Aufruf zum Anruf

Nächste Woche wird es konkret im Europaparlament: Die Vorratsdatenspeicherungs-Richtlinie steht am Dienstag zur Diskussion im Plenum und soll am Mittwoch in erster Lesung abgestimmt werden. Der Bürgerrechts-Ausschuss (LIBE) des Europaparlaments hatte sich zwar auf gemeinsame Änderungswünsche geeinigt, allerdings haben die beiden grossen Fraktionen (Sozialdemokraten und Konservative) auf eigene Faust einen Kompromiss mit dem EU-Council beschlossen. Dieser soll von der "Grossen Koalition" im Europaparlament beschlossen werden und bedeutet nicht wirklich eine Entschärfung der Richtlinie. Unsere Abgeordneten wollen an die Bedeutung ihrer Entscheidung erinnert werden - hilf mit!

Wer das Europaparlament und seine Arbeitsweise kennt, weiss, dass es dort nicht wie im Bundestag funktioniert. Koalitionen gibt es nur bei Themen und die können wechseln. Auch sind die bunt zusammengewürfelten Fraktionen sehr divergierend in ihren Ansichten. Hier kann jeder ansetzen. Vermutlich sind sich die meisten Abgeordneten nicht wirklich bewusst, was sie am Mittwoch abstimmen werden und welche Konsequenzen die Richtlinie für Grund- und Freiheitsrechte in Europa bedeuten. Bei den Plenumsdiskussionen nehmen meist nur die Fachpolitiker des Themas teil, die wiederum für ihre Fraktionen "Voting-Lists" erstellen, quasi Wahlempfehlungen.

Die Tagesordnung am Mittwoch sieht folgendermassen aus: Es gibt nur zwei unterstützenswerte Änderungsanträge. An erster Stelle steht ein Antrag der grünen Fraktion auf Ablehnung der gesamten Richtlinie. Dieser ist natürlich der weitestgehende und sollte im Optimalfall von den Abgeordneten unterstützt werden. Aber selbst die Liberalen sind gespalten und werden vermutlich mehrheitlich für den Kompromissantrag der "Grossen Koalition" stimmen. Der zweite unterstützenswerte Änderungsantrag kommt von der Schwedin Charlotte Cederschiöld und betrifft Artikel 10 der Richtlinie. Hier geht es um die umstrittene Frage, wer denn die Kosten für die Vollüberwachung übernehmen soll. Während der Kompromiss die Kosten auf die Industrie abwälzen will, die wiederum alle neu entstehenden Kosten an die Verbraucher witer geben wird, fordert der Änderungsantrag die Kostenübernahme durch die Regierungen. Also das Verursacherprinzip. Würde dieser Änderungsantrag durchkommen, wäre eine zweite Lesung notwendig und es wäre Zeit gewonnen für mehr Diskussionen. Jedesmal sind 370 Stimmen notwendig. Das Problem ist, dass die "Grosse Koalition" die absolute Mehrheit hat, aber längst nicht so einig sind wie im Bundestag. Aber auch die Liberalen werden wohl mehrheitlich für die Vorratsdatenspeicherung stimmen und leider nur in einer Minderheit für die Ablehnung der Richtlinie.

Deutschland hat insgesamt 99 Abgeordnete im Europaparlament, wo vermutlich die wenigsten von wissen, was auf dem Spiel steht. Der Bundestag hat letztes Jahr in einem interfraktionellen Antrag [1] geschlossen eine Vorratsdatenspeicherung abgelehnt.

Was kann man jetzt noch tun?

Wichtig ist, bei den Abgeordneten anzurufen [2], Faxe zu schicken und Mails zu schreiben und auf die Risiken der Richtlinie hinweisen. Den meisten dürfte echt nicht bewusst sein, was ihre Fraktionsvorsitzenden ihnen am Mittwoch bei einer Richtlinie mit dem komisch klingenden Namen "Data Retention" zur Abstimmung empfehlen. Wenige Tage sind hierfür noch Zeit. Starten sollten man immer bei den eigenen Europaabgeordneten. Schaut also nach, wer für Euch im Europaparlament sitzt. Direkt anrufen ist am sinnvollsten, meist hat man einen Mitarbeiter am Telefon, wenn man Glück hat, auch den Abgeordneten. Faxe schreiben ist auch gut, ein Fax halten die Mitarbeiter in der Hand und müssten sich das erstmal durchlesen. Mails sind leider nicht sehr effektiv, da die Abgeordneten viel mehr Mails als Faxe und Telefonanrufe bekommen. Wichtig ist vor allem, höflich und argumentativ am Telefon zu sein. Ihr wollt ja jemanden überzeugen und nicht beschimpfen!

Verbreitet die Nachricht weiter und mobilisiert mehr Menschen, sich jetzt gegen eine Vorratsdatenspeicherung und damit eine flächendeckende Überwachungsinfrastruktur in Europa einzusetzen. Nächste Woche ist es zu spät und dann können wir nur noch auf die Gerichte hoffen.

Hier ist ein aktuller Artikel aus der Zeit über die Vorratsdatenspeicherung und was sie bedeuten wird: Jeder unter Verdacht [3]. Über eine gestrige Anhörung im Europaparlament berichtet Reuters: Compromise on EU data storage rules spurs backlash. Die meisten Informationen hält das Wiki [4] unserer "Data retention is no solution"-Kampagne [5] bereit. Viele Informationen bietet auch netzpolitik.org [6]. Am einfachsten findet man diese, wenn man "Vorratsdatenspeicherung" in die Such-Maske eingibt. Heise fasst die neuesten Entwicklungen auch nochmal zusammen: Abstimmungskrimi bei Richtlinie zur Überwachung der Telekommunikation erwartet [7].

