As part of UFPJ's commitment to support war resistance, we want to make sure that you were aware of an important development and need for action: Recently, the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear appeals from U.S. war resisters Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey seeking refuge in Canada. Click here for more background information: http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/544/1/
Courage to Resist is urging people in the U.S. to sign their "Dear Canada: Let US War Resisters Stay" appeal, which will be sent to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley, and Stéphane Dion, Liberal Party. Click here to sign the appeal: http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/499/1/
The appeal letter begins: "I am writing from the United States to ask you to make a provision for sanctuary for the scores of U.S. military servicemembers currently in Canada, most of whom have traveled to your country in order to resist fighting in the Iraq War. Please let them stay in Canada..." Click here (and scroll down) to view the full text of the letter: http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/499/89/
We urge you to do what you can to support this effort. Please forward this information to others. No AWOL service person has yet been deported from Canada. However, that can now change quickly, following the Supreme Court of Canada's decision. Now is the time to add our voices as people in the United States in support of our war resisters.
More News on War Resisters:
On Nov. 8, a U.S. federal court granted a preliminary injunction in favor of Lt. Ehren Watada, preventing a second court-martial from proceeding! Charges had been re-filed against Lt. Watada, the first commissioned officer to refuse deployment to Iraq, in Feb. 2007, following a mistrial called during his first court-martial despite the defense's objections. The Army was proceeding with a second court-martial, even though Lt. Watada's appeal based on double jeopardy was still pending. Find out the latest developments in his case and how you can help: http://www.thankyoult.org/
Conscientious objector Agustín Aguayo has decided to appeal the two felonies on his record to th eU.S. Supreme Court. He returned home on May 18, 2007, after serving 7 months of an 8-month sentence for desertion and missing a movement of his unit. Click here to find out how you can support Aguayo and his family: http://www.aguayodefense.org/
It has been a while since I have updated my blog. The last week has been very busy and its not like anything important came out in the news or happened in the world.Hopefully over the weekend, since its Thanksgivings weekend and I should finally have some free time I can catch up on some of the news floating around.
For tonight, I want to write about the new IPCC report that came out a few days ago. I have not had time to read it all, being that its well over 1,000 pages, and I probably never will. What I have found out is…that all our previous contentions about the cataclysmic effects of global climate changer were actually wrong and its actually much, much, worse then we thought.
According to leading scientists global climate change is occurring three times quicker than they had originally speculated. This is directly the result of human CO2 emission increasing three fold from the 1990 figures. The big difference between the 1990s and today is the rise of China and other mal-developing nations and their increasing dependence on the black crude heroin.
What this means is that we, as a species, need to find a way to drastically, and I do mean drastically, reduce our C02 emission stat. The vast majority of American’s will probably place the blame on China and other developing nations, neglecting the fact that the United States has been the leading source of CO2 emissions for around a hundred years and because of this has a responsibility to act.Others will probably look to new shiny technologies to fix the problem. Sort of like Popular Sciences number 1 green technology of the last year, nanosolar. Of course, nanosolar seems like a vast improvement over coal, natural gas, and nuclear power, and it is. But, this is not a long-term solution to any problem. Fixing nanosolar to every building will lower the amount of coal and oil that needs to be burned for electricity but it does nothing to stop our dependence on the automobile (think how far the average tomato travels, that traveling has to create CO2). I am sure that it also has many negative consequences that we are not yet aware of. For one, I am sure that their nano-particle ink has some sever environmental problems in either its extraction phase (it has to come from somewhere, at least until we invent magic) or in the recycling phase (it has to go somewhere as well).
So, for now nanosolar and other technologies might help the situation but they are band-aid solutions that do not address the root source of the problem. That root source is our belief in never ending economic growth and the centralization of government agencies.These are the real things we need to confront. We need to, first off, reject capitalism and move towards a locally produced, sustainable existence, which will necessarily require a radical reduction and/or abolition of government, as we know it. On top of this, we will see the end of major cities (cities are at their very heart unsustainable places to live) and a mass migration from the cities back towards the local village.By rejecting the gospel of growth and radically decentralizing, or abolishing, governmental institutions we can localize our life. This is the only long-term way to even come close to addressing global climate change.
