by Michael Gillespie

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. Thus 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: “He was noble and always carried himself with honor.” “[He was] a loving husband and father, a devoted son and brother.” “He wanted to go where good people needed help.” “He will be dearly missed.” Small wonder that the president, desperately attempting to hide behind a facade 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.dissidentvoice.org/May05/Gillespie0519.htm

How did one maverick MP manage to outgun a committee of senior US politicians so successfully?

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8883.htm

The International Committee of the Red Cross documented what it called credible information about U.S. personnel disrespecting or mishandling Korans at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility and pointed it out to the Pentagon in confidential reports during 2002 and early 2003, an ICRC spokesman said Wednesday.

http://snipurl.com/f0j9


From Information Clearing House

Iraq did not violate international law, the United States did. They didn’t have the integrity to tell the truth to the United States people,” he said.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8885.htm

While information about last week’s counter-insurgency campaign in Western Iraq proves elusive, hospitals cite civilian deaths; thousands remain homeless as locals and some US troops challenge claims of success.

http://newstandardnews.net/content/index.cfm/items/1826


From Information Clearing House

"It's appalling that this story got out there," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on her way back from Iraq.

by Greg Palast

What's NOT appalling to Condi is that the US is holding prisoners at Guantanamo under conditions termed "torture" by the Red Cross. What's not appalling to Condi is that prisoners of the Afghan war are held in violation of international law after that conflict has supposedly ended. What is NOT appalling to Condi is that prisoner witnesses have reported several instances of the Koran's desecration.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8887.htm

Under international law it is the primary responsibility of the occupier to safeguard the citizens of the country they occupy.

Dahr Jamail

There has been a low-grade civil war going on for quite some time-but now the veil has been ripped off by the statements made by Dhari. All Sunni mosques in Iraq will be closed for three days...an ominous symbol of things to come.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8882.htm

Peru's lush rainforests, including our Tahuamanú BioGem, are home to some of the last remaining concentrations of big-leaf mahogany in Latin America. Yet despite the scarcity of this tropical species, the Peruvian government has failed to enforce national forestry laws and logging bans. As a result, nearly all of the country's export mahogany is harvested illegally. The United States imports 80 percent of this wood, and furniture manufacturers have no means of determining whether they are buying legally or illegally logged mahogany. Please join our fight to curb U.S. mahogany demand, which is driving the destruction of rainforests that support Peru's indigenous people, as well as endangering the squirrel monkey, the giant otter and other rainforest wildlife.

Urge Missouri-based Furniture Brands International not to buy Peruvian mahogany unless and until it can ensure -- through a clear system put in place by the Peruvian government -- that this mahogany is harvested legally.
http://www.savebiogems.org/tahuamanu/takeaction.asp

http://www.savebiogems.org/tahuamanu/
http://www.savebiogems.org/newsletter/index.asp

British Medical Journal / Newswise

May 16, 2005

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/511891/

Using a mobile phone in rural areas seems to pose a greater risk of developing brain tumours than it does in urban areas, suggests a Swedish study in Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

The findings are based on a sample of over 1400 adults aged between 20 and 80, living in the centre of Sweden. All of them had been diagnosed with a malignant or benign brain tumour between January 1997 and June 2000.

The group were compared with a similar number of healthy adults, matched for age and sex, and living in the same geographical area.

Daily mobile and cordless phone use was assessed, via questionnaire, which included a complete employment history.

How long users spent on the phone had little impact on the probability of being diagnosed with a brain tumour. But where they lived did make a difference for all phone types, and especially for mobile digital phones.

Residents of rural areas, who had been using a mobile digital phone for more than three years, were over three times as likely to be diagnosed with a brain tumour as those living in urban areas.

And digital mobile phone use for five years or more in a rural area quadrupled the risk compared with residency in urban areas.

For malignant brain tumours, the risk was eight times as high for those living in a rural area, but the numbers were small, caution the authors. No such effect was seen for analogue or cordless phones.

The authors reiterate that there is a difference in power output between mobile phones in urban and rural areas. This is because base stations tend to be much further apart in rural areas, requiring a higher signal intensity to compensate.

The compensatory system, known as the adaptive power control or APC, is used for mobile phone (GSM) networks.

Click here to view the paper in full:
http://press.psprings.co.uk/oem/june/390_om17434.pdf


Informant: NHNE

--------

Mobile risks 'rise in rural areas
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/business/articles/timid400608?source=This%20is%20Money

Rural mobile phone use 'riskier'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4552645.stm

Brain cancer linked to mobile phone use in rural areas: study
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/147955/1/.html

Tumour risk for rural mobile users
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/05/17/nmob17.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/05/17/ixhome.html


Informant: billder

Verbraucherschutz: EU erlaubt mehr gefährliche Pestizide in Lebensmitteln (19.05.05)

Seit 2001 sind die Grenzwerte von 33 besonders gefährlichen Spritzmitteln erhöht worden, ist das Ergebnis einer Studie des Umweltverbandes Greenpeace: Die EU-Kommission und das deutsche Verbraucherministerium muteten Verbrauchern immer höhere Dosen gefährlicher Agrargifte in Lebensmitteln zu. Unter die erhöhten Grenzwerts seien auch Mittel, die das Erbgut schädigen könnten,die als krebserregend, hormonell wirksam, fortpflanzungsschädigend oder besonders giftig für die Umwelt gelten würden. Die zulässigen Höchstmengen für Pestizide müssten unverzüglich auf den Vorsorgewert von 0,01 Milligramm pro Kilogramm gesenkt werden, fordert der Umweltverband. Ab diesem Wert könnten Labore die Belastung nachweisen.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet:

http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=11088

19.05.05

Mit einem Waldverlust von 26.000 Quadratkilometern hat das Kahlschlag-Tempo im brasilianischen Regenwald im vergangenen Jahr erneut zugenommen, teilt die Artenschutzorganisation WWF mit: Die Kahlschlagareale von 26.000 Quadratkilometern entsprächen etwa der halben Fläche der Schweiz. Es sei die zweithöchste jährliche Entwaldungsrate im Amazonas. Im Jahr zuvor hätte der brasilianische Amazonas 23.000 Quadratkilometer verloren. Dies gehe aus Satellitendaten hervor, die das Brasilianische Weltrauminstitut INPE jetzt veröffentlicht habe. "Jede Minute verliert Brasilien eine Fläche von sieben Fußballfeldern wertvollen Regenwald. Die Regierung Lula hat bislang im versprochenen Kampf gegen den Raubbau versagt", sagte Michael Evers, Leiter des Fachbereichs Wald beim WWF Deutschland. Bis heute seien bereits 17 Prozent des brasilianischen Amazonasgebietes zerstört worden.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet: http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=11089

Schwarzenburg BE, 12.5.05

Es gibt Ärzte mit 16-Stunden Tagen, welche für die neuartigen Krankheitsbilder, resultierend aus der sprunghaft zunehmenden elektromagnetischen Belastung der Bevölkerung schlicht keine Zeit oder aus lauter Stress kein Verständnis aufbringen. Es gibt auch weniger gestresste Ärzte, welche an dieser neuartigen Belastung gar eine gewisse Freude empfinden könnten, weil diese ihre Wartezimmer so schön füllt. Und es gibt auch Chefärzte an Unversitätsspitälern, welche von den Mobilfunkbetreibern modernste elektronische Labor- und Operationseinrichtungen gesponsert erhalten. Dass dieser Teil der Ärzteschaft sehr gerne auf die millionenschwere Mobilfunk-Propaganda hört, die fast pausenlos auf sie herniederregnet und welche an Elektrosmog Erkrankte kurzerhand zu psychisch Gestörten stempeln möchte, liegt auf der Hand.

Zum Glück gibt es aber noch jene verantwortungsbewussten, einfühlsamen Allgemeinpraktiker, welche die neuartigen Leiden ihrer Patienten ernst nehmen und den letzten Rest ihrer Freizeit für eigene wissenschaftlichen Erhebungen hergeben.

Von Hans-U. Jakob (verantwortlich für den Text und die Umrechnung in Schweizer Werte) und Dr.med.Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam D-96049 Bamberg, verantwortlich für die Bild-Diagramme.