[1] http://dip.bundestag.de/btd/15/045/1504597.pdf
[2] http://www.europarl.eu.int/members/public.do?language=de
[3] http://www.zeit.de/2005/49/Vorratsspeicherung
[4] http://wiki.dataretentionisnosolution.com:81/index.php/Main_Page
[5] http://www.dataretentionisnosolution.com/
[6] http://www.netzpolitik.org/
[7] http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/67133


Von chaos-update

The Bush administration based a crucial pre-war assertion about ties between Iraq and al Qaeda on detailed statements made by a prisoner while in Egyptian custody who later said he had fabricated them to escape harsh treatment, according to current and former government officials.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120905J.shtml

There are unanswered questions about whether Karl Rove was truthful when he was first interviewed by FBI and Justice Department investigators in early October 2003 regarding whether he played a role in the leak of covert CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson. According to sources close to the probe, he was not.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120905I.shtml

09.12.05

Der von der Welthandelsorganisation (WTO) geplante erleichterte Marktzugang für Industriegüter fördert nach einer Greenpeace-Studie die Zerstörung der Urwälder. Notwendige Urwaldschutzmaßnahmen wie Einfuhrverbote von Holz aus Urwaldzerstörung oder die Kennzeichnung von Öko-Holz widersprächen zudem laut WTO dem Freihandel, so die Studie "Trading away the ancient forests" ("Die Urwälder weg ver-handeln"), die die Umweltschutzorganisation am Freitag in Hongkong veröffentlicht hat. Holz gehöre zu den Industriegütern, über deren Handelsliberalisierung Vertreter aus 149 Ländern auf der sechsten WTO-Ministerkonferenz vom 13.-18. Dezember in Hongkong verhandeln wollten, so die Organisation.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet:
http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=12482

Informationelle Fremdbestimmung: breite Kritik an Plänen zur Speicherung aller Internet- und Telefonverbindungen

Als "Bedrohung des Rechts auf informationelle Selbstbestimmung" hat der Bundesverband der Verbraucherzentralen (vzbv) die Pläne der Europäischen Kommission zur Vorratsdatenspeicherung von Telefon- und Internetdaten bezeichnet. Eine demokratische Gesellschaft zeichne sich dadurch aus, dass nicht der Staat die Bürger, sondern die Bürger den Staat kontrollierten, sagte vzbv-Vorstand Edda Müller. Das gelte im digitalen Zeitalter insbesondere für den Datenschutz. Die Verbraucherschützer forderten die Mitglieder des Europäischen Parlaments und die Bundesregierung auf, den Richtlinien-Entwurf komplett zurückzunehmen. In der kommenden Woche debattiert das Europaparlament den Entwurf. Am Donnerstag übergaben über 20 Organisationen von Bürgern, Freiberuflern und Unternehmen haben dem Europäischen Parlament eine "Gemeinsame Erklärung zur Vorratsdatenspeicherung", in dem sie sich ebenfalls gegen die Überwachungs-Pläne aussprechen.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet:
http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=12479

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Europaweite Speicherung von Telefon-, Handy- und Internetverbindungsdaten untergräbt Informantenschutz

http://www.vdz.de/pages/article/2240.aspx
http://www.news4press.com/1/MeldungDetail.asp?Mitteilungs_ID=87445

Who is Gorton's?

Whaling is not just the concern of governments and cryptic political meetings. There is big business involved. While whaling is not profitable, you might be surprised to learn of some famous seafood companies' connections to whaling. We're asking you to help us make the whaling stop.

With total annual sales in the hundreds of millions of dollars, Gorton's is the market leader in frozen seafood products in the US. The company even invented the McDonald's Filet-O-Fish burger. Its frozen battered shrimp, fish sticks and other ready-to-eat foods are sold at grocery stores across the US.

In 2001 Gorton's was sold to its current owner, Nissui USA, for US$175 million. Nissui USA is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nissui, Japan's second-largest marine products firm, with operations in the United States, Argentina, Chile, the Netherlands, China, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam. Nissui is closely linked with the annual "scientific" whale hunt in Japan.

So, despite Gorton's clean-cut family business image, it is actually a Japanese multinational company whose parent company is involved in whaling.

Please send a letter to the president of Gorton's and ask him to help stop whaling.

Help stop whaling
http://prefs.greenpeace.org/mail-links/clicks/11346.2033379.5409

After Cindy Sheehan's son died in Iraq, her protest outside Bush's Texas ranch became a symbol of opposition to the war. Duncan Campbell joins her as she brings her campaign to Britain.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120905Y.shtml



Cindy Sheehan
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Sheehan

http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_7779.shtml

Isn't it impeachable if the Pres. of the U.S. bashes the constitution?? It should be.

Anna



http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=impeach
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Downing+Street+Memo

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Constitution, Schmonstitution

Karen Kwiatkowski on Bush's view.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20051209/cm_huffpost/011975;_ylt=AjODVorzoIjAPXcHQPjFJaP9wxIF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--


Informant: Lew Rockwell

Für die EU-Minister ist wieder alles gut:

US-Außenministerin Rice konnte auch in Brüssel weiter mit Worten spielen, britische Lordrichter haben nun für Großbritannien eindeutig gegen Folter Stellung bezogen.

http://www.telepolis.de/tp/r4/artikel/21/21534/1.html

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Blair unter Druck: Folter vom Oberhaus verboten

http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,389509,00.html

(SPON) Das englische Oberhaus hat als höchstes englisches Gericht die Verwendung von Geständnissen, die unter dem Einsatz von Folter erpresst wurden, verboten. Bisher hat die englische Regierung darauf bestanden, solche Geständnisse gerichtlich zu verwenden, wenn an die Folter nicht durch englischen Staatsbürger ausgeführt wurde.


G.Wendebourg / metainfo hamburg

Link zum Beitrag / Hintergrundinfo oder Pressehinweis: http://www.hh-online.com?lid=23151 und
http://links.net-hh.de?lid=23151

Infopool / metainfo hamburg www.hh-online.com

Frontiers of Freedom
by Chris Adamo

12/08/05

Most profound among the many failures of the American 'educational' system has been its abominable distortion of this nation's history. In particular, the principles of constitutional law, once widely understood by the citizenry, are now treated as hazy and erudite philosophies, only fit for debate within intellectual circles. All too often, any agreeable sounding platitude serves as a worthy substitute. Thus Americans wander through life believing in 'constitutional rights' to employment, housing, recreation, or any other amenity they crave...

http://tinyurl.com/dj6ta


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Rock River Times
by Chad Bouman

