A Palindromatic Meeting In The
Middle, Outside of Time... Sounding Circle implies the cycles, spirals and symbols of our thought, our culture, our lineage and our imagination
This is the weblog of
Raymond Powers.
Here I will be sharing what I find of import, humor, concern, inspiration and on the transformational edge
Everything I've written here, except my copyrighted
essays, poetry, lyrics, and music is hereby placed in the public
domain. The quotes from other people's writings, and the pictures
used might or might not be copyrighted, but are considered fair
use. Thus the license here would best be described as: Primarily Public
Domain.
Please ask permission if there is any question in
regards to public domain usage.
2 Apr 2011 @ 01:00
"Probably the best place to be in this situation [economic collapse precipitated by peak oil and a changing climate] would be on a subsistence farm in a village in Sub-Saharan Africa or someplace that's not much effected by what happens in the rest of the world. I think most people don't realize how vulnerable we are. For example, the food supply in the average city in the United States, if it's not daily renewed, would run out in about 3 days. There's not much of a buffer there. The system can come apart pretty fast."
-Lester Brown, "The Planet's Scarcest Resource is Time," March 22, 2011.
OrganicConsumers.org
This is a Native American flute solo I did in July 2009 for Jonathan McCuen.
I don't believe it was ever released. So let's call it a collectors item. :)
18 Sep 2006 @ 23:03
Greenpeace Activists in Brazil Block Cargill Soy Facility
After two years of investigation, we’ve uncovered a string of illegal soy production that is destroying the Amazon rainforest, and can be traced to a large American corporation: Cargill.
A team of climbers from our ship, the Arctic Sunrise, shut down Cargill’s illegal soy facility in the heart of the Amazon rainforest. Our activists unfurled a banner on the conveyor belts at Cargill’s facility, but angry Cargill employees nearby blasted the sign down with high-powered hoses. Police arrived on the scene and arrested 16 of our activists.
The Arctic Sunrise itself blockaded the Cargill port, preventing exports of soy from leaving the facility.
In the nearby city of Santarém, a group of Cargill’s supporters surrounded the police station holding our activists, but were dispersed by military police.
Police secured the Arctic Sunrise as well, but an angry mob boarded our ship despite the police presence, and painted graffiti along the sides. Fireworks were also aimed at our ship and activists, even hitting an activist in the chest, but fortunately leaving him unharmed. Meanwhile, police used pepper spray to force the crew to open the radio room, and took them into custody. The rest of our activists were put in lockdown within the ship. Cargill tug boats pushed our ship out of the dock, dragging it and our anchor out into the Tapajos river.
The illegal soy Cargill is producing has been linked to a massive fast food chain, including KFC’s European restaurants. These fast food chains are literally eating up the Amazon, and we’ve detailed exactly how in a recent report.
Our volunteers want to prevent soy from the world’s most precious rainforest being exported to Europe to feed chickens, pigs and cows -- and you can help support them by writing to KFC.
Cargill, based in the United States, is the largest soy producer and exporter in the Amazon, operating 13 silos in the heart of the Amazon rainforest.
Soy is now a leading cause of rainforest destruction in the Brazilian Amazon. In total, an estimated 12,000 square miles of what was once rainforest has already been destroyed, mostly illegally, to grow soybeans. Cargill makes no secret of helping establish soy farms in the Amazon, some of which are complicit in other illegal activities such as land grabbing and slavery.
Corporations like Cargill must stop seeing the Amazon as a place to expand their soy businesses, and recognise it as the world’s greatest rainforest in need of urgent protection, not exploitation. We’re calling on Cargill, and their fast-food industry customers, to ensure that the soy and animal feed they buy does not contribute to the destruction of the Amazon. More >
18 Aug 2006 @ 20:32
If you're as disappointed as we are about McDonald's giving away thousands of toy Hummers in its Happy Meals, the Environmental Working Group and HybridCars.com have created a site where you can exercise your creativity and tell the fast food giant what you think of their latest promotion for kids: the Ronald McHummer Sign-o-Matic. Users are encouraged to make their own McDonald's sign with an appropriate message, and to send a pre-written letter to the company noting the environmental and public health effects of gas guzzlers like the Hummer. Make a sign, make sure to share it with us, and also let the Golden Arches marketing folks know you don't like super-sized vehicles any more than super-sized meals. More >
22 Jun 2006 @ 20:01
AT&T to customers: We own your data
It revised its privacy policy; changes take effect tomorrow
Reuters Today’s Top Stories or Other Privacy Stories
June 22, 2006 (Reuters) -- AT&T Inc. said yesterday that it was revising its privacy policy, explaining to customers that it owns their phone records and can hand them over to law enforcement officials if necessary.
The changes take effect tomorrow and come at a time when AT&T and other phone companies face lawsuits claiming that they aided a U.S. government domestic spying program by giving the National Security Agency call records of millions of customers without their permission.
AT&T said the updated policy was aimed at helping customers understand its practices better and does not change how it treats customer information.
The new policy, unlike the old one, spells out the fact that AT&T owns its customers' data. It says that customer information constitutes "business records that are owned by AT&T. As such, AT&T may disclose such records to protect its legitimate business interests, safeguard others or respond to legal process."
The earlier policy had simply said that, aside from normal business operations such as billing and service provisioning, the company could share customer information to "respond to subpoenas, court orders or other legal process, to the extent required and/or permitted by law" as well as to "to establish or exercise" its legal rights.
