continually develop new technologies which pose new risks or harms (such as biopiracy and contract farming[38]);

** government fundamentally works to support the industrial food system, seeing its success as part of the national interest; and

** media, public relations, science, education and other institutions orient the public in support of the industrial food model through incomplete and tainted information, and the promotion of cultural traits (such as the desire for unblemished produce) that are typically antagonistic to campaigns for reform.

Systemic reframing places big picture issues in plain view, raising public consciousness, identifying connections and suggesting goals and requirements for long-term change.

Integrated campaigning

Campaigns are strategic programs of action designed to move targets and other social forces so that a specific set of goals is obtained. It is a highly focused path to specific victories, generally at the expense of issues outside of the campaign frame. Yet there are ways to integrate systemic transformation goals into campaigns.

In integrated campaigning, campaign goals are determined not simply by asking the question "What do we want our campaign to change?" The broader question is "What larger systemic changes do we want to achieve toward which our campaign will move us?" In this way, near- term, winnable goals can be developed that are important in their own right and serve as a foundation for or step to broader change. For example, if the broader systemic goal is to create a national regulatory system based the Precautionary Principle,[39,40] campaign goals might include:

1. enacting such an approach around a specific local issue, and

2. taking concrete steps to position the movement for a national campaign (through building relationships with untraditional allies, creating an international network, developing popular language about the structure of harm, raising awareness about corporate power and the limits of contemporary regulatory systems, and the like). Developing alternative institutions Just as issue-based change often requires development of alternatives (such as benign methods of pest management), systemic change requires the development of alternative institutions and visions of how societies can be organized to maximize justice and sustainability. There are many intriguing contributions in this area, from alternative global institutions to participatory economics.[41] Yet much more of this work needs to be done. What, for example, would a viable precautionary approach to regulation of production really look like? Developing concrete systemic alternatives helps answer legitimate questions about structural critiques, inspires mobilization for near- and long-term reform, helps activists and the public break out of mainstream ideological frameworks and offers real options when opportunities for deep change occur.

Springboarding

Many projects contribute on a local level to the development of alternative institutions. These include community gardens, local currency ventures, energy independent homesteads, community-run healthcare facilities, and green and worker-owned businesses. Yet much of this work reflects an incrementalist notion of change, with no or little engagement with movements for systemic change.

"Springboarding" entails using such points of public engagement to raise awareness and support action around the structure of harm. Some community gardens, for example, have displays providing information to participants and visitors not only about the merits of organic production or green space, but also about the problems with the industrial food system, corporate power and how to join campaigns. Springboarding helps integrate local alternatives with broader movements.

Hope

Systemic change, of course, can be overwhelming, requiring change- makers to communicate a sense of hope. Fortunately, there are in fact good reasons to be optimistic. Virtually all societies are highly contradictory and subject to relatively rapid change. Nominally democratic societies provide at least some avenues to influence the balance of political power. Harmful societies invariably generate resistance. Mechanisms of social control are imperfect. Thus, expansion of popular rights and other fundamental change has occurred over decades, sometimes just years. Arguably, there has never been a time of so much popular action worldwide around so many issues stemming from the structure of harm. The global progressive movement has people-power, rich capacities, moral positions and increasingly a structural awareness, common vision and organization with which to chart a new institutional order in which the earth and popular rights come before the free market.

Ultimately, however, hope is something independent of optimism - something we may therefore always hold and convey. As Vaclav Havel put it:

"Hope is a state of mind, not of the world.... Either we have hope or we don't; it is a dimension of the soul, and it's not essentially dependent on some particular observation of the world or estimate of the situation.... Hope, in this deep and powerful sense, is not the same as joy that things are going well, or willingness to invest in enterprises that are obviously heading for success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed."[42]

Positive systemic change may be daunting, but it is essential. Recognizing this need, understanding underlying structures of harm and creating an integrated activist practice are some key steps in raising the likelihood and pace of success.


This article will appear in a forthcoming special issue of the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health.

*Skip Spitzer coordinates corporate accountability and industrial agriculture work at PANNA, Pesticide Action Network North America, in San Francisco. He has worked for almost 25 years as an activist on a wide range of social and environmental issues. As part of PANNA's Resources for Action work, he provides training in grassroots organizing, campaign development, non-violent direct action, and other activist skills.

[1] See for example: Sifry M, Watzman N. Is that a politician in your pocket?: Washington on $2 million a day. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley; 2004.

[2] See for example: Center for Responsive Politics. The Bush administration: corporate connections [Web page]. Available at:
URL: http://www.opensecrets.org/bush/cabinet.asp. Accessed September 22, 2004.

[3] Vidal J. GM lobby takes root in Bush's cabinet. Guardian (UK) 2001 Feb 1.

[4] Center for Responsive Politics. The Bush administration: Ann M. Veneman [Web page]. Available at: URL:
http://www.opensecrets.org/bush/cabinet/cabinet.veneman.asp . Accessed May 20, 2003.

[5] Savio N. The business of government: Clinton's corporate cabinet. Multinational Monitor 1993 Apr;15(4).

[6] General Motors Chairman Charlie Wilson said this to a Senate committee in 1955. See: Hartman D. What's good for General Motors.... Chronicles Magazine 2002 May.

[7] United States Department of Agriculture. Remarks of Secretary Dan Glickman at the USDA Small Farms Commission public forum; Memphis, TN; July 28, 1997; release no. 0251.97 [Web page]. Available at:
URL: http://www.usda.gov/news/releases/1997/07/0251. Accessed September 22, 2004.

[8] Manning S. Students for Sale. Nation 1999 Sep 27.

[9] Jacobson MF, Mazur LA. Marketing madness. Boulder, CO: Westview Press; 1995.

[10] Fred Gould on: National Public Radio. Science Friday: Ag biotech and developing countries [radio program, April 14, 2000]. Available at:
URL: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1072932 .

[11] For more on the structure of the mass media see: Herman E, Chomsky N. Manufacturing consent: the political economy of the mass media. London: Vintage; 1988.

[12] Pack journalism: horde copy [transcript of television program Nightline]. ABC News 1989 Sep 27.

[13] Biomonitoring refers to analysis of blood, urine, serum, saliva or tissue to identify exposure to, or the presence of, chemicals in the human body.

[14] Elias P. Scientists measure pollution in humans. 2003 Dec 27.

[15] The study also reported that 92% of all U.S. sources interviewed were white, 85% were male and, where party affiliation was identifiable, 75% were Republican. Howard I. Power sources. Extra! 2002 May.

[16] For literature emphasizing interactions between race, gender and class see: Belkhir J, American Sociological Association. Race, gender, and class bibliography [Web page]. Available at: URL: http://www.asanet.org/sections/rgcbiblio.html.

[17] Ostlin P. Gender inequalities in occupational health. Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies working papers 2000 Sep;10(9).

