Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Dream job: Promote social change, make $$$...and help Democrats?
Good mornin, Mickey. Thanks for posting the graphic. Many here know of my interest in the crimes against humanity committed by the usa and the UK against the people of Diego Garcia. Below is part of an updating e-mail that I just received. It never ceases to amaze me of how these crimes, of genocide in our time, are never brought before the public....wide open secrets, or is it just apathy of the usa and UK people?
RESOLUTION OF THE CALIFORNIA STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE PEACE AND FREEDOM PARTY on JUSTICE FOR THE CHAGOSSIANS AND WITHDRAWAL FROM DIEGO GARCIA
WHEREAS, the inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean were cruelly expelled in 1973 in violation of British and international law, and in defiance of a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly, before the big US military base was built on the island of Diego Garcia,
AND WHEREAS, this expulsion was done at the insistence of the government of the United States, whose representatives demanded that the islands be depopulated before building the base,
AND WHEREAS, the original memos have since surfaced detailing the plot by British officials to pretend that there were no inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago, and acknowledging privately that this was a fiction and the islands had in fact been inhabited by a specific population for more than 175 years, a population numbering about 2000 at the time of the expulsion, with their own unique language and culture,
AND WHEREAS, the Chagossians (now numbering some 5000) have twice been found by British high courts to be entitled to return to their islands, but at the insistence of the United States government the British government has defied the ruling of the courts,
AND WHEREAS, the US military base on Diego Garcia has been used for such illegal violent acts of aggressioin as the bombing and invasion of Iraq, and is reported to have served as a place for the torture of captives beyond the reach of international organizations and law,
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the California State Central Committee of the Peace and Freedom Party demands the evacuation of the Diego Garcia base, the acceptance by the United States government of its responsibility for the expulsion of the Chagossians and of the Chagossian right to live in the Chagos Archipelago, the payment of appropriate compensation to the Chagossians for over three decades of exile and deprivation, and the declassisication and publication of all documents related to this terrible injustice perpetrated by our government with the collaboration of its British allies.
Adopted unanimously by the State Central Committee, 27 August 2006.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 09/02 at 08:15 AMThanks for the update, RMJ. And you said it: apathy. I’ll have an article up next week on that topic.
Btw, how’s Laura Anne doing?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 08:45 AMGood Saturday morning. Hope you are all enjoying the week-end.
RMJ, many thanks for educating me on this issue. There just seems to be so many acts against humanity, perpetrated by those in power, it can become overwhelming at times. I congratulate you on your tenacity.
Mickey, do you not see a gradual reduction in apathy in the general population since more & more are speaking out, finally, against the policies of the current administration?
Posted by Canadian Observer on from 09/02 at 09:40 AMCO: Folks have been “speaking out” for a long time. The latest version is just irrational Bush blaming and will be easily channeled into support for Democrats in November 2006 and then again in 2008. The apathy underneath will continue until all our goodies and gadgets start to vanish…
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 10:27 AMThe apathy underneath will continue until all our goodies and gadgets start to vanish…
Too right.
And good morning to everyone
(Storytelling hiatus??!! Are you punishing us?!)
Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 09/02 at 11:00 AMI agree with micky...while a Democratic victory in 2006 may signal rough times ahead for the current administration (and it couldn’t happen to nicer people), it does nothing to stop the depridations that this country has perpetrated upon the planet and millions (if not billions) of innocent people around the planet for years and years. What needs to happen in order to stop this ongoing madness is far more profound than a change of administrations. One only need look at NAFTA’s affect upon the ordinary citizens of Mexico to recognize that the poor get screwed by Democrats and Republican’s alike and the planet, well only a small portion of the population is waking up to decade upon decade upon decade of abuse. But this country did so with our consent and the consent implied by a lifesytle which at one point consumed 3/4’s of all the world’s production.Not that our consumption has gone down...we finally have competition of the two most populous nations on the planet.....and if you thought it was bad before.....The wake up call is coming, inexorably. Unfortunately it comes with a chorus of extinctions, the deaths of children by the hundreds of thousands, the slow dying of once vibrant ecosystems driven by rise of global temperatures, and bomb and bomb while the rich and powerful compete for the exploitation of what’s left. And it will happen in a Republican Gov’t or a Democratic Gov’t....it already has.
Posted by MayDay on from the first taste of fall.... 09/02 at 11:09 AMHello Empress: The hiatus may only last a week but for a while now, the only one telling stories on Saturday was me. I miss Mudge.