Frau Dr.Waldmann schreibt einleitend :

Seit 6 Monaten führen mehrere Ärzte in vielen Orten Oberfrankens Befragungen und Messungen der gepulsten hochfrequenten elektromagnetischen Felder im Umkreis von Mobilfunkanlagen durch.

Die Ärzte verwenden das Gerät HF 38 B der Firma Gigahertz Solutions, das eine orientierende Summenmessung der hochfrequenten EMF von 800 bis 2500 MHz in µW/m² ermöglicht.

Bisher wurden über 400 Wohnungen und zusätzlich Schulen, Kindergärten, Krankenhäuser, Altenheime, Büros, Betriebe und Sparkassen erfasst. Die Messungen werden fortgesetzt.

Dr. med. Cornelia Waldmann-Selsam
Karl-May-Str.48
96049 Bamberg Fax 0951/2972506
Mail: peter.selsamATt-online.de

weiter unter: http://www.gigaherz.ch/911


http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Cornelia+Waldmann-Selsam+


Ärzte und Mobilfunk
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/408385/

Ärzteappelle gegen ungezügelten Mobilfunk
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/1064751/

Ärztekammern und Mobilfunk
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/1104181/

Hans-U. Jakob, 17.5.05

Kurz und gut, das finanzielle Engagement und die Einmischung der Mobilfunkbetreiber (und der übrigen Industrie) in die Forschung hat ein so alarmierendes Ausmass angenommen, dass sich die Schweizerische Akademie der Medizinischen Wissenschaften (SAMW) und die Verbindung der Schweizer Ärztinnen und Ärzte (FMH) im Dezember 04 genötigt sahen, folgende Richtlinien zu erlassen:

http://www.samw.ch/content/Richtlinien/d_AI_2_12_04.pdf

Alle Auszüge aus dieser 14-seitigen Richtlinie sind in Schrägschrift und allfällige Kommentare von Gigaherz in Normalschrift gesetzt.
Die meisten Auszüge sind jedoch so klar, dass diese gar keines Kommentars bedürfen und bei unserer Leserschaft von selbst ein grosses AHA-Erlebnis auslösen dürften.

Weiter unter: http://www.gigaherz.ch/912


Forscher und Forschungsergebnisse von der Industrie bezahlt
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/281056/

Following the Inspector's decision to allow the Sidlesham appeal, I thought you might like to see this 'leader' in today's Chichester Observer:

So Much for Local Democracy

Ministers are fond of prattling on about local democracy and the power of the people - when it suits them to do so. But these noble sentiments are quickly forgotten when they conflict with the government's own financial and strategic interests.

Sidlesham residents - and council tax payers right across the Chichester District - today learn this hard lesson to their cost. A government inspector has allowed an appeal against the district council's refusal of planning permission for a new Tetra mast in Sidlesham. The Inspector also awarded costs against the council for refusing the mast plan in the first place. Ominously, this is the third appeal in a row relating to plans for Tetra masts in the Chichester district - and each one has been allowed.

Councillors were doing their duty when they took heed of the mass of local opposition to the Sidlesham scheme, to serious concerns about possible health risks and impact on the environment, and to scientific evidence produced by the campaigners. But all of this was cast aside by the inspector, an unelected official who chose to ignore both local people and their elected representatives.

Inspectors are supposed to be impartial, but the government has a huge stake in the communications industry and it is difficult to avoid the suspicion that the planning inspectorate is dancing to the government's tune.

Many residents will be wondering this week why they bother to turn out and vote councillors into office, if decisions reflecting strongly-held local views are so easily overturned by a government lackey.

Surely local people should decide what is best for the local area, not some remote frontman for the increasingly preposterous and sinister John Prescott.

Keith Newbery
Editor


At least it was nice to see it in print!

David

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/05/18/a_steeper_ladderfor_the_have_nots/

by Derrick Z. Jackson, The Boston Globe

On the perfect storm of corporate welfare for the wealthy and disregard for the poor now hitting the have-nots in America.

http://www.tompaine.com/

FTD - Informationstechnologie, S. 5

Mobilfunker wollen in armen Ländern wachsen

Von Oliver Wihofszki, Hamburg

18.05.2005

Netzbetreibern winken hohe Gewinne mit kostengünstigen Geräten · Ausrüster bieten abgespeckte Technik · Handys ersetzen fehlendes Festnetz

Die Mobilfunkbranche rüstet sich für das stark wachsende Geschäft in Entwicklungsländern. Mit günstigen Produkten und angepassten Geschäftsmodellen versuchen Handyhersteller, Netzbetreiber und Anbieter von Mobilfunkinfrastruktur, auch in den ärmsten Ländern Lateinamerikas, Asiens und Afrikas Fuß zu fassen. Konzerne wie Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola oder Siemens werden angelockt von hohen Wachstumsraten und dem Ausblick auf über eine Milliarde neue Mobilfunkkunden. "Um die momentane Kundenzahl auf drei Milliarden zu verdoppeln, müssen Handyhersteller und Mobilfunker in Entwicklungsländer gehen", schreibt die Marktforschungsfirma Forrester in einer Studie.

Grund für die zuversichtlichen Prognosen für den Mobilfunk in den so genannten Emerging Markets ist die Tatsache, dass es in den meisten Regionen dieser Ländern überhaupt kein Telekommunikationsnetz gibt. Ein Basis-Mobilfunk für Sprache und SMS bietet die Chance, das fehlende Festnetz zu ersetzen.

"Mobilfunk ist für Entwicklungsländer billiger und kann schneller aufgebaut werden. Das läuft sehr erfolgreich", sagt Analyst John David Kim von der Marktforschungsfirma Ovum.

Wichtigster Knackpunkt für ein erfolgreiches Geschäft in Entwicklungsländern ist in allen Segmenten des Mobilfunks der Preis. Vom Netzaufbau über das Handy bis zu den Gesprächsgebühren muss alles wesentlich günstiger sein als in Industrienationen oder Schwellenländern. Die Kosten müssen aber nicht nur für die Kunden, sondern auch für die Unternehmen sinken, sonst ist ein profitables Geschäft nicht möglich.

Die Telekombranche ist gerade dabei diese Vorgabe umzusetzen: "Anbieter senken die Kosten für Netzwerkinfrastruktur. Handykonzerne bauen ,dumme Telefone', die nur für Sprachtelefonie benutzt werden können", schreibt die Beratungsfirma Ovum in einer Studie. Netzbetreiber hätten zudem Möglichkeiten geschaffen, Gesprächsguthaben mit Kleinstbeträgen aufzuladen, um den Bedürfnissen von Nutzern gerecht zu werden, die nur über wenig Bargeld verfügen, heißt es weiter.

Netzbetreiber wie Celtel, das in 13 afrikanischen Ländern wie Burkina Faso, Uganda, Sierra Leone oder Sudan Geschäfte macht, bietet Kunden beispielsweise an, ihre Handys über Rubbelkarten mit einem Guthaben von umgerechnet nur 1 $ aufzuladen. Im Gegensatz zum Geschäft in Industrienationen dominieren bei Celtel nicht die Vertragskunden, die eine monatliche Grundgebühr zahlen, sondern Karten-Kunden, die ihr Handy nach Bedarf mit kleinsten Guthaben füllen.

Eine weitere Besonderheit des Geschäfts in Entwicklungsländern ist die Tatsache, dass ein Handy meist von mehreren Menschen genutzt wird. Während in Industrienationen viele Kunden bereits mehrere Mobiltelefone nutzen, teilen sich in Entwicklungsländern oft ganze Familien, Firmen oder Dörfer ein Gerät. Das macht wegen der vielen potenziellen Telefonkunden das Geschäft für Netzbetreiber trotz einer sehr geringen Marktdurchdringung mit Handys interessant.

Dass unter diesen Voraussetzungen in Entwicklungsländern tatsächlich Gewinn gemacht werden kann, zeigt Celtel. Die aktuellsten Zahlen des Konzerns stammen von 2003. Damals wurde bei 381 Mio. $ Umsatz ein Gewinn von 74 Mio. $ eingefahren. Die Performance erschien dem kuwaitischen Konzern MTC so verlockend, dass er im März 3,32 Mrd. $ ausgab, um Celtel zu kaufen.