[18] For more about patriarchy in the U.S. see: Sapiro V. Women in American society. 4th ed. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield; 1999. For a global survey of the status of women, see: United Nations Statistics Division. The world's women 2000: trends and statistics. New York: United Nations Publications; 2000.

[19] Commission for Racial Justice. Toxic wastes and race in the United States. New York: United Church of Christ; 1987. For an interesting analysis of EPA data, showing disproportionate exposure to environmental hazards in communities with higher concentrations of lower income people and people of color, see Ash M, Fetter RT. Who Lives on the Wrong Side of the Environmental Tracks? Evidence from the EPA's Risk-Screening Environmental Indicators Model. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Political Economy Research Institute; 2002. (Working Paper Series; number 50).

[20] For more on racism in the U.S., see: Shaefer RT. Race and ethnicity in the United States. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall; 2004.

[21] A lack of awareness about the judicial system is particularly important in advancing business interests, since corporate rights typically have been advanced through court decisions. For an activists's summary of such cases, see: Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Timeline of Personhood Rights and Powers. Available at http://reclaimdemocracy.org/personhood. Accessed September 22, 2004.

[22] The Polling Company. More Americans can name Rice Krispies characters than Supreme Court justices! April 19, 2002 [Web page]. Available at:
URL: http://www.pollingcompany.com/News.asp?FormMode=ViewReleases&ID=50.

[23] Bureau of Economic Analysis. U.S. international trade in goods and services. Washington, DC: United States Department of Commerce; 2004 Jul.

[24] Includes private U.S.-owned assets and direct investment abroad at market value. Bureau of Economic Analysis. U.S. net international investment position at yearend 2003. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce; 2004 Jun 30.

[25] This is also true of national policy in the U.S. (were it to become out of kilter with corporate interests), owing to the high degree of foreign investment in the U.S. (which exceeds U.S. investment abroad).

[26] For more on these programs see: The Structural Adjustment Participatory Review International Network (SAPRIN). Structural adjustment: the SAPRI report. London: Zed Books; 2004.

[27] Hartung WD. Eisenhower's warning: the military-industrial complex forty years later. World Policy Journal 2001;18(1).

[28] Melman S. In the grip of a permanent war economy. CounterPunch 2003 Mar 15.

[29] Mekay E. U.S. business pushes for Mideast trade. Inter Press Service News Agency 2004 Oct 7.

[30] Juhasz A. The corporate invasion of Iraq. LeftTurn Magazine 2003 Aug.

[31] Coalition Provisional Authority Order No. 81: patent, industrial design, undisclosed information, integrated circuits and plant variety law of 2004. CPA/ORD/26 April 04/81.
Available at: URL: http://www.iraqcoalition.org/regulations/20040426_CPAORD_81_Patents_Law.pdf. Accessed October 20, 2004.

[32] Spitzer S. The WTO and pesticide reform. Global Pesticide Campaigner 2000;10(1).

[33] Epstein B. Grassroots environmentalism and strategies for social change. New Political Science 1995;32(Summer).

[34] For more see: Via Campesina [Web site]. Available at:
URL: http://www.viacampesina.org/.

[35] For more see: World Social Forum [Web site]. Available at
URL: http://www.forumsocialmundial.org.br/home.asp.

[36] See: Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development June 1992, Annex I: Rio declaration on environment and development. Available at URL: http://www.un.org/documents/ga/conf151/aconf15126-1annex1.htm. Accessed October 20, 2004.

[37] See for example: Lambert R. Globalization: can unions resist? South African Labour Bulletin 1998;22(6).

[38] In contract farming, agribusinesses manage certain aspects of production through highly constrained contracts with farm producers.

[39] In essence, the Precautionary Principle affirms that regulatory restrictions may be appropriate even if causal relationships are not fully established scientifically.

[40] For more see: American Public Health Association. The Precautionary Principle and children's health. In: Policy statements adopted by the governing council of the American Public Health Association, November 15, 2000. Am J Public Health 2001;91:495-496.

[41] See for example: Alternatives Task Force of the International Forum on Globalization. Alternatives to Economic Globalization: A Better World is Possible. San Francisco, California: Berrett-Koehler; 2002. And: Albert M. Parecon: Life After Capitalism. London: Verso; 2003.

[42] Havel V. Disturbing the Peace. London: Faber & Faber; 1990.



RACHEL'S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH NEWS
Environmental Research Foundation
P.O. Box 160
New Brunswick, N.J. 08903
Fax (732) 791-4603;
E-mail: erf@rachel.org


http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=betrayal

E-Mails Show Prosecutors Feared Part of Detroit Terror Case Was Weak, 'vindictive'

The e-mails revive questions about the fairness, thoroughness and conduct of a government case that once was hailed by the Bush administration as a major victory in the war on terror before it collapsed.

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB9W5PKM8E.html


From Information Clearing House

The film US TV networks dare not show

Adam Curtis has recut his explosive war on terror documentary The Power of Nightmares into a feature film - and is taking it to the festival.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8818.htm

American Exceptionalism and the Multilateral Pretence

Or, John Bolton and the New Lawlessness : John Bolton's nomination to the position of US envoy to the United Nations signals that for the US, multilateralism now means little else than the unquestioning acquiescence of the world to the demands of a military superpower that is heady with its own strength and accountable to none. The international community has ample reason to worry.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8819.htm

Anti-U.S. Riot Turns Deadly in Afghanistan

Afghan students burned an American flag and shouted slogans against the U.S. military on Thursday, as protests at reported abuse of Islam's holy book at the U.S. jail in Guantanamo Bay spread to the capital and into Pakistan.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5000444,00.html


From Information Clearing House

The people vs. Bush’s war: Put the war on trial

TESTIMONY FROM: Pablo Paredes | Monica Benderman | Howard Zinn Dr. Salam Ismael | Jo Wilding | Justin Alexander Monique Dols | Dahr Jamail | Bill Davis

http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-1/543/543_06_WarOnTrial.shtml

The veneer of fraternity

Tony Blair is not the first British prime minister to embrace a US president's mendacity, but he could well be the last.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8820.htm

Indignation Grows in U.S. Over British Prewar Documents

Critics of Bush call them proof that he and Blair never saw diplomacy as an option with Hussein.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8822.htm

Iraqi Families Take Refuge in the Desert

On the first day of a major U.S. offensive, two shells landed in Um Mazin's house. Grabbing what she could, she fled with four other women and 21 children. "We ran away from the American bombings," said Um Mazin, as the wind picked up, sending sand swirling around her. "The Americans do not hit the gunmen, they hit the houses of civilians."

http://story.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050512/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_refugees


From Information Clearing House

The religious right of America is anti-American

by Carolyn Baker

The religious right of twenty-first century America is anti-American, inherently violent, and a cruel, tyrannical, punitive, force of death and destruction. In its mindset, adult human lives do not matter because the human condition itself is inherently evil resulting in eternal and everlasting punishment in hell unless its members are redeemed.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8816.htm

Good War Myth: 60 Years is Enough

by Mickey Z.

