Flashpoints July 17: Another World is Possible; Palestinian Americans sue Sharon : Indybay

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A Strange Kind of Freedom : The biggest threat to liberty in the US may come from other kinds of fundamentalism: Jewish and Christian, by Robert Fisk, "Dennis Bernstein sums it up quite simply: 'Any US journalist, columnist, editor, college professor, student-activist, public official or clergy member who dares to speak critically of Israel or accurately report the brutalities of its illegal occupation will be vilified as an anti-Semite.' " (story)

Wednesday, July 17, 2002 - Start Audio
-00:00 Dennis Bernstein: introduction: Palestinian Americans sue Ariel Sharon and US organizations... White to testify before Congress... 'Another World is Possible' conference... poet Aurora Levins Morales.
-00:57 now with Robert Knight and the Knight Report.. Robert: 5 killed, and 40 wounded, when two suicide bombers explode in Tel Aviv.. an Israeli officer and Palestinian suspect killed in a firefight.. two Palestinian refugees killed in refugee camp.. a Pal metal factory destroyed.. Arafat says he will be a candidate in the next Pal election.. Iraq allowed Polish diplomats to travel by land.. Jordan and UAE.. Hussein says Bush will fail to overthrow him, "the wind will blow away foreign rattling".. Osama dead or alive?.. setback for Bush plan, the US Postal Service rejects TIPS..
-04:57 Dennis: Bush appears hellbend on railroading our civil liberties.. guts institutions that support women, children and elders.. but activists meet.. Another World is Possible.. now w Van Jones of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.. Dennis: we've seen two incredible beatings on TV the last week.. Van Jones: a small boy, learning impaired, will be scarred for life.. this kind of thing happening everywhere, not just in LA.. unchecked police violence is unacceptable.. Dennis: the arrogance, cops now saying Donovan grabbed the officer's testicles.. Van Jones: a creative excuse.. clearly contradicted by the videotape.. any other city employee who did that to a handcuffed child would be fired.. Dennis: about the videographer.. Van Jones: ironically arrested in front of CNN.. the regime is very hypocritical.. Dennis: the media collaborating with the police.. Van Jones: EVENT: Another World is Possible.. now is the time to step forward.. the system is collapsing.. the viciousness of law enforcement.. what are the alternatives?.. come to the conference this weekend.. EVENT: 'Another World is Possible' conference at First Unitarian Church, 685 14th Street, Oakland (directions).. called Building Just And Healthy Communities.. the top people in the administraton hell bent to destroy.. a shotgun wedding between the military industrial complex and.. to diminish the rights of ordinary people.. we have not begun to fight as progressive forces.. the Democrats are not going to do it.. we have to start establishing political defence committee now for the months ahead.. fill in the blanks.. a significant impact on people of color.. TIPS is a new government program to ask citizens to spy on their neighbors.. to get around privacy protections.. para-law enforcement.. the public unions have to oppose it vigorously.. these are appeals we can make at home, at work, at our places of worship.. Another World IS Possible.. not only possible, but necessary..
