NORML Survey on Marijuana Use : Win A Prize!

I filled mine out. How about you?

Want to participate in an anonymous survey that can help advance scientific understanding regarding marijuana use?

Want to possibly win a $250 Amazon gift card? How about a free iPod?

This survey from NORML advisory board member and university researcher Dr. Mitch Earleywine assesses a number of attitudes and personal preferences.

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Radio legend Paul Harvey has passed away

I remember listening to him as a kid...sitting in the car, playing with the radio, waiting for my father...and thinking everything Paul Harvey said sounded important!

Adios to Paul Harvey and, Good Day.

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Zakaria: Learning to Live With Radical Islam

"We don't have to accept the stoning of criminals. But it's time to stop treating all Islamists as potential terrorists."

By Fareed Zakaria NEWSWEEK

Pakistan's Swat valley is quiet once again. Often compared to Switzerland for its stunning landscape of mountains and meadows, Swat became a war zone over the past two years as Taliban fighters waged fierce battles against Army troops. No longer, but only because the Pakistani government has agreed to some of the militants' key demands, chiefly that Islamic courts be established in the region. Fears abound that this means women's schools will be destroyed, movies will be banned and public beheadings will become a regular occurrence.

The militants are bad people and this is bad news. But the more difficult question is, what should we—the outside world—do about it? That we are utterly opposed to such people, and their ideas and practices, is obvious. But how exactly should we oppose them? In Pakistan and Afghanistan, we have done so in large measure by attacking them—directly with Western troops and Predator strikes, and indirectly in alliance with Pakistani and Afghan forces. Is the answer to pour in more of our troops, train more Afghan soldiers, ask that the Pakistani military deploy more battalions, and expand the Predator program to hit more of the bad guys? Perhaps—in some cases, emphatically yes—but I think it's also worth stepping back and trying to understand the phenomenon of Islamic radicalism.

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The Year in Hate

You'd think by now racists would be hiding in a cave somewhere tryng to figure out how to assimilate!

Number of Hate Groups Tops 900
By David Holthouse

From white power skinheads decrying "President Obongo" at a racist gathering in rural Missouri, to neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klansmen hurling epithets at Latino immigrants from courthouse steps in Oklahoma, to anti-Semitic black separatists calling for death to Jews on bustling street corners in several East Coast cities, hate group activity in the U.S. was disturbing and widespread throughout 2008, as the number of hate groups operating in America continued to rise. Last year, 926 hate groups were active in the U.S., up more than 4% from 888 in 2007. That's more than a 50% increase since 2000, when there were 602 groups.

As in recent years, hate groups were animated by the national immigration debate. But two new forces also drove them in 2008: the worsening recession, and Barack Obama's successful campaign to become the nation's first black president. Officials reported that Obama had received more threats than any other presidential candidate in memory, and several white supremacists were arrested for saying they would assassinate him or allegedly plotting to do so.

At the same time, law enforcement officials reported a marked swelling of the extreme-right "sovereign citizens" movement that wreaked havoc in the 1990s with its "paper terrorism" tactics. Adherents are infamous for filing bogus property liens and orchestrating elaborate financial ripoffs.

Somewhat surprisingly, it wasn't just the usual suspects from the white supremacist underworld who sought to exploit the country's economic turmoil and political strife. A key 2008 hate group trend was the increasing militancy of the extremist fringe of the Hebrew Israelite movement, whose adherents believe that Jews are creatures of the devil and that whites deserve death or slavery.

These radical black supremacists have no love for Barack Obama, calling him a "house nigger" and a puppet of Israel. They preach to inner-city blacks that evil Jews are solely responsible for the recession. The rhetoric of white-skinned hate group leaders in 2008 was equally alarming. Last September, for example the cover of National Socialist magazine depicted then-presidential nominee Barack Obama in the crosshairs of a scope, with the headline "Kill This Nigger?"

What follows is a detailed look at the three most active and dangerous white supremacist hate group sectors in 2008: Ku Klux Klan groups, neo-Nazis, and racist skinheads.

KU KLUX KLAN
Ku Klux Klan groups
Reversing a generally declining trend since 2000, Klan groups in the U.S. increased significantly in 2008, from 155 chapters to 186. Seventeen new chapters belong to the Brotherhood of Klans Knights of the Ku Klux Klan (BOK), which during the past five years has grown into the largest Klan organization in the country. In 2008, the Marion, Ohio-headquartered BOK launched a handful of chapters in Canada, linking up with the Aryan Guard, a fast-growing white nationalist group based in Alberta.
A smaller but likewise rapidly expanding Klan group, the United Northern and Southern Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which in 2007 absorbed the National Aryan Knights, more than doubled its number of chapters and tripled its geographic reach last year, going from 11 chapters in eight states to 24 chapters in 24 states.
The continued rise of the United Northern and Southern Knights and the BOK paralleled the decline of the Imperial Klans of America (IKA). Since 2005, the IKA has shriveled from 39 chapters in 26 states to just six chapters in five states. Last year, it suffered a crippling blow when a Meade County, Ky., jury delivered a $2.5 million judgment against members of the IKA, including $1 million against IKA leader Ron Edwards, in a lawsuit brought by the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of a mixed-race teenager who was assaulted by IKA thugs in Kentucky.
Beyond the IKA trial, the biggest Klan story for the mainstream media in 2008 was the murder of a 43-year-old Tulsa, Okla., woman during a backwoods Klan initiation ritual near Bogalusa, La. According to law enforcement investigators, the victim was recruited over the Internet to join the Sons of Dixie, a tiny KKK faction led by Raymond "Chuck" Foster. Foster allegedly shot the woman in the head after she changed her mind about joining the Klan.
Blipping on the media's radar last December was the National Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, whose imperial wizard, Ray Larsen, called for all Klansmen "worldwide" to wear black armbands and fly the American flag upside down on Jan. 20, the day of Barack Obama's inauguration.

NEO-NAZIS
Neo-Nazi groups
A slight drop in the number of neo-Nazi chapters last year from 207 to 194 was attributable largely to the dissolution of National Vanguard after its leader, Kevin Alfred Strom, was convicted in January 2008 on child pornography charges. (Strom was released last fall after serving prison time.)
Another major neo-Nazi leader, American National Socialist Workers Party "Commander" Bill White, also suffered legal troubles in 2008, culminating in his December indictment on several federal felony counts for posting death threats on his website or by making them by phone. Along with the threats, White often posted the home addresses of perceived enemies, ranging from Canadian human rights attorney Richard Warman (in an item subtly titled "Kill Richard Warman") to Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts to officials of the Southern Poverty Law Center.
When the seven-count federal indictment came down, White was already jailed in Chicago on separate charges. He was arrested last October and extradited from Roanoke, Va., where he owns apartments in black neighborhoods, to face a federal obstruction of justice charge for allegedly threatening the foreman of a Chicago jury that convicted neo-Nazi leader Matt Hale in 2004 of soliciting the murder of a federal judge. Still, despite White's legal and personal financial turmoil (he declared bankruptcy last June), the ANSWP grew last year from 30 chapters in 26 states to 35 chapters in 28 states, making it the second-largest neo-Nazi organization in the country, after the National Socialist Movement (NSM).
Apart from its usual literature dispersals, book burnings, swastika lightings, and its annual "Hated and Proud" hate rock festival, the NSM in 2008 targeted Latino immigrants with sizable "illegal invasion" protests in Washington, D.C., and Omaha, Neb. Subjected for years to movement ridicule for their brown-shirt uniforms, NSM national and state chapter leaders also voted at the group's National Congress last April to switch to "more militant looking" black BDUs (Battle Dress Uniforms). Even with the makeover, the NSM lost 30 chapters last year (it later added 26, for a net loss of six chapters) after leader Jeff Schoep abandoned his family and relocated NSM headquarters from Minneapolis to Detroit in January 2008, reportedly to move in with a new girlfriend of dubious Aryan purity.
Nevertheless, the NSM benefited from diminished competition as the formerly dominant National Alliance continued its long decline, shrinking to 11 chapters in nine states. Similarly, Aryan Nations, another one-time powerhouse, withered to 11 chapters in 10 states. White Revolution gained no ground, ending the year as it began with a dozen chapters.
Two upstart neo-Nazi groups emerged in 2008. The League of American Patriots, which held its inaugural meeting last March 29, appears to be comprised of former National Vanguard members. The second newcomer, Knights of the Nordic Order, was founded by "two former captains of the Aryan Brotherhood," a notorious white supremacist prison gang, according to its website.

RACIST SKINHEADS
Racist Skinhead groups
The total number of racist skinhead crews, driven by the addition of a couple of new organizations, rose from 90 in 2007 to 98 last year.
Relatively inactive in 2007, Hammerskin Nation, long a force to be reckoned with in the racist skinhead subculture, came back in a big way in 2008. The diminished tally of Hammerskins chapters (which dropped from 15 to 12) is misleading, as it represents the merging of smaller chapters and Hammerskin leaders weeding out weaker outfits, rather than a real drop in the organization's strength and membership. On the contrary, the Hammerskins last year stepped up recruiting while forging new bonds with other skinhead groups and hosting dozens of hate rock concerts, white power cookouts, Mixed Martial Arts prizefight viewing parties and other widely promoted events.
The Confederate Hammerskins (CHS), the organization's southeastern regional division, kept particularly busy, beginning last March with a St. Patty's Day concert in Central Florida that was heavily attended by skins from across the country. Represented crews included Volksfront, Blood & Honour American Division, Atlantic City Skins, Troops of Tomorrow, and The Hated. Members of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club, a notorious biker gang, also attended.
A close Hammerskins ally, the Portland, Ore.-based Volksfront, held its first annual "Althing" gathering last Aug. 29-Sept. 1 on private land purchased by Volksfront in rural Missouri, about an hour's drive north of St. Louis. Part three-day hate rock blowout, part skinhead summit, the Althing was held in the "Samuel Weaver Memorial Hall," named after white supremacist Randy Weaver's son, who was killed by federal agents during the infamous Ruby Ridge standoff in 1992 (Weaver's wife and a U.S. marshal were also killed). Among the white supremacist leaders who attended was veteran skinhead organizer David Lynch, leader of the resurgent Sacramento, Calif.-based crew American Front.
Last December, more than 100 skinheads from at least five states gathered in Florida for a "Martyr's Day" party, co-sponsored by CHS, Volksfront and American Front, that featured a keynote address phoned in from prison by Richard Kemp, a member of the white supremacist terrorist group The Order. Martyr's Day commemorates the 1984 death of Order founder Bob Mathews, who died in a shootout with the FBI.
Another noteworthy development in the skinhead sector was the severe weakening of the Vinlanders Social Club (VSC), a skinhead coalition that began in 2003 and grew to become Hammerskin Nation's primary rival. Plagued by infighting, criminal prosecutions and desertions, the Vinlanders made no public appearances in 2008, limiting their activities to private beer bashes. Three inner-circle Vinlanders, including co-founder Eric "The Butcher" Fairburn, were convicted last year of a March 2007 racially motivated attack on a homeless black man in downtown Indianapolis. At his sentencing hearing last August, Fairburn publicly renounced the skinhead movement.
Formerly aligned with the VSC, the Keystone State Skinheads (KSS) distanced their group from the Vinlanders, changed their name to Keystone United and recast themselves as media-friendly "pro-white" activists. Keystone mouthpiece Keith Carney denounced hooliganism in several newspaper and television interviews. Last October, the group held a "Leif Ericson Day Celebration," honoring the Viking explorer, in a Philadelphia public park on the banks of the Schuylkill River. In contrast to the screaming hate rock performed by Absolute Terror and Total War at the annual Keystone-sponsored "Uprise" concert in January 2008, which was held in a secret location, Celtic folk musicians provided entertainment at the two-faced crew's "family-friendly" event.
In contrast to KSS, the United Society of Aryan Skinheads (USAS) made no effort to revamp its image in 2008. Formed in recent years inside California's state prison system, the USAS continues to espouse white-power skinhead ideology and grow into a strong presence throughout Southern California as members are paroled. The USAS went from a single chapter in 2007 to nine chapters in 2008, including three separate crews in San Diego, the group's base of operations in the outside world. Though populated almost entirely by ex-cons, the USAS, unlike most prison-based white supremacists, actually maintains a powerful racist identity and rarely compromises principles in favor of criminal profits.
One major new racist skinhead group surfaced in 2008: the Supreme White Alliance, or SWA. Co-founded by Kentucky skinhead Steven Edwards, son of Imperial Klans of America leader Ron Edwards, the SWA by year's end boasted eight chapters in as many states, an active website and a substantial online presence on MySpace as well as on the white nationalist social networking site New Saxon. The group's vice president is former IKA member Jarred Hensley, who served more than a year for his role in the hate crime assault that led to the SPLC lawsuit. "Out of prison and back on the streets," Hensley posted on MySpace last July upon his release. "It's gr88 to be a Skinhead!" Last October, former SWA probate Daniel Cowart was arrested in Tennesee with another skinhead he met online for allegedly plotting to assassinate Barack Obama after killing 88 black students (88 is neo-Nazi code for the phrase "Heil Hitler"). The SWA claimed that Cowart had been kicked out prior to hatching the plan

