World-News

Hillary Clinton: Who's Party?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/infowarsnews/message/889

An American territory with close to four million inhabitants has suspended all payments. Parts of public services have been shelved; schools have been closed, and close to 100,000 people have stopped working in the last week. Yet the situation barely provokes any response in the United States: no official reaction, very limited media coverage...

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006H.shtml

In an interview with Khatchig Mouradian, Chomsky explains: "The general principle is that anything that places US actions in a questionable light is omitted, with very rare exceptions. So if you blame something on an enemy, then you can discuss it, and Syria, right now, is the official enemy. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the charges against Syria are wrong. It just means that everything else is omitted."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006E.shtml

Some Democrats say that Kavanaugh, 41, is too closely tied to GOP politics - and too unwilling to answer questions - to deserve a lifetime appointment to the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006C.shtml

Hillary & Rupert

Jeff Cohen writes: "By having Murdoch host her fundraiser, Hillary Clinton seems to be signaling to Murdoch that while Democratic Party activists have mobilized in recent years against media conglomeration and policies that favor and subsidize media giants, those are not concerns of hers."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006B.shtml



Hillary, Rupert, and the Culture of Corruption
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0510-20.htm

Scott Peterson writes: "For 27 years, the rhetorical swordplay between the US and Iran has been unrelenting. Iran portrays its latest thrust in the ongoing row with the West, an unprecedented letter from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to President Bush, as a 'new diplomatic opening.'"

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006A.shtml

John Edwards has fired up crowds at union rallies in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston as part of a campaign to raise wages and benefits for hotel workers. At a union rally in Chicago, he said, "The best anti-poverty strategy is a strong labor movement."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006P.shtml

http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00002803.htm


Informant: ranger116

President Bush's selection of General Michael V. Hayden to be the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency sets the stage for new wrangling with the Pentagon, which is rapidly expanding its own global spying and terrorist-tracking operations, both long considered CIA roles.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006N.shtml

"Trifft deutsche Unternehmen": Deutsch-Iranische Handelskammer lehnt Sanktionen gegen Teheran ab (10.05.06)

Der Geschäftsführer der Deutsch-Iranischen Handelskammer, Michael Tockuss, bezweifelt, dass Wirtschaftssanktionen Iran dazu bewegen können, von seinem Atomprogramm abzulassen. "Ich halte es für sehr fraglich, ob sie helfen, die politische Position Irans im Atomstreit zu verändern", sagte er der "Financial Times Deutschland". Die iranische Wirtschaft sei "krisenerprobt und lebt seit Jahren mit einseitigen Sanktionen der USA".

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet: http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=13569

Over 1600 sheep apparently died this month in India after ingesting genetically engineered (GE) cotton. The massive deaths occurred after several days of grazing in fields where Monsanto’s Bt and herbicide resistant spliced varieties of cotton were planted. Scientists from India's Centre for Sustainable Agriculture are calling on the government to launch a study into the impacts of GE cotton toxins.

Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_387.cfm

France’s top judicial court has denied Monsanto's requests to grow test plots of genetically engineered corn in two locations. The court says the biotech corporation has not provided enough details about where these experimental field trials would be located. Monsanto has responded by saying that despite the court ruling, the corporation will continue testing genetically engineered crops in France. "We'll continue our experiments, but we might have to change a bit the way we ask for licenses in the future," said Yann Fichet, director of external relations for Monsanto France.

Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_406.cfm

BIRD FLU SCARE HITS U.S. - IN A MADE-FOR-TV MOVIE

Last night, ABC aired a movie entitled "Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America". The film portrayed a worse-case scenario outbreak where millions of people die within the first few weeks of an avian flu pandemic. The network advertised the film as being based on fact and stated it was "one step ahead of the headlines." A coalition of public interest organizations, including the Organic Consumers Association have called on ABC to take a step back from sensationalism and present its viewers with factual information on the spread of such diseases. A letter written by the coalition to Anne Sweeney, the President of Disney-ABC, states "The role of large industrial-scale poultry operations – where up to hundreds of thousands of birds can be housed indoors in cramped conditions – is not being examined by most of the media or by government officials charged with preventing the spread of the virus. Such facilities not only provide prime conditions for the mutation and spread of the virus between birds, but also rely heavily on genetically similar birds not likely to be resistant to disease."


From Organic Bytes #81



VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS & THE BIRD FLU PANDEMIC

The White House is advising the public to stockpile food and water to prepare for a potential bird flu pandemic. The Bush Administration's report states that since the pandemic could kill as many as two million Americans, massive taxpayer subsidies must be handed over to the pharmaceutical industry to develop a magic bullet vaccine. Meanwhile, according to Wall Street analysts, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has already pocketed million dollars off of his investments in the company Gilead Sciences, the California biotech company that owns the rights to Tamiflu, the world’s most popular influenza remedy. On the other hand, the United Nations global coordinator on Avian Influenza is considering a more holistic approach to dealing with a potential outbreak. The result is a series of reports, including one entitled, "The Pivotal Role for Natural Products in Countering an Avian Influenza Pandemic". The report, authored by four leading scientists and doctors in the fields of nutritional medicine and health, focuses on the key nutrients zinc, vitamin C, and vitamin A as primary supplemental medicines to strengthen peoples’ immunes systems to fight off the flu. According to the report's lead author, "Following an extensive review of over 250 peer reviewed studies, we believe that the protocols developed here can help to buy time and fill the gap between the outbreak of a pandemic and the months or years required for development and manufacture of effective vaccines."

Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_407.cfm

DESPITE BIG SODA PR, COMPANIES WON'T BE LEAVING SCHOOLS

Last week, big soda producers like Coca-Cola and Pepsi sucked up volumes of positive press after announcing that they were removing soda pop from U.S. schools. The beverage companies seemed to be finally responding to pressure from parents across the nation concerned about junk foods and beverages in schools and childhood obesity. A closer look at the actual statements of the soda giants, however, reveals that no actual implementation of these policies is planned. In fact, according to the American Beverage Association, an industry trade group representing soda companies, the so-called new policy is completely voluntary, and first requires that individual school districts actually request to have soda machines removed. Susan Neely, president of the American Beverage Association said: "This is a voluntary policy, but I think schools will want to follow it." Because school districts already have the power to add or remove vending machines from schools, last week's policy announcement from the soda industry amounts to nothing more than another deceptive, albeit clever PR campaign.

Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_404.cfm

ALERT

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, no doubt hoping to limit public controversy, has announced a very short public comment period (ends May 12, 2006) on proposed new federal regulations that will weaken organic standards. USDA’s proposed amendments, supported by grocery store chains and large food corporations, will allow so-called organic dairy feedlots to continuously import calves from conventional farms—where the calves have been weaned on blood, dosed with antibiotics, and fed genetically engineered grains and slaughterhouse waste. USDA’s new rules will also allow over 500 artificial (synthetic) substances in organic processed foods without prior scrutiny and review by the National Organic Standards Board. USDA’s latest efforts are basically an attempt to codify last fall’s controversial “Sneak Attack” in Congress, when industry players and the Organic Trade Association convinced the Republican Party majority to attach a last minute rider to the 2006 Agricultural Appropriations Bill. Take action now and tell the USDA to back off on lowering standards!

http://www.organicconsumers.org/sos.cfm



ALERT: FREE THOUSANDS OF AMERICA’S ORGANIC COWS FROM INTENSIVE CONFINEMENT

The USDA is also seeking public comments on revisions it has made to the National Organic Program regarding pasture access for organic dairy cattle. Two of the largest organic dairy companies in the nation, Horizon Organic (a subsidiary of Dean Foods), a supplier to Wal-Mart and many health food stores; and Aurora Organic, a supplier of private brand name organic milk to Costco, Safeway, Giant, Wild Oats and others, are purchasing the majority of their milk from so-called organic feedlot dairies where the cows are kept in intensive confinement, with little or no access to pasture. Together, Horizon and Aurora control nearly 65% of the organic dairy market. Recent scientific studies have shown that humanely raised, grass-fed dairy and beef are qualitatively better for human health and the environment. Take action to close the loopholes in organic standards that currently allow factory farm dairies to call their products “organic.”

http://www.organicconsumers.org/nosb2.htm



HORIZON AND AURORA BANNED IN CO-OPS

One month ago, after a poll of our members, the Organic Consumers Association called on consumers to boycott dairy companies like Horizon and Aurora for their practice of raising "organic" cattle on intensive confinement feedlots. A number of natural food stores and co-ops across the U.S. are beginning to respond to concerned consumers and removing suspect dairy products from their stores. The Wedge Co-op in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the second largest co-op in the U.S., no longer carries Horizon products. In Colorado, the Boulder Co-op Market, has also discontinued stocking Horizon products. Amy Wyatt, Assistant General Manager for the Co-op, says, "Based on our concerns regarding Horizon's practices, we didn't feel that continuing to carry this company's products was consistent with our mission and values.” Dean Foods, Horizon’s parent company, is also starting to come under fire for abandoning U.S. organic soybean farmers and importing cheap soybeans from China, where organic standards are dubious, and farm labor wages and conditions are abysmal. Dean Foods now controls the nation’s largest organic soymilk brand, Silk, as well as the largest organic tofu brand, White Wave.