12/08/05

A police state is emerging in the United States of America. Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are usurping their powers in order to justifiably abuse them. ... We were warned by our predecessors (founding fathers) that a Demcracy poses a threat upon our Republic and is always followed by a dictatorship. We now stand as an imperialist county hated by all nations for this same democracy that has swallowed our nation into a downward spiral where our leaders are now vexing upon the Middle East, and next, the world. The founding fathers also told us that a revolution was necessary whenever the existing government poses a threat against our Constitutional Republic. We are to oust the tyrannical rulers by whatever means possible to keep and protect ourselves from traitorous dictators. This is the sole pupose for the SECOND AMENDMENT and is defined in a paragraph of the Declaration of Independence...

http://www.rockrivertimes.com/index.pl?cmd=viewstory&cat=4&id=11824


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Mother Jones
by Tom Engelhardt

12/08/05

[A]n afternoon spent in the lost world of September 5-10, 2001, reminds us that the savage attacks of the following day would, in fact, buy a faltering, confused, and weak administration as well as a dazed and disengaged President a new life, a 'calling' as he would put it, and almost four years to do its damnedest. It would be 2004 before the President's polling figures settled into the levels of that long-lost September 10th. It would be the summer of 2005 -- and the administration's disastrous handling of hurricanes Sheehan, Katrina, and Iraq -- before the President would again be criticized for his 'gone fishing' summer vacation; before the Democrats would again begin to attack; before newspapers would again be relatively uncowed; before the Republicans would again gather in those private (and then public) places and begin to complain; before Congress would again be up for grabs. Four long years to make it back to September 10th, 2001 in an American world now filled to the brim with horrors, a United States which is no longer a 'country,' but a 'homeland' and a Homeland Security State...

http://tinyurl.com/9wslj


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Gizz-ette
by John Gizzi

12/09/05

'We could be looking at a Democratic House in '06,' a senior Republican House member told me recently. The lawmaker was clearly nervous about the President's record-low poll numbers, the bad reports from Iraq continually pounded home by the liberal media, and the ongoing reports of scandal surrounding congressional Republicans connected with indicted influence peddler Jack Abramoff. Could this combination of negative factors be a formula for Democrats to make the net gain of 15 seats they would need to recapture a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives for the first time in a dozen years? 'Yes,' replied the Republican congressman without hesitation, whereupon he proceeded to tick off more than 20 Republican-held seats around the country that are in danger of flipping to the Democrats in the third congressional election cycle of the Bush presidency. The third cycle historically yields disastrous results for the party in the White House. He was not alone in this forecast...

http://www.humaneventsonline.com/blog-detail.php?id=10757


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

http://tinyurl.com/cj2pj


Informant: Rory Winter

MSNBC/Newsweek

12/08/05

European politicians demanding investigations into mysterious flights into their countries by suspected CIA-operated airplanes may find their own governments are as unenthusiastic about digging into the issue as top Bush administration officials. According to current and former U.S. counterterrorism officials, some European governments were informed of at least some of the details of the CIA flight operations before or as they happened...

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10385133/site/newsweek/


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Houston Chronicle
12/08/05

The judge in U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's criminal case said today he is unlikely to allow DeLay to be tried separately from his co-defendants or on only one of the two money laundering charges still pending against him. 'It is unlikely that I will grant a severance of counts or even of defendants in the absence of a compelling reason to do so,' Senior District Judge Pat Priest said in letter to lawyers in the case....

http://tinyurl.com/a8bd3


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

USA Today

12/07/05

FEMA's top official was told more than a year before Hurricane Katrina that the agency's emergency response teams were unprepared for a major disaster and were operating under outdated plans, documents show. Additionally, e-mails obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press indicate that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff tried to call Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco the afternoon before Katrina hit. The e-mails indicate she could not be immediately reached and may have been napping...

http://tinyurl.com/7z73a


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Cincinnati Enquirer

12/08/05

Key Republicans from the House and Senate reached a White House-backed compromise Thursday to renew the broad powers granted to law enforcement agencies in the days after the 2001 terrorist attacks on American soil. GOP leaders pledged to pass the Patriot Act extension for President Bush's signature by the holidays, although bipartisan criticism flared. Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., threatened to filibuster a bill he said lacked adequate safeguards to protect constitutional freedoms...

http://tinyurl.com/awb4k


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Reuters

12/09/05

Poland was the heart of the CIA's secret detention network in Europe, with bases there until recently holding a quarter of the 100 detainees estimated held in such camps worldwide, a human rights group said. Reports of the CIA operating secret jails in Poland and Romania as part of its war on terrorism have caused controversy on both sides of the Atlantic and dogged U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's European trip this week. Both countries deny hosting such facilities, and the United States has declined to comment on the reports...

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L09248168.htm


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

America wants and deserves real answers on Iraq: What is the clear definition of success? Is there a plan? How much longer and how many more lives? In short, what is the end game?

Because we in Congress are charged with overseeing the safety of our sons and daughters when the president sends them into battle, it is our responsibility, our obligation to speak out for them. This obligation has not been met. That's why I am speaking out now.

I offered a concrete plan to get our troops out of harm's way, where they have become the target. I don't expect every member of Congress to agree with my specific proposal in this debate - but I do expect them to take part in that debate, not to squash it.

I am asking you to join me in demanding a real discussion of the war in Iraq from the U.S. House of Representatives.

Tell Congress to Have an Honest Debate For the Safety of Our Troops. http://whatcounts.com/t?ctl=101B079:4092A66

For too long Congress has counted itself out of any real debate on Iraq policy. We didn't talk about troop levels, even after the White House fired General Shinseki because he complained the levels were too low. One problem we encountered was the lack of proper training for our troops; service members were placed to guard the prisons but weren't trained; consequently we had Abu Ghraib, and no action from Congress. And if you look at the casualties, they have doubled since then. It's time to change our course - we can't just sit back any longer.

I've taken a lot of trips to Iraq. When I came back from my last one, I had become convinced we were making no progress at all. This can't be Republican and Democrat. It can't be recrimination one way or the other. We have to work this thing out, and we can't let a real solution get caught in the crossfire of an understandably heated political fight.

It's time for a serious conversation, not more rhetoric.

Tell Congress to Have an Honest Debate For the Safety of Our Troops. http://whatcounts.com/t?ctl=101B079:4092A66

The past few weeks have had a lot of firsts for me. I have never sought out the spotlight, or even taken the lead in a House floor debate the way I did a few weeks ago. And I've never signed an email like this before. But I see the beginning of a debate that is long overdue, and we can't afford to let it get overtaken by talking points or the news cycle.

