Solidarity

THROW THE BOOK AT BUSH

2007-04-04T09:49:00.000-04:00

The purpose of a new organization called Throw The Book At Bush www.throwthebookatbush.com is to create a massive grassroots demand on House Representatives to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Bush.

The strategy is simple—inundate the offices of every House Representative in the U.S. Congress with thousands of copies of a book called the “Articles of Impeachment Against George W. Bush” which was recently published by the Center for Constitutional Rights one of the leading constitutional rights organizations in the nation for over 40 years.

Picture the effect of thousands of books arriving every two weeks at every House Rep’s office month after month! The hope is that Congress will eventually have to relent to popular demand and IMPEACH under the avalanche of Articles!!!

People say that Bush cannot and will not be impeached and thus effort to try to do so are futile. But the fact is that the only thing lacking to impeach Bush is political will. The high crimes and misdemeanors are there. The facts are there. The evidence exists. The only thing missing is the political will of the House to IMPEACH! The best way to show Reps that it is safe to their careers to IMPEACH is to show them that their constituents are behind their decision! The best way to graphically illustrate support for an idea is by filling up Reps’ offices with Articles of Impeachment!!!

Again the strategy is to ask hundreds/thousands of activists from every Congressional District in the nation to donate $9.25 ($5.00 + s/h of Articles) per month ($111.00 per year—but hopefully he’ll be impeached before then!) until Bush is IMPEACHED! Throw The Book At Bush will send the Articles 1st class to your House Representative every two weeks (for maximum avalanche/inundation effect!)

The “Articles of Impeachment Against George W. Bush” outlines four articles of impeachment against Bush:

Article I concerns illegal electronic surveillance via the National Security Agency.
Article II concerns the fraud the Bush committed against the American people by lying about the reasons for going into the illegal Iraq war.
Article III concerns arbitrary detention, deprivation of due process and torture.
Article IV concerns contravention of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act as well as the illegality of executive signing statements.

Please lend you support to this campaign. Please expend resources and effort to direct your constituents/readers/members to the campaign website: www.throwthebookatbush.com. Please help a simple but great campaign to take root. Please help to IMPEACH Bush!

Don't Trust ANY Government

2006-06-12T21:34:00.000-04:00

Following my rant is a new Knight Ridder article: Report Implicates 20 Nations in 'Spider's Web' of CIA Abductions

I remember a beautiful, naive time in my life when I believed that Europe had evolved enough socially in order that it was and would remain a bastion of human rights and a guardian of the highest ideals and aspirations of the human existence. I believed that the final formation of the European Community/Union would herald in a new era of positive power to counteract the growing menace of the United States. But once again the U.S. is leading a race to the bottom. Once again the leaders of the world and those who bolster those leaders are the same greedy, socially immature fuckall jackals that they have always been.

As Bertrand Russell makes abundantly clear, those who are successful at attaining and retaining power are those who desire power for its own sake. The people who are in control of our world cannot be appeased with any amount of money or comfort or luxury. The self-styled "leaders" satisfy their powerlust by controlling people and situations. The more people and situations that they control, the more they want to control. The wild-eyed lust dements their minds more and more, the more that they are able to control. And when some force opposes their control they must control or destroy that force.

The only way to stop the horrors of governments is to diffuse their power--to take away their control over us. Constitutions need to be re-written so that the people's rights are stronger than the governments. The governments need to administer to the needs of ALL their people! Governments no longer act in the interests of the majority of their people--they don't even follow their own fucking laws!!!--therefore they must be harnessed like beasts in the wild to now do OUR (99%) bidding!!!

Report Implicates 20 Nations in 'Spider's Web' of CIA Abductions

More than 20 nations - from Central Asia to Western Europe - colluded in a CIA-run "spider's web" of secret flights and prisons for abducted terrorism suspects that breach European and international human rights accords, a report to Europe's top human rights organization charged Wednesday.

"Rather than face any form of justice, suspects become entrapped in the spider's web," the report says.

The findings could further damage the United States' image in Europe and the Muslim world, where many people already are angry about the Iraq invasion, alleged torture of U.S.-held detainees and what they perceive as a Bush administration bias toward Israel.

Korean Farmers Protest U.S. Base Expansion and Free Trade Agreement

2006-06-11T14:24:00.000-04:00

OneWorld.net reports:

U.S. military and economic might in South Korea are being called into question this week as villagers launched a hunger strike to protest a U.S. military base expansion that would force them from their lands and farmers' unions demonstrated in Seoul against a proposed free trade agreement.

Korean authorities have arrested the head of a small village for protesting against the government's plan to expand a giant U.S. military base, known as Camp Humphreys, in Pyongtaek, about 40 miles south of Seoul.

According to residents, police arrested Kim Ji Tae when he arrived for scheduled negotiations over how to end a stand-off in two townships that would be affected by the proposed base expansion.

In response, supporters have launched a hunger strike. "This is not a problem of compensation. This is about the rights of farmers to remain on their land," Father Moon Jhung Hyun told OneWorld. The priest, who says he will not eat while Kim remains in prison, heads up the Pan-Korean Solution Committee for the U.S. Base Expansion in Pyongtaek.

This is not the first time the farmers have been evicted to make room for a military base.

Triple suicide at Guantanamo

2006-06-10T20:33:00.000-04:00

From the BBC:

Three detainees at the US base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba have died in what appears to have been a suicide pact.

The inmates, two Saudis and a Yemeni, hanged themselves in their cells.

The camp commander said the deaths - the first at the camp - were planned in "an act of warfare". Rights groups said they were driven by despair.

Landless Farmers UNITE!

2006-06-09T11:52:00.000-04:00

It is a tragedy when those who wish to cultivate domestic food supplies and to make a decent living from the timelss occupation of farming are hindered in their efforts by guardians of neoliberal globalization like Lula's government. It is also sad that governments effortlessly use emminent domain to appropriate land for military purposes yet they have trouble justifying seizure of land for the pupose of growing food and providing subsistence or a better living to the world's poor. The squatting movement needs to be encouraged all over the world. The rich and the goverments are in possession of far to much otherwise productive land which the people (99%) should take back for themselves through legal and/or extra-legal means!

