Thursday, January 31, 2013

A Veteran Asks: Was I wrong to kill?




He starts off with: 


“When I joined the Marine Corps, I knew I would kill people. I was trained to do it in a number of ways, from pulling a trigger to ordering a bomb strike to beating someone to death with a rock.”


And moves on to:


“But one day in Afghanistan in 2010, my patrol got into a firefight and ended up killing two people on a motorcycle who we thought were about to attack us. They ignored or didn’t understand our warnings to stop, and according to the military’s “escalation of force” guidelines, we were authorized to shoot them in self-defense. Although we thought they were armed, they turned out to be civilians. One looked no older than 16. It’s been more than two years since we killed those people on the motorcycle, and I think about them every day.”


Here is my response:

The innocent people on the motorcycle that you killed are thought of every SECOND THEY ARE AWAKE by the people who loved them. And there are many times EVERY DAY when they cry over their losses. Your “suffering” is incredible tiny in comparison to theirs.

As to your question “Was I right or wrong?” my answer is: IT WAS WRONG.

As to the statement “the only people who can forgive me are dead” that is nonsense. There are still plenty of people who are alive in Afghanistan that you can seek forgiveness from. Maybe one day, someone will shoot two people you love in the streets for no discernable reason, and then you will have the opportunity to forgive them.

And there is no justifiable reason for America to participate in other wars. Wars are immoral, hideous, and unnecessary. To believe otherwise is to be brainwashed in my eyes. Our citizens do not need a better understanding of what happened to our troops, what they need is a better understanding of the consequences of war on the people who are the victims of our wars. They are the people who live there in the warzones. They are the ones who get the bombs and the poisonous aftermath dropped on them. They are the ones who bury the dead in the place where the shooting, killing and bombing happened. And it is likely that half of them are children.

Finally, asking a person (who is paid by US taxpayers) what they did on their job is not asking about an intensely private matter. Taxpayers have the right to know what you have done while they were paying you. I would like to suggest that you write it all down, include photos if available, and then had it out to taxpayers who ask. Maybe write a book and give any profits to the Afghan people.

You are correct in that you do have a duty to respond. We all do. Not all of us are guilty, but we are all responsible. And your actions will not be in vain. One day, this nation will stop such useless violence on others and ourselves, or we will perish from the earth.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

The names of the children killed by drones

PAKISTAN

Name | Age | Gender

Noor Aziz | 8 | male
Abdul Wasit | 17 | male
Noor Syed | 8 | male
Wajid Noor | 9 | male
Syed Wali Shah | 7 | male
Ayeesha | 3 | female
Qari Alamzeb | 14| male
Shoaib | 8 | male
Hayatullah KhaMohammad | 16 | male
Tariq Aziz | 16 | male
Sanaullah Jan | 17 | male
Maezol Khan | 8 | female
Nasir Khan | male
Naeem Khan | male
Naeemullah | male
Mohammad Tahir | 16 | male
Azizul Wahab | 15 | male
Fazal Wahab | 16 | male
Ziauddin | 16 | male
Mohammad Yunus | 16 | male
Fazal Hakim | 19 | male
Ilyas | 13 | male
Sohail | 7 | male
Asadullah | 9 | male
khalilullah | 9 | male
Noor Mohammad | 8 | male
Khalid | 12 | male
Saifullah | 9 | male
Mashooq Jan | 15 | male
Nawab | 17 | male
Sultanat Khan | 16 | male
Ziaur Rahman | 13 | male
Noor Mohammad | 15 | male
Mohammad Yaas Khan | 16 | male
Qari Alamzeb | 14 | male
Ziaur Rahman | 17 | male
Abdullah | 18 | male
Ikramullah Zada | 17 | male
Inayatur Rehman | 16 | male
Shahbuddin | 15 | male
Yahya Khan | 16 |male
Rahatullah |17 | male
Mohammad Salim | 11 | male
Shahjehan | 15 | male
Gul Sher Khan | 15 | male
Bakht Muneer | 14 | male
Numair | 14 | male
Mashooq Khan | 16 | male
Ihsanullah | 16 | male
Luqman | 12 | male
Jannatullah | 13 | male
Ismail | 12 | male
Taseel Khan | 18 | male
Zaheeruddin | 16 | male
Qari Ishaq | 19 | male
Jamshed Khan | 14 | male
Alam Nabi | 11 | male
Qari Abdul Karim | 19 | male
Rahmatullah | 14 | male
Abdus Samad | 17 | male
Siraj | 16 | male
Saeedullah | 17 | male
Abdul Waris | 16 | male
Darvesh | 13 | male
Ameer Said | 15 | male
Shaukat | 14 | male
Inayatur Rahman | 17 | male
Salman | 12 | male
Fazal Wahab | 18 | male
Baacha Rahman | 13 | male
Wali-ur-Rahman | 17 | male
Iftikhar | 17 | male
Inayatullah | 15 | male
Mashooq Khan | 16 | male
Ihsanullah | 16 | male
Luqman | 12 | male
Jannatullah | 13 | male
Ismail | 12 | male
Abdul Waris | 16 | male
Darvesh | 13 | male
Ameer Said | 15 | male
Shaukat | 14 | male
Inayatur Rahman | 17 | male
Adnan | 16 | male
Najibullah | 13 | male
Naeemullah | 17 | male
Hizbullah | 10 | male
Kitab Gul | 12 | male
Wilayat Khan | 11 | male
Zabihullah | 16 | male
Shehzad Gul | 11 | male
Shabir | 15 | male
Qari Sharifullah | 17 | male
Shafiullah | 16 | male
Nimatullah | 14 | male
Shakirullah | 16 | male
Talha | 8 | male

YEMEN

Afrah Ali Mohammed Nasser | 9 | female
Zayda Ali Mohammed Nasser | 7 | female
Hoda Ali Mohammed Nasser | 5 | female
Sheikha Ali Mohammed Nasser | 4 | female
Ibrahim Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 13 | male
Asmaa Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 9 | male
Salma Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 4 | female
Fatima Abdullah Mokbel Salem Louqye | 3 | female
Khadije Ali Mokbel Louqye | 1 | female
Hanaa Ali Mokbel Louqye | 6 | female
Mohammed Ali Mokbel Salem Louqye | 4 | male
Jawass Mokbel Salem Louqye | 15 | female
Maryam Hussein Abdullah Awad | 2 | female
Shafiq Hussein Abdullah Awad | 1 | female
Sheikha Nasser Mahdi Ahmad Bouh | 3 | female
Maha Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 12 | male
Soumaya Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 9 | female
Shafika Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 4 | female
Shafiq Mohammed Saleh Mohammed | 2 | male
Mabrook Mouqbal Al Qadari | 13 | male
Daolah Nasser 10 years | 10 | female
AbedalGhani Mohammed Mabkhout | 12 | male
Abdel- Rahman Anwar al Awlaki | 16 | male
Abdel-Rahman al-Awlaki | 17 | male
Nasser Salim | 19
| male

Monday, January 28, 2013

"Times Are Changing" by Eddie Vedder


Upcoming events for the week of January 27, 2013



UPCOMING EVENTS

01/28/13 to 03/15/13 BUILDING BRIDGES SEMINAR SERIES
The Mission of Building Bridges is to enable our community to confront and overcome racism through a continuing process of changing attitudes and hearts through education, consciousness-raising, nurturing, and ongoing support. Our goal is to be intentional in respecting diversity within our community. This seminar is an introduction to the dynamics of racism and is an opportunity to explore how race has impacted our relationships, communities and institutions. Past participants are welcome. Time is 7 PM to 9 PM on Monday evenings, and location is MAHEC at 121 Hendersonville Road in Asheville.  Cost is $30.  Registration is limited, please call 828-777-4585 for an application form.

01/28/13 PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING
Public Safety meeting regarding Asheville City Council member Cecil Bothwell’s civil liberties resolution Monday Jan 28th at 3PM.  This is at Asheville Fire Station, downtown, on the 2nd floor.  This resolution states that Asheville police will not comply with federal statutes regarding targeting and arrest of undocumented workers.

