Harper’s Weekly
November 20, 1869

Watch out all you peace loving terrorist freaks! They’re gonna get ya!!!

WASHINGTON: An anti-terrorist database used by the U.S. Defense Department in an effort to prevent attacks on military installations included intelligence tips about antiwar planning meetings held at churches, libraries, college campuses and other locations, newly disclosed documents show.

One tip in the database in February 2005, for instance, noted that “a church service for peace” would be held in the New York City area the next month. Another entry noted that antiwar protesters would be holding “nonviolence training” sessions at unidentified churches in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

The Defense Department said it tightened its procedures this year to ensure that only material related to actual terrorist threats - and not peaceable First Amendment activity - was included in the database.

More here

Washington, D.C.-Americans for Peace Now (APN) today expressed disappointment that the meeting between President George Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert did not yield any public statement indicating movement toward improving Israeli-Palestinian relations or toward renewed Middle East peace negotiations.

While Prime Minister Olmert reiterated his commitment to strengthen Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his hope to resume talks with him, Olmert said nothing about how he proposed to strengthen Abbas, about the substance of such possible future talks or about the timeline for opening them. Neither Olmert nor Bush indicated that they made a real effort - let alone reached any agreement - to help stabilize the situation in Gaza; to improve the security or economic situation there; to advance talks with a possible new Palestinian government that is not headed by Hamas or to resume diplomatic activity on the Syrian track.

APN, a Jewish, Zionist organization dedicated to enhancing Israel’s security through peace and to supporting the Israeli Peace Now movement, has been calling on both leaders to do their utmost to prevent the security chaos in Gaza from deteriorating into all-out war. Israel’s Peace Now movement and APN have also been urging the leaders to explore possibilities for progress on the Palestinian and Syrian tracks and to consider a regional conference that would re-launch Arab-Israeli negotiations. Bush and Olmert did not report any progress on any of these issues.

Read more at Americans for Peace Now

The National Mall in Washington will get its first monument to an African American, Martin Luther King Junior.
Ordinary and no’so-ordinary Americans took part in the groundbreaking Monday, including Oprah Winfrey, poet-novelist Maya Angelou and former President Bill Clinton.

They’re among those who’ve been working for more than a decade to bring the monument about.

The four-acre site along the Tidal Basin is not far from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, where King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963.

Project organizers have raised more than $65 million toward the $100 million cost of building and maintaining the King Memorial. They hope to have it completed by the spring of 2008.

source

Bush Leads King Groundbreaking Ceremony

No surprise here……. there must be alot of crazy liberals in Britain, Canada, Mexico……why even Israel!

LONDON, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) — The United States was regarded as a threat to world peace by its neighbors and allies, according to an opinion poll published by the Guardian newspaper on Friday.

The poll was carried out by the Guardian in Britain and other leading newspapers in Israel, Canada and Mexico, using professional local opinion polling in each country.

According to the poll, in Britain, 69 percent of those questioned believed U.S. policy had made the world less safe since2001. In Canada and Mexico, America’s immediate northern and southern neighbors, 62 percent of Canadians and 57 percent of Mexicans said the world had become more dangerous because of U.S. policy.

As for Israel, the U.S. strong ally in the Middle East, support for the United States has fallen. Only one in four Israelis polled said U.S. President George W. Bush had made the world safer, while36 percent thought he had added to the risk of international conflict.

The poll showed that those in Britain, Canada and Mexico surveyed overwhelmingly rejected the decision to invade Iraq. Only in Israel, 59 percent of the surveyed supported the war and 34 percent were against.

Some 71 percent of Britons said the invasion was unjustified, a view shared by 89 percent of Mexicans and 73 percent of Canadians.

In Britain, 1,010 adults were interviewed by telephone on Oct. 27-30. A total of 1,078 people were asked in Israel, 1,007 in Canada and 1,010 in Mexico.