After whipping the original axis of evil in a noble and popular war, the US and its allies can now wave the banner of humanitarianism and intervene with impunity across the globe without their motivations being severely questioned...

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8815.htm

No Child Left Behind is underway - Attention all parents and people opposed to military recruiters getting names of high schoolers

A campaign to get 1 million kids opted out from the little known provision of No Child Left Behind is underway. You probably know that public high schools must hand over personal information about students -- including minors -- to local military recruiters. Parents can get their kids off this list by submitting a request in writing to their school district superintendent. The website is http://www.leavemychildalone.org

I was wondering if you could help by passing this information on. The groups who initiated this action are looking for people willing to hold house parties in their area for a letter writing campaign on June 1st so feel free to forward this to them or start one in your neighborhood.

And please, even if you don't have kids in high school, you can help by supporting legislation by Mike Honda, the Student Privacy Protection Act. Just go the the website, http://www.leavemychildalone.org

Thanks!

Kim

"Real ID" Bill, Patriot Act "Sneak and Peek"

http://mitglied.lycos.de/newsomega/news/may_12_2005_aclu.htm

Rupert Murdock fights for the right to lie to us

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=83657;show_parent=1

Let's face it - the state has lost its mind

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=83629;show_parent=1

The Tide Turns Against Bolton

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=83624;show_parent=1

Airports begin next step - Iris Scans

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=83617;show_parent=1

The Destruction of America

http://www.destructionofamerica.4t.com/
http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=83616;show_parent=1

BUSH MENDACITY WILL SHOCK HISTORIANS

Bill Gallagher, a Peabody Award winner
Niagara Falls Reporter
May 10 2005

DETROIT -- When historians write about our times, they'll shake their heads and wonder how so many people could believe so many lies for so long. They might actually write two parallel books -- one describing the cascading lies and deceptions George W. Bush and the Republicans sold and the other telling the truth.

We're told, in effect, that trampling on civil liberties and eroding freedom are a sure way to protect us from terrorists who envy our freedom. That colossal lie will be one of the lasting stains on this era, and I fear the day coming when the Busheviks or their political heirs, gripped in fascist fever, will silence those who expose the fraud. [...] Read the rest at: http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/gallagher213.html


© Virginia Metze

Bush Seeks to Regain GOP Support

by TOM RAUM
The Associated Press
04:46 PM EST May 11, 2005


WASHINGTON - He can't just blame the Democrats. Some lawmakers in President Bush's own party are giving him an increasingly hard time over everything from Social Security to a free-trade pact for Central America to his plan to ease immigration laws. It may be an early lame-duck warning for his presidency.

Bush returned from a celebratory trip to Europe to a domestic agenda badly in need of his quick attention. And one of his chores is to shore up GOP support where possible. [...] Read the rest at AP News: http://tinyurl.com/737e9


© Virginia Metze

Senator Kennedy's Floor Speech on the Nuclear Option

“America has stood for fairness, opportunity and justice. Generation, after generation, our nation has been able, often with intense debates, to give greater meaning to these values in the lives of our citizens.

But what we have seen in recent years is a breach of these values in order to reward the powerful at the expense of average Americans.

Those in power passed massive tax breaks for the wealthy and short-changed everyone else.

They granted sweetheart deals to Halliburton Corporation in Iraq while our troops went without armor. [...] Read more of this great speech from Ted Kennedy, who has suffered so much at the hands of Republicans, but still "hangs in there." http://tinyurl.com/djosk


© Virginia Metze

Report says Bush administration targets refugees instead of terrorists

bY ALFONSO CHARDY
Knight Ridder Newspapers
Posted on Tue, May. 10, 2005

MIAMI - (KRT) - Samir J. Hussain, an Iraqi national, was detained by Border Patrol agents when the Greyhound bus that he was traveling on stopped in Fort Lauderdale on July 24, 2003.

Hussain was taken to the Krome detention center in West Miami-Dade where he was held for months while his case was resolved.

While in detention, he says, he was "harassed and taunted" by other detainees, "labeled a terrorist" and "blamed for the 9/11" attacks. [...] Read the rest at the Lexington Herald-Leader at kentucky.com: http://tinyurl.com/blvmj


© Virginia Metze

Large payments from Diebold are fueling influence-peddling for a $45 million Cook County/Chicago voting machine contract

Black Box Voting forums, May 9, 2005:

Large payments from Diebold are fueling influence-peddling for a $45 million Cook County/Chicago voting machine contract. Diebold has been lobbying both Ohio and Cook County/Chicago through a small corporation formed by a Republican and two well-connected Democrats. Diebold is reportedly making payments directly to the individuals and payments are also flowing through a corporation formed by the three partners. These payments are then paid out to others. When asked what the payments to others are buying, Black Box Voting was told that the Diebold funds pay “subcontractors.” We asked what the subcontractors do, and were told that they do “largely persuasion.” [...] Read the rest at: http://tinyurl.com/agh6n


© Virginia Metze

Family values, GOP style

Tim Grieve
May 10, 2005
Salon.com "War Room"

We've been so busy lately noting the nuclear-specific hypocrisy of Republican politicians that we've been derelict in our duty to bring you news of the usual, garden-variety GOP hypocrisy. But that particular brand of news never really stops -- especially when it comes to matters of "family values" -- so perhaps we're due for an update.

We begin in Denver, where Vice President Dick Cheney made a stop Monday to raise campaign cash for Rep. Marilyn Musgrave. What did Cheney have to say about his flip-flopping support for Musgrave Monday? Well, nothing, only that it turns out that Musgrave has turned out "to be exactly the right person for the job." [...] Read the rest at Salon.com: http://tinyurl.com/72fyf


© Virginia Metze

Janice Karpinski says Rumsfeld knew about Abu Ghraib

Video - Nightline:
http://www.edwardsdavid.com/BushVideos/nightline_janice_karpinski_rumsfeld_050512-01.rm


Informant: David Edwards

Has the War on Iran Begun?

Jim Lobe on the violence in Khuzestan.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/ips/lobe209.html

MPs demand parliamentary inquiry into voting reform

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=637994

Human Rights Watch report shows US sending dozens to be tortured in Egypt

http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/2775/

Informant: jensenmk

From ufpj-news

America losing the war of occupation in Iraq

http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=1178

America has made Iraq much worse

http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=1182

America refuses British climate change measures

http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=1184

Bush questioned about secret Iraq war decision

http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=1181

American TV afraid to show British war on terror documentary

http://www.theinsider.org/mailing/article.asp?id=1179

Speak up for Saskatchewan's Wildlands

http://www.wildcanada.net/documents/aa-221f.asp

Whales 'led astray by magnetism'

FYI - Anna

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4538959.stm

Brutaler Spaß: Schlägereien per Handy filmen

http://www.xonio.com/news/news_15344974.html?tid1=7400&tid2=0


Dreijähriger gerät mit Hand in Rolltreppe

Nach 15 Minuten war das Kind befreit. Für die Mutter war die Rettungsaktion zu viel: Die Frau fiel in Ohnmacht.

