Soldiers of peace are not fighting a war Are not looking for enemies behind every door Are not looking for people to kill or to maim. Soldiers of peace are just
changing the game.
Men who were fighting for all of our lives Are now fighting for children, for homes and for wives, Fighting for the memory of all who fell before, But the soldiers of peace just can't kill any more.
So come all you warriors who live for the fight, Come listen to somebody, somebody who might Have been there before you and they have the right, They've been dying to tell you the score. The old warriors don't want you to hurt any more.
Soldiers of peace can still hear the cries When the people were screaming
and losing their lives, When bodies were broken and spirits were torn The soldiers of peace do not want you to mourn.
So come all you warriors who live for the fight, Come listen to somebody, somebody who might Have been there before you and they have the right, They've been dying to tell you the score. The old warriors don't want you to hurt any more.
Soldiers of peace are not fighting a war. No more, no more, no more, no more.
11/11/12 VETERANS FOR PEACE VIGIL FOR ARMISTICE DAY
Ground the Drones! Bring the troops home! 24 hour Armistice Vigil. This will be
going on overnight tonight. The vigil will end at 9 AM on Monday 11/12/12.
Location is Vance
Monument. There are a few
photos and more information on the blog: http://vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/
11/12/12 HONOR CARDS (HOLIDAY CARDS) KICK-OFF
Come hear artist William Mangum tell the story behind his holiday cards, and
hear the inside story told by the actual men depicted who reside at the
Veteran’s Restoration Quarters. Time is 7 PM and location is Veterans’
Restoration Quarters on Tunnel
Road. Proceeds from the sale of the cards support
Steadfast House and Veterans Restoration Quarters.
11/12/12 BOOK PRESENTATION AT MALAPROPS
Christal Presley will present her memoir “Thirty Days with My Father:
Finding Peace with Wartime PTSD”. Time is 7 PM.
11/13/12 BUILDING AN ABUSE FREE COMMUNITY
This is a four-part series focusing on the reality of abuse in our society.
The goal is to empower the community by enabling and energizing a broader
base of advocates to take action in preventing abuse and supporting victims in
their recovery. Time is 7 PM and location is the Fellowship Hall at Grace
Presbyterian Church on Merrimon. For more information, contact
jimrwallis@aol.com. Part Three: How can one be abused on the internet?
Why should one be more aware while on Facebook?
11/13/12 PEOPLE OF FAITH FOR JUST RELATIONSHIPS
This group of clergy and laity, from a variety of faith traditions, is
committed to creating a more just society where benefits are available to
people of all sexual orientations. Meets at First Congregational United
Church of Christ on Oak Street
at noon. More info from pfjr@gmail.com
or www.pfjr.org.
11/14/12 ANDY SUMMER MEMORIAL LECTURE
You and your friends are invited to the Andy Summer Memorial Lecture on Nov. 14
in Canon Lounge in the Gladfelter Student Center
at Warren Wilson College.
Time is 7:00 PM. Mallory McDuff, Ph.D., professor of environmental
studies and outdoor leadership at Warren
Wilson College,
will deliver the annual Andy Summers Memorial Lecture. Title: Sacred
Acts: A religious-environmental road trip. Free and open to the public.
11/15/12 SCREENING OF “MISS REPRESENTATION”
The National Association of Social Workers will host a screening of “Miss
Representation” which challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging
portrayals of women and girls. This will be at the Renaissance Hotel on Woodfin Street in Asheville at 5:30 PM. Information
and registration at www.missrepnaswnc.event-brite.com. Cost
is $10.
11/16/12 PROTEST THE SCHOOL OF THE AMERICAS AT FORT BENNING
11/17/12 MOVIE SHOWING BY WNC PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
They will be showing the blockbuster expose film “9/11: EXPLOSIVE EVIDENCE-THE
EXPERTS SPEAK OUT” at the Transylvania County Library at 2 PM on Saturday,
November 17. The film blows the "Official Conspiracy Theory" of the
Bush administration apart by focusing on the 3 WTC buildings. The film is FREE
but we'll accept small donations to offset the cost imposed by the library. Also
sponsored by Transylvanians For Peace. Contact Don at gaia@comporium.net
for more information.
11/1712 BLUE RIDGE LIBERTY PROTEST AT VANCE MONUMENT
Chase Rachaels and Justin Stow representing blueridgelibertyproject.com and
announced a protest/rally AT 2 PM as an introductory event for the organization
and an effort to align people with their purposes: antiwar action, avoiding
initiation of force, proactive parenting.
11/17/12 OCCUPY ASHEVILLE AND THE HOLIDAY PARADE
Occupy Asheville will be handing out Occu-cards at the Holiday Parade in Asheville. Parade route
is Biltmore Avenue
and Charlotte Street
up to Patton Avenue,
and then down Patton to French
Broad Avenue. If you want to participate,
check our blog for meeting time and place and then show up and Occupy Asheville
will give you Occu-cards to hand out along the parade route. http://occupyashevillenc.blogspot.com/
11/18/12 ETHICAL SOCIETY OF ASHEVILLE MEETING
“Criminalization of the Homeless” will be presented by John Spitzberg at the
Sunday, November 18th meeting of the Ethical Society of Asheville, 2:00-3:30
PM, held at the Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood Road in North Asheville
(off Merrimon Avenue near UNCA). Spitzberg, an author and retired educator, is
current Asheville Homeless Network president and out-going president the local
Veterans for Peace group, as well as a member of the Ethical Society of Asheville
and the Asheville Baha’i Community. The topic will cover a growing trend in our
country and provide information regarding steps that can be and have been taken
to deal with this population. There will be a discussion period following the
presentation. Following the meeting, there will be time for informal
conversation. All are welcome! For more information contact: asheville@aeu.org,
www.aeu.org, ethicalsocietyasheville@gmail.com or 828 687-7759.
11/19/12 MOVE TO AMEND MEETING
After a long lapse, we will finally have another meeting of our local group. We
will meet again in the lower level Religious Education space at 7:30 Pm,
Monday, November 19th. This is at Unitarian Universalist Church at Charlotte
and Edwin Sts. There will be a 20 minute DVD, "UNEQUAL JUSTICE - THE
RELENTLESS RISE OF THE 1 % COURT". Historically, it features unequal
justice for workers, medical patients and everyone.
11/27/12 BUILDING AN ABUSE FREE COMMUNITY
This is a four-part series focusing on the reality of abuse in our society. The
goal is to empower the community by enabling and energizing a broader base of
advocates to take action in preventing abuse and supporting victims in their
recovery. Time is 7 PM and location is the Fellowship Hall at Grace
Presbyterian Church on Merrimon. For more information, contact
jimrwallis@aol.com. Part Four: How does one stop the cycle? Where can a person
turn?