Under the new policy, which is being mailed out to AT&T's more than 7 million Internet customers, the company also said that it would track viewing information for customers of a television service it's developing, in order to help it make recommendations to customers based on their viewing habits.
It also said that before customers use its services, they must agree to the policy, an element that was not in its previous guidelines.
Spokesman Michael Coe said the company, which was formed in November by the merger of AT&T Corp. and SBC Communications Inc., had been working on the new policy for the past six months.
"We are not changing how we treat customer information," said Coe. "We updated our policy to make the language clearer and easier for our customers to understand." More >
21 May 2006 @ 14:05
My personal suggestion is that if you use dairy products buy Stonyfield Farms, Organic Valley or Strauss. Ask your local market to carry these products.
Investors Question Dean Foods at Stockholders Meeting re: Horizon Organic Dairy Practices
Investors Question Dean Foods at Stockholders Meeting
Horizon Organic Milk Brand Faces Consumer Boycott Over Factory Farms
PRWEB, May 18, 2006
[link]
Socially concerned investors, who filed a shareholder proposal with Dean Foods, today questioned the company's management at its Annual Meeting of Stockholders in Dallas as its marquee organic brand faces a growing consumer backlash over its reliance on factory-farm milk production. Investors believe the large-scale dairy operations are damaging the Horizon Organics brand and threaten shareholder value.
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) May 18, 2006 -- Socially concerned investors, who filed a shareholder proposal with Dean Foods, today questioned the company's management at its Annual Meeting of Stockholders in Dallas as its marquee organic brand faces a growing consumer backlash over its reliance on factory-farm milk production. Investors believe the large-scale dairy operations are damaging the Horizon Organics brand and threaten shareholder value.
Because of their concern, shareholders filed a proposal in December 2005 asking Dean Foods' management to report to investors on how it is responding to widespread public criticism that industrial-scale organic dairies, supplying milk for its Horizon brand, violate consumer trust and seriously jeopardize share value.
Company management responded to the proposal by having its attorneys file a formal protest with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission asking for permission to omit the proposal from Dean's 2006 proxy statement on a series of legal technicalities. Proponents withdrew the proposal in March in response to the challenge but brought their concerns to today's annual shareholders meeting.
The shareholder proposal is a by-product of the five-year debate raging in the organic industry over the introduction of large-scale factory-style dairy farms, milking as many as 10,000 cows each. A growing number of public interest, environmental, and farming groups are suggesting that these farms violate current USDA regulations by labeling their products as organic.
The shareholders, led by Boston Common Asset Management, are asking for greater transparency from Dean Foods in terms of its organic milk suppliers and its plans for meeting the high consumer expectations for ethics and integrity in the rapidly growing organic milk market.
"Even though Dean Foods and its Horizon brand procure at least half of their organic milk from family farms, we think management needs to rethink its sourcing of milk from these controversial mega-dairies, or this ongoing practice will drag down the Horizon brand and harm shareholder value," said Steven Heim, Director of Social Research of Boston Common Asset Management.
Last year, The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based farm policy group, filed formal complaints with the USDA against three industrial dairies, including one owned by Dean Foods and another dairy from which it purchases organic milk for its Horizon label. The complaints allege that these mega-farms are violating the law by confining their cattle to feedlots and sheds rather than grazing the animals on pasture. The Institute is preparing to seek court intervention in order to force a full investigation of the alleged improprieties.
In March the Cornucopia Institute published a report (available at www.cornucopia.org) profiling the ethical and farm management practices of the nation's organic dairy product suppliers. The Horizon brand ranked poorly relative to most of the 67 other branded organic dairy products.
"We find this a credible report, and we are disturbed by its implications for Dean Foods," Heim said.
Dean Foods is the nation's largest milk marketer and has also become the biggest U.S. marketer of organic dairy products with its acquisitions of the Horizon Organic, Alta Dena, and Organic Cow of Vermont brands. The company's core business has been somewhat stagnant in recent years, and it has recently been touting its investments in the organic milk labels and the country's leading soy milk brand, Silk, as vehicles to make its stock more attractive on Wall Street.
But negative press surrounding Dean's organic milk procurement practices has already led to some retailers dropping the Horizon brand. And members of the Organic Consumers Association recently voted in favor of a boycott.
"It is very important for Dean to address the core concerns articulated in our shareholder resolution," said Margaret Weber, Coordinator of Corporate Responsibility with the Adrian Dominican Sisters. "Transparency regarding organic practices has business implications for the company."
Weber explained that the shareholder proposal asked the company to appoint an independent committee of the board to review its policies and procedures for sourcing raw milk for its organic dairy products, and whether its current practices conform to the spirit as well as the letter of the official rules defining organic dairy products.
The investor groups also want to know how the company intends to respond to increasing consumer and media scrutiny, and whether a proposed $10 million investment in an additional large-scale dairy farm in Idaho will mitigate or exacerbate the criticism.
Horizon has also been criticized for disposing of calves born at its organic farms and replacing them with yearling heifers that were not raised organically a practice that was disclosed and verified by Horizon senior management during direct discussions with The Cornucopia Institute concerning their procurement of the brand's organic milk.
To replenish the farm's milking herd, commercially raised replacement cattle are then brought onto the Horizon farm. These animals may have been raised on feed treated with pesticides and mixed with additives including blood products recovered from slaughtering operations.