-20:00 Dennis: now with Aryeh Shell of Art and Revolution, and Deep Ecology.. Aryeh: time to come together, networking.. find alternatives to this racist, oppressive system we are living under.. to build a world we want.. EVENT: 'Another World is Possible' conference July 19-21, Friday through Sunday at First Unitarian Church, 16th Street Oakland.. $7 sliding scale fee, no one turned away.. more info.. Aryeh: or call me at 510-594-1377.. registration at the door.. Friday night entertainment.. hip hop, puppets, open mike Saturday night.. about the rest of the conference.. sharing.. working together.. faciliate your own topics.. open to your input.. Aria: the conference starts 9AM Friday.. with Ana Marie Carter, the seed lady from Watts, Antonio Ujas (sp?), Van Jones, many others.. help from the Ecology Center.. Van Jones: I predict the bay area will become a base area for liberation struggle around the world.. you watch this generation here in the bay area.. another step in that direction on Friday.. everybody listening to this show, inspired by things they saw with their own eyes, not seen on CNN.. but on alternative media.. the leadership in our hearts, that is where our hope lies..
-30:30 music break
-31:48 Dennis: Sec of Army, Thomas White testifying before Congress tomorrow.. former Enron exec.. in 2001 made millions.. now w Tyson Slocum, of Public Citizen.. Tyson: Thomas White directed Enron Energy Services.. delivered electricity.. traded electricity.. while he was director, engaged in manipulation schemes overstated the amount of electricity to be moved.. lied to California.. the state paid Enron not to move that electricitly.. Enron got paid not to move electricity that they weren't going to move anyway.. impact on California substantial.. White has become a multi-millionaire.. made $21,000,000 in 2001 alone.. then got the job running the US Army.. Public Citizen thinks this is outrageous.. he should resign and be held accountable.. his first major speech after becoming Secretary of the Army.. wanted to deregulate energy at all the army bases.. has his own problems.. reprimanded by Enron, for filing late reports.. his Enron division had bad accounting.. booked a 15 year contract all in one year.. made their profits look at lot healthier that it actually was.. what was his knowledge of the accounting, and the manipulation practices.. about Thomas White's terrorism against California ratepayers.. he made his money stealing from the citizens of California.. about Cheney and Haliburton.. agressive accounting technique.. counting cost overruns as revenue.. greatly boosted the net value of Haliburton.. Cheney too became a multimillionaire because of accounting shenanigans.. for a true accountable investigation, we need a independent investigator.
-41:55 music break
-42:20 Dennis: today in DC, on behalf of Solidarity International.. "Stanley" Stanley Cohen filed suit on behalf of Palestinian Americans.. Stanley: for a variety of actions by mostly Israeli.. Palestinian US citizens have been killed, tortured, had their lands stolen for settlements.. and Sharon, for Sabra and Chatila.. US munition makers.. US Jewish and Christian organization supplying money.. this president for the last two years, has not discussed.. asking a federal judge to preclude US arm makers from supplying arms to Isreal.. Boeing, Textron, Colt, more.. makers of Apache helicopters, M16 rifles, F16s, more.. Israel has claimed for years that the West Bank does not belong to the Palestinians.. re: one settlement.. we are going after churches and synagogue that has funded this settlement.. Americans involved in the weapons trade..
-47:54 Dennis: now w Aurora Levins Morales.. for children dead from violence.. reads: "Memorial. In my grandmother's village there were no olive groves".. .. now reads: "Into the Compound", about the women who volunteered as human shields in Arafat's compound.. reads another poem: "Choice" about Bush's offer to end the sanctions on Cuba, if they dump their freedoms.. to contact Aurora, try judorican@aol.com
-55:20 Dennis: wrapup
-56:10 End today's show. today's review by john lionheart