12/03/12 NUCLEAR FAMINE: A BILLION PEOPLE AT RISK
WNC Physicians for Social Responsibility have arranged this presentation by Dr.
Ira Helfand at The Asheville Jewish Community Center. Refreshments and social
at 6:30 PM and lecture at 7:00 PM. The presentation is also sponsored by
Veterans for Peace Chapter 099. Ira Helfand, MD will describe the range of
dangers posed by nuclear weapons including nuclear terrorism and the
possibility of large scale nuclear war between the United
States and Russia. Drawing on his new study “Nuclear
Famine: A Billion People at Risk”, he will also present the data released this
year on the catastrophic world-wide climate disruption that would follow even a
limited nuclear war as might occur between India and Pakistan. He will discuss
concrete steps we need to take and what citizens can do to lessen the danger. Contact
Lew at patrie.wncpsr@main.nc.us
for more information.
12/05/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
This is their holiday potluck with recognition awards. Please bring a
dish and a book to swap. Program starts at 7 PM and location is Unitarian Church at Edwin Place and Charlotte Street.
12/14/12 SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVIE NIGHT AT UU CHURCH
Social Justice Film night will feature “I AM” a film about a man’s personal
journey after a bicycle accident, ‘the nature of humanity’ and the ‘world’s
ever-growing addiction to materialism’. Time is 7 PM and will be shown at the
Unitarian Universalist Church at Charlotte and Edwin Place. Donations accepted. Info
from devwilliams@juno.com.
*******************************************
ONGOING EVENTS
*******************************************
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.
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
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.
U.S. Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler, lamenting his career, said,
I spent 33 years and four months in active military service and during that period I spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. I helped purify Nicaragua for the International Banking House of Brown Brothers in 1902–1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for the American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make Honduras right for the American fruit companies in 1903. In China in 1927 I helped see to it that Standard Oil went on its way unmolested. Looking back on it, I might have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents.
They are artists of torture,
They are artists of pain and fatigue,
They are artists of insults and humiliation.
Where is the world to save us from torture?
Where is the world to save us from fire and sadness?
Where is the world to save the hunger strikers?
The US military
censored the rest of this poem.
Humiliated in the Shackles – by Sami al Haj
When I heard pigeons cooing in the trees,
Hot tears covered my face.
When the lark chirped, my thoughts composed
A message for my son.
Mohammad, I am afflicted.
In my despair, I have no one but Allah for comfort.
The oppressors are playing with me,
As they move freely about the world.
They ask me to spy on my countrymen,
Claiming it would be a good deed.
They offer me money and land,
And freedom to go where I please.
Their temptations seize my attention
Like lightning in the sky.
But their gift is an evil snake,
Carry hypocrisy in its mouth like venom.
They have monuments to liberty
And freedom of opinion, which is well and good.
But I explained to them that
Architecture is not justice.
America,
you ride on the backs of orphans,
And terrorize them daily.
Bush, beware.
The world recognizes an arrogant liar.
To Allah I direct my grievance and my tears.
I am homesick and oppressed.
Mohammad, do not forget me.
Support the cause of your father, a God-fearing man.
I was humiliated in the shackles.
How can I now compose verses? How can I now write?
After the shackles and the nights and the suffering and the tears,
How can I write poetry?
My soul is like a roiling sea, stirred by anguish,
Violent with passion.
I am a captive, but the crimes are my captors'.
I am overwhelmed with apprehension.
Lord, unite me with my son Mohammad.
Lord, grant success to the righteous.
Sami al Haj was finally released and he re-joined his family. It is hard to believe that this evil still continues today.
The below is a guest post by former FCNL legislative secretary Bridget Moix.
The title of the article alone should have sent us all straight to
FCNL’s legislative action center to write a letter of protest to our
members of Congress. “Plan for hunting terrorists signals U.S. intends to keep adding names to kill lists,”
the October 23, Washington Post headline read, the latest in its
“Permanent War” series. My stomach turned as I read. “Hunting”? “Kill
lists”? Is this really how far our foreign policy has fallen?
No. It’s worse actually.
The article, which should be required reading
for every member of Congress, goes on to describe how the U.S.
government is developing a new “disposition matrix”, a high-tech
database designed to go beyond current kill lists and drone strikes
to more deeply institutionalize the policy and practice of targeted
killing “for the long haul”, with little to no accountability or
transparency.
There was a time when such a report would have led to public outrage
and congressional hearings, when assassination was not publicly
acceptable as a tool of U.S. foreign policy (even if it was still
covertly practiced), and when the thought of it violated our fundamental
understanding of democracy and rule of law, as well as our national
moral conscience.
But no longer. The global war on terror begun by the Bush
administration and fervently pursued in modified form under Obama has
permeated nearly every aspect of our national life and, according to the
Post article, is only reaching its “midpoint.” So, never mind Iraq and
Afghanistan, we’ve got at least 10 more years of killing ahead of us,
and now we’ve got a fancy global database to make it easier. Thank you,
U.S. taxpayers.
In fact, the policies and practices now being institutionalized as
core parts of U.S. foreign policy – from kill lists to drone strikes to
this new, all-too Hollywoodesque “matrix” – would have once turned the
stomachs of most Americans and sparked at least congressional debate if
not legislative restraining action. Governments that practiced
assassination were once shunned because voters and decision-makers alike
understood that such policies threaten national and global security,
fuel violence and attacks, waste enormous amounts of taxpayer dollars,
undermine the rule of law, and violate our moral conscience. If one
government, no matter how powerful, decides it can kill who it wants,
where and when it wants, what’s to stop other countries from deciding
they can as well?
Unfortunately, policymakers and the public seem to be forgetting that
history, replacing it with a new “all war, all the time” mentality that
is driving U.S. foreign policy – straight into the ground.
Assassination as foreign policy has become not only acceptable, but
largely accepted by the U.S. public and Congress. Permanent war is
becoming the norm. U.S. government officials pride themselves on how
many “terrorists” have been killed on their watch; presidential
candidates argue over who will be the best at targeted killing. Most
worrisome, few in the public and even fewer in Congress stand up in
protest.
So what’s the antidote to permanent war mentality and high-tech matrix assassination? Forgive me for repeating myself, but, we are.
Concerned citizens like us who still become disgusted and outraged by
articles that tell us our government is engaging in such immoral and
ineffective policies, and who write letters,
visit our members of Congress, and urge policymakers to
institutionalize peaceful prevention of deadly conflict, not permanent
war. No database, drone, or kill list can yet compete with the power of
individual conscience and human relationship.
Comment (somewhat updated) made on 11/7/07 on Iraq Today
blog.
Whenever we put these posts together, we do read a lot.And a great deal of it is confusing. I
have read that America invented
al Qaeda, al Qaeda is the true Iraqi resistance, and al Qaeda is run and funded
by Saudi Arabia.I read that the Kurds causing trouble for the
Turks are actually Turkish Kurds. I read the US is really running the PKK.