Der Kampf um die besten Positionen in den Entwicklungsländern hat also längst begonnen. So arbeiten Handykonzerne wie Motorola oder Nokia daran, Billighandys für unter 40 $ pro Stück als Massenware herzustellen.

Auch Infrastrukturanbieter wie Alcatel, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia oder Siemens haben das Geschäft entdeckt und versuchen, mit technisch abgespeckten Mobilfunknetzen Kunden in Entwicklungsländern zu gewinnen. Sie bieten spezielle Produkte an, die mit weniger Antennen größere Gebiete mit einem Basisnetz abdecken können.

Um in den armen Ländern ins Geschäft zu kommen, werden zudem immer häufiger so genannte Lieferantenkredite gewährt. Die Netzausrüster übernehmen nicht nur die Rolle des Technologielieferanten, sondern auch die des Finanzpartners. Dabei gibt es immer wieder besondere Hürden zu bewältigen: So werden wegen der schlechten Stromversorgung viele Mobilfunkantennen über Generatoren versorgt - und die Treibstoffvorräte für die Generatoren müssen in vielen Regionen rund um die Uhr bewacht werden.

Nachricht von Marianne Kirst

--------

Zu: Mobilfunk in armen Ländern

Ein tolles Beispiel für die "wirtschaftlichen Überlegungen" der Betreiber-Strategen in den ärmsten der armen Länder, die bekanntermaßen von uns "Reichen" ausgehalten werden, mit durchaus kräftigen Margen abzukassieren.Besonders auffallend ist die Aussage zur Technik .... weniger Masten .... unkompliziertere Endgeräte..; mit anderen Worten, es geht auch mit "Primitivtechnik", die wahrscheinlich obendrauf u.U. noch weniger gesundheitsschädlich ist.

Bei mehr Elektrosmog auf dem Land ... fällt mir nur ein: Die höhere Exposition erfolgt, wie auch beschrieben, durch das Handy als Endgerät.

Feststellung: Wer sich der Strahlung und wie lange er sich aussetzen will, kann bei der Nutzung des Endgerätes jeder individuell bestimmen. Die fremdbestimmte, in der Regel 24-stündige Exposition durch die Antennenmasten wird hierbei nicht gebührend berücksichtigt und erhellend erwähnt.

Kommentar von Dr. Erich Braun

http://www.govtech.net/news/news.php?id=94036


Informant: Debi Clark

May 18, 2005

Busted! This Friday, May 20th, every military recruiting center across the country will be closed for what the U.S. Army Recruiting Command calls an "Army Values Stand Down Day." The "stand down" will be a retraining in ethics for the military's 7,500 recruiters, following a rash of complaints that recruiters are resorting to unscrupulous tactics to enlist new soldiers. Recruiters' lies can be cruel and ridiculous; a Houston army recruiter threatened to arrest a local young man if he didn't report that day to the army recruiting station. Rae, our CODEPINK student coordinator met an army recruiter in Oakland during our action last week. He promised her a college education and world travel. The recruiter squelched her fears about being sent to war by assuring her that she would not serve in Iraq, and added that women are not engaged in combat, and that if they return home wounded, it is probably because they went out for a "joyride in a Hummer."

While the Army stands down, WE STAND UP! On May 20th, we are joined with UFPJ, AFSC and US Campus Anti-War Network in asking you to stand up for the demilitarization of youth. Stand up for students' rights to privacy from the military. Go to http://www.Militaryfreezone.org to call your local representative and tell them to support Congressman Mike Honda's "Student Privacy Protection Act" H.R. 551 and sign the petition.

We cannot allow these deceptive and predatory recruiters to infect our neighborhoods and schools. In addition to recruiting centers, recruiters are roaming the halls of high schools, stalking teenagers by repeatedly calling their homes, and enlisting cheap sales tactics to draw more young people into the military. Currently, each student's contact information is available to the Army recruiters, unless a parent signs an "Opt Out" form. Go to http://www.leavemychildalone.org to opt out your child, to adopt a school board or to host a house party.

Check out our counter-recruitment page ( http://www.codepinkalert.org/article.php?list=type&type=48 ) for local CODEPINK actions planned for May 20th around the country, especially Washington D.C. and New York City or for ideas to create actions in your own communities.

With determination for a military-free world,

Dana, Farida, Gael, Jodie, Medea, Nancy, Rae, and Tiffany

P.S. Watch this 4 minute video:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2005/05/17/VI2005051700710.html of MP George Galloway in a Senate hearing yesterday and see if you are not totally moved to say "NO" to the continued US occupation of Iraq, which was recently condoned by Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. Join CODEPINK activists and the Progressive Democrats of America in taking action to stop the war by signing the Iraq Withdrawal Petition ( http://pdamerica.org/petition/iraq-exit-petition.php ) to tell Dean and the Democrats that we are calling for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.

Leaked briefing says U.S. intelligence facts `fixed' around policy

by Stephen J. Hedges and Mark Silva
Washington Bureau
Published May 17, 2005

WASHINGTON -- A British official's report that the Bush administration appeared intent on invading Iraq long before it acknowledged as much or sought Congress' approval--and that it "fixed" intelligence to fit its intention--has caused a stir in Britain.

But the potentially explosive revelation has proven to be something of a dud in the United States. The White House has denied the premise of the memo, the American media have reacted slowly to it and the public generally seems indifferent to the issue or unwilling to rehash the bitter prewar debate over the reasons for the war.

All of this has contributed to something less than a robust discussion of a memo that would seem to bolster the strongest assertions of the war's critics. [...] Read the rest at the Chicago Tribune web site: http://tinyurl.com/8jds4


© Virginia Metze

by Jack Dalton
Straight-Speak

Thanks to the recently released “memos ” between the BushCo camp and the Blair “brigade” there is no longer any doubt they “cooked the books” on the intelligence to fit their already in place plans to invade Iraq. For some of us, this is just icing on the cake as there was already a wide body of evidence in the public domain articulating how “intelligence”--and I use that term loosely-- was being deliberately distorted and made to fit pre-determined plans to invade Iraq. Former Secretary of the Treasury, Paul O’Neill, in “The Price of Loyalty” shows as early as February, 2002, a deliberate, concerted effort was being put forth to “justify”—also used loosely—invading Iraq. [...] Read more at: http://jack-dalton.blogspot.com/ (scroll down)


© Virginia Metze

Posted by Danny
May 17, 2005

Rathergate Redux?
Does Torture "Work"?
The Media Reform Debate

Now it seems to be Newsweek's turn to be crucified for the sins of the "liberal media." It is Rathergate all over again, only this time the magazine's reporting is being blamed for riots and deaths in Afghanistan, a response ostensibly to a report on the desecration of the Qur'an in a prison camp. In one quick swipe of a blogger's keyboard, the blame game has shifted from expose the abusers to beat the press. Suddenly, Newsweek is a the poster child for the blame America First media. [...] Read the rest of that and go on to the second two topics (above) at http://www.newsdissector.com/blog/2005/05/17/#1262 or
http://tinyurl.com/994d5


© Virginia Metze

by Ceci Connolly
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 17, 2005; Page A10

The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit yesterday against the Department of Health and Human Services, accusing the Bush administration of spending federal tax dollars on an abstinence education program that promotes Christianity.

Filed in federal court in Boston, the lawsuit alleges that the programs and educational materials distributed by Silver Ring Thing are "permeated with religion" and use "taxpayer dollars to promote religious content, instruction and indoctrination." [...] Read the rest at the Washington Post: http://tinyurl.com/ab2qn This is also on the ACLU web site: http://tinyurl.com/dh37x


© Virginia Metze

From: Indymedia, London
Home Truths
18 May 2005

Accustomed only to hearing ‘positive’ pro-war sound-bites from the Administration, Americans were taken aback by George Galloway’s frank oratory. Facts are his defense in the face of monumental lies and his accusers expose themselves, while attempting to disgrace him. Here are some of the quotes from British MP George Galloway as he confronted his accusers on a US Senate sub-committee

"Who paid me hundreds of thousands of dollars? The answer to that is nobody and if you had anybody who paid me a penny you would have produced them here today."