The following from Wed. June 7, 2006 is from the BBC and links to the entire story at the BBC:

Landless Storm Brazilian Congress

Hundreds of landless Brazilian farm workers have stormed a congressional building in the capital, Brasilia. The protesters, carrying sticks and farm tools, smashed windows, tables and doors, overturned a car and clashed with police and security guards. Officials said about 500 people were arrested and more than 25 hurt,one seriously, in the violence. Most of the protesters are thought to be members of a militant offshoot of Brazil's main landless movement. The activists managed to force their way into an annexe of the lower house of Brazil's Congress in Brasilia. They reached a room next to one of the two main debating chambers where a parliamentary session was taking place.

First Commissioned Officer Refuses Deployment to Iraq

2006-06-08T17:07:00.000-04:00

For the first time since the start of the war, a commissioned officer is refusing to fight in Iraq. On Wednesday, June 7, 2006 U.S. Army 1st Lieutenant Ehren Watada announced his intention to disobey what he says are illegal orders to deploy to Iraq. DemocracyNOW! spoke with 1st Lieutenant Watada and his lawyer, Legrand Jones.

Put Impeachment on the Radio

2006-06-07T10:11:00.000-04:00

Below is an email that I received this morning from Democrats.com (of which I am NOT a huge fan nor do I endorse generally, but this is a worthwhile project):

Please Ask Your Local Radio Stations to Air These PSAs

This is an important project that we should each devote some time to. Cindy Sheehan, Ann Wright, Tim Robbins, Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, and Ed Asner have recorded pro-impeachment public service announcements. We'll be adding more all the time at http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/psa

How to get them on the air:

1. Call a radio station. Ask to speak with the person responsible for public service announcements and/or ask to speak with hosts you expect to be friendly.
2. Identify yourself by name and say that you are assisting the nonpartisan coalition AfterDowningStreet.org and PDA in distributing public service announcements in support of Congressman John Conyers' House Resolution 635 - which calls for an investigation of the Bush administration.
3. Tell them the PSAs are available on a website as high-quality mp3s, and that you can give them the address ( http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/psa ) and that you can send them as Email attachments or on a disc, whatever is easier. Exchange contact information and arrange to get the PSAs to the station.
4. Follow up. Be persistent, without being annoying.

Turtles Can Fly

2006-06-04T11:55:00.000-04:00

I just saw the saddest movie last night. It was also one of the best films I have ever seen. Turtles Can Fly is the story of three children living in Kurdistan, Iraq on the Turkey/Iraq border. The time period is right before the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

These three children are part of a group of war orphans and refugee children who gather land mines from the fields of farmers in neighboring towns in order to make money. There is no other work for the children to do. An intermediary buys the mines from the children and then sells them back to arms dealers who resell the landmines.

This movie is a vivid depiction of the worst part of humanity, capitalism and geopolitics. Besides the demoralizing and terrifying lives that these children are forced to live, the thing that tore most deeply into me was to see the children in one scene helping to stack spent munitions in a junkyard which contained thousands of shell casings 4 feet long and as big around as a basketball--and then a blind child calling "Daddy... Daddy... Daddy" into the canisters.

The fact that our government (or any government) sells or just gives away arms in "aid packages" in order to "forge alliances" is fucking disgusting. Politicians say that arms are necessary for safety and security. That is a lie. Arms are traded in order that the rich can stay rich or get richer and so that the powerful can become ever more powerful. I challenge anyone to find many instances where arms are used solely for their "intended" or "proclaimed" use. In infinately more instances arms get into the hands of people who use them to terrorize, rape, maim and kill INNOCENT people.

This rain of terror, this blood and pain orgy must stop. Please help to rid the world of all weapons. Ask whoever is in power who will listen to forge alliances with food, medicine, education and infrastructure instead of with tools or death.

NBA star brings trucks and bulldozers to haul away debris despite resistance from FEMA

2006-03-20T10:29:00.000-05:00

POWER TO THE PEOPLE!!! THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS A DISEASE THAT KEEPS US FROM BEING HEALTHY!!! A friend forwarded the following story to me...

*When former Utah Jazz all-star Karl Malone brought his logging company in Arkansas into Pascagoula, Miss. to clear out debris left behind by Hurricane Katrina, his team was met by a brick wall named Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and orange cones nicknamed the Army Corps of Engineers. Both said Malone wasn't authorized to bring his machinery into the area to clear private property.
Bob Anderson, a spokesman for the Army Corps of Engineers, said FEMA and the corps by law could only allow approved contractors to clear debris and that only government agencies could work on "public rights of way."
The Mailman wasn't trying to hear it.
"There was a lot of red tape, and I ain't got time for that," he told AP. "I found out that if you're going to do something good, just go ahead and do it. Once I get in my machine, no one is going to get me out. We just said 'the hell with it.' FEMA didn't approve, but we did it for the people."
Malone, an experienced truck driver and logger born in Bernice, La., spent 12 hours a day behind the wheel of his heavy machinery clearing 114 lots via the 18 vehicles he brought into Pascagoula, including a backhoe, three bulldozers and several RVs for him and his crew.
"We were totally self-contained with our own food and everything," said Malone. "We didn't want to take even one bottle of water away from these people. When we told them we were doing this for free, they looked at us like we were crazy or something."
Malone said landowners were told that debris had to be moved out to the street before it could be hauled away.
"How is a landowner who just lost everything going to pay $15,000 or $20,000 to have a lot cleared?" he asked. "I mean, there were two or three houses on top of one another in some places."
The one-time power-forward, who spent 18 seasons with the Utah Jazz and one with the Los Angeles Lakers, said he was moved by the indomitable spirit of the people who vowed to rebuild.
"Everything about this just felt right," the NBA vet tells AP. "My mom died two years ago, and in our last conversation, she told me that one day I would have to step up on a grand scale and help people. I knew this was it."

Native Harvest--great gift ideas

2005-11-18T21:23:00.000-05:00

Support a great cause by purchasing some of your Christmas gifts from Winona LaDuke's new project Native Harvest which is part of Winona's greater project, White Earth Land Recovery Project.