I read about tribes in Iraq turning on al Qaeda - but it seems to me that
they are fighting US troops LESS not because they turned on al Qaeda, but because
the US is paying them off (I am all for that, by the way, although it does have
it's problems).
I remember the US
military saying their policy was to "villainize Zarqawi, leverage
xenophobic response"-- which just makes me sick to think they have (had?)
a policy of making ordinary people afraid. But of course, that was the
whole point behind "shock and awe" wasn't it?
So, would they invent al Qaeda? Is Sy Hersch right in claiming that the
bush administration is arming and funding Sunni extremist groups in parts of
the Middle East? I think so.But there are a few things that are true - I know they are true – in this
post. First, is the picture of the
ordinary man calling his family to reassure them. That is (or was) 95% of
Iraqi people.And a couple more true
things are in the articles under COMMENTARY below.
Americans are willfully ignorant.
And, we are also a nation of people deep in denial - we have a new candidate
for Attorney General who cannot figure out if torture is torture - or if it is
illegal. And that is because about 40% of our willfully ignorant nation
supports torture. They stupidly believe that it will give us good
information, and excuse it on that ground.And then there is a small minority who are just sick sadistic fucks.And lately, we have the myth being pushed by
our politicians that the occupation of Iraq
was a noble endeavor, with great sacrifice and bravery by our US troops, that was just mismanaged
AND/OR ruined by the ingrate Iraqis. In short, our intentions are good
and our actions are benign (or we try our best to be benign).
THIS IS A FUCKING LIE.
I recently came across articles from Rep. Waxman asking if was worth it to have
US
troops die for Mylaki's corruption..... with no mention of the corruption and
plunder done by US citizens and troops in Iraq, which is vastly worse.I often here or read about US Democratic
candidates talking about how our "brave" and "unselfish"
troops are just being asked to do too much, and do it under incompetent
leadership (meaning Bush - they
never see their own part in it - they too are willfully ignorant).They never seem to notice the Iraqi people
and how many of them are suffering from the presence of US troops in their
country.I really recommend reading the
articles under the COMMENTARY (link above) in full.
And I wonder if American society can ever be stopped from all this militarism
and war-mongering and human rights abuses - in short, from all this EVIL.
Michael Massing has written a very important story about at very important
truth: the main reason that the American people are so deeply uninformed about
the reality of the war of aggression being waged in their names in Iraq
is that they do not want to know.
Massing shows that the rigorous self-censorship practiced by the American
people and the media is actually worse than the machinations of Big Brother in
Orwell's 1984; at least in that fictional world, the draconian repression of
reality was imposed by force at the hands of an all-powerful state – but today
we are doing it to ourselves. Not that the Bush Regime isn't giving Big
Brotherism the old college try, but as Massing points out, there are too many
venues and formats of information dissemination for the state to control it
all, especially in the United States, where many vestiges of freedom remain.
Yet one of the most disheartening aspects of American society today is how very
little use the people make of those freedoms they still have.
Indeed, Massing's observations on Americans' self-censorship – the surrender of
the awareness of reality in exchange for self-regarding fantasy – have
implications far beyond war reportage. In our time, we are witnessing a society
voluntarily surrendering its liberties, its rights – its gumption – to a harsh
and malevolent authority. We are
witnessing a society surrendering its pride and its moral core to torturers and
thieves, liars and killers. And it is a willing surrender, as if vast swathes
of the American people are relieved that they can finally lay down the burdens
and responsibilities of freedom.
We are the Thought Police
Orwell's Big Brother never showed up. Instead of centralized Iraq war propaganda, we have an America in
which the public and the press jointly impose their own controls.
……How can such a critical feature of the U.S. occupation remain so hidden
from view? Because most Americans don't want to know about it.The books by Iraqi vets are filled with expressions
of disbelief and rage at the lack of interest ordinary Americans show for what
they've had to endure on the battlefield. In "Operation Homecoming,"
one returning Marine, who takes to drinking heavily in an effort to cope with
the crushing guilt and revulsion he feels over how many people he's seen
killed, fumes about how "you can't talk to them [ordinary Americans] about
the horror of a dead child's lifeless mutilated body staring back at you from
the void, knowing you took part in that end."
Writing of her return home, Kayla Williams notes that the things most people
seemed interested in were "beyond my comprehension. Who cared about
Jennifer Lopez? How was it that I was watching CNN one morning and there was a
story about freaking ducklings being fished out of a damn sewer drain -- while
the story of soldiers getting killed in Iraq got relegated to this little
banner across the bottom of the screen?"In "Generation Kill," by the journalist Evan Wright, a Marine
corporal confides his anguish and anger over all the killings he has seen:
"I think it's bullshit how these fucking civilians are dying! They're worse
off than the guys that are shooting at us. They don't even have a chance. Do
you think people at home are going to see this – all these women and children
we're killing? Fuck no. Back home they're glorifying this motherfucker, I
guarantee you."
…..In most wars, nations that send their men and women off to fight in distant
lands don't want to learn too much about the violence being committed in their
name. Facing up to this would cause too much shame, would deal too great a blow
to national self-esteem. If people were to become too aware of the butchery
wars entail, they would become much
less willing to fight them. And so the illusion must be maintained that war is
a noble enterprise, that the soldiers who wage it are full of valor and
heroism, that in the end their intentions are good and their actions benign.
>SEN. ELIZABETH DOLE (R-NC): You know, I think what this
shows is that the Iraqis are putting their past behind them, the establishment
of the rule of law. I feel that, you know, this, this will mean they’re moving
forward. Certainly, a madman who had, in his focus, the preparation of
nuclear weapons, this will, I think, be received as the right thing, and you
know, I don’t expect that it’s going to, to have that much effect one way or
the other.<
She sure says
“you know” a lot – funny coming from someone who (apparently) doesn’t know what
she is talking about.
>SEN. DOLE: Let me, let me talk about David Fromme, who is one of the people
in the article, and his concern about the way it was publicized, the press
release. David Fromme’s bottom line is, the war, just as the same—the same as
in 2003, the war was right, we need to win the war and it would be disastrous to
lose. That’s his bottom line. That’s, that’s what he’s concerned about. And you
know, it’s almost as if the Democrats, you know, it’s like they’re content with
losing because to pull out, to withdraw from this war is losing. No question
about it. You look at...
MR. RUSSERT: The Democrats are content with losing.
SEN. DOLE: The Democrats appear to be content with losing because
they’re to...<
Well, Mrs. Dole,
it was the REPUBLICAN congress and REPUBLICAN president that started and conducted
this war, not the Democrats. So the Democrats were not in charge of
“losing” at all – that is something you and your buddies did all by yourself.
