[Onthebarricades] Peace protests, America, Europe and the west, Apr-Aug 2008
Andy
ldxar1 at tesco.net
Thu Aug 28 22:05:33 PDT 2008
ON THE BARRICADES: Global Resistance Roundup, April-August 2008
https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/onthebarricades
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance/
* GERMANY: Conscientious objector goes on hunger strike
* SCOTLAND: Company offices trashed in anti-war protest
* US: Arms firm targeted in sit-down protest
* US: Protester grows peace sign on lawn
* US, North Carolina: Protest opposes war with Iran
* US, Washington: Arrests at protest against Stryker deployment
* US, California: Pension scheme asked to divest Iraq
* UK: Human chain protest at Faslane
* US: Protest at gunmaker
* NORTHERN IRELAND: Bush visit protested
* ITALY: Small protests as Bush meets Berlusconi
* SLOVENIA: Protests planned against Bush visit
* GERMANY: Bush protests "lose appeal", visit unprotested
* UK: Protesters target Hechler and Koch
* US, Albany: War spending protested
* US, DC: Student groups protest on war anniversary
* NEW ZEALAND: Protest at spy base court case
* US, Pittsburgh: War protesters "frustrated by apathy"
* US, Vermont: Protesters occupy General Dynamics office
* US: Peace activists refuse to pay taxes
* NEW ZEALAND: Peace protesters occupy, sabotage spy base
[NOTE: The "sabotage" charges were later dropped. Not sure how
politicians can call trying to stop war "senseless" - maybe they need new
dictionaries.]
* UK: Trident protesters arrested at Rolls Royce, Derby
* UK: Protest at