Learn more: http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_400.cfm



PROTEST STARBUCKS:

Frankenbucks National Week of Action June 19th-25th Despite years of grassroots pressure, Starbucks continues to serve milk from cows that are injected with Monsanto’s controversial genetically engineered recombinant bovine growth hormone, also known as rBGH or rBST. Virtually every industrial country, except for the United States, has banned the use of rBGH. Milk produced from cows injected with rBGH poses serious hazards to human health, including increased risks for cancer. The time has come to kick rBGH off the market, once and for all. If Starbucks, a major buyer of milk, were to ban rBGH dairy products in its coffee beverages other major corporations would likely do the same. Join OCA and allies June 19-25, to protest or leaflet at Starbucks cafes in your neighborhood. Help us reach our goal of 300 actions!

Click here to leaflet Starbucks or for more information
http://organicconsumers.org/Starbucks/

A message from Eleanor

Original Message:

Thank You, Anita (Sponsor) These are all her well written words.... PLEASE SIGN ! CROSS-POST WIDELY, FORWARD, ETC... KEEP THIS CIRCULATING. PLEASE SIGN...... I Care,

K. C.


STOP LIVE DOG BURNING TESTS IN CHINA
Target: National Anti-Vivisection Society
Sponsor: Anita Solomon
NEW May 9th/10th
STOP LIVE DOG BURNING TESTS IN CHINA http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/454118246

Animal Defenders International (ADI) and our sister group, The National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAV are launching a campaign to shame the Chinese Government into halting cruel tests involving burning of dogs. Tim Phillips, Campaigns Director for ADI says: “These are perhaps the cruelest experiments we have ever uncovered, these dogs must have been in almost unimaginable agony. Worse still, these animals suffered and died in vain, there are ways of conducting this research without animals, and dogs are simply a bad research model for human beings."

This petition will help to enhance and support the campaign to put an end to Chinese Torture on Animals. It will be forwarded to the Chinese Government. STOP LIVE DOG BURNING TESTS IN CHINA

The horrific series of experiments in which dogs are being burned alive took place at the Third Military Medical University at Chongqing, China. The experiments appeared in the Chinese scientific journal: ŒZhonghua Shao Shang Za Zhi. NAVS and ADI have uncovered three experiments published since 1999 and believe the programme of research continues. The 3 experiments involved:-

1. 37 dogs burned with napalm - The pain of napalm is so excruciating that people have died from the pain alone. The pain felt by the dogs would have been unbearable. The dogs were then kept alive with their agonizing burns for three days. 72hours of hell.

2. 26 dogs were burned so severely that their brains swelled - In order to determine the value of scanning equipment in diagnosing brain swelling due to excess water (oedema) following burns, dogs were inflicted with third degree skin burns, over half of their bodies. Yet, scanning techniques such as MRI cause little or no suffering to people so it is difficult to understand why the information could not have been derived from studies of burns patients.

3. 24 dogs were deliberately scalded and suffered steam inhalation injuries – 24 mongrel dogs were used in an experiment in which 40% of their total body surface area was deliberately scalded, giving them third degree burns, and they were left alive for up to two days. Some of the dogs died from shock within 36 hours.

ANIMALS DO NOT NEED TO SUFFER! MODERN NON-ANIMAL METHODS ARE AVAILABLE!

Löcher im Containment
http://www.telepolis.de/tp/r4/artikel/22/22613/1.html

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/columnists/sfl-sgcol10may10,0,5162832.column


Informant: David Diggins

A message from Ruth:

Signed 10. May! - Greetings from Doris and her husband Lars, too!

Dear friends who care about our earth. Judge for yourself if you want to take action. In the Valle de San Felix, the purest water in Chile runs from 2 rivers, fed by 2 glaciers. Water is a most precious resource, and wars will be fought for it. Indigenous farmers use the water, there is no unemployment, and they provide the second largest source of income for the area. Under the glaciers has been found a huge deposit of gold, silver and other minerals. To get at these, it would be necessary to break, to destroy the glaciers - something never conceived of in the history of the world – and to make 2 huge holes, each as big as a whole mountain, one for extraction and one for the mine's rubbish tip. The project is called PASCUA LAMA. The company is called Barrick Gold. The operation is planned by a multi-national company, one of whose members is George Bush Senior. The Chilean Government has approved the project to start this year, 2006. The only reason it hasn't started yet is because the farmers have got a temporary stay of execution. If they destroy the glaciers, they will not just destroy the source of specially pure water, but they will permanently contaminate the 2 rivers so they will never again be fit for human or animal consumption because of the use of cyanide and sulphuric acid in the extraction process. Every last gramme of gold will go abroad to the multinational company and not one will be left with the people whose land it is. They will only be left with the poisoned water and the resulting illnesses. The farmers have been fighting a long time for their land, but have been forbidden to make a TV appeal by a ban from the Ministry of the Interior. Their only hope now of putting brakes on this project is to get help from international justice. The world must know what is happening in Chile. The only place to start changing the world is from here. We ask you to circulate this message amongst your friends in the following way. Please copy this text, paste it into a new email adding your signature and send it to everyone in your address book. Please will the
100th person to receive and sign the petition send it to noapascualama@yahoo.ca to be forwarded to the Chilean government. No to Pascua Lama Open-cast mine in the Andean Cordillera on the Chilean-Argentine frontier. We ask the Chilean Government not to authorize the Pascua Lama project to protect the whole of 3 glaciers, the purity of the water of the San Felix Valley and El Transito, the quality of the agricultural land of the region of Atacama, the quality of life of the Diaguita people and of the whole population of the region.

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http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/90494

Subject: Gold-mining Co. wants to destroy Glaciers!

Message: We, the Undersigned, endorse the following petition:
Say “No” to the project “Pascua-Lama”.

Target: John McDonough, Vicepresident, Barrick

Say “No” to the project “Pascua-Lama”. A project of the transnational enterprise Barrick Gold, is a clear menace to some glaciers in a region of Los Andes. Some of the actions are move three glaciers in the frontier between Chile and Argentina, to extract 547 tons of gold.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/946839131

This will poison whole eco-systems!

The Jewelers of America are putting pressure on gold-mining companies to use ecologically safer methods of extraction. Tiffany ran a full-page ad in the NY Times asking them to. No response from the big conglomerates so far! Go to I think it's GreenKarat for more info.

Please sign this petition! This is the beginning of a whole movement to rein in the destructive gold-mining business. Buy your gold jewelry second-hand; or, have old gold jewelry melted down and re-fashioned! Until the mining industry CLEANS UP ITS ACT! It takes an average of 3 tons of usually-toxic waste -- to make just one gold wedding ring!

by John Prados, TomPaine.com

Is Bush's pick to replace Porter Goss a move toward military domination over intelligence gathering?