>SEN. DOLE: ...because when you pull out, this is losing. That we know that
it becomes a breeding ground.....a breeding ground for terrorists. We’ve got Iran and Syria
sitting there on each side of Iraq.<
And of course,
the current Iraq
war, as it is being run, is just a breeding ground for hope, peace, democracy and
stability, and certainly not more terrorism.
RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT………
Notice how she went from blaming the Democrats to starting to blame Syria and Iran? It’s always someone
else’s fault with Mrs. Dole and her companions. Now, if the Bush
administration decides to negotiate with the countries of Syria and Iran, then
one would suspect that Mrs. Dole’s head would explode - along with all the
other idiots who believe that they should blame everyone except the guilty
parties for the mess in Iraq THAT THEY CREATED ALL BY THEMSELVES!!!
11/05/12 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL AT UNCA
The film starts at 7 PM and is sponsored by Amnesty International UNCA.
Location is Highsmith University Union, Room 143 (Grotto). “The Invisible
War” brings to light the sexual abuse within the US military. People who were
raped by fellow service-men present their personal stories alongside an
investigation into why rape occurs at such a high incidence within the
military, and how it is handled. There are scenes of violence in this
movie.
11/06/12 ELECTION DAY
Do not sit out an election - no one gains a voice or more power by not
participating. Some recommendations for non-partisan races at the end of
this email.
11/07/12 SIERRA CLUB MEETING
Chris Mathis will discuss “Why Building Matter: Sustainability
Challenges”. Instruction on improving efficiency, ventilation and
air quality will be available. Program starts at 7:15 PM and location is Unitarian Church at Edwin Place and Charlotte Street. For more
information contact judymattox@sbcglobal.net.
11/07/12 CONCERT TO HONOR BREAD AND ROSES STRIKE
Charlie King and Karen Brandow will present extraordinary songs of ordinary
people and a second-set performance marking the 100th anniversary of the
history-making Bread and Roses textile strike, on November 7 at 7:30 at UNC
Asheville’s Highsmith Student Union. Tickets are free for UNC Asheville
students, faculty and staff and $10 for the general public. This is
co-sponsored by the UNC Asheville Foreign Languages and Political Science
departments and HOLA. FMI, contact hras@humanrightsaction.net or call
314-374-7446.
11/07/12 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL AT UNCA
The film starts at 7 PM and is sponsored by Amnesty International UNCA.
Location is Highsmith University Union, Room 143 (Grotto). “Bidder 70”
will be shown. At a federal auction for land parcels in Utah, young Tim DeChristopher bids for land
that he can-not afford, in an attempt to halt and draw attention to the
process. In spite of a nullified sale, his act of civil disobedience was
harshly pursued by the judicial system.
11/08/12 - 11/11/12 LAKE JUNALUSKA PEACE CONFERENCE
The fifth annual
Lake Junaluska Peace Conference, "Love in Action: the Transformative
Power of Nonviolence," will draw upon the lessons of nonviolent campaigns
and their leaders who discovered a force that can change the world.
Participants will explore the principles and learn the applications of
nonviolence as taught by Gandhi, King, and many spiritual leaders who offered
this alternative paradigm for resolving conflict, achieving justice, and
building peace. For more information: www.lakejunaluska.com/peace.
11/08/12 THE GENERAL’S SON: JOURNEY OF AN ISRAELI IN PALESTINE
In 1997, a tragedy struck the family of Israeli-American Miko Peled: His
beloved niece Smadar was killed by a suicide bomber in Jerusalem. That tragedy propelled Peled onto
a journey of discovery. Peled's title for his talk is "Moving Beyond
Zionism: a New Paradigm for Israel
and Palestine."
Location is Simpson Hall at A-B Tech. Time is 7 PM. This is
sponsored by Western Carolinians for Peace and Justice in the Middle
East. Open to the public. For more information, email
Tony at bingtony@yahoo.com.
11/08/12 COMMUNITY EVENT AROUND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
“PRIVATE VIOLENCE” is a collaborative community event to raise awareness about
domestic and sexual violence in our region. A portion of the proceeds will go
to support domestic and sexual violence programs in our community. This
will be at the Fine Arts Theater. No further information at this time.
11/08/12 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL AT UNCA
The film starts at 7 PM and is sponsored by Amnesty International UNCA.
Location is Highsmith University Union, Room 143 (Grotto). “Taking Root:
the Vision of Wangari Maathai” will be shown. This film tells the
dramatic story of Kenyan Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai whose
simple act of planting trees grew into a nationwide movement to safeguard the
environment, protect human rights, and defend democracy—a movement for which
this charismatic woman became an iconic inspiration.
11/08/12 CHEMTRONICS SUPERFUND SITE
A community advisory group will meet at the East Asheville
Recreation Center
on Tunnel Road
at 3:30 PM. There will be a discussion of what will become of the
Chemtronics Superfund site, now owned by Halliburtion Company. Info at http://avl.mx/ly.
11/09/12 SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVIE NIGHT AT UU CHURCH
Social Justice Film night will feature “Peaceable Kingdom” a film about the awakening
conscience of several farmer who came to question the killing of animals. Time
is 7 PM and will be shown at the Unitarian Universalist Church at Charlotte and
Edwin Place.
Donations accepted. Info from devwilliams@juno.com.
11/09/12 HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL AT UNCA
The film starts at 7 PM and is sponsored by Amnesty International UNCA.
Location is Highsmith University Union, Room 143 (Grotto). “Brother
Number One” will be shown. After traveler Kerry Hamill’s ship is blown
off course into Cambodian waters, he and his friend are captured by the Khmer
Rouge, tortured as enemies of the Cambodian people, and put to death. Decades
later, his brother travels to the first trial of the Extraordinary Chambers in
the Courts of Cambodia, a special U.N. sponsored judicial body created to try
former operatives in the Khmer Rouge, where a former warden of prison camp S-21
tries to deflect his responsibility for the murders he committed.
11/10/12 BUNCOMBE FRUIT AND NUTS CLUB
The Buncombe Fruit and Nuts club announces the Carnival of Nuts! You’ve
known it all along: Asheville
is nuttier than a fruitcake! So come enjoy some true nuttiness at the West End
Bakery on November 10 from 5:30-9pm, and bring the kids for family fun. All
funds raised go to the Buncombe Fruit Nuts, a group of nut and fruit
enthusiasts who are happy to plant and nurture shrubs and trees in the parks
all over town. There’ll be awesome door prizes (win your own nut tree),
games like the Acorn-Squirrel toss for kids, nut-cracking demonstrations
featuring the Nutcracker himself, acorn magic, special viewings of the
nut-blimp, the nuttiest poem, and more.
11/10/12 THE GENERAL’S SON: JOURNEY OF AN ISRAELI IN PALESTINE
This event is in Charlotte NC. Time is 6 PM and location is Muslim American
Society
4301 Shamrock Drive.
Donations accepted. FMI at cpwj.contact@gmail.com.
