Politics
While "Europe's slow-motion financial collapse" – as Mother Jones magazine described it in a June 6th article – continues to unravel, Spain, like other European states continues to implement anti-social-neo-liberal policies with strong opposition from the citizenry.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Yingluck Shinawatra may become Thailand's first female prime minister next month, so Thais are focusing on her face, gender, inexperience and relationship to her "clone" brother, Thaksin, a popular premier who was overthrown by the U.S.-trained military in a bloodless 2006 coup.
But even if all goes well for Mrs. Yingluck in a nationwide election on July 3, her victory could create fresh strife in this troubled, Buddhist-majority Southeast Asian nation which is a non-NATO U.S. ally.
Thailand's top generals are concerned that her government would purge -- and possibly punish -- officers involved in toppling Thaksin Shinawatra, including current Army Chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha who was promoted after helping to orchestrate the coup.
Mrs. Yingluck insists her goal is "reconciliation," but many people either do not believe her or worry that scores of current political and military leaders will be allowed to escape justice in a trade to exonerate her wealthy brother.
But even if all goes well for Mrs. Yingluck in a nationwide election on July 3, her victory could create fresh strife in this troubled, Buddhist-majority Southeast Asian nation which is a non-NATO U.S. ally.
Thailand's top generals are concerned that her government would purge -- and possibly punish -- officers involved in toppling Thaksin Shinawatra, including current Army Chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha who was promoted after helping to orchestrate the coup.
Mrs. Yingluck insists her goal is "reconciliation," but many people either do not believe her or worry that scores of current political and military leaders will be allowed to escape justice in a trade to exonerate her wealthy brother.
Tina Fey recently hosted Saturday Night Live and resurrected her brilliant impersonation of Sarah Palin in a 2012 Republican presidential debate skit in which The Wasilla Wonder incredulously declares "I just hope the lamestream media won’t twist my words by repeatin’ em verbatim."
SNL and Fey were of course spoofing the real Palin, who has made many such accusations of media foul-play, including over her most embarrassing encounter when famously asked by Katie Couric what books and magazines she reads. That interview was the beginning of the end for Palin's 2008 vice presidential bid.
And just this week, as his 2012 presidential candidacy appeared to be imploding, the real Newt Gingrich, when asked by Fox News' Greta Van Susteren about his $500,000 Tiffany credit card balance, refused to answer and claimed he won't play "gotcha games."
SNL and Fey were of course spoofing the real Palin, who has made many such accusations of media foul-play, including over her most embarrassing encounter when famously asked by Katie Couric what books and magazines she reads. That interview was the beginning of the end for Palin's 2008 vice presidential bid.
And just this week, as his 2012 presidential candidacy appeared to be imploding, the real Newt Gingrich, when asked by Fox News' Greta Van Susteren about his $500,000 Tiffany credit card balance, refused to answer and claimed he won't play "gotcha games."
Editor Benjamin Marrison
Columbus Dispatch
34 S. 3rd St.
Columbus, OH 43215
Dear Mr. Marrison:
In your subtle way, your lead editorial on Sunday April 15 was the most disingenuous yet: “Kasich and the House put Ohio on a sustainable path after predecessors failed” is a cruel joke.
· Bill Harris led the Senate in blocking Strickland and Budish from most of their good solution to budget problems.
· It would have been a waste of time and effort to pass more Bills in the House which would have been blocked in the Senate. Several were blocked.
· The “Jobs Budget” and SB 5 will cause losses by the state and sub state governments at all levels. · Please read the enclosed letter for evidence that Republicans caused the “mess we are in”:
1. The Republican Income Tax cut of 2005, which favored those with high income accounts for $ 1 billion per year.
Columbus Dispatch
34 S. 3rd St.
Columbus, OH 43215
Dear Mr. Marrison:
In your subtle way, your lead editorial on Sunday April 15 was the most disingenuous yet: “Kasich and the House put Ohio on a sustainable path after predecessors failed” is a cruel joke.
· Bill Harris led the Senate in blocking Strickland and Budish from most of their good solution to budget problems.
· It would have been a waste of time and effort to pass more Bills in the House which would have been blocked in the Senate. Several were blocked.
· The “Jobs Budget” and SB 5 will cause losses by the state and sub state governments at all levels. · Please read the enclosed letter for evidence that Republicans caused the “mess we are in”:
1. The Republican Income Tax cut of 2005, which favored those with high income accounts for $ 1 billion per year.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Three days of border fighting with mortars and rockets by Thailand and Cambodia has killed at least 10 soldiers and forced thousands of villagers to flee, while both sides try to dominate nearby ancient Hindu temple ruins which are potentially lucrative tourist sites.