01/28/13 ASHEVILLE EARTH SABBATH
A monthly interfaith celebration of the Earth with words and music to nourish your soul coordinated by NC Interfaith Power & Light. This month lead by Maureen Linneman and Chas Jansen. St. Mary's Episcopal Church on Charlotte Street from 7 to 8 pm. All welcome. For more information, contact Jean at larson_jean@hotmail.com.

01/28/13 IDLE NO MORE RALLY
There will be a local Idle No More rally at Vance Monument at Pack Square at 4 PM.  Contact Andy at 258-2642  or email grace@heartofmothearth.org for more information.  See the end of this email for more information also.

01/28/13 UPDATE ON THE STRUGGLE ON LA ZAD
Time is 6:30 to 9 PM, and location is Firestorm Café and Books. La Zad (Zone a Defendre) is a 4,000 acre piece of occupied land in Nantes, France.  For the past 40 years, the State and multinational building company Vinci has been planning development of an airport, but all this time locals have been fighting the project, joined by squatters in the last 5 years! Cue countless actions and demos and constructions, building a place where people strove to be autonomous, with libraries, treehouse villages, a bakery, a farm, collective gardens, a goat dairy etc, all horizontally organized. Then in October the military and riot police came and knocked it all down. But they didn't expect the resistance they got and had to extend their initial planned operation by 3 weeks. It's been almost 3 months now that there is a daily military presence, and 2 people have gone to prison so far, with hundreds wounded. So there was a big demo and 40,000 people came to re-squat some new land. Over 200 "collectives of support" were created and the government proposed negotiations (which were refused by the people involved). Evictions were supposed to be the end and now instead of 100 living there we are 500 and it's on the national news!

01/29/13 CONCEALED CARRY IN SCHOOLS DEBATE
WZGM Presents: "Take a Stand!" Speaker Series – Debate. Time is 6 to 8 PM and location is the Double Tree Hilton in Biltmore Village. "Conceal Carry for Teachers in Schools" a debate addressing guns and safety in today's culture. Debaters are Ned Ryan Doyle and Dr William Forstchen. Tickets are $5, with all proceeds going to Green Opportunities and Asheville Humane Society. Tickets may be purchased online at www.1350wzgm.com or at www.mattandagnes.com. Call 828-505-8439 for more information.

01/31/13 350.ORG ASHEVILLE MEETING
Big Money is about to buy bad policy at Duke/Progress Energy and it’s time to get the word out to the community before that happens. 350.org Asheville will meet at 5 PM at the Grove Arcade Book Exchange. Find out how you can get involved.

02/01/13 ASHEVILLE-BUNCOMBE FOOD POLICY COMMUNITY MEETING
The Asheville-Buncombe Food Policy Council (A/B FPC) collaborated with the Sustainability Advisory Committee on Energy and the Environment (SACEE) to create the first City of Asheville Food Action Plan. To find out more about this, or to help them with their goal of improving the city’s food security, please come to the meeting at the Mountain View Room at the UNCA Sherrill Center.  Meeting is from 4 to 6 PM. (3:30 for new folks orientation)

02/02/13 OCCUPY ASHEVILLE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Occupy Asheville will hold their monthly General Assembly at 2 PM at Pritchard Park. All are welcome to attend. Free. Please note the new time.

02/02/13 “ASK A LAWYER” FREE EVENTS
What: A panel of local attorneys will be available to answer legal questions to individuals for free. There will be attorneys representing a variety of practice areas available to talk to participants on a one-on-one basis. All members of the general public are invited and encouraged to come with legal questions. This is from 10 – 1 PM at The Grove Arcade, One Page Avenue in Downtown Asheville, NC and from 2 – 4:30 PM at the Henderson County Public Library (Kaplan Auditorium), 301 North Washington Street Downtown in Hendersonville, NC Sponsored by: The Young Lawyers Division of the North Carolina Bar Association

02/02/13 WESTERN CAROLINIANS FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE IN THE MIDDLE EAST VIGIL
Western Carolinians for Peace and Justice in the Middle East will have a vigil at Vance Monument on Saturday February 2 from 2-4 PM to protest illegal Israeli settlements and the product Sodastream which is produced in one of those settlements. Contact Susan at suchi1025@bellsouth.net for more information.

02/04/13 GREEN PARTY MEETING
The Buncombe County GREEN Party's business meeting is open to the public. It is held on the first Monday of the Month. It will be held at 6 PM in the Fortune Building (upstairs), at 729 Haywood Rd., West Asheville. Parking in back and on the street. Contact Ronald @ 828-LUCK-180 or Larry @ 828-225-4347 for more information.

02/06/13 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
“Beyond Coal,” transitioning from coal to clean energy, will be presented by Kelly Martin of the NC Beyond Coal Campaign.  Kris Cunningham of Sierra Club will answer questions on why nuclear power is not suitable for replacing coal. Time is 7 PM by Sierra Club & Green Drinks at the Unitarian Church, Asheville (corner of Charlotte & Edwin). Contact: judymattox@sbcglobal.net, or 828-683-2176 for more information.

02/07/13 VETERANS FOR PEACE MEETING
Time is 6:30 PM and location is VFP HQ at the Phil Mechanic Studios: 109 Roberts Street in Asheville. VFP Chapter 099: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/

02/07/13 “40 YEARS LATER – NOW CAN WE TALK?”
This film will be shown at AB Tech in Ferguson Auditorium from 11AM to 12:30 PM.  This documentary film explores the impact of racial integration in the Mississippi Delta through powerful and moving intergroup dialogue. Black and white alumni from the class of 1969 recall and comment on memories of that time, from their very different racial positions and experiences. The documentary tells a multi-layered story intercutting archival historical footage, vignettes from the high school today, personal profiles of participants, and the inter-group dialogue. “40 Years Later” provides a contemporary way to examine the impact of desegregation on those who participated in the first integration projects and to reflect on our progress as a society and the challenges that remain for reaching the goals put forth in the 1955 Brown v. Board of Education decision. Free. Sponsored by AB Tech Diversity Committee and Film/Media Studies.

02/08/13 “40 YEARS LATER – NOW CAN WE TALK?”
This film will be shown at UNCA in Highsmith Union at 7 PM.  See description just above about this film. Free. Sponsored by UNCA Africana Studies Program.

02/08/13 WALKING BACKWARD INTO THE FUTURE W/PUEBLO ELDER
“A Tribal American Spoken Word Legacy” with Pueblo Indian Elder, Larry Littlebird. Suggested Donation: $15. Doors open at 6:30 PM, starts at 7 PM.  Walking backward into the future is about slowing down and learning to listen. This spoken word legacy connects past, present and future for living in concert with the land, to one another and all of our relations at this critical hour on earth. For more information contact Debra at 828-712-0880. This event is sponsored by the Living Room Series - Lenior-Rhyne University Center for Graduate Studies of Asheville, which is located at 36 Montford Avenue in Asheville.

02/12/13 JUSTICE FRIENDS NIGHT
An inclusive monthly gathering to explore social and environmental justice through presentations, films and performance art. A discussion group and social event for locals with an activist mindset. Bring your causes and local issues to the roundtable! Share, listen, learn, network. Location is Firestorm Café and Books and time is 7 PM.

02/14/13 ONE BILLION RISING IN ASHEVILLE
On V-Day’s 15th Anniversary, we are inviting ONE BILLION women and those who love them to WALK OUT, DANCE, RISE UP, and DEMAND an end to violence against women.. ONE BILLION RISING will move the earth, activating women and men across every country. V-Day wants the world to see our collective strength, our numbers, our solidarity across borders. This event will take place from 7 to 10 PM and location will be the YWCA on South French Broad Avenue in Asheville.

