I sincerely hope more people will take to the streets in the future. It’s amazing to me that thousands upon thousands of immigrants took to U.S. streets this year, yet U.S. citizens aren’t willing to do the same to fight for their rights. Thanks to Mirth and D-Day for taking it to the streets for this protest. I’m glad to see that USA Today covered it.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Hundreds of people called the Bush administration’s policies a crime and held up yellow police tape along a three-block stretch in front of the White House on Thursday as part of a nationwide day of protest against the president.
The 500 demonstrators were among many who gathered for similar events in more than 200 cities to protest Bush on issues ranging from global warming to the war in Iraq.

“We are turning the corner in bringing forward a mass movement of resistance to drive out the Bush regime,” said organizer Travis Morales with the activist group World Can’t Wait.

Some dressed in costume, including a hooded prisoner in an orange jumpsuit, a devilish rendition of President Bush and two grim reapers. One man wore a red cheerleader outfit with “Radical” emblazoned on the jersey.

Thousands of protesters clogged New York City’s streets as they marched from the United Nations headquarters. Some people lay down in the middle of the street, while others carried signs saying “Expose 9/11″ and “This war should be over.” They also handed out fliers reading, “Drive out the Bush regime.”

More at USA Today

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By MIRANDA LEITSINGER

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico Oct 14, 2006 (AP)- A paralegal and a military lawyer who brought forward allegations about prisoner abuse at the Guantanamo Bay detention center have been ordered not to speak with the press, lawyers and a military spokeswoman said Saturday.

Marine Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, who represents a detainee at the U.S. naval base in eastern Cuba, filed a complaint with the Pentagon last week alleging that abuse was ongoing at the prison. He attached a sworn statement from his paralegal, Sgt. Heather Cerveny, in which she said several Guantanamo guards bragged in a bar about beating detainees, describing it as common practice.

Read more at ABCNews

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Freddy Fender (R.I.P)
Jambalaya

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Bill Maher slams Foley, Bolton …….. Republicans.

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WASHINGTON - When Ron Kampeas, the Jewish Telegraph Agency’s Washington bureau chief, wrote the story, he knew he had dynamite in his hands, and was not surprised by the force of the response. Yesterday morning, he had to make some changes to the story he published a day earlier; but on the whole, what he wrote was very interesting: A group of Jewish Americans, some well known, are seeking ways to express the support of the majority of the Jewish community for the peace process. Moreover, this group is seeking ways to press the Bush administration and U.S. Congress into becoming more actively involved in the search for a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The group is also looking for funding - because without funds, nothing will budge.

The real fuss surrounding the new group stems from the perceived challenge it poses to AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the prominent pro-Israel lobby group whose character is perceived by some of its more dovish members as being overly on the right. But the denials vis-a-vis the perceived challenge have been extensive, and it is still not clear whether there is any real reason for all the excitement.

Read full article here

An October 26th meeting is planned to discuss funding. This should be interesting….someone giving AIPAC a run for it.

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WASHINGTON

The Justice Department is investigating whether Republican Rep. Curt Weldon of Pennsylvania traded his political influence for lucrative lobbying and consulting contracts for his daughter, according to sources with direct knowledge of the inquiry.

The FBI, which opened an investigation in recent months, has formally referred the matter to the department’s Public Integrity Section for additional scrutiny. At issue are Weldon’s efforts between 2002 and 2004 to aid two Russian companies and two Serbian brothers with ties to strongman Slobodan Milosevic, a federal law enforcement official said.

The Russian companies and a Serbian foundation run by the brothers’ family each hired a firm co-owned by Weldon’s daughter, Karen, for fees totaling nearly $1 million a year, public records show…

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Also from the article:

In the Pennsylvania race, a recent poll showed that Weldon, who is vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and chairman of its Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee, is locked in a statistical dead heat with his Democratic challenger, retired Vice Adm. Joe Sestak.

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Iraq for Sale Screening
To check for a screening near you go here

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Boy I’d love a video of this!

George Galloway has attacked Jack Straw for his veil comments
Islamophobia is a problem that must be addressed, MP George Galloway has told his Respect party’s annual conference in North London.
Mr Galloway’s speech focused on the treatment of Muslims in Britain.

He singled out Jack Straw, who sparked a row when he revealed he asks Muslim women wearing veils to his surgery if they would consider removing them.

Mr Galloway said Mr Straw had joined “the Dutch auction in New Labour of who can be most beastly to a minority”.

Following criticism about his comments from some Muslim groups, Mr Straw defended his position, saying that he felt full-face veils were a “visible statement of separation”.

More at the BBC

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Child labour

This brother and sister are making their way to cultivate rice in a field some miles away. The other kids in the village are at school.

This endearing photograph has captured me. It and others that document education in Sierra Leone can be found here.

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Every night off Gaza beach you can see the lights of fishing boats rising and falling in the swell.

But they are defying an Israeli ban on all Palestinian fishing, and Rami al-Habeel knows how dangerous that can be.

Last week, he saw his friend, Hani al-Najaar, shot dead on the deck of their trawler.

For more than three months the Israelis have ordered all fishing craft to stay in port…

…Tens of thousands of Gazans depend on fishing, and - as their desperation has mounted - some have been putting out to sea regardless of the ban…

…But there is always the danger that the gunboats will move in. And Mr Habeel says that is what happened last week when he and his crewmates were fishing off the town of Dier Ballah.

He says a gunboat steamed up from the south.

According to Mr Habeel, it did not issue any verbal warning, but opened fire first at the cables holding the nets - cutting them adrift.