I'm offering this petition, which will be delivered to Speaker of the House in order to keep our Congress focused where it should have been all along. I hope you'll sign if you agree.

Tell Congress to Have an Honest Debate For the Safety of Our Troops. http://whatcounts.com/t?ctl=101B079:4092A66

Sincerely,

John Murtha
Pennsylvania's 12th District


It is very important to spread Rep. John Murtha's call for an honest debate on Iraq. Please take this opportunity to forward his message to your friends and family.

http://whatcounts.com/t?ctl=101B07B:4092A66

Dec. 10 is International Human Rights Day, and one of our most basic rights—the right to freely form a union—is under attack. Watch this video to learn more.

http://www.americanrightsatwork.org/efcaflash.cfm

by American Rights At Work
http://tompaine.com/#passiton

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/251384_tony09.html

by Anthony B. Robinson, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Bush sold America his global war using an old Christian heresy. Not surprisingly, it's led to a new crusade.

http://www.tompaine.com/

by Joseph Stiglitz, TomPaine.com

Thanks to the slick maneuvering of the U.S. and other rich nations, the deck remains stacked against developing countries.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/20051209/fair_trade_for_none.php

http://www.unknownnews.org/0512091203whitelist.html


Informant: Mata Hari

Achtung!!!!! Es wird Ernst.

09.12.20054, 18.45 Uhr

Soeben aus dem Newsticker erhalten:

Das amerikanische State Department verbietet allen US Amerikanern, die Kritik am White House äußern, die Ausreise.

Quelle: http://www.unknownnews.org/0512091203whitelist.html

Geht es jetzt richtig los????????????

Mata Hari

Send an e-card to friends and tell them to email Washington
http://actionnetwork.org/ct/EpaYwHs1RmtN/

Leaders from around the world are meeting right now in Montreal to discuss international efforts to cut global warming pollution.

Unfortunately, the U.S. is not engaging in these discussions. Despite a lot of talk from Washington about global warming, the federal government has refused to take any meaningful action to cut global warming pollution.

Tell friends to email their elected officials! We need your help to get our "Enough Talk. Take Action!" message to Washington. Send an e-card to friends and help get Washington to take action on cutting global warming pollution:
http://actionnetwork.org/ct/EpaYwHs1RmtN/

Or, if you haven't acted yet, watch our animation on global warming impacts and send an email to your elected officials:
http://actionnetwork.org/EDF_Action_Network/yea_flash.html?member_key=i5sxe8425xwmjd&

In Montreal, countries are discussing the next phase of the Kyoto Protocol - the international agreement cutting global warming pollution. These are crucial discussions about long-term solutions, involving a historic effort by rainforest nations to curb deforestation.

But the U.S. is not joining in these negotiations, even though global warming's effects were all too visible in 2005.

Among the 2005 danger signs:

- The ferocity of recent hurricanes may be a sign that global warming is already intensifying tropical storms. And many scientists believe it will only get worse in the coming decades.

- Arctic sea ice melting advanced this summer, opening up the possibility of ice-free Arctic summers and dangerously accelerating global warming, as less ice leads to more heat absorption from the sun - a prospect with devastating consequences for polar bears and people alike.

- Coral reefs are bleaching and dying. These spectacular rainforests of the sea are at severe risk as warmer waters, more acidic oceans and stronger storms take their combined toll.

If we are going to stop global warming, we have to first deal with the hot air coming from our elected officials.

Send e-card to your friends and urge them to email Washington. It's time for Washington to join the fight to cut global warming pollution: http://actionnetwork.org/ct/EpaYwHs1RmtN/

Thanks for your help.

Ray McGovern writes that Vice President Dick Cheney, whose unbridled chutzpah has led him to take public as well as private credit for being the intellectual author of US policy on torture, has become such a glaring liability that his tenure may be short-lived. There is a growing possibility that the vice president will resign at the turn of the year "for reasons of health," and that his partner-in-crime - in what Colin Powell's former chief of staff at the State Department, Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, has labeled the "Cheney-Rumsfeld cabal" - will choose to retire to his home in Taos early next year.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120905Z.shtml

10:18 Friday 9 December 2005

A motion to adopt the precautionary principle and bring new mobile phone masts under tougher planning controls has been tabled for debate at the next meeting of West Berkshire Council scheduled for next Tuesday, 13th December.

Councillor Keith Lock (Lib Dem, Mortimer) has submitted the motion which backs a Private Members Bill to be submitted to Parliament by David Curry MP (Con, Skipton & Ripon). The motion states that "such masts should be subject to full planning controls" it goes on to say that "the precautionary principle should apply giving schools, homes and medical facilities extra safeguards."

Councillor Keith Lock said: "I hope that West Berkshire Council will back this motion which will put new mobile phone masts under fairer planning rules. As local Councillors we have heard repeated calls from constituents that such applications be treated fairly and yet the current law ties Councillors hands."

© 2005 - Click Dot Business Ltd, its contributors and its suppliers. All rights reserved.

http://www.clicknewbury.com/zones/news/story/20051209.1018.5.html

Thrusting itself into the middle of a stormy international debate, Britain's highest court declared today that evidence obtained through torture - no matter who had done the torturing - was not admissible in British courts.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120805E.shtml

Feingold Threatens Filibuster on Patriot Act Report

Feingold writes that he will do everything he can, including a filibuster, to stop this Patriot Act conference report, which does not include adequate safeguards to protect our constitutional freedoms.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120805A.shtml

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Feingold to Fight Patriot Act Reauthorization

John Nichols Fri Dec 9, 1:40 PM ET

The Nation -- Four years ago, when U.S. Senator Russ Feingold stood alone in the Senate to oppose the Bush administration's Patriot Act, he was portrayed as a political fringe dweller whose determination to defend basic liberties was out of touch with the realities of the post-9/11 era.

This year, as Feingold leads the fight to block a flawed proposal to reauthorize the Patriot Act, he does so as the voice of a national movement that includes conservatives and liberals, Democrats, Republicans, Greens, Libertarians and independents, and residents of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. And he has enough Senate allies to speak seriously about launching a filibuster to block the measure.

What has changed since 2001?