11/10/12 STUDIES IN NONVIOLENCE
Studies in Nonviolence: Ethics & Applications, An Activists’ Dialogue.
This will be at the Lake Junaluska Peace Conference and the time will be
3 to 4:30 PM. There is no charge for this presentation. See below
for more information and carpooling.
11/11/12 RING BELLS FOR ARMISTICE DAY Armistice
Day: Ring Bells For Peace @ 11am. Asheville Friends
Meeting will ring a bell 11 times at 11 AM (close of worship) to mark this
occasion.
11/11/12 ALL DAY (24 HOUR) VIGIL BY LOCAL VETERANS FOR PEACE
This is to mark Armistice Day. Contact Tom at tpeacenik@gmail.com for more information.
11/11/12 EAT AT MIKE’S
Location is First Congregational UCC in Asheville
on Oak Street
downtown. Time is 5 PM to 8 PM. This is the WNC health Advocates'
annual dinner and auction. Tickets are a minimum donation of $20 and will be on
sale at The Downtown Market, or call 828-243-6712 or e-mail
leslie@wnchealthadvocates.org.
11/11/12 REMEMBER FALLUJAH WEEK
11/12/12 HONOR CARDS (HOLIDAY CARDS) KICK-OFF
Come hear artist William Mangum tell the story behind his holiday cards, and
hear the inside story told by the actual men depicted who reside at the
Veteran’s Restoration Quarters. Time is 7 PM and location is Veterans’
Restoration Quarters on Tunnel
Road. Proceeds from the sale of the cards
support Steadfast House and Veterans Restoration Quarters.
11/13/12 BUILDING AN ABUSE FREE COMMUNITY
This is a four-part series focusing on the reality of abuse in our society.
The goal is to empower the community by enabling and energizing a broader
base of advocates to take action in preventing abuse and supporting victims in
their recovery. Time is 7 PM and location is the Fellowship Hall at Grace
Presbyterian Church on Merrimon. For more information, contact
jimrwallis@aol.com. Part Three: How can one be abused on the internet?
Why should one be more aware while on Facebook?
11/15/12 VETERANS FOR PEACE ISSUES MEETING
This will be at 6:30 PM at the Phil Mechanic Building
on Roberts Street
in Asheville.
NOT CLEARED YET WITH LANDLORD.
11/16/12 PROTEST THE SCHOOL OF THE AMERICAS AT FORT BENNING
11/17/12 MOVIE SHOWING BY WNC PHYSICIANS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
They will be showing the blockbuster expose' film “9/11: EXPLOSIVE
EVIDENCE--THE EXPERTS SPEAK OUT” at the Transylvania County Library at 2 PM on
Saturday, November 17. The film blows the "Official Conspiracy
Theory" of the Bush administration apart by focusing on the 3 WTC
buildings. The film is FREE but we'll accept small donations to offset the cost
imposed by the library. Also sponsored by Transylvanians For Peace.
Contact Don at gaia@comporium.net for more information.
11/1712 BLUE RIDGE LIBERTY PROTEST AT VANCE MONUMENT
Chase Rachaels and Justin Stow representing blueridgelibertyproject.com and
announced a protest/rally AT 2 PM as an introductory event for the organization
and an effort to align people with their purposes: antiwar action, avoiding
initiation of force, proactive parenting.
11/18/12 ETHICAL SOCIETY OF ASHEVILLE MEETING
“Criminalization of the Homeless” will be presented by John Spitzberg at the
Sunday, November 18th meeting of the Ethical Society of Asheville, 2:00-3:30
PM, held at the Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood Road in North Asheville
(off Merrimon Avenue near UNCA). Spitzberg, an author and retired educator, is
current Asheville Homeless Network president and out-going president the local
Veterans for Peace group, as well as a member of the Ethical Society of
Asheville and the Asheville Baha’i Community. The topic will cover a growing
trend in our country and provide information regarding steps that can be and
have been taken to deal with this population. There will be a discussion period
following the presentation. Following the meeting, there will be time for
informal conversation. All are welcome! For more information contact:
asheville@aeu.org, www.aeu.org, ethicalsocietyasheville@gmail.com or 828
687-7759.
11/27/12 BUILDING AN ABUSE FREE COMMUNITY
This is a four-part series focusing on the reality of abuse in our society.
The goal is to empower the community by enabling and energizing a broader
base of advocates to take action in preventing abuse and supporting victims in
their recovery. Time is 7 PM and location is the Fellowship Hall at Grace
Presbyterian Church on Merrimon. For more information, contact
jimrwallis@aol.com. Part Four: How does one stop the cycle? Where
can a person turn?
*******************************************
ONGOING EVENTS
*******************************************
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.
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
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.
*******************************************
ACTIONS AND READINGS
*******************************************
From Roots Action:
Even the New York Times wants out of Afghanistan.
Who's left supporting 2 (or 12?) more years in Afghanistan? Oh yeah, those 4 guys.
Obama, Biden, Romney, Ryan.
Studies in Nonviolence: Ethics & Applications - An Activists’ Dialogue
Saturday, Nov. 10 from 3-4:30 p.m, in conjunction with the Lake Junaluska Peace
Conference
Pacifism, Nonviolence, Diversity of Tactics; How can we
engage these concepts in ways that build toward a broader, deeper justice
movement?Join Peace Conference speaker
Michael Nagler, NC Peace Action, Veterans For Peace, the New South Network of
War Resisters & Occupy Asheville's Nonviolent Direct Action Trainers Group
in an interactive dialogue on effective strategies and tactics of resistance to
racism, militarism, sexism, poverty and ecological destruction.
Attendance at the Activists' Dialogue is open to all without charge.You are also welcome to stay (at no charge)
for the Saturday evening program with Nobel prize winner and
Liberian activist Leymah
Gbowee.For information in Asheville and possible
carpooling, call 828-242-5610 or 828-301-6683.If you are going and have room in your vehicle, please let us know at newsouthnetwork@gmail.com.
******************
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NON-PARTISAN RACES
NC Supreme Court: Sam Ervin IV NC Court of Appeals Judge: Linda McGee NC Court of Appeals Judge: Wanda Bryant
NC Court of Appeals Judge: Cressie Thigpen
Soil & Water Conservation Dt. Supervisor: Jim Coman
County Board of Education At-Large: Paul (Dusty) Pless, Jr.