02/14/13 SYMPOSIUM ON REDISTRICTING REFORM
This is sponsored by Common Cause NC, League of Women Voters of Buncombe County, and Alliance for Retired Americans. No matter where you live in the US, Redistricting can affect the relevance of your vote. Learn how this subverts the will of the people, how that can be avoided and what citizens can do to help. It will by a panel discussion with audience Participation and lunch is included. Time is 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. This will be held at the Mountain View Room at UNCA’s Sherrill Center. Free. SIGN UP TO ATTEND: We want to make sure we have enough food; RSVP to tomcoulson@aol.com or call 828-674-3046.

02/17/13 CLIMATE RALLY IN DC
Possible bus for local activists to go to this. More details later.
http://action.sierraclub.org/site/PageServer?pagename=nat_signup_feb17

02/19/13 TRANSITION ASHEVILLE PERMACULTURE POTLUCK SERIES
Each month in 2013 a different local teacher will present a new permaculture principle explaining how that principle can be applied to the redesign of our lives, homes, and communities to create a more resilient and sustainable human culture. We invite you to join us for these “Potlucks with a Purpose” on the third Tuesday of each month at Community Action Opportunities (25 Gaston Street) to share ideas, connection, and great food! Time is 5:30 PM.

02/23/13 BRADLEY MANNING   
He spent 1,000 days in jail as of today with no conviction yet.

*******************************************
ONGOING EVENTS
*******************************************
MONDAY
Occupy Asheville Weekly Meeting at 6:30 PM at First Congregational Church of Christ.

TUESDAY
Veterans for Peace have a weekly vigil at 4:30 PM at Pack Square, Vance Monument

WEDNESDAY
Haywood Peace Vigilers have a weekly vigil at 4 PM at Haywood Country Courthouse in Waynesville.

THURSDAY
Asheville Homeless Network meeting at 2 PM at Firestorm Cafe.
Anti-racism Group Discussion at 5:30 PM on the third Thursday of the month at Firestorm Cafe.
Veterans for Peace Group Discussion at 6:30 PM on the third Thursday of the month at the Phil Mechanic Studio on Roberts Street, Asheville.

FRIDAY
Women in Black have a vigil at 5 PM at Pack Square (Asheville) on the first Friday of the month.
Women in Black have a weekly vigil at noon at the City Hall in Hendersonville
Homeless Network Parade on the last Friday of the month at 2 PM at Pritchard Park.

SATURDAY
Transylvanians for Peace and WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have a weekly vigil at noon in front of the courthouse in Brevard.
Occupy Asheville General Assembly on the first Saturday of the month. 2 PM at Pritchard Park.

*******************************************
ACTIONS AND READINGS
*******************************************

Eight ideas on how to participate in Idle No More
(from a Canadian publication)

So the question is -- how can you, an average non-indigenous, non-activist, yet conscientious citizen of Canada, support us? Here are a few ideas:

Go to the rallies. You might think that doesn't accomplish anything, but it is a visible show of solidarity, and that matters. Participating in (and bearing witness to) ceremony in a respectful way is an important gesture. Make signs, participate in the days of action, and share photos through your social media networks. Be brave; join a round dance. We are gathering our strength in a visible way, and it all keeps up the momentum.

Get educated. People know less than they think they do, even the smart ones. Canada's indigenous question is a big, abstract issue, and the mainstream media is clouding it horribly, with some notable exceptions. There are good resources at idlenomore.ca and elsewhere, if you only look for them.

Challenge stereotypes. The most garish stereotypes are symptoms of poverty, not ethnicity -- let's look at why that poverty exists. Many stereotypes are simply false. Some of them are symptoms of deeper systemic issues that need to be addressed by Canada as a whole, for the good of Canada as a whole. Not one of them arises from some genetic quirk unique to indigenous DNA.

Confront racism. This is deeply tied to getting educated and challenging stereotypes. Many of my non-indigenous friends told me they spent their holidays listening to their relatives undermine INM over Christmas dinner and didn't speak up because they didn't know what to say. I told them all the same thing: keeping quiet is perpetuating the problem.

Participate in democracy. Write your MP and MLA. Vote. We elect these people to office. They work for us and we need to hold them accountable, starting with your MLA and MP and working right up to the prime minister. They can only represent us if we give them a clear mandate and hold them accountable.

Write letters to the editor. Idle No More has exposed astonishing hidden recesses of bigotry in otherwise respectable journalists, and not enough people are calling them on it. Don't just add a snarky post to the online comments section. Don't assume that INM campaigners are on it; most people deeply involved in the movement are so busy putting out fires elsewhere that much is being left undone and unsaid. Champion truth and fairness at every level you can as an individual.

Remember that this isn't about blame. There will always be individuals who lash out. But the spirit of this movement as a whole is about standing together and making change for a better future for all of Canada. Allies need to work at remembering that this isn't about colonial guilt -- this sort of defensive instinct is one of the biggest barriers to new allies getting involved.

Be a leader in your own sphere of influence, whatever that looks like. Model the respect and commitment you think other allies should show. Don't get hung up on big, abstract concepts like "decolonization" and "self-determination." Start by committing to them at your own level -- for myself, I'm committed to decolonizing my relationships, and practicing personal self-determination in a way that strengthens me as an individual. You can support that process in others whatever your background is.

Not all of these actions are concrete or measurable, but all of them truly do matter. If, after reading this, you're still uncertain how to show support, you can always reach out and ask. People within INM who are committed to its core ideals show 100 per cent support for non-indigenous allies getting involved in a respectful and meaningful way -- indeed, that involvement is critical to the success of the movement.

http://thetyee.ca/Life/2013/01/19/Idle-No-More-List/

******************
RALLY IN SUPPORT OF IDLE NO MORE

Please join us at the Vance Monument in downtown Asheville on January 28th as a call to action to protect Mother Earth and Her peoples. We will pray and move to the heartbeat of Mother Earth in honor of IDLE NO MORE.

We will gather together in a circle to create a sacred space of reflection and prayer in a ceremonial way. In honor of the indigenous women who are leading Idle No More, women will drum and rattle the heartbeat of our Mother Earth while men hold signs, banners and flags. Everyone is free to round dance in a sunwise direction if so moved. We shall envision a world where our Mother Earth and all beings shall once again be respected and honored, in mind, heart and action.

***ALL first nations people are invited and welcome to drum, rattle, sing, speak or offer their hearts in what way they feel called.

EVERYONE IS INVITED TO BRING:

**Hoop style drums (only) and rattles of all kinds. The hoop drum represents the sacred hoop of life and respect for the First Nations people indigenous to Turtle Island aka North America. If you would like to bring hoop drums and rattles to share that is also much appreciated. Please honor that the women will be the ones drumming and rattling during this event.

**Sage, sweetgrass, copal, cedar and other sacred plant incense native to North America, shells or other smudging containers, feathers & fans (no songbird feathers, and no raptor feathers unless you have legality papers please), and lighters & matches.

**Signs, banners and flags in honor of Idle No More, Mother Earth and all Her beings, esp. First Nations peoples everywhere

**An open, humble, powerful and prayerful heart

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS:

We do need a few more reverent volunteers still. If you are interested please send us a message. Thank you!

--- If a crowd too large for the Vance Monument attends, we will move down to the Roger McGuire Green ---

PLEASE READ: We are not Idle No More and do not claim to represent Idle No More. We are simply a group of local human beings coming together in support and solidarity, recognizing and honoring Idle No More’s call to action. We are deeply grateful to all of our indigenous first nations elders, sisters and brothers who are rising up to protect their indigenous sovereignty, cultures, lands and reclaim treaty rights, and who are pressuring governments and industry to clean up and protect the environment. We are their allies. May this grassroots movement founded by four women with no designated hierarchal leadership inspire us all to heed their call to action. We are all children of the Earth, completely dependent upon Her for survival.

For more information about Idle No More:

http://idlenomore.ca/

Worldwide rallies are being organized uniting all of our peoples to protect Mother Earth. Friends of and Indigenous peoples everywhere are being called to action. The time is ripe, the time is now, here is the peaceful revolution that shows us how.