For one thing, almost 400 communities across the United States and seven states -- Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Montana and Vermont -- have passed resolutions condemning the assaults on civil liberties and the rule of law contained in the Patriot Act and calling upon Congress to address those concerns before reauthorizing the measure that was approved with minimal debate in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Rarely in American history has a single law drawn such ideologically, politically and geographically diverse opposition.

The message was heard by the Senate which, during this year's reauthorization debate, addressed many of the most serious civil liberties concerns. The bipartisan reauthorization measure, which added basic privacy protections that had been proposed by Feingold and others, was approved unanimously by the Senate.

Unfortunately, the U.S. House, which under the hard-line partisan leadership of Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, and his lieutenants no longer operates as an independent legislative chamber but instead rubber stamps the requests of the Bush administration, failed to respond to the public outcry. Instead, it produced a reauthorization of the Patriot Act that was actually more draconian in some senses than the original legislation.

That set up what was supposed to be a clash between House and Senate conferees, who were required to reconcile the differing proposals.

But, rather than accept the Senate's balanced bill, the conference committee opted to advance a version of the legislation that, like the House bill, extends most of the Patriot Act permanently while failing to address the flaws that have inspired so much opposition to the law. Of particular concern to civil libertarians is the fact that the conference committee's proposal extends several of the Patriot Act's most controversial provisions by authorizing roving wiretaps and permitting allowing the government to seize the records of libraries, hospitals and businesses in "fishing expedition" searches.

"The conference committee had the opportunity to fix many of the provisions of the Patriot Act to which Americans across the political spectrum have voiced their opposition over the last four years," explained U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (news, bio, voting record), D- Wisconsin, the leading Congressional critic of the Patriot Act. "Unfortunately, they decided not to listen."

Feingold's objections were echoed by the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups that seek to defend Bill of Rights protections. "This sham compromise agreement fails to address the primary substantive concern raised by millions of Americans, as well as civil liberties, privacy and business organizations and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle and in both chambers," argued Caroline Fredrickson, the director of the ACLU's Washington legislative office.

The Bill of Rights Defense Committee, which has played a critical role in organizing opposition to the Patriot Act nationwide, is particularly worried by the decision of the conference committee to disregard language that would have protected against the abusive use of so-called "National Security Letters" -- the documents used to federal agents to demand the records of libraries and businesses. Civil libertarians wants Congress to set a baseline standard requiring that there be a connection between records sought and a suspected terrorist or foreign agent.

Without such protections, Feingold says, the conference committee's proposal lacks "adequate safeguards to protect our constitutional freedoms."

As such, the Wisconsin Democrat says, "I will do everything I can, including a filibuster, to stop this Patriot Act conference report." The filibuster threat is a significant one, as the act will expire if it is not reauthorized by the end of the year.

Unlike in 2001, Feingold has Senate allies. On Thursday, a bipartisan group of senators joined him in signing a letter that declared, "We believe that this conference report will not be able to get through the Senate, while the Senate bill would easily pass the House if its leadership would bring it to a vote. We call on our House colleagues to reject this conference report, and to take up and pass the Senate compromise bill. We still can - and must - make sure that our laws give law enforcement agents the tools they need while providing safeguards to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans."

That's the balance that Feingold sought to strike in 2001. He's doing so again in 2005. The difference is that, this time, Feingold will not have to stand alone.

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UNITED FOR PEACE & JUSTICE | 212-868-5545


Informant: mr_tjsmith

From ufpj-news

http://www.counterpunch.org/lennon12082005.html


Informant: Scott Munson

http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495;article=96620;show_parent=1

But torture is also very much about words: the whispered or shouted questions of the interrogator; the muddled confession of the prisoner; the too rarely tested language of laws protecting prisoners from "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment.

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051226/editors


From Information Clearing House

It has been calculated that our present American economic life style involves importing 6.36 million barrels of oil per day at a cost to our GNP of $426 million dollars per day – calculated on $67 per barrel oil. If oil goes to $100 per barrel, soldiers’ lives become even cheaper.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11250.htm

Real Media
http://tinyurl.com/e42fa



Cindy Sheehan
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Sheehan

By Jeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith

Thousands of well-meaning people are mobilizing to pressure Congress to pass legislation banning torture. But the Bush Administration is maneuvering to turn it into legislation that would instead protect the torturers by eliminating a basic legal right.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11246.htm

By Chris Floyd

Bush proudly held up this hideous system as an example of what he called "the meaning of American justice." And the assembled legislators applauded. Oh, how they applauded!...

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11253.htm

Open and Shut

By Jarrett Murphy

On Monday, December 5, the 9-11 Public Discourse Project—a private group formed by 9-11 Commission members after their official mandate lapsed in 2004—held a wrap-up press briefing in Washington, signaling the last gasp of official inquiries into the attacks four years ago. People who lost loved ones will never know exactly how the end came, if it hurt, what the final thoughts and words were. But other questions are more tractable. Here are 10 of them:

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11249.htm

GREAT LAKES NEAR ECOLOGICAL BREAKDOWN
http://tinyurl.com/czve2


Informant: NHNE

--------

Great Lakes Headed for Catastrophic 'Ecological Collapse': Report
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/1209-05.htm

Firestone, a multinational rubber manufacturing giant known for its automobile tires, has come under fire from human rights and environmental groups for its alleged use of child labor and slave-like working conditions at a plantation in Liberia.

http://www.truthout.org/issues_05/120805LB.shtml

Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin took aim at the United States on Wednesday for its refusal to negotiate a new global warming treaty, telling a United Nations conference that the world's most powerful economy needed to resume participating in international talks to reduce greenhouse gases.

http://www.truthout.org/issues_05/120805EB.shtml

A watchlist of possible terror suspects distributed by the US government to airlines for pre-flight checks is now 80,000 names long, a Swedish newspaper reported, citing European air industry sources. The classified list, which carried just 16 names before the September 11, 2001, attacks in New York and Washington, had grown to 1,000 by the end of 2001, to 40,000 a year later, and now stands at 80,000, Svenska Dagbladet reported.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/120805S.shtml

Pressemitteilung von: spirit Rainbow Verlag

Überall begegnet uns die elektromagnetische Umweltverschmutzung, zumeist unerkannt und vor allem auch wenig verstanden. Wäre Elektrosmog schwarz, würden wir inzwischen die Hände nicht mehr vor den eigenen Augen sehen. Deshalb hier ein paar einfache Erklärungen zu einem weltweiten Umweltproblem, das es offiziell nicht wirklich gibt.