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today’s quote…

From MassCann: The Massachusetts Chapter of NORML…

Useful Quotes
Good quotes make great letters.

"It is my considered opinion at present that marihuana is not harmful unless it is taken in enormous and excessive amounts. I believe that we are damaging this country, damaging our law enforcement situation, damaging the trust between older people and younger people by its prohibition, and this is far more serious than any damage that might be done to a few overusers."

-Testimony of anthropologist Margaret Mead to Congress (October 27, 1969)

Useful Quotes

Technorati Tags: marjuana,quotes,quotations,today's quote,personal,opinion,politics,marjuana legalization,marijuana prohibition,marijuana reform,Margaret Mead

Israeli Marksmen Shoot Directly at Civilians and Cameraman

Israeli soldiers filmed shooting at farmers and human rights observers in the Gaza Strip. It appears that the soldiers are shooting to maim or kill despite the obvious presence of international witnesses and cameramen. The bullets pepper the ground, and hiss through the air - at times within 1 metre of the camerman.



24th February 2009

Khoza'a, Khan Younis , Gaza Strip: Palestinian farmers, accompanied by international Human Rights Workers (HRWs), were fired upon by Israeli forces in the village of Khozaa, near Khan Younis, this morning. The farmers and HRWs were attempting to work on land around 300m from the Green Line.

Since the 18th January 2009, in the area next to the Green Line known as the "Buffer Zone", eight Palestinian civilians have been shot by Israeli troops. Three of them have been killed - including one child.

18th January 2009

At approximately 10:40, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel opened fire at Palestinian civilians who were checking their homes and agricultural land following the declaration of the ceasefire. As a result, Maher 'Abdul 'Azim Abu Rjaila, 23, was killed by a gunshot to the chest and shrapnel to the limbs. 20th January 2009 At approximately 13:00, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Khan Yunis, opened fired at Palestinian houses in al-Qarara village. As a result, Waleed 'Abdul Rahim al-Astal, 42, was wounded by a gunshot to the right foot.

23rd January 2009

At approximately 01:00, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel opened fire at Palestinian civilians who were checking the destruction of their houses in Khuza'a village, east of Khan Yunis. As a result, Nabeel Ibrahim al-Najjar, 40, was wounded by shrapnel from a gunshot to the left hand.

25th January 2009

At approximately 16:00, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel opened fire at houses and streets in Khuza'a village, east of Khan Yunis. As a result, Subhi Tafesh Qudaih, 55, was wounded by a gunshot to the back.

27th January 2009

At approximately 10:00, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Khan Yunis, opened fire at a number of Palestinian farmers who were farming agricultural land belonging to the Abu Daqqa clan, nearly 600 meters away from the border. The farmers lay down to avoid being shot. When the shooting stopped, the farmer stood up to leave the area, but IOF troops opened fire at them. One of them, 26-year-old Anwar Zayed al-Buraim, was killed by a gunshot to the neck.

14th February 2009

On 14 February, IOF shot dead a Palestinian child while he was herding animals in the east of Jabalia town in the northern Gaza StripAt approximately 12:00, the body of Hammad Barrak Salem Silmiya, 13, from al-Qerem area east of Jabalia town in the northern Gaza Strip, was brought to Shifa' Hospital in Gaza City. The child had been shot in the head. According to his family, IOF troops fired at him while he was herding animals in the east of Jabalia town. His body was found at approximately 11:30.

18th February 2009

At approximately 10:30, IOF troops positioned at the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, east of Khan Yunis, fired at a number of Palestinian farmers and 6 members of the International Solidarity Movement, as they attempted to leave the area having worked on their land for 2 hours in full view of the Israeli forces. As a result, a farmer, 21-year-old Mohammed Rezeq al-Buraim, was wounded by a gunshot to the left foot.

24th February 2009

Later on the sameday that this video was filmed, the Israeli Soldiers shot 17 year old Wafa Al Najar from Khoz'a. Wafa was 70 metres from her home, and and 800 metres from the border fence. were 3 shots, a neighbour who was 900 metres away says they were fired from two army jeeps and he saw a soldier shooting from the top of one. The first two bullets hit the ground beside Wafa. The third destroyed her kneecap, and she collapsed to the ground.

http://ingaza.wordpress.com/2009/02/2...
http://talestotell.wordpress.com/2009...
http://palsolidarity.org/2009/02/5673
http://ingaza.wordpress.com/2009/02/27/of-knees-and-tranquility/

Download Video:https://rcpt.yousendit.com/657421006/...

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No More DEA Raids on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries?

In response to a question at a Wednesday news conference, US Attorney General Eric Holder said the Justice Department will no longer raid medical marijuana dispensaries in states where they are legal under state law. The announcement marks the fulfillment of a President Obama campaign promise, and it marks the end of 13 years of stubborn federal resistance to state medical marijuana programs.

DEA raids of medical marijuana facilities in California continued after Obama's election in November and even after his inauguration last month. Holder was asked if those raids represented Justice Department policy under the new administration.

"Shortly after the inauguration there were raids on California medical marijuana dispensaries. Do you expect these to continue?" the reporter asked, noting that the president had promised to end the raids in the campaign.

"No," Holder responded. "What the president said during the campaign, you'll be surprised to know, will be consistent with what we'll be doing in law enforcement. He was my boss during the campaign. He is formally and technically and by law my boss now. What he said during the campaign is now American policy." (Watch the video here.)

or here...


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Updated*** Iraq plan: Most troops out by August 2010

By DAVID S. CLOUD - President Barack Obama campaigned on a pledge to end U.S. involvement in Iraq, but he always threw in the caveat that he wanted to consult with military commanders before making a final decision.

As he prepares to outline his withdrawal plan Friday in a speech to Marines at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, he has slightly modified his campaign plan for removing U.S. forces to allay concerns among commanders that fragile security gains in Iraq could be jeopardized unless the drawdown plans are handled carefully.

But the plan Obama will outline does not back away in major ways from his pledge to withdraw U.S. combat forces. Instead of a 16-month withdrawal period, as he originally called for, most of the troops now in Iraq would be withdrawn over the next 19 months, leaving by August 2010, senior officials said.

Even under this slightly delayed timetable, the Pentagon would bring at least 92,000 troops home over the next year and a half, a massive exodus that is likely to satisfy most Americans that he is fulfilling his promise to bring the war to a close, even if some top Democrats say it's not enough.

The remaining U.S. forces— totaling between 35,000 and 50,000 —would have a scaled-down mission focused on advising Iraqi forces, protecting civilian reconstruction projects and carrying out counter-terrorism operations.

Senior administration officials emphasized that Obama is determined to remove all U.S. troops by the end of the 2011, as called for under an agreement signed by Iraqi and Bush administration officials. At least for now, Obama does not plan on asking Iraqi officials to allow any to remain in the country after that deadline.

If that is carried out, it would end the U.S. military presence in Iraq on a timetable that is far shorter than almost anyone anticipated.

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Update****
It's official...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Did We Really Do It?

I like this post by Mark Morford! I feel the same way as he does when I see the issues that have long been "swept under the carpet" actually addressed! It's still hard to trust after 8 years of hell! I expect it maybe that way for awhile.
You gotta admit, it's so exciting to be able to have our President listen to us...that we got it right this time!
Peace,
soul
Obama vs. The Fear / Mark Morford - At any given moment you can pause in whatever it is you're suffering from and hear that voice and see his visage or perhaps merely hear some pundit say the words "President Obama" out loud, and you can still enjoy that delicious chill, that little jolt that says, "Oh my God, did we really do it?

So then, the wistful Obama swoon? Still right there. Still accessible. Still agreeably valid. This is the good news.

But oh, the dark side loometh. By Obama's own insistence that he be held accountable for it all, no one knows for sure if all of these spectacular, historic moves -- the bailouts, the massive recovery program, the jobs, housing, overhauls in health care and education and etcetera -- if any of it, will actually work.

It is, by every estimation, the biggest political and fiscal gamble in a generation, maybe five. It is dicey and dangerous and wildly progressive in scope and ambition, and you know this is true because many bitter, unloved Republicans are seething and whining and tearing into every Obama idea they can find, simply because said plans don't do enough to fellate the wealthy and worship oil companies and ignore children.

Maybe longtime pundit David Gergen said it best when he noted that Obama's agenda is more than merely a stack of dramatic, expensive proposals. It's actually more akin to FDR's New Deal rolled into Lyndon Johnson's Great Society; the grand sum of what Obama is attempting to do just so happens to be "the greatest political drama in our lifetime."

