World-News

The Iraqi government is considering a new oil law that could give private oil companies greater control over its vast reserves. In light of rampant violence and shaky democratic institutions, many fear the law is being pushed through hastily by special interests behind closed doors.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122306Y.shtml



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Big+Oil

Secure Flight, the US government's stalled program to screen domestic air passengers against terrorism watch lists, violated federal law during a crucial test phase, according to a report to be issued today by the Homeland Security Department's privacy office.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122306C.shtml



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Transportation+Security+Administration

- Proposition de loi du député Patrice Martin-Lalande.

- Lettre ouverte : La réponse de Next-up à Patrice Martin-Lalande.

- Les premiers commentaires des Françaises et des Français.

http://www.next-up.org/Newsoftheworld/MartinLalandeDeputePropositionLoiProposedLawFrance.php#1

A message from Gwen

Original Message

from Susan D.

Petition to Ban Horse Slaughter in the United States
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/631181096

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A message from Marthalie

Original Message

I finally finished the site and poster. The site to download the flyer and get info is: http://horses.generitek.com/

Please forward to anyone and everyone!

In addition, if you haven't already please sign and forward the petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/631181096

Please let me know if you have any questions! Thank you all!

Marjorie :)

http://tinyurl.com/yhkalv



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Prekariat

IAN JOHNSTON ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT
(ijohnston @scotsman.com)

http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1905342006

HOLLYWOOD has turned them into the cartoon stars of the film Happy Feet, but the real life story of the rockhopper penguin is not such a happy tale, scientists have discovered.

Millions of the birds are disappearing in a "sinister and astonishing" phenomenon that is baffling biologists.

In just six years their numbers have fallen from 600,000 to 420,000 in the Falkland Islands - one of its few remaining strongholds - according to the latest survey by Falklands Conservation.

The decline equates to a drop of about 30 per cent, although the Falklands population is thought to have dipped by about 85 per cent since 1932, when there were more than 1.5 million birds.

It is thought that global warming may be behind its decline, as warmer seas are less productive and the penguins may not be able to find enough food to eat, but researchers admit they have not yet established the reasons.

Dr Geoff Hilton, an RSPB biologist who has studied the species, said: "It's actually quite rare in conservation that we don't know why a species is declining.

"All around the world from New Zealand to the Falklands there used to be all these huge colonies. Populations separated by 1,000km of sea are all crashing.

"It's an astonishing decline, the populations have just crashed over the last few decades and we really don't know why. It's quite sinister, we have got millions of penguins just disappearing."

He analysed rockhopper feathers dating back to the 19th century from stuffed animals in museums and discovered in warm years the penguins feed "lower" on the food chain, on krill and squid rather than fish. This less nutritious food might be the reason they are suffering. In several years, rockhoppers have starved to death in their hundreds of thousands during the annual moult, when they are unable to swim and, therefore, feed because their feathers are not waterproof.

Other penguins have suffered, but have bounced back, while the rockhoppers only seem to stabilise before falling again. A red tide of toxic algae in the Falklands also killed thousands in 2002-3.

Dr Hilton said: "There must be some major big thing going wrong in the eco-system. We did see some clues [in the feathers study] and the finger is tentatively pointing at global warming."

In Happy Feet, a rockhopper penguin called Lovelace, voiced by Robin Williams, is a self-proclaimed prophet who also narrates the story.

The film has proved a huge hit.

The research was funded by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, which runs Edinburgh Zoo. Roslin Talbot, the zoo's head keeper of penguins, said: "It is very serious for them. Zoos generally have found them quite difficult to breed. They are choosy when they go to pick their mates and they like very specific places to nest."

Grant Munro, the director of Falklands Conservation, said there were fears that rockhoppers might become extinct. "If the present situation were to carry on then it's not a particularly great forecast. It doesn't look like they are suddenly going to start increasing in numbers," he said.

"In the Falklands, they are part of everyday life. If you head down to the beach you are going to see penguins."

And they are amazingly tame and inquisitive.

"You are not perceived as a risk so they will come over and say hello."


Informant: binstock

A message from Rosemary

Hello! if you have a moment please sign and forward this important petition for our "fur angels" !

Original Message

Please crosspost and sign if you haven't as yet

Thanks Monika


PETITION: AGAINST DOGS AND CATS KILLING IN SERBIA http://www.oipa.org/public/serbia/petition.php

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A message from Marthalie

Original Message

Thank you for taking a moment to sign,frwd. & cross post!