"Our land was once known as the medicine chest of the Ojibwes," says LaDuke. Recent history has obscured that, but Native Harvest looks to make it clear again. "What we're trying to do here is restore our traditional food system and strengthen and restore the biodiversity of our ecosystem, while at the same time creating a long-term sustainable economy," explains LaDuke. "It seems like the state of Minnesota and Governor Pawlenty have one vision of economic development [for native people]: casinos. But we have a different idea: We think this is the economy of the next millennium, one in which both the community and the ecosystem are supported, and support each other in turn."

Something is eating my blog!

2005-11-13T14:49:00.000-05:00

I swear on my own faltering sanity that I published the information below at the request of Professor Yang. Today when I went in to post the post that follows this post I noticed that this post which I thought that I already posted had disappeared. Please read Professor Yang's introduction to how environmental activists are treated in China below:

"I wanted to share the following item that I posted to my own blog citizenyang.blogspot.com about environmental activism/justice in China. This generally gets little coverage in the Western press.

Human Rights in China, a human rights organization, reported on its website http://www.hric.org/ just the other day that several environmental activists were detained by police in Hangzhou (a large city near Shanghai) for organizing an environmental NGO, “Green Watch.” Green Watch was to be the vehicle for local citizens to oppose pollution from a chemical factory.

According to HRIC, “one of the activists, Tan Kai, has been placed in criminal detention, while the others were released later that same day. Sources told HRIC that Tan Kai, Lai Jinbiao, Gao Haibing, Wu Yuanming, Qi Huimin and Yang Jianming informally organized Green Watch after monitoring the situation in Huashui Town in Dongyang City, Zhejiang Province in April this year following complaints by local residents that a chemical factory was causing serious environmental pollution. According to news reports, the villagers reported severe water pollution that was destroying crops and causing birth defects. Protests by the villagers in late March and April culminated in a violent conflict with local police on April 10, in which more than 400 police officers were reportedly deployed and many people injured. One member of Green Watch, Lai Jinbiao, was placed under criminal detention from April 12 until May 11 on the charge of “illegally providing intelligence overseas.””

The incident is consistent with a lack of respect for the rule of law by local government officials, including on environmental protection issues. (See my post from a couple of weeks ago.) What is puzzling is that the Chinese central government has been very vocal in public pronouncements about the importance of environmental protection in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics. Of course, the Olympics are not being held in Hangzhou, but rather in Beijing. . . . By the way, the charge of “illegally providing intelligence overseas” sounds like charges in other cases when activist citizens have been sentenced to lengthy jail terms for sending newspaper clippings abroad.

This is actually not the first such incident in China. There have been a growing number of incidents where local villagers have engaged in protest activities, only to be crushed by police and thugs hired by local officials."

"The Revolution Will NOT Be Funded"

2005-11-13T13:42:00.000-05:00

Hello again all! I know that in the email that I sent around to most of you I promised to really get on top of this blog. Then life happened. I left Denver for hopefully greener pastures in DC. Working many hours a week in order to make another move in less than three months, packing up my meager possessions, moving out, moving in, and beginning an all new job search--has had the effect of keeping me down for over a month. Now I hope to be on track.

It seems that I am not the only one whom life has been happening to. I think that maybe I am writing this blog for/to myself. I guess that that is OK--if it is the case though, I am going to start interjecting much more of my own narrative into this thing. If you all have time please begin interacting with this blog--it is lonely. Below is the synopsis of an article that sounds interesting but that I have yet to read. I am going to read it this afternoon though after I get some applications done. Be Well. Do Good. Love Often.

The Revolution Will Not Be Funded
(unfortunately you must scroll down to the story after following link)

"Nonprofit organizations that began as radical grassroots associations of individuals are becoming corporations that largely copy the mainstream economy. They are professional, but not educated on the ground about the actual issues; organized, but not effective; compliant with tax laws, but not responsive or accountable to community needs."--by Andrea del Moral

FBI Murdered Puerto Rican Anti-Imperialist Activist

2005-10-08T15:19:00.000-04:00

I was sitting in a coffee shop on Wednesday and the guy running the place noticed that I was reading various articles about Hugo Chavez. He then asked me if I had heard of the recent assasination of an Anti-imperialist, Puerto Rican activist. Although then I had not heard, now I have read and here it is for you. CounterPunch reported...

"It is not strange that the killing of Filiberto Ojeda by the FBI has united Puerto Ricans in a way not seen since the struggle to stop the use of Vieques for military practices. Most people in the Island believe that Ojeda was killed in a premeditated fashion on September 23, 2005, as a way of sending a message to the independentista movement. An almost identical thing happened on July 25, 1978 -the anniversary of the U.S. military invasion of Puerto Rico- in Cerro Maravilla, which were the basis of the film Show of Force with Robert Duval. On that occasion, however, the FBI hid behind the local police to conduct the operation that resulted in the assassination of two independentistas. The FBI did not do the shooting, but no one doubts that they acted as co-conspirators.

So, on September 23, 2005, in the town of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, the FBI murdered a legend, but in the process, stupidly, they created a bigger one."

Read more...

Read even more (in subsequent article = more history on Ojeda)...

Strength in Numbers!

MIT unveils $100 Wind-up computer!

2005-10-05T12:08:00.000-04:00

My collegue Dave Byer and I were recently discussing the implications of micro-economies, economies of scale and self-sufficiency or self-help of/for people in need. This new technological development (below) has far-reaching and wide-ranging implications for making micro-economies even more successful. Imagine giving a low interest loan to a family in a developing country through an organization like Coffee Kids,etc. in order that the family could begin small scale production of some product (food or wares, etc.) for sale. Then imagine the family using a donated (or earned) $100 computer in order to create the trade networks necessary to eliminate middle-persons/orgs. THEREBY giving 100% of the profit to the family! And imagine the implications of the family working together in order to significantly improve their standard of living! Nice!

Experts at the MIT have designed a laptop computer that will cost about $100. CNN News reports, "MIT Media Lab leader Nicholas Negroponte hopes to give the machines, which would be durable, flexible and self-reliant, to needy children around the world. The machine's A-C adapter would double as a carrying strap, and a hand crank would power them when there's no electricity. They'd be foldable into more positions than traditional notebook PCs, and carried like slim lunchboxes. For outdoor reading, their display would be able to shift from full color to glare-resistant black and white...Negroponte hatched the $100 laptop idea after seeing children in a Cambodian village benefit from having notebook computers at school that they could also take home to use on their own."