In this week’s episode of CSI, the ever-so-stylish forensic team examined a murder victim’s Twitter messages as part of their investigation. Of particular interest is a brief exchange between the two CSIs on the values of bloggers:
“Some people just don’t value privacy.”
“They don’t expect privacy, they value openness.”
“Whatever.”
I wonder if Twitter has found its way into any real life forensic investigations yet, and if so, whether the real life CSIs were as condescending as their fictional counterparts. I am of the mind that those of us who value such openness are far less likely to have problems with privacy issues than those who falsely assume they can keep the minutiae of their lives secret.
Given that every goon in Las Vegas seems to know the intimate details of the CSI characters’ personal lives, I would venture to say their quest for privacy has been a colossal failure. Perhaps they should give up and start blogging.
Interesting note: The Twitter account name in CSI was kiraEDGE, a profile which currently exists, although it’s not clear whether it’s actually affiliated with the tv show or someone cleverly locked it down afterwards.
OK, this is a pretty disturbing video clip, which appears to show the Canadian police killing a mentally disturbed Polish man at an airport, using a “non-lethal” electric taser stungun. I don’t know too much about the background of it, but I’m putting it online here because it seems that Youtube are fast removing all the evidence.
I couldn’t find any other Flash suitable copies around (all seemed to be streaming Windows Media or Real Media files, which could easily be “disappeared” without a trace) so I ripped and converted one of the streams. This clip (downloadable here) should be perfect for uploading to Youtube or other Flash video sites (it’s already in the native format, right size and right bitrate), if people want to keep putting it out there.
It appears that The Onion has taken over the job as Paris Hilton's publicist. According to an associate press report, she has decided to fight elephant alcoholism in India. That is right, Paris Hilton is fighting to stop elephants from binge drinking. It appears that Elephants are getting drunk of off a home-brewed rice beer and destroying electrical poles and other property.
Because I just cannot explain this any better I will let Paris speak about her newfound cause:
"The elephants get drunk all the time. It is becoming really dangerous. We need to stop making alcohol available to them... There would have been more casualties if the villagers hadn't chased them away. And four elephants died in a similar way three years ago. It is just so sad."
Not surprisingly drunken or destructive elephants are controversial issue in many areas of rural India. To some the animals are sacred and should be protect while others see their increasingly destructive behavior as a cause for concern. A local activist Sangeeta Goswami, head of animal rights group People for Animals, discussed Paris's comments and stated: "I am indeed happy Hilton has taken note of recent incidents of wild elephants in northeast India going berserk after drinking homemade rice beer and getting killed....As part of her global elephant campaign, Hilton should, in fact, think of visiting this region literally infested with elephants."
At least one person in the article understood why the animals are getting drunk. Soumyadeep Dutta, who heads Nature's Beckon, said that "Elephants appear on human settlements ... because they have no habitat left due to wanton destruction of forests."
Overall, this story made me think of an article in the book Igniting a Revolution: Voices in Defense of the Earth (published by AK Press) that argues that elephants that destroy powerlines, monkeys that ravage government buildings, ect... are an expression of non-human direct action against environmentally destructive development. Because of this, we should treat them as political prisoners or martyrs in the eco-war.
A recent oil spill off the coast of California (note: there was also an oil spill in the Black Sea Sunday that is probably more damaging then this one in California), according to government authorities, appears to be the result of human error. Of course, in this case the authorities pin the fault on the captain and not the suicidal desire for oil. Its amazing how "accidents" like this and the Exxon Valdez are seen as huge environmental catastrophes while the oil leaking out of pipelines and gas tanks throughout the world, and the catastrophic co2 pollution that results from the burning of oil, is seen as essential for our current human existence. This even though the every day actions of industrial society is significantly more damaging then any oil spill or chemical leak.If you ask me, the error is that we have created an economy that requires oil. With this lust for oil we get - global climate change, lose of biodiversity, and increased rates of cancer and obesity, ect.If you ask me it is not worth it. At least it is becoming increasingly clear that the era of oil is nearing its end.