MayDay: It hurts to say this...but there isn’t a word in your post that I don’t agree with.
Captcha sez: hard
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 11:21 AMThought I’d share something I just found:
Posted by Amelopsis on from Canada 09/02 at 11:36 AMRight back at ya, Empress:
http://tinyurl.com/ffqpaPosted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 11:47 AMHey man… Mickey, everyone else… weather here really seems to be a great barometer, so to speak, of so many people’s moods. Things’ll pick up, at least in individual’s lives, if not the larger scheme, but… more and more it seems the best we can hope for is to educate ourselves just as a way to make ourselves happier, if not to make any real difference in the world. I finally found Rogue State at Coliseum Books last week, and so far Mr. Blum seems a lot more inviting to the reader than Chomsky or Churchill. I think I’d enjoy having William or Howard over for hummus and pie, etc. sometime than the other two. Not to knock any of them, but… hm.
And yes, I must see what I can do about facilitating whatsisname’s return. Hm again…
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 09/02 at 12:19 PMHey CatLady, I think you’re 100% right. I’ve been fortunate enough to hang with Bill Blum a few times and he’s a blast. We really hit it off. You might wanna read his memoir to get a good feel for him.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 12:36 PMAwesome… so can you get him on the list for my next vegan soiree? I’ll try to get some older women over here next time if he’s not attached…
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 09/02 at 12:56 PMIf you hold your soiree in DC, sure.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 12:58 PMMy ‘hood’s name would apply just as well to DC, don’t you think? Even more apt there, I’d say.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 09/02 at 01:01 PMMaybe DC is Hell’s Basement.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 01:19 PMTru dat… you know, I applied to work for Steve or his ilk once, years or whenever ago, never did hear back from him. Maybe it was for begging for money on the street for Greenpeace, whatever… I didn’t make his cut. So now I proofread for Morgan Stanley, and all is right in the world.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 09/02 at 02:04 PMI’d like Morgan Stanley to change its name to “Steve.”
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 02:09 PMUm, maybe I should call them that from now on, in case they’e monitoring here… y’never know.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 09/02 at 02:11 PMI love that graphic Amelopsis.
Those ads to work for Dems sadden me, Mickey-- imagine-- for years my best references were ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS-- sigh.
Now-- PLEASE-- all EXPENDABLES-- check this out before C-Sspan kills this site:
(D. Lindorff is a SUPER COUNTERPuncher-- possibly an apologist for the dems-- BUT his heart is in the right place----
I, myself, have become convinced that if we can talk up anything-- it is IMPEACHMENT!
BUSH MUST BE IMPEACHED! He is guilty (by our own courts of CRIMES-- against the Geneva Convention (crimes of torture in Guatanamo) and against our CONSTITUTUION-- (Chicago—against search and seizure-- invasion of privacy).The Democrats (PELOSI) say that IMPEACHMENT is “Off the Table"--
THEY ARE COMPLICIT TO THESE CRIMES AND MORE!
WE MUST PRESS IMPEACHMENT TO EDUCATE THE U.S. PUBLIC THAT OUR CONSTITUTION IS BEING TRAMPLED!WE must educate-- and send this message to everyone!
BUSH, CHENEY, ROVE, RUMSFELD, POWELL, RICE, and all the Neocons-- ARE WAR CRIMINALS and should be brought before an International Court of Law to be Tried for War Crimes!
Please, again, watch this film AND PASS IT ALONG TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW:
Best wishes all-- I want to tell a story-- but times are dire-- We must focus on the truths.
Robert B. Livingston
San Francisco
http://tinyurl.com/mbzstPosted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 09/02 at 03:35 PMThanks for the link, Robert...but I’m not sure I agree with you, re: impeachment. Here’s something I wrote a while back:
http://www.counterpunch.org/mickey05152006.htmlPosted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 03:55 PMIs there no other legal means to remove someone like Bush from the Presidental office? No matter what atrocities he may make against his own people and citizens of other nations, will he be immoveable, as long as his party retains a congressional majority?
I am quite ignorant in this area and would appreciate some enlightment.
Posted by Canadian Observer on from 09/02 at 04:19 PMMickey--
At the time-- I agreed completely with you!
In my opinion, there is nothing more evil than the Democratic party which enables the current regime to get away with all its crimes.
At the same time, I am cognizant of an older generation that still believes in the ideals elucidated by FDR: i.e. the 4 Freedoms-- and ideas of a more just America based on fairplay.