County Board
of Education (North Buncombe): Ann
B. Franklin
County Board of Education (Owen District):
Ben Craig
County Board of Education
(Roberson District): Steven Weir Sizemore
In this magic hour of softening light
The moments in between the day and the night
The instant when all shadows disappear
The distance in between the love and the fear
There's a longing deep within the wandering soul
It's like the half that understands it once was whole
Like the two who only dream of being one
Like the moon whose only light is in the sun
There's a danger in forever looking outside
You start to believe that all your prayers have been denied
And you forget the sound of your own name
And thus begins the suffering and the pain
I wanted an answer, I wanna know why
I wanna know is there heaven on Earth and peace inside
And I wanted a reason, I wanna know why
Can there never be heaven right here on earth and peace inside
Inside my heart
Deep in my soul
Within each part
And in the whole
There's a promise in the journeys of the mind
You begin to believe that there are miracles you will find
And that someday you'll remember who you are
The seed within a bright and shining star
That's like the flame that lives within a hungering heart
That only awaits a gift of love for it to spark
Into a fire that burns forever, endlessly
Like the river that can't help but meet the sea
In this magic hour between the dark and the dawn
In the space between the silence and the song
Suddenly the mystery is clear
That love is only letting go of fear
Love is the answer and love is the way
Love is in knowing just what to do and what to say
And love is the reason, love is the why
And love is in heaven right here on earth and peace inside
Inside your heart
Deep in your soul
Within each part
And in the whole
Love is the answer and love is the way
Love is in knowing just what to do and what to say
Love is the reason, love is the why
And love is in heaven right here on earth and peace inside
Iraq
– The Al Basrah Maternity Hospital reported 1.37 birth defects per 1,000
children born in the period of the year ending October 1995. In the full year
of 2003, by contrast, that rate was 23 birth defects per 1,000 births. By 2009,
the rate in Iraq's
second-largest city had jumped again to a peak of 48. [There are also evidence
shown for high levels of birth defects in Fallujah, and other areas of Iraq are also showing health effects since the US war of aggression on Iraq.]
USA STILL
IN IRAQ:The Pentagon says it will be able to fund the
training of Iraqi security forces for the next 90 days, even though Congress
did not include money for the program in its temporary budget resolution.
Iraq – A
series of attacks across Iraq
on Tuesday killed six people, including three soldiers and a judge, police and
health officials said.
Iraq
– On Wednesday morning, CNN anchor Soledad O'Brien asked the Utah Republican if he had "voted to cut the
funding for embassy security." "Absolutely," Chaffetz said.
"Look we have to make priorities and choices in this country. We
have…15,000 contractors in Iraq.
We have more than 6,000 contractors, a private army there, for President Obama,
in Baghdad.”
Iraq – Turkey bombs Iraq.Again.
Iraq –
Eleven more killed in bombings and shooting in Iraq. In September alone, some 365
people were killed across Iraq,
making it the country's deadliest month for more than two years, says the
government.
Iraq
– A string of bombings and other attacks primarily targeting the country’s
Shiite community on Saturday [October 27] left at least 40 dead.
Iran - Senator
Graham said this about Iran
on 10-1-12:"They have two goals:
one, regime survival. The best way for the regime surviving, in their mind, is
having a nuclear weapon, because when you have a nuclear weapon, nobody attacks
you."And that is the real reason
why the US government does
not want Iran
to get a nuclear weapon.
Iran – Iran’s
currency plunges 40%.Iran deployed riot police in Tehran
after street protests broke out over Iran's falling currency. [Other sources said it dropped 60% in 8 days.]
Iran –
Medicine crisis in Iran
due to sanctions. "We are feeling the shortage mostly for cancer and MS
drugs. Of course, thalassemia and dialysis patients are also facing hardships.
These all are rooted in problems which have been caused by sanctions against
the banking sector and difficulties transferring foreign currency," the
Tabnak website quoted Hashemi as saying on Tuesday. [It is the USA that should
be under sanctions.]
Iran – Britain has decided that the USA will not be allowed to use their bases for
attack on Iran.
Afghanistan
– The country is in worse shape than before the surge. According to most of the
yardsticks chosen by the military — but not all — the surge in Afghanistan
fell short of its stated goal – stopping the Taliban’s momentum. In August
2009, insurgents used just under 600 homemade bombs on U.S.-aligned forces.
They used just over 600 homemade bombs on U.S.-aligned forces in August 2012.
Afghanistan
– The outgoing head of the delegation of the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) in Afghanistan,
Reto Stocker, declared in Kabul
today that for ordinary Afghans the armed conflict in the country has taken a
turn for the worse.
Afghanistan
– Seven Royal Marines arrested on suspicion of murder in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
– Afghan officials said on Monday [October 15] that a NATO air strike killed
three children while it was targeting Taliban insurgents planting mines on a
road in southern Afghanistan.
Afghanistan
– US troops killed four children who were tending to livestock in the country's
east.The operation took place in the
Baraki Barak district of Logar province on Saturday [October 20].
Afghanistan
– Two more US
soldiers killed in “green-on-blue” attack. [October 25]
Afghanistan
– Two more US
soldiers killed in “green-on-blue” attack.[October 30]
Afghanistan
– The Taliban Hit Region Seen as 'Safest' for Afghans.
Pakistan
– A US
drone strike targeting a vehicle killed at least three persons Monday [October
1]in Mir Ali, security officials said. Another security official confirmed the
attack and casualties and said the identities of the militants killed in the
strike were not immediately clear. [How do they know they are militants if they
don’t know the identity?]Monday's U.S. drone strike (on 10-1-12) is the 31st of
its kind in Pakistan
since 2012. So far this year, at least 222 people have reportedly been killed
in such strikes.
Pakistan
– According to Conflict Monitoring Center,
nearly 3,000 people have been killed in U.S.
drone strikes since 2004 in Pakistan,
including more than 300 in 38 drone attacks this year alone. Last year, 609
people were killed in 75 drone attacks in Pakistan, according to the agency.
Pakistan
– A nine-mile convoy (led by Imran Khan to protest US
drone strikes) heads towards South Waziristan
as local officials say it will not be allowed to proceed.Thousands of Pakistanis, joined by US
anti-war activists, have headed toward Pakistan's volatile tribal
region to protest against American drone strikes despite threats from the
Taliban.
Pakistan
– A US
drone strike targeting a militant base has killed five insurgents in a Pakitani
tribal region near the Afghan border.[I
wonder who they really killed.]
Pakistan
– A US drone attack on
Thursday killed 18 insurgents – mostly Afghans – at a militant compound in the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) near the border with Afghanistan,
officials said.
Pakistan
– “I will never forget what the American soldiers did to my country, my
tribe and my family. They violated our national sovereignty and our Islamic
laws. They killed my son and my younger brother. They destroyed my home. If I
see the soldiers who are responsible for this – if I have the opportunity — I
will kill them.” (translated from Pashtoun) These are the chilling words
of Kareem Khan, a Pakistani journalist from a tribe in Northern
Waziristan, whose compound was destroyed by a Hellfire missile
from an American drone on Dec. 24, 2009. They starkly illustrate the concept of
“blowback.”