ISLAMIC scholars and clerics in Indian Kashmir are learning English in what they say is a bid to propagate Islam’s “true message” and remove misconceptions in the West about their faith.

The one-year intensive course is being taught at the new Islamic University of Science and Technology just south of Srinagar, summer capital of Indian Kashmir.

“English is a global language and once we speak it, we-ll be able to easily convey Islam’s true message through this language to people of other faiths,” said student Irshad Ahmed who heads a seminary in Awantipora town, where the university is situated.

The long-bearded students believe Islam has been wrongly portrayed as a religion of violence since the September 11, 2001 attacks in the US.

“We want to clear that perception. Islam is for peace and brotherhood, justice and friendship,” says another student Tanveer Wani…

…”We want to remove misconceptions about Islam, especially in the West. We`ll be able to put our points across by learning English,” says Elahi, a soft’spoken man from northern Kashmir.

“We also want to study other religions, their history, culture and beliefs and try to explore what is common between major religions,” adds Ahmed.

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Asiatic black bear takes a rest at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo.
(Photo/Mainichi Shimbun)

For an obvious reason, I am naming this bear Purple Star

Marijuana may help stave off Alzheimer’s
Active ingredient in pot may help preserve brain function

Good news for aging hippies: smoking pot may stave off Alzheimer’s disease.

New research shows that the active ingredient in marijuana may prevent the formation of deposits in the brain associated with the degenerative disease.

Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in California found that marijuana’s active ingredient, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, can prevent an enzyme called acetylcholinesterase from accelerating the formation of “Alzheimer plaques” in the brain more effectively than commercially marketed drugs.

THC is also more effective at blocking clumps of protein that can inhibit memory and cognition in Alzheimer’s patients, the researchers reported in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics.

The researchers said their discovery could lead to more effective drug treatment for Alzheimer’s, the leading cause of dementia among the elderly.

Those afflicted with Alzheimer’s suffer from memory loss, impaired decision-making, and diminished language and movement skills. The ultimate cause of the disease is unknown, though it is believed to be hereditary.

Marijuana is used to relieve glaucoma and can help reduce side effects from cancer and AIDS treatment.

Reuters article here

I had to look far & wide, but here’s nice news

This photo shows a new bird that has been discovered in a previously unexplored Andean cloud forest, conservation groups have announced, in Bogota, Colombia, Monday, Oct. 9, 2006. The bright yellow and red-crowned Yariguies brush-finch was named for the indigenous tribe that once inhabited the mountainous area. (Photo/ Blanca Huertas)

NO WORK. NO SCHOOL. PROTEST IN THE STREETS.

FROM WORLD CAN’T WAIT:

On October 5th people everywhere will walk out of school, take off work, and come to the downtowns & townsquares and set out from there, going through the streets and calling on many more to join us — making a powerful statement:

NO! THIS REGIME DOES NOT REPRESENT US!
AND WE WILL DRIVE IT OUT!

ENDORSERS OF THIS CALL:

James Abourezk, Aris Anagnos, Anti-Flag, Edward Asner, Russell Banks, Ed Begley Jr., Harry Belafonte, St. Clair Bourne, Gabriel Byrne, Margaret Cho, Ward Churchill, Kate Clinton, US Rep. John Conyers Jr., John Densmore, Jesse Diaz Jr., Ariel Dorfman, Tom Duane, Michael Eric Dyson, Steve Earle, Niles Eldredge, Daniel Ellsberg, Eve Ensler, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Jane Fonda, Michael Franti, reg e. gaines, Martin Garbus, Wavy Gravy, André Gregory, Paul Haggis, Sam Hamill, Suheir Hammad, Kathleen Hanna, Stephen Hays, Merle Hoffman, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Bill T. Jones, Rickie Lee Jones, Sarah Jones, Brig. Gen. (ret) Janis Karpinski, Casey Kasem, Ron Kovic, Jonathan Kozol, Jessica Lange, Lewis Lapham, Mark Leno, Rabbi Michael Lerner, George Lois, US Rep. Cynthia McKinney, Mark Crispin Miller, Tom Morello, Viggo Mortensen, US Rep. Major Owens, Ozomatli, Grace Paley, Harvey Pekar, Sean Penn, Jeremy Pikser, Harold Pinter, Frances Fox Piven, Michael Ratner, Boots Riley, Mark Ruffalo, US Rep. Bobby Rush, Susan Sarandon, James Schamus, Richard Serra, Rev. Al Sharpton, Cindy Sheehan, Martin Sheen, Gary Soto, Nancy Spero, Gloria Steinem, Lynne Stewart, Serj Tankian, Jonathan Tasini, Sunsara Taylor, Studs Terkel, Gore Vidal, Kurt Vonnegut, Alice Walker, Naomi Wallace, Lt. Ehren Watada, US Rep. Maxine Waters, Cornel West, Saul Williams, Krzysztof Wodiczko, Ann Wright, Howard Zinn, and thousands more.