Three Cambodian soldiers and three Thai troops died on Friday, followed by three more Cambodian soldiers' deaths and one more Thai army fatality on Saturday, officials said.
No deaths were reported on Sunday.
Thailand and Cambodia repeatedly blamed the other for firing first.
The three days of fighting were the worst clashes since February when four days of similar battles killed 10 soldiers and prompted the United Nations Security Council to call for restraint.
In New York during the weekend, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon again called on both countries to stop fighting and agree to a verifiable ceasefire.
Cambodia said Thai forces fired 75 mm and 105 mm shells "loaded with poison gas" and flew reconnaissance flights deep into Cambodian territory, but no evidence was provided and Bangkok denied both charges.
Three Cambodian soldiers and three Thai troops died on Friday, followed by three more Cambodian soldiers' deaths and one more Thai army fatality on Saturday, officials said.
No deaths were reported on Sunday.
Thailand and Cambodia repeatedly blamed the other for firing first.
The three days of fighting were the worst clashes since February when four days of similar battles killed 10 soldiers and prompted the United Nations Security Council to call for restraint.
In New York during the weekend, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon again called on both countries to stop fighting and agree to a verifiable ceasefire.
Cambodia said Thai forces fired 75 mm and 105 mm shells "loaded with poison gas" and flew reconnaissance flights deep into Cambodian territory, but no evidence was provided and Bangkok denied both charges.
Norman Solomon -- the North Bay political activist who has been a leader of the region’s Green New Deal commission and the national Healthcare Not Warfare campaign -- announced on Wednesday (April 13) that he has filed with the Federal Election Commission to run for Congress. He said that his name will be on the June 2012 ballot if Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey decides not to seek re-election.
“After so many years of progressive leadership from Lynn Woolsey, her successor in the House should have a proven commitment to a wide range of progressive values,” Solomon said. “Whether the issue is war in Afghanistan, massive giveaways to Wall Street, chronic deference to corporate power or Washington’s failure to take drastic action against climate change, the North Bay should be represented in Congress by someone with extensive knowledge and a track record of strong public advocacy on key local, national and international issues.”
“I’ve spent decades working for social justice, environmental protection and a rational foreign policy,” Solomon said. “I see Congress as a place where strong progressive voices must be heard and basic changes must be fought for.”
“After so many years of progressive leadership from Lynn Woolsey, her successor in the House should have a proven commitment to a wide range of progressive values,” Solomon said. “Whether the issue is war in Afghanistan, massive giveaways to Wall Street, chronic deference to corporate power or Washington’s failure to take drastic action against climate change, the North Bay should be represented in Congress by someone with extensive knowledge and a track record of strong public advocacy on key local, national and international issues.”
“I’ve spent decades working for social justice, environmental protection and a rational foreign policy,” Solomon said. “I see Congress as a place where strong progressive voices must be heard and basic changes must be fought for.”
Columbus City Schools received millions of dollars from the federally funded
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Supplemental Educational Services (SES) program
to enable poor children to receive free tutoring their parents otherwise
could not afford. The Free Press requested public records regarding this
program and received documents from the district’s legal counsel Loren
Braverman August 27, 2010. The Free Press also obtained a video of Columbus
City School Board Member Hanifah Kambon’s suggesting that school officials
may be committing criminal acts
The State of Ohio Auditor, Dave Yost, is currently auditing Columbus City Schools. The recently elected Yost promised in his campaign “to root out corruption and waste." The Free Press has forwarded documents to Yost's office in hopes that he will look closely at the use of the NCLB SES federal funds by the school district.
Letter to Auditor Yost (PDF)
The school district's SES Director Joyce Hackett previously accused SES vendors of getting together and raising their prices to $70, $80, $90 an hour to tutor students.*
The State of Ohio Auditor, Dave Yost, is currently auditing Columbus City Schools. The recently elected Yost promised in his campaign “to root out corruption and waste." The Free Press has forwarded documents to Yost's office in hopes that he will look closely at the use of the NCLB SES federal funds by the school district.