Then he says the Israelis circled the unarmed fishermen spraying their craft with machine gun fire from no more than 20m away.

Mr Habeel says that one of the bullets hit Hani al-Najaar - ripping open the side of his head.

“I saw him killed,” Mr Habeel says. “I couldn’t bear it. God bless him.”

Mr Najaar leaves two children.

The Israelis say that on the day in question boats had been pushing too far out to sea. On a number of occasions warning shots were fired.

“We did not identify in any situation any of our warning shots hitting a boat - at all,” said a military spokeswoman. “So we are not aware of any fisherman being hit.”

But later, as the trawler lays beached for repairs in Gaza City harbour, well over 100 bullet holes are clearly visible.

complete article here

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SUNNI ACCUSE SHIITE OF DIRTY TRICK IN PASSING FEDERALISM LAW IN IRAQ

NAVY SEAL FALLS ON GRENADE TO SAVE OTHERS

SUPERSTAR FINANCIAL COUPLE DONATE $19M TO ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO If ever in Chicago, visit the Art Institute. It’s a most wonderful place!!

U.S. POPULATION SOON TO REACH 300 MILLION

HAMAS OPERATIVES CALL FOR ATTACKS ON U.S. TARGETS

TOP LIBERAL CANADIAN CANDIDATE ACCUSES ISRAEL OF WAR CRIMES

ERUPTION DISPLACES THOUSANDS IN INDONESIA

ISLAM IS A FAITH OF REASON: INTERVIEW WITH KARIM AGA KHAN IV

U.S. NAVAL OFFICER ARRESTED IN JAPAN

U.N. APPROVES SANCTIONS ON N. KOREA

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By Rahim Faiez, Associated Press Writer
October 12, 2006

KABUL, Afghanistan –Sixteen Afghans and one Iranian released from years in captivity at Guantanamo Bay prison arrived in Afghanistan on Thursday, an Afghan official said, maintaining that “most” of the detainees had been falsely accused.

The 16 Afghans appeared at a news conference alongside Sibghatullah Mujaddedi, head of Afghanistan’s reconciliation commission, which assists with the release of detainees from the American detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the U.S. prison at the Bagram military base north of Kabul.

Mejadedi said many of the detainees, who are now free, had served up to four years in Guantanamo. He said “most” of the prisoners were innocent and had been turned in to the U.S. military by other Afghans because of personal disputes.

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The world’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart, has been ordered to pay at least $78m (£42m) in compensation to workers who were forced to work during breaks.

A jury in a Pennsylvania court decided that Wal-Mart broke a state law by refusing to pay staff for the extra work they did.

The class action was brought by about 187,000 staff who worked for Wal-Mart between March 1997 and May 2006…

…The former employee who headed the case, Dolores Hummel, who worked at branch of Wal-Mart owned wholesaler Sam’s Club for 10 years, said she regularly had to work during breaks and after closing time because of work demands. She estimated she worked between eight and 12 hours unpaid each month…

…In the lawsuit, she said: “One of Wal-Mart’s undisclosed secrets for its profitability is its creation and implementation of a system that encourages off-the-clock work for its hourly employees.”

In December, a California court ruled Wal-Mart must pay $172m in compensation to 116,000 employees who had been denied meal breaks.

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BOSTON — Former U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds, the first openly gay person elected to Congress, died early Saturday at Boston Medical Center, several days after he collapsed while walking his dog, his husband said.

Studds fell unconscious Oct. 3 because of what doctors later determined was a blood clot in his lung, Dean Hara said. Studds regained consciousness, remained in the hospital, and seemed to be improving. He was scheduled to be transferred to a rehabilitation center, but his condition deteriorated Friday and he died at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, Hara said.

Hara, who married Studds shortly after gay marriage was legalized in Massachusetts in 2004, said Studds was a pioneer who gave courage to gay people everywhere by winning re-election after publicly acknowledging his homosexuality.

Read more here

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Has the head of the Army spoken out of turn?
Posted at: 09:01
The head of the Army has demanded an early exit from Iraq, warning that the presence of British troops is exacerbating the situation there.

Gen Sir Richard Dannatt stepped into a fierce political debate by condemning attempts to impose a “liberal democracy” in Iraq as “naive”.

Has he spoken out of turn, or did he have a moral duty to make his case?

To what extent has he undermined the Government’s authority? Is it appropriate for military leaders to attack Government policy in the press?

Check out the comments attached to this article!

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN US AND THEM

Drinking with a friend last night, I made the slightly controversial remark that to begin a successful political career in Washington DC today you had to be a) good-looking b) not too obviously intelligent and c) very rich.

The divide between the US and UK may not be so great

I also said that I thought Britain would be the same in 20 years time. Except the rich bit.

I-m sure there are many paupers in the House of Representatives (mostly on the Democrats’ side of the chamber), but not a lot of church mice squeak around the Senate. But the British Parliament has no wealth requirement (unless of course you are trying to buy your way into the House of Lords).

Poverty’stricken MPs litter recent history. Well, Labour and Lib Dems do, I-m not sure I-ve ever met any hard-up Conservatives, but I-m only middle-aged, so I hope there’s plenty of time. Of course, that means they-re poor when they enter the Commons.

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SIR RICHARD HAS PERFORMED A SERVICE

General Sir Richard Dannatt judged his comments perfectly. His tone was reasonable, his analysis measured, and he was careful not to cross the line between military assessment and political interference. He did not call for an immediate withdrawal from Iraq, but for a phased extraction following the achievement of certain limited goals. What he said is wholly in line with public opinion and, for that matter, with what this newspaper has been arguing for the past year. So what is all the fuss about?

Read more here

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