In the next issue of Nature there is going to be study discussing the ways in which smell triggers fear. In this study, Hitoshi Sakano, a neuroscientist at the University of Tokyo, genetically engineered mice to not have "olfactory neurons in their dorsal epithelium." Thus the mice did not fear leopard urine though they smelt it. They found that the mice could be taught to fear a certain smell (I do not want to know how they taught them this) showing the ways in which certain scents and emotions are intimately tied together both genetically and learned.
This study also shows the controlling power of genetic research. These mice are able to have certain fears removed at a genetic level. This is a sign of the next stage of domestication; genetically removing certain traits that are not beneficial for domestic animals such as fear, rage, depression, ect. This story made me think of Douglas Adams Restaurant at the End of the Universe and the genetically engineered cattle that not only wanted you to eat them but also expressed it vocally. How long is it before we have little white mouse expressing their desire to catch cancer and bunnies that love burning chemicals in their eyes?
I find myself drawn to drama. Everybody around me seems to be that way as well. Acting out scripted roles, full of emotion, entertainment for a higher realm. The world is going to war over this, as the scenes unfold.
For me, I seem to seek it out, in a way. It's like I'm drawn to it, and in so doing, it is drawn to me. It is a common topic of conversation for me, it occupies a lot of my thoughts and worries, it seems to be a common way for me to live my life.
Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Can you believe it?! How could he do that?! What will happen next?! Oh no!
That's the template - just plaster it everywhere. It passes the time and it gives a quick-fix of artificial meaning. But more importantly, it fucks you up. It gets you high. Strategy then becomes "need", and it is an addiction.
There are lots of addictions. I have lots of addictions. Everybody has lots of addictions. You can't walk five feet without somehow stumbling on somebody's addiction. Same goes with drama - also an addiction. Why addiction?
Let's take sugar, for example, as a point of comparison or analysis. I am addicted to sugar. I crave that shit, I eat/drink it every day. It fucks me up. I've grown used to it though, I've had it regularly since I was a child. But I see the effects - on my body, my teeth, my face, my moods, my energy - I see how all of that is affected by it. But still I go for it, and often I don't even see myself going for it.
Sleep-walking to my doom.
And I think that the same goes with drama.
Oh, the injustice of it all! The unfairness! How could they! How scary! How nerve-wracking! What to do next?! Fuck you!!!
Around and around it goes, until eventually somebody gets hurt. Or I get hurt. Or I notice that I have been spending the last 29 years of my life watching the television of my own thoughts, and they scare me. And so I don't go outside, and my muscles grow weak.
So, what am I doing?
I don't want to blame "it". ("It" being the world, institutions of oppression, my parents, you) Because I realize that "it" is really a series of choices that I am making. I am choosing my own prison, I am choosing to ride the roller coaster of drama, and I am choosing to eat shit.
If things do not change and rain does not fall, or rivers are not diverted, the industries and people of Georgia will be without potable water. As of October 19th the city of Atlanta had only a 90 days supply of water and they had yet to think of any back up plan to address the issue. The Gov. of Georgia, Sonny Purdue (R) has pinned all his hopes on 1) forcing water conservation and 2) finding a way to stop water drainage from the lakes and rivers of Georgia. It appears that the governor is sick and tired of those no good neighboring states of Florida and Alabama getting all the water.
Of course, these half-brained attempts are not nearly enough. At least one person in Georgia realizes the problem: "It's amazing that things have come to this," said Ray Weidman, owner of an Atlanta landscaper business. "Everybody knew the growth was coming. We haven't had a plan for all the people coming here?" Yep, the problem for Georgia is they have had increased growth, increased development, and increased agro-business all with no attempt to conserve or preserve what few water sources the state has. in fact, the biggest source of drinking water, Lake Lanier is already less than three months from being dry.
To be fair to Georgia this not a problem that only they are facing. Many cities, and regions, throughout the United States and the world are coming to realize that water is not an infinite resource. One can only assume that as weather patterns become more erratic and temperatures increase that droughts will only increase throughout the world (as will floods). The cosmic irony of all this is that as water sources in George, and Western United States (Southern California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico) are all drying up the ocean waters will probably rise (and in fact about 1/10th of the worlds population will either be flooded or refugees or about 643 million people) and other areas will be under constant barrage from hurricanes and rainstorm.
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