Read more...

See schematics...

Hats off to Professor Negroponte for this revolutionary design and hats off to MIT for supporting such radical ventures. This weekend I am going to send him a letter of support (although I am sure that he has plenty of financial and professional incentives for such a venture).

Be well Brothers and Sisters--there is hope even in dark places and times.
Strength in Numbers

ZAPATISTA Coffee and Honey!

2005-10-01T14:23:00.000-04:00

My God why hasn't anyone told me about Zapatista coffee before! Where have we all been! Lost!-- drinking socially conscious but woefully inferior varieties of "fair trade" coffees! Well this morning I found my manna--the absolutely freshest, richest, smoothest, oily dark roast ever brought forth from the bough!--grow wholly by Zapatista co-ops in Chiapas, Mexico.

If you love yourself and also want to contribute to the self-government of the indigenous Mayan people of Chiapas then buy some of these magic beans from Cafe Rebelion. As always it is more economical to buy in bulk (prices first appearing on page do not reflect S&H). If you are not a home-brewer then please encourage your local fair trade coffee shop to invest.

p.s. the homepage for Cafe Rebelion reminds me of the Beehive Collective!

Strength in Numbers

President Hugo Chavez's 1st U.S. Interview

2005-09-25T11:50:00.000-04:00

With Democracy Now! and Pacifica Radio:
If this man's plans, promises, and programs are true/accurate then Venezuela is the model to follow into the 21st century! Viva socialist experiments! Die capitalism!
Excerpt from pt. 1:
Chavez: "We want to use these infrastructures to help the poor populations. We have made some progress. We have given instructions to the president of CITGO, Felix Rodriguez. We want that up to 10 percent we refine here. We supply every day to the us 1.5 million barrels of oil, crude and product and we refine, here, close to 800,000 barrels a day refined here in the us. So we would like to take 10 percent of what we refine those products and to offer these products in several modalities to the poor populations. And the pilot project will be starting in Chicago we are already operating in Chicago. Well let’s hope that there’s not going to be any obstacle by the government opposed to this project being implemented, but we will be working in those poor populations. We have some allies, local partners and we have a number of communities, and we are going to donate some heating oil, because the winter is close, and for the school transportation to school, for the Mexican neighborhood which is the largest in Chicago, La Villita, is the name of this neighborhood with close to 900,000 inhabitants, and so there are other neighborhoods with Hispanics and Latinos. October, the 14th we’re going to start with these pilot projects with small communities and schools, but there are other pilot projects that will start in November in Boston, and here in New York."
read more...
Exceprt from pt. 2:
Chavez: "The U.S. Government which will be fully aware of the needs of Africa, the needs of the poor. Let's assume that we have a government here in the United States that overnight decides to cut in half the military expenses and withdraw the troops from around the world and declare it is the champion of peace of the world and declare itself an enemy of imperialism and then devote billions of dollars to the poor. Last year the defense budget was $400 billion in military defense. Just for one single year. One single year. For those $400 billion we can go to Africa, in the poor countries of Asia, in the Caribbean and Latin America, we can help them."
read more...
Strength in Numbers!

Goodbye Zakee--from Lee

2005-09-10T12:35:00.000-04:00

To the Friends and Family of Zakee (Rodney) Jones:
It took me some time to sit down and write this letter for two reasons, first, of course it’s a painful experience, but mostly it’s the fact that whatever could be written would fall far short of any sort of justice I could do in telling of what type of a man Zakee was and the inspiration that he brought to my life.

I had the privilege of knowing Zakee for two years. Zakee was a man that was not blind to the establishment that surrounds and suppresses him, but still he was colorblind, or at least I felt that he was in our friendship. We did not spend extremely large amounts of time together and we infrequently made plans to spend time with one another. But the conversations that we did have I’ll always treasure. Zakee, like me, came to law school for a purpose, and our shared purpose, like many of the friends that we had here, was not to practice law for the betterment of our own future, but to examine the system, and work toward an improved government of laws that is better for us all collectively.

The world has suffered a great loss with his passing, and his family and friends have suffered a great loss. I remember him telling me of his uncles, and how they noticed at an early age that there was within this man a great intelligence and for him not to waste it and waste it he did not. He was certainly on a path to greatness through his great intelligence and determination. (I was very much looking forward to moving back to Memphis so that I could attend one of his lectures, but mostly I was just looking forward to seeing my friend.) And through him we will all have to rise up and have to be stronger. There must truly be a commitment to honor Zakee and work in his name, I will and I know that I will not be alone.

I don’t remember exactly the point at which I met Zakee, but I believe it was on the basketball court. There we would howl ridicules at one another across the court, and when I missed an open lay-up during the first time we ever played together that would have won the game, he never let me forget it. As I said above, we did have a number of conversations about the structure of our government and how people are misled and deceived a thousand ways over, but many of our interactions were simple and fun as he definitely had that within his nature. He had a smile and warmth that made him very attractive to everyone that encountered him and an open heart that enabled one to know him well with ease. Something that he said and the manner in which he said it will affect me for the rest of my days -I can only hope, and I’d like to relay that message now and then I’ll close.

In the spring of 2002, there was a conference at our school, called the Student Leadership Summit, where Zakee and I both spoke. At this event I spoke directly before him. I was introduced and I nervously walked up to the podium and read the speech that I had written about the corporate media and its incongruence with democracy. There was no need for me to read, I breathed and bled this material. I knew it, but I nervously read my piece. Then Zakee came to the podium. Strong and proud, he stood then he began passionately speaking. “I’m not a hunter but I’m told in places like the Artic where one might hunt a wolf…” [this is a quotation by Chairman Omali from the International Peoples Democratic Uhuru Movement speaking on the establishment, narcotic dealers and government control] And he went on in a forceful and resounding voice, which echoed throughout the full room, and no one spoke. It was silent, as no one was breathing. And there was not a person in the room that thought that this striking metaphorical speech was not written by Zakee and the audience was captivated. Then, all the sudden a smile broke from his face, and he laughingly said, “that’s not me that’s Dead Prez.” And the room which was so silent, this room that was largely filled with white students, simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief and laughed with him. He had the ability to change from coming across as intensely passionate and even forceful about a subject that meant much to him to being jovially light-hearted as both of these characteristics were so much in his nature.