"I have met Saddam Hussein exactly the same number of times as Donald Rumsfeld met him. The difference is that Donald Rumsfeld met him to sell him guns and to give him maps the better to target those guns." [...] Read it all at: http://tinyurl.com/8o7t4


© Virginia Metze

by John in DC - 5/16/2005 01:53:00 AM
AmericaBlog

I don't buy it.

Chris and I have been talking about this (I'm still in Paris), and we think President Bush placed a little call to the head of Newsweek, asking him to beg off the story since riots are now spreading across the Middle East. I simply refuse to believe anything the Bush administration says about anything at this point. And the administration's assurances that they "investigated" the story and found it not true - well, let's talk about WMD, let's talk about "no evidence of widespread abuse" of prisoners at US facilities around the world.

I say, bull. As Joe already noted, this is not the first time the story has been reported about US authorities flushing the Koran down the toilet at Gitmo. And let's not forget everything else they've been doing to the detainees, at Abu Ghraib and beyond. Newsweek is backing down to help Bush out, and it's sad. [...] Read it all at AmericaBlog: http://tinyurl.com/cefr4


© Virginia Metze

The Nation blog
Posted 05/15/2005 @ 3:40pm

Bill Moyers is not taking attacks by Bush Administration allies on public broadcasting in general and his journalism in particular sitting down.

"I should put my detractors on notice," declared the veteran journalist who stepped down in January as the host of PBS's NOW With Bill Moyers, who recently turned 70. "They might compel me out of the rocking chair and into the anchor chair." Read the rest at: http://tinyurl.com/cgumo


© Virginia Metze

As the death toll of troops mounts in Iraq and Afghanistan, America's military recruiting figures have plummeted to an all-time low. Thousands of US servicemen and women are now refusing to serve their country.

Andrew Buncombe reports
The Independent Online
16 May 2005

Sergeant Kevin Benderman cannot shake the images from his head. There are bombed villages and desperate people. There are dogs eating corpses thrown into a mass grave. And most unremitting of all, there is the image of a young Iraqi girl, no more than eight or nine, one arm severely burnt and blistered, and the sound of her screams.

Last January, these memories became too much for this veteran of the war in Iraq. Informed his unit was about to return, he told his commanders he wanted out and applied to be considered a conscientious objector. The Army refused and charged him with desertion. Last week, his case - which carries a penalty of up to seven years' imprisonment - started before a military judge at Fort Stewart in Georgia.

"If I am sincere in what I say and there's consequences because of my actions, I am prepared to stand up and take it," Sgt Benderman said. "If I have to go to prison because I don't want to kill anybody, so be it." [...] Read the rest at: http://tinyurl.com/d3m3v


© Virginia Metze

EDITORIAL
Los Angeles Times
May 17, 2005

According to chaos theory, the flapping of a single butterfly's wings can trigger a hurricane halfway across the globe, a phenomenon known as the "butterfly effect." Now the Bush administration thinks it has detected something that might be called the "Newsweek effect." It says the magazine's publication of an item in its May 9 issue, alleging that U.S. guards flushed the Koran down a toilet in order to humiliate prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, was a cause of riots in Afghanistan and Pakistan last week that left at least 14 people dead.

[...]

The United States has already been convicted in the court of world opinion for its treatment of its prisoners, and that's the administration's fault, not Newsweek's. Shutting down Guantanamo and giving suspected terrorists legal protections would help restore our reputation abroad. Crowing over Newsweek's mishap won't. Read it all at the LA Times: http://tinyurl.com/bnhvm


© Virginia Metze

http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts05172005.html


© Virginia Metze

Their Real Target

People wonder why Senate GOP leaders are willing to go to these extremes over these last few nominees, the bottom of the barrel of President Bush's picks for the federal courts.

I'll tell you why: they want to change the rules for judicial nominations now, while they think no one is paying attention, because they know what will be next: a Supreme Court vacancy.

They expect retirements to open up one or more seats on the Supreme Court soon -- and with this permanent rule change in place, there will be no way to stop them from packing it with more conservative ideologues.

We have to protect the Supreme Court. That means we have to stop this Republican attack now:

http://www.tedkennedy.com/stopitnow

Senate Republicans, Senator Frist, President Bush and the Republican Party believe they have absolute power to dump our two-century old system of checks and balances and make our independent judiciary toe their conservative line.

But the framers of our Constitution did not want the Senate to be a rubber stamp for any President's agenda. They feared the tyranny of the majority, and designed the Senate to protect the country from it. For over 200 years the Senate has been the key safeguard against that tyranny -- and today the Republicans would throw it all away.

Their drastic and destructive path has only one aim -- the Supreme Court, and they're willing to sacrifice the Senate's inalienable Constitutional role to get their way.

Join me in telling Senator Frist to stop this despicable court-packing scheme -- tell him to stop it now:

http://www.tedkennedy.com/stopitnow

We need to speak the truth about where this fight is headed. By speaking out now we can spread the word about what is at stake -- preserving our priceless system of checks and balances and the fundamental principle of an independent judiciary.

Please take this important action now. Our success depends on it.

Thank you,

Senator Edward M. Kennedy


Informant: Martin Greenhut

Fife Today

FRUSTRATED residents staged an impromptu protest over a mobile 'phone mast as workmen tried to put it back up.

The long-running saga at Formonthills Road took another twist on Thursday morning as engineers arrived to replace the device which had been taken away for repairs. It had been badly vandalised over a month ago and was due to go back up with security cameras attached last week.

But furious locals made their views known by attempting to stop work being carried out. They are angry at how O2 were able to gain original planning permission after what many claimed was "inadequate" consultation. And the group has vowed to continue their fight to remove it altogether. One of the protestors, Evelyn Allsopp, said local people had not been listened to throughout the affair. "We've been told that proper consultation took place and that is just not true - they are lying through their teeth," she commented. "The feeling of the residents is extremely strong and we feel let down and deceived by our so-called representatives." Local woman Wilna Roger, of nearby Cardean Way, added: "There is a potential health risk - it hasn't been proved either way. "Even if just one person is made ill by it, is that worth the risk?"

The Gazette also understands that one Cardean Way resident now spends most of her time in Edinburgh as she can't bear to live in her house, which is overshadowed by the mast. Another protestor fumed: "We think the council has failed in one of their primary duties and that is to protect the health and environment of the community."

The mast initially went up in January, 2004, angering people who felt it had been granted permission without warning. It then emerged O2 had breached planning regulations, but as the initial application had been approved, it was altered and re-sited in the correct location to agreed specifications.

After the recent vandalism, community members wrote to O2 officials offering them a chance to negotiate.

But Balgeddie and Collydean councillor Bill Kay, who is on the development committee, revealed that had fallen on deaf ears. "We were prepared to try and expedite a site for them and they point blankly refused to do anything," he said. "They didn't do any real, meaningful consultation, and I think the Scottish Executive is eventually going to have to sort this type of thing out."

The 15-metre mast was finally erected after police were called, and the protest went off peacefully.

No-one at O2 was available for comment.

18 May 2005

Wirrel and Birkenhead news

A MINISTER who allowed a Vodafone mast to be placed on top of his church now says his deal with the mobile phone giant was based on a trust that "appears to have been misplaced".

Residents were alarmed that the mast, which has a cross design on top, could be used to download pornographic images.

They also complained that the mast - fitted onto St Andrew's Church in Rowson Street, New Brighton - looked out of place, could affect house prices and may be a health risk.

A meeting between The Reverend Ken Blake, Vodafone and local residents and councillors had been arranged for a date three weeks ago to discuss the complaints, but the phone firm pulled out at the last minute.

The mast was installed in March to provide connections for 3G mobile phones - delivering high-speed sound, image and video content from the internet along with normal speech and text services.