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/05/10/curtains_for_the_cia.php

by Dean Baker, TomPaine.com

The GOP's latest round of tax cuts confirms the nanny state has been turned on its head: the poor now subsidize the rich.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/05/10/the_welfare_kings.php

"It is only when more people in the US begin to fathom the totality of the destruction in Iraq," writes Dahr Jamail, "that one may expect to hear the public outcry and uprising necessary to end the occupation and bring to justice the war criminals responsible for these conditions. Until that happens, make no mistake: all of us participate in a new Iraq, our hands dyed in the blood of innocents."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051006Z.shtml

Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Paul B. Trescott

05/09/06

There is a predictable annual ritual which begins when the Census Bureau releases its estimates that roughly one eighth of Americans live in poverty, and that this proportion has been relatively invariant in recent years despite the steady rise of per capita real incomes. This is followed by predictable rant by the anti-free-market crowd who lament the presence of an alarming number of children in poverty (a legitimate concern) and declaim that 'the system' must be seriously flawed and who advocate more heroic interventions to alleviate this condition. There follows a pro-free-market backlash which points out that a large proportion of the 'poor' own cars, color TV, air conditioning, and that compared to residents of mud huts in rural Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, or Brazil, the American poor aren't very poor...

http://www.mises.org/story/2140


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Wired

05/09/06

Former National Security Agency director Bobby Ray Inman lashed out at the Bush administration Monday night over its continued use of warrantless domestic wiretaps, making him one of the highest-ranking former intelligence officials to criticize the program in public, analysts say. 'This activity is not authorized,' Inman said, as part of a panel discussion on eavesdropping that was sponsored by The New York Public Library. The Bush administration 'need(s) to get away from the idea that they can continue doing it'...

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70855-0.html?tw=wn_index_2


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Los Angeles Times

05/09/06

Some American troops in Iraq have been their 'own worst enemy,' unintentionally creating new insurgents by treating the Iraqi people in a heavy-handed or insensitive manner, according to the U.S. commander in charge of day-to-day military operations. Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, in a weekend training session with troops and in an interview afterward, said he found a need to reemphasize to soldiers that they must use reasonable force and treat the Iraqi culture with respect, in part because the insurgency has persisted and grown. 'We have to understand that the way we treat Iraqis has a direct effect on the number of insurgents that we are fighting,' Chiarelli said in the interview with The Times after the seminar with about three dozen soldiers and Marines at Camp Taji, north of Baghdad. 'For every one that I kill, I create almost 10 more'...

http://tinyurl.com/kmgez


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Detroit Free Press

05/09/06

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's abrupt dismissal of a letter from Iran's president might only strengthen hardline attitudes and mistrust of America, some Iranians warned Tuesday. As President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began a high-profile visit to a key Muslim country, Indonesia, a former top Iranian official said Rice's response will give new justification to those who oppose ties with the U.S. Iran's former ambassador to France, Sadeq Kharrazi, said the letter -- the first from an Iranian head of state to an American president in 27 years -- 'could have been a turning point in relations.' But he said Rice squandered the opportunity with what he called a 'hasty reaction'...

http://tinyurl.com/psuon


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

#Die Linkspartei.PDS: Pressemitteilungen

10. Mai 2006

Bestehende Ungerechtigkeiten werden durch die heute vom Bundeskabinett beschlossenen Änderungen im Steuerrecht verstärkt. Dazu erklärt Angelika Gramkow, Mitglied des Parteivorstandes:

Während auf der einen Seite den Bürgerinnen und Bürgern schamlos in die Tasche gegriffen wird, bleibt die Reichensteuer nur Kosmetik und ist ihren Namen nicht wert. Vor allem Eltern mit Kindern in der Ausbildung und Berufspendler werden erneut belastet. So sollen Pendler Fahrkosten zwischen Wohnung und Arbeitsstätte erst ab dem 21. Entfernungskilometer steuerlich geltend machen dürfen. Das betrifft vor allem Arbeitnehmerinnen und Arbeitnehmer in solchen Flächen- und Pendlerländern wie Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Und wer sonst immer laut tönt, Familien mit Kindern und Jugendlichen zu unterstützen, der darf sich nicht am Kindergeld vergreifen. Sozial gerechter wären die Wiedereinführung der Vermögenssteuer und eine Reform der Erbschaftssteuer, die insbesondere die Ländereinnahmen stärken würden. Darüber hinaus müsste der in der Vergangenheit drastisch reduzierte Spitzensteuersatz wieder deutlich angehoben werden. Allein die Rücknahme der jüngsten Absenkung um 3 auf 42 Prozent würde sofort 3,3 Mrd. Euro in die öffentlichen Haushalte spülen.

http://sozialisten.de/presse/presseerklaerungen/view_html?zid=32703

A message from Lyn

Original Message:

I just finished writing another petition. This time I'm trying to save the BUFFALO and BISON from extinction at Yellowstone since the Governor Schweitzer issued a request to shoot all of them. More than 300 have been killed to date and we don't want them to be an endangerred species. With Endangerred Species Day, May 11th right around the corner will you help sign this so much needed petition now? They deserve to be here as much as you and I. It's a great place to bring kids . They can watch these wild animals in their natural habitats and learn while they're doing this too.

LET THE BUFFALO and BISON ROAM! LET THE BISON ROAM - IN YELLOWSTONE" petition at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/152494961

130.000 Unterstützer für Importstopp

Liebe Tierfreundin, lieber Tierfreund,

noch immer dürfen Katzen- und Hundefelle in die EU und einzelne europäische Staaten importiert werden. Deshalb startete VIER PFOTEN International im August letzten Jahres die Online-Kampagne für ein Einfuhrverbot von Katzen- und Hundefellen. Auf der Internetseite http://www.importstop.org haben Tierfreunde die Möglichkeit, sich zu informieren und für dieses Einfuhrverbot einzutreten.

Im Dezember 2005 riefen wir unsere Förderer und Unterstützer in Deutschland zusätzlich zu einer Unterschriftenaktion auf. Bis heute sind 130.000 Unterschriften eingegangen. Diese enorm hohe Zahl ist für uns ein klares Signal: Es bestärkt uns, unsere politische Arbeit zu diesem Thema auf nationaler Ebene vehement fortzuführen.

Das Gewicht dieser Unterschriften wird VIER PFOTEN in Berlin deutlich machen. Am 17. Mai 2006 wird unsere Geschäftsführerin Dr. Marlene Wartenberg dem zuständigen Bundesminister Horst Seehofer diese Unterschriften überreichen. Zeitnah wird auch ein Antrag im Bundestag zum Importstopp von Katzen- und Hundefellen beraten.

Wir werden Ihnen von der Übergabe der Unterschriften und dem Stand der politischen Diskussion zu diesem Thema berichten.

Wir danken Ihnen für Ihr bisheriges Engagement und hoffen, dass Sie auch weiterhin die Arbeit von VIER PFOTEN unterstützen.


Liebe Grüße

Beate Schüler
VIER PFOTEN - Stiftung für Tierschutz

http://tinyurl.com/o3f2e



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

Schicksal ALG II - Das Amt ist in Zahlungsverzug

„"Was ist das denn? Das habe ich ja noch nie gesehen", meinte die Kassiererin im Supermarkt und musterte erstaunt das Papier mit dem Aufdruck: Wertgutschein Deutschland, "damit wollen Sie bezahlen?" Als sie aufsah, sah sie wie der Kundin vor Scham die Tränen übers Gesicht liefen. Eine Szene aus der Serie: Was man als Hartz-IV-Empfänger ertragen muss, ohne selbst etwas falsch gemacht zu haben…“ Artikel von Heike Stüben in Kieler Nachrichten vom 10.05.2006 http://www.kn-online.de/news/archiv/?id=1858018


Aus: LabourNet, 10. Mai 2006

Auf am 3. Juni nach Berlin!
http://tinyurl.com/g6e3j
http://tinyurl.com/zd3lv

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SGB II – Optimierungsgesetz

Zitat des Tages – weil es nun auch der DGB gemerkt hat (und Hartz IV verbessern möchte): "Mit dem SGB-II-Optimierungsgesetz wird Hartz IV keinen Deut besser. Die Bundesregierung setzt auf verschärfte Kontrollen und Kürzungen, ohne die Arbeitsförderung zu verbessern. Damit wird das Prinzip Fördern und Fordern' immer mehr zu einer Blaupause für Sozialabbau…“ Die stellvertretende DGB-Vorsitzende Ursula Engelen-Kefer in der DGB-Pressemitteilung vom 09.05.2006: „Engelen-Kefer für Generalrevision bei Hartz IV“ http://www.dgb.de/presse/pressemeldungen/pmdb/pressemeldung_single?pmid=2770


Aus: LabourNet, 10. Mai 2006

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"Durchpeitschen": Linksfraktion kritisiert Beratung zu "Hartz IV"-Optimierungsgesetz (10.05.06)