For more info about this event you can send an email grace@heartofmothearth.org.

Hope to see you there! Mitakuye Oyasin!

The Official Idle No More Website - Idle No More
www.idlenomore.ca

******************
PETITION TO SIGN

Subject: CTS Site Asheville, Fullscale Cleanup

CTS Corp left a TCE (trichloroethylene) leaking mess in the Mills Gap community of South Asheville. The plant closed in 1987 initial investigation in began 1991. Since that time, TCE and other carcinogens have been found in the communities' well water. We the undersigned ask for CTS corporation for a full scale cleanup of the toxic chemicals leaching into the soil, water, and air.

INFO:  www.facebook.com/CTSasheville

INFO:  http://www.mountainx.com/xpressfiles/040908ctssite#.UKUPHrJlTAP

That's why I signed a petition to James L. Cummins, Senior Vice President, Vinod Khilnani, Former CEO; Current Board of Directors, and 3 others.

Will you sign this petition? Click here:

http://signon.org/sign/cts-site-fullscale-cleanup?source=s.icn.em.cp&r_by=181732

Thanks!
******************

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Lupe Fiasco taken off stage at Inauguration event



This is what he had to say:

"I really think the war on terror is a bunch of bullshit
Just a poor excuse for you to use up all your bullets
How much money does it take to really make a full clip
9/11 building 7 did they really pull it
Uhh, And a bunch of other cover ups
Your childs future was the first to go with budget cuts
If you think that hurts then, wait here comes the uppercut
The school was garbage in the first place, that's on the up and up
Keep you at the bottom but tease you with the uppercrust
You get it then they move it so you never keeping up enough
If you turn on TV all you see’s a bunch of “what the fucks”
Dude is dating so and so blabbering bout such and such
And that ain't Jersey Shore, homie that's the news
And these the same people that supposed to be telling us the truth
Limbaugh is a racist, Glenn Beck is a racist
Gaza strip was getting bombed, Obama didn’t say shit
That's why I ain't vote for him, next one either
I’m a part of the problem, my problem is I’m peaceful
And I believe in the people."

~Lupe Fiasco~

Friday, January 25, 2013

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Protests in DC



Arc of Justice March in DC on Martin Luther King Day.  I was with them in spirit.
January 21, 2013

Guns




Having a gun is of no more importance to my safety and well-being than the US military’s violent actions are important to the safety and well-being of our nation.


Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Protest in Pakistan



Protest in Pakistan

This is a demonstration in Pakistan in January 2013 against drone attacks. Photograph: S.S MIRZA/AFP/Getty Images

I have heard that 75% of the people of Pakistan now consider the US to be an enemy.  I would also think any country bombing the USA was an enemy country. These drone bombings are evil and are inflicting vast misery and suffering on innocent people. The only think they are achieving is creating many more people who hate the USA, consider the USA to be an enemy, and who wish to extract revenge.

STOP DRONE BOMBINGS IN PAKISTAN AND ELSEWHERE NOW.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Collateral Damage



The shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School are collateral damage from our culture of violence. As long as the US government is killing innocents around the world, there will be crazy Americans who will kill innocents at home. As long as our government thinks spending on weapons is the first priority, our country will be awash with guns.
Our “crazy” people who are also violent are only a reflection of our culture and morals.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Photos from MLK Rally in Asheville today

 The beginning of the event - after the march from the Church on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. (St. James, I believe). The rather ugly stage we have in City-County Plaza does look more at home with City Hall in scaffolds. The people were beautiful!!
 Part of the crowd.
 Paul, Chris and Ymani at the rally.
 A speaker on stage.
 Veterans for Peace flag.
A great sign, held by Tom C.

In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.

“I knew that I could never raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today -- my own government.”  -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Upcoming events for the week of January 20, 2013



UPCOMING EVENTS

01/21/13 PEACE MARCH AND RALLY FOR JUSTICE IN HONOR OF MLK
The Peace March and Rally begin at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 21 – the official King holiday – with a brief service at St. James AME Church on Hildebrand Street at Martin Luther King Boulevard downtown. Participants march to City-County Plaza at noon, where speakers and musicians join in a Rally for Justice. Occupy Asheville will participate and will meet at St. James AME Church (Martin Luther King and Hildebrand Streets) at 11:15 AM.

01/21/13 SUPPORT THE ARC OF JUSTICE RALLY AND PARADE IN DC
http://www.stopthesewars.org/support-the-arc-of-justice-rally-and-parade/

01/21/13 to 01/25/13 MLK WEEK AT UNCA
Check http://msp.unca.edu/mlk2013 in January for a full list of activities.

01/22/13 THE PARCHMAN HOUR
Remembering the Past: Freedom Writer Vignettes. In the fiery first months of America's Civil Rights movement, waves of college students rode buses into the heart of the Deep South. Many were brutally attacked, arrested and imprisoned in Mississippi's notorious Parchman Farm Penitentiary. To help them endure, they invented "The Parchman Hour," a live variety show inspired by radio and TV programs. The Parchman Hour, a Mike Wiley production, brings to the stage powerful oral histories and conversations from the Freedom Riders including Stokely Carmichael, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy. Time is 8 PM and the location is Lipinsky Auditorium at UNCA. Free.

01/22/13 PUBLIC LECTURE AT UNCA
“How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day” with Jonathan Morduch, professor of public policy and economics at the NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Held in the Sherill Center Mountain View Room.  Time is 12:30 PM.

01/23/13 MLK WEEK KEYNOTE SPEAKER AT UNCA
“Looking to the Future” by Gwendolyn Boyd. Time is 7 PM and location is Lipinsky Auditorium. Free. Gwendolyn Boyd illustrates the relevance of Dr. King’s work today by combining science, education and service to create concrete change in her community and the world. She became the first African-American woman to earn an M.S. in mechanical engineering at Yale University. In the spirit of Dr. King, Boyd inspires change appropriate to our times. She is a prominent advocate for women’s equality and the recruitment of African Americans into science and engineering. Boyd has been recognized as one of the 100 Most Important Blacks in Technology by the Black Engineer of the Year Awards.

01/24/13 WNC ALLIANCE GLOBAL WARMING CHANGING COURSE CLASS
Register for WNCA’s new course! Global Warming: Changing Course is a six-session discussion course book exploring the history and science of global warming, personal values and habits as they relate to climate change, and personal actions to curb the effects of global warming. Introductory class on 1/24/13 followed by five more classes.  Cost I $35 for members, $40 for non-members. This will happen at the Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar. To register please call course leader, Rachel Moore, at 828-258-8737 or email rachel@wnca.org by Jan. 18.

01/25/12 HOMELESS NETWORK PARADE IN ASHEVILLE
This event is in defense of the rights of our homeless brothers and sisters here in Asheville and a rejection of the criminalization of homelessness the City has overseen throughout the past three-four years. The Parade will begin at Pritchard Park at 2 PM and march to Vance Memorial where speakers from the homeless community will speak.

01/26/13 NC STATEWIDE DAY OF ACTION: OUR ENERGY FUTURE
There will be rallies held in Asheville, Raleigh, Charlotte, Greensboro, and Wilmington. In Asheville, meet at Pritchard Park at 1 PM. This rally is a response to the Progress/Duke Energy monopoly and their 20 year business plan. It's time to move beyond coal, away from risky nuclear power and time to block expansion of fracking in NC.  We want more efficiency programs and more solar and wind. This rally will be family-friendly and have music, speakers and fun! Contact Laura at lsredoak@gmail.com for more information.

01/28/13 to 03/15/13 BUILDING BRIDGES SEMINAR SERIES
The Mission of Building Bridges is to enable our community to confront and overcome racism through a continuing process of changing attitudes and hearts through education, consciousness-raising, nurturing, and ongoing support. Our goal is to be intentional in respecting diversity within our community. This seminar is an introduction to the dynamics of racism and is an opportunity to explore how race has impacted our relationships, communities and institutions. Past participants are welcome. Time is 7 PM to 9 PM on Monday evenings, and location is MAHEC at 121 Hendersonville Road in Asheville.  Cost is $30.  Registration is limited, please call 828-777-4585 for an application form.