During the delivery of this speech, which still strikes me as probably the finest I’ve ever seen, I sat there thinking, that is what I want to be, that’s what I should have done. Then and there, I made a promise to myself that whenever I was to speak to speak from my heart, to show my all -to be a man always. That’s what Zakee showed me, how to be a better man. I never got a chance to tell him this, on a few occasions I almost did, and had planned to speak just on him, and a few others that have impacted my life so greatly at the law school at the same conference two years later. I’m sorry I never did, and this note is to make up for it, albeit in a lesser way.

To his family, you have my deepest sympathies for your loss; I cannot imagine how deeply this must hurt all of you. But, if it is any comfort at all, know that his memory will never fade and he truly did touch the lives of so many. –Lee Reginald Glass

Goodbye Rodney--from T.K.P.

2005-09-07T11:49:00.000-04:00

Rodney-Zakee and I have been friends since 1994 when we met in undergrad at Alabama A&M University. It is so wonderful to read such lovely comments about the impact he had on your lives as he did so many of us. He will definitely be missed. Please keep his memory in your hearts and in the work that you do. Remember the things that he stood for and how strongly he held on to his beliefs- no matter whether you disagreed or not, you had to respect him for his unwavering spirit. Rodney will truly be missed by all of us. This is a tribute I wrote Monday night when I just couldn't sleep and couldn't think...I just had to get some things out and this is what came out of it. Please keep his family in your prayers. TP

A Tribute to a King
If there ever was a king walking among us, it was Rodney (Zakee, Senoj, Jailbird) Jones. Rodney had the spirit and soul of a leader, a ruler, a rebel and the heart of a saint. He was a man of strong convictions that whatever he believed in, he never swayed or backed down from it and that's what people either loved or hated him for. Rodney has taught me so many things, but I believe the greatest thing was to be confident and unrelenting in pursuing my dreams and discovering and living in my purpose for this life. We all have a place in this whole scheme of things called life. God has a special place that He wants each one of us to be at a certain point in time, to do what His divine purpose is here on this earth and I believed that Rodney knew what that was.
Rodney was a teacher from the inside out, and he has been teaching me since I met him in plant science class at AAMU. He went from teaching me what I didn't want in a man, to in his later years, defining the characteristics that I respected and just couldn't live without- confidence and boldness, unwavering and unrelenting in his beliefs, and love and compassion for those in need. We were blessed to watch him grow and blossom into this dynamic young man that he had become and were waiting with high expectations to see what more God was going to bring forth through him.
Rodney taught me how to embrace who I was as a black woman- nappy hair, big mouth, and all of the other things that go along with being black. He made me understand that you didn't have to fit into this box that society likes to put people into. That we can live beyond that- that you should think beyond that and open our minds to new things; that we are much more than what's in that box; and much more than what people even expect of us. He made me understand that even if someone is living in a situation where we can't see our way out- maybe someone on the streets, in gang life, in poverty, or just in a bad relationship, that you can still rise up out of that situation. But not only that, but also it is our responsibility as citizens of this world and members of this human race to help our brothers and sisters up sometimes, even though we cannot always understand how they got into a certain situation. It's not our concern to look at how you got there or what you did, it's our concern to try to help you get out. This is what Rodney was all about to me, he wanted us to be and see past all of these mediocre things in life that get in the way of us being all that we can.
Whether there were social justice issues, economic or environmental issues that people faced, Rodney wanted to and did make a difference in the lives of so many people and on so many levels. So as easy as it is to do, I cannot look at this as a life cut short because in the short time he was with us it was a full life, it was overflowing with hope, determination, inspiration, bravery, and a love for people that went beyond boundaries and that is something that doesn't die that cannot die. it is something that each one of us can remember each and every time we think of him and that's what I know he would want. Remember his strong will and him not swaying from his beliefs- even in the face of death. No matter what it was that you disagreed with Rodney on; which if you really knew him you disagreed with Rodney on something whether it was religion, how to help the opressed, or whether or not to eat a hamburger!! Even after the debates, there was still always love. I will forever love Rodney Jones for all of the things that he was, is, and will always be to me. He was a king on this earth to me. I pray that you will please keep his spirit alive in your hearts always and continue to pray for his family and friends.

Goodbye Zakee--from Monica

2005-09-05T10:54:00.000-04:00

Hey David,
I just heard about Zakee. Thank you for posting spencer and megan's words about him. He was one of my favorite customers at the coop. He was always positive and supportive that first year we were open. Always curious about how to cook new food, I got to know him through his questions and his smile. later, when I became an MSEL, he would stop me in Chase and ask how everything was going and always offered words of encouragement. His positive and loving spirit will be deeply missed by those he touched.
Hope you are well,
Monica

Goodbye Zakee--from Megan

2005-09-03T22:58:00.000-04:00

Brothers and Sisters ~
Zakee and I used to dance. This is what I’m remembering right now. This is how I feel him, and his memory, right now. As friends, there was always an ease between us, a shared humor. He was wonderful. He was undoubtedly one of the strongest and most intense sources of light and inspiration that I have ever been fortunate enough to share.
As colleagues, in hallways, at the co-op, on the corner in the dead of Vermont winter, we would discuss the prison industrial complex and we would discuss the Federal Bureau of Intimidation. We always challenged one another to consider the news source, to criticize the focus of an article, and to get to the solution of the problem. We always encouraged each other to take that extra intellectual and political step, and I will always remember those exchanges, those challenges, with love and gratitude.
I also remember him talking about applying for his teaching position in Huntsville, and being preemptively thrilled for those students who would receive his perspective, his talents, and his love. The work he saw for his life, the vision he had for teaching, for pro bono legal work in the community, his passion for environmental justice, everything... He was a brilliant visionary. He was exceptional. He was amazing.
Hopefully his family will find some kind of solace in adding our stories of his influence throughout our lives and of the time we shared with him, to their knowledge of his life, and to some comprehension of his passing.
I have always counted Zakee as one of the great influences in my life, and today this has taken on a whole new meaning. He is still a brother to us all, and with humility and grace, we may continue his work and the force of his vision. He will be missed, but more importantly, he will always be loved, and he will always be honored.
With great love,
megan a. counts

Amnesty International's new "Share Power" campaign

2005-08-17T10:38:00.000-04:00

The Share Power program encourages ordinary people to tell institutional investors holding shares in their name to vote for shareowner resolutions supporting human rights.