WORLD CAN’T WAIT
LOCAL INFO & CONTACTS

This is the day we have all asked about.
WHY AREN’T PEOPLE IN THE STREETS?!
This is the day we take to the streets.

NO WORK. NO SCHOOL. PROTEST IN THE STREETS.

FROM WORLD CAN’T WAIT:

On October 5th people everywhere will walk out of school, take off work, and come to the downtowns & townsquares and set out from there, going through the streets and calling on many more to join us — making a powerful statement:

NO! THIS REGIME DOES NOT REPRESENT US!
AND WE WILL DRIVE IT OUT!

ENDORSERS OF THIS CALL:

James Abourezk, Aris Anagnos, Anti-Flag, Edward Asner, Russell Banks, Ed Begley Jr., Harry Belafonte, St. Clair Bourne, Gabriel Byrne, Margaret Cho, Ward Churchill, Kate Clinton, US Rep. John Conyers Jr., John Densmore, Jesse Diaz Jr., Ariel Dorfman, Tom Duane, Michael Eric Dyson, Steve Earle, Niles Eldredge, Daniel Ellsberg, Eve Ensler, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Jane Fonda, Michael Franti, reg e. gaines, Martin Garbus, Wavy Gravy, André Gregory, Paul Haggis, Sam Hamill, Suheir Hammad, Kathleen Hanna, Stephen Hays, Merle Hoffman, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Mumia Abu-Jamal, Bill T. Jones, Rickie Lee Jones, Sarah Jones, Brig. Gen. (ret) Janis Karpinski, Casey Kasem, Ron Kovic, Jonathan Kozol, Jessica Lange, Lewis Lapham, Mark Leno, Rabbi Michael Lerner, George Lois, US Rep. Cynthia McKinney, Mark Crispin Miller, Tom Morello, Viggo Mortensen, US Rep. Major Owens, Ozomatli, Grace Paley, Harvey Pekar, Sean Penn, Jeremy Pikser, Harold Pinter, Frances Fox Piven, Michael Ratner, Boots Riley, Mark Ruffalo, US Rep. Bobby Rush, Susan Sarandon, James Schamus, Richard Serra, Rev. Al Sharpton, Cindy Sheehan, Martin Sheen, Gary Soto, Nancy Spero, Gloria Steinem, Lynne Stewart, Serj Tankian, Jonathan Tasini, Sunsara Taylor, Studs Terkel, Gore Vidal, Kurt Vonnegut, Alice Walker, Naomi Wallace, Lt. Ehren Watada, US Rep. Maxine Waters, Cornel West, Saul Williams, Krzysztof Wodiczko, Ann Wright, Howard Zinn, and thousands more.

WORLD CAN’T WAIT
LOCAL INFO & CONTACTS

This is the day we have all asked about.
WHY AREN’T PEOPLE IN THE STREETS?!
This is the day we take to the streets.

Following is information for Fort Lauderdale. Full list of events can be found at World Can’t Wait website. Take to the streets people!!