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Seattle Cop: Legalize Drugs to Stop Terrorism, Help Economy

Ending the drug war, diverting funds from drug busts to prevention and treatment, taxing (and rigorously controlling) a regulated market for marijuana and other drugs would help pull the U.S. and the global economy away from the precipice of depression.
Norm Stamper
Retired Seattle police chief, member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

If it accomplished nothing else, the recent rumpus over a gold-plated athlete's bong hit brings into sharp relief the need for a national, rational gut-check about America's drug policy.

But when?

We are, after all, a little busy at the moment. Struggling to hold onto our jobs, our homes, our automobiles. Our 401ks. Our children's lunch and college money. At the moment, forty-six million Americans without health insurance pray to make it through another day without stepping in front of a bus or being laid low by catastrophic illness. Energy needs and the environment vie unendingly for our attention. Terrorism, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may have been reduced, temporarily, to background noise, the result of primal economic fears, but national security concerns still loom large.

So, what's so urgent about drug policy reform?

Dot-connecting time. Since 1971, when Richard Nixon pronounced drugs "public enemy number one" and declared all-out war them (or, more accurately, on the people who took them), we have spent $1 trillion prosecuting that war. Eight Nixon successors and 38 years later what do we have to show for our investment?

We've arrested tens of millions of Americans for nonviolent drug offenses, most for simple possession of marijuana. We've damaged or ruined the lives of countless citizens who've lost school loans, publicly subsidized housing, and jobs. And yet, drugs are more readily available--especially to our kids--at lower prices and higher levels of potency than in the history of the drug war. (If you hear some "expert" claim the war is being "won" because cocaine prices are spiking, consider this: prices, like use levels, fluctuate. By way of analogy, think of the economic pain and suffering of those impoverished oil cartels when the cost of a barrel goes up. What never fluctuates, by the way, is the immutable law of supply and demand.) Even the staunchest drug warriors are in agreement: This is one war whose mission remains unaccomplished, a costly battle with no victory in sight.

The nation's longest running armed conflict, the drug war, financed to the tune of about $70 billion a year, is an unmitigated economic disaster. Think of the money that could be invested, right now, in "shovel-ready" infrastructure improvements, or in the credit crisis, the home mortgage crisis, the energy crisis, the automobile industry crisis, the banking crisis, the education crisis, the deficit crisis...

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New liberal group "ACCOUNTABILITY NOW" backed by Move On.org

The times they are a changing! Everytime I read something like this after 8 years of oppression, I can't even explain my happiness! As a long time liberal it's so cool that we're not paying attention to neo-cons as much as we did during the Bush years.

By JIM RUTENBERG
WASHINGTON — A group of liberal bloggers said it was teaming up with organized labor and MoveOn.org to form a political action committee that would seek to push the Democratic Party further to the left.
Soliciting donations from their readers, the bloggers said they were planning to recruit liberal candidates to challenge more centrist Democrats currently in Congress.
The formation of the group is another step in the evolution of the blogosphere, which has proven effective at motivating party activists to give money and time to political campaigns, especially in local races.
But it also illuminates a deepening wrinkle for President Obama, whose attempt to build a broad governing coalition — often by tempering some of his more liberal positions — has already angered some of his supporters on the left.
The new organization is in many ways the liberal equivalent of the Club for Growth, a conservative group that has financed primary challenges against Republicans it deems insufficiently dedicated to tax cuts and small government.
Organizers of the new group, called Accountability Now, said their intention was to enable Mr. Obama to seek more liberal policies without fear of losing support from the more conservative members of his party serving in Congress. But they did not rule out occasional friction with Mr. Obama, as well.
“We’re going to be about targeting incumbents to make space for Obama to be more progressive,” said Glenn Greenwald, a blogger on the online magazine Salon who is part of the effort. “There may be other times when the Democratic Party, as led by Obama, is being unresponsive, so yeah, we have the potential to push back against that as well.”
Another founder of the group, Jane Hamsher, of the blog firedoglake.com, said Accountability Now might also involve itself in Republican primary contests, though the focus for now seemed to be primarily on the Democratic side.

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Official: Pentagon allows coverage of war coffins

The Pentagon lifted its ban Thursday on media coverage of coffins of war victims as they arrive at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
The coverage must be approved by the victims' families, however.
Advocates of opening the base to coverage say the unmarked coffins make it impossible to identify specific remains.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates is to announce the change at a news conference at 2 p.m. ET, the senior official said. He ordered a review after President Obama asked for more information on the long-standing policy.
Though the Defense Department won't confirm it, it is widely accepted that the ban began after the December 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama, which deposed dictator Manuel Noriega.
After a news conference held by President George H.W. Bush, his press secretary made a humorous comment, causing the president and reporters to laugh.
At the same time, viewers were watching coffins of the first casualties from the invasion being unloaded at Dover.

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California considers junking marijuana prohibition

Rob Kampia of Marijuana Policy Project on the end of marijuana prohibition in California

Marijuana Policy Project Alert
February 26, 2009

 

On Monday, a California state legislator introduced historic legislation that would end marijuana prohibition in California. The bill — authored by Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) — would eliminate criminal penalties for responsible marijuana use and set up a system to regulate and tax marijuana sales similarly to alcohol.

Last night, I appeared on "Glenn Beck" on the Fox News Channel to discuss the legislation. You can watch the segment here:

 

Rob Kampia, executive director of MPP, is interviewed by Glenn Beck about the California bill introduced by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano to tax and regulate marijuana like alcohol.

 

As the nation's largest state, California's serious consideration of ending marijuana prohibition is making huge waves. Within hours of the bill's introduction, it made national headlines and has since generated media coverage across the country, including the Associated Press, USA Today, Washington Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, Miami Herald, MSNBC, CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox News, and much more. MPP has already been featured in at least 20 TV, radio, and print stories about the bill. For instance, one of California's most respected political columnists, Dan Walters, opined in support of the bill in his Tuesday column, quoting MPP's Aaron Smith.

While the legislation isn't likely to become law this year, it's a strong signal that we're making tremendous strides. And California has a reputation for leading the way for other states. When I co-founded MPP in 1995, most people thought medical marijuana wasn't going to become legal anytime soon, but a year later California approved the nation's first medical marijuana law, and since then a dozen other states have followed suit.

MPP is the leading organization working on this and other efforts to end the government's war on marijuana users.

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

Technorati Tags: marijuana,prohibition,marijuana prohibition,drug reform,marijuana legalization,Marijuana Policy Project,Rob Kampia,video

America is not a democracy

Nor was it intended to be

Noam Chomsky

A reality check on how the US as conceived and how it operates and what remains to be done.

 

Technorati Tags: Noam Chomsky,democracy,US,government,BrasscheckTV,video,America

What the Vietnam anti-war movement stopped

 

What can you say?
This madman was President of the United States and Kissinger is still around peddling the world view he honed as a Rockefeller empire employee.

What the Vietnam anti-war
movement stopped

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Why a War Crimes Commission Could Enable Prosecutions

Senate Democrats insist that the investigations they seek are not intended to spawn prosecutions. But they may not be able to control that.
By Glenn Greenwald
UPDATE II: Both Sen. Whitehouse and Sen. Leahy spoke today on the Senate floor to argue for the creation of an investigative Commission. The text of their speeches is here, and a video of Whitehouse's speech is here.
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Today's quote...

"Assuming either the Left Wing or the Right Wing gained control of the country, it would probably fly around in circles."
Pat Paulsen

Spain open to accepting Guantanamo prisoners

Spain has told the United States it is open 'in principle' to accepting prisoners from the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said Wednesday.

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Some Small, Notable Changes in U.S. Policy Towards Israel

In four weeks, the Obama administration has demonstrated a willingness to show more objectivity and balance towards Israel than Bush showed in eight years.
From Glenn Greenwald;
This is a mildly encouraging report, from Haaretz:
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has relayed messages to Israel in the past week expressing anger at obstacles Israel is placing to the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. A leading political source in Jerusalem noted that senior Clinton aides have made it clear that the matter will be central to Clinton's planned visit to Israel next Tuesday.
Ahead of Clinton's visit, special U.S. envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell is expected to issue a sharply worded protest on the same matter when he arrives here Thursday.
"Israel is not making enough effort to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza," senior U.S. officials told Israeli counterparts last week, and reiterated Washington's view by saying that "the U.S. expects Israel to meet its commitments on this matter."
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Today's Cartoon: Any Minute Now

American Progress sent this cartoon by Mike Peters…I thought this is a great cartoon reminding us who got us into this mess in the first place…

Peace,

soul

Any Minute Now 

Supply side tax cuts failed to deliver jobs and growth between 2001 and 2007, writes Joshua Picker.

More: Before the Bush Recession

From the Cartoonist Group

View more cartoons in the cartoon archive.

Subscribe to additional American Progress newsletters.

Technorati Tags: Bush Administration,Bush,economy,political cartoons,political satire,editorial cartoons,cartoons,taxes

Marijuana is Quickest Path to Millions

Marijuana is the quickest way to make a million dollars today. This page tells about the huge number of people who are becoming millionaires in the marijuana business. It also includes links to pages where you can calculate how long it takes to make a million dollars by growing or selling marijuana.

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Cartoons: ‘Phelps Likes Pot’

Some way too funny cartoons on the Michael Phelps controversy by Daryl Cagle and friends….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Phelps Likes Pot

Technorati Tags: Daryl Cagle,cartoons,political humor,political cartoons,humor,marijuana,Michael Phelps,marijuana legalization

Will Obama Cross The 'Reefer Rubicon'?

Froma Harrop
The War on Drugs is ridiculous, behold the storm over Michael Phelps' partaking of marijuana, an illegal substance that at least two presidents have used. It is tragic, witness the raging gang violence along the Mexican border. Whether the Obama administration will downgrade the War on Drugs — or even better, call it off — remains to be seen.

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Best and Worst Imagine Covers

Sorry, but there's no cover that sounds like John Lennon singing Imagine!
peace,
soul
UpVenue has written up a story with the best and worst imagine covers (Lennon). 14 covers with videos included (all on one page)
Imagine, originally created by John Lennon, helped define an era. Many have tried to capture the emotion, the message and the brilliant simplicity of the tune; a few have been successful but many have failed. UpVenue has decided to look at a few of these attempts - fourteen to be exact, from many genres. Let's check them out.
The original:


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Zogby Poll: US Weed Legalization Support Grows

Fifty-eight percent of respondents residing on the west coast agree that cannabis should be "taxed and legally regulated like alcohol and cigarettes."...Nationally, support for taxing and regulating cannabis stands at 44 percent. Among likely voters on the east coast, 48 percent endorse legalizing marijuana.
NORML,San Francisco, CA: A majority of west coast voters support regulating the sale of marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol, according to national poll of 1,053 likely voters by Zogby International and commissioned by California NORML and Oaksterdam University.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents residing on the west coast agree that cannabis should be "taxed and legally regulated like alcohol and cigarettes." Only thirty-six percent of west coast respondents oppose regulating the sale of marijuana for adults.
Nationally, support for taxing and regulating cannabis stands at 44 percent. Among likely voters on the east coast, 48 percent endorse legalizing marijuana. Respondents' support fell to approximately 37 percent in the southern and central regions of the United States.
In January, a national CBS/New York Times poll reported that 41 percent of Americans support legalizing marijuana – up from just 27 percent in 1979.