Smog ist ein Kunstwort aus dem Englischen: smoke = Rauch und fog = Nebel. Es entstand in den Sechzigern, als in England Tausende von Menschen an einer plötzlich eintretenden Luftverschmutzung in London starben. Danach wurden die geltenden „Grenzwerte“ drastisch herabgesetzt. Grob unterteilt man Elektrosmog in mehrere Bereiche, die sich aus der Physik ergeben:

Im Niederfrequenzen Bereich (NF = Hausstrom) lassen sich elektrische und magnetische Eigenschaften des Stroms noch unterscheiden. Also finden wir hier elektrische (EWF) und magnetische Wechselfelder (MWF). Der Transport ist an Kabel gebunden, die wir zumeist als Steigleitungen in den Wänden verlegen. Zum Glück kann man oft durch leichtes Verrücken des Bettes die Stärke der Felder auf baubiologische Norm (1V/m) bringen – der Abstand entscheidet. Oft misst man auch Feldstärken von bis zu 130 Volt/m im Kopfbereich des Bettes. Dann heißt es herauszufinden, wo der Strom herkommt.

Im hochfrequenten Bereich (HF) verschmelzen diese Felder, deshalb spricht man hier genauer von elektromagnetischen Feldern. Hier findet hauptsächlich Informationsübertragung statt. Das ist der sogenannte Funksmog, der seit 1992 mit dem Ausbau der Funknetze exorbitante Ausmaße erreicht. Man nutzt die elektrische (Träger-)Welle, um auf ihr die Information zu transportieren (ähnlich einem Fluss, der ein Schiff trägt). Das nennt man Modulation. Grob gesagt gibt es drei verschiedene Arten der Modulation, die alle verschiedene technische Vorteile haben und folgendermaßen genutzt werden:

a) Amplitudenmodulation (AM), genutzt für Radio und Fernsehen (analog)

b) Frequenzmodulation (FM), genutzt für Radio, Handfunkgeräte, TV (analog)

c) Pulsmodulation (PM), genutzt für Telefon, Radar, Richtfunk und vieles mehr (digital)

Soweit wir heute wissen (und das ist nicht besonders viel!), ist weniger die hochfrequente Feldstärke als vielmehr die darin enthaltene niederfrequente Modulation biologisch riskant. Und davon ganz besonders die gepulste Information. Das heißt, die Information wird, wie zum Beispiel beim DECT-Schnurlostelefon, in 100 Teile pro Sekunde zerhackt – leider auch noch dann, wenn Sie nicht telefonieren! Diesem Dauerstress ist unser Immun- und Drüsensystem nicht ewig gewachsen. Man erkrankt durch Elektrosmog, ohne ihn jemals als Ursache zu erkennen. Folglich kann auch nicht zielgerichtet therapiert werden.

Eine weitere ganz entscheidende Unterscheidung liegt in der biologischen Wirkung dieser Strahlung:

· thermisch, das heißt Gewebeerwärmung wie beim Mikrowellenherd · athermisch, das sind alle übrigen zumeist unbekannten biologischen Wirkungen

Letztere werden weder offiziell untersucht noch zugegeben, denn das stört das Geschäft. Lediglich auf diesen einen, allgemein anerkannten „thermischen Effekt“ zielen also die existierenden Grenzwerte. Zu denen gibt es nicht viel zu sagen, außer, dass sie unter exakten Laborbedingungen ermittelt und staatlich festgeschrieben werden. Der Vorteil liegt für die Industrie also darin, dass sie mittels der angeleierten Forschung Grenzwerte bekommt, die technisch und ökonomisch wundervoll zueinander passen.

Hochspannungs- und Eisenbahnleitungen können je nach ihrer Leistung beachtliche magnetische Felder aufbauen, die sämtliche Materialien bis hin zu Blei, natürlich auch den menschlichen Körper, durchdringen. Welche biologischen Schäden sie wirklich anrichten, ist noch unzureichend geklärt. Studien aus den USA, den skandinavischen Ländern und unter anderem aus Deutschland zeigen jedoch eine durchaus erkennbare Tendenz zu bestimmten Krebsformen, psychischen Erkrankungen (zum Beispiel Depressionen durch Änderung der Hirnfrequenzen) und weiteren gravierenden Gesundheitsproblemen.

Im Haus kann man einiges zum Schutz seiner Gesundheit vor niederfrequenten Störfeldern selber tun: Vermeiden Sie elektrische Geräte im Schlafzimmer, dazu gehören auch Wasserbetten mit eingebauten Heizelementen. Radiowecker sollten mindestens 1 bis 2 Meter vom Bett entfernt sein. Vor allem sollten sie keine rote Anzeige haben, die zumeist aus Gallium und Arsenid besteht, dessen Leuchtspektrum für uns schädlich ist. Deshalb gibt es sie inzwischen auch mit grünem Licht. Besser ist es in jedem Fall, einen Batteriewecker oder mechanischen Aufzieh-Wecker zu verwenden. Überhaupt höhlt steter Tropfen den Stein: also möglichst weder Strom noch Metall, an das sich elektromagnetische Felder mit Leichtigkeit ankoppeln. Das Bett sollte deshalb nur aus natürlichen Materialien (Holz) bestehen.

Da die ständig wachsende Hochfrequenzbelastung jedoch das größte gesundheitliche Problem darstellt, möchte ich hier kurz etwas näher darauf eingehen.

Was macht diese mobile Technologie eigentlich so gefährlich? Immerhin lebten wir ja bereits einige Jahrzehnte mit Fernsehtürmen etc., ohne gleich auffällig daran zu erkranken. Das liegt an einem kleinen Unterschied zwischen analogen und digitalen Quellen: der Periodizität der Wellen. Das ist mit einem unaufhörlichen Trommelfeuer von Funkblitzen vergleichbar. Regelmäßig kann man in den Zeitungen lesen, dass Tanzwütige in den Diskotheken aufgrund der Stroboskoplichter in eine gnädige Ohnmacht fallen. Hier handelt es sich um gepulstes Licht. Dasselbe gilt für Neonröhren: gepulstes Licht, da die Gasfüllung der Röhre mit 5o Hz entzündet wird. Ein Pressluftbohrer bezieht seine Wirkung ebenfalls aus dem Puls: gleichmäßig immer auf dieselbe Stelle. Bei monotonem Lärm erkennen wir das Problem viel schneller, da laut. Desgleichen bei Licht: Wer beschwert sich nicht bei der Stadt über die flackernde Straßenlaterne vor dem Schlafzimmer? Und was nervt mehr: ein stetiger oder ein hämmernder Kopfschmerz?