Die Linksfraktion kritisiert die geplante Parlamentsberatung über das so genannte "Hartz IV-Optimierungsgesetz". Der Parlamentarische Geschäftsführer der Linksfraktion, Ulrich Maurer, verwies am Dienstag in Berlin darauf, dass der Gesetzentwurf der Regierungskoalition nach dem Willen der großen Koalition erst am Donnerstagabend nach 20.00 Uhr in erster Lesung im Parlament diskutiert werden solle. Damit finde die Debatte "faktisch unter Ausschluss der Öffentlichkeit statt", sagte Maurer. Die "in dem Gesetz verankerte Sozialschnüffelei" solle offensichtlich "im Vorübergehen durchgepeitscht" werden.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet: http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=13577

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Aktionen 2006

Aufruf zu einem NRW–Treffen am 24.05.2006 in Dortmund

LabourNet Germany und die Montagsdemo Dortmund laden Montagsdemos, Sozialforen, Agenturschluß und andere Initativen, zum Erfahrungsaustausch ein. Dieses erste Treffen soll NRW zusammen führen, damit in Zukunft Aktionen und Demos in NRW größer gestaltet werden können. Kurzfristig geht es um die Vorbereitung von Aktionen gegen das Hartz IV-„Optimierungsgesetz“. Siehe die Einladung mit Ortsbeschreibung und Anreise (pdf) http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/aktionen/2006/nrwaufruf.pdf

Siehe dazu auch den Aufruf zu Dezentrale bundesweite Proteste während der WM von BAG-SHI e.V. und Tacheles e.V. und Labournet Germany (pdf) http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/aktionen/wmdezentral.pdf

Übersicht über regionale Anti-Hartz-&-Co-Bündnisse http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/aktionen/regionen.html ist aktualisiert worden!


Aus: LabourNet, 11. Mai 2006

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Optimierungsgesetz bringt ein Optimum an Repression und Sanktion

Presseerklärung des Erwerbslosenausschusses ver.di Südbaden zu der geplanten 2. Nachbesserung des SGB II (pdf) http://www.labournet.de/diskussion/arbeit/realpolitik/hilfe/sgb2opti_evsb.pdf


Risiko Wohngemeinschaft

Hartz IV-Optimierungsgesetz. Paare und Wohngemeinschaften müssen sich zukünftig vor der Arbeitsagentur rechtfertigen. Artikel von Maria Wersig in Freitag vom 12.5.06 http://www.freitag.de/2006/19/06190401.php


Aus: LabourNet, 16. Mai 2006

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Änderungsantrag der CDU/CSU- und SPD-Fraktion: Die Optimierung wird optimiert

Mit dem Änderungsantrag der CDU/CSU- und SPD-Fraktion (Auschussdrucksache 16 (11) 275) vom 30.5.06 (pdf) http://www.arbeitnehmerkammer.de/sozialpolitik/doku/04_gesetze/gesetzgebung/2006/2006_05_09_sgbii_fortentwicklung_aenderungsantraege.pdf
wird das so genannte Fortentwicklungsgesetz zu Hartz (BT-Drs. 16/1410) nochmals verschärft: 1. Es sollen wieder die Erreichbarkeitsanordnungen eingeführt werden (Residenzpflicht). 2. Bei "wiederholter Pflichtverletzung" werden nunmehr alle Leistungen (auch KdU) um 100 % gekürzt … Das Gesetz mit den Änderungen soll heute durch die Ausschüsse und am Donnerstag (1.6.) durchs Bundestags-Plenum gepeitscht werden.


„DGB fordert Nachbesserungen bei Hartz IV“

Stellungnahme des Deutschen Gewerkschaftsbundes (DGB) zum Entwurf eines Gesetzes der Fraktionen CDU/CSU und SPD zur Fortentwicklung der Grundsicherung für Arbeitsuchende (pdf) http://www.dgb.de/themen/themen_a_z/abisz_doks/s/stgn_arbeitssuchende.pdf/

Aus dem Text: „…Mit dem Gesetzentwurf soll das Gesetz weiter optimiert werden. Dies ist auch dringend notwendig. Aber die Lösungsansätze im Gesetzentwurf zielen vor allem darauf, die Verwaltungspraxis zu straffen, den Leistungsmissbrauch zu bekämpfen und das Zusammenwirken des SGB II mit anderen Rechts- und Leistungssystemen zu verbessern. Hierdurch sollen dauerhaft 1,4 Mrd. Euro eingespart werden. Doch dies allein reicht nicht um die entstanden Schwierigkeiten zu beheben….“


Stellungnahme der Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft der Erwerbslosen- und Sozialhilfeinitiativen zum Entwurf eines Gesetzes zur Fortentwicklung der Grundsicherung für Arbeitsuchende (Stand 8.5.2006) vom 24.05.2006 (pdf) http://www.bag-shi.de/info_mat/downloads/stellungnahmen/bag-stellungnahme-fortentwg.pdf


Alle (weiteren) Entwürfe und Stellungnahmen gibt es nun auf einer Sonderseite der Arbeitnehmerkammer http://www.arbeitnehmerkammer.de/sozialpolitik/doku/04_gesetze/gesetzgebung/2006/2006_05_09_sgbii_fortentwicklung.htm


Arbeitsuchende unter Generalverdacht

“Die Bundesregierung hat den "Entwurf eines Gesetzes zur Fortentwicklung der Grundsicherung für Arbeitsuchende" beschlossen, der von den Koalitionsfraktionen in den Deutschen Bundestag eingebracht worden ist (Bundestags-Drucksache 16/1410) und bereits am 1. August 2006 in Kraft treten soll. Ein wesentliches Ziel des Entwurfs ist es, die stark gestiegenen Kosten der Hartz-IV-Reform durch eine verstärkte Kontrolle aller Arbeitsuchenden nennenswert zu begrenzen. Der Bundesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und die Informationsfreiheit (BfDI) hat mit Schreiben vom 18. Mai 2006 gegenüber dem Ausschuss für Arbeit und Soziales des Deutschen Bundestages Stellung genommen und auf die datenschutzrechtlichen Probleme hingewiesen. Die Datenschutzbeauftragten unterstützen nachdrücklich die in der Stellungnahme des BfDI enthaltenen Forderungen…“ Gemeinsame Erklärung des Bundesbeauftragten und der Landesbeauftragten für den Datenschutz der Länder Baden-Württemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein und Thüringen vom 26. Mai 2006 http://www.datenschutzzentrum.de/presse/20060526-arbeitssuchende.htm


Aus: LabourNet, 31. Mai 2006



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

Poor and minority women have long worked in the paid labor force. During the last four decades, middle class women have joined them, but American society has done precious little to restructure the workplace or family life. The result? Working moms get treated to brunch or dinner on Mother's Day, but are burdened and exhausted the rest of the year.

http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/050906WA.shtml



The Forward March of Women Halted?

To what extent have the movements for women's emancipation that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s achieved their ambitions? Fred Halliday draws up a balance sheet.

http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/050906WB.shtml

While many residents were awaiting rescue from rooftops or wading through toxic floodwaters, it was business as usual in the world of money, power and government inside the Washington beltway, as revealed by more than 900 pages of ex-FEMA head Michael Brown's e-mail communications.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906S.shtml

An Open Letter to Richard Cohen

In an open letter to Washington Post writer Richard Cohen, Will Pitt tells Cohen he needs to develop a thicker skin. Americans have a right, he says, to be angry with mainstream journalists for neglecting their duty to tell the truth in the run-up to the Iraq invasion.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906R.shtml

The Irish Examiner reports that parents of pupils at St Mary's National School in Waterford who are opposed to a mobile phone mast close to the school convened a meeting on Tuesday night to discuss their next move. Local Fianna Fail senator Brendan Kenneally has raised his concerns over the development. He has urged Ballygunner GAA club to take down a mobile phone mast sited beside the school.

http://www.enn.ie/frontpage/news-9685843.html

The survey found activities such as farming and logging helped raise the levels of nitrogen and phosphorous in the water.

http://tinyurl.com/gmt6h


From Information Clearing House

Reports of falling sales and investors stuck with properties they can't sell are just the beginning. Property owners should worry; so should their lenders.

http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/P149596.asp?Printer


From Information Clearing House

A $2.7 trillion budget plan pending before the House would raise the federal debt ceiling to nearly $10 trillion, less than two months after Congress last raised the federal government's borrowing limit.

http://freeinternetpress.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6846


From Information Clearing House

America may be the world's superpower, but its survival rate for newborn babies ranks near the bottom among modern nations, better only than Latvia.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/health/3850137.html


From Information Clearing House

Who Else Was Bribed With Limos, Cash and Prostitutes?