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Congress Wants WiFi Owners To Keep Log Files For 2 Years...

Me thinks I can "protect" my own child from the internet and don't need nor want anymore spying by big brother on my child or myself!
Peace,
soul

by Mike Masnick - Similar ideas have been proposed before, but new bills have been proposed in both the House and the Senate that require anyone offering internet connectivity to retain log files for two years. There's no good reason for this, of course. It's been shown that such data retention laws actually make it more difficult to track down the information you need while being expensive. But, of course, the politicians are claiming this is "to protect the children." Of course. They even have come up with a silly acronym so that the title of the bill (Internet Stopping Adults Facilitating the Exploitation of Today's Youth Act) spells out "Internet SAFETY Act." Of course, that's a load of crap, because this bill has little to do with protecting children, and won't do much, if anything to actually protect children.
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Legalizing Marijuana Is More Popular Than Republicans

Here is a political realignment for you: polling shows that legalizing marijuana is now more popular than Republicans.
From OpenLeft
It should also be noted that, at 40-41% support, legalizing marijuana is more popular than all of the following:
Opposing stricter gun control laws (40%)
Congress (26-40%)
The war in Iraq (39%)
Decreasing immigration levels (39%)
Privatizing Social Security (36%)
Opposing investigating the Bush administration (34%)
Opposing national, government run health insurance (32%)
Vetoing stem cell research (31%)
The Republican Party (31%)
Dick Cheney (30%)
George W. Bush (24-34%)
Decreasing business regulations (28%)
Rush Limbaugh (28%)
Mitch McConnell (22%)
Preventing the openly gay from serving in the military (17%)
John Boehner (17%)
In short, legalizing marijuana is more popular than the Republican Party, most leading Republicans, and virtually the entire Republican platform.
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Senator Claims Marijuana Makes Man Wear Same Coat 20 Years

Too funny and too sureal all at the same time...

From Reality Catcher
Rather than objecting to marijuana decrim on any rational basis, this dynamic duo of dimwits chose to resuscitate long-discredited Reefer Madness myths as valid reasons for the bill not to move forward.

Sen. Hargrove said one of his former fraternity brothers who smoked pot was still wearing the same trench coat he had 20 years ago.

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MikeCann.Net: Craig X Rubin Running for Mayor of LA on FOX 11 Pushing for Legalization for Jobs

Even though i hate Fox.  A great find from MikeCann.Net

Link to video
Craig X is an outspoken advocate for legalization who was busted by the DEA and has appeared on the WEEDS tv show.
Thanks to Celebstoner for finding it.

MikeCann.Net: Craig X Rubin Running for Mayor of LA on FOX 11 Pushing for Legalization for Jobs

Technorati Tags: marijuana,marijuana legalization,video,politics,jobs

Smoke This Recession: Tax The Booze And Legalize The Pot

Money's tight, baby. City's in trouble. State's deep in the hole. Nation's broke. Solution? Upend the system. Think differently. Get creative. Demolish Ye Olde Ways. And maybe get a really nice buzz on while you're at it.
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist - It is a time of strange bedfellows and bizarre contortions and extraordinary responses to extreme situations, all overslathered with gobs of panic and dread and oh my God, I might have to sell the Range Rover.
In other words, it is a time -- like you don't already know -- of plentiful alarmist rhetoric, resulting in weird outbursts of ingenuity and wanton ethics-loosening, all in a desperate effort to suck up some much-needed cash.
Translation: Money's tight, baby. City's in trouble. State's deep in the hole. Nation's broke.
Solution? Upend the system. Think differently. Get creative. Demolish Ye Olde Ways. And maybe get a really nice buzz on while you're at it.
Where to begin? How can the city/state refill their empty coffers and further gouge the populace to make ends meet? Increased bridge tolls? A new per-mile driving tax? Heavier parking fines? State parks abandoned and left to seed? Child's play, darling.
You want to raise funds in an instant? You want a sure-fire, double-barreled source of nearly limitless funds from a wary, burned-out citizenry? That's easy. Go after its biggest vices, its most beloved balms.
Up first: booze. Already local governments are quietly proposing jacking up the alcohol tax and loosening sales restrictions because, well, why the hell not? Aren't you, right this very moment, as you prepare your taxes and weep over your gutted portfolio and stare down one very bleak 2009, more in need of a drink or three than at any time in recent history except for the entirety of the last eight miserable, Bush-stabbed years? Well, there you go. Tax increases on cocktails, here they come.
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Will Obama Convince Allies to Help Out in Afghanistan?

As the debate plays out about whether President Obama's decision to send an additional 17,000 troops to Afghanistan will help ease the increase in Taliban insurgency, the president is reaching out to allies for help.The public opinion support for military involvement in Afghanistan in both Europe & Canada is low.

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Canada has about 2,800 troops in Afghanistan, but Parliament has voted to pull them out by 2011. Obama suggested he will take up the issue with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper when the two meet Thursday in Ottawa.
That may be why Obama is reaching out to Canada to help ease the burden on U.S. troops in Afghanistan, who may remain there as long as five years, according to Gen. David McKiernan, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
"This is not a temporary force uplift," McKiernan told reporters. "It will need to be sustained for some period of time, for the next three to four to five years."
Extra forces could stay in Afghanistan 5 years
Obama: Troops alone cannot win in Afghanistan
Afghanistan to help review U.S. war on terror
CNN security analyst Peter Bergen said the United States shouldn't necessarily count on NATO countries to lend a hand.
"I think it's probably not very realistic. ... We've constantly asked our NATO allies ... for more soldiers on the ground. Very few NATO countries are going to be willing to send their soldiers into harm's way," he said

Operation Uptick: Obama Launches Afghan Surge | Chris Floyd

Chris Floyd delivers the ugly truth once more...

And so it begins: the great Obama "surge" in Afghanistan. Before withdrawing a single soldier from Iraq, Barack Obama is throwing 17,500 more troops into the boiling Afghan cauldron. The deployment is the first installment of what Obama aides affirm could be a much larger escalation down the road: as soon as the vaunted "strategic review" of Afghan policy – led by hawks like Joe Biden, Richard Holbrook and General David "Pre-President" Petraeus – is completed.

Most of the new troops are apparently going to be sent on a fool's errand to eradicate the only means of support of poor Afghans: the opium crop. Previous such efforts by American forces and their allies have produced nothing but more poverty, anger, extremism and support for the insurgency. And whatever the mission, increased troop levels and military action have led invariably to steep rises in civilian casualties – which, in turn, produce more poverty, anger, extremism and support for the insurgency.

In fact, on the very day that Obama was announcing his own personal Terror War surge, the UN released a report that confirmed the already obvious fact that the American-led occupiers of Afghanistan have been lying about the number of civilians they have been killing. The UN report documents the killing of 2,118 Afghan civilians in 2008 – 828 of them killed by the American-led forces. As Jason Ditz notes at Antiwar.com:

While getting exact numbers of deaths in Afghanistan is virtually impossible given the chaotic situation on the ground, particularly in the restive south, the report once again points to the absurdity of last month’s NATO report, which claimed only 973 civilians overall killed and only 97 by international forces.

The NATO number is absurd indeed, especially when one recalls that some 90 civilians, including at least 75 women and children, were killed in a single attack by an American gunship in the village of Azizabad last summer. [For more, see Atrocity in Azizabad: More Child Sacrifices on the Terror War Altar.]

There will of course be much more of this as the troop levels rise, especially more "close air support" for the increased number of ground forces undertaking more and more attacks. Even the witless, plagarizing, credit-card bagman that Obama put one heartbeat away from the presidency, Joe Biden, admits there will be what he calls – in the hideous argot of our bipartisan Beltway bloodletters – an "uptick" in the number of deaths. Naturally, he was referring only to an increase in American casualties; the Afghans who will also die in increasing numbers in the surge don't count, and aren't counted: 97, 150, 300, 828 – who gives a damn?

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Why We're Marching on the Pentagon on Sat, March 21: Occupation Is A Crime!

Want information on the March 21st March on the Pentagon?
Go to http://www.PentagonMarch.org

Why We're Marching on the Pentagon
Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine ... Occupation is A Crime

Why are we still marching even after the war criminal George W. Bush has left office? Because the people must speak out for what is right. More than 1 million Iraqis have died and tens of thousands of U.S. troops have been wounded or killed.

 

The Iraq and Afghanistan war will drag on for years unless we act now.

 

The cost in lives and resources is criminal regardless of whether the Democrats or Republicans are in charge of the government.

 

We must also act to end U.S. support for Israel’s ongoing war against the Palestinian people. The Bush Administration gave the green light and provided the weapons and the money for Israel’s recent war against the Palestinian people in Gaza. More than 5,000 Palestinians were killed or wounded; the majority of casualties were civilians, including hundreds of children, in this high-tech massacre. “We the People” pay the bill as the U.S. provides $2.5 billion a year for Israel’s massive military machine.

Why We Say "Bring All the Troops Home Now Not Later!"

 

If Bush’s war and occupation of Iraq was an illegal action of aggression—and it was—how can the new government say that it can only gradually end the war over a number of years? The Iraqis don’t want foreign military forces running their country. No one would!

 

The Pentagon has employed 200,000 foreign contractors (mercenaries) and 150,000 U.S. troops to maintain the occupation of Iraq. They have no right to be there. A few thousand are being brought out of Iraq only to be redeployed to occupy Afghanistan, and the fools in the media proclaim “the war is winding down.” That is not true.

 

President Obama decided to keep the Pentagon just as it was under Bush. He even selected Bush appointee Robert Gates to keep his position as chief of the Pentagon. Gates announced that the new administration would double the number of troops sent to Afghanistan. That is certainly not the “change” most people thought was coming following the end of Bush’s tenure.

These are wars for domination in the Middle East and Central Asia.

 

The people of the United States want change. We are sick and tired of wars of aggression waged abroad under false slogans of “national security.” These are wars that reap massive profits for corporate weapons-makers with the promise of winning control over the vast oil and natural gas reserves in the Middle East and Central Asia.

 

Working people may have another definition for “national security.” What really makes the people “insecure?” Ask the 2.3 million families who are losing their homes because they are being foreclosed when they can’t pay their steep debts to the banks. Ironically, when these same parasitic bankers couldn’t pay their debts, the federal government rushed in with a $2.5 trillion bailout using our tax dollars.