Um sich die Empfindlichkeit unserer Zellen einmal ganz deutlich vor Augen zu führen, muss man wissen, dass in jeder von ihnen 105 Stoffwechselvorgänge pro Sekunde stattfinden. Zellen und Organe haben ihre eigene spezifische Frequenz und Polarität. Als Beispiele mögen dienen: die Prostata: 1,79 GHz; die Leber: 1,85 GHz; die Galle: 1,87 GHz; das Herz: 1,918 GHz und die Nieren: 1,98 GHz. Damit liegen sie im Bereich der E-Netze (1,8 GHz) und vor allem der breitbandigen UMTS-Frequenzen (1,98-2,2 GHz). Bei dieser Schwingung kann in die Steuerungsmechanismen der einzelnen Zellen eingegriffen werden, und es liegt auf der Hand, dass auf diesem Weg unvorhergesehene Schädigungen möglich sind.

Der Medizinphysiker Dr. Lebrecht von Klitzing kam in vielen wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen zu folgendem Ergebnis: „Zellen sind in Kommunikation miteinander, tauschen nonstop lebenswichtige Informationen aus. Das machen sie mit elektromagnetischen Signalen über Ionenaustausch an den Zellmembranen. Die Ionen werden gepulst durch Ionenkanäle geleitet, und zwar in Frequenzbereichen bis etwa 400 Hz. Genau hier befinden sich die technischen Signale der Mobilfunknetze. Wenn eine neue Technologie auf den Markt kommt, sollte systematische Grundlagenforschung betrieben werden. Das ist bei den D- und E-Netzen nie geschehen. Es geht hier um technische Informationen, die biologisch verarbeitet werden.“

Es gibt aber auch gute Argumente, die ein halbwegs gesunder Menschenverstand (den soll es ab und an noch geben) versteht: In Spanien mussten mittlerweile mehr als 2.000 Sender wieder abgebaut werden, nachdem ein Richter nach einigen Leukämieerkrankungen in einem Kindergarten in Valladolid darauf bestand, dass die Industrie die Ungefährlichkeit ihrer Produkte zu beweisen habe
(www.elektrosmognews.de/www.buergerwelle.de/www.gigaherz.ch). Bloß: wie? Also werden hauseigene Forschungskreise gegründet, die immerzu fromme Bekundungen zur Ungefährlichkeit herunterbeten, aber nie zu erwähnen vergessen, „dass noch Forschungsbedarf besteht.“

Hierzulande müssen die Geschädigten leider noch immer beweisen, dass sie durch gepulste Hochfrequenz krank werden. Deshalb existieren mittlerweile alleine in Deutschland mehr als 5.000 Bürgerinitiativen gegen die täglich wachsende HF-Belastung durch sogenannte Handy-Türme etc. Alleine die „Bürgerwelle e.V.“ betraut als Dachverband der Elektrosmoggeschädigten mehr als 200 Initiativen. Und jetzt die große Preisfrage: Können all die vielen engagierten Bürger wie behauptet Hypochonder sein? Einige vielleicht, aber nicht Tausende, die tagtäglich in einer kranken Gesellschaft ihre(n) Mann/Frau stehen. Zur Zeit läuft deshalb der sogenannte „Freiburger Appell“, der von vielen Ärzten ins Leben gerufen wurde, um die geltenden völlig überzogenen Grenzwerte deutlich abzusenken. Die Stadt Salzburg hat nämlich beispielsweise in Europa gezeigt, dass es möglich ist mit äußerst geringer HF-Belastung zu leben, ohne auf mobile Kommunikation verzichten zu müssen.

Bis es hierzulande soweit ist, dass man wieder ungeplagt von elektromagnetischen Feldern leben kann, muss sich jeder ernsthaft davon Betroffene vorläufig ganz pragmatisch selber helfen. Deshalb haben Baubiologen auch Hochkonjunktur und die Gerätehersteller von Entstörmaßnahmen ebenfalls. Dabei sollte man nicht wahllos sein, denn natürlich gibt es hier wie in jedem anderen Bereich schwarze Schafe. Manche Methoden und Geräte mögen helfen, sind aber immer mit Vorsicht zu genießen. Ratsam ist es deshalb, wenn man die versprochenen Wirkungen in solchen Fällen durch einen auf Schwingungsmedizin (Kirlianfotografie, Bioresonanz, EAV etc.) spezialisierten Arzt nachprüfen lässt. Aus diesem Grund empfiehlt es sich unbedingt, zuvor eine bestimmte Probezeit für Entstörungen jeglicher Art zu vereinbaren. Insgesamt ist diese Thematik jedoch zu kompliziert, um an dieser Stelle weiter verfolgt zu werden.

Wer sich schnell und verständlich über alle mit Elektrosmog zusammenhängenden Probleme kundig machen möchte, sei deshalb vor allem auf mein praxisnahes Handbuch „Ständig unter Strom“ und den bald erscheinenden Nachfolger „Der ideale Schlafplatz – Geheimnisse guter Gesundheit und langen Lebens“ verwiesen. Hier kann er sich über alle die erwähnten Zusammenhänge schlau machen, ohne zuvor ein Examen als Ingenieur absolvieren zu müssen.