The newest scandal involves allegations that multiple members of Congress and high-ranking CIA officials were bribed with free limo rides1, hospitality suites at hotels in Washington, and prostitutes to induce them to steer federal contracts to undeserving businesses.

http://www.workingforchange.com/activism/action.cfm?itemid=20766


From Information Clearing House

One can find hundreds of white separatist towns throughout the United States, though they are not considered as such.

http://www.counterpunch.org/reed05082006.html


From Information Clearing House

UN Committee Against Torture Hears Report on How Police Tortured Over 135 African-American Men Inside Chicago Jails.

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/05/09/1415210


From Information Clearing House

Actions in the real world all too often reinforce the maxim of Thucydides that "The strong do as they can, while the weak suffer what they must" — which is not only indisputably unjust, but at the present stage of human civilisation, a literal threat to the survival of the species.

http://tinyurl.com/fudq6


From Information Clearing House

Kucinich wrote, "Any military deployment to Iran would constitute an urgent matter of national significance. I urge you to report immediately to Congress on all activities involving American forces in Iran."

http://tinyurl.com/gq8cs


From Information Clearing House

Ahmadinejad defined Russia as an ally and the relations between Tehran and Moscow – as “friendly and constantly developing”.

http://tinyurl.com/fqe4v


From Information Clearing House

"We must get out of our political foxholes and be willing to clearly and specifically point out what a strategic error the Iraq invasion has been,'' Feingold, D-Wis., told a National Press Club audience.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-5809944,00.html


From Information Clearing House

http://www.newhousenews.com/archive/roberts050806.html


From Information Clearing House

One in three Iraqi children is malnourished and underweight, according to a report released by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12981.htm

By Nolan K. Anderson

Why are we Americans not afraid as we watch our freedoms evaporate - not concerned - not interested in stopping the erosion of the rights that our forefathers fought and died to achieve? Why is it so hard to understand that the way we deal with enemy prisoners today will be the way our government will deal with Americans when the time comes to "re-define" the "enemy.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12983.htm



We the People’: Don't Want To Hear It!

Give us liberty to live in denial

By Don Nash

We don’t want to hear about dying and death. We don’t want to hear about ethnic cleansing. We don’t want to hear about detention or torture and we don’t want to hear about atrocity. We don’t want to hear about napalm or uranium be it depleted or otherwise. We don’t want to hear about terrorists, even when the terrorists are our own creation. Remember 9/11 and Flight 93 and give us a rousing myth we can cherish.


From Information Clearing House

Mr George Bush,

President of the United States of America

For sometime now I have been thinking, how one can justify the undeniable contradictions that exist in the international arena -- which are being constantly debated, specially in political forums and amongst university students. Many questions remain unanswered. These have prompted me to discuss some of the contradictions and questions, in the hopes that it might bring about an opportunity to redress them.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12984.htm

----- Original Message -----
From: Ketty Apostolou
Sent: Sunday, April 30, 2006 11:35 AM
Subject: 4th Int. Workshop on EMFs/ New deadline


Dear colleagues,

The Organizing Committee of the 4th International Workshop on Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields would like to inform you that there is a change in the deadline for abstracts and papers submission. The new deadline is May 30th 2006 and for the submission of papers is July 30th.

The reason for this change is that many participants were asked to the Organizing Committee to move it at least one month forward.

Additional information concerning the Workshop can be found in our web site: http://imm.demokritos.gr/bioeffects or http://www.telecomlab.gr/bioeffects If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact directly the Workshop secretariat:

Ms Ketty Apostolou
E-mail: conf2006@imm.demokritos.gr
The Organizing Committee of the 4th International Workshop on Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields


Informant: Sianette Kwee

Shuffling Spies Around

"Gen. Michael Hayden's background is far from what would seem to be required as director of the CIA," writes the editorial board of the New York Times.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906N.shtml

Career appointees at the Department of Agriculture were stunned last week to receive emailed instructions that include Bush administration "talking points" - saying things such as "President Bush has a clear strategy for victory in Iraq" - for every speech they give for the department.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906P.shtml

"President Bush apparently still wants people to believe that their only options are ending up with nothing from the government in old age or relying on financial markets," writes the editorial board of the New York Times.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906M.shtml

Five months after news of the NSA's warrantless spying program broke, and after we've learned numerous details of the program's extent, a Portland, Oregon, attorney may have finally obtained hard evidence of illegal wiretaps by the government.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906L.shtml

Ignoring opposition from Congress, President Bush nominated General Michael V. Hayden on Monday to be the next CIA director, setting the stage for a confirmation struggle that is certain to focus on Hayden's military background and his role in a controversial domestic eavesdropping operation.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906J.shtml

09.05.06

Die EU-Kommission hat am Montag entschieden, ein in Polen erlassenes Verbot für die Verwendung von 16 Genmais-Sorten und rund 700 Sorten von nicht genetisch verändertem Mais zu genehmigen. Diese Maissorten sind zwar in einem gemeinsamen EU-Register für Landwirtschaftliche Nutzpflanzensorten enthalten, was zur Folge hat, dass deren Saatgut überall in der EU vermarktet werden darf. Polen berief sich allerdings auf eine Ausnahme in der relevanten EU-Richtlinie 2002/53, der ein solches Verbot erlaubt, wenn eine Sorte für das Staatsgebiet eines Mitgliedstaates nicht geeignet ist.

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet: http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=13557

09.05.06

"Die Förderung der Biokraftstoffe ist ein wichtiges Ziel der Bundesregierung", sagte der parlamentarische Staatssekretär im Bundeslandwirtschaftsministerium, Peter Paziorek, anlässlich des Kraftstoffkongresses im Rahmen der Bioenergiemesse ENBIO 2006. Vor dem Hintergrund von Forderungen der Europäischen Union sollen den Kraftstoffen auch in Deutschland zunehmend mehr Biotreibstoffe beigemischt werden. Wer Kraftstoffe in den Verkehr bringt, wird ab Anfang 2007 verpflichtet, bei Diesel einen Anteil von 4,4 Prozent Biokraftstoffe und bei Ottokraftstoff zunächst 2 Prozent beizumischen. Insgesamt soll bis 2010 ein Biokraftstoffanteil von 6 Prozent erreicht werden. Die Biokraftstoffe zur Erfüllung dieser Quoten sollen künftig der vollen Mineralölsteuer unterliegen. Die Umweltorganisation Rettet den Regenwald (RdR) warnt vor einer Verwendung von Biotreibstoffen aus den Tropen. In Emden werde zur Zeit die erste Palmöl-Raffinerie Deutschlands geplant, die ab 2007 jährlich rund
430.000 Tonnen Palmöl aus Indonesien zu "Bio"diesel verarbeiten solle. Dabei handelt sich nach Einschätzung der Umweltschützer nicht um Erneuerbare Energien, sondern um "Kahlschlag-Diesel".

Die ganze Nachricht im Internet: http://www.ngo-online.de/ganze_nachricht.php?Nr=13566

Jacqueline Rose, EMR Project Manager, Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel was in this conference: http://www.apdee.org/ehe06/ and prepared the attached summary.

The keynote speaker was Professor Paulo Vecchia, the chairman of ICNIRP. Other Plenary speakers were the vice-chairman of ICNIRP.

Iris Atzmon


Report from EHE ’06 Conference

27-29 April 2006

Attendance:
An estimated 150 people from around the world where meant to attend the conference in Madeira, Portugal. In actuality about 100-120 people attended, mostly from Europe and the UK. Many presenters did not attend and someone that I spoke to said that at least 50% of presentations that he wanted to hear were cancelled to due lack of attendance.

Most participants were either academics, researchers, from technology companies or representatives of governmental bodies/authorities. Apart from myself and one other woman, there was no representation from NGOs or the environmental sector.

Content:
The general focus of the conference was scientific/technological. There were …. Plenary sessions, which were attended by all participants. The keynote speaker was Professor Paulo Vecchia, the chairman of ICNIRP. Other Plenary speakers were the vice-chairman of ICNIRP,

1. Plenary Session Conclusions
Professor Paulo Vecchia presented a general overview of the current international situation. His first point was that there needs to be a harmonisation of EMR standards and guidelines throughout Europe and around the world, based on ICNIRP standards. This is especially true for exposure guidelines for workers (a topic heavily discussed).