01/28/13 PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING
Public Safety meeting regarding Asheville City Council member Cecil Bothwell’s civil liberties resolution Monday Jan 28th at 3PM.  This is at Asheville Fire Station (downtown) on the 2nd floor. This resolution states that Asheville police will not comply with federal statutes regarding targeting and arrest of undocumented workers.

01/28/13 ASHEVILLE EARTH SABBATH
A monthly interfaith celebration of the Earth with words and music to nourish your soul coordinated by NC Interfaith Power & Light. This month lead by Maureen Linneman and Chas Jansen. This is at St. Mary's Episcopal Church on Charlotte Street from 7 to 8 pm. All welcome. For more information, contact Jean at larson_jean@hotmail.com.

02/01/13 ASHEVILLE-BUNCOMBE FOOD POLICY COUNCIL MEETING
The Asheville-Buncombe Food Policy Council (A/B FPC) collaborated with the Sustainability Advisory Committee on Energy and the Environment (SACEE) to create the first City of Asheville Food Action Plan. To find out more about this, or to help them with their goal of improving the city’s food security, please come to the meeting at the Mountain View Room at the UNCA Sherrill Center.  Meeting is from 4 to 6 PM.

02/04/13 GREEN PARTY MEETING
The Buncombe County GREEN Party's business meeting is open to the public. It is held on the first Monday of the Month. It will be held at 6 PM in the Fortune Building (upstairs), at 729 Haywood Rd., West Asheville. Parking in back and on the street. Contact Ronald @ 828-LUCK-180 or Larry @ 828-225-4347 for more information.

02/06/13 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
“Beyond Coal,” transitioning from coal to clean energy, will be presented by Kelly Martin of the NC Beyond Coal Campaign.  Kris Cunningham of Sierra Club will answer questions on why nuclear power is not suitable for replacing coal. Time is 7 pm by Sierra Club and location is the Unitarian Church, 1 Edwin Pl, Asheville (corner of Charlotte & Edwin). Contact: judymattox@sbcglobal.net or 828-683-2176 for more information.

02/07/13 VETERANS FOR PEACE MEETING
Time is 6:30 PM and location is VFP HQ at the Phil Mechanic Studios: 109 Roberts Street in Asheville. VFP Chapter 099: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/

02/12/13 JUSTICE FRIENDS NIGHT
An inclusive monthly gathering to explore social and environmental justice through presentations, films and performance art. A discussion group and social event for locals with an activist mindset. Bring your causes and local issues to the roundtable! Share, listen, learn, network. Location is Firestorm Café and Books and time is 7 PM.

02/14/13 ONE BILLION RISING IN ASHEVILLE
On V-Day’s 15th Anniversary, 2/14/13, we are inviting ONE BILLION women and those who love them to WALK OUT, DANCE, RISE UP, and DEMAND an end to violence against women. ONE BILLION RISING will move the earth, activating women and men across every country. V-Day wants the world to see our collective strength, our numbers, our solidarity across borders. This event will take place from 7 to 10 PM and location will be the YWCA on South French Broad Avenue in Asheville.

02/17/13 CLIMATE RALLY IN DC
http://action.sierraclub.org/site/PageServer?pagename=nat_signup_feb17

02/19/13 TRANSITION ASHEVILLE PERMACULTURE POTLUCK SERIES
Each month in 2013 a different local teacher will present a new permaculture principle explaining how that principle can be applied to the redesign of our lives, homes, and communities to create a more resilient and sustainable human culture. We invite you to join us for these “Potlucks with a Purpose” on the third Tuesday of each month at Community Action Opportunities (25 Gaston Street) to share ideas, connection, and great food! Time is 5:30 PM.

03/05/13 PUBLIC HEARING ON DUKE RATE HIKES
The Asheville Public Hearing by the NC Utilities Commission will be held at the Buncombe County Court House in the basement in District Courtroom 1. The time is 7 PM.  Progress Energy/Duke is proposing a 14% rate hike. And their business plan does not include wind, solar or expansion of energy efficiency.

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ONGOING EVENTS
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MONDAY
Occupy Asheville Weekly Meeting at 6:30 PM at First Congregational Church of Christ.

TUESDAY
Veterans for Peace have a weekly vigil at 4:30 PM at Pack Square, Vance Monument

WEDNESDAY
Haywood Peace Vigilers have a weekly vigil at 4 PM at Haywood Country Courthouse in Waynesville.

THURSDAY
Asheville Homeless Network meeting at 2 PM at Firestorm Cafe.
Anti-racism Group Discussion at 5:30 PM on the third Thursday of the month at Firestorm Cafe.
Veterans for Peace Discussion group on the third Thursday of the month at the Phil Mechanic Studio on Roberts Street, Asheville. Time is 6:30 PM.

FRIDAY
Women in Black have a vigil at 5 PM at Pack Square (Asheville) on the first Friday of the month.
Women in Black have a weekly vigil at noon at the City Hall in Hendersonville
Homeless Network Parade on the last Friday of the month at 2 PM at Pritchard Park.

SATURDAY
Transylvanians for Peace and WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have a weekly vigil at noon in front of the courthouse in Brevard.
Occupy Asheville General Assembly on the first Saturday of the month. 3 PM at Pritchard Park.
Really, Really Free Market on the last Saturday of the month from 11 to 3 PM at Aston Park.

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ACTIONS AND READINGS
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Protect Children, Not Guns
Please consider signing a petition that asks our politicians to protect children, not guns.  Every name that is added builds momentum around the campaign and makes it more likely for us to get the change we want to see.
Will you join me by taking action on this campaign?

http://action.groundswell-movement.org/petitions/marian-wright-edelman-s-letter-to-the-president-and-congress-on-gun-violence

After you've signed the petition please also take a moment to share it with others. Thank you!

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FROM DEMAND PROGRESS:

You've surely heard of Aaron Swartz's tragic passing. Demand Progress sent out this statement today, and is encouraging those who'd like to help forward Aaron's fight against injustice to sign up here:

http://act.demandprogress.org/sign/updates?referring_akid=1966.610434.65fdeU&source=mailto

We are deeply saddened by the passing of Demand Progress’s Aaron Swartz. Friends and family have issued a statement and created a memorial page, here.

http://rememberaaronsw.tumblr.com/

Aaron was a dear friend, and an ideological brother in arms. As others have spoken to at great length, he was indeed a passionate advocate for access to information and for a free and open Internet. He believed in these things for their own sakes, but moreover as means towards the even deeper end of building a world defined by social and economic justice.

He resisted the impulse to presume that he alone was responsible for his brilliance or should benefit therefrom, and he wasn’t a techno-utopian: He was a communitarian, somebody who was deeply aware of our world’s injustices and who understood the constant struggle that is necessary to even begin to remedy them. That’s why this organization exists.

We’ve worked closely with Aaron over the last two or three years, but have not known him for as long as have some others who’ve written profoundly moving tributes to him and his life’s work. We met him as a genius, but not as the boy-genius that Larry and Cory and many others knew, and we would suggest reading their pieces for deeper insight into his personal and professional evolution.
We first encountered Aaron through our executive director’s unsuccessful run for Congress in 2010. Aaron became a fixture in the campaign office, rigging up cheap ways to do polling and robo-calls and helping give the uphill effort a fighting chance. But it was never about just one campaign: He was honing skills and tools he wanted to use to build capacity for much broader social movements that would create fundamental, structural change. He’d taken to calling himself an “applied sociologist.” He was trying to hack the world, and we were happy to help in what small ways we could.