Zu ihrem Glück übrigens: So musste sie nicht mitansehen, wie skrupellose Schaulustige das leidende Kind mit dem Handy fotografierten. Der Bub wurde in die Klinik gebracht.

http://www.tirol.com/chronik/oberland/10100/index.do (Auszug)


Nachricht von der BI Bad Dürkheim

Hochfrequenzen wirken auf Organismus

Dr. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam aus Bamberg berichtete von ihren Erfahrungen mit Mobilfunksendemasten

BAD STAFFELSTEIN. "Mobilfunk macht krank" lautete das Thema eines Vortrags des Bund Naturschutz im Foyer der Adam-Riese-Halle. Referentin und Ärztin Dr. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam aus Bamberg berichtete von ihren Erfahrungswerten und die Risiken der Hochfrequenzen.

Elisabeth Kraus erläuterte zu Beginn, dass das Thema Mobilfunk und dessen Risiken auch in Bad Staffelstein ganz vielen Leuten auf den Nägeln brenne: Grund dafür sei das Bestreben der Mobilfunkbetreiber, den bestehenden Sendemast zu verstärken. Problematisch sei dabei, dass sich der Sender in unmittelbarer Nähe zum Alten- und Pflegeheim, zur Obermain Therme, zu Arztpraxen und zum Klinikum befinde. Die Risiken dieser Technologie bedenke man dabei nicht: Die Hochfrequenzen hätten negative Auswirkungen auf den menschlichen Organismus - und außerdem sei das Bad Staffelsteiner Netz bereits jetzt ausreichend abgedeckt im Bereich des Mobilfunks.

Tumorerkrankungen

Dr. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam berichtete von nachgewiesenermaßen erhöhten Fallzahlen von Tumorerkrankungen in unmittelbarer Nähe zu Sendemasten (Studie Naila), doch keiner gehe hin und überprüfe, warum das der Fall sei: "Der Grund liegt auf der Hand: Man will schlichtweg nichts finden", betonte die Referentin.

Gleiche Beobachtungen habe man in Hof gemacht: Hier stehe seit zehn Jahren ein Mast direkt im Wohngebiet, im Umkreis von 100 Metern sei es zu 40 Karzinom-Erkrankungen gekommen: "Diese Zahlen sind Wahnsinn - doch es passiert nichts, keiner kümmert sich." Dass elektromagnetische Felder und Hochfrequenzen keine Gesundheitsgefahren darstellen, sei eine irreführende Behauptung: "An keinem einzigen Standort Deutschlands wurde vom Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz oder anderen Wissenschaftlern eine Erhebung über Kopfschmerzen oder Schlafstörungen gemacht. Außerdem sind nicht die Physiker und Radiologen Experten für die menschliche Gesundheit, sondern wir Ärzte", mahnte sie.

Erfolgreich gewehrt

In Bamberg habe sich die Bürger- und Ärzteschaft gegen weitere Sendemasten gewehrt, habe dem Stadtrat die Risiken aufgezeigt: 130 Ärzte haben sich zum "Bamberger Appell" zusammengeschlossen - und es habe gewirkt, man konnte das Aufstellen weiterer Sendemasten (vorerst) verhindern. Selbst habe sie sich ein Messgerät für elektromagnetische Felder und Hochfrequenzen gekauft. In 356 Haushalten in ganz Oberfranken habe sie dann Erhebungen und Messungen gemacht - und das Ergebnis sei erschreckend gewesen: Je höher die Belastung pro Quadratmeter, desto mehr klagten die Menschen über Schlafstörungen, Wesensveränderungen, Konzentrationsstörungen, Unruhe, Unbehagen, Immunschwäche, Tinnitus, Übelkeit und mehr. "Auch der DECT-Standard bei schnurlosen Telefonen ist sehr bedenklich: 24 Stunden am Tag funkt die Basisstation, sogar durch Decken und Wände", erläuterte die Ärztin. Anders dagegen der Standard "CT1+", der nur funke, wenn man wirklich auch telefoniere. "Eine DECT-Basisstation ist nichts anderes wie ein Sendemast im eigenen Haus", unterstrich Dr. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam. "Hochfrequenzen führen zu einem neuen Krankheitsbild mit vielen Symptomen", bilanzierte die Bambergerin. Hautnah ließen sich die Zuhörer von Gabriele Zieglschmid aus der Domstadt schildern, wie sich durch die Einwirkungen von Hochfrequenzen durch einen nahen Sendemasten ihre ganze Familie veränderte. Sie sprach sogar von seiner "Mobilfunk-Mafia", die sich nur um den Profit und nicht um die Gesundheit der betroffenen Menschen kümmere.

"Wir dürfen uns unsere Zukunft und unsere Gesundheit nicht zerstören lassen", forderte auch Dr. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam. Sie verwies auf ein Volksgehren "Für Gesundheitsvorsorge beim Mobilfunk", das vom 5. bis 18. Juli laufe. Ein reger Erfahrungsaustausch mit Diskussion schloss sich an. Einige Gäste allerdings mahnten, dass man so realistisch sein müsse, dass Handys für einige Berufe unabdingbar seien und nicht völlig verbannt werden können. Dennoch müsse man sich über die Risiken von Mobilfunksendern in Wohngebieten klar werden und Lösungen finden.

Wenig Interesse bei Stadträten

Moniert wurde gegen Ende, dass sich vom Stadtrat nicht gerade viele hatten blicken lassen, obwohl das Thema Bad Staffelstein derzeit akut betreffe. Anerkennenden Applaus gab es dagegen für Werner Freitag (SBUN), Heike Kolb (SPD) und Zweiten Bürgermeister Jürgen Kohmann (CSU), die als einzige aus dem Gremium zum Vortrag gekommen waren. -mdr-


http://portal.obermain.de/pub/index.php?mid=75&aid=408&if=71983607.html


Nachricht von der BI Bad Dürkheim



Krebs Cluster
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Krebs+Cluster

Wissenschaft und Mobilfunk
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/293807/

Abstimmung der Ahnungslosen – Die EU-Verfassung im Bundestag

http://www.ndrtv.de/panorama/archiv/2005/0512/eu_verfassung.html

Der Link zum Video (5 Min., Real Player)
http://tinyurl.com/8f8jm
bzw.:
http://video.ndr.de/ramgen/video/vs/20050512_214300_tv_panorama_2145_eu_verfassung.rm

Ärger mit Mobilfunkmasten: Info-Abend der Bürgerinitiative „Gesundleben in Allach“

Bürgerinitiative Gesund leben in Allach informiert

Info-Abend der Bürgerinitiative „Gesundleben in Allach“

Ärger mit Mobilfunkmasten
Dienstag, 31. Mai 2005, 20 Uhr
Vereinsheim Allach, Eversbuschstr. 161

Referenten:
Prof. Dr. habil. Klaus Buchner, Atom-Physiker, ÖDP
Dr. Claus Scheingraber, Zahnarzt, Arbeitskreis Elektro-Biologie

Weitere Informationen:
http://www.franz-titscher.de/mobilfunk/html/infoabend.html

Einladung als pdf bitte runterladen, drucken und verteilen!
http://www.franz-titscher.de/mobilfunk/Infoabend.pdf

Inquiry into cancer cluster fears at 'tower of doom'

Residents' Association chairman Bill Marrow, 65, said: "Every time I pick up a headache these days I'm worried I could be the next person to be struck down.