After the Globe reported on the row in our April 27 edition, Mr Blake wrote to us saying: "The cross itself is not a part of the mast and does not play a part in the transmissions.

"The cross is also a symbol of God's communication with the world. Communications are also, one might justifiably say, an indispensable feature of modern society."

But he added: "St Andrew's Church have proceeded with the installation of the mast on the basis of trust and good faith with the assurances of Vodafone that matters would be dealt with fairly and properly.

"It was a condition of the agreement that if there should be significant resistance from the local community then we would not proceed.

"Vodafone undertook to conduct a consultation prior to proceeding. We took them at their word. Sadly, that trust appears to have been misplaced."

He insisted that the church was not "simply sitting back hoping it will all go away" and was now actively working with residents to determine what course of action to follow.

"That depends at the moment on gathering some information and until we have that we cannot proceed further," he said.

However, Vodafone spokeswoman Jane Frapwell expressed surprise when told of Mr Blake's comments.

She said: "We do not proceed to install masts without the full permission of the landowner, in this case the church.

"We also carried out extensive consultation in the New Brighton area. I'm a little surprised by this but we will of course listen to what the church and local residents have to say."

Barnet and Potters Bar Times

What an interesting view of creation the Rev Laurence Hill of Holy Trinity Church, East Finchley, seems to have. (Baby owls in mast's way', May 12).

When stating that he would not comment on whether investigations will be undertaken into any potential nesting sites within the church, which could be disturbed by the mobile phone mast proposed for the belfry, he said, Birds are not allowed to nest in the church.' Is rain allowed to fall on the church during weddings, or the wind allowed to blow during services?

On a more serious note, a man of the cloth would surely wish such an investigation to be thoroughly carried out before the mast is approved, in order to protect any of the Lord's creatures from being destroyed by it.

We can only hope that the revenue deal entered into between the Archbishops' Council of the Church of England and QS4, the mast installer, will not get in the way of such Christian concerns.

Fiona Rosen
Pageant Avenue, Colindale

1:42pm Wednesday 18th May 2005

Baby owls in mast's way

Nesting birds, including a tawny owl, could scupper plans to install a mobile phone mast in the belfry of an East Finchley church.

The nocturnal guest is a familiar annual sight at the church, and has become a favourite with residents, who say it has been returning Holy Trinity Church, in Church Lane, to breed for the past five years.

A 3G phone mast is proposed for the belfry of the church spire, where residents say the owl is currently nestling with its young.

Clive Cohen, representative of the Barnet branch of the London Wildlife Trust said: "Owls breed much earlier than most birds, and it's this time of year that there will actually be young in their nests."

Members of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds who live in the area are now investigating the potential effect any disturbance could have on the owl. "Last year it flew past our window at 4am. We've heard it hooting and screeching for the past five years, and calling to a mate who hooted in response," said resident Caroline Broome of Church Lane.

"Last summer a sparrow hawk was resting on our pergola, and within a week, the owl had seen it off its territory it's quite a character."

In addition to the owl, tens of other species of bird are said to be nesting in or around the wooded enclaves of the church itself, including magpies, wood pigeons, blue tits, jays and, for the first time last year, robins.

However, the parish could find itself in hot water, should any of the nests be disturbed. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, disturbing a nesting bird is illegal.

If this is the case, not only will the installation of the mast be illegal, but it is also likely to disturb the owl from ever returning to its nesting site.

Residents are currently lodging their complaints through consultations hosted by the parish and its mast installer, QS4, but are expected to write in with their objections before next Thursday. QS4 has been appointed by the Archbishops' Council of the Church of England as the sole installer of masts on its churches, with the church entering a revenue deal with the firm in return for hosting the mast.

Reverend Laurence Hill, of Holy Trinity Church, said he was not aware that any owl was nesting in or around the grounds of the church.

"It's news to me if there is an owl," he said. "And the builders who have already been up there have not seen a nest in the belfry. The bells are rung there once a week, so I'd be surprised if there was an owl there,"

He would not comment on whether an investigation would be undertaken on any potential nesting sites within the church which could be disturbed by the mast, although he did say birds are not allowed to nest in the church'.

Shropshire Star 18th May 05

A long-running fight to halt plans to install a mobile phone mast in the centre of Bridgnorth has finally been won by campaigners. Town councillors have voted to scrap the scheme.

Telecommunications giant O2 wanted to attach a mast to a floodlight at Bridgnorth Town Football Club's Crown Meadow ground, to the fury of nearby residents.

But the town council, which owns the land, last night refused permission for the mast, saying it was not allowed under the terms of the football club's lease.

Councillors voted unanimously at Bridgnorth Town Council's meeting to reject the plan. They said it had the potential to cause a nuisance or inconvenience to neighbours.

The application was refused by district planning chiefs last month after huge local opposition.

Glasgow Evening Times

18th May 2005

WORRIED parents campaigning against a giant phone mast have taken their fight to the doorstep of the club where it could be built.

Campaigners have put up a huge banner next to Riddrie Bowling Club which reads: "If you erect a mast you will harm the local kids." The club stands to make £3000 a year for 20 years for allowing the T-Mobile mast in its grounds.

But parents fear the mast, which could be up to 50ft high and will be just inches from the bottom of families' gardens and a play park, could make their children ill. Hundreds of residents have already signed a petition demanding Glasgow City Council block the plans.

Riddrie Bowling Club secretary Derek Timpany insisted the club wanted to do the right thing by the community and would be prepared to hold a public meeting to discuss the proposals. He said: "We are happy to meet with residents, councillors and T-Mobile to discuss the best way forward."

But many residents are determined to stop the plan. Mum-of-three Una Gillon, 47, said: "There are rules that say masts shouldn't be put near sensitive areas. "If they're not dangerous then why is that? And if they are dangerous how can they put them at the bottom of my garden where my children play? "There is an incredible amount of concern over this idea and we're not prepared to let it go ahead."

A spokesman for T-Mobile said: "T-Mobile understands there can be concerns within local communities when locating base stations, however with more than 60million mobile phones in the UK , there is a need to develop our network to provide quality service. "Based on more than 40 years of research, T-Mobile is confident its base stations, operating within strict national and international guidelines, do not present a health risk."

Sunderland Echo

FURIOUS residents are up in arms over plans to increase the use of a mobile phone mast on their doorsteps.

The imposing phone mast behind Beckenham Avenue, in East Boldon, has been the source of much controversy ever since the plans to build it were first mooted more than five years ago.
After much local opposition and a petition signed by nearly 100 people, South Tyneside Council refused planning permission to build the mast.

But a Government inspector overturned the decision, although several conditions were imposed, including the limitation of the amount of use of the mast.

However, in 2003, more dishes were added to the mast, indicating increased usage, and, to rub further salt in their wounds, residents received a letter last month saying yet more dishes are to be added to the mast.

Pensioner Gerry Ash, of Beckenham Avenue , said: "We have a lot of children living in our street and that is one of our main concerns. "Last year the Government released a report discouraging children under 10 from using mobile phones for health reasons. "So what about the children in our street living near a mast where mobile phone signals actually come from? "We will protest against these latest plans, but, to be honest, I think the local government have their hands tied by central government policy. "Well, enough is enough and we want them to stand up to the Government."

The villagers have the support of Couns David Potts and Donald Wood from the Cleadon and East Boldon ward. Coun Potts said: "We all want to use mobile telephones, but these masts do not belong in residential areas like East Boldon. "Local residents have suffered enough with the Metro line running right outside of their back gardens. "The council and the companies who erect these masts should be consulting further with local residents before going ahead and putting these things up." Coun Wood added: "Even now, no one really knows of the potential health risks posed by these masts. "Until further research has been conducted and a definitive answer known one way or another, these masts should be erected as far away from residential areas as possible."

The plans are at a consultation stage and residents have been given 21 days to voice their objections.

18 May 2005

Cambridge Evening News

ADDENBROOKE'S Hospital has been condemned for having too many mobile phone masts on its roof.

Thirty masts and dishes are on the roof of the main ward block. The hospital says there is no risk to patients or staff from the equipment, but pressure group Mast Sanity disagrees.