"We are concerned that Dean Foods' lack of transparency to its shareholders betrays a similar attitude toward its core consumers, particularly consumers of its Horizon brand products," said Daniel Stranahan of the Needmor Fund, another investor-sponsor of the resolution. "Industrial dairies with 2,000 to 10,000 cows are antithetical to the concept of organic farming, which supports family-scale production with sound environmental policies."
And Leslie Lowe, director of the environment program at the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility in New York, said, "Dean Foods has an excellent opportunity to return value to its shareholders through its investments in the organic industry. But they must respect the ethical beliefs of their organic customers, a very loyal and sophisticated market segment. Otherwise these investments could end up damaging their brand and costing investors dearly."
EDITOR'S NOTE: A Representative of the shareholders' groups will be in Dallas for the Dean Foods Annual Meeting of Stockholders being held Friday May 19th at the Dallas Museum of Art, located at 1717 North Harwood. Steven Heim is available for interviews before and after the meeting and can be reached at 617-720-5557 or 617-785-9527 (c).
Mark Kastel, of The Cornucopia Institute, is also attending Friday's shareholders' meeting. Mr. Kastel can be contacted at 608-385-3803. The Cornucopia Institute acts as a technical adviser to investment groups regarding organic dairy production issues, USDA organic standards, and their policy/marketing implications.
More criticism of Dean Food's organic brand management is also being raised concerning the use of commercially raised replacement cattle being brought onto their Idaho 4,000-head dairy. These commercial replacement cattle may have been raised on feed treated with pesticides, weaned on milk replacer containing blood products recovered from slaughtering operations, and been injected with hormones and antibiotics. All of these practices are unacceptable to organic consumers. At issue is how this affects the company's representation of its Horizon milk products as produced without antibiotics, hormones or toxic pesticides.
Contact: Steven Heim, Director of Social Research, Boston Common Asset Management, LLC, 84 State Street, Suite 1000, Boston, MA 02109 Tel. 617-720-5557 Fax 617-720-5665, email sheim @ bostoncommonasset.com More >
21 May 2006 @ 13:35
Protest Starbucks: National Week of Action June 19th-25th
Join OCA and Food and Water Watch June 19-25, to take the Starbucks challenge and protest or leaflet Starbucks cafes in your neighborhood. Let's educate Starbucks' patrons about Fair Trade and rBGH. Help us reach our goal of 300 actions!
Despite over five years of grassroots pressure, Starbucks continues to serve milk from cows that are injected with genetically engineered recombinant bovine growth hormone, also known as rBGH or rBST. Virtually every industrial country, except for the United States, has banned the sale of rBGH milk. Milk produced from cows injected with rBGH poses serious dangers to human health and the general welfare to dairy cows.
The time has come to kick rBGH off the market, once and for all. If Starbucks, a major buyer of milk, were to reject rBGH dairy products, we could effectively eliminate it from the market.
Similarly, while Starbucks has slowly bought more certified Fair Trade coffee, it represents only a very small percentage of their total coffee (about 3.7%). Starbucks rarely offers certified Fair Trade coffee as their coffee of the day, nor has it followed its own policy of brewing Fair Trade coffee, on demand.
1. Take the Starbucks Challenge! Hold Starbucks to their word. Simply visit your local Starbucks and ask: "Could I get a cup of fair trade coffee?" and let us know how it went.
2. Protest or Leaflet outside Starbucks stores. Download materials from the sidebar on the Organic Consumers website.
3. Be sure to let Starbucks know your thoughts, either online or with their postage paid comment cards available at their stores. More >
21 Apr 2006 @ 22:54
OR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 17, 2006
11:03 AM
CONTACT: Environmental Working Group
Bill Walker, EWG, (510) 444-0973, ext. 301
Tracy Fairchild, office of Sen. Jackie Speier, (916) 651-4008
Bush Plan To Hide Data on 1.5M Lbs. of Toxic Chemicals in California
State Legislation Would Protect Californians' Right to Know About Pollution in Their Communities
SACRAMENTO - April 17 - A Bush Administration proposal to roll back Americans' right to know about chemical hazards in their neighborhoods would let California industries handle almost 1.5 million pounds of toxic chemicals a year without telling the public, according to an investigation of federal data by Environmental Working Group (EWG).
Currently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program requires industrial facilities to report annually the release, disposal, incineration, treatment or recycling of 500 pounds or more of 650 chemicals covered by the law. But last fall the EPA proposed sharply raising the reporting threshhold so that only releases of 5,000 pounds or more would be reported, and reports would only be required every other year.
"The right to know what hazardous chemicals are coming out of the smokestack across the street from your child's school is essential," said EWG Vice President Bill Walker. "The Administration's proposal makes it easier for industries to pollute our communities with hazardous chemicals—in secret."
EWG's report, "Stolen Inventory," lists all facilities in California that would be allowed to stop or cut back on reporting chemical releases, broken down by county, city and chemical. It is available at www.ewg.org.
EPA will announce later this year whether it plans to adopt the proposed rollback. But two California legislators, Sen. Jackie Speier of San Francisco/San Mateo and Assemblymember Ira Ruskin of Redwood City, have introduced bills to establish a state-level TRI, to ensure that complete reporting of toxic chemical releases would continue. Speier's bill (SB 1478) will be heard at 1:30 p.m. today by the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, and Ruskin's (AB 2490) will be heard at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday by the Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee.