 

Or ask working-class students who are being laid off from their jobs just as tuition costs soar out of reach. What defines “security” for millions of young people whose future is at stake? Do they want tax dollars spent to kill poor people abroad or to finance education?

 

We will march on Saturday, March 21, the sixth anniversary of the start of the Iraq invasion, to demand that taxpayer dollars be used to meet people’s needs—here and everywhere. This year’s real Pentagon war budget will top $1 trillion.

 

This amount could create 10 million jobs, provide healthcare and education for all, rebuild New Orleans, and repair much of the damage done in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine. We need money for jobs, housing, health care and education, not for wars of aggression.

 

The occupation of Iraq alone costs $12 billion each month. This amounts to $400 million each day, $16.7 million per hour and $278,000 per minute.

 

The Pentagon war machine does not act in our interests. Its wars benefit the biggest corporations and banks that seek to control the markets and riches of the Middle East. The people of Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine are not our enemies. They want to live free from colonial-type domination. Only a people’s movement demanding an end to U.S. wars and militarism can win justice for people here and abroad.

Get Involved

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Go to http://www.pentagonmarch.org for more information.

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Technorati Tags: A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition,activism,actions,protests,anti-war,Iraq war,war,peace movement

United for Peace & Justice : Beyond War, A New Economy Is Possible: Yes We Can!

We are in historic times. The Obama campaign mobilized millions of people, and his election has brought a new sense of hope and possibility to the nation. United For Peace and Justice is building on this momentum and the rich history that made the election of an African-American possible.
With the inauguration coming the day after our nation celebrates the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, we are reminded again of King's courage and wisdom in connecting the issues of poverty, racism and war. In honor of his legacy, United For Peace and Justice is launching our BEYOND WAR, A NEW ECONOMY IS POSSIBLE: YES WE CAN! Campaign that will kick off on January 19th and culminate its first phase on April 4th with a massive mobilization in New York City.

Visit here to see the document of the campaign voted on at the National Assembly.

• Click here to view resources on 'Retooling the Antiwar Movement'
• Click here to view resources on 'Resources for Base-Building'
• Click here to view news resources on the connection between war and the economy

April 4th is the anniversary of Martin Luther King's "Beyond Vietnam" speech in 1967 and, sadly, the anniversary of his death one year later. Our urgent call to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will be linked to our call to help solve the current economic crisis by dramatically cutting military spending and, instead, investing in our communities.

Click here to download a PDF file of Dr. King's "Beyond Vietnam" speech. You can also listen to audio from Dr. King's speech here while reading along to the text.

Our campaign is a call for a new set of national priorities rooted in the vision and values of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. -- a world without racism, poverty, or war. To honor his work -- as well as our work of the last six years -- we are committing ourselves to working across race, class, and gender lines to build a massive people's movement with the power to help make sure the Obama administration and the U.S. Congress are in alignment with the will of the people.
Building this kind of power and movement starts from the bottom-up with local organizing and building relationships and alliances that are rooted in respect and real solidarity. To nurture the peace movement's growth into a strong ally for other movements will require work. But ending war and building justice for our communities is worth it!
There are several core elements to this campaign that we hope you will take up:

• Retooling the Antiwar Movement: We are launching this campaign in the context of this unique political moment. Our country has crossed a racial divide with the election of the first Black president. It is a moment to celebrate and to move a racial and economic justice agenda to the center of our grassroots organizing to end the wars. As a movement, we must relearn some history and deepen our analysis of systemic oppression. The UFPJ website will have resources to help facilitate discussions, strengthen organizing, and provide materials on racial justice.

• Alliance Building Work: Now is the time to take a new look at what coalition and alliance-building work means. Those of us who have spent the last six years trying to end the war in Iraq need to link up with the groups who have been active in the economic and social justice movements: what other groups are active in your community, what are their issues, what are they doing, what do they need, what do they think about the war. Together we can make a much stronger demand to end the wars and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan and insist that money is spent on creating jobs, rebuilding infrastructure, building a green economy, stopping housing foreclosures, providing health care, and meeting the other needs of our communities.

• Base-building Work: expanding our memberships, our lists, and our power. Now more than ever people want to talk about the role of our government and what we might expect or not from the Obama administration. Let's engage them and listen to them. Let's use this moment to educate people on the costs of war and how the issues are connected. Let's invite people to join our groups and at least to sign up on our contact lists.

We encourage your group to take some time to think about how King's work and the framework of the Yes We Can campaign can support and be integrated into your local work.

United for Peace & Justice : Beyond War, A New Economy Is Possible: Yes We Can!

Technorati Tags: United for Peace & Justice,peace movement,anti-war,activism,actions,Dr. Martin Luther King Jr,diplomacy

ACORN Initates Civil Disobedience to Stop Foreclosures

As resistance to foreclosure evictions grows among homeowners, community leaders and some law enforcement officials, a broad civil disobedience campaign is starting in New York and other cities to support families who refuse orders to vacate their homes.

The community organizing group Acorn unveiled the campaign with a spirited rally on Friday at a Brooklyn church and will roll it out in at least 22 other cities in the coming weeks. Through phone trees, Web pages and text-messaging networks, the effort will connect families facing eviction with volunteers who will stand at their side as officers arrive, even if it means risking arrest.

“You want to haul us out to jail? Fine. Let the world see how government has been ineffective,” Bertha Lewis, Acorn’s chief organizer, said in an interview. “Politicians have helped banks, but they haven’t helped families in the way that it’s needed, and these families are now saying, enough is enough.”

At the onset of the foreclosure crisis, the problem was regarded by some as one of a homeowner’s own making, the result of irresponsible decisions made by families who chose to live beyond their means. But as foreclosures spread across the country, devastating even solidly middle-class communities, the blame has slowly shifted to the financial companies that made questionable loans and have received billions of dollars in federal aid to stave off collapse.

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Activists Place Homeless in Vacant Houses

As President Obama is scheduled to announce his $50 billion foreclosure prevention plan today the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign is taking matters into its own hands and finding housing for homeless people in foreclosed and vacant homes. .

As people were getting thrown out of their homes across the country, and in the absence of any real government action thus far, some are taking action on the local level. The community organizing group, Acorn, recently unveiled a campaign in at least 22 cities to help homeowners resist foreclosure evictions. Meanwhile, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America is bussing homeowners facing foreclosure to the homes of chief executives of financial institutions to protest outside. Sheriffs in some places have also taken a stand. In Wayne County in Michigan, Sheriff Warren Evans, suspended all evictions starting February 2nd until the federal government implements a plan to help homeowners facing foreclosures. And in Ohio Congressmember Marcy Kaptur, recently speaking on the House floor, encouraged homeowners facing foreclosures to stay in their homes.

Today we go to Minneapolis to look at a similar organizing effort. The Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign recently revealed to the media its long-running project to move homeless people into many of the foreclosed and vacant homes on Minneapolis’ North and South Side. They are also seeking a city moratorium on foreclosures, short-sales and evictions.

Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign

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Geographers Urge US To Search 3 Structures for Bin Ladin

Located in northwest Pakistan, Parachinar is 12 miles from Tora Bora, the last
confirmed location of Osama bin Laden.
(Credit: Image courtesy of University of California - Los Angeles)

While U.S. intelligence officials have spent more than seven years searching fruitlessly for Osama bin Laden, UCLA geographers say they have a good idea of where the terrorist leader was at the end of 2001 — and perhaps where he has been in the years since.

In a new study published online February 17 by the MIT International Review, the geographers report that simple facts, publicly available satellite imagery and fundamental principles of geography place the mastermind behind the Sept. 11 attacks against the U.S. in one of three buildings in the northwest Pakistan town of Parachinar, in the Kurram tribal region near the border with Afghanistan.

"If he's still alive, he honestly could be sitting there right now," said Thomas W. Gillespie, the study's lead author and an associate professor of geography at UCLA. "It is still the safest tribal area and city in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of northwest Pakistan and one of the only tribal areas that the U.S. has not bombed with its unmanned Predators."

Despite keen interest in the terrorist recluse and a $25 million reward for information leading to his capture, academics have shied away from getting involved in the quest to find him, the researchers contend. Meanwhile, dramatic improvements in remote-sensing imagery have improved the odds of civilians doing so.

"We believe our work represents the first scientific approach to establishing bin Laden's current location," said John A. Agnew, study co-author and UCLA geography professor. "The methods are repeatable and could easily be updated with new information obtained by the U.S. intelligence community."

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**Must See** Marijuana Documentary - The Union

Through pot growers, police officers, criminologists, economists, doctors, politicians and pop culture icons, The Union examines the cause and effect nature of the cannabis business - an industry that may be profiting more by being illegal.

Watch this trailer and if you think it looks good watch the full movie online at
http://blip.tv/file/1356143/



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Today's Cartoon: The Ghost of the Last Robber Baron Speaks to American Workers

From the Cartoonist Group

The Ghost of the Last Robber Baron Speaks to American Workers 

Unions help keep wages fair and boost the economy. The Employee Free Choice Act would help expand these benefits.

 

More from CAPAF's American Worker Project: Interactive Map: Unions Are Good for Every State

 

 

View more cartoons in the cartoon archive.

 

Subscribe to additional American Progress newsletters.

 

Support the Center for American Progress.

 

Center for American Progress | 1333 H Street, NW, 10th Floor | Washington, DC 20005

 

Technorati Tags: Cartoonist Group,political cartoons,politcal humor,cartoons,editorial cartoons,unions,employees

Have A Prosecution Commission, And We'll Get The Truth Too

One of the most sappy ideas we've heard in a long time was the suggestion of a certain Democratic Senate leader last week that the worst criminals at the top of the Bush administration should be effectively granted blanket immunity in exchange for "fessing up". We can only hope Leahy's actual strategic intent was to have the proposal get shot down, as it quickly was by others, for being pretty much totally toothless. We need to make sure that message was not missed. Indeed, we need to put an exclamation point on it!
The fact is that without prosecution, the top war criminals in American political office of the future will presume that they can always get off the hook by the so-called "truth" commission route. And yet the people who are in the media calling for non-enforcement of the laws against torture and illegal wiretapping are the SAME ones who are "zero tolerance" fanatics when little people get in trouble.

If you are motivated to call on your local district attorney to prosecute George Bush and Dick Cheney for the murder of American service men and women on false pretenses, as called for by prosecutor Vince Bugliosi [and here is a YouTube video], or for other state crimes, this one click lookup form will provide their mailing address, phone, fax and email (if available).
Then if you would like one of the new "CONVICT DICK & W" caps, you can have one for a donation of any amount by submitting the request form here.

Have A Prosecution Commision, And We'll Get The Truth Too

Technorati Tags: Vincent Bugliosi,crimes,Bush Administration,Cheney,Bush,truth,war crimes,activism,actions

US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation : Watch The Commercial on the U.S. Role in Israel's War on Gaza and Take Action

 

Watch the 30-second commercial we produced about the U.S. role in Israel’s recent war on the Gaza Strip, which was censored by DIRECTV.