Communications director, Karen Barratt, said: "Thirty is a lot of masts and, given the sensitivity of the site, on a hospital, that is completely unacceptable.

"There is increasing evidence to suggest there are serious health implications from this technology . . . they should be looking to find ways to have masts removed from the premises."

Independent mobile phone research group Powerwatch is also concerned by the number of masts.

Researcher Jean Philips said: "People in wards under the masts will probably be in the best place because emissions go out, not down. The problem will be in buildings around the ward block because emissions will go straight into the windows.

There will be a lot of buildings exposed to quite high levels of microwaves."

A hospital spokeswoman said: "We have got 30 dishes and masts up on the roof.

"That number has not grown over the last couple of years and we have not got any plans to increase that significantly in the near future.

"We follow national guidelines for any health risks and each has to have a survey done each time to show there's no risk.

It's part of our responsibility as landlord and duty of care to patients and staff."

Anti-mast campaigners say the hospital could be charging up to £100,000 a year to allow the masts to be sited there.

http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/city/2005/05/18/1f691f3d-c19a-4772-a9d9-b9c96bb2a86c.lpf


Informant: Sylvie

May 18 2005

South Warwickshire

By Andrew Heath

Controversial plans for a phone mast in Kenilworth are to go before the planning inspectorate.

Phone company O2 has appealed against Warwick District Council's decision to refuse the plans for the mast at the junction of Crewe Lane and Glasshouse Lane.

Residents voiced concerns about the proposal, citing worries about health risks and the impact the mast may have on the "dangerous" junction.

They were backed by Kenil-worth Town Council, Cllr Dave Shilton and the Kenilworth Society.

Geoff Symes, clerk at the town council, said: "It is on the barrier between a residential area and the green belt.

"There is poor visibility on the junction and everyone who lives there knows that this has to be approached with great caution already."

Warwick District Council's planning committee turned down the application on the grounds the pole would be visually intrusive on an already dangerous junction.

But, despite another application for a mast a few hundred yards away, with no objections, O2 has appealed.

Cllr Shilton (Lib Dem, Kenilworth Park Hill) said: "It is a sad way of working.

"It gets the fears of residents up and I will continue to campaign against it."

Campaigners in Kenilworth are fighting other applications for masts at Birmingham Road, near Beehive Hill and on the junction of Waverley Road and Priory Road.

A spokeswoman for O2 said: "We urgently need a mast in the area for our 3G coverage.

"We are actually trying to cover all eventualities and if we get planning permission for the other one, we will withdraw the appeal against the initial application."

http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/2811/


Informant: jensenmk

From ufpj-news

Die Chemieindustrie wird sich über diese Zahlen freuen, Verbraucher nicht: Aus einer vom EinkaufsNetz in Auftrag gegebenen Untersuchung geht hervor, dass seit 2001 die Grenzwerte von 33 besonders gefährlichen Spritzmitteln erhöht wurden.

Die Folge der Anhebung liegt auf der Hand: giftige Pestizide finden sich in immer höheren Mengen völlig legal in unseren Lebensmitteln wieder. Das alarmierende dieser Untersuchung ist, dass sich darunter Gifte befinden, die besonders gefährlich für Mensch und Umwelt sind. So wurde z.B. der Grenzwert für das Insektizid Methomyl, das die EU als hormonell wirksam beschreibt, um das 10 bis 20fache erhöht. Auf Tomaten, Zitronen, Mandarinen und Pflaumen darf sich das Mittel also um ein Vielfaches wiederfinden, bevor wir die Früchte essen.

Greenpeace fordert deshalb Frau Künast heute auf, sich dafür einzusetzen, dass diese Stoffe verboten werden.

Für euch haben wir einen neuen Protest-Brief verfasst,
zu dem ihr hier kommt:

http://de.einkaufsnetz.org/kampagnen/gift_im_essen/15386.html

Bitte beachtet: Ihr könnt gern euren persönlichen Text mit einfügen. Schreibt Verbraucherministerin Künast, warum ihr euch von dem Thema betroffen fühlt. Individuelle Briefe zeigen mehr Wirkung. Mehr Infos zum Thema sowie die Untersuchung findet ihr hier:

http://de.einkaufsnetz.org/kampagnen/gift_im_essen


Bis bald,

Euer EinkaufsNetz-Team
einkaufsnetz@greenpeace.de
EinkaufsNetz
Greenpeace e.V.
Grosse Elbstrasse 39
22767 Hamburg
http://www.einkaufsnetz.org
Tel. + 49 40 30618-357
Fax + 49 40 30618-130

05/18/05

I'm not at all surprised that the supporters of the current war jumped on Newsweek's flubbed story that led to widespread riots and the deaths of about 15 people. Neither am I surprised that they hold the media to a higher standard than their 'public servants' in Washington. The now-retracted story alleged that US military personnel at Guantanamo Bay desecrated the Koran in order to get their Muslim prisoners to talk. ... The knives were drawn immediately. But the skewering of Newsweek by neoconservative war pundits should be taken worth a grain of salt, for obvious reasons. These are the same people who defended or overlooked the false information fed to us by our own government in the lead up to the current immoral, unconstitutional war in Iraq in which tens of thousands have already perished." [editor's note: Why is everyone ignoring the fact that the "Quran desecration story" has been reported, without dispute, for some time, and that the problem with the Newsweek story was a claim that a forthcoming government report would admit to the known facts? - TLK]

http://www.sierratimes.com/05/05/18/68_32_155_83_61940.htm

from Sierra Times, by Garry Cobb


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

05/18/05

On May 16, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan expressed outrage over Newsweek's story that a U.S. military report was going to acknowledge that guards at the Guantanamo Bay detention center had tried to put a copy of the Quran down a toilet. 'The report had real consequences. People have lost their lives,' McClellan said. 'Our image abroad has been damaged.' The next day, after Newsweek had fully retracted the story, McClellan added that the magazine had a responsibility to 'help repair the damage' to our reputation in the Muslim world. Let's see. A mistake ... lives lost ... America's image abroad damaged. Does any of that sound vaguely familiar? A few instances do spring to mind. Newsweek didn't have anything to do with them. McClellan's boss did...

http://www.slate.com/id/2119055/

from Slate, by Jacob Weisberg


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

05/19/05

Going to war is the most serious decision a president can make. It should never be approached in a cavalier fashion. American lives, the prestige and influence of the country, international relations, the health of its defenses, and the future of the next generation are at stake. Yet every single piece of evidence we now have confirms that George W. Bush, who was obsessed with unseating Saddam Hussein even before 9/11, recklessly used the opportunity presented by the terror attacks to march the country to war, fixing the intelligence to justify his decision, and lying to the American people about the reasons for the war. In other times, this might have been an impeachable offense...[subscription or ad view required]

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2005/05/19/lies/

from Salon, by Juan Cole


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp



A leaked British memo, and other documents, make it clear that Bush intended all along to invade Iraq -- and lied about it to the American people. The full gravity of his offense has not yet sunk in.