The Secret to Being as Radical as We Want to Be is to Finance the
Revolution Ourselves
By Michael Shuman and Merrian Fuller
If Mohandas Gandhi were a typical North American activist these days, he
would probably be wearing a three-piece suit and working in a plush office
with his law degree prominently displayed. He would have little time to
lead protests, since every other week would be spent meeting with donors -
and those power lunches would hardly go well with fasting. He would be
careful to avoid salt marches or cotton boycotts, so as not to offend key
donors. To sharpen his annual pitch to foundations, he would be constantly
dreaming up new one-year projects on narrowly focused topics, perhaps a
one-time conference on English human-rights abuses, or a documentary on
anti-colonial activities in New Delhi. To ensure that various allies
didn't steal away core funders, he would keep his distance and be inclined
to trash talk behind their backs. In short, there's little doubt that the
British would still be running India.
The problem with activism today is that it is largely funded by grants and
gifts from rich foundations and individuals. The long-standing assumption
that you can take the money with few strings attached, and then run, needs
to be fundamentally reexamined.
Building a philanthropic base of support can cripple an organization's
mission and wreck it altogether when the well runs dry. Most nonprofits
have engaged in a kind of fundraising arms race in which our best leaders
focus more time, energy and resources, not on changing the world, but on
improving their panhandling prowess to capture just a little more of a
philanthropic pie that actually expands very little from year to year.
Armies of "development" staff spend as much as a third of an
organization's resources, not to advance the poor, but to cultivate
wealthy donors. Significant numbers of our colleagues create campaigns,
direct-mail pitches, telemarketing scripts, newsletters and other products
exclusively to "care and feed" prospects and to frame positions that will
not offend the rich.
Nonprofit structures dictated by this mode of funding also burden
organizers with the heavy regulatory hand of the state. To qualify for
tax-deductible contributions, for example, US nonprofits must agree to
limit lobbying and not to campaign for political causes of candidates.
We believe it's time for North American progressives to break free from
the philanthropic plantation. Those of us serious about social change
increasingly must get down to business, figuratively and literally. Every
social change group may not be able to generate all its funding through
revenue-generation, but every nonprofit certainly can generate a greater
percentage than it is doing now. In other words, we should become our own
funders. Once we start generating our own resources, we can invest them
politically - as corporations do now - largely without limitation, without
wasting our time on fundraising appeals, without worrying about that next
grant, without apologies. More >
24 Mar 2006 @ 07:22
Oglala Sioux president on South Dakota abortion law
Indianz.Com. In Print.
URL: [link]
Giago: Oglala Sioux president on state abortion law
“When Governor Mike Rounds signed HB 1215 into law it effectively banned all abortions in the state with the exception that it did allow saving the mother’s life. There were, however, no exceptions for victims of rape or incest. His actions, and the comments of State Senators like Bill Napoli of Rapid City, SD, set of a maelstrom of protests within the state.
Napoli suggested that if it was a case of “simple rape,�? there should be no thoughts of ending a pregnancy. Letters by the hundreds appeared in local newspapers, mostly written by women, challenging Napoli’s description of rape as “simple.�? He has yet to explain satisfactorily what he meant by “simple rape.�?
The President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe on the Pine Ridge Reservation, Cecilia Fire Thunder, was incensed. A former nurse and healthcare giver she was very angry that a state body made up mostly of white males, would make such a stupid law against women.
“To me, it is now a question of sovereignty,�? she said to me last week. “I will personally establish a Planned Parenthood clinic on my own land which is within the boundaries of the Pine Ridge Reservation where the State of South Dakota has absolutely no jurisdiction.�?
Strong words from a very strong lady. I hope Ms. Fire Thunder challenges Gov. Rounds and the state legislators on this law that is an affront to all independent women.” More >
21 Mar 2006 @ 18:23
My long time musical inspiration and friend William Aura has been offering his heart and hard work to assist Tibetan refugee children and students.
I wanted to share his compassionate efforts with you.
----------------------------------------------
Aura Communications – March 21, 2006
Dear Friends of Aura Imports,
Hop aboard. It’s that time again and I take strength in you joining me. Today I depart for Thailand, Nepal and India for six weeks. The “Aura Communications” journals and photographs will be published every 5 days or so as I travel (depending on available electricity of course.) This will be my 6th visit to the region. Your prayers and support are particularly appreciated at this time as the suffering continues at an alarming rate in the Himalayan world. I am pleased to say that collectively we are indeed making a difference… one heart at a time.
For those who have followed this path for the past five years, your devotion will not be forgotten. For those new to these writings, on behalf of these Tibetan refugee and war-torn Nepali students, we welcome you to our unfolding story:
A number of wonderful opportunities have developed since the beginning of this process.