Pakistan
– Interior Minister Rehman Malik said
Wednesday that the majority of those killed in drone attacks were innocent
people. Speaking to the media outside Parliament, Malik said there were
336 drone attacks conducted in Pakistan
in which 2,300 people have been killed. According to Malik, only 20 percent of
those killed in drone attacks were militants while the rest were innocent
people.
Pakistan
– A damning dossier assembled from exhaustive research into the strikes’
targets sets out in heartbreaking detail the deaths of teachers, students and
Pakistani policemen. It also describes how bereaved relatives are forced to
gather their loved ones’ dismembered body parts in the aftermath of strikes. The
dossier has been assembled by human rights lawyer Shahzad Akbar, who works for Pakistan’s
Foundation for Fundamental Rights and the British human rights charity
Reprieve. Filed in two separate court cases, it is set to trigger a formal
murder investigation by police into the roles of two US officials said to have ordered
the strikes.
Pakistan – US drones kill one person, maybe two more, and it
is “not clear” whether they had “any link to militancy” or if they were male or
female.[October 24]
Syria
- According to the US State Department, the latest supplies will include
"more than 1,100 sets of communications equipment, including
satellite-linked computers, telephones, and cameras, as well as training for
more than 1,000 activists." Such equipment allows the US-backed militias
on the ground to coordinate operations with their CIA and Turkish army
handlers. [Stated US
policy is to overthrow Assad.]
Syria –
Three suicide bombers kill 34+ and injure 120+ in Aleppo.They used cars packed with explosives.This happened in a government controlled area of the city, and multiple
suicide bombings are a mark of al Qaeda.
Syria – An Islamist militant group has claimed responsibility
for coordinated suicide bombings in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo that killed 48
people, the SITE monitoring group which tracks Jihadist websites said on
Thursday. [These are the people the US is supporting.See above.]
Syria - Some commanders [from the FSA] have given up trying
to entice defectors, and others have resorted to more desperate measures:
cajoling, duping, threatening and even drugging and kidnapping military men to
get them to change sides, or at least stay out of the fight. Without defections,
they say, the opposition cannot hope to grow, never mind prevail. “We use means
only used by the devil,” said Ahmed Qunatri, a rebel commander in northern Syria who defected from the
Republican Guard.
Syria
– Weapons intended for the Saudi military have been diverted to Syrian
rebels.
Syria –
Dozens of people were killed in a double suicide attack on a military security
branch in Harasta, just northeast of the capital Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights said on Tuesday, October 9, 2012. "Dozens of people were killed in
two suicide attacks against the air force intelligence branch in Harasta"
late on Monday, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said. "The fate of
hundreds of prisoners being held in the basements of the buildings is still
unknown," he added.
Syria –
Rebel Arms Flow Is Said to Benefit Jihadists in Syria.Most of the arms shipped at the behest of Saudi
Arabia and Qatar to supply Syrian rebel groups fighting the government of Bashar al-Assad are going to
hard-line Islamic jihadists, and not the more secular opposition groups that
the West wants to bolster, according to American officials and Middle Eastern
diplomats.
Syria –
23 Children killed by Syrian fighter jets in Syria. 44 in total killed. Rescuers
said bombs destroyed two residential buildings and a mosque, where many women
and children were taking refuge, in the strategic northwestern town, which was
captured by rebels on October 9 in a push to create a buffer zone along the
Turkish border.
Syria
– The Obama administration on Wednesday [October 31] renounced the proclaimed
leaders of the Syrian political opposition and said any group seeking to oust
President Bashar al-Assad must reject attempts by extremists to
"hijack" a legitimate revolution.[Looks like they are waking up to reality in the FSA.]
Jordan – The United States military has secretly sent a task
force of more than 150 planners and other specialists to Jordan to help the armed
forces there handle a flood of Syrian refugees, prepare for the possibility
that Syria will lose control of
its chemical weapons and be positioned should the turmoil in Syria expand
into a wider conflict. [oh, they will be positioned all right.And they are building “headquarters” there.]
Human rights – Obama waived the application of the
prohibition against child soldiers in respect to Libya,
South Sudan and Yemen
and partially waived it in the DR Congo.This was done to allow “the issuance of licenses for direct commercial
sales of U.S.
origin defense articles” and to allow military training of child soldiers.
Human rights – Attorney General Eric Holder rewards the
teams that gave torturers and murderers immunity. The DOJ still is aggressively
prosecuting John Kiriakou for talking about this torture.
Human rights – The UN will investigate civilian deaths from US
drone strikes.
Turkey – Turkey bombs Syria
after some agent in Syria
fired mortars at a town in Turkey,
killing five of their citizens. Turkey
and the USA
claim that the Syrian government was responsible.
Turkey –
The UN (and the Obama administration) condemns this mortar attack in the
strongest terms, but has nothing to say about the suicide car bombers in Syria
this week. This hypocrisy is noted by the Syrian authorities. [And the rest of
the world.]
Turkey –
The mortar used to attack the Turkish town of Akcakale
is a design specific to NATO and was given to Syrian rebels by Ankara,
according to Turkey’s
Yurt newspaper. The mortar killed one adult and four children.
Turkey -
A Syrian-bound plane intercepted by Turkey
was carrying Russian-made defence equipment destined for Syria's defence ministry, Turkish
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said. Syria
and Russia
have denied the plane was carrying illegal cargo.
Turkey –
The Turkish parliament last week authorized troop deployments beyond Turkey's
borders.
Turkey –
A second plane, from Armenia,
is forced down for inspection inside Turkey.Nothing was found, and plane continued to Aleppo.
Turkey –
The US deploys troops to Turkey.[They are in Jordan
and Lebanon
too.]
Security – US
Senate committee said that “fusion centers” spy on innocent Americans, produce
shoddy work, and waste a lot of money.These “centers” are considered to be the one of the centerpieces of DHS
counter terrorism measures.
Security – The US House of Representatives have a bill
currently in Congress to prepare/plan for a mass fatality event.Just a couple months back, DHS bought a huge
load of high power ammunition.
Security – Border agent likely killed by friendly fire.
Security – CIA proposes more drones! [Who wooda thunk it?]
Security – Eric Holder, attorney general under President
Barack Obama, has prosecuted more government officials for alleged leaks under
the World War I-era Espionage Act than all his predecessors combined.
Libya -
Obama's Libya
response highlights his foreign policy mentality.Extreme secrecy, extrajudicial
assassinations, and a self-perpetuating militarism are driving Benghazi responses. [At the end of the month,
Obama did release information.Looks
like this outpost was a CIA office.]
Libya –
Obama administration fails to secure the details of Libyans who were acting as
security personnel in Benghazi
and local leaders who met with US officials. Thereby putting Libyan lives at
risk. [And since the Libyans were working with the CIA, I would say they are
REALLY at risk!]