By Juan Cole

Why has there not been more outrage in the United States at these revelations? Many Americans may have chosen to overlook the lies and deceptions the Bush administration used to justify the war because they still believe the Iraq war might have made them at least somewhat safer. When they realize that this hope, too, is unfounded, and that in fact the war has greatly increased the threat of another terrorist attack on U.S. soil, their wrath may be visited on the president and the political party that has brought America the biggest foreign-policy disaster since Vietnam.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8891.htm

05/19/05

Before attributing the Koran controversy solely to a poorly sourced magazine article and the ability of al-Qaeda and other groups to cynically exploit it, the West would do well to draw a lesson from the episode that would help formulate better plans to cope with and defeat Sunni militancy. That lesson is simply to conclude that a substantial number of the West's opponents in the War on Terrorism are motivated by faith, and that they find U.S. and Western actions -- especially those that seem to target Islamic sanctities -- overwhelmingly more offensive and humiliating than the norms and lifestyles of Western societies. Objectively, the negative reaction of Muslims at all societal levels to the Newsweek story, and their reluctance to credit the magazine's retraction, should not have been a surprise in the West -- and yet there is every indication of Western shock...

http://www.antiwar.com/scheuer/?articleid=6001

from AntiWar.Com, by Michael Scheuer


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

05/18/05

During the Vietnam War, people protested the draft and U.S. policy in Vietnam by burning draft cards. It was a symbolic gesture -- a way of refusing to be counted as a citizen willing to fight a morally dubious battle, a way to avoid becoming a statistic in the graveyards of the cold war. As of last week, we have a new card to burn. I'm talking about the new driver's licenses and ID cards ushered into existence by the passage of Rep. James Sensenbrenner's Real ID Act, which zoomed through the House and Senate without debate by piggybacking on an appropriations bill. It mandates that all licenses include a digital photo, as well as 'machine-readable technology with defined minimum data elements.' In other words: your license will include some kind of tech -- probably a magnetic stripe or radio frequency identification (RFID) chip -- containing all your personal information...

http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/22043/

from AlterNet, by Annalee Newitz


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

05/19/05

The last two presidential elections revealed that American democracy is in distress. A full public airing is much needed and the stature of the Carter-Baker Commission promises to garner the national attention and respect required to truly grapple with the scope of the problem. That is, until people begin to look at the make-up of the Commission and its agenda. Perhaps the hottest issue in election reform is making sure that votes are counted accurately. It is now widely understood that paperless computer voting systems are vulnerable to human error, computer failure and malicious tampering and therefore verification of the vote is essential...

http://www.libertyforall.net/2005/may14/Myopia.html


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

from Liberty For All, by Linda Schade and Kevin Zeese

05/18/05

John R. Bolton planned to ask then-CIA Director George Tenet to help punish a government intelligence analyst who disagreed with Bolton, and then misled a Senate committee about the matter, a Democratic Senate report said Wednesday. Bolton pushed for months to have the analyst removed from his job or otherwise disciplined, according to details revealed for the first time in the report, but he testified under oath at his confirmation hearing to be United Nations ambassador that he 'made no effort to have discipline imposed' on the man...

http://tinyurl.com/ac5lo

from Indianapolis Star


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

05/18/05

As the Senate marches closer toward a nuclear showdown over President Bush's judicial nominees, the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that the American public is dissatisfied -- with Congress and its priorities, with Bush's plan to overhaul Social Security and with the nation's economy and general direction. Moreover, a majority believes that the Senate should make its own decision about the president's judicial nominees, rather than just generally confirming them...

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7899754/

from MSNBC


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Opps, Newsweek Was Correct: Desecration of Koran Had Been Reported Before

Once you read the article below, you'll see how the White House bullied Newsweek magazine to make a quick retraction, before al the facts are reviewed. The Washington Post article below (which should have been on the front page) contains several references to U.S. service members allegedly desecrating the Koran. Newsweek might be weak because they caved in, but the real problem is the White House because of the enormous lies they told to start the Iraq War and allow prisoners of war to be tortured.

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3270

Parrent Amy Hagopian told school board members the Department of Defense is "spending $4 billion a month in Iraq, but we have to cut our race relations class, which costs $12,500. That's an important class for our kids." Is $12,500 worth of prevention worth untold thousands of lives lost and billions of dollars wasted?

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3268

Wide words for difficult times: "The Crusades are a religiously justified violent campaign against a whole other civilization ... All of this culminates in the horrible religious wars of the 17th Century, which were the crucible out of which democracy was born. The reaction of Enlightenment figures, to the horrors of these religious wars, was to say religion simply can no longer be the defining note of the state. Thank goodness, there’s this ingenious movement to separate the church from the state, so that states guarantee the religious freedom of individual citizens by remaining religiously neutral themselves."

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3267

Seymour Hersh, arguably the greatest journalist of our time and certainly the most necessary, joined me last week at a University of Illinois conference that asked the question: "Can freedom of the press survive media consolidations?" The Pulitzer-winning journalist reworked the question, asking: "Can freedom of the press survive the Bush presidency?"

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3263

So far this month, more than 450 Iraqis and dozens of U.S. troops have been killed by an Iraqi insurgency that, even after two years, shows signs of intensifying. Yet the Bush administration, which originally expected U.S. troops to be greeted as liberators and then promised that elections would fatally undermine the rebel cause, remains clueless as to the composition of this virulent enemy.

http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/?Page=Article&ID=3261

http://tinyurl.com/7szmt

http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Mike+Dolan

http://tinyurl.com/9h932


Informant: Dr Grahame Blackwell


http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Mike+Dolan

Von STEFAN VOLBERG

18.05.2005 20:13 Uhr

Weitreichende Beschränkung und Reglementierung der Werbung im Bereich Hohe Straße, Wallrafplatz, Schildergasse / Gürzenichstraße und ihrer Nebenstraßen sieht eine Verwaltungsvorlage vor, die heute auf der Tagesordnung der Bezirksvertretung Innenstadt steht. Diese Gestaltungssatzung soll die alte Satzung ablösen, die seit 1981 in Kraft ist.

Details aus der Vorlage: Einzelreklameflächen sollen maximal einen Quadratmeter groß sein; Werbeanlagen sind erst ab 3,50 Meter über Straßenniveau zulässig und dürfen höchstens 1,50 Meter ausladend sein. Einzelbuchstaben dürfen höchstens einen Meter breit und 1,50 Meter hoch sein. Flächig auf der Fassade angebrachte Werbung darf nicht schräg befestigt werden; die Montage vor Fenstern wird verboten. Unzulässig sind Anlagen mit wechselnden oder beweglichen Sichtflächen oder bewegliche Laufschrift, Bekleben der Schaufensterscheibe mit Folien, Tuchtransparente auf der Fassade und über Freiflächen zwischen den Gebäuden, großflächige Werbetransparente etwa auch als Staubschutzplane an Gerüsten oder Fassaden. Die Vorlage regelt auch die Gestaltung und Montage von Antennenanlagen; so sollen Mobilfunkanlagen an Gebäuden mit Sattel-, Walm- oder Giebeldächern ausgeschlossen werden. (KR)

http://www.rundschau-online.de/kr/KrCachedContentServer?ksArtikel.id=1113230084798&listID=1038816865446&openMenu=1038942868191&calledPageId=1038816864519 (Auszug)


Nachricht von der BI Bad Dürkheim



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

Das Thema "Mobilfunk...

Vom 19.05.2005

Leserbrief: Das Thema "Mobilfunk" erhitzt die Gemüter. Die Binger Grünen hatten deshalb Ende April Fachleute zu einer Podiumsdiskussion eingeladen (die AZ berichtete).

Mobilfunk bleibt gefährlich

Der Bildunterschrift zu dem Artikel über den Mobilfunk als "größten Freilandversuch" muss ich leider widersprechen: Es gibt sehr wohl bundesweit Beweise, dass Mobilfunkstrahlen und Sendeanlagen gefährlich sind. Das sagt sogar das den Mobilfunkbetreibern sehr nahe stehende Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz, und empfiehlt, Handys so wenig wie möglich zu benutzen und soweit wie möglich vom Ohr abzuhalten. Und das Amt setzt noch einen darauf: Kinder sollten überhaupt nicht mobil telefonieren.

Die Mobilfunkbetreiber haben es seit dem Jahr 1992 meisterhaft verstanden, die Kritik der Standortgegner nieder zu trampeln. Nicht selten wurden zweifelnde Wissenschaftler kurzerhand mit Forschungsaufträgen betraut und somit mundtot gemacht.

Tatsache ist, dass Mobilfunksendeanlagen außerordentlich große Gesundheitsgefahren verursachen. Die ehemalige Sendeanlage von Mannesmann in Grolsheim hatte zur Folge, dass in kurzer Zeit im Halbradius von 200 Metern 16 Personen an Krebs und Hirntumoren starben. Vor und nach der inzwischen abgebauten Anlage hatte die Gemeinde einen oder zwei Sterbefälle im Jahr zu beklagen.