Rick Ray is producing an extraordinary film documentary about His Holiness entitled “Ten Questions for the Dalai Lama”. Footage from my first sojourn to Lhasa, Tibet and a provocative interview with a former Tibetan political prisoner will be incorporated into the final cut. The license fee is being donated to our student fund. Thank-you Rick. This is a profound honor and could not have been done without your support. [link]
Mark Johnson has garnered high accolades for his groundbreaking film “Playing for Change” with at least 20 airplays so far featured on the Sundance channel. The immediate success of this documentary has led this remarkable spirit to develop a new creation showcasing deeply inspired musicians from around the globe. I am so pleased to announce I have been invited to guide him and his crew throughout India and Nepal to document these profound artists. This is powerful work. [link]
Heather Askinosie and Timmi Jandro of Energy Muse are designing some of the most spiritually significant jewelry on the planet right now. It is my great pleasure to produce with them an entire new line of gemstone delights rooted in ancient mysticism. My dear Newari artisan family in Nepal will handcraft these evocative pieces in silver and gold. This collaboration promises to be significant and will benefit many. [link]
Salvatore and Nancilee Iozzia of Chain Reaction Web have generously chosen to sponsor and host our website. When I received the surprising call from Salvatore I must admit I was floored at such a random act of kindness. I never thought such a thing could happen from total strangers. This strong reactive support has raised the game and I am better for it. Anyone who requires professional level website hosting with a mindfulness that exceeds your expectations please contact them and mention my name. [link]
My brilliant niece and nephew, Genevieve and Ben Keller, created our spectacular website. Positive response continues to pour in. Their dedication to this work continues to inspire uncle William. I highly recommend this team and will never forget their devotion.
[link]
Trinity Thomas has graciously stepped forward to assist in getting these writings and photographs arranged for publication. She is a brilliant writer, gemstone enthusiast, eminent psychic and a dear heart. I thank you for this selfless act of love.
Interest in the photographs for use in upcoming books, calendars and cards are coming in. It’s such a pleasure to witness with my own eyes the growing desire to learn more about this spiritually significant region and how their message may enrich us in these challenging times.
So many students’ lives have been affected in such a profound way. Numerous folks write about how this one-to-one relationship with a deserving student has changed their lives forever.
Here is a recent letter from our beloved Tashi. We are so proud of his accomplishments:
“Today I write to share my feelings and support for the man and his contributions and help for the Tibetan people and Tibet which is unlimited to share on the short way to all. As well, I am Aura’s second friend among all his friends in exile.
I was born in Amdo region of Tibet. In 1997 I escaped from Tibet to India. The Tibetan Exile Government provided me school for learning and education for four years. After four years, my opportunities were over.
I didn’t have anywhere to go, no good friends and no nice relative also in exile. While I was thirsting to study more, I wish I could do something for Tibet in the future. I do not expect to return to Tibet and do not have any good family in Tibet. I also felt I could build good way for my life by my own hand then that will be nice for all.
Due to Gods blessing I saw Aura first at Dharamsala in front of Tibetan New Reception Centre. He looked at me and smiled, and took snaps of me before we met. Besides his looks, his interest in Tibetan issues were such strong feelings in his face and smiles. I could feel it. But all the Tibetans he was meeting at TNRC were not able to communicate in English. So then I decided to help translate and I loved to give some information and made friends with him. After that day, we met again and I already bought some books with latest information on Tibet and her people. He was excited he got those books from me. He told me these look so good and what he was looking for. He also wanted to interview me on video about Tibet and to share my life and experience. I found some peace inside when he accepted my request to find some help for my education. His generous ambition and desire to help more Tibetan younger kids education and encouragement makes me so proud. There are so many feelings I can’t share through words or through actions also.
All I have today is because of his blessing and his wide compassion. My entire life changed new, now I have Ama la (Ama in Tibetan which means mother and La means term of love and respect word). So he made this great karma for us, my Ama la and me.
I respect his purity and objectives onward to Tibet and Tibetan issues. Such generosity in a person is so few in today’s world. We always appreciate his contribution to Tibet Exile. For my Ama la and I are always giving unlimited thanks to his blessing to us. Also we pray his dreams come true every single day.”
Sincerely,
Tashi Gyamtso
To read more about students who are desperately in need of educational and emotional support:
[link]
Of course none of this would be possible without this incredible bodhisattva posse. A hearty Tashi Delek and Nameste to our sponsors and contributors for your continued support: Maria Ehrenreich, John Wooler, Craig and Deb Dobbins, Linda Myers, Dorene and Michael Polcyn, Ted Higashi, Jeanette Nelson, Sherry Carballo, Douglas Spotted Eagle, Craig Chaquico and family, Jo Ann and Allen Kepler, Ozzie Ahlers, Gerlando Compilati, Kevin and Lynn Ryerson, Peter Sterling, Nancy Campbell, Sharon Grant & Jillian, Dr. Michael Thompson, Robin Rutherford, Barbara Beale, Darya Tamjidi, Mitch Manker, John and Kent, The Barry Aquilino family, Linda and Luther King, Carol Kiva, Dan Selene, Roger Lifeset, Sepehr Haddad, Tim Timmermans (if I missed you please forgive me!) and numerous angels of mercy who have opened their homes for fund-raising events. I thank you from the depth of my being for joining this dance.
As always, 100% of any donation goes directly to a student’s education fund. Write me back with your pledge and I will place see that it is distributed on this current sojourn. The challenge is great and I humbly ask for your prayers and contributions.
I close with a warm heart and deep appreciation to all who continue to make a real difference lighting one candle at a time. Stay tuned.
Yours in the spirit of peace,
William Aura
cybertibet@yahoo.com More >
20 Mar 2006 @ 21:30
How many times have you seen a broken or flickering neon light? Durability is not one neon's strengths. But now a new product, LED-Flex, has been introduced as a substitute for neon. The producer, www.MuleLighting.com , has managed to make the flexible LEDs have the appearance and brightness of neon. The biggest advantage of this product is the efficiency level — it reduces energy costs by about 70%. It also has all the advantages of LEDs — durability, a cool operating temperatures and longevity.