Letter to Auditor Yost (PDF)
The school district's SES Director Joyce Hackett previously accused SES vendors of getting together and raising their prices to $70, $80, $90 an hour to tutor students.*
When late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat read the Declaration of the Palestinian Independence just over 22 years ago, Palestinians everywhere were enthralled. They held onto his every word during the Palestinian National Council (PNC) session in Algeria on November 15, 1988. The council members incessantly applauded and chanted in the name of Palestine, freedom, the people and much more.
Back in Nuseirat, a refugee camp in Gaza, a large crowd of neighbors and friends watched the event on a small black and white television.
The Declaration of Independence read, in part: "On this day unlike all others…as we stand at the threshold of a new dawn, in all honor and modesty we humbly bow to the sacred spirits of our fallen ones, Palestinian and Arab, by the purity of whose sacrifice for the homeland our sky has been illuminated and our Land given life."
Many tears were shed, as those watching the historic event recalled the innumerable "spirits of the fallen ones". The Nuseirat refugee camp alone had buried scores of its finest men, women and children the previous year.
Back in Nuseirat, a refugee camp in Gaza, a large crowd of neighbors and friends watched the event on a small black and white television.
The Declaration of Independence read, in part: "On this day unlike all others…as we stand at the threshold of a new dawn, in all honor and modesty we humbly bow to the sacred spirits of our fallen ones, Palestinian and Arab, by the purity of whose sacrifice for the homeland our sky has been illuminated and our Land given life."
Many tears were shed, as those watching the historic event recalled the innumerable "spirits of the fallen ones". The Nuseirat refugee camp alone had buried scores of its finest men, women and children the previous year.
The giant headline proclaimed "Mr. Ohio." On Sunday, December 12, the Columbus Dispatch spun a fawning Orwellian tale of George V. Voinovich as he retires from the Senate. One of the many incidents they missed was the part about the then-Governor Voinovich fleeing town after nearly being indicted by a grand jury for money laundering into his campaign.
The fact that Central Ohio’s daily monopoly remains silent to this day on one of the most corrupt administrations in the history of the Buckeye State should come as no surprise. Even when Gov. Voinovich’s Chief of Staff Paul Mifsud was charged with three felony counts and three misdemeanors, their reporting was apologetic and meager. The Dispatch’s Joe Hallett, Jack Torry, and Jonathan Riskind lionize the childhood of Voinovich and speak glowingly of his roots in the Collinwood neighborhood in Cleveland.
The fact that Central Ohio’s daily monopoly remains silent to this day on one of the most corrupt administrations in the history of the Buckeye State should come as no surprise. Even when Gov. Voinovich’s Chief of Staff Paul Mifsud was charged with three felony counts and three misdemeanors, their reporting was apologetic and meager. The Dispatch’s Joe Hallett, Jack Torry, and Jonathan Riskind lionize the childhood of Voinovich and speak glowingly of his roots in the Collinwood neighborhood in Cleveland.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- Aung San Suu Kyi's "irrelevant" political party has "little concern for the social and economic plight of most Burmese," so America should offer "security guarantees" to Burma's military dictators and their families to remove them from power, according to a U.S. Embassy cable released by WikiLeaks.
"We should not expect an imminent coup to save us from the hard-line senior generals," the cable said.
Classified by the U.S. Embassy in Burma's Political Officer, Leslie Hayden, the cable gave "her candid observations on the current political situation, and her recommendations."
The "CONFIDENTIAL" cable, dated July 14, 2008 and titled, "SUBJECT: CONTINUING THE PURSUIT OF DEMOCRACY IN BURMA," was signed by U.S. Ambassador Shari Villarosa.
"We may also want to consider putting security guarantees on the table for the most senior generals and their families if we are serious about removing them from the scene.
"As we move toward the 2010 parliamentary elections, it may be a strategic time to begin talks with them about such an agreement," the cable said in a section coyly sub-titled, "Give a Little, Get a Little."
"We should not expect an imminent coup to save us from the hard-line senior generals," the cable said.
Classified by the U.S. Embassy in Burma's Political Officer, Leslie Hayden, the cable gave "her candid observations on the current political situation, and her recommendations."
The "CONFIDENTIAL" cable, dated July 14, 2008 and titled, "SUBJECT: CONTINUING THE PURSUIT OF DEMOCRACY IN BURMA," was signed by U.S. Ambassador Shari Villarosa.
"We may also want to consider putting security guarantees on the table for the most senior generals and their families if we are serious about removing them from the scene.
"As we move toward the 2010 parliamentary elections, it may be a strategic time to begin talks with them about such an agreement," the cable said in a section coyly sub-titled, "Give a Little, Get a Little."