US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation : Watch Our Commercial on the U.S. Role in Israel's War on Gaza and Take Action

Technorati Tags: Israel,Gaza,Gaza Strip,war,violence,video

Why Michael Phelps?

MPP's John Berry made this 30-second video about Michael Phelps and the hypocrisy surrounding the reaction to the photo of him smoking marijuana. Take a look, and please forward it to your friends.

Michael Phelps, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush: Marijuana Role Models

No one cares that Barack Obama used marijuana, why should Michael Phelps be treated differently?

Michael Phelps, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush: Marijuana Role Models | MPP TV

Technorati Tags: Michael Phelps,marijuana,Marijuana Policy Project,marijuana legalization,video,activism

We Are a Nation of Junkies Hooked on Media-Fabricated Outrage

Michael Phelps hits bong - what an outrage - or just americans getting their fix?
By David Sirota, Creators Syndicate. Posted February 16, 2009.
As the Phelps 'scandal' proves yet again, our narcotic of choice -- creating controversy where none exists -- packs a punch.

I'm not sure if it's because we're strung out on "Lost" episodes, or if it's because we're still suffering from a post-9/11 stress disorder that makes us crave "breaking news" alerts, or if it's because the economy has turned us into distraction junkies. But one thing is painfully obvious after Michael Phelps' marijuana "scandal" erupted last week: Our society is addicted to fake outrage -- and to break our dependence, we're going to need far more potent medicine than the herb Phelps was smoking.

If you haven't heard (and I'm guessing you have), the Olympic gold medalist was recently photographed taking a toke of weed. The moment the picture hit the Internet, the media blew the story up, pumping out at least 1,200 dispatches about the "controversy," according to my LexisNexis search. Phelps' sponsors subsequently threatened to pull their endorsement deals, and USA Swimming suspended him for "disappointing so many people."

America is a place where you can destroy millions of lives as a Wall Street executive and still get invited for photo-ops at the White House; a land where the everyman icon -- Joe Sixpack -- is named for his love of shotgunning two quarts of beer at holiday gatherings; a "shining city on a hill" where presidential candidates' previous abuse of alcohol and cocaine is portrayed as positive proof of grittiness and character. And yet, somehow, Phelps is the evildoer of the hour because he went to a party and took a hit off someone's bong.


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Sen. Patrick Leahy: Investigate Bush-Cheney Abuses

By Sen. Patrick Leahy - We have just emerged from a time when White House officials often acted as if they were above the law. That was wrong and must be fully exposed so it never happens again.

The Huffington Post community and the netroots played a vital role pursuing, demanding, and exposing the Bush-Cheney administration's numerous abuses. But there's still more we don't know, and more we must uncover, about the misdeeds of the past eight years.



That is why I proposed the idea of a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate abuses during the Bush-Cheney administration. These abuses may include the use of torture, warrantless wiretapping, extraordinary rendition, and executive override of laws. 



I have set up a petition at BushTruthCommission.com, and I hope you will sign it to urge Congress to consider establishing a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate the Bush-Cheney administration's abuses. We already have over 7,000 signatures, but we need to hit 10,000 signatures -- or more -- by next week, to build momentum behind this idea.

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Quiz: Presidential Myths

I got 6 out of 10 right! How did you do?

We cannot tell a lie: Not even the president of the United States is exempt from being the subject of myth and urban legend. Take this quiz and sink your wooden teeth into some choice tales about our chief executives!

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Foreclosure Protests at D.C. Offices Reflect Trend

By Darryl Fears,Washington Post Staff - Dozens of demonstrators with the community group ACORN barged into a District office that auctions foreclosed homes in upscale Chevy Chase yesterday and shut it down for an hour, chanting "No sales here."
In Rye, N.Y., and Greenwich, Conn., on Sunday, more than 300 people converged on the homes of two bank executives who opposed modifying loans to help homeowners and barraged the men and their neighbors with slogans.
And in Boston, Detroit, Memphis and Cleveland, protesters against foreclosures have gathered in recent months to confront bankers amid the worst housing crisis in three generations, demanding a moratorium on foreclosures until homeowners get a bailout similar to the one given to banks.
Many of the protests and acts of civil disobedience appear to be unrelated, and some organizers said yesterday they were unaware that a coalition of grass-roots groups called the Bail Out the People Movement is planning what they hope will be a massive demonstration on Wall Street on April 4.
Wall Street is being targeted because banks offered many people exotic loans that carried high interest rates they could not afford, said Larry Holmes, a coalition spokesman. Like other groups, the coalition is demanding a moratorium on foreclosures.

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If you're interested in endorsing and/or attending these protests please read on...

Dear activists,
Events have called upon us to make history. Future generations will look back on this moment to see whether we were able to understand what is at stake, and rise to the occasion.

We call upon you to join with the Bail Out the People Movement and the many community leaders, activists and organizations that are part of it, to help organize the first National March on Wall Street on Friday, April 3 and Saturday, April 4.

Yes! This is a two-day event. The first phase of the march will begin on Friday, April 3; thousands traveling to New York City from all over the country will join us on Saturday, April 4.

We invite you to a planning meeting for the national march, on Wednesday, February 18, at 6:30 p.m. at the CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Ave., New York City. (between 34th & 35th St. - you'll need ID to get into the building. Trains: N, R, W, B, F to 34th St.; PATH to 33rd St.)

The Wall Street march will take place during the same week that the G20 countries are holding their second emergency global economic crisis summit meeting in London on April 2 and 3, which will be followed immediately by a 60th Anniversary of NATO summit meeting in Strasbourg, France on April 4. Both meetings will be the focus of strong protests against war and for economic justice.

Middle East - Hamas: Truce with Israel Imminent

Officials from the Palestinian group that governs the Gaza Strip, Hamas, have said that a ceasefire with Israel will be announced within three days.

The officials, speaking in Egypt, said the agreement would ensure the end of violence in Gaza and the opening of the territory's border crossings.

The apparent breakthrough comes after weeks of negotiations in Cairo between Hamas and Egyptian officials.

Hamas also confirmed that reconciliation talks with rival Palestinian faction Fatah would take place on February 22.

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Politics of Prohibition: it's government greed, not rights

Don Boudreaux July 31, 2007 - This is the history your government school history books DIDN'T teach, and it applies to today's prohibition-failure, too. I'm sure alcohol prohibition was an expensive failure akin to prohibitions on other drugs for years, but it took a fiscal clusterfuck akin to today's clusterfuck to get "change." It's all about the money, not individual rights.

So, if the history of alcohol prohibition is a guide, drug prohibition will not end merely because there are many sound, sensible and humane reasons to end it. Instead, it will end only if and when Congress gets desperate for another revenue source.

That's the sorry logic of politics and Prohibition.

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Latin America Ex-Leaders Urge Reform of US Drug War

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb 11 (Reuters) - The war against drugs is failing and the U.S. government should break with "prohibition" policies that have achieved little more than cram its prisons and stoke violence, three former Latin American presidents said on Wednesday.

The respected former presidents urged the United States and Latin American governments to move away from jailing drug users to debate the legalization of marijuana and place more emphasis on the treatment of addicts.

Former Colombian President Cesar Gaviria said there was no meaningful debate over drugs policy in the United States, despite a broad consensus that current policies had failed.

"The problem today in the U.S. is that narco-trafficking is a crime and so any politician is fearful of talking about narco-trafficking or talking about policies because they will be called soft," he said.

Gaviria has joined with former Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso and former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo to try to change the debate on drugs in Latin America, where trafficking gangs have killed tens of thousands of people and weakened democracies through corruption.

From Mexico's gang wars to the drug-funded FARC guerrilla group in Colombia and daily shoot-outs between gangs and police in Rio de Janeiro's shantytowns, much of the region is scarred by drug violence and many believe U.S. policies have failed.

A United Nations meeting in Vienna next month will frame international drugs policy for the next 10 years, and the three former presidents, whose group is called the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy, said it is time for change.

They pointed to falling street prices for cocaine and still high levels of consumption in the United States despite decades of policies focused on punishing users and cutting supplies from Latin American countries such as Colombia.
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Sheriff attempting to build marijuana case against Phelps

This Sheriff is a pain in the ass! He's just trying to ruin Phelps because he won 8 gold medals and is a hero. Retired Seattle police chief, member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, Norm Stamper thinks you should leave him alone, as per his blog post at HuffPo. Me thinks everyone should just pipe down and let Mr. Phelps be! It's just pot! He wasn't drinking and driving like he was back several years ago. Alcohol is much deadlier but oh so glamourized and advertized by the sports world...

By RICK BRUNDRETT - rbrundrett@thestate.com - As many as eight people have been arrested on drug charges in an effort to build a marijuana possession case against Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps, an attorney for one of the defendants confirmed this morning.
Longtime Columbia attorney Dick Harpootlian said Richland County Sheriff's deputies arrested his client - whom he declined to identify -- in a raid Saturday at his Lake Murray-area home after seizing a small amount of marijuana.
"He's sitting there on Saturday, and 12 cops kick in the door with guns drawn, search his house and find 5, maybe 6, grams of pot," Harpootlian said."They never asked him, 'Who sold you the pot?' ... They were asking, 'Were you at the party with Michael Phelps? Did you see him using marijuana?' It was all about Michael Phelps."
Local defense attorney Joseph McCulloch also said he is representing someone in the case.
Harpootlian, a former solicitor for Richland and Kershaw counties, said in his entire legal career he had "never seen a search warrant executed for simple possession of marijuana."
Harpootlian said deputies arrested another person who was with his client, adding the pair were roommates at the Blossom Street home where Phelps attended a November party. As many as six other people have been charged connection with the Richland County Sheriff's Department investigation, several of whom were charged after deputies recently raided the Blossom Street home, he said.
"All these people have been asked the same questions," Harpootlian said. "It's all about Michael Phelps."
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Sign the Petition: Healthcare not Warfare

As PDA board member Norman Solomon pointed out, “nearly one in six Americans has no health insurance, and tens of millions of others are woefully under-insured--while the war in Iraq continues to further skew the U.S. government's budget priorities.” We say “Healthcare NOT Warfare” and ask you to join our campaign.



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Banner Drop: NYC Jews Call 4 Immediate End 2 Occupation of Palestine

By JATO-NYC
A banner drop over New York City's entrance to the Cross Bronx Expressway, at 179th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan, carried out by members of Jews Against the Occupation/NYC, declared "Free Palestine." This action by Jewish New Yorkers continued the wave of increasingly public Jewish solidarity with the Palestinians recently targeted by the Israeli government's attack on the Gaza Strip, which killed over 1,300 people. Four banners were hung from overpasses on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and a fifth near the U.S.S. Intrepid on the West Side Highway in January.

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Obama's New Drug Czar: Good News for Marijuana Advocates

Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske is reportedly Obama's choice for drug czar. He's overseen one of America's most pot-friendly cities. If he was cool with Hempfest in Seattle, what can we talk him into when he comes to Washington, DC?