LOL

Original Message

The petition about the puppy being dragged by a car.....I swear people like that need to be put away in a padded cell.....I don't think I can sign these right now but please fwd. Thanks, Barb


Original Message

Letter Campaign for Animals in Serbia THE WAR IS OVER BUT THE BRUTAL MASSACRE OF ANIMALS ADVANCES ' http://www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr/indexen.php?u=htmlen/serbia.html '
(Scroll down to the bottom of the site and sign)

The petition is time sensitive ! It needs more signatures until 12/28/06 PLEASE SIGN AND FORWARD !!! Thanks Little dog dragged behind his owner's SUV petition http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/703063826


Stop the kangaroo massacre in Australia http://www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr/indexen.php?u=htmlen/serbia.html

Give Yourself The Gift Of PAPER BALLOTS

Thanks to your thousands of messages of protest, this last week Harry Reid quickly reversed himself and clarified that Bush's proposal for a troop "surge" in Iraq was OFF the table. We will continue to press for bringing the troops home now, and we recognize that if only enough of us speak out at the same time it WILL happen.

In the meantime, we helped the Velvet Revolution web site launch an action page demanding actual paper ballots in all elections. That is also definitely on our holiday wish list, and they are putting together an impressive team of election reform advocates to make it happen.

ACTION PAGE: http://www.velvetrevolution.us/Campaigns/PaperBallots/PaperBallots.php

Please join more than 30 leading non-partisan Election Integrity organizations who have signed the following letter demanding that Congress enact legislation requiring a paper ballot for every vote cast. Problems throughout the 2006 primary and general elections have made it clear that only a paper ballot -- not a "paper trail", nor a "paper record" -- will begin to help re-establish confidence in our tattered electoral system.

Please fill out the form below to email the letter to your own Congress Members. We'll take it from there. It's time for American Citizens to take our democracy back. This is an important first step as Congress considers new Election Reform legislation.

ACTION PAGE: http://www.velvetrevolution.us/Campaigns/PaperBallots/PaperBallots.php

OPEN LETTER TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE U.S. SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:

We, the undersigned non-partisan election integrity organizations, strongly urge you, as a first order of business in the 110th Congress, to enact new federal legislation to protect the integrity of our elections. While there are many areas of concern for any such legislation, none is more essential to the accuracy of our elections and the confidence among our electorate than for there to be a paper ballot for every vote cast. Not a paper "trail" or a paper "record," but a paper BALLOT.

In light of lessons learned during the 2006 primary and general elections -- with myriad contests resulting in uncertainty and thousands of voters in state after state turned away from the polls unable to cast a vote on DRE systems which failed throughout the day -- we now hold that a paper ballot, whether counted by optical-scan system or hand, is the minimum requirement for any Election Reform legislation in which voters may have confidence. Such a requirement is needed to help ensure Americans that every legally registered voter can vote, that every vote is recorded precisely as the voter intends, and that every vote is counted and, if necessary, re-counted accurately.

This year's elections have made crystal clear that electronic voting machines -- both those without paper ballots, such as Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) touch-screen systems, and even those with so-called "Voter Verified Paper Audit Trails" -- caused massive disruptions, undermined the results of crucial elections, and forced thousands of voters to leave the polls without being able to exercise their franchise.

Paper trails and paper records are not sufficient to safeguard elections and restore confidence among the electorate. Unless there is a paper ballot for every vote cast, three fundamental principles of democratic elections are violated:

1) OBSERVABLE TALLIES. It is impossible for citizens to observe the counting of electronic ballots and audit the results.

2) EQUAL ACCESS. Requiring voters to cast votes on computers discriminates against those who are not familiar with the technology.

3) ACCURATE RESULTS. It is impossible to ensure that the reported results are accurate. In fact, a voter-verifiable paper audit trail cannot be depended on to provide the certainty lacking in electronic tallies. Clear evidence from several recent elections reveals instances in which:

- The electronic screen record did not reflect the voter's intent.
- The electronic count did not match the paper trail produced by the e-voting machine.
- The summary review screen did not match the paper trail produced by the e-voting machine.
- Voters did not know to verify the paper trail or were prevented from doing so by improper design, incorrect setup, or malfunction of the printer.
- Computer systems introduced unnecessary complexity into the entire election process and therefore increased the likelihood of errors by voters, poll workers, and election officials.
- Computerized voting relinquished control of the final outcome to the technical skills of those who programmed the software.

While it is not easy to reconcile the money already spent on new DRE systems, it would be worse to continue using election equipment that is not accomplishing its critical task. If this were a public safety matter, no one would question the ban on the continued use of a dangerous product, even if it had been funded by billions of public dollars. Why should we act any differently when it comes to protecting the safety of our electoral process?

Ultimately, the true price of free, fair, reliable, accurate, and transparent elections in America cannot be judged by dollars alone.

We therefore urge you to immediately enact legislation which requires a paper BALLOT for every vote cast. Now is the moment for action, in time to take effect for the 2008 primaries and general election.