"We're a very close-knit community here and it's our friends and family who keep falling victim to the disease at an alarming rate."

Neighbour Reg Blakemore, 77, who is currently nursing his wife Monica back to health after she fell victim to cancer, said: "We love it here. It's been a fantastic place to retire to but we're so worried that our health is suffering with each passing day. I fear that one day someone will come along and tell us we were right about this all along."

Eileen O'Connor of Seriously Concerned Residents Against Masts (SCRAM) says the Liscard House curse reflects a growing trend.

She said: "Every piece of research undertaken shows that at buildings where many masts are present there is always a cancer cluster within 400 yards. This case follows a survey in Birmingham where a number of residents in high-rise flats were suffering serious illnesses."

Duncan McGraw, community liaison officer for Orange, said last night the telecommunications company would do everything possible to work with the PCT during its investigation.

He said: "The radiation coming from the mast is well below the guidelines from ICNARP (the International Commission of Neon Ironising Radiation). But we will do everything possible to allay the residents' concerns.."

Vodafone was unavailable for comment last night.

jessicashaughnessy@dailypost.co.uk

http://tinyurl.com/79o9n


Informant: Sylvie


Clusters in England
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/678769/

'Electric Comet' Could Burn The House Of Science

http://www.rense.com/general63/elele.htm
http://www.thunderbolts.info/velikovsky-ghost.htm


Informant: V

Bush dances to sour music

05/12/05

As I was speaking, I realized that my tone has changed. Usually, when I talk about Bush, anger spits from my mouth. But now unspeakable sadness permeated my voice and spirit. Although half the people in America feel the way I do, the world sees us all as authoritarian, materialistic, greedy, arrogant, ignorant, sadistic and cruel. The most painful part, I told my friend, is that I see no good coming from any of this. Bush is a puppet dancing to sour music, and for the first time in my life, I am without hope...

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0512-20.htm


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

from Common Dreams, by Joyce Marcel

Misery accomplished

05/12/05

Has it really been two years since George W. Bush stuffed his codpiece and solemnly announced, 'Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed?' Mark Follman dredged up that quote the other day in Salon's War Room, which is always worth the price of admission. The price of Bush's admission? He'll never admit to failure, but the Marines of Lima Company are feeling the pain of that, as the Washington Post's Ellen Knickmeyer reports this morning. The major combat operation in Anbar Province, near the Syrian border, has practically wiped out one of Lima's squads...

http://villagevoice.com/blogs/bushbeat/archive/000924.php

from Village Voice, by Ward Harkavy


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Stay angry about Real ID

05/12/05

If I could tell people one thing about the Real ID Act, that would be it: Stay angry. Stay very, very angry. I'm amazed at the calm in the aftermath of Senate passage of this Stalinist monstrosity. And I don't just mean I'm amazed at the mainstream media's lack of clue. I mean that civil libertarians and other commentators on 'our side' are largely treating the Real ID Act as just one more bad development in an era in which bad developments have become routine. ... The Real ID Act is not just one more ugly development. The Real ID Act imposes a national ID card. (And don't argue that different states will have different card cosmetics; and don't use phrases like 'sets the stage for.' This is national ID.) This is not just another bad development. This is a defining moment...

http://www.clairewolfe.com/wolfesblog/00001399.html

from WolfesBlog, by Claire Wolfe


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Politics in an age of fiction

05/12/05

Perhaps in a way all rulership has to be a kind of fiction. The difference is that [King of Spain Philip II's] equivalent today, the head of the globe's 'lone superpower,' is at the center of a vast machine for the creation of fiction, a kind of ever-growing assembly line for its production. I suppose the truth is that the human ego -- whether that of the man who 'runs' America (and desires to run much of the [known] world) or the CEO of any globe-spanning transnational corporation -- only has so much expandability. Even a single megalomanic ego, an ego stretched to the limits, would have no way of taking in, no less governing, such a world. Not really. Perhaps this is why, increasingly, the President of the United States has himself become a kind of fiction...

http://tinyurl.com/ayup6

from Mother Jones, by Tom Engelhardt


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Speaking of Iran

05/13/05

Since the United States is not only dishonoring the treaty by not reducing its weapons, but in fact has been developing new nuclear weapons, non-nuclear nations are condemning the U.S. for violating the treaty while trying to impose it upon other nations. George Bush has responded to these condemnations by saying that -- you guessed it -- 9/11 changed everything...

http://www.lewrockwell.com/browne/browne55.html

from LewRockwell.Com, by Harry Browne


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Iraq falls apart

05/13/05

The Bush administration's response to 9/11 has been anything but rational. The worldwide wave of anti-Americanism created by our actions -- the invasion of Iraq, the threats to Syria and Iran, the arrogant posturing that has turned even the president's Russian soul-mate against us -- is properly laid at the White House's doorstep. Instead of keeping us safe, U.S. foreign policy is endangering each and every American, at home as well as abroad. That is why the threat of terrorism is greater today than ever. As members of Congress and other government officials ran from the U.S. Capitol, squealing with terror, surely an approximation of this thought must have crossed their minds. For the first time since 9/11, the city of Washington, D.C., went into Code Red -- the highest state of emergency. It's about time...

http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=5936

from AntiWar.Com, by Justin Raimondo


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

The End of America: May 10, 2005

05/11/05

On Tuesday, May 10, 2005, America became a true police state. Your U.S. senators voted -- unanimously, with no discussion, and without even reading the bill -- to create a national ID card. The Real ID Act blackmails state governments into turning their drivers licenses into a draconian tool of the federal homeland security apparatus. ... We can expect lawsuits against national ID, including at least one suit led by state governments. However, nearly all the opposition from state governments focuses on one area: They're upset because the federal government didn't offer them extra money to enslave us. If Congress bribes them with enough millions and billions, they'll gladly sell our freedom. Ultimately, real resistance is up to us, as individuals. There are certain courses of action JPFO cannot recommend. But every freedom lover should be pleased if all the people who had a hand in creating Real ID act lost their jobs -- soon. And those individuals who truly value their (and their children's) futures should seriously consider making national ID their line in the sand...

http://jpfo.org/alert20050511.htm


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Bush and Blair Agreed in July 2002 to Invade Iraq

According to the Los Angeles Times, " ...the documents [released in the United Kingdom on May 1] help prove that the leaders [Bush and Blair] made a secret decision to oust Iraqi President Saddam Hussein nearly a year before launching their attack, shaped intelligence to that aim and never seriously intended to avert the war through diplomacy."