18 Mar 2006 @ 02:14
SENATE APPROVES ARCTIC DRILLING SCHEME IN BUDGET MEASURE
Statement by Karen Wayland, NRDC Legislative Director
WASHINGTON (March 16, 2006) – Passing a budget resolution crafted exclusively to allow oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the U.S. Senate today circumvented normal legislative channels and undermined the federal budget process to pave the way for special interests obsessed with drilling in the Arctic Refuge, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
A budget resolution is the only bill that cannot be filibustered in the Senate.
This vote to open protected public land to oil drilling comes less than two weeks after the largest oil spill to strike Alaska's North Slope was discovered. The spill went undetected for five days. (See ”Large Oil Spill in Alaska Went Undetected for Days” The New York Times, 3/15/06.)
Following is a statement by Karen Wayland, NRDC's legislative director:
“Orchestrating a federal budget plan to allow Arctic drilling really takes the cake when it comes to special interest politics. This move only serves to pay back big energy companies that have been hauling in record profits.”
“This sham budget resolution has nothing to do with our nation's budgetary priorities, and even less to do with energy security. Consumers won't even feel any real effect from oil and gas drilling in the Arctic Refuge for at least 20 years. Even then, the government's own experts say it will reduce gas prices by only about a penny a gallon.
“We hope the House will show more integrity about our nation's fiscal and energy needs with its budget plan. More >
The Great Green Scare and the Fed's "Case" Against Rod Coronado
By BEN ROSENFELD
The federal government has been champing at the bit to put Rod Coronado back
in prison since the moment he got out in 1999, refusing to repent for his
role in a 1992 arson at a Michigan State University fur research lab.
Federal officials have publicly branded Coronado a leader of the Animal
Liberation Front, even though the ALF is apparently non-hierarchical. He is,
however, an unabashed advocate of property destruction in defense of
animals, and his indictment in San Diego in February, for giving a speech in
which he explained how the incendiary devices used in the Michigan arson
were made, is a flimsy pretext to punish him for his radical views.
The government's vendetta against Coronado is a campaign in a broader witch
hunt against radical environmentalists and self-identified "green
anarchists" -- those who merge ecology, animal rights, and anarchism in a
vision of freedom and sustainability for all living beings. After Coronado's
arrest, the U.S. Attorney for San Diego, Carol Lam, stated in the
government's official press release, pre-judging the case for the public:
"Teaching people how to build explosives in order to commit violent crimes
is unacceptable in civilized society. There is no excuse for it." And so,
through sophistry and syllogism, the government has transformed speech into
violence.
On December 13, 2005, Coronado was convicted in Arizona for peacefully
attempting to disrupt a mountain lion hunt, which the U.S. Forest Service
organized after a hiker reported seeing a lion in a popular canyon -- even
though Arizona's Fish and Game Department searched and didn't find any
tracks. The public came out strongly against the hunt, prompting authorities
in the end to trap and relocate two lions without killing them. After
Coronado's conviction, Assistant U.S. Attorney Wallace Kleindienst told
reporters that Coronado is "a danger to the community. I know he wasn't
tried here for being a violent anarchist. This trial wasn't about Rod
Coronado being a terrorist, but he is one." The AUSA thus revealed the
government's two ulterior motives for going after Coronado: One, it has a
vendetta against him personally, and two, it has quietly embarked on yet
another war against an abstract concept -- anarchism.
The new case against Coronado is as stark a case about free speech as this
country has ever seen. Measured against any historic test of free speech,
Coronado's behavior -- i.e., his speech -- was alarmingly protected and
uncriminal. [1] On July 30, 2003, persons unknown torched an apartment
complex under construction in San Diego, causing millions of dollars in
damage. The day afterward, Coronado flew to San Diego to lecture at a
previously scheduled event. In response to a question from an audience
member, Coronado -- who has been a public figure on the environmental
lecture circuit since his release from prison in 1999 -- demonstrated how
someone had constructed a non-explosive, incendiary device out of a plastic
jug filled with gasoline to commit the Michigan arson for which he did his
time. The government does not suspect, and has not accused, Coronado of any
involvement in the fire set the day before his speech.
17 Mar 2006 @ 08:51
Ronnie Cummins: Gaia Not Guns, A Declaration of Peace & Inter-Dependence
GAIA NOT GUNS: A DECLARATION OF PEACE & INTER-DEPENDENCE
Posted 3/13/06
By Ronnie Cummins, Organic Consumers Association
Gaia: Named after an ancient Greek Goddess of the Earth, Gaia is the belief
and scientific hypothesis that our entire planet is a living organism with
Humankind as an integral part.
Farmers and consumers, both U.S. and worldwide, share the unique privilege
and daunting responsibility of making sure that everyone is fed, and that
the land, water, and climate are nurtured and protected so that we can feed
and nourish the future generations.
War and the enormous waste of resources spent in waging war and maintaining
a huge military industrial complex, threaten our well-being and the literal
survival of our children and the future generations. U.S. taxpayers, for
example, are currently supporting a military budget of over $578 billion a
year, ($463 billion for ³normal² military spending and $115 billion for the
Iraq & Afghan wars)--enough to pay for the cost of eliminating global hunger
and stabilizing the global climate. The annual costs of waging the war in
Iraq and maintaining military bases in the Middle East alone are sufficient
to launch a crash program to reduce greenhouse gases by 75%, feed the
world¹s hungry, and convert the U.S. economy to renewable energy and organic
and sustainable agricultural practices.
