Blogs

Ransom Claim in Ingrid Betancourt Release (Two Items)(1)By: Haroon Siddique and Agencies The Guardian (UK) July 4, 2008http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jul/04/betancourt.franceIngrid Betancourt arrived in France today after being held captive for six years in the Colombian jungle, amid claims that a ransom was paid to free her.The Colombian government said that she was freed in an audacious operation after the military tricked Farc into handing the French-Colombian politician over without a shot being fired. [...]

An Open Letter to Barack Obama on IranDear Senator Obama,We the undersigned may have different views on U.S. foreign policy with respect to Iran. We all, however, are deeply concerned about the stories in the press in the past few weeks suggesting that the Bush administration might be considering a military strike on Iran, that it might give a green light to such an attack by Israel, or that it might engage in other acts of war, such as imposing a blockade against Iran. [...]

haunting EuropeLeft Euro-MPs' leader: No Vote Shows 'crisis of legitimacy of the current European model'A missile shield in Eastern Europe - first steps towards a new Cold WarBy Harry van Bommel SPECTREZINE weblog July 2, 2008http://www.spectrezine.org/weblog/?p=529

AFL's Trumka: Labor must battle racism to elect ObamaBy John Nichols The Capital Times (Madison, WI)http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion/294460The United Steelworkers union is holding its annual convention this week. Union conventions in presidential election years invariably deal with presidential politics, and this one is no different.Except, perhaps, for the quality of the oratory -- and the depth and meaning of the message. [...]

As Gas Prices Soar, Elderly Face Cuts in AidBy John Leland The New York Times July 5, 2008http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/05/us/05elderly.html?hpSOUTH HAVEN, Mich.Early last month, Jeanne Fair, 62, got her first hot meals delivered to her home in this lake town in the sparsely populated southwestern part of the state. Then after two deliveries the meals stopped because gas prices had made the delivery too expensive. [...]

Biofuels Behind Food Price Hikes: Leaked World Bank ReportAFP July 4, 2008http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080704/bs_afp/climateenvironmentbiofuelsworldbankusbritain_080704073556LONDONBiofuels have caused world food prices to increase by 75 percent, according to the findings of an unpublished World Bank report published in The Guardian newspaper on Friday.The daily said the report was finished in April but was not published to avoid embarrassing the US government, which has claimed plant-derived fuels have pushed up prices by only three percent. [...]

How Democrats Could Turn Texas Into the Blue Star StateBy Bob MoserThis article appeared in the July 21, 2008 edition of The Nation. July 1, 2008

U.S. Workforce Shrinks For 6th Straight Month Worries About the Economy DeepenBy Michael A. Fletcher Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, July 4, 2008; D01 Employers cut 62,000 jobs in June, marking the sixth consecutive month that the nation has shed jobs, according to a government report released yesterday, deepening concern that the struggling U.S. economy could turn worse before it gets better. [...]

Mugabe Sworn in Officially...Simultaneously Loses his Legacy...The African WorldBy By Bill Fletcher, Jr. - BlackCommentator.com July 3, 2008 I remember reading of the origin of the term 'Pyrrhic victory.' It came from a battle in which Pyrrhus, the King of ancient Epirus, won a victory over the Romans at such a terrible cost, that he and his forces were ruined. [...]

1 Quote of the Day 2 Re: The Rights of Gun Owners in the U.S. -- Alan Kimmel 3 Re: Banned In Red Scare Boston -- Stephen Meacham 4 Re: Obama's Faith-Based Plan -- Steve Krug 5 Re: Obama and the School of the Americas -- Paul GilmanQuote of the Day July 4, 2008 [...]

By David Swanson Congressman Virgil Goode recently responded to a statement I'd blogged about him. Here's what I wrote and his response: read more

A growing coalition of groups and individuals plans to protest President George W. Bush's Fourth of July visit to Charlottesville on Friday. Participating organizations include the Augusta Center for Peace and Justice, CODE PINK Women for Peace both National and Charlottesville, AfterDowningStreet, Democrats.com, and Charlottesville MoveOn.org. Many other people expected to participate are not members of any of these groups. read more

Sikhs Fill the Streets of Richmond Hill, QueensHundreds Pour into the Streets in Support of March for Sikh ChildrenSikh Community Active, Engaged, and on MoveSikh Coalition https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=2563

Obama's Faith-Based Planby Jim Wallis God's Politics http://blog.beliefnet.com/godspolitics/2008/07/obamas-faithbased-plan-by-jim.html July 01, 2008

AFL-CIO Head Says White Workers Need to Look Beyond RaceDaily Labor Report Banner No. 127 Wednesday, July 2, 2008 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/bna/dlr.nsf/4c80dca604957ed1852564c50077a19d/$Body/0.5970?OpenElement&FieldElemFormat=gifPoliticsLAS VEGASThe labor movement needs to educate its members that if they care about keeping their jobs, health care, pensions, and creating good jobs, they should support Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill), the presumptive Democratic candidate for president, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka said July 1. [...]

China Inspired Interrogations at GuantánamoBy Scott Shane The New York Times July 2, 2008 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/02/us/02detain.html?_r=1&oref=sloginWASHINGTON - The military trainers who came to Guantánamo Bay in December 2002 based an entire interrogation class on a chart showing the effects of 'coercive management techniques' for possible use on prisoners, including 'sleep deprivation,' 'prolonged constraint,' and 'exposure.' [...]

Tidbits: July 2, 20081. Free jailed woman trade union leader in Turkey 2. Stop Deportation of U.S. War Resister Corey Glass 3. Obama And The School Of The Americas 4. Pressure on Obama (Fran Shor) 5. Donald White, 71; Social Activist on Human Rights in Central America 6. Online Course: Reading Marx's Capital with David Harvey [...]

The full remarks as provided by the White House: THE PRESIDENT: Distinguished guests, fellow citizens, and future citizens: the grounds of this house, which saw so many changes during President Thomas Jefferson's lifetime provide an ideal setting to reflect on the history of our nation. We have progressed so far in so many ways since that day on which the Declaration of Independence was signed, in that distant time when slaves inhabited this place. read more

While George Dubya will desecrate Monticello with some dishonest remarks from a podium on Friday as new citizens swear to defend the Constitution he has destroyed, this AP story has the plans of the man in charge. Dick Cheney will make his remarks on a ship named the Constitution and talk about fighting pirates rather than being one: ** "Dick Cheney to visit Boston on July Fourth By Associated Press WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney will be in Boston on July Fourth to attend a ceremony aboard the USS Constitution.

By David Swanson read more