Respectfully yours,

The Undersigned

Demos
Dolores Huerta Foundation
National Voting Rights Institute
TrueMajorityAction
VelvetRevolution.us
VoterAction.org
VotersUnite.org

AuditAZ
Broward Election Reform Coalition
California Election Protection Network
Citizens for Accurate Mail Ballot Election Results
Citizens for Election Integrity Minnesota
Coalition for Voting Integrity - Pennsylvania
Colorado Voter
Coloradoans For Voting Integrity
Commonweal Institute
Defenders of Democracy
Dolores Huerta Foundation
Election Defense Alliance
Florida Fair Elections Coalition
Gathering To Save Our Democracy - Tennessee
Georgians for Verified Voting
Iowans for Voting Integrity
Mainstreet Moms (theMMOB.org)
Missourians for Honest Elections
N.C. Coalition for Verified Voting
Network of Citizens
New Yorkers for Verified Voting
Oregon Voter Rights Coalition
ProgressiveActionAlliance.org
Palm Beach Coalition for Election Reform
Sarasota Alliance for Fair Elections - Florida
SAVEOurVotes.org - Maryland
Texas Safe Voting
The American Voter
TrueVoteMD
Verifiable Voting Coalition of Virginia
Verify The Vote Indiana
Virginia Verified Voting
VoteAllegheny
VotePA
VoteRescue of Texas
Voting Integrity Alliance of Tampa Bay

Please take action NOW, so we can win all victories that are supposed to be ours.

Powered by The People's Email Network
Copyright 2006, Patent pending, All rights reserved
May be reproduced for activist purposes



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=ballot
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=vote
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=election

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1572574,00.html


From Information Clearing House

Iran is selling more of its oil for payment in euros than dollars as it seeks to shift its foreign currency reserves away from the depreciating currency of its political enemy, the United States.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,16849-2514985,00.html


From Information Clearing House

U.S. security contractors allege their supervisor was ‘out of control’
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16316248/


From Information Clearing House

"This is a show trial just to show that the Americans are doing something to be fair with Iraqis but it's nothing more than that," he said.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L22911553.htm


From Information Clearing House



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Haditha

The CIA this month conducted a simulation of how the Iraq war affects the global jihadist movement.

http://washingtontimes.com/national/20061221-122441-5208r.htm


From Information Clearing House

By Chalmers Johnson

A National Intelligence Estimate On The Unites States
http://www.videos1.informationclearinghouse.info/pdf/cj.pdf [PDF Format]



Chalmers Johnson: Republic or Empire

Audio Interview By Jeff Blankfort

Chalmers Johnson, author of Blowback and Sorrows of Empire, discusses the build-up of the US empire based on Keynesian military spending, its conflicts with the concept of the US as a republic, and its inevitable downfall.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article16189.htm



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Chalmers+Johnson
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=empire

http://www.swnewsherald.com/online_content/2006/12/121906wv_hor_vance.php


Informant: ranger116

http://www.azstarnet.com/altsn/default/newsletterclickthru/161476


Informant: rafeswhiterose

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1222-30.htm

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Five Years of Infamy: Close Guantanamo!

By Colonel Ann Wright, Retired

As a retired US Army colonel with 29 years of service on active duty and in the US Army Reserves, and as a US diplomat for 16 years, I firmly believe that there must be accountability and responsibility for criminal actions that we know have occurred - whether the perpetrators are in the Pentagon, the CIA, the Justice Department, or the White House.

http://tinyurl.com/ygbkd7



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Guantanamo
http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Ann+Wright

A Parable For Our Times

Bill Moyers: "It is up to the rest of us, who see the founding fathers not as gods but as inspired although flawed human beings—the hand that scribbled "All men are created equal" also stroked the breasts and thighs of a slave woman, whom he considered his property—to take on "the tendency of things " to "depart from the republican standard," and hold our country to its highest, and most humane, ideals."

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1222-24.htm


From Information Clearing House



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Bill+Moyers

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1222-03.htm



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=Dahr+Jamail

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/1222-01.htm

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US Plans "Test" of Military Draft

The Selective Service System is making plans to test its draft machinery in case Congress and President Bush need it, even though the White House says it doesn't want to bring back the draft.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122306Z.shtml

PETER WALSH

23 December 2006 08:28

Families face a fresh battle to stop a mobile phone giant putting up a phone mast near a busy supermarket - just metres from an existing site.

Vodafone has submitted an application to Broadland District Council for permission for an 11.4m mock telegraph pole in Fakenham Road, Drayton, near Budgens supermarket.

The pole, incorporating three shrouded antennas and an equipment cabin, would be close to an Orange mast just 50 yards from the rear of Budgens' car park on Fakenham Road.