Goodbye Zakee--from Spencer

2005-08-17T10:37:00.000-04:00

Friends,
It is a very sad day, too sad for words. Zakee touched many of us--anyone who knew him--and he will be remembered always. He enriched our lives, and our law school experience. I have sent flowers to Zakee's family--on behalf of all of us from the VLS Class of 2004. For those who would like to do the same or send a note via telefax (for now) the information is below.
I would also like for all of us to think about something meaningful we could do for his family and for all of us. I can imagine each of us compiling a story or two of his impact on us and the world. I encourage each of us to grieve in our own way.
When I think of Zakee, I remember his kindness, his love and his impact on me and others. Even when we discussed the most challenging problems in the world, he came from a position of love and hope. We spoke about making a difference in the world, and Zakee certainly did. I think some of our best discussions were around Michael Moore's book, Stupid White Men--which he recalled had nothing to do with race.
We found out about this tragedy yesterday afternoon--about an hour before the dedication of the Kim Colburn '05 and Lauren Salb '04 Memorial Garden on campus--yet another tragic loss. The unimaginable loss of Zakee was announced to the campus yesterday.
Flowers may be sent from a florist in your town. Simply provide the address of the Funeral Home and they will help you place an order. I do not know if they have asked for donations to be sent in lieu of flowers.
Jackson Memorial Funeral Home is located at 203 E. Ross St., Jackson, AL 36545.
Notes to his family may be faxed to the Funeral Home at 251-246-7013.
Sincerely,
Spencer

Rodney Kenyal Jones

2005-08-11T11:08:00.000-04:00

Rodney Kenyal Jones, a professor at Alabama A&M University in Huntsville, died Monday, May 16, 2005 at a hospital in Huntsville. He was 29.
Jones, a native of Walker Springs, was a resident of Jackson.
After graduating from Jackson High School in Jackson in 1993, he went on to graduate from Alabama A&M in Huntsville, Iowa State University and Vermont School of Law.
He passed the Alabama Bar exam last month, according to relatives.
Jones was a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and a volunteer with Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Huntsville.
Survivors include his daughter, Kiana Jones of Jackson; his mother, Cynthia Jones of Walker Springs, Ala.; three sisters, Gwendolyn Jones of Walker Springs, and Tamiko Jones Taylor and Essie Hicks, both of Jackson; five brothers, Damarcus Jones of Huntsville, Laquirro Jones and Antwan Jones, both of Walker Springs, and Patrick Phelon and Eugene Phelon Jr., both of Jackson; his grandfather, Stewart Darrington of Nashville, Tenn.; and his great-grandfather, George Darrington of Montgomery.
Viewing will be from 2 to 8 p.m. today at Jackson Memorial Funeral Home in Jackson. Viewing will also be Saturday from 10 a.m. until the noon funeral at the Jackson High School auditorium. Burial will be in Hotel Hill Cemetery in Walker Springs.

Quote from Orwell's "on the Road to Wigan Pier"

2005-08-01T13:20:00.000-04:00

"It is only very rarely, when I make a definate mental effort, that I connect this coal with that far-off labor in the mines. It is just 'coal'-- something that I have got to have; black stuff that arrives mysteriously from no where in particular, like manna except that you have to pay for it. You could quite easily drive a car right across the north of England and never once remember that hundreds of feet below the road that you are on the miners are hacking at the coal. Yet in a sense it is the miners who are driving your car forward. Their lamp-lit world down there is as necessary to the daylight world above as the root is to the flower.
...
You and I and the editor of the Times Lit. Supp., and the Nancy poets and the Archbishop of Canterbury and Comrade X, author of Marxism for Infants--all of us really owe the comparative decency of our lives to poor drudges underground, black to the eyes, with their throats full of coal dust, driving their shovels forward with arms and belly muscles of steel."

Goodbye Zakee--from Helena

2005-08-01T13:15:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends and Family,

I would first like to send my deepest condolences to everyone that knew and cared about this wonderful man. Honestly, it has taken me some time to put together how I feel without breaking into tears. However, I know Zakee would have wanted me to be strong.

I met Rodney in the early part of his journey at VLS. We instantly became friends, constantly talking about life and the law. While at VLS we encouraged each other to stay focused and to constantly advocate for Environmental and Social Justice.

With all that being said, I still find myself saddened because not only have I lost a good friend, but a man who I respected and loved. However, the opportunity to know him professionally and personally is something that I will always treasure.

Again, to his family, you are in my prayers.
Helena Wooden-Aguilar

Letter to Zakee's Mother--From Phoebe

2005-06-23T12:12:00.000-04:00

Dear Ms. Jones, June 17, 2005

I am writing to express my deepest sympathy for the loss of your son, Rodney. I attended Vermont Law School with Rodney, and I considered him my best friend. We met during the first semester and studied together for many final exams. During our study sessions, we usually drifted into other discussions about the problems in our communities and how we could work for positive change.

I know Rodney had many friends at the law school because he was always engaged in an intelligent conversation with someone. Or else he was going out to play basketball or going for a walk with a friend. Not only did Rodney make people think, but he made people smile too.

Rodney had the strongest ideals and moral convictions out of anyone I know. He was not afraid to express his thoughts, and I respected him so much for speaking up and providing an alternative viewpoint when it was needed most. He challenged the status quo by being honest and holding true to these ideals.

I just want you to know that Rodney was a bright and positive energy in my life during law school. And I know he positively affected many other students as well. I am thankful to have known him, to have had so many insightful conversations with him, to learn so much from him, and to share in a small part of his life.