So zu tun, als ob Mobilfunkstrahlen ungefährlich sind, kann so nicht stehen bleiben. Jedoch: Schon allein aus wirtschaftlichen Gründen kann die expandierende Mobilfunkindustrie nicht zurück gefahren werden. Doch in der Schweiz sind die Richtwerte neunmal niedriger. Das zumindest könnte auch in Deutschland sein. Selbst von der krankmachenden Strahlenintensität überzeugte Experten tun sich schwer, gegen einen Staat im Staate, wie ihn die Mobilfunkbetreiber zwischenzeitlich verkörpern, anzurennen.

Omega siehe dazu „Die Schweizer Grenzwerte - Eine Mogelpackung erster Güte“ unter: http://omega.twoday.net/stories/283430/

Doch eines steht fest: Mobilfunksendeanlagen machen krank. So oder so! Und das Gegenteil ist nicht bewiesen.

Theo Bayer, Grolsheim

http://www.main-rheiner.de/region/objekt.php3?artikel_id=1902680


Krebscluster in der Nähe von Funkantennen
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

Warum Mobilfunk schädlich ist
http://mein-mobilfunk-plaedoyer.de/

Diskussionsbeitrag von Wolfgang Fabricius vom 29.04.2005 (pdf) beim Gesundheitsladen Berlin

http://www.gesundheitsladen-berlin.de/Leibeigenschaft.pdf


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 10

Auf der Suche nach Alternativen: Das bedingungslose Grundeinkommen

Artikel von Harald Rein, erschienen in Asta der FH Münster (Hg.): Alle reden vom Wetter. Wir nicht. Beiträge zur Förderung der kritischen Vernunft, Münster 2005

http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/existenz/rein_wetter.html


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


Aus: LabourNet Nachrichtensammlung, Band 25, Eintrag 10

http://www.izgmf.de/Aktionen/Meldungen/Archiv_04/PL-Statistik/pl-statistik.html
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/697358/

http://www.nachrichten.ch/detail/211689.htm
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/697358/

In keinem anderen Land agieren Führungskräfte derart passiv bis innovationsfeindlich wie in Deutschland. Von ihren Mitarbeitern erwarten die hiesigen Manager gerade in schwierigen Zeiten neue Ideen, viel Einsatzbereitschaft und Kreativität, doch ihnen selbst fällt zugleich nichts besseres ein, als Kürzen, Sparen, Feuern...

http://www.tecchannel.de/news/business/20867/

Mainzer Mediziner untersuchen Betroffene

MAINZ (arts). Mit einem bundesweit einzigartigen Projekt will Rheinland-Pfalz möglichen gesundheitsschädlichen Auswirkungen elektromagnetischer Felder (EMF) auf die Spur kommen. Erstmals sollen dabei betroffene Bürger umfassend medizinisch untersucht werden.

http://www.mainzer-emf-wachhund.de


Omega siehe dazu:

http://omega.twoday.net/topics/Victims/
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=EMF-Wachhund

Krebscluster in der Nähe von Funkantennen
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

Umweltministerin Conrad wertet gesundheitliche Beschwerden "nicht als Massenphänomen".

http://www.main-rheiner.de/region/objekt.php3?artikel_id=1895437

Omega siehe dazu:

http://omega.twoday.net/topics/Victims/
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=EMF-Wachhund

Krebscluster in der Nähe von Funkantennen
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

Mainz (dpa) - Beschwerden über Gesundheitsstörungen wegen Elektrosmogs von Handys oder Mobilfunkanlagen sind laut einer Erhebung des rheinland-pfälzischen Umweltministeriums seltener als bisher angenommen.

Omega siehe dazu:

http://omega.twoday.net/topics/Victims/
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=EMF-Wachhund

Krebscluster in der Nähe von Funkantennen
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=EMF-Wachhund
http://omega.twoday.net/topics/Victims/

Krebscluster in der Nähe von Funkantennen
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

http://omega.twoday.net/stories/227418/

Krebsfälle in OÖ und Gesundheitsschäden unter dem Einfluss hochfrequenter elektromagnetischer Felder
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/749728/

http://www.mises.org/story/1814


Informant: Lew Rockwell

[IDW/red] – Die möglichen Risiken von Mobiltelefonen oder Sendeanlagen werden von Experten unterschiedlich eingeschätzt. Der in der Öffentlichkeit bestehende Verdacht, Mobilfunk habe negative gesundheitliche Auswirkungen, kann allerdings nicht erhärtet werden, so die Programmgruppe Mensch Umwelt Technik (MUT) des Forschungszentrums Jülich.

http://www.arbeit-und-gesundheit.de/zeige_seite.php?artikelid=737&collectionname=Startseitenartikel
(Auszug)

--------

Der "Leitfaden zum Umgang mit Problemen elektromagnetischer Felder in den Kommunen", ist zu finden unter

http://www.emf-risiko.de/leitfaden-emf/index.html,

erarbeitet von der Programmgruppe Mensch, Umwelt, Technik des Forschungszentrums Jülich, einer sehr industrienahen Institution, deren Mitarbeiter sich seit Jahren durch Verharmlosung von Umweltgefahren hervortun und im Auftrag von Mobilfunk- und Atomindustrie durch die Lande ziehen und bei Veranstaltungen und in Fernsehsendungen auftreten, um die Sorgen besorgter Bürger herunterzuspielen. Die Programmgruppe Mensch Umwelt Technik (MUT) wird von Dr. Peter M. Wiedemann geleitet, Psychologe und der Vergangenheit bereits in ähnlicher Weise für die Atomindustrie tätig. Als Partner der Programmgruppe werden beispielsweise T-Mobil und Vodaphone Produktentwicklung angegeben.

In dem Dokument http://www.fz-juelich.de/mut/hefte/heft_81.pdf teilt die Programmgruppe MUT die Mobilfunkgegner in Gruppen ein (Seite 58, Abschnitt 5.3.) und analysieren diese für ihren Auftraggeber. Offensichtlich, damit dieser dann "zielgruppenspezifisch" gegen diese vorgehen kann.

http://omega.twoday.net/stories/602488/

--------

Jülich Report

Es ist erstaunlich und für Mobilgegner nützlich, dass diese "Experten" warnen 'kurz anrufen, nicht im Auto, nicht weit vom Sendemast'. Und das nicht nur für Kinder bis 8 (wie William Stewart), sondern für Jedermann! Und erstaunlich, dass diese "Experten" klipp und klar bestätigen, dass es nicht-thermische Effekte gibt, besonders von pulsierter Strahlung. Und dass die wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen nur sagen, dass die Effekte kein Problem sind für gesunde, junge Erwachsene. Und dass es möglich ist, dass manche Gruppen damit nicht wohl und gesund bleiben können. Weiterhin stehen im Report die bekannten Verharmlosungen.

Der Pressebericht sagt zum Beispiel: 'Bedenken nicht erhärtet',
obwohl der Report sagt, dass das langfristiges Krebsrisiko wieder zur
Diskussion steht (also tatsächlich wieder erhärtet ist).

fransp at dds.nl

Quelle: http://de.groups.yahoo.com/group/elektrosmog-liste/message/5334
(Bearbeitung Omega). Siehe dazu auch:
http://de.groups.yahoo.com/group/elektrosmog-liste/message/5335

--------

Forscher und Forschungsergebnisse von der Industrie bezahlt
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/281056/

http://tinyurl.com/ch4y6
http://tinyurl.com/7tmjr

World: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/
USA: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqs/

Source: http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/bulletin/neic_yfb6_h.html

Click on The Net for Today's Earthquake Forecast
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/30861/story.htm


http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050516/full/050516-5.html

http://rochester.indymedia.org/otherpress/display/81/index.php


Informant: billder

Wir haben eine Reihe von online verfügbaren Artikeln zu den Attac-Aktivitäten gegen die EU-Verfassung zusammengestellt. Das Layout wird noch verbessert, und Ergänzungen wird es (hoffentlich) auch noch geben, aber wer jetzt schon mal schauen will: unter http://www.attac.de/eu-verfassung/pressespiegel.php sind die Links zu finden.


Malte Kreutzfeldt
Pressesprecher Attac Deutschland
Post: Münchener Str. 48, 60329 Frankfurt/M
Tel.: 069/900 281-42
Mail: presse@attac.de, Fax: 069/900 281-99