The second conclusion, and one repeatedly stressed, was that no causal/biological link has been proved between EMF and morbidity. Numerous research studies were presented by Prof Vecchia and other plenary session presenters, which all stressed the point that no clear scientific proof exists to confirm a theory often presented in epidemiological studies. It is important to note that I felt the scientists in attendance did not seem to place too much value on these epidemiological studies. Numerous problems where mentioned with them which warranted their lack of consideration. In summary Prof Vecchia stated that “RF fields can not be established as carcinogenic causes”.

Furthermore, the vice-chairman of ICNIRP presented an extensive range of short-term lab tests carried out on humans who were exposed to limited radiation levels from mobile phones. From these lab experiments no evidence was found of biological changes in the patients. When questioned regarding the fact that there was a problem with assessing the acute exposure of low level radiation from mobile phones verses the chronic exposure represented in epidemiological studies, no satisfactory answer was provided. It was repeatedly mentioned that until clear biological and scientific evidence exists, no one was willing to say with any conviction that EMR caused ill health effects.

The adoption of a precautionary approach should be carefully considered as according to Prof Vecchia, “setting precautionary limits may create confusion and generate more public concern”. He continued to say that the costs, risks and impacts of EMR must be carefully assessed and balanced with other environmental hazards and what society is willing to accept.

The issue of public confusion, lack of knowledge and information was raised. Prof Vecchia expressed the need to put risks into perspective, whilst another plenary session presenter stated that “concern, fear, anxiety and confusion pose more of a risk then EMR”

2. Other Session Conclusions
Most of the other sessions focused on the presentation of new technology to measure and assess exposure and research. There were a limited number of case study presentations, the most relevant being that of Eva Marsalek. She works at an Austrian environmental organisation which champions the issues of public participation specifically with respect to EMR. They are based at the Vienna University.

Other case study presentations included
· German Telecommunication Research program
· Residential sources of exposure to Power Frequency, UK
· Sao Paulo, Brazil

All these presentations were very interesting and highlighted what was happening in other countries. All these presentations however were made by governmental bodies, and there was no pure environmental representation.

General Conclusions:
After conversations with some of the participants, there was a strong feeling that the conference was a bit of a white wash. No conclusions were reached (other then the need for more research), and there was a definite sense that plenary session speakers were trying to assure participants that no scientific proof existed. In addition, the blame was being directed at other possible causes, such as the thermal effects of radiation rather then EMR itself, nutrition and that public confusion had fuelled the flames of panic. The need to educate the public and adopt a clear precautionary approach was not discussed sufficiently.

Two aspects which were discussed extensively were setting clear exposure guidelines for workers and the issue of hypersensitivity to EMR by specific groups of the population.

Auch die Genprofile von vielen Kindern und Unschuldigen werden trotz zweifelhafter Erfolge in der britischen Gendatenbank unbegrenzt lange gespeichert.

http://www.telepolis.de/tp/r4/artikel/22/22627/1.html

Steven Roach, der "letzte Mohikaner", wirft das Handtuch. Der einzige kritische Wall Street-Ökonom sieht die Welt nun "auf einem guten Weg" - internationale Finanzblätter befürchten den Anfang vom Ende.

http://www.telepolis.de/tp/r4/artikel/22/22634/1.html

The money is to be spent on empowering civil society, providing supplemental requests, broadcasting into Iran, promoting democracy, offering scholarships and fellowships, and enhancing communication. But Iranian civil society activists believe this policy will just intensify the Islamic republic's repressive approach toward non-governmental organizations, and will be used as an excuse to crack down on their activities.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906F.shtml

Republican lawmakers, facing the prospect that their power to cut taxes may soon be curbed, plan to extend breaks that mostly benefit the wealthy and Wall Street at the expense of reductions for middle-income households.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906E.shtml

As if rallying fading public support for keeping more than 100,000 US troops in a disintegrating Iraq and preparing the ground for a possible military attack on Iran were not enough, some influential hawks are now promoting a more confrontational stance against Russia and China, as well.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906D.shtml

The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Georgia last week released new evidence that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting counterterrorism investigations into School of the Americas Watch. As we've seen time and again when the FBI targets social change organizations, the files demonstrate a clear attempt to stifle political opposition.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906B.shtml

By Bill Theobald
The Tennessean
May 8, 2006

http://tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060508/NEWS02/605080356

WASHINGTON - Vaccine industry officials helped shape legislation behind the scenes that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist secretly amended into a bill to shield them from lawsuits, according to e-mails obtained by a public advocacy group.

E-mails and documents written by a trade group for the vaccine-makers show the organization met privately with Frist's staff and the White House about measures that would give the industry protection from lawsuits filed by people hurt by the vaccines.

The communications were made public in a report released this week by the group Public Citizen. Its study follows a February story in The Tennessean that Frist, along with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., ordered the vaccine liability language inserted in a defense spending bill in December without debate and in violation of usual Senate practice.

The group, called the Biotechnology Industry Organization, wanted such language in the bill, the e-mails reflect.

"At Senator Frist's staff's request, this morning, BIO (Tom and I) participated in a meeting with three other industry representatives (Sanofi and an outside counsel who works for both Pfizer and Roche, I believe), administration staff (HHS, DoJ and WH Leg Affairs), and Liz Hall to further discuss liability," BIO official Dave Boyer wrote in a November e-mail obtained by Public Citizen.

In a written statement, Frist spokeswoman Amy Call stated that the senator had promised publicly to include the vaccine liability protection in the defense spending bill. She did not address the issue of the influence of industry lobbyists.

The statement points out that the Public Citizen board includes prominent trial lawyers and liberals. "Trial lawyers oppose these provisions because it will strip them of the ability to line their pockets at the expense of the American public," Call said.

Frist and the White House reached out to the industry, according to the communications cited by Public Citizen, and Boyer, chief lobbyist for the industry group, was asked to provide an analysis of draft legislation.

The group asked that the legislation make clear that a vaccine maker could only be successfully sued if "willful misconduct" on its part were proved. The law includes that standard and says a company is protected from claims of negligence or recklessness.

The analysis, which Public Citizen quoted from, included BIO's concerns that the draft bill would have still allowed people hurt by vaccines to get jury trials.

"The lack of any restriction on jury trial is problematic," the analysis said. "Where injured parties have no other avenue for relief, juries are likely to find ways to award damages."

In another e-mail, Boyer described a meeting in which a deputy of Bush strategist Karl Rove said it was "important to the President that a bill move this year," and said "they had invited industry to discuss what they understood to be a few key remaining points" of contention.

"The intimacy of this, we think, is quite unusual," said Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, about the relationship between the organization's lobbyists, Frist and the Bush administration. "We think it is an interesting case study of how the inside operation works in Washington."

In a January interview with The Tennessean, Frist denied the vaccine liability provisions were added improperly. Later, when others challenged his version of events, Call simply restated Frist's commitment to protecting people from a bioterror emergency.

Frist and other backers say the law is needed to boost the number of vaccine makers. Vaccine shortages during last year's flu season along with fears of a pandemic of bird flu or a bioterror attack have prompted interest in building up the country's lagging vaccine industry. The legal protections kick in only when the secretary of health and human services declares a public health emergency.

Alan Eisenberg, executive vice president for the Biotechnology Industry Organization, said the group's "staff acted with the utmost integrity and professionalism, as they do on all issues."

"BIO staff regularly comment on proposed legislation from, and meet with, Democrat and Republican lawmakers and their staffs alike all the time," Eisenberg said.


Informant: NHNE

ACTION PAGE: http://liberty.horneforcongress.com/petitions/pnum289.php

It's time for Congress to take the keys for starting preemptive wars away from this president, before he turns Iran into an even bigger geopolitical disaster than Iraq.

Peter DeFazio (D-OR) has introduced a house resolution [H.C.R. 391] to express the sense of Congress that the President cannot initiate military action against Iran without congressional authorization, as clearly required by the Constitution in Article One, Section Eight.

Already over 60 members of the house have signed the DeFazio letter.