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3219

Nations say US shirks its arms vows

The United States is seeking to use a major UN conference on nuclear nonproliferation to highlight the dangers of North Korea and Iran, but has been undermined by allegations from some developing countries that Washington itself has backtracked on commitments to reduce its nuclear arsenal, according to UN diplomats and delegates to the conference.

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3213

Blix Blames U.S. for Nuke-weapons Stalemate

Washington isn’t taking “the common bargain” of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty as seriously as it once did, and that’s dimming global support for the U.S. campaign to shut down the North Korean and Iranian nuclear programs, the former chief U.N. weapons inspector said. Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton, by questioning the value of treaties and international law, has also damaged the U.S. position, Hans Blix said.

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3212

Stand Down: Army to Spend Day Retraining Recruiters due to Widespread Scandals

Recruiting has fallen through the floor and through the basement, as citizens vote with their feet against the Iraq War. Recruiting usually improves during economic hard times, but not now. Will the Marines stand down as wel because they can't meet their goals? Do these developments portend a return to the military draft to support the Iraq War?

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3211

Alltägliche Schikanen

"Verkaufen Sie sich nicht unter Wert - sagen Sie lieber gleich ab". Die Absageagentur schliesst am 15.5.2005

Am Freitag, den 13.05.05 gibt es ab 20:00 Uhr eine Abschlussfeier: Ausstellung aller verschickten Absagen sowie einem Großteil der Kommunikation, die durch die Absageagentur zustande kam. Danach Party mit DJs und DJanes. Am Sonntag (15.5) hat die Agentur von 14-19 Uhr letztmalig geöffnet… Falls Sie nicht aus Berlin sind, haben Sie die Möglichkeit, eine Dokumentation des Projektes inkl. einer Auswahl der verschickten Absagen auf unserer Homepage anzusehen: zu finden ab 15.05.05 unter: http://www.absageagentur.de


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Arbeitsverwaltungen wehren sich - wogegen?

„Alles im Argen“, die Wirklichkeit in den Job-Centern

Ende April versandte ver.di Bezirk Nordhessen einen Offenen Brief an die Landräte der Landkreise Kassel, Schwalm - Eder, Waldeck Frankenberg, Werra Meißner, den Oberbürgermeister der Stadt Kassel und die Direktorin der Bundesagentur für Arbeit in Kassel. Wir dokumentieren den Brief samt der Resolution (pdf)

http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/realpolitik/zwang/imargen.pdf


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8


An alle SozialarbeiterInnen, BetreuerInnen und solche, die Ein Euro-JobberInnen anleiten!

„Der Text wurde von einer Genossin der Kölner Kampagne Agenturschluss geschrieben und beschreibt auf einfühlsame wie eindringliche Weise die veränderten Bedingungen der Sozialarbeit und -pädagogik in Zeiten von Hartz IV. Wir geben ihn der betroffenen erufsgruppe mit Freude als Denkzettel an die Hand. (H. Stuhlfauth)…“ Kommentar vom 20.05.05 von „Eine kritische Sozialarbeiterin“ bei der FAU http://www.fau.org/artikel/art_050520-134907


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 13

"Kommunen missbrauchen 1 E Jobs" - ver.di Personalräte befürchten Arbeitsplatzabbau

Abendschein: "Kommunen missbrauchen 1 E Jobs" - ver.di Personalräte befürchten Arbeitsplatzabbau

„Anlässlich ihrer Frühjahrstagung am 11. Mai haben sich die ver.di Personalräte der großen hessischen Städte intensiv mit der Umsetzung der Hartz IV Gesetzgebung befasst. Im Mittelpunkt stand neben der andauernden personellen Unterbesetzung der neu geschaffenen Arbeitsgemeinschaften und in den optierenden Kommunen die Einführung von Arbeitsgelegenheiten für Langzeitarbeitslose (sogenannte 1 € Jobs) im Kommunalen Bereich. Die Personalräte sehen in ihren Dienststellen viele Versuche, zur Zeit nicht besetzte oder in den letzten Jahren trotz fortbestehender Aufgaben abgebaute Stellen mit „1 Euro - Jobbern“ zu besetzen und auf diese Weise die strapazierten Haushalte zu sanieren…“ Meldung vom presse.dienst von ver.di Hessen vom 12. Mai 2005.

http://www.verdi-hessen.de/meldung_volltext.php3?si=42836d0ce73d3&id=4283656f91509&akt=news


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Kreishandwerkerschaft wirft Dortmunder Diensten (DoDi) vor, sich mit 1-Euro-Jobbern in den Markt der Maler und Lackierer zu drängen

Lackierer haben die Nase gestrichen voll

Jetzt ist der Streit da: Die Kreishandwerkerschaft wirft den Dortmunder Diensten (DoDi) vor, sich mit 1-Euro-Jobbern in den Markt der Maler und Lackierer zu drängen. Die haben die Nase davon gestrichen voll. "Wir haben Informationen darüber, dass DoDi 2004 rund 1000 Eimer Farbe à 12,5 Liter bestellt hat", so Assessor Joachim Susewind, "und die können ja auch noch woanders Farbe kaufen." Es gehe um Verschönerungsarbeiten in Schulen. Dies sei eine Menge, die ein 10- bis 12-Mann-Betrieb jährlich benötige. "Wir reden hier nicht mehr über Kosmetikarbeiten", fügt Susewind an, "das sind klassische öffentliche Aufträge fürs Handwerk." Die Firmen zahlten schließlich Steuern, "da gehört es sich, die Aufträge öffentlich auszuschreiben". Artikel von Dirk Berger in der Westfälischen Rundschau vom 09. Mai 2005.

http://archiv.westfaelische-rundschau.de/main_mappe2.asp?file=1&docid=01415506&verid=001


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Nach dem Studium: Hartz IV - Arbeitsgelegenheiten für HochschulabsolventInnen

Das Studium soll sich wieder lohnen. Meint wohl die Caritas und bietet „einige interessante Arbeitsgelegenheiten für HochschulabsolventInnen“ an. Selbstverständlich alle im „öffentlichen Interesse“ und „zusätzlich“. Wer das Studium also endlich geschafft hat, ganz groß rauskommen und endlich arbeiten will, statt immer nur zu protestieren, findet weitere Informationen auf der Seite der Katholischen Hochschulgemeinde an der Uni Frankfurt.

http://www.khg-frankfurt.de/sose2005/frameunten/gesellschaftethik/hartz_iv.htm


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Ein-Euro-Jobber kämpft um sein Recht: 52-Jähriger fühlt sich als "billige Arbeitskraft" missbraucht