Autor und Geo-/Baubiologe Silvio Hellemann
Teutonenstraße 42 D - 53175 BONN
00-49-(0)228-372 8819
00-49-(0)228-372 8819
domizid@gmx.de

Autor der Bücher:

Ständig unter Strom - Erste Hilfe bei Elektrosmog ISBN 3-937568-15-8, 296 Seiten, 22 €, spirit Rainbow Verlag

Die Geheimnisse erholsamen Schlafes und langen Lebens - Ein Ratgeber für Ruhelose ISBN 3-937568-19-0, 152 Seiten, 16 €

PR-Mitteilung eingestellt durch: spirit Rainbow Verlag Inh. Gudrun Anders Forsterstr. 75, 52080 Aachen Telefon 0241 / 70 14 721 Fax 0241 / 446 566 8 http://www.spirit-rainbow-verlag.de
Email: rainbowverlag@aol.com

http://openpr.de/news/71660.html


Nachricht von der BI Bad Dürkheim

A tentative "deal" (see below) has been reached on the Patriot Act reauthorization. The compromise (Conference Report on H.R. 3199, the "USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005") does not contain even the modest reforms in Senate bill S. 1389. It differs from the pre-Thanksgiving version only in that its sunsets on sections 206, 215, and "lone wolf" have been reduced from 7 years to 4 years. The compromise is unacceptable.

Votes next week in the House and Senate are likely, assuming a majority of House and Senate negotiators sign the conference report. We will send updates when we receive them, and we will update our main web page ( http://www.bordc.org ) regularly.

Our best chance to defeat the conference report is in the Senate, where Senate Minority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL), and Sens. Larry Craig (R-ID), Russell Feingold (D-WI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ken Salazar (D-CO), and John Sununu (R-NH) have threatened a filibuster. In addition, Democratic Conferees may introduce continuing resolution (s), which would extend by three months the expiring PATRIOT Act provisions AND the debate on reforms.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Please call or fax your Senators
http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ today and urge them to vote as follows, depending on motions introduced:

(1) NO on a motion for cloture (ending debate for an immediate vote);

(2) NO on the conference report; and

(3) YES on a motion for a continuing resolution.

Please contact your Representative with the same requests.

You may also send your message via email by clicking here, but calls and faxes are preferred.

TALKING POINTS:

Remind them of the resolutions passed in their state or district.
(See list at: http://www.bordc.org/list.php?sortAlpha=1 .) State your requests (See "What You Can Do" above.) Feel free to expand with one or more reasons for your opposition to the conference report, such as:

It fails to ensure a connection between records sought and a suspected terrorist. The bill maintains the current, inadequate "relevancy standard" for records sought under section 215, which requires only that the government claim that the information it seeks is relevant to an investigation, without having to connect the target of the investigation to terrorism. It expands National Security Letter (NSL) powers. Any business that does not comply with an NSL could face criminal penalties. Furthermore, the report does not provide a meaningful mechanism for challenging NSLs in court, and does not ensure that the information gathered by these letters is destroyed if it is unrelated to the investigation for which it was sought. It creates only illusory rights to challenge orders for records and gag orders. Businesses receiving requests for records would be allowed to contact an attorney, but would have only limited rights to challenge orders for records in court. Likewise, a recipient would technically have the right to challenge a gag order, but the court would treat the government's assertion of national security, diplomatic relations, or an ongoing criminal investigation, as conclusive.

For expanded talking points, go to
http://www.bordc.org/newsletter/expandedpoints2.php.

Thanks for all you do.

Bill of Rights Defense Committee Web: http://www.bordc.org
Email: info@bordc.org Phone: 413-582-0110 Fax: 413-582-0116


Deal on Patriot Act stirs opposition

Thu Dec 8, 2005 5:25 PM ET

By Richard Cowan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican congressional negotiators announced a White House-backed deal on Thursday to extend the USA Patriot Act, a centerpiece of President George W. Bush's war on terrorism, but opponents said it did not satisfy their civil liberties concerns.

"We have cut through the knotty problems to produce what I think is a balanced bill," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, told reporters.

Specter acknowledged the compromise was not "perfect." Some Senate Republicans and Democrats were quick to say the compromise did not go far enough in improving the Patriot Act, which expanded the government's powers to track suspected terrorists after the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Specter said the Senate and House of Representatives would vote next week on extending the law, which otherwise would expire on December 31.

Four senior liberal Democrats said if the latest compromise could not be changed more to their liking by the deadline, Congress should pass a 90-day extension of the current law to give lawmakers more time. They were Sens. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, John Rockefeller of West Virginia and Carl Levin of Michigan.

The deal was also harshly criticized by at least three conservative Senate Republicans, Larry Craig of Idaho, John Sununu of New Hampshire and Alaska's Lisa Murkowski, who said they were "gravely disappointed."

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales called the compromise bill a "win for the American people in that it will result in continued security for the United States and also continued protection of civil liberties for all Americans."

Specter said a key compromise worked out by House and Senate negotiators was a four-year extension of some of the most controversial provisions that raised civil liberties concerns. The House had been seeking a 10-year extension.

The four-year limit would be on rules for "roving" wiretaps of suspects and court orders for records from businesses, libraries, bookstores and others in intelligence cases.

Specter told reporters the deal to give Congress a chance to review the impact of the law after four years was important to winning bipartisan support for renewing the Patriot Act.

"I know that there are a number of people, Democrats in the House, who told me they would vote for it if they had a four-year sunset. And I believe before we're finished in the Senate we'll have significant bipartisan support," Specter said.

'SHAM COMPROMISE'

New controls also would be placed on "sneak-and-peek" search warrants, which allow law enforcement officials to enter someone's house without the person's knowledge. Under the compromise bill, notice of the search would have to be given within 30 days of its execution.

The Senate originally sought a seven-day time limit, while the House wanted a 180-day period.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which has lobbied for revisions to the Patriot Act, criticized the compromise written by congressional Republicans.

"This sham compromise agreement fails to address the primary substantive concern" raised by civil liberties groups and businesses, said Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU's Washington legislative office.

Fredrickson complained the bill would still give the FBI access to private records of "innocent Americans" without having to demonstrate a connection between the records and a suspected foreign terrorist or terrorist organization.


UNITED FOR PEACE & JUSTICE | 212-868-5545


Informant: mr_tjsmith

From ufpj-news

Japan held $687.3 billion in U.S. government securities in September, about a third of the $2.07 trillion in international holdings and 17 percent of all marketable U.S. debt. China was the second-biggest investor at $252.2 billion, or 12 percent of the overseas total. In all, international investors owned about 51 percent of the U.S.'s outstanding marketable debt in September.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=akZFoSycAstE&refer=asia


Informant: beefree