In the honor of your son and to help support his daughter, a group of Rodney's academic friends would like to establish a trust fund to secure Kiana's future education. More specifically, Rodney's friends and others would donate money into a fund that would be available for Kiana's educational needs after high school. This kind of fund needs a trustee. A trustee has legal control over the fund and is responsible for certain financial and educational decisions for the benefit of Kiana. We thought you, as someone close to Kiana, might want to act as trustee. Are you interested in being involved in this manner? In addition, we need the name of a successor trustee in the event you did not want to or could not continue to act as trustee.

I would like to send you a copy of the trust that we have prepared in order for you to review it. Please let me know if this is okay and if you have any questions. My phone number is 802-824-5380. In case I do not hear from you, I will call to make sure you support the creation of this educational trust and to find out whether you would like to be involved.

Sincerely,

Phoebe Mills

U.S. & G8 Nations Agree To Cancel Debt For 18 of the World’s Poorest Countries

2005-06-13T10:47:00.000-04:00

After years of public education, organized protest, pressure from NGO's and sustained demonstrations, on Saturday, June 11, 2005, the finance ministers from the "Group of 8" (G8) industrialized nations (U.S, Britain, Japan, Canada, Russia, Germany, Italy and France) agreed to cancel the debt of eighteen (18) of the world’s poorest countries including Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guyana and Mali. An additional 20 countries could be eligible if they submit to strict structural adjustment programs mandated by the international financial agencies.

Of course, those of you who know me, know that I am skeptical of this development--I am curious as to the real motives of the G8--such as these "strict structural adjustments" that they want the countries to comply with--aren't these adjustment programs exactly what we have been protesting was wrong with the debt repayment schemes? But since only time and more information will tell, it is enough that this symbolic gesture will hopefully make people reflect and think! And think things like "Well if they are cancelling the debts of entire countries in order that those countries can have a fighting chance at survival--maybe that ought to do that for all of the poorest individuals who have been trapped by usurious interest rates offered by companies that have preyed on people's misfortune." This could actually be a very dangerous precedent if it inspires people to spin this out to some of its logical conclusions and begin fighting toward those ends.

For more on this amazing and inspiring development in the resistance against the destruction caused by globalization, Democracy Now! has interviews with Neil Watkins, National Coordinator of Jubilee USA network and a person named Andre, working with organizaitons in the UK to protest the G8 summit in Scotland.

Please let me know what you all find out about possible or explicit G8 motives.

Strength in Numbers

Goodbye Zakee--from Lee

2005-06-09T08:43:00.000-04:00

Mass Indigenous-led Rebellion Forces Bolivian President to Resign

2005-06-09T08:41:00.000-04:00

The title above is from a Democracy Now! news story run yesterday. For weeks, tens of thousands of indigenous Bolivians have led an uprising against the government, demanding the nationalization of the country's energy resources and an overhaul of the constitution. Last night, Bolivia's President, Carlos Mesa, announced he was stepping down. Amy Goodman and Democracy Now! went to Cochabamba, Bolivia to speak with Jim Shultz of The Democracy Center.

The power of mass demonstrations and strikes to force government reforms has always been fascinating to me. And still today in this world of well organized states, military might and such seeming diversity between individuals and their interests, these forms of forced reform work!

My 3 questions to you my friends (Please comment to one or more below):
1) How many people does it take to create a critical mass (via popular demonstrations, strikes, etc.) in the U.S.?
2) What historical examples come to mind? AND
3) Why has the stop-the-Iraq-war movement (or anti-globalization movement, etc.) not been able to create this critical mass?

Strength in Numbers

Independent World Television (IWT) to launch website June 15, 2005

2005-06-08T13:11:00.000-04:00

Independent World Television (IWT) is set to launch its website next week and hopes to begin broadcasting by 2007. The excerpts below, that I grabbed from their website have exciting implications for those of us interested in building large, effective social justice organizations or strengthening/consolidating those already in existence. Read some of the fundraising ideas/concepts below and check out the Founding Advisory Committee which includes such illustrious names as Amy Goodman, Howard Zinn, Jeff Cohen, Janeane Garofalo, etc.

"Independent World Television is building the world's first global independent news network. Online and on TV, IWTnews will deliver independent news and real debate -- without funding from governments, corporations or commercial advertising. Internet fundraising makes it possible.

The Problem
Serious news and full-spectrum debate—on which democracy depends—are disappearing from television. Across the globe, news media ownership is concentrated in the hands of a few entertainment conglomerates whose interests determine news coverage. They promote superficial "infotainment" over tough investigation, context and holding authority accountable. Public broadcasters face shrinking budgets and growing political and commercial pressures.

The Solution
We must change the economics of journalism.
We need a news and current affairs network which defends the public interest and the highest standards of journalism. Independent World Television will be such a network -- a non-profit broadcast service financed by its viewers across the globe, independent of corporate or government funding and commercial advertising.

Why Hasn't This Happened Before?
There were no means to directly engage people around the world to raise the funds. Now, the Internet allows millions to band together and raise capital to compete with corporate media outlets. Think of the 15 million people worldwide who demonstrated against war in Iraq on one day in 2003. Think of the Internet fundraising successes of MoveOn.org and the Howard Dean presidential campaign (senior Dean fundraisers are organizing IWTnews' fundraising campaign).

Launch Plan
The network is raising a $7 million start-up budget from individual donors and foundations. MacArthur, Ford and Haas foundations have contributed to a planning study. In its next phase, IWTnews will launch its web site and build the online community necessary for the international mass fundraising campaign launching in early 2006. The campaign will use concerts and media events headlined by socially-conscious celebrities to drive the Internet fundraising. If half a million people in the entire world contribute just $50, IWTnews will secure the $25 million it needs to fund its first year of broadcasting, in 2007.

Programming
To be seen on its own digital television channel and the web, IWTnews is also negotiating alliances with public and nonprofit channels to carry its programming. IWTnews will cover the big issues - war and peace, political campaigns, environment, global economy, civil rights, labor issues and social policy. IWTnews will hire journalists for their experience, political acumen and understanding of history. Complex issues will be addressed with energy, bite and wit. Citizen journalism will bring insight from people around the world. Informed by a commitment to social justice and respecting diversity of opinion, IWTnews will focus on news other media ignore or suppress and on individuals and groups who are transforming the world."