As the world¹s climate scientists and energy analysts warn us, unless we
rapidly transfer billions of dollars from the military budget and other
corporate welfare programs, and implement a far-reaching global program to
eliminate poverty, reduce greenhouse gases, and convert the U.S. and global
economy to renewable energy and sustainable production, civilization, as we
know it today, may not survive more than a few more decades.
As organic and socially responsible consumers, we come together to oppose
the war in Iraq and to challenge the dangerous and unsustainable cycle of
war and militarism that threatens our world. The solution we propose is a
negotiated peace, nuclear disarmament, energy independence (for all
nations), and a concerted global campaign to reduce and eliminate global
poverty, especially rural poverty, through the conversion of agriculture and
global commerce to sustainable and organic production.
We come from different political, religious, and social backgrounds, but
share a common concern that the living Earth or Creation, must be protected,
that the upcoming generations have an inalienable right to a stable climate
and that the United States, founded by small farmers and craftsmen/women,
must return to the spirit and ideals upon which our Republic was founded.
We strive for a world that reduces the risk of war by eliminating its
causes--poverty, control of government and mass media by powerful special
interests (the fossil fuel lobby and the military industrial complex),
environmental degradation, injustice, and religious intolerance. We call
for all countries to stop misappropriating their resources on war and to
focus instead on fighting hunger, promoting public health, stabilizing the
climate, and protecting our common environment and farmlands.
Organic and Socially Responsible Consumers Say No to War and Climate Chaos
Help us build up a national and international network of organic and
socially responsible consumers who wish to protect Gaia/Mother Earth, put an
end to war and military madness, and green and re-localize the global
ecology.
Our group plans to become part of United for Peace and Justice, a coalition
of 1300 local and national anti-war groups in the U.S.
(www.unitedforpeace.org ). Please join us
in building up a powerful coalition that brings about cooperation and
synergy between the anti-war movement, the climate crisis movement, and the
organic community.
Thanks to the Farms Not Arms coalition and peaceroots.org for much of the
wording and inspiration for this document.
And they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into
pruning hooks.
ISAIAH 2:4
19 Feb 2006 @ 00:04
Its All Our Fault: Natural Gas Running out in Eight Years
February 11, 2006 06:21 AM - Lloyd Alter, Toronto
A comic said "if I opened a funeral parlour, people would stop dying". We feel that way after installing a brand new high efficiency furnace two days ago and then reading that we are going to run out of natural gas in 8.1 years- before the warranty even runs out. Dave Hughes of Natural Resources Canada gave a lecture in Calgary on February 2 called “The Coming Energy Sustainability Crisis: Alternatives to Oil, Implications of Demand Growth and the Way Forward.”
"North America peaked in terms of conventional natural gas production in 2001–2002. Notable examples of the effects of this peak are the dramatic increase in prices for natural gas and natural gas-dependent products, such as fertilizers and plastics. Consumption trends and patterns were also explored. In every case, the phenomenal growth rates in our economy show a complete disconnect with the reality of the resources currently supporting them. Canada, for example, has 8.1 years left in natural gas reserves."
February 13, 2006 12:15 AM - Warren McLaren, Sydney
We’ve mentioned eBay’s ReThink program for salvaging computer stuff on one or two occasions in the past. Now Tipster Alex D. alerts us to the fact they have a newish scheme, whereby you can get PayPal money by sending in any old electronics goodies that you no longer require. The program is quite broad, it includes the following categories; Desktops-PC, Desktops-Apple, Notebooks-PC, Notebooks-Apple, Camcorders, Digital Cameras, Servers, Multimedia Projectors, Home Audio Receivers, Mobile Phones, Car Audio, Monitors, Game Systems, PDAs and Apple iPods. And is pretty simple. Fill in the online form, it gives you an estimate, if you think the $$$$’s sound half decent, just make a booking, print off the prepaid mailer, and ship the goods to their warehouse. A week later you’ll receive your dough via PayPal. The quoted prices won’t make you rich, but if you’ve run out of friends and family to donate your old computers and hi-fi to, then at least you get something back this way. What exactly happens to the goods at this point isn’t made clear, but given that they've just paid you for them, we doubt they are landfill bound.
8 Feb 2006 @ 08:30
Break the Chains of Toxic Pesticides and Farm Worker Exploitation
Valentines Day marks the biggest shopping day of the year, when it comes to chocolate and flowers. But did you know that by purchasing organic and Fair Trade chocolate and flowers your consumer dollars will no longer be going towards toxic pesticides, child slavery, and farm worker exploitation?
Over 40 percent of the world’s conventional chocolate (i.e. non-organic and non-Fair Trade) comes from Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), where the International Labor Organization (ILO) and US State Department have reported widespread instances of child slavery. Exploitation of cacao farmers and farm workers is the global norm in the chocolate industry, rather than the exception.
Meanwhile organizations such as the Pesticide Action Network point out that commercial flowers, produced in countries such as Colombia, are the most toxic and heavily sprayed agricultural crops on Earth, The high profits of the transnational flower exporters are derived from poisoning the land and farmers, while forcing workers in the flower industry, often young women, to work 18 hour days for poverty wages during peak flower buying times such as Valentine’s Day.