That campaign work quickly transitioned into Demand Progress and Aaron’s conception of the initial petition in opposition to the Combating Online Infringements and Counterfeits Act, and then the ensuing 18 months of activism that helped bring down SOPA and PIPA. There are so many stories to tell about that effort: trudging around the halls of the Capitol, getting under the skin of intransigent senators, generally scrapping away as we struggled to build a movement against all odds. Many of them are best told by Aaron himself, here. But Aaron’s legal troubles began approximately commensurate with the launch of that anti-COICA petition, and it was clear that his persecution by an institutionally corrupted criminal justice system weighed heavily on him throughout the last two years, and certainly more so of late.

We are working with Aaron’s friends, family, and colleagues to determine how best to pay tribute to him — it will surely entail engaging in political activism in service of making this world a more just one. We will be in touch with our members and the general public in the near future to offer suggestions about ways to move forward. Tragically, we’ll have to continue to stifle the visceral impulse to run our half-formed ideas by Aaron, to help us make them better ones.

Click here if you’d like to receive updates from us.
http://act.demandprogress.org/sign/updates?referring_akid=a7532812.610434.Yg9ujL&source=auto-taf

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France has undertaken a major military campaign in Mali. U.S. officials are talking about the possibility of supporting the French military campaign with US drone strikes.

Congress hasn't authorized U.S. military intervention in Mali. In particular, Congress hasn't authorized US drone strikes in Mali.

Join me in urging your Representative and Senators to publicly insist that the Administration obtain explicit Congressional authorization before conducting drone strikes in Mali by following this link:
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/mali-drones

******************

Saturday, January 19, 2013

John Brennan and drone bombings



Drone bombings are evil and kill and injure civilians.  Letting John Brennan head up the CIA will only spread this evil even further around the planet and here at home. Brennan lied massively when he said there were no civilian deaths from CIA drone bombings. I do not trust liars at all. I do not want Brennan even working at the CIA and I want the “KILL LISTS” and drone bombings to END NOW. I want the torture and kidnappings by US officials and the CIA to END NOW. I want the secret prisons and Guantanamo CLOSED NOW. I want the perpetrators of these crimes PROSECUTED. I want a return to the rule of law.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Drones



From The Guardian (UK):
In his study, Michael Boyle (former Obama advisor) said Obama pledged to end the "war on terror" and to restore respect for the rule of law in US counter-terrorism policies. “Instead, he has been just as ruthless and indifferent to the rule of law as his predecessor ... while President Bush issued a call to arms to defend 'civilisation' against the threat of terrorism, President Obama has waged his war on terror in the shadows, using drone strikes, special operations and sophisticated surveillance to fight a brutal covert war against al-Qaida and other Islamist networks.” Boyle, who teaches at La Salle University, Philadelphia, said the government claim that drones were an effective tool that minimised civilian casualties was based on a highly selective and partial reading of the evidence. “The consequences can be seen in the targeting of mosques or funeral processions that kill non-combatants and tear at the social fabric of the regions where they occur. No one really knows the number of deaths caused by drones in these distant, sometimes ungoverned, lands.” And he also said the strikes had a debilitating effect on local populations and their governments. “Despite the fact that drone strikes are often employed against local enemies of the governments in Pakistan and Yemen, they serve as powerful signals of the regimes' helplessness and subservience to the United States and undermine the claim that these governments can be credible competitors for the loyalties of the population,” he writes. “The vast increase in the number of deaths of low-ranking operatives has deepened political resistance to the US programme in Pakistan, Yemen and other countries.”

I WANT A RETURN TO RULE OF LAW AND A RETURN TO MORALITY. KILLING PEOPLE IS WRONG. DRONES WILL NEVER END TERRORISM, THEY ARE TERRORISM AND THEY INCREASE TERRORISM. DRONES WILL INCREASE WORLD WIDE AND THE US WILL SEE BLOWBACK FROM THESE EVIL POLICIES.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Solving the Fiscal Impasse Starts and Ends at the Pentagon



A speech by Rep. Barbara Lee on January 9, 2013

“As Afghan President Hamid Karzai returns to the United States this week, he will meet President Barack Obama at a time when the overwhelming majority of the American people and a strong bipartisan coalition of Congress believe it is long past time to bring the war to a safe and expedited close. Most Americans realize that instead of spending billions of dollars extending our military presence in Afghanistan, we need to commit to a political settlement, bring all of our troops safely home and invest in jobs as well as nation-building here at home.

Yet for too long, we have given the Pentagon blank checks while neglecting our crumbling roads, our aging water systems and our struggling schools. From 2000 to 2010, overall spending on the base defense budget rose from $300 billion to $700 billion. That massive increase in spending, combined with $1.4 trillion (and counting) spent on two wars, and the projected hundreds of billions in costs to care for our returning veterans, were all committed even as we passed tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. This is an unprecedented and disastrous policy course that led directly to the debt problem we have today.

After a decade of tax giveaways and extravagant defense spending, Congress has passed more than $1.7 trillion in spending cuts to critical domestic programs on which all American families rely. Most of this came in the summer of 2011 as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling without any revenue. Now, with the fiscal cliff deal behind us, the coming weeks will bring even more heated debate surrounding our budget, across-the-board cuts called sequestration and how to continue growing our economy by protecting the American dream for all. Here is what we should do:

Brings our troops home: Last month, almost 100 bipartisan members of the House of Representatives joined me and the overwhelming majority of the American people in reaffirming our strong conviction to bring the war in Afghanistan to a safe and expedited close. It is long past time to hand over security responsibility to the Afghans and ensure a seamless transition for our brave troops from active duty to civilian life. Doing so would save tens of billions of dollars this year alone.

Focus on job creation: The poor and middle class already bear a disproportionate share of the nation’s economic pain. Taking account what was passed into law as part of the fiscal cliff deal, a fiscally responsible and balanced approach would secure an additional $1 trillion in new revenue to match the massive cuts to domestic programs we have already made in recent months. Doing so would allow us to make robust investments in smart and targeted economic growth, provide a 21st-century education for every child in America and create a renewable green energy technology future that will end our dependence on foreign oil, protect our environment and kick-start a new manufacturing base here in America. After all, the best way to reduce our deficit is to focus on job creation here at home.

Achieve sensible cuts to out-of-control Pentagon spending: In 2011, the U.S. government spent about $718 billion on defense and international security assistance — more than it spent on Medicare and more than the next 13 nations spent on defense combined, including China, Russia, the United Kingdom and France. There are many proposals from a wide variety of groups from across the political spectrum that detail defense savings on par with or beyond the cuts called for under the sequestration portion of the Budget Control Act of 2011. The Project on Defense Alternatives, CATO Institute, Taxpayers for Common Sense, Center for American Progress, and Bowles-Simpson Commission have all called for deep cuts in defense spending ranging from $350 billion to $590 billion beyond the cuts already in place. Making sensible cuts would help create a cost-effective military aligned with 21st-century threats.
Audit the Pentagon: Financial responsibility must not stop at the doors of the Pentagon. Almost 60 cents of every federal discretionary dollar now goes toward defense spending. By the Pentagon’s own admission, it cannot properly account for how the money is spent. There is no doubt these circumstances have contributed to instances of waste, fraud and abuse at the Pentagon. We must stop the culture of reckless spending at the Pentagon by demanding that every program at the Defense Department pass independent audits.

Securing new revenue as well as achieving significant cuts to and transparency in defense spending, while also ending the war in Afghanistan, will prevent the fiscal burden from being shifted onto the backs of poor and working families or making unnecessary benefit cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security. Our priority right now must be jobs to build up our economic strength and lift millions out of poverty, the true measure of our nation’s security.

Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee represents California’s 13th District. She also co-chairs the Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus.
 
LINK TO SPEECH HERE.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

More evil from the US government




Hundreds of thousands of Iranians with serious illnesses have been put at imminent risk by the unintended consequences of international sanctions, which have led to dire shortages of life-saving medicines such as chemotherapy drugs for cancer and bloodclotting agents for haemophiliacs.  .... "Sometimes companies agree to sell us drugs but we have no way of paying them. On one occasion, our money was in the bank for four months but the transfer repeatedly got rejected," Naser Naghdi, the director general of Darou Pakhsh, the country's biggest pharmaceutical company, told the Guardian, in a telephone interview from Tehran.