Paul Krugman, I think, best exemplifies those ideals as they live-- or gasp-- today in our contemporary state.
We must recall that most Americans have little or no idea at all of the ideas which we (more enlightened) folks cherish.
To be educated-- they must be witnesses of a sort of drama-- a passion play-- an unfolding-- A TRIAL!
For thosre reasons-- I believe an Impeachment is necessary--
What else can we do?
Americans are largely ignorant-- a revolution now is impossible.
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 09/02 at 04:28 PMCO: For details on impeachment, I’d agree with Robert. Check out Lindorff.
Robert: I’m not sure what the answer is except, maybe, prepare for the worst.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/02 at 05:07 PMThanks Mickey.
I have hope-- always.
We must be very aware today-- these are NOT good times.
But I have hope!
Read this remarkable article by John Pilger-- it will make you cry thinking of the heroism and suffering of victimas of war-- but it will make you thrill to realize that we still can rise above our idolizations to create a better world:
PS: maybe my ideas are a little dry-- I want to tell some more stories-- give me time-- stories will help see us through.
Posted by Robert B. Livingston on from San Francisco, California 09/02 at 05:20 PMRobert....that is a good article by Pilger. I heard on the news today that some in Mexico will set up a parallel government in the streets. We have a lot to learn from those to the south. That is one reason that I call for Open Borders. If they all could vote here (which they can’t) it would change things.
CO #21...Sure there are other and better ways to remove them from office. I favor arrests and war crimes trials. Impeachment is just a slap on the wrist. Remember Nuremberg. The problem is the majority of the usa people who don’t care about all of the dead victims...the democrats and the peace activists who often mourn the dead usa soldiers but ignore the deaths of the Iraqis.
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 09/02 at 06:25 PMThe problem is that none of us are willing to do what would be necessary. Mickey posts the comment below periodically. I was feeling a need for it tonight.//////////////
“What I want is for civilization to stop killing my people’s children. If that can be accomplished peacefully, I will be glad. If signing a petition will get those in power to stop killing Indian children, I will put my name at the top of the list. If marching in a protest will do it, I’ll walk as far as you want. If holding a candle will do it, I’ll hold two. If singing protest songs will do it, I’ll sing whatever songs you want me to sing. If living simply will do it, I will live extremely simply. If voting will do it, I’ll vote. But all of those things are allowed by those in power, and none of those things will ever stop those in power from killing Indian children. They never have, and they never will. Given that my people’s children are being killed, you have no grounds to complain at whatever means I use to protect the lives of my people’s children. And I will do whatever it takes.” -Ward Churchill
Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 09/02 at 06:47 PMRMJ
Thank you so much for re-posting those moving words from Ward Churchill.
Rosemarie, you say that Bush & his administration could be arrested and tried for war crimes. How is this accomplished? Is a warrant issued and who exactly has the authority to bring charges? It gives me great pleasure to think it would be possible but sounds just too good to be true.
Posted by Canadian Observer on from 09/02 at 07:17 PMIt is time for us to become willing to do what is neccesary as frightening or unsavory as it may be.Let us hope that it isn’t but I think that’s wishfull thinking. Which one of these people, who in the name of greed and power have murdered, harmed, and impoverished the people of the world, have ever been held to account for their crimes? One could say Hitler, for instance, but would anything have happened to him if he didn’t threatened other rich and powerful men? Has Henry Kissinger been held accountable for the Coup in Chile, were the Dulles brothers held accountable for Guatemala, Iran, Indonesia where hundereds of thousands died as the result of US sponsored coups all for the greed of the rich, was Reagan and his cronies held responsible for the tens of thousands that died at the hand of death squads in El Salvador or at the hands of the contras in Nicaragua? No...they named an airport after him. Those are the cold hard facts. Our planet is threatened and as a result each one of us is threatened. We can suffer now in an attempt to change things or later when it is too late. We will not have the luxury of treatings these issues as mere concepts for much longer I think.
Posted by MayDay on from 09/02 at 07:53 PMI agree: prepare for the worst. Things are going to get REALLY bad before they get better. We’re ignoring all the warning signs as this juggernaut accelerates to terminal velocity. Soon, the smallest of events (triggers) will result in disproportionate consequences.
Pull up a chair while making certain one is a respectable distance from the eventual disaster site. Keep a shovel nearby as we’re the ones who will be cleaning up the mess.
Posted by The CultureGhost on from Concord, CA 09/03 at 03:52 PM
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