Gütetermin vor Arbeitsgericht scheitert

„Nur eine "Güteverhandlung" vor dem Arbeitsgericht. Doch die Klage von Helmut W. wird bundesweit Wellen schlagen. Davon ist Wolfgang Lubig von der DGB-Rechtsschutz überzeugt. Erstmals nämlich besteht ein Euro-Jobber darauf, dass die Regelungen des Sozialgesetzbuches II eingehalten werden - nicht nur von den durch Hartz IV Gebeutelten, sondern auch vom "Maßnahmeträger"…Artikel aus dem Oberpfalznetz vom 05.05.2005.

http://www.zeitung.org/onetz/712635-118,1,0.html


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Hartz IV: Strenge Ämter, milde Richter

Strenge Ämter, milde Richter. Vom Auto bis zur Eigenheimzulage: Im Zweifelsfall klären die Gerichte, was ein Arbeitsloser behalten darf.
„Gut vier Monate alt ist das Hartz-IV-Gesetz mit seinen einschneidenden Änderungen. Und schon gibt es über ein Dutzend Urteile, in denen Sozialgerichte im so genannten einstweiligen Rechtsschutzverfahren (ER) Entscheidungen der Arbeitsagenturen aufgehoben oder bestätigt haben…“ Artikel von Wolfgang Büser in der Sueddeutschen Zeitung vom 10.05.2005.

http://www.sueddeutsche.de/jobkarriere/erfolggeld/artikel/885/52833/3/


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Das unfehlbare Ministerium

Bundeskanzler Schröder dürfte es daher als späte Genugtuung empfunden haben, daß Trittin die erstbeste Gelegenheit nutzte, das Bundesamt an die kurze Leine zu legen. Zum Nachfolger des BfS-Präsidenten Kaul, eines mit rund 350 wissenschaftlichen Veröffentlichungen ausgewiesenen Experten für Strahlenphysik, ernannte Trittin Wolfram König, einen Ingenieur für Architektur und Gartenbau, der bei den Grünen eine Blitzkarriere gemacht hatte. Vom Sprecher des Regierungspräsidenten von Hannover war er zum Umweltstaatssekretär in Magdeburg aufgestiegen. Von der Atmosphäre, die der fachfremde neue Präsident König in seiner Behörde verbreitet, zeugen anonyme Briefe, die von Einschüchterungen, Vetternwirtschaft und manipulierten Ausschreibungen handeln.

http://tinyurl.com/a9s5k (Auszug)

AlgII und Wohnen

Bundeskoordinierungstreffen von Erwerbslosen- und Sozialhilfeinitiativen ruft zu massenhaftem Widerspruch auf

„Zur eheähnlichen Gemeinschaft und zur Nicht-Anrechnung der Eigenheimzulage gibt es nun eine Reihe richtungweisender Entscheidungen verschiedener Sozialgerichte. Das Bundesstreffen der Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft der Erwerbslosen- und Sozialhilfeinitiativen (BAG-SHI) nimmt diese für die ALG-II-Betroffenen erfreulichen Gerichtsentscheidungen zum Anlass, zum massenhaften Widerspruch und zur Klage gegen die bisherigen Ablehnungsbescheide der Behörden aufzurufen. Wirtschaftsminister Clement wird aufgefordert, nun von Amtswegen zu handeln und den Betroffenen endlose und unsinnige Widerspruchs- und Gerichtsverfahren zu ersparen…“ Pressemitteilung der BAG-SHI vom 09.05.2005 mit den wichtigsten Entscheidungen zur eheähnlichen Gemeinschaft.

http://www.bag-shi.de/presse/archiv/050509-pm-bundestreffen


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Leitfaden Alg II/Sozialhilfe

Endlich ist es geschafft. Rainer Roth (Prof. für Sozialwissenschaften an der FH Frankfurt) und Harald Thome (Referent für Arbeitslosen- und Sozialhilferecht bei Tacheles e.V.) haben den umfangreichen Leitfaden zum Thema Arbeitslosengeld II/Sozialhilfe fertig gestellt (ISBN: 3-932246-50-0). Er ist auf dem neusten Stand (März 2005), hat 364 Seiten und erläutert anhand von 123 Stichpunkten die aktuelle Rechtslage. Er kostet inklusive der Versandkosten 7,50 Euro und kann folgendermaßen bestellt werden: per Brief: AG TuWas; Gleimstr. 3; 60318 Frankfurt oder per email: agtuwas@web.de mailto:agtuwas@web.de bzw. per Fax: 069/1533-2633. Im Internet: http://www.agtuwas.de

Alle Stichpunkte, die im Leitfaden behandelt werden finden sich unter: http://www.agtuwas.de/leitfaden_sozhilfe.html Dort finden sich auch Leseproben zu folgenden Stichworten: Arbeit; Arbeitsgelegenheiten; Einstweilige Anordnung; Regelsatz.


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8



Wir müssen unseren Newsletter vom Freitag, dem 13.05.2005 korrigieren. Die Seite der „AG tu was“ ist momentan vom Netz. Daher gelten für alle InteressentInnen des neu erschienenen „Leitfadens ALGII/Sozialhilfe“ neue Links: Endlich ist es geschafft. Rainer Roth (Prof. für Sozialwissenschaften an der FH Frankfurt) und Harald Thome (Referent für Arbeitslosen- und Sozialhilferecht bei Tacheles e.V.) haben den umfangreichen Leitfaden zum Thema Arbeitslosengeld II/Sozialhilfe fertig gestellt ( ISBN: 3-932246-50-0) Er ist auf dem neusten Stand (März 2005), hat 364 Seiten und erläutert anhand von 123 Stichpunkten die aktuelle Rechtslage. Er kostet inklusive der Versandkosten 7,50 Euro und kann folgendermaßen bestellt werden: per Brief: AG TuWas; Gleimstr. 3; 60318 Frankfurt oder per email: agtuwas@web.de bzw. per Fax: 069/1533-2633.

Einige Stichpunkte, die im Leitfaden behandelt werden sowie Textauszüge finden sich unter: http://www.bag-shi.de/leitfaden-alg2


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 10

PSÜV Service- Point für Humankapital: Nutzwertanalyse des Grades der Gesellschaftsfähigkeit von Personen

Prolet oder Faktor Arbeit? Bestandsaufnahme des aktuellen Menschenbildes

PSÜV Service- Point für Humankapital

Der PSÜV (Psychisch-Sozialer-Überwachungs-Verein) ist der TÜV für den Menschen. Sind Sie noch gesellschaftsfähig? Lassen Sie sich checken! Der PSÜV bewertet psychosozial, ökonomisch und gesundheitlich. Persönliche Verhältnisse werden analysiert und führen zu einer Bewertung des Menschen. Funktionieren Sie noch oder funktionieren Sie schon nicht mehr? Welchen Beitrag leisten Sie zur Gesellschaft? Haben Sie noch Arbeit? Wie viele Kreditkarten besitzen Sie? Ist Ihr Alter abgesichert? Haben Sie einen iPod? Wie sieht Ihre Zukunft aus? Der PSÜV ermittelt in einer Nutzwertanalyse den Grad der Gesellschaftsfähigkeit von Personen. Nun auch online:
http://www.peterkees.de/psuev.htm


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Finger weg vom Geschäft mit den entrechteten Zwangsdiensten

Aktion Agenturschluss

Am Freitag, den 20. Mai wird es in mehreren Städten Aktionen gegen die Vermittlungsstellen und Beschäftigungsträger von Ein-Euro-Jobs geben. Unsere Forderung lautet "Finger weg vom Geschäft mit den entrechteten Zwangsdiensten!"