Libya
– The Republicans put Libyan lives at risk too.[And it is looking like this security failure will be studied more
thoroughly than the security failure of 9-11.]
Libya
– Extreme secrecy gets blown away at a Congressional hearing.Yes, there was a large CIA operation going on
at the site where Ambassador Stevens was killed.
Libya - How US Ambassador Chris Stevens May Have Been Linked To
Jihadist Rebels In Syria.
…..And if the new Libyan government was
sending seasoned Islamic fighters and 400 tons of heavy weapons to
Syria through a port in southern Turkey—a deal brokered by Stevens' primary
Libyan contact during the Libyan revolution—then the governments of Turkey and
the U.S. surely knew about it.
Libya –
State Department admits it knew Libya
attack [against Stevens] was terrorism. [They have not yet admitted that the
NATO bombing of Libya
was also terrorism.]
Libya – Libya’s
third government in less than a year is over. Libya’s prime minister-elect failed
a confidence vote by an overwhelming margin on Sunday, removing him from office
and throwing the country into yet more political uncertainty.
Libya
– Shelling by Libyan pro-government forces has
killed three people including a child in the former Gaddafi stronghold of Bani
Walid, a local militia leader said on Tuesday, October 9, 2012.
Libya
– At least five Libyans have died and dozens have been wounded in fighting
around Bani Walid - a former stronghold of slain leader Muammar Gaddafi.Militias allied to Libya's army reportedly shelled the
hilltop town from three sides, prompting clashes. [October 17, 2012]
Libya –
Amid conflicting reports that the Libyan city of Bani Walid was captured by army forces, RT
has learned that 600 people were allegedly killed in Wednesday’s fighting
[October 24], and over 1,000 have been hospitalized.
Libya
– The most obvious explanation is that cadres – the Green Resistance – loyal to
Qaddafi and in opposition to the NATO-imposed regime carried out the attack [on
Ambassador Stevens]. NATO and its Libyan quislings don’t want to admit this
subversive reality. The fact of a resistance – a potent and growing resistance
at that – has to be denied, erased from the record.
Libya
– The militia commander who led the deadly raid on the U.S. mission in Benghazi is an Islamist and former political prisoner whose
fighters were also blamed for assassinating a senior military officer after he
defected to the opposition during last year's revolution against Moammar Kadafi, a senior Libyan official said.
[Another claim about the party responsible for the attack on Ambassador
Stevens.]
Libya
– Human Rights Watch issued a report this month that documents torture and mass
murder and other war crimes by Misrata-based militias following the capture and
execution of Gaddafi in 2011.[Meet the
new boss, same as the old boss.]
Libya
– Libyans protest the fighting and shelling in Bani Walid. The current
government of Libya
have authorized bombing of Bani Walid.[Sure glad that we got rid of Gaddafi, since he was going to bomb a town
in Libya.
…. Oh, wait…..]
Mali -
The UN Security Council has adopted a resolution paving the way for military
intervention in Mali
to retake the north from Islamist extremists. [They are making plans.]
Africa – Bad news for Africa:3,000 more US soldier are on the way.
Yemen – US drone strike kills five in southern Yemen.
Yemen – Nine suspected al Qaeda militants were killed in
what a local security source and residents said was a U.S. drone attack on a
farmhouse outside a town in southern Yemen.The farmhouse just west of Jaar, one of two southern towns that Yemen's army
took back from rebel control this summer, was hit by three separate missile
strikes at dawn, they said.
Yemen
– The drone strike, the second in four days, took place in the early evening in
the Hami and Al-Damashqa area 17 kilometres east of Maarib city.
Sudan – Sudan
threatens retaliation for an air strike on an arms factory that caused a huge
explosion and killed two people.They
have blamed Israel
for this air strike.
Honduras
– The 2009 military coup in Honduras
was one of the earliest stains on the foreign policy record of Barack Obama. The
coup has had a long, dismal and murderous aftermath.
Bahrain
– Their government outlaws protests and public gathering.USA does nothing. [Rumor has it
that Obama will speak out about this.]
Environment – US forests in the southeast are
being cut down, turned into wood pellets for export to European utility
companies.And being done in the name of
“green energy”.
Gaza
– Israeli tank fire and airstrikes kill at least three Palestinians and wound
several more on October 23. This is in response to the wounding of an Israeli
soldier on Gaza
border by a bomb.
Gaza – Israeli forces killed
2,300 and injured 7,700 people in Gaza
in the last five years.
USA
IMMORALITY – A new Pew Research poll has found that 62% of Americans approve of
drone attacks in Pakistan,
even though 49 civilians are killed for each terrorist.U.S.
drone strikes in Pakistan are
condemned by Greece (90
percent), Egypt (89
percent), Jordan (85
percent), Turkey (81
percent), Spain (76
percent), Brazil (76
percent) and Japan
(75 percent) and others, reports RT.com.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US president have a debate and
agree on drone bombings in foreign countries with no accountability or
oversight of law and no Congressional declaration of war.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US
president have a debate and agree on a war of aggression on Iran for imaginary nuclear weapons and also
agree on killing economic sanctions for Iran.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US president have a debate and
agree on indefinite detention without habeas corpus rights and eroding civil
liberties for Americans.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US president have a debate and
agree on “kill lists” for criminal suspects with no judicial oversight.
USA – Two
major candidates for office of US
president have a debate and agree on nearly all foreign policy issues,
including permanent war.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US president have a debate and
agree on imperialist interventions around the world.
USA – Two
major candidates for the office of US president have a debate and
never mention climate change. A major
freak hurricane hits NJ/NYC and causes major flooding and major damage.Scores of lives are lost.
USA
– The only person to be criminally prosecuted, and now likely jailed, as a
result of the Bush-era torture regime is John Kiriakou, who refused to
participate in torture, helped expose the program, and said on national
television that torture was wrong. The US attorney for the CIA has
succeeded in covering-up CIA's torture, again.
USA
– The US Social Security Administration wants Americans to know that they are
concerned with the safety of their workers. That is why, they now say, they’ve
ordered 174,000 rounds of lethal hollow-point bullets.
USA – The Washington Post has laid out, in there separate
articles, the details of Obama’s drone program and kill list and the people in
the administration who are responsible for this program.Murder by the USA has been “codified” and it goes
beyond just using drones to kill people. They call it the “disposition matrix”.
No one in the US can claim in the future that
“they did not know” what their government was up to.And there is no possibility that these murder
programs will go away with a new President.
USA
– Home eviction from foreclosure done by SWAT team.
"The day we see truth and cease to speak is the day we
begin to die." - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Well I hope I see you later
‘Cause it’s time for me to go
Someone just pulled over
Sure was good to know you
Go answer your calling
Go and fill somebody’s cup
And if you see an angel falling
Won’t you stop and help them up
‘Cause we are each other’s angels
And we meet when it is time
We keep each other going
And we show each other signs.