Random Links re "Another World is Possible"
-1 -2 -3 -4 -5 (pdf) -6 -7 -8

Tuesday, July 16, 2002 - Start Audio

-00:00 Dennis Bernstein: now with Robert Knight and the Knight Report.. Robert: Palestinian militants attack right-wing Jewish settlement, killing 7.. ZM trial.. bin Laden alive?.. US attacks Iraq.. in Qatar.. TIPS program to use civilian snitches.. Bush wants even more erosion of civil liberties.. offensive to all sides of the political spectrum.
-04:55 Dennis: several decades of shady business dealings beginning to catch up to Bush.. Harken makes it impossible to protect Bush.. Alan Greenspan at a lost.. now w Robert Brice, investigative reporter for the Texas Observer, and the Austin Chronicle, author of uncoming Pipe Dreams.. Dennis: about the Texas Ranger deal?.. Robert: Bush really never made any money in oil.. sold his company to Harken for a lot of stock and salary.. sold his stock in one day for $800,000 to invest in the Rangers.. both investments incredibly lucrative.. the essence of crony capitalism.. the same techniques used years later by Enron.. Bush got the taxpayers to build him a new stadium.. realtors conspired with the city and the Rangers to drive down the cost of land they coveted for the new stadium.. key for Bush, the stadium got build, the citizens put up $190 Million.. the Rangers went from losing money, to one of the majors leaders revenue makers.. led to the profitable sale of the Rangers.. about Harken Energy and Bush's deepening.. Aloha Petroleum.. Harken sold Aloha to itself at an inflated price.. inflated Harken's financial statement.. Bush then sold his stock and made a bundle.. the same thing happened at Enron.. "pump and dump".. now when Bush talks reform, investors say 'wait, you're part of the problem'.. the SEC did not exonerate Bush.. they didn't even investigate him.. the chairman of the SEC was Poppy Bush's buddy.. the SEC head now, Pitt, chosen by Cheney.. Dennis: Bush had to sell a lot of shares in a short time.. how did he do that?.. Robert: the buyer has not been indentified.. Bush has not ordered the SEC to release documents either.. Dennis: about Bush and Ken Lay?.. Robert: a very similar example, LBJ and Brown and Root.. about that corrupt link.. about the 1994 Charlie Walker meeting.. about the India power project.. Bush wants indictments in the Enron case.. what can Bush do now?.. speech on Wall Street failed because he didn't go far enough.. the key is money for enforcement.. the best move he could make is increase money for enforcement at the SEC.. need a billion dollars, only getting $100 million.. his underlying confidence that he has the solution, even when he doesn't.. condescending.. contrived.. what's missing?.. believability, passion.. Dennis: would he, his family, ever take an action in support of people vs corporations?.. Robert: I wouldn't take money on it.. Dennis: We'll have to leave it right there.. (both laugh)
-25:00 music break
-25:50 Dennis: US wants to recruit citizen spies ala Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russian secret police. also comparable to Communist East Germany.. volunteers being recruited.. now w Francis Boyle and Majorie Cohn.. Francis: I looked at the government website, very distressing.. 10 large cities, 24 million people.. want to recruit 1 million spies.. my teacher, Hannah Arendt, wrote The Origins of Totalitarianism.. about how Russia and Germany were not opposites, but both totalitarianist government.. both recruited one of eight citizens as informers.. that's the direction we are moving.. here starting one out of 24.. not that far to go to match Germany and Stalinist Russia.. Majorie: the danger is not overstated.. the government taking advantage of whipped up zenophobia.. the Patriot Act rammed through a timid Congress.. Ashcroft urges resistance to FOIA requests.. Louie Brandeis: watch out for well meaning men of zeal.. citizens turning into snitches.. providing information on their neighbors and.. quite frightening.. this TIPS program the most insidious part of GW program of volunteerism.. Francis: today's NY Times.. Gov. Ridge calling for review of the Posse Comitatus Act.. PCA keeps the military out of civilian policing.. about the variou military Commands.. no US "Command" out of fear of a military dictatorship.. very ominous.. proceed to infiltrate synagogue, mosques, and churches with no prior reason.. the FBI.. very dangerous.. Dennis: they will focus on people whose work supplies access to homes, businesses, and mass transport.. Marjorie: If you and I sitting on a bus discussing our opposition to one of Bush's policies, our conversation could be passed along to the FBI.. or a PGE worker or Pac Bell worker could come in to your home and report on an overheard phone call or other conversation.. the enivitable urge to snoop.. about FEMA (criticism), the main player in this.. the in the 80's the Nation broke the story.. Ed Meese had already drawn up plans to intern Arabs.. many of the lawyers we see working for Ashcroft, the same (Heritage Foundation types) as worked for Ed Meese.. Dennis: the accuracy of informant systems.. problematic.. Marjorie: absolutely!.. in the criminal *justice* systmem, you rarely see upstanding citizens coming forward, mostly petty minded or even criminal persons are the snitches.. we'll see if the Congress stands up to this with any backbone.. we are not going to allow this.. Dennis: will citizens have any right to know if there is a file on them.. if friends, colleagues, neighbors are spying on you.. Francis: already a police state for Arab minorities.. 1,000 Arabs already 'dissappeared' inside American prisons.. we can expect target groups to expand, for example, to include African American Muslims.. I support the public school system.. about the DARE Program (criticism).. in the schools for quite some times.. work to get students to inform on their family.. in Stalinist Russia, children were glorified for turning in their parents.. Hannah Arendt wrote ..nothing was easier to destroy than the intimacy and private morality of people whose only concern was protecting their privacy.. to break down the basis of society.. Dennis: about the Hitler Youth.. Marjorie: this TIPS program starting out as volunteers, and they could start paying people to spy.. lying informants are legion in the criminal system.. as fast as Ashcroft and cronies can think up these programs they are popping up..
-47:24 Dennis: now w Michael Zinzun of Coalition Against Police Abuse.. about the Ingelwood police beating of Donovan Jackson captured on videotape.. "mitchell

Zinzun: we're moving ahead with protests plans and meetings here in Inglewood.. a 'Long Hot Summer' ahead.. Zinzun: and I want to add: we need to support videographer Mitchell Crooks who knew he could really get hurt for it, but broadcast the video anyway.. arrested, taken to Placer County for petty theft and DUI.. he was gallant, a humanitarian.. roughed up.. Zinzun: we need to give him support, follow his example.. call the Donovan Jackson Justice Committee: 310-970-0032.. or me at 323-733-2107.. we need justice in order for there to be peace.
-53:40 Dennis: wrapup
-54:40 End today's show. today's review by john lionheart

Flashpoints July 17: Another World is Possible; Palestinian Americans sue Sharon

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