This Valentine’s Day, join with the Organic Consumers Association and our allies around the world to put your money where your values lie and to show your loved ones that you truly care. Please break the chains of industrial agriculture and corporate globalization by choosing Fair Trade and organic flowers and chocolate for your Valentine’s Day gifts.
7 Feb 2006 @ 07:43
India: Police Investigate Death of Coca-Cola Bottling Plant Opponent
CHENNAI, India, February 2, 2006 (ENS) - A Coca-Cola franchise company in India is the subject of a police inquiry into the death of a community leader who had publicly objected to a planned Coca-Cola bottling plant in the village where he chaired the local council.
On January 30, Justice P. Murgesen of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court directed the Superintendent of Police to register a case into the suspicious death of V. Kamsan. The judge further directed the Crime Branch Criminal Investigation Department to conduct an investigation into Kamsan's death August 30, 2005.
The court action came as a result of a petition filed by Kamsan's wife, Mrs. Santhanamary.
Kamsan was chairman of the village council in Gangaikondan, southern Tamil Nadu where the South India Bottling Company Private Limited - a Coca-Cola franchisee - plans to locate a bottling plant.
The drinks plant, planned for the government owned Gangaikondan SIPCOT Industrial Estate, would withdraw about five lakh (500,000) liters of water from the Thamirabarani River, drawing opposition from political leaders, community members and activists.
Residents of Gangaikondan, a village near India's southern tip, go for water at the river. (Photo by Nityanand Jayaraman courtesy India Resource Center)
They fear that withdrawal of water from the Thamirabarani River would be harmful to farming activities in the Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts, which are already suffering a water crisis.
On August 23, 2005, Kamsan convened a meeting of the Gangaikondan village council which passed a resolution against the proposed Coca-Cola plant, saying, "As the unit will cause environmental and health hazards besides triggering acute drinking water scarcity, the government should immediately cancel the permission given to the company, which is planning to prepare a range of soft drinks here."
But less than 12 hours after the village council meeting, Kamsan issued a prepared statement to "The Hindu" newspaper, one of India's leading English newspapers, contradicting the resolution passed earlier in the day.
When asked by "The Hindu" about issuing the conflicting statement, Kamsan said, "I am under immense pressure from the public, the police and some other quarters. So I have issued this statement."
On that same evening, according to Mrs. Santhanamary's petition, Coca-Cola company officials "coerced" her husband into accompanying them to a hotel in Tirunelveli, detained him for days and forced him to drink alcohol, even though he was suffering from jaundice.
Kamsan was brought back home by Coca-Cola company officials on August 28 in very serious condition, and according to the petition, he said that the Coca-Cola company officials had forced him to drink liquor and drop the village council resolution.
Kamsan was admitted to the Tirunelveli hospital where he died on August 30, 2005.
There is strong community opposition to the proposed Coca-Cola bottling plant in Gangaikondan, as there is to several other such bottling plants in locations across India where water is scarce. Foul play is suspected by many community members in Kamsan's sudden disappearance and death, as well as the timing between his public opposition to the plant and his death.
Last Friday, the Gangaikondan village council passed another resolution asking the state government to cancel the license of the proposed facility "as the effluents discharged from the plant will pollute the environment, groundwater and soil."
"The Coca-Cola company in India talks a lot about having good community relations, rainwater harvesting, transparency and accountability but the ground reality is that the company is engaged in all sorts of dubious activities in an attempt to intimidate local communities, particularly where there is significant local opposition to its operations," said T. Fatimson of the Campaign for Right to Livelihood and Food Security, one of the active groups working in Gangaikondan to oppose the bottling plant.
"No company, however large, is above the law, and we expect a thorough police investigation into the suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr. Kamsan's death," said Amit Srivastava of the India Resource Center, an international campaigning organization based in San Francisco. "The investigation must ensure that there is no interference from Coca-Cola company authorities."
1 Feb 2006 @ 07:54
Climate Expert Says NASA Tried to Silence Him
QUOTE: "The fight between Dr. Hansen and administration officials echoes other recent disputes. At climate laboratories of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for example, many scientists who routinely took calls from reporters five years ago can now do so only if the interview is approved by administration officials in Washington, and then only if a public affairs officer is present or on the phone."
Climate Expert Says NASA Tried to Silence Him
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
NEW YORK TIMES, January 29, 2006
[link]
The top climate scientist at NASA says the Bush administration has tried to stop him from speaking out since he gave a lecture last month calling for prompt reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases linked to global warming.
The scientist, James E. Hansen, longtime director of the agency's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, said in an interview that officials at NASA headquarters had ordered the public affairs staff to review his coming lectures, papers, postings on the Goddard Web site and requests for interviews from journalists.
Dr. Hansen said he would ignore the restrictions. "They feel their job is to be this censor of information going out to the public," he said.
Dean Acosta, deputy assistant administrator for public affairs at the space agency, said there was no effort to silence Dr. Hansen. "That's not the way we operate here at NASA," he said. "We promote openness and we speak with the facts."
Mr. Acosta said the restrictions on Dr. Hansen applied to all National Aeronautics and Space Administration personnel whom the public could perceive as speaking for the agency. He added that government scientists were free to discuss scientific findings, but that policy statements should be left to policy makers and appointed spokesmen.
Sounding Circle - Category: Activism
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