Stellt Eure Berichte und Fotos bei http://de.indymedia.org ins Netz. Wir sammeln die Beiträge und stellen sie auf der Agenturschluss-Seite zusammen.

Falls Ihr Eure Aktion vorab bekannt machen wollt, könnt Ihr eine Ankündigung/Pressemitteilung an agentur_schluss@yahoo.com schicken. Die lokale Pressearbeit machen die Gruppen vor Ort selbst.

Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 8

Auswirkung des Mobiltelefonierens auf die roten Blutkörperchen

http://omega.twoday.net/stories/568914/

Wissenschaft und Mobilfunk

http://omega.twoday.net/stories/293807/

Bleibende Mutationen in Fruchtfliegen durch Handy Strahlung

http://omega.twoday.net/stories/688725/ (Englisch)

Wissenschaft und Mobilfunk
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/688802/

Permanent mutations in fruit flies by cell phone radiation

Friday May 13th 2005, 10:51 am

On May 3rd on this list I posted an article on how two German high school students investigated the influence of using a mobile phone on the red blood cells.

Omega see under:
Cell Phones May Harm Blood Cells
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/592426/

Now we have a American high school student (below) researching for mutations in fruit flies exposed to wireless RF radiation. A growing trend I hope.

Its good that these young researchers didn’t first get expert advice from the likes of Motorola. According to Motorola’s brought-and-paid-for scientists, Swicord, Joyner and Elder, they already have all the data to show that all is wonderfully safe with cell phones, even for toddlers - so why waste scarce research funds on doing “unnecessary” research.

Replace “unnecessary” with “damaging” and its more to the point.

Don Maisch

PRESS RELEASE MAY 12, 2005

Permanent mutations in fruit flies by cell phone radiation
http://www.emfacts.com/weblog/index.php?p=47



Effects of mobile phone radiation on reproduction and development in Drosophila melanogaster
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/287969/

Effect of GSM 900MHz Mobile Phone Radiation on the Reproductive Capacity of Drosophila Melanogaster
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/327118/

NUKING DEMOCRACY

With the Republicans threatening a vote on the judges next week, I thought the enclosed article might give some ammunition to pressure any possible swing Senators, to not blow up 200 years of Senate traditions, just so the Republicans can ram through any ultra-right judges that they choose.

Do please pass it on to anyone whose voice might be heard.

PL



NUKING DEMOCRACY

At the height of the nuclear arms race, those who marched against it used to say that in the ashes of a nuclear war, no one could tell a capitalist from a communist. "Not necessarily," others would joke, "Richard Perle could tell." For Perle, even total annihilation would have its victors and losers, and he knew which side he wanted to be on.

Perle has continued to preach the virtues of usable nuclear weapons while helping orchestrate our invasion of Iraq. Now he's a key allied strategist of an administration willing to obliterate democracy itself if they don't get their way on judicial nominees and everything else.

I'm thinking of the ease with which Trent Lott, Bill Frist, and other Republicans have talked of a "nuclear option" to intimidate the Democrats into capitulating on every right wing judge that Bush sends to Congress.

Although Republicans have backed off from using the phrase since it began polling negative, it may reveal more than they intended about their Party. They doesn't just seek to enact particular programs, but have done their best to turn politics into total war, seeking to annihilate the opposition completely.

Their talk of political nuclear strikes in fact goes further than the actual Cold War arms race. The logic of Mutually Assured Destruction was at least partly defensive, even if its brinksmanship almost destroyed the planet. The Soviets wouldn't attack us for risk of being annihilated. We'd do the same. A precarious balance would hold. Of course the US didn't just use nuclear weapons for nuclear deterrence: We brandished them against the Chinese in Korea and offered them to the French in Vietnam. Nixon, through Kissinger, threatened their use on North Vietnam if they didn't surrender, then backed off in response to massive US anti-war demonstrations. But with the exception of people like Perle and Herman Kahn, our leaders mostly justified ultimate risks in the name of preventing an ultimate cataclysm.

So what is the threat that merits blowing up 200 years of the Senate's right to require more than a bare majority to confirm lifetime judicial nominees? That they might only get 95% of their nominees through? That Republican presidents would end up with just an overwhelming majority of judges already appointed, and not every single one? That someone somewhere might not bend to their will? The only threat they're facing is resistence to their absolute power, but that now seems to be threat enough.

Honorable conservatives used to warn against the raw power of the state. It was Lord Acton who wrote, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." But now that the political right controls more and more of our key institutions, the love of power has become their religion, and the slightest notion of checks or balances heretical treason.

In relations with the world, this administration has pulled out of every international rule and treaty from global warming, to bio terrorism, to land mines--substituting a rule of raw force that insists we can do whatever we choose because God is on our side. John Bolton as UN nominee just flaunts this approach. Now this administration is trying the same thing on the domestic front. Surrender or be obliterated.

The filibuster hasn't always been used for good. It was a prime tool of Southern segregationists blocking civil right bills promoted in part by moderate Republicans. But to annihilate 200 years of tradition simply because you happen to hold the reins of power is to worship this power as a God. They may not be destroying the world to save it, but they'd be perfectly content with the ashes of democracy.

Paul Loeb is the author of The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen's Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear (Basic Books), named the #3 political book of 2004 by the History Channel and American Book Association, and of Soul of a Citizen. See http://www.theimpossible.org

BOLTON BATTLE REVEALS EXTREME POLARIZATION

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-051205assess_lat,0,4241813.story?coll=la-home-headlines

Informant: jensenmk

From ufpj-news

Republican partisanship chief factor in muted opposition to Iraq war

http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/2215/


Informant: jensenmk

From ufpj-news

Dissidents Warn of Death of Labor Movement

http://www.truthout.org/issues_05/051205LC.shtml

Bolton Asserts Right to 'Interpret' Intelligence

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205Z.shtml

Combat Stress

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205O.shtml

Body Counts

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205M.shtml

Washington Press Corps Takes Steps to Loosen Bush's Grip

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205L.shtml

God's Own Party?

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205H.shtml

The Young and the Jobless

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205G.shtml

Everything You Wanted to Know about the "Nuclear Option"

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205F.shtml

Flushing Koran Down Toilet at Gitmo Spurs New Violence

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205B.shtml

Secret Bush-Blair War Plan Sparks Outrage

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205A.shtml

Bolton Vote a "Slap at the President"

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/051205X.shtml

Wal-Mart crushes union by closing store

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=637423


Informant: NHNE
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