In my opinion, this is pure evil. Iran has every right to nuclear power, and there is no indication that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. And yet, the USA has made them suffer grievously, while they have done NOTHING to hurt our country. The point of these sanctions is the same as the point of the Iraq sanctions – to make them weak, so that one day the US government can declare war on them and control their oil. It is pure evil. Everyone in the US government who supports this has innocent blood on their hands – lots of it.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Who'll stop the rain?



Long as I remember
The rain been comin' down.
Clouds of myst'ry pourin'
Confusion on the ground.
Good men through the ages,
Tried to find the sun;
And I wonder, still I wonder,
Who'll stop the rain.

I went down Virginia,
Seekin' shelter from the storm.
Caught up in the fable,
I watched the tower grow.
Five year plans and new deals,
Wrapped in golden chains.
And I wonder, still I wonder
Who'll stop the rain.

Heard the singers playin',
How we cheered for more.
The crowd had rushed together,
Tryin' to keep warm.
Still the rain kept pourin',
Fallin' on my ears.
And I wonder, still I wonder
Who'll stop the rain.

Violence in the US and US violence abroad





Tom Dispatch:  In late December 2001, not long after Washington’s second Afghan War began, there was that wedding celebration in eastern Afghanistan in which 110 of 112 villagers were reportedly killed by American B-52 and B-1B bombers using precision guided weapons. Then there were the more than 40 Iraqi wedding celebrants (27 from one extended family, including 14 children) who died when U.S. planes struck their party at a village near the Syrian border back in May 2004, and the Afghan bridal party of 70 to 90 who were taken out by a U.S. airstrike on a road near the Pakistani border in July 2008. (The bride and 46 of those accompanying her died, according to an Afghan inquiry, including 39 women and children.) Added to this list should be the 24 unarmed Iraqi men, women, and children, ranging in age from 3 to 76, murdered by U.S. Marines in November 2005 in the long-forgotten Haditha massacre. And the 14-year-old girl whom American soldiers gang-raped and murdered along with her family in Mahmudiya, south of Baghdad, the next year. Let’s not forget either the 12 Iraqis, including two Reuters employees, shot dead (and two children badly wounded) on a Baghdad street in July 2007 by the laughing crew of an Apache helicopter, as revealed in an infamous video released by WikiLeaks. There were also the 60 children (and up to 30 adults) who died in the Afghan village of Azizabad on an August night in 2008 while attending a memorial service for a tribal leader who had been, villagers reported, anti-Taliban. That, too, was thanks to air strikes. There were also those three (or more) Afghan civilians hunted down “for sport” in the summer of 2010 by a self-appointed U.S. “kill team” who were collecting trophy body parts. And there were the 10 boys, including two sets of brothers, collecting wood for their families in Afghanistan's Kunar Province early in 2011, who were attacked by U.S. helicopters. Only one wounded boy survived. Or most recently, the 11 Yemeni civilians, including women and children, in a Toyota truck killed by a U.S. airstrike and initially labeled “al-Qaeda militants.”


Yes, the American people are killing people around the planet and they don’t give a shit. They don’t know because they don’t want to know. There will be no memorials, no special rites, and no solemn ceremonies for these victims of US violence. The suffering Americans have brought these people we make war on is immense and incalculable. The overall numbers killed are staggering. Only the victims of US violence who happen to be Americans stand a chance of being recognized and remembered, and for the most part, not even then. We are a nation of thoughtless and heedless killers, who engage in killing on a daily basis. It is no wonder that our homicide rate is so much higher than other developed countries (see above graphic - and it is for guns only!). We are drenched in blood and we don’t care about anyone’s suffering beyond our own. The above listing of foreign killings hardly begins to cover it. And no matter how much Americans suffer from poverty, natural disasters and violence; it does not hold a candle to the suffering they have caused in foreign lands.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Upcoming events for the week of January 13, 2013

This graphic came from an email from IPS.



UPCOMING EVENTS

01/14/13 MOVE TO AMEND BUNCOMBE COUNTY MEETING
This meeting will take place in the lower level (Religious Education Space) of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville on Charlotte and Edwin Streets. Time for the meeting is 7 PM and all are welcome.

01/15/13 TRANSITION ASHEVILLE PERMACULTURE POTLUCK SERIES
Time is 5:30 PM and location is the Community Action Opportunities at 25 Gaston Street. Free and open to the public. For more information contact Dylan at livingvision@yahoo.com.

01/15/13 SAFE CAROLINAS PRESENTATION
This is a great opportunity to learn about the radioactive waste issue that still plagues our country. Please join us as we hear from the experts about the landmark lawsuit won by Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League. We will also hear about what Congress is up to on this waste, how it affects WNC and our next steps for civic participation. Lou Zeller, Executive Director, Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, and Mary Olson, Southeast Director, Nuclear Information Resource Services, will speak. Location is North Asheville Library at 7 PM.

01/17/13 MLK: A YOUTH CELEBRATION
A youth celebration to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. will be held at Lipinsky Auditorium at UNCA. Free. Time is 4 PM.  More information at www.mlkasheville.org. This will include a candlelight service. This is hosted by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County.

01/17/13 VETERANS FOR PEACE DISCUSSION GROUP
Third Thursday of month, Veterans For Peace Chapter 99 offers a discussion group on subjects concerning peace, starting at 6:30 PM at its headquarters in the Courtyard Gallery in the Phil Mechanic Studios, 109 Roberts St., Asheville. Free (donations gratefully accepted) and open to the public. 828-258-1800.

01/17/13 COMMUNITY RACE DISCUSSION GROUP
A monthly discussion group jointly sponsored by the Firestorm Collective and our friends at the YWCA to tackle the challenges of race and racism in our community.  Time is 5:30 PM and location is Firestorm Café and Books.

01/18/12 WNC PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY MEETING
The next WNC PSR monthly meeting will be at a private home near the VA Hospital.  Brown Bag lunch at noon with meeting from 12:30 to 2 PM. Everyone is welcome.  Please go to www.wncpsr.org  for more information, which includes how to get there and other details.

01/19/13 MARTIN LUTHER KING PRAYER BREAKFAST
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County will hold its 32nd annual Prayer Breakfast at the Grove Park Inn on Saturday, January 19, 2013. Tickets can be ordered by telephone at 828-335-6896 or 828-301-8968, or by email at editor@myowneditor.com.

01/20/13 POTLUCK GATHERING AND FUNDRAISER FOR BEN SCALES
On the evening of January 20th, you are invited to join Occupy Asheville for a potluck dinner and celebration at Rosetta's on Lexington Avenue, in honor of Ben Scales and his work for justice and freedom. We will begin the evening at 5:30 PM, and are asking everyone to bring a vegetarian dish to share. Rosetta's Kitchen restaurant will be hosting the event although the kitchen is closed on Sundays. There will not be food available for purchase, but there will be various tasty drinks offered for purchase. In addition to a delicious meal and good company, we are also planning some fun musical surprises and much more throughout the night! Hope to see you there! Time is 5:30 PM.

01/20/13 ETHICAL SOCIETY OF ASHEVILLE
“Emancipation Proclamation – one hundred and fifty years of words and deeds, progress and setbacks, and a continuing march toward justice” will be presented at the Sunday, January 20th meeting of the Ethical Society of Asheville, 2:00-3:30 PM at the Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood Road, Asheville. In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday a panel of members of the Ethical Society of Asheville will discuss how the generations-long struggle for equality under the law and in society at large has impacted their lives. Discussion follows the presentation. All are welcome! For more information contact: asheville@aeu.org.

