THE HEADLINES: October 12, 2008

 

CAN THE WEST ACHIEVE "VICTORY" IN AFGHANISTAN?

Charles Pena says that, in the current policy of defining victory as defeating the Taliban, probably it is not possible.  Victory is achievable only if the criterion of victory is "that the government in Afghanistan – even if it includes the Taliban – not provide support or safe haven for al-Qaeda."

 

"WHERE WILL THE MONEY COME FROM?"

Indian writer notes that, in India as in the U.S.A.. there is a public outcry over any government appropriations that address the "agrarian crisis" that has created numerous farmer sucides in India, whereas the "financial crisis" that has afflicted these and most other world countries generates pressure for immediate and expensive bailouts, without regard to how these projects are to be financed.

 

NOW IS THAT ANY WAY TO TREAT A GUEST?

New book on globalization and immigration describes how "guest worker" programs for the employment of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. provides a ready supply of cheap labor to American employers who use their vulnerability to deportation to insure that these workers do not deal with any foolishness like "worker rights."  

 

ALL THE NEWS THAT AMERICAN MSM HAS NOT SEEN FIT TO PRINT.

Project Censored comes out with annual Top 25 of important news stories that were ignored or underplayed by the media.  These include the under-reporting of the humanitarian crisis in Iraq, how billions of dollars of reconstruction money went "missing" in that country, the Winter Soldier hearings in D.C. in March, how no Child Left Behind has failed American children but enriched a "tutoring" industry, and much, much more. 

 

WEDGE FUNDS RETURNING TO U.S. ELECTIONS.

Just in time for the November election, guns, gays and abortion are appearing again on state ballots.  A South Dakota preacher ordains himself as the instrument of God to overturn Roe v. Wade, and here, as in Colorado, voters will be urged to troop to the polls to approve draconian anti-abortion measures and "incidentally" to vote for the GOP presidential ticket.  You know the drill: the measures might or might not pass, but the GOP wins and political leaders "forget about" abortion and other wedge issues until the next election rolls around.

 

WANT TO SEE A FABULOUS GUN COLLECTION? TRY THE CONFISCATED PROPERTIES DIVISION OF THE ORANGE COUNTY FL SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT.

Orlando Sentinel special report details the hyper-active criminal gun activity in the area.  Local enforcement agencies have recently confiscated almost as many guns as the five boroughs of New York City, which has a population 8 times that of the Orlando area. 

 

 

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“What they did may have been a scandal. But even more grotesque is the way defense procurement has disintegrated into an incestuous relationship between the military, politicians and contractors.”

Attorney for one of two men involved in a scheme involving Department of Defense contracts for missile defense projects which netted millions in kickbacks for themselves and large campaign contributions for members of Congress

TODAY'S OTHER NEWS:

 

FLORIDA

 

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Monday October 13: Gainesville FL:

FILM SCREENING: "AT THE DEATH HOUSE DOOR"

At the Death House Door is the story of the death penalty in the state of Texas, told from the perspective of Pastor Carroll Picket, who served as the death house chaplain at the infamous Walls prison unit in Huntsville, Texas for 15 years. Picket presided over 95 executions, including the world’s first lethal injection. After each execution, Pickett recorded an audiotape account of his trip to the death chamber.

Donations appreciated

Time: 8 PM

Location: Civic Media Center - 1021 West University Avenue, Gainesville, FL

More info: (352) 373-0010 www.civicmediacenter.org

Film info: http://www.ifc.com/atthedeathhousedoor

 


For a listing of more events...

SSA Events page.

 

MISSION

The Sun State Activist is a website for all Floridians of progressive political leanings---that is, all those who believe that, through intelligence, commitment and concerted action we can make a difference toward realizing a humane world, country, state and local community. In many of its dimensions the site will be of benefit to progressives outside Florida.

 

ORGANIZATION OF THE SITE

The website divides the universe of progressive interest into some 95 topics and sub-topics and provides website and other links to organizations and events related to each topic as well as a source of information from various publications, websites and electronic media.

 

 

TOPIC DESCRIPTIONS

  1. GENERAL PROGRESSIVE ACTION deals with those organizations and individuals who have broad agendas of progressive social action; with progressive organizations such as the Green Party and Progressive Democrats of America; with progressive magazines like The Nation and on-line outlets such as Common Dreams.Org; with connections to alternative radio, television, book and film outlets.  

2. PEACE AND WAR is the website of the peace activist and those seeking to understand the causes of war and militarism. It deals with large peace initiatives like a proposed Department of Peace; with the imperialist foreign policy of the United States, including the Iraqi/Afghan war; with 9-11 and the “war on terror;” with the influence of the military/industrial complex on foreign policy and with military recruitment and procurement; with weapons both conventional and nuclear and weapons in space.  

3. ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES deals with the conservation and enhancement of natural resources; control of pollution of our land, waters and air; with environmental regulation and the destruction of environmental habitats with economic development; with animal rights; with natural disasters (their causes and with public responses to them.)  

4. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT deals with the effort to compromise the needs of economic development with the “human” need for relatively small-scale enterprises; with agri-business and big box stores as symptoms of unbalanced development; with the development of alternative energy sources that do not destroy our environments and ways of life.  

5. CIVIL RIGHTS deals with a wide range of groups of people who suffer discrimination or denial of their constitutional rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; among others, with blacks, Latinos, Asians, indigenous peoples, gays and lesbians, children, elderly, convicted felons who have served their sentences, immigrants, “terrorism” suspects.  

6. ECONOMIC JUSTICE deals with the issue of inequality of opportunity among different groups of people; with poverty, wages and unemployment; with worker’s rights to organize; with affordable housing and the homeless; with taxation and budgets; with globalization and corporate dominance; with retirement security.  

7. MEDIA ISSUES deals with the integrity of our media in their coverage of issues of progressive interest, including elections and issues that arise in the course of decision-making; with the related issue of corporate control of the media, including the issue of consolidation of media ownership.  

8. ELECTORAL ISSUES deals with how and whether our political processes are actually democratic in that they allow the will of the people to be expressed; with electronic voting systems and their effects on election outcomes; with manipulations of the voting system like re-districting schemes designed to benefit vested interests; with alternate voting systems better designed to reflect the will of the people in voting outcome.  

9. CRIMINAL JUSTICE deals with issues concerning the effects of incarceration, the death penalty, mandatory sentencing and other harsh sanctions on the kind of society we are trying to develop; with drug policy and other issues of criminalization; with due process in encounters of suspects with police and courts.  

10. ETHICS: GOVERNMENTAL, CORPORATE, PROFESSIONAL deals with political scandal, especially as it relates to the influence of money and corporate power on political decision-making; with efforts at campaign finance reform; with issues of corrupt corporate officials whose practices compromise the interests of their employees and the public.  

11. HEALTH CARE deals with issues of quality and delivery of medical facilities to whose needing them; with inequality in same;