Posted in Chronicle Blog by Scott Morgan - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is reporting that Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske will likely be Obama’s nominee for director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, commonly referred to as the drug czar. It appears that we may soon be faced with the most promising drug czar ever to occupy the position.

To be clear, Kerlikowske is not a friend of drug policy reform to any extent I’m aware of. What matters here is that I see no evidence that he is a vicious drug warrior of the sort commonly associated with the drug czar post. Given that ONDCP is mandated to oppose reform efforts and has typically embraced that role, a less confrontational and reefer madness-driven drug czar is really the best case scenario from a drug policy reform perspective.

Under Kerlikowske, Seattle has been a model for sensible marijuana policy, including the famous Seattle Hempfest at which the Seattle Police Department performs a public safety role while declining to make marijuana arrests. Following the passage of a 2004 lowest priority initiative, the city’s already-low rate of marijuana prosecutions fell even further, suggesting that Kerlikowske was responsive to the will of voters.

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SNL Slams Kellogg’s for Dissing Marijuana Users

And the winner for best response to the Phelps story goes to…



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Do We All Have the Capacity for Inhuman Cruelty?

Interesting piece...

By Liliana Segura, AlterNet - A famous 1970s experiment was recently replicated, revealing our vulnerabilities and what it takes for us to question those in positions of authority.

Between 1963 and 1974, Dr. Stanley Milgram conducted a series of experiments that would become one of the most famous social psychology studies of the 20th century. His focus was how average people respond to authority, and what he revealed stunned and disturbed people the world over.

Under the pretense of an experiment on "learning" and "memory," Milgram placed test subjects in a lab rigged with fake gadgetry, where a man in a lab coat instructed them to administer electrical shocks to a fellow test subject (actually an actor) seated in another room in "a kind of miniature electric chair."

Participants were told they were the "teachers" in the scenario and given a list of questions with which to quiz their counterparts (the "learners"). If the respondent answered incorrectly to a question, he got an electric shock as punishment.

The shocks were light at first -- 15 volts -- and became stronger incrementally, until they reached 450 volts -- a level labeled "Danger: Severe Shock." The actors were never actually electrocuted, but they pretended they were. They groaned, shouted, and, as the current became stronger, begged for relief. Meanwhile, the man in the lab coat coolly told the test subjects to keep going.

To people's horror, Milgram discovered that a solid majority of his subjects -- roughly two-thirds -- were willing to administer the highest levels of shock to their counterparts. This was as true among the first set of his test subjects (Yale undergrads), to subsequent "ordinary" participants as described by Milgram ("professionals, white-collar workers, unemployed persons and industrial workers"), to test subjects abroad, from Munich to South Africa. It was also as true for women as it was for men (although female subjects reported a higher degree of anxiety afterward).

For people who learned of the study, this became devastating proof, not only of human beings' slavish compliance in the face of authority, but of our willingness to do horrible things to other people. The study has been used to explain everything from Nazi Germany to the torture at Abu Ghraib.

But what if Milgram's obedience studies tell us something else, something just as essential, not about our obedience to authority, but what it takes for people to resist it? Now, for the first time in decades, a psychologist has replicated Milgram's famous study (with some critical changes).

The bad news: His results are statistically identical to Milgram's. The good news: Contrary to popular perception, the lesson it teaches us is not that human beings are a breed of latent torturers. "Actually," says Dr. Jerry Burger, the psychologist who led the exercise, "what I think is that the real lesson of the demonstration is quite the opposite."
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Made in America

Science and social justice

Stan Ovshinsky

 

America the beautiful...

 

Let's not forget:

 

In spite of the right wing psychos, the criminal politicians and their clients in corporate America, and the utterly corrupt news media, there still is a "genius for humanity" in America.

 

Here is one of the people who represents the highest ideal of what it means to be an American: Stan Ovshinsky.

 

Take the time to learn about this man and please share this with others.

 

Made in America

Technorati Tags: Stan Ovshinsky,social justice,activism,America,energy

Jewish Voice for Peace

Sign this open letter to President Obama asking him to lift the blockade of Gaza and more, and then ask your like-minded friends to do the same.

 

Ask Obama to make good on his promise of HOPE.

Technorati Tags: Jewish,Palestinians,Palestine,Gaza,Jewish Voice for Peace,middle east,peace

Video: Cops Repeatedly Punch Restained Homeless Man in Face

This is so fucked up!!!

Two Fresno police officers are under an internal investigation following the release of a video tape obtained by KSEE 24 News showing the officers beating a homeless man.

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Kellog's ditches Phelps, Cannabis community ditches Kellog's

By: Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director -

It may have been expected, but that doesn’t make it right.

Late Thursday, cereal and snack manufacturer Kellogg’s announced that it will not renew its sponsorship contract with 14-time Olympic gold medal champion Michael Phelps. The company said that Phelps’ recent acknowledgment of marijuana use, and subsequent apology, was “not consistent with the image” of the company.

We disagree!

As NORML wrote earlier this week, it’s not Michael Phelps who should be castigated, but rather it’s the absurd and hypocritical laws that criminalize the behavior of Phelps and tens of millions of other successful and productive Americans like him that is worthy of condemnation.

Millions of Americans agree. In fact, in the past week dozens of high profile pundits and commentators — including Kathleen Parker in the Washington Post, Stanton Peele in the Wall Street Journal, and Doug Bandow in National Review Online — have demanded a repeal of America’s archaic and overly punitive pot laws.

Michael Phelps is in good company. Nearly one out of two Americans have admitted using marijuana. Whether or not the most decorated athlete in history chooses to unwind during his off time with a glass of wine or a bit of cannabis is really none of the government’s — or our — business.

Please take time today to contact the Kellogg Corporation. Tell them that you oppose their decision to drop Michael Phelps and that, as a result of their actions, you will not be purchasing any Kellogg’s related products for the next three months (or until the company decides to reinstate the Phelps as their spokesperson).

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The War on Terror is a Hoax

By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS - According to US government propaganda, terrorist cells are spread throughout America, making it necessary for the government to spy on all Americans and violate most other constitutional protections. Among President Bush’s last words as he left office was the warning that America would soon be struck again by Muslim terrorists.
If America were infected with terrorists, we would not need the government to tell us. We would know it from events. As there are no events, the US government substitutes warnings in order to keep alive the fear that causes the public to accept pointless wars, the infringement of civil liberty, national ID cards, and inconveniences and harassments when they fly.
The most obvious indication that there are no terrorist cells is that not a single neocon has been assassinated.
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[Video] Israeli ambassador hit by shoe

http://stockholm.suf.cc ~ "Sweden: Shoe hits Israeli ambassador

A shoe was thrown at Israel s ambassador to Sweden, Mr. Benny Dagan, when
he was giving a speech at Stockholm University today. The shoe hit its
target. It was followed by two books and a note pad, all hitting the
severely embarrassed ambassador.

The two protesters, a young woman and a young man, shouted Murderers!
and Intifada! while pelting Dagan with the objects" (Text credits to http://a-mother-from-gaza.blogspot.co... ~ full blog at http://a-mother-from-gaza.blogspot.com & thanks to Marcos ~ http://www.youtube.com/marcosdiarios ~ who shared this video originally from http://www.youtube.com/SUFSthlm :)



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Texas Teacher Suspended for being a "Liberal" and an Atheist

Mr. Richard Mullens WAS a school teacher in Brookeland Tx - an incredibly "Conservative" area of Texas, and only 16 miles up the road from Jasper Tx. the scene of several incidents of racial violence and murder. Mr. Mullens was suspended as a teacher after a witch hunt based solely on his religious and political beliefs.

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Bush Admin Responsible For 176,000 American Deaths

If you could directly save the lives of 176,000 people in the United States, and you refused to do it, or worse yet, created conditions that would cost even more lives, would you be responsible for those deaths?

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Environmentalist Sentenced to 21 Years as a “Terrorist"

Marie Mason, a longtime environmental activist and mother of two, was sentenced this afternoon to 21 years in prison, as a “terrorist,” for non-violent property crimes in the name of defending the environment. It’s a historic sentence, the longest yet for any of these Green Scare cases.

In the lead up to her sentencing, the FBI took their “eco-terrorist” scare-mongering to a new level. Mason’s friends and family were prepared to attend the sentencing hearing and support her at such a terrible moment in her life. So what did the FBI do? Agents had the audacity to warn the press that “terrorists” might be attending Mason’s sentencing. They said they “expect members of the eco-terrorist groups, the Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front to gather and protest.” This, of course, is a bold-faced lie. Any FBI agents worth their salt knows that clandestine organizations like the ALF and ELF do not protest: they are illegal, underground groups. This was a calculated scare-mongering move meant to make normal, everyday people afraid of showing up to a public court proceeding, lest they be labeled as members of the “number one domestic terrorism threat.”

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Photo of Phelps smoking bong unites pot smokers

The photo circulating around the Internet of world-famous Olympian Michael Phelps smoking a bong seems to be getting a positive response from the outspoken internet community of marijuana users. The photo first appeared in 'News of the World,' and made its way to the celebrity magazines.

CNN's Jeanne Moos reports that the PR fiasco that has surrounded this picture has come mostly in the form of You-tube parodies and clever blog-spots. Eddie Izzard responded with a 'Stoned Olympics' routine. A Facebook group titled 'I don't care that Michael Phelps smoked a bong' sprung up and attracted hundreds of members overnight. Given that Michael Phelps was the most popular person on Facebook this summer, topping even Barack Obama, it seems natural -- even organic -- that the Internet community could forgive him for smoking pot.

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Sign Up Here and Save $$$

 

 

By Darrin Bell
From the Cartoonist Group.

Sign Up Here and Save $$$

Technorati Tags: Cartoonist Group,cartoons,political cartoons,political humor,humor,satire,Darrin Bell

Americans Are Not Welcome In Israel

I don't know the background to this video but it appears to show an American journalist hoping to talk to some people in an Israeli town. Very backward people in this particular town!



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Marijuana charges against Obama's half-brother dropped

All charges against George Obama, half-brother to U.S. President Barack Obama, have been dropped after his arrest in a drug raid, according to police in Kenya.