01/21/13 PEACE MARCH AND RALLY FOR JUSTICE IN HONOR OF MLK
The Peace March and Rally begin at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 21 – the official King holiday – with a brief service at St. James AME Church on Hildebrand Street at Martin Luther King Boulevard downtown. Participants march to City-County Plaza at noon, where speakers and musicians join in a Rally for Justice. Occupy Asheville will participate and will meet at St. James AME Church at 11 AM.

01/21/13 SUPPORT THE ARC OF JUSTICE RALLY AND PARADE IN DC
http://www.stopthesewars.org/support-the-arc-of-justice-rally-and-parade/

01/21/13 to 01/25/13 MLK WEEK AT UNCA
Check http://msp.unca.edu/mlk2013 in January for a full list of activities.

01/22/13 THE PARCHMAN HOUR
Remembering the Past: Freedom Writer Vignettes. In the fiery first months of America's Civil Rights movement, waves of college students rode buses into the heart of the Deep South. Many were brutally attacked, arrested and imprisoned in Mississippi's notorious Parchman Farm Penitentiary. To help them endure, they invented "The Parchman Hour," a live variety show inspired by radio and TV programs. The Parchman Hour, a Mike Wiley production, brings to the stage powerful oral histories and conversations from the Freedom Riders including Stokely Carmichael, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy. Time is 8 PM and the location is Lipinsky Auditorium at UNCA. Free.

01/23/13 MLK WEEK KEYNOTE SPEAKER AT UNCA
“Looking to the Future” by Gwendolyn Boyd. Time is 7 PM and location is Lipinsky Auditorium. Free. Gwendolyn Boyd illustrates the relevance of Dr. King’s work today by combining science, education and service to create concrete change in her community and the world. She became the first African-American woman to earn an M.S. in mechanical engineering at Yale University. In the spirit of Dr. King, Boyd inspires change appropriate to our times. She is a prominent advocate for women’s equality and the recruitment of African Americans into science and engineering. Boyd has been recognized as one of the 100 Most Important Blacks in Technology by the Black Engineer of the Year Awards.

01/24/13 WNC ALLIANCE GLOBAL WARMING CHANGING COURSE CLASS
Register for WNCA’s new course! Global Warming: Changing Course is a six-session discussion course book exploring the history and science of global warming, personal values and habits as they relate to climate change, and personal actions to curb the effects of global warming. Introductory class on 1/24/13 followed by five more classes.  Cost is $35 for members, $40 for non-members. This will happen at the Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar. To register please call course leader, Rachel Moore, at 828-258-8737 or email rachel@wnca.org by Jan. 18.

01/25/12 HOMELESS NETWORK PARADE IN ASHEVILLE
This event is in defense of the rights of our homeless brothers and sisters here in Asheville and a rejection of the criminalization of homelessness the City has overseen throughout the past three-four years. The Parade will begin at Pritchard Park at 2 PM and march to Vance Memorial where speakers from the homeless community will speak.

01/28/13 to 03/15/13 BUILDING BRIDGES SEMINAR
The Mission of Building Bridges is to enable our community to confront and overcome racism through a continuing process of changing attitudes and hearts through education, consciousness-raising, nurturing, and ongoing support. Our goal is to be intentional in respecting diversity within our community. This seminar is an introduction to the dynamics of racism and is an opportunity to explore how race has impacted our relationships, communities and institutions. Past participants are welcome. Time is 7 PM to 9 PM on Monday evenings, and location is MAHEC at 121 Hendersonville Road in Asheville.  Cost is $30. Registration is limited; please call 828-777-4585 for an application form.

01/28/13 PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING
Public Safety meeting regarding Asheville City Council member Cecil Bothwell’s civil liberties resolution Monday Jan 28th at 3PM.  This is at Asheville Fire Station, downtown, on the 2nd floor. This resolution states that Asheville police will not comply with federal statutes regarding targeting and arrest of undocumented workers.

02/01/13 ASHEVILLE-BUNCOMBE FOOD POLICY COUNCIL MEETING
The Asheville-Buncombe Food Policy Council (A/B FPC) collaborated with the Sustainability Advisory Committee on Energy and the Environment (SACEE) to create the first City of Asheville Food Action Plan. To find out more about this, or to help them with their goal of improving the city’s food security, please come to the meeting at the Mountain View Room at the UNCA Sherrill Center. Meeting is from 4 to 6 PM.

02/04/13 GREEN PARTY MEETING
The Buncombe County GREEN Party's business meeting is open to the public. It is held on the first Monday of the Month. It will be held at 6 PM in the Fortune Building (upstairs), at 729 Haywood Rd., West Asheville. Parking in back and on the street. Contact Ronald @ 828-LUCK-180 or Larry @ 828-225-4347 for more information.

02/06/13 SIERRA CLUB MEETING

02/07/13 VETERANS FOR PEACE MEETING
Time is 6:30 PM and location is VFP HQ at the Phil Mechanic Studios: 109 Roberts Street in Asheville. VFP Chapter 099: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/

02/14/13 ONE BILLION RISING IN ASHEVILLE
On V-Day’s 15th Anniversary, 2.14.13, we are inviting ONE BILLION women and those who love them to WALK OUT, DANCE, RISE UP, and DEMAND an end to violence against women.. ONE BILLION RISING will move the earth, activating women and men across every country. V-Day wants the world to see our collective strength, our numbers, our solidarity across borders. This event will take place from 7 to 10 PM and location will be the YWCA on South French Broad Avenue in Asheville.

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ONGOING EVENTS
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MONDAY
Occupy Asheville Weekly Meeting at 6:30 PM at First Congregational Church of Christ.

TUESDAY
Veterans for Peace have a weekly vigil at 4:30 PM at Pack Square, Vance Monument

WEDNESDAY
Haywood Peace Vigilers have a weekly vigil at 4 PM at Haywood Country Courthouse in Waynesville.

THURSDAY
Asheville Homeless Network meeting at 2 PM at Firestorm Cafe.
Anti-racism Group Discussion at 5:30 PM on the third Thursday of the month at Firestorm Cafe.
Veterans for Peace Discussion group on the third Thursday of the month at the Phil Mechanic Studio on Roberts Street, Asheville. Time is 6:30 PM.

FRIDAY
Women in Black have a vigil at 5 PM at Pack Square (Asheville) on the first Friday of the month.
Women in Black have a weekly vigil at noon at the City Hall in Hendersonville
Homeless Network Parade on the last Friday of the month at 2 PM at Pritchard Park.

SATURDAY
Transylvanians for Peace and WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have a weekly vigil at noon in front of the courthouse in Brevard.
Occupy Asheville General Assembly on the first Saturday of the month. 4 PM at Pritchard Park.
Really, Really Free Market on the last Saturday of the month from 11 to 3 PM at Aston Park.

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ACTIONS AND READINGS
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Friends of the Appalachian Mountains,

This March, you are invited to join us in Appalachia for Mountain Justice Spring Break!
www.mountainjustice.org

Since 2007, Mountain Justice Spring Break has been offering students and young people an exciting, fun, low-cost alternative spring break in Appalachia. Mountain Justice Spring Break is a chance to learn more about how extractive industries like coal, hydro-fracking for natural gas and nuclear energy have sucked billions of dollars in resources from the land, while leaving behind environmental and social problems and a ravaged land.

At Mountain Justice Spring Break you will:
-Learn about and take action against the destructive effects of the dirty life-cycles of coal and natural gas!
-Stand in solidarity with the communities in Virginia, West Virginia and southwest Pennsylvania facing the ongoing destruction of coal mining and hydraulic fracturing!
-See mountaintop removal coal mining and hydraulic fracturing natural gas extraction up close!
-Take direct action against the dirty coal industry!

Mountain Justice Spring Break (MJSB) will bring together coalfield residents, college students, environmentalists and concerned citizens. You don’t have to be an expert about coal mining or fracking or Appalachia - our program will teach you the intricacies of resource extraction and you will leave with a better understanding of why Appalachia is a rich land with poor people.

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