Divestment Campaign News

2005-06-07T09:01:00.000-04:00

SocialFunds.com ran this story today "Students and States Seek to End Genocide in Sudan Through Divestment Campaigns."

Students Taking Action Now: Darfur (STAND) are urging Stanford University to follow in the footsteps of Harvard University by divesting from specific companies who are helping to facilitate the genocide in Sudan. In early April 2005, Harvard University divested its 67,200 shares (worth $4.4 million of its $23 billion endowment) of PetroChina. STAND requested the Stanford University Advisory Panel on Investment Responsibility (APIR) to review investment in four companies. APIR, which is charged with gauging the university community's opinions on social and environmental issues as they pertain to investment, voted last week to recommend divestment from ABB, PetroChina, Sinopec, and Tatneft.

May 31, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich applauded the General Assembly for passing Senate Bill 23 to make it the first state to prohibit investing in foreign companies doing business with Sudan. Now STAND is lobbying all 40 California senators to support Assembly Concurrent Resolution #11. ACR11 urges the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) and California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) to encourage their portfolio companies doing business in Sudan "to act responsibly and not take actions that promote or otherwise enable human rights violations in the Sudan."

"Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11"

2005-06-06T10:25:00.000-04:00

Under the direction and editorial leadership of author/activist Ann Fagan Ginger, the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute has recently (April 2005) published "Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11" ("Challenging"). "Challenging" is a compendium of the human rights abuses perpetrated by the U.S., both domestically and abroad, since September 11, 2001. "Challenging" contains 185 specific reports of abuse from 30 different categories of human rights abuses ranging from the rights to life and liberty, right to be free of torture, right to equal protection, right to privacy, right to environmental protection, etc.
These reports are written in chilling detail. The book was written with the intention both of educating activists and politicians as well as being submitted as a "shadow report" to the United Nations Human Rights Commission and related bodies under the Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman of Degrading Punishment and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. A shadow report is a report made by a non-governmental organization which accompanies official reports that are to be made to the aforementioned bodies by the U.S. State Department. The State Department has totally neglected its dual duties to refrain from committing abuses under these treaties and to report on all U.S. activities which affect the human rights outlined in these treaties. "Challenging" has been endorsed by Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Michael Tigar, and Rep. John Conyers Jr.
A copy of "Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11" can be obtained for $24.00 + shipping.
To hear a dynamic speech from Ann Fagan Ginger about "Challenging" and the need for concerted effort and sustained action in peace and justice activism, please follow this link.

National Environmental Justice Advisory Council Charter Renewed for One Year

2005-06-02T09:25:00.000-04:00

Since Zakee was such an advocate for environmental justice I though that I would pass this along this item that I found on Citizen Yang.

"Last week (May 26, 2005) , EPA renewed the the charter of the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC). Since 1994, the NEJAC has been the primary body providing the US EPA with advice about environmental justice (EJ) and environmental racism issues. It has also served as a focus for organizing and activism by grassroots/community-based EJ groups."

Black Power History Exhibit

2005-06-01T14:01:00.000-04:00

"Legacy: Understanding Black Power Forty Years Later"
The Johns Hopkins University (Washington, DC)
Milton S. Eisenhower Library
February 11, 2005 – June 15, 2005

For any of you all who will be in DC over the next two weeks I just came across this amazing looking/sounding exhibit on DC IndyMedia. For those of you who will not be in DC you can view most of the exhibit online.
The exhibit declares, "The prevailing injustice was not the mere unfairness of racial discrimination. It was the absence of power in Black people to define success on their own terms and make it happen. For Black Power, justice is the power to make self-assertion meaningful."
Let us all work to together to make our self-assertions meaningful and take back the right to define success and peace and prosperity on our own terms!

Goodbye Rodney--from T.K.P.

2005-05-24T17:18:00.000-04:00

Goodbye Zakee--from Monica

2005-05-24T08:57:00.000-04:00

Goodbye Zakee--from Megan

2005-05-20T15:17:00.000-04:00

Goodbye Zakee--from Spencer

2005-05-20T12:43:00.000-04:00

Rodney Kenyal Jones

2005-05-20T12:37:00.000-04:00

"Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11"

2005-05-20T09:18:00.000-04:00

Under the direction and editorial leadership of author/activist Ann Fagan Ginger, the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute has recently (April 2005) published "Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11" ("Challenging"). "Challenging" is a compendium of the human rights abuses perpetrated by the U.S., both domestically and abroad, since September 11, 2001. "Challenging" contains 185 specific reports of abuse from 30 different categories of human rights abuses ranging from the rights to life and liberty, right to be free of torture, right to equal protection, right to privacy, right to environmental protection, etc.
These reports are written in chilling detail. The book was written with the intention both of educating activists and politicians as well as being submitted as a "shadow report" to the United Nations Human Rights Commission and related bodies under CAT and ICCPR. A shadow report is a report made by a non-governmental organization which accompanies official reports that are to be made to the aforementioned bodies by the U.S. State Department. The State Department has totally neglected its dual duties to refrain from committing abuses under these treaties and to report on all U.S. activities which affect the human rights outlined in these treaties. "Challenging" has been endorsed by Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Michael Tigar, and Rep. John Conyers Jr.
A copy of "Challenging U.S. Human Rights Violations Since 9/11" can be obtained for $24.00.
To hear a dynamic speech from Ann Fagan Ginger about "Challenging" and the need for concerted effort and sustained action in peace and justice activism, please follow this link.

Experiment

2005-05-03T13:13:00.000-04:00

Let's see what this baby can do. I will not have alot of time for conversing and convergence over the next few months as I will be studying for the Oregon State Bar Exam. But I am experimenting with this medium as an engine for social change. If any other bloggers using blogger.com read this please let me know how much traffic you get--how you increase traffic--whether you advertise--what these blogs are "doing for you" politically, economically, emotionally, etc. I am interested in using this space to inititate, discuss, promote and advance various social justice campaigns and to learn from other their tactics/strategies for gaining power for justice. Does anyone has feedback as to how effective this medium can be for these purposes? Thank you.