Noel Barratt, 65, of Fakenham Road, said he did not want another mast. He said:“I can't see the need for another mast when there's one already there. I can see that from my window and don't want to see another one - we don't want to see the landscape being blotted by them.”

People in the area have fought previous applications for masts. In 2001, the Evening News reported how families won a battle to stop One2One putting up a 10 metre mast just 50 metres from the Orange mast at Budgens.

Norwich North MPDr Ian Gibson supports the Evening News' Put Masts on Hold campaign, which opposes the installation of mobile phone masts near homes and schools until it is proved they are safe.

He said: “It's like being in a war against these companies - whatever we say, they continue with the onslaught. I hope the people who live around this proposed mast will get together and I am happy to help them (oppose it).”

He said companies should share masts where possible.

No-one was available for comment at Vodafone.

Are you fighting a mobile phone mast application in your area? Call Evening News reporter Peter Walsh on (01603) 772439 or email peter.walsh @archant.co.uk

Copyright © 2006 Archant Regional. All rights reserved.

http://tinyurl.com/y78y5e

http://www.appealforredress.org/php/appeal.php

ACTIVE DUTY SOLDIERS CALL FOR AN END TO THE OCCUPATION OF IRAQ
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/45646/


Informant: ranger116



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=redress

http://www.lewrockwell.com/rozeff/rozeff124.html



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=com/rozeff

http://www.ufppc.org/content/view/5469/


Informant: jensenmk

From ufpj-news

The Pentagon has announced plans to move additional warships and strike aircraft into the Persian Gulf region to be within striking range of Iran. The aircraft carrier Eisenhower and its strike group entered the Persian Gulf on Dec. 11. Another aircraft carrier, the Stennis, is expected to depart for the Gulf within the next month.

Scott Ritter sees parallels to the invasion of Iraq: "We have told the Iranians it is their responsibility to prove to the international community beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is no nuclear weapons program in Iran. How can you prove a negative?"

Another parallel is the brutal Christmas Bombing of North Vietnam by Richard Nixon in 1972. James Carroll described it as "a final venting of frustration and rage by a superpower faced with ignominious defeat." Will Bush bomb Iran out of frustration with failing to "win" in Iraq?

Sign the petition: http://www.dontattackiran.org

Watch a video of the delivery of the first 80,000 signatures to the White House on Nov. 8, 2006:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-g4cbWVG8M


Walk for Change: January 2nd to 4th in Washington DC

Walk the halls of Congress with Gold Star Families for Peace, led by Cindy Sheehan. Let's tell the members of the 110th congress what is expected of them from Day 1: an immediate exit strategy from Iraq.

We will insist that all funding for the war stop immediately and money in the pipeline be spent to rebuild Iraq. We will insist that hearings begin immediately into Bushco's crimes against humanity and the lies he told to the American people. We will demand IMPEACHMENT.

Learn more, sign up, find a ride, find a room: http://tinyurl.com/y6zh5l

We'll be lobbying to end funding of the war and begin investigations of the war and the case that the President made for it. Here's a one-page guide to lobbying on these issues: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/16562


Watch Video on How to Stop Funding the War

Watch video:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeKsXxu69mk

Sign petition: http://pdamerica.org/petition/mcgovern-petition.php


Come to Washington for January 27-29

Come to Washington, D.C., on January 27. Join in the march for peace being organized by United for Peace and Justice: http://www.unitedforpeace.org

and impeachment events on January 28th being planned by Progressive Democrats of America: http://www.pdamerica.org

Make appointments now to meet with your Congress Member on January 29th to demand impeachment and peace. Get organized with others in your Congressional District: http://www.democrats.com/cdic

TIP: Buy a dozen or more Impeachment Shirts, bring them to D.C., sell them at a profit, and pay for your trip.

Sign Up for Lobby Day Now

Register now for the UFPJ Congressional Advocacy Day (lobby day) January 29, 2007: http://www.unitedforpeace.org/modinput4.php?modin=121

Plan to attend the Sunday Strategy and Training Sessions We strongly encourage everyone who plans to lobby to attend the training and meeting-planning session on Sunday January 28. This session will allow you to meet with others in your state and congressional district to plan for the most effective meeting possible. Training for lobby day is tentatively scheduled to begin at noon at Bethesday Chevy Chase High School (near the metro, plenty of free parking). Morning sessions will be organized by UFPJ member groups to focus on organizing and strategy on a variety of issues. Stay tuned for more information.


Forward this message to everyone you know!



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=impeach
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=impeach

Press Ignores the Generals

"The Joint Chiefs of Staff and practically every actively serving general strongly opposes President Bush's proposed Iraq 'Surge' Plan, but you've probably not heard too much about the generals' discontent ... because the media only barely reported on the generals' mutiny," writes A. Alexander.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/122206R.shtml



http://freepage.twoday.net/search?q=surge