ACTION PAGE: http://liberty.horneforcongress.com/petitions/pnum289.php

This alert is brought to you by the activism of Andrew Horne, candidate for U.S House from the 3rd Congressional District of Kentucky. Fighting for the rights of all Americans is why Andrew Horne is running for Congress, and he's not waiting until the election to start fighting for Kentucky and the rest of America.

When we talk about taking back Congress, that is what we will have to do, TAKE IT. Nobody is going give us anything we won't give to ourselves. And when we donate to a candidate like Andrew Horne who is showing just the kind of leadership we need, we can make an example of him, and show other candidates that if they show real backbone they will get the support of the people too.

DONATIONS LINK: http://www.horneforcongress.com/contribute2?code=2

We NEED candidates like Andrew Horne to champion the issues that are important to us. Andrew needs your help to get his message out, to get YOUR message out, and has now just two weeks before his primary to do so. Please make a contribution today to send Andrew to Congress and fight for you on the issues you care about.

How many times have you felt helpless and wished you could influence the votes of representatives in other districts to prevail on a critical vote in Congress, but thought you could not do so effectively because you were not one of their own constituents? How much more would you support Andrew if you do live in his district?

Here we have a courageous candidate who will fight for all the issues you care about, if only he is given the chance to make the run. Please donate whatever you can to help Andrew get on the radio to recruit and mobilize even more people to speak out so we can have a real impact on these policy decisions now and for the future. What would you give to have a whole legislature of people like Andrew Horne? Won't you give him your support now to make that a reality?

We have been valiantly speaking out with action alerts based on one fundamental premise --- either our representatives in Congress would listen to and heed the voices of their people --- or else we would work to replace them in the next election.

The time for the replacement action is NOW.

DONATIONS LINK: http://www.horneforcongress.com/contribute2?code=2

If each of us will just contribute what we can, to the most worthy candidates we can find, it will make a real difference in the kind of Congress we will all have to deal with in 2007. Most importantly, strong showings NOW by candidates who DO have a backbone, and WILL stand up and fight, can send a powerful message to the rest that they better start shaping up or we will ship them out too. Make your donation today and it will have cascading positive effects in many other races for months to come.

Please take action NOW, so we can win all victories that are supposed to be ours, and forward this message to everyone else you know.

Powered by The People's Email Network Copyright 2006, Patent pending, All rights reserved

http://action.citizen.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=3594


From EarthForceUnited

Feingold on the pre-1776 mentality at the White House and the challenges of the 21st century.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/05/08/feingold_the_forthright.php

by Shadi Hamid, TomPaine.com

At least you can't say we're Johnny-come-latelies in this game of messing with Iranian regimes.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/05/09/the_path_to_war_with_iran.php

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/MSNBC_reporter_I_am_convinced_that_0508.html


Informant: Annie

William Fisher calls it chutzpah when after years of ignoring the United Nations panel charged with oversight of the Convention Against Torture (CAT) - a centerpiece of international human rights law - the US government turned up at a meeting of the group in Geneva with a delegation of more than two dozen lawyers and other officials to affirm that the US is "absolutely committed to uphold its national and international obligations to eradicate torture" and that "there are no exceptions to this prohibition."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050906Z.shtml

Salon
by Paul McLeary

05/09/06

'Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq,' by the New York Times' Michael Gordon and retired Marine Gen. Bernard Trainor. It has none of the fleshy humanity that Shadid and Goldfarb -- and to a certain extent Packer -- brought to the story of Iraq. Nor should it. Gordon and Trainor, well situated with a bevy of sources inside the decision-making process at the Pentagon, never avert their gaze from the often politically inspired recklessness of the Pentagon brass leading up to the invasion; nor do they neglect to notice how the grunts on the ground carried out their orders with courage and professionalism. A good portion of the book is taken up with relating the smug, detached war plans hatched at the Pentagon by civilian commanders -- led, of course, by Donald Rumsfeld -- convinced the war could be fought cheaply and quickly. While the outcome of the conflict was never in doubt, in Gordon and Trainor's account, Rumsfeld, Gen. Tommy Franks and the ideological yes men they surrounded themselves with at the Pentagon often come off as almost fictional in their self-delusion... [subscription or ad view required]

http://www.salon.com/books/review/2006/05/09/trainor/


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

CNN

05/08/06

A former top aide to an Ohio congressman pleaded guilty Monday to a federal charge in connection with the ongoing investigation of a Capitol Hill lobbying scandal. Neil Volz, a lobbyist and former chief of staff for Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Washington to plead guilty to a single count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Volz negotiated a plea deal in which he agreed to cooperate with Justice Department prosecutors and the FBI...

http://tinyurl.com/rry3w


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

Las Vegas Review-Journal

05/08/06

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice dismissed a letter that Iran's president sent to President Bush on Monday, saying the first direct communication from an Iranian leader in 27 years does not help resolve the standoff over Tehran's disputed nuclear program. Iran's top nuclear negotiator called the surprise letter a new 'diplomatic opening' between the two countries, but Rice said it was not. 'This letter is not the place that one would find an opening to engage on the nuclear issue or anything of the sort,' the top U.S. diplomat said in an interview with The Associated Press...

http://tinyurl.com/qfmwr


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0604/S00088.htm


Informant: ranger116

The CIA announced today that the agency's third-ranking official, Kyle (Dusty) Foggo, is leaving. The CIA's inspector general has been investigating whether Foggo helped steer agency contracts to companies run by his old friend Brent Wilkes, a defense contractor involved in the Duke Cunningham bribery scandal.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050806R.shtml

MAYDAY MESSAGE FOR THE DEEP SEAS!
http://activism.greenpeace.org/yil_alerts/mayday/html/od_alert_mayday_en_gpi.html

HILFERUF FÜR DIE TIEFSEE!
http://activism.greenpeace.org/yil_alerts/mayday/html/od_alert_mayday_de_de.html

The MY Esperanza - defending our oceans Hello Ocean Defenders,

I'm Richard Page, writing to you from onboard the Esperanza somewhere in the deep blue near the Azores. We are now well into the third leg of the Defending Our Oceans expedition, a collaborative venture with scientists from the University of the Azores and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). I'm writing to ask for your help.

TIME IS RUNNING OUT. HELP US STOP THE CLOCK!
http://ctk.greenpeace.org/od-en/ctk-letters/send-letter?letter_id=2165130

The Azorean government has had the wisdom to ensure that bottom trawlers are not allowed to trawl here, meaning the coral habitats are relatively pristine. The dive we conducted yesterday was fabulous, it was so exciting seeing parts of the planet that nobody else had ever set eyes on before. The coral we found there was other-worldly, strange white whip corals and yellow corals like trees, blue sea cucumbers, orange fish and even a deep water shark.

....Elsewhere things are not so good, bottom trawlers are laying waste to fragile deep sea life.

The MY Esperanza - defending our oceans In exactly one month it will be World Oceans Day - a day when we should all consider the plight of the oceans. One immediate step that Governments could take is supporting a United Nations moratorium on high seas bottom trawling. This would give time for scientists and policy makers decide what measures ought to be put in place to ensure their protection.

After two years of talk, the time is running out for the deep sea and Governments around the world need to pledge their support for a moratorium.

TAKE ACTION NOW and help pressure world governments to 'Stop the Clock' and support a moratorium on high seas bottom trawling.

http://prefs.greenpeace.org/mail-links/clicks/21308.2489579.5409


Thank you for your help.

Richard

--------

Stay tuned for more ways to defend deep sea life
http://www.omega-news.info/bottom_trawling.doc

CONTROVERSIAL plans to install a phone mast close to a primary school has not gone down well with residents.

Mobile phone company Hutchison 3G has submitted planning applications for a 12m radio mast to be erected at the junction between Grange Avenue and Parkstone Road.

The proposed site is in the middle of a residential area and within 90m of St Peter and St Paul's playgroup.

Home owners, parents and staff at the playgroup plans to present a petition to the council.

Will Burkitt, who lives on Parkstone Road, believes the proposals are outrageous and should be vetoed.

He said: "This plan has aroused a lot of bad feeling in the area and I wish to protest in the strongest possible way. Firstly it's a very built up area with many old residents and secondly it's close to an area where small children play everyday.

"Radiation transmitted from these masts can damage the health of people living close to them and they are also an eyesore."

Staff and parents at the playgroup were equally vocal in their condemnation of the mast.

Cynthia Dunmall and Mariam Hutchison have run the playgroup for the last 15 years.

