November 2003
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Iraq Authorities Ban al-Arabiya TV for 'Incitement' VOA News 24 Nov 2003 The U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council has banned reports from Iraq by the Arabic satellite television station al-Arabiya. The station's Baghdad correspondent says police raided his news bureau today, seized equipment and told employees they would be fined or sent to jail if they broadcast reports from Iraq. The Governing Council said it was taking the action because the station broadcast a tape, purported to be from Saddam Hussein, in which the speaker calls for attacks on Iraqis who work with the U.S.-led coalition. |
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Irresponsible Energy Bill Passes House Nov 19 Over the last three years, big energy companies have contributed nearly $70 million to lawmakers in hopes of passing the energy bill hatched by Vice-President Cheney, ExxonMobil, Enron and others. Over the last three years, participants in Step by Step and dozens of other activist lists have sent hundreds of thousands of letters to Congress in support of a more forward-thinking national energy plan based on energy efficiency, conservation, and clean energy. These citizens recognized that true national security goes hand-in-hand with energy independence and that we'll never have energy independence as long as the U.S. consumes a quarter of the world's oil. This past weekend, House and Senate leaders showed where their allegiance stands when they announced a joint bill containing billions in tax breaks and subsidies for oil, coal, gas, and nuclear production, but little leadership on energy security and sustainability. Source: Center for New American Dream more: PBS MTBE/drinking water |
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Justice
Talking: Gay Marriage Tuesday,
January 27, 2004 7:30 PM at The National Constitution Center
Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down anti-sodomy laws, Canada’s high court balked at laws prohibiting gay marriage and same-sex marriage cases made their way into state courts in Massachusetts and New Jersey. Gay marriage has found its way to the frontlines of America’s culture wars. Advocates for gay rights say cultural norms are changing and that acceptance of same-sex unions is closer than you think. Others caution against both optimism and acceptance saying that most Americans still support what they see as traditional families Pew Poll |
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David M. Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, addressing the National Press Club (Sep 17) ..... the current and projected deficits far exceed the costs associated with Iraq, the global war against terrorism and any incremental homeland security costs. The “bottom line” is, there is little question that deficits do matter, especially if they are large, structural and recurring in nature. In addition, our projected budget deficits are not “manageable” without significant changes in “status quo” programs, policies, processes and operations. |
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Analysts Say Rumsfeld Memo Suggests Shift In War On Terror Washington, 23 October 2003 (RFE/RL) -- "Are we winning or losing the global war on terror?" That's the key question that U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld asks in an uncharacteristically gloomy memo he recently sent to his closest Pentagon advisers. And the answer, it seems, is far from clear. In the memo, which appeared in yesterday's (22 October) issue of "USA Today," Rumsfeld asks top aides like Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz –- who is seen as a chief architect of the Iraq policy -- to think of new ways to fight the war on terror. He says Washington will eventually win its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but that it will be a "long, hard slog." But Rumsfeld also appears to suggest -- for the first time – that the United States may be fighting its war on terrorism in the wrong way, by focusing too much on military operations and not enough on diplomatic efforts and other forms of pressure. He also wonders if the Pentagon can be reshaped fast enough to meet the terrorist threat. |
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What Americans Think Pew Charitable Trust June 2003 pdf
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Breaking the Silence: A Special Report by John Pilger ITV1 Anglia, 22nd September 2003 John Pilger investigates the truth of George Bush's 'war on terror', relating it to Afghanistan, America and the invasion of Iraq. His account gives details of a cynical war waged against a backdrop of double standards and lies. |
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Biologist Thomas Eisner has spent a lifetime studying insects; he is a pioneer in chemical ecology and has taught at Cornell University for more than 40 years. Eisner studies the chemical interactions of organisms, and he has a new book, For Love of Insects, that gathers images and ideas from his research. NPR's Robert Siegel talks with Eisner. |
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Science Friday Kids' ConnectionTM Teaching materials - examples: search past curricula ►Saving Rain Forests ►It's Not Easy Being Green-Green Chemistry ►Wait a Nanosecond! Nanotechnology News ►The Wright Stuff: 100-Year Flight Anniversary ►A Man Who Changed the World: Albert Einstein |
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'Embedded' - Actor's Play Portrays Journos in Fictional War Commondreams Nov 21 NEW YORK -- Tim Robbins' new play Embedded, centering on U.S. soldiers and reporters in Iraq -- has opened in Hollywood and runs through Dec. 21 at the Actor's Gang Theater. |
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Baby Boomers age: 39-57; influences: Suburbia, TV, Vietnam, Watergate, protests, human rights movement, drugs, and rock ‘n roll; characteristics: Idealistic, COMPETITIVE, question authority; key word: optimistic --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Generation X age: 25-38 influences: Sesame Street, MTV, Game Boy, PC, divorce rate tripled, latch-key children characteristics: eclectic, resourceful, self-reliant, distrustful of institutions, highly adaptive to change and technology key word: Skepticism --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Generation Y age: up to 22 influences: expanded technology, natural disasters, violence, gangs, diversity characteristics: globally concerned, realistic, cyber literate, “personal safety” is number one concern key word: realistic --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Generations / Encyclopedic Link: Wikipedia |
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Under God under Fire: Challenging the Pledge in Schools Millions of
school children pledge their allegiance every
day. But a recent lawsuit has stirred passionate debate between those
who see the pledge as a healthy exercise in patriotism and those who say
it is forced prayer. The current legal challenge ...
Read
More ....
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Clueless and calculating (newsobserver.com) July 20, 2003 ... the "Nickel and Dimed" debate is far more than a tired rerun of the ongoing drama "Ivory Tower Liberals and the Right-Wing Fanatics Who Despise Them." The two radically divergent views of the book reflect the increasing compartmentalization of American intellectual life. .... read more ... Listen to Full Program |
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Communique from the Earth
Liberation Front /
Encyclopedic Entry on ELF (Wikipedia) |
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According
to a major Pew Global Attitudes Project survey, the speed of the war in
Iraq and the widespread belief that the Iraqi people are better off as a
result have modestly improved the image of America in the eyes of the
world. But in most countries, opinions of the U.S. are markedly lower
than they were a year ago.
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