Thursday October 5, 3-5 pm, military recruiting center, 1406 N. SR 7 (441), Lauderhill.
Then we will car caravan (with posters, streamers, etc) to
6-7:30 at Welcome Park (entrance to Port Everglades where all the oil comes in), SR 84 and US 1, Fort Lauderdale.
Then all those who want will march through the Las Olas Entertainment district with signs, banners, noisemakers, etc.

Our next planning meeting: 7:30, Thursday 28th, GLCC room 2, 1717 N. Andrews (east off I-95 at Sunrise, then left/north on Andrews), Fort Lauderdale.

Ads on Air America, several full page ads in the New York Times and, most recently (Sept.20), in USA Today have gotten the word out widely (and generated much positive response and, of course, Bill O’Reilly’s anger). But we need to do much more in the next ten days to get the word out locally. Help. Forward this email to everyone you know. Get posters up and fliers into peoples hands - we have both here or you can download and reproduce from the national website. Come to the next meeting. Reply with any suggestions.

The future is unwritten. WHICH ONE WE GET IS UP TO US.

Up to 20,000 demonstrators have marched through the northern English city of Manchester to protest the presence of British troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The protests on Saturday took place on the eve of the governing Labour Party’s annual gathering.

Protesters packed Manchester’s central Albert Square on Saturday before setting off on a march around the conference centre where delegates will meet.

The five-day Labour meeting begins on Sunday.

A few hundred metres from a hotel where Blair and other party officials will stay, families of some of the British soldiers killed in Iraq set up a “peace camp” of a half dozen tents, where they intended to camp out in hopes of getting the prime minister’s attention.

The Stop the War Coalition, which organised the march, estimated about 30,000 people were participating.

Police initially estimated the crowd at 10,000, then doubled that figure.

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Many a news story, many an expert interview, and of course many a neocon op-ed (for several months now) indicate that the Bush administration wants to go to war with Iran.

Regardless of what one thinks about the rationale of going to war with Iraq, it would be almost impossible to argue that the Bush administration did not want to go to war with Iraq. It was obvious they did.

And thus it is with Iran. If we avoid war with Iran - and possibly Syria as well - it will not be because of the Bush administration. It will not be due to wisdom or sound judgment or common sense on their part. It will only be due to another behind-the’scenes revolt by the top military brass or some external factor the Bushies don’t choose to dismiss as is their usual wont.

The Bush administration is stupid. It is mean. And it is powerful. Those three factors make for an absolutely deadly combination. Their learning curve is almost non-existent, worse than a long-time crack addict who is not even close to trying to kick the habit, let alone in the last throes of struggling to recover. But what else can we expect from an untreated, dry drunk (Bush) and a power-mad bastard (Cheney) who has been unerringly wrong about virtually everything for the past six years? What can we expect from an administration that always wants to act tough but cannot be bothered with thinking through even the most elementary consequences of its actions? (Beyond their political ramifications, of course.)

It would be nice to think that “cooler heads will prevail.” And perhaps they will. But it seems highly unlikely those “cooler heads” will come from inside Bush’s inner circle. The Bushies will act out of macho insecurity, or a desire for more power, or because God spoke to them, or because they are assured they are right and good and true. But they will not act with the best interests of America or the world in mind.

Between the Bush administration’s “diplomacy” with Iran, and the very real possibility of the suspension of habeas corpus - Whither America?

For more information on protest locations and how to organize a protest, visit The World Can’t Wait

Organize and Speak Out Against Bush Administration War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity!

On September 19, 20 and 21, The International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration calls on all campuses and communities across the country to organize public events to expose and denounce the Bush administration’s war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Bush Regime’s actions cry out for resounding calls of conscience by the many, many people across the country who do not want these acts carried out in our names. They call for hundreds of events, sending a loud “No, not in our name!” far and wide.

Events and protests will happen on campuses across the country.