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Ten Reasons to Get High About Marijuana in 2009

Okay, it is only February 1st, and more people this year have already died from peanut butter than pot.
Seriously, when you think about what has crossed the pages of our nation’s conscience in the past month, you have to wonder why we are all not getting high.
With thanks to Michael Phelps, I have ten good reasons to believe drug law reform will ‘take’ this year. Here is why.
Number One: The President
First of all, we elected a President who has admitted inhaling, and whose half brother just got arrested in Kenya for possession of marijuana. Growing up in urban Chicago, and having come from Hawaii, home of ‘Maui Waui,’ we have a man in the oval office that has an herbal background.
I am therefore not intimidated that, on his third day in office, while he was working on a nationwide economic stimulus package, some renegade prosecutors raided a medical dispensary in California. Those ugly efforts will cease soon enough. I am encouraged by President Obama’s prior public statements that such raids are counterproductive and provide illusory answers to real problems.
Number Two: The Medicine
Just as I was exploring the placement of my mom into an assisted living facility for early stage Alzheimer’s patients, I see a study released by Ohio State University this month. The research is indicating that marijuana has some potential capacity to reduce brain inflammation, which plays a role in Alzheimer’s. Mom, those brownies might taste differently next week.
While evidence showing the benefits of marijuana in multiple sclerosis cases has been advancing significantly, work in Alzheimer’s disease is still in its infancy. Still, another recent study performed at the Scripps Research Institute in California found that THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, inhibits the formation of a brain plaque that is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease.
Number Three: The Politics
If you light up a joint while walking down High Street in Medford, Massachusetts, not much is likely to happen to you. As of Jan. 2, Massachusetts became one of 12 states that have decriminalized marijuana possession to some extent. The new civil penalties for possession of less than 1 ounce include a $100 fine and forfeiture of one’s stash for those over 18 years of age. Minors will receive the same fine and be required to attend drug education classes.
In city after city, and state after state, once silent minorities are becoming vocal majorities and voting to enact legislation freeing marijuana from unjust law enforcement. When given the chance, we are winning the war against prohibition. Legislators in Michigan, Connecticut and even Florida are starting to re-introduce bills to lower penalties for pot. The whirlwind is commencing; just ask anyone in a dorm room within a wave of the White House after the inauguration.
Number Four: The Media
Marijuana has gone mainstream. Media outlets are no longer hiding in the shadows afraid to produce honest reports about the culture of marijuana. We are less likely to see commercials of pot smokers having their brains grilled in a frying pan. We are more likely to view legitimate programming which produces truths rather than trash about your stash.
One such report was featured on NBC news last week, a snippet of an hour long production on MSNBC entitled ‘Marijuana, Inc.’ Focusing more on economics then the sociology of pot, the well-supported report inescapably concluded that marijuana commerce is here to stay and unlikely to change. As even the NY Daily News said, “When it comes to marijuana, a whole lot of people voted some time ago to just say yes.” Ask the cast of the award winning Showtime series, ‘Weeds,’ which captures a growing American spirit.
Number Five: The Public
Even the Department of Health has said that 95 million Americans have over the age of 21 have tried marijuana at least once. Everyone except Bill Clinton has inhaled. The anti drug warriors have a hard time explaining to the average adult in the 21st century that millions of Americans are wrong when they light up every day.
It is normal to smoke pot. The vast amount of marijuana users today are parents choosing to calm down instead of liquor up, not just kids, looking to get high after class. Of course, they are too, adults treating arthritis, patients using it for multiple sclerosis, or people with HIV fighting a wasting syndrome. Pot smokers cross ethnic, sociological, and economic boundaries.
Number Six: The Celebrities
There is a lot of reason to hate the celebrity culture, paparazzi, and people who get their daily pulp from finding out where Brittany Spears went shopping. As more media types get busted with pot, the less newsworthy it becomes. The public could care less. An arrest for pot is not a career-ending event. As I finish this piece and send it off for distribution, I am watching Snoop Doggy Dogg being interviewed on ESPN for the NFL Countdown to the Super Bowl. It does not seem to have hurt him. And guess what Michael Phelps got caught doing this weekend? Toking off a bong!
Macauley Culkin, Bud Bundy, Willie Nelson, Art Garfunkel, and Al Gore’s son also make the High Subscription List. So do Allen Iverson, Matthew McConaughey, Whitney Houston, Oliver Stone, and even Queen Latifah. All have posted bail for pot. They are not doing too badly for themselves. Go visit Celebstoner for more prime examples of the intersection of celebrity and cannabis.
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Early Spring Cleaning in the Oval Office

 

By Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press
From the Cartoonist Group.

Early Spring Cleaning in the Oval Office

Technorati Tags: Clay Bennett,Cartoonist Group,political humor,political satire,humor,satire,politics

Prosecute torture crimes and send Karl Rove to jail

What will Obama do?

 

Obama can go after the criminals who authorized torture.

 

He can also instruct the Justice Department to go after Karl Rove. Unprotected by Bush, Rove has a good shot at seeing jail time.

 

But we'll see. So far, Obama has been a good Republicrat.

Prosecute torture crimes
and send Karl Rove to jail

Technorati Tags: Keith Olbermann,Karl Rove,torture,war crimes

SAFER - Alcohol vs. Marijuana

 

Dependence: How difficult it is for the user to quit, the relapse rate, the percentage of people who eventually become dependent, the rating users give their own need for the substance and the degree to which the substance will be used in the face of evidence that it causes harm.

 

Withdrawal: Presence and severity of characteristic withdrawal symptoms.
Tolerance: How much of the substance is needed to satisfy increasing cravings for it, and the level of stable need that is eventually reached.

 

Reinforcement: A measure of the substance's ability, in human and animal tests, to get users to take it again and again, and in preference to other substances.

 

Intoxication: Though not usually counted as a measure of addiction in itself, the level of intoxication is associated with addiction and increases the personal and social damage a substance may do.

Source: Jack E. Henningfield, PhD for NIDA, Reported by Philip J. Hilts, New York Times, Aug. 2, 1994 "Is Nicotine Addictive? It Depends on Whose Criteria You Use."  See, http://drugwarfacts.org/addictiv.htm

SAFER - Alcohol vs. Marijuana

Technorati Tags: marijuana,alcohol,drugs,drug reform,marijuana legalization,cannabis

Michael Phelps Has No Business Apologizing for Bong Hit

By Tony Newman, AlterNet - Michael Phelps Has No Business Apologizing for Taking Bong Hit.The Olympic gold medalist struck another blow to the myth that pot smokers are lazy couch potatoes. He has no reason to say he's sorry.

Plastered all over the Internet right now is a photo of Michael Phelps smoking marijuana out of a bong. Phelps put out a statement saying that he acted in a youthful and inappropriate way and promises it won't happen again. Different people are weighing in on the possible impact of this photo on the gold medalist's $100 million endorsement deals.
Here are a few of my observations on Phelps' bong hits:
Phelps Is in Good Company
Phelps struck another blow to the myth that marijuana smokers are lazy couch potatoes. Here is the guy who has won more gold medals than anyone in history, and obviously his health and accomplishments are not hindered by smoking some pot. In addition to his swimming skills, he is a successful businessman who has turned his swimming skills into an enormous public relations platform and money generator. Successful and honorable people who have smoked some pot are all around us, from President Barack Obama to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Phelps Apology Was Unnecessary
While Phelps' statement said he acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, he did not pretend to have a drug problem and promise to go to rehab. So many times when celebrities are caught with drugs, they give tearful statements and promise to get help. Phelps doesn't appear to have a drug problem, and there is no reason for him to take up valuable treatment slots if he doesn't have a drug problem.

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The World Is Rioting Over the Economy - Why Aren't We?

Terrific piece by Joshua Holland!

By Joshua Holland, AlterNet. - Americans are rightfully angry about the economic decline, but with a few small exceptions, quietly so. Why? It depends on whom you ask.

Explosive anger is spilling out onto the streets of Europe. The meltdown of the global economy is igniting massive social unrest in a region that has long been a symbol of political stability and social cohesion.
It's not a new trend: A wave of upheaval is spreading from the poorer countries on the periphery of the global economy to the prosperous core.
Over the past few years, a series of riots spread across what is patronizingly known as the Third World. Furious mobs have raged against skyrocketing food and energy prices, stagnating wages and unemployment in India, Senegal, Yemen, Indonesia, Morocco, Cameroon, Brazil, Panama, the Philippines, Egypt, Mexico and elsewhere.
For the most part, those living in wealthier countries took little notice. But now, with the global economy crashing down around us, people in even the wealthiest nations are mad as hell and reacting violently to what they view as an inadequate response to their tumbling economies.
The Telegraph (UK) warned last month that protests over governments' handling of the crisis "are widespread and gathering pace," and "may spark a new revolution":

A depression triggered in America is being played out in Europe with increasing
violence, and other forms of social unrest are spreading. In Iceland, a government has fallen. Workers have marched in Zaragoza, as Spanish unemployment heads towards 20 percent. There have been riots and bloodshed in Greece, protests in Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary and Bulgaria. The police have suppressed public discontent in Russia and will be challenged again at large gatherings this weekend.
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America Is Broke, And Funding Fantasy Wars at the Pentagon

By Chalmers Johnson, Tomdispatch.com.- Americans don't usually think of the Pentagon as a scam operation -- but it's never to late to wake up and smell the rip-off.
Like much of the rest of the world, Americans know that the U.S. automotive industry is in the grips of what may be a fatal decline. Unless it receives emergency financing and undergoes significant reform, it is undoubtedly headed for the graveyard in which many American industries are already buried, including those that made televisions and other consumer electronics, many types of scientific and medical equipment, machine tools, textiles, and much earth-moving equipment -- and that's to name only the most obvious candidates. They all lost their competitiveness to newly emerging economies that were able to outpace them in innovative design, price, quality, service, and fuel economy, among other things.
A similar, if far less well known, crisis exists when it comes to the military-industrial complex. That crisis has its roots in the corrupt and deceitful practices that have long characterized the high command of the Armed Forces, civilian executives of the armaments industries, and Congressional opportunists and criminals looking for pork-barrel projects, defense installations for their districts, or even bribes for votes.
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Gaza survivor describes day 48 members of family were killed

10-year-old Mona Samouni describes how she became one of the very few survivors of the Samouni extended family, after an attack on the densely populated area of Zeitoun

Warning: Contains footage that some viewers may find distressing

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Peace Or Genocide?

By Chris Farrell - There are only three outcomes of the Palestinian - Israeli conflict:

1.) Two Separate States.
2.) One State that incorporates everyone.
3.) One State from the Jordan River to the sea that incorporates only Israelis and ethinc Jews.

It appears that Israel has no intention to allow #1 or #2 to happen, and that means ethnic leansing and genocide.

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Obama Talks Troop Withdrawal

Asked whether a substantial number of troops would be home in time for next year's Super Bowl, Obama replied: "Yes"
Posted by Marcus Baram, Huffington Post
In a wide-ranging interview with NBC's Matt Lauer, President Barack Obama said that a substantial number of the 140,000 U.S. troops in Iraq would be home within a year, saying Iraqis were now ready to take more responsibility for their own security.
Asked whether a substantial number of troops would be home in time for next year's Super Bowl, Obama replied: "Yes. We are going to roll out in a very formal fashion what our intentions are in Iraq, as well as Afghanistan."
Obama also seemed to indicate that he intends to be proactive at engaging terrorist groups and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan: "We have to make sure we don't let up because there are people out there who want to do us harm."

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