Mrs Dunmall said: "We are concerned about the children's health and welfare. We have a petition going and everyone we have asked has signed it."

Cinnamon Austin, whose three-year-old son Quinn attends the playgroup, was also not happy about the positioning of the mast. She said: "There might be possible health risks associated with phone mast, there might not. But when my child is involved I'm not prepared to take the risk."

When the Observer contacted 3G for comment, we were referred to Erickson employee and mast expert Gareth Combes-Olney.

He said: "All of Hutchison 3G's equipment is carefully safety tested and complies with international safety standards set by the International Commission for Radiation Protection.

Omega read "Base Stations, operating within strict national and international Guidelines, do not present a Health Risk?" under: http://omega.twoday.net/stories/771911/

"We are more than happy to talk to anybody who has concerns on 07792 328255."

The application is at the consultation stage and will come before the planning committee in the next two months.

09 May 2006

All rights reserved © 2006 Johnston Press Digital Publishing.

http://www.hastingstoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=479&ArticleID=1490895

Das "Terroristen-Gefängnis" in Guantanamo ist heutezutage weltweit unrühmlich bekannt für Folter und Menschenverachtung. Das gesamte System des US-Strafvollzugs aber ist so unterschiedlich von Guantanamo gar nicht - mit 2 Millionen inhaftierter Menschen ohnehin trauriger Rekordhalter. Und während Experten schätzen, dass etwa 15 Prozent der Drogen-Konsumenten Afroamerikaner seien, sind es 37 Prozent der wegen "Drogenmißbrauchs" (gemeint sind nicht die Produkte der Philip Morris Tobacco oder Miller Beer) weggesperrten. Eine ausführliche Analyse eines unmenschlichen Systems der rassistischen und sozialen Unterdrückung - und seiner Profiteure qua Privatisierung leistet der (englische) Beitrag "The US Gulag Prison System" von Steve Lendman vom 24. April 2006 beim Center for Civil Society der Universität von Kwazulu Natal.

http://www.nu.ac.za/ccs/default.asp?2,40,5,988


Aus: LabourNet, 9. Mai 2006

Bugging the Democrats

Hayden, ran the NSA when Bush authorized domestic warrantless wiretapping of American citizens and residents.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12973.htm



Gen. Michael Hayden refused to answer question about spying on political enemies

At a public appearance, Bush's pointman in the Office of National Intelligence was asked if the NSA was wiretapping Bush's political enemies. When Hayden dodged the question, the questioner repeated, "No, I asked, are you targeting us and people who politically oppose the Bush government, the Bush administration?

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12974.htm



EXCLUSIVE: CIA Nominee Hayden Linked to MZM

While director of the National Security Agency, Gen. Michael V. Hayden contracted the services of a top executive at the company at the center of the Cunningham bribery scandal, according to two former employees of the company.

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000581.php



Potential Evidence Surfaces of Bush's Illegal Spying

An Oregon attorney may have the first concrete proof of Bush's domestic spying operation -- which means the illegal program's days might be numbered.

http://www.alternet.org/story/35807/



The Spy Master Cracks the Whip

How John Negroponte won control of the CIA, and what he plans next to consolidate rival agencies and his power.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1191833,00.html?promoid=rss_top



America’s Secret Police?

A threatened turf grab by a controversial Pentagon intelligence unit is causing concern among both privacy experts and some of the Defense Department’s own personnel.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12290187/site/newsweek



Pentagon's Intelligence Authority Widens

The Pentagon's newest counterterrorism agency, charged with protecting military facilities and personnel wherever they are, is carrying out intelligence collection, analysis and operations within the United States and abroad.

http://tinyurl.com/e33kl



Pentagon hired contractor to advise on collecting information on churches, mosques, other U.S. sites

A Pentagon intelligence agency that kept files on American anti-war activists hired one of the contractors who bribed former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif., to help it collect data on houses of worship, schools, power plants and other locations in the United States.

http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/news/nation/14126125.htm



Suit Claims Defense Dept. Data Use Illegal:

The Defense Department is violating the privacy of millions of high school students nationwide with a detailed database it uses for military recruitment, a federal lawsuit filed Monday claims.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/LegalCenter/wireStory?id=1885571


From Information Clearing House

Defense lawyers urged a Kuwaiti judge Sunday to acquit five former inmates of Guantanamo, arguing the trial was politically motivated to appease the emirate's major ally the United States.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=24236


From Information Clearing House

By drawing attention to Iraq and the obvious role oil plays in US policy today, the Bush-Cheney administration has done just that: they have drawn the world’s energy-deficit powers’ attention firmly to the strategic battle over energy and especially oil.

http://tinyurl.com/k2sgo


From Information Clearing House

Iran impasse

The United States is behind attempts by Britain and France to draw up a UN resolution that would declare Iran in violation of international law if it does not suspend uranium enrichment. They want to invoke Chapter 7 of the UN Charter that would authorize economic sanctions or even military action. Russia and China, the other two permanent Security Council members, oppose such action.

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12975.htm

It wouldn't be the first time that the Bush administration has played an important role in persuading Tony Blair to sack his foreign secretary.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1769900,00.html


From Information Clearing House

Women in Iraq are living a nightmare that is hidden from the west. Now one has turned film-maker to give us a window on to what they endure. She tells Natasha Walter what she saw.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1769815,00.html


From Information Clearing House

Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media

Required Viewing for every citizen in the Free World.

Click here to view. Windows Media
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12972.htm

A Nation of Waitresses and Bartenders

By Paul Craig Roberts

Social Security and Medicare are in financial trouble, as are many company pension plans. Decide for yourself--is this the economic picture of a superpower that can dictate to the world, or is it the picture of a second-rate country dependent on foreigners to finance its consumption and the operation of its government?

http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12977.htm

Video:
Paradise Now

Very powerful film that goes beyond the obvious, delivering a strong insight into a difficult subject, while maintaining a tension and drama that makes it impossible not to be stirred by the film. Delivering a film without falling into the pitfalls of political correctness or propaganda is an achievement in itself.

Click here to watch. Windows Media
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12978.htm

mongabay.com

May 8, 2006

http://news.mongabay.com/2006/0508-glaciers.html

Researchers at Syracuse University have determined that glaciers once covered a much larger area of Antarctica than originally thought, suggesting that Earth's climate system is capable of rapid shifts.

Looking at sediments from marine deposits and rock sources on Seymour Island, Syracuse University Professors Linda C. Ivany and Scott D. Samson along with colleagues at the University of Leuven in Belgium and Hamilton College found evidence that glaciers once covered extensive parts of the West Antarctica ice sheet. Previously, scientists had assumed that glaciers were confined to the eastern part of Antarctica, where the biggest ice sheet is today. The findings are significant because they suggest that the climatic response to the drop in greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere 34 million years ago was greater than initially believed.

³One of the most fundamental climate shifts that this planet has undergone since the events that precipitated the extinction of the dinosaurs is the so-called Œgreenhouse to icehouse transition¹ -- the time when Earth went from having virtually no ice on it at all to one with a more or less permanent ice sheet covering Antarctica,² said Ivany, a professor of earth science at Syracuse and lead investigator of the study. ³This happened about 34 million years ago, and is marked by dramatic changes in the chemistry of the oceans and the appearance of Œice rafted debris¹ in ocean sediments around Antarctica, carried there by icebergs from land that floated out and melted far from the continent, releasing the sand and rock that had been frozen into them.²

According to a release from the research team, scientists believe the "growth of the Antarctic ice sheet was initiated by a drop in greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere in combination with a change in ocean circulation caused by South America pulling away from Antarctica" during the Eocene-Oligocene transition. The researchers say that at this time, Earth cooled rapidly enough to allow the growth of ice on the entire Antarctic continent all at once.

The researchers conclude that "because Earth¹s climate system is capable of shifting this rapidly and dramatically to such a new and different state, their discovery may provide an insight into how things could change in the future if we continue to alter our environment."

The research is published in the article ³Evidence for an Earliest Oligocene Ice Sheet on the Antarctic Peninsula,² in the May 2006 issue of the journal, Geology and was supported by funding from the National Science Foundation¹s Office of Polar Programs.


Informant: NHNE

A former congressional aide and business associate of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff has agreed to plead guilty to charges in connection with the investigation of influence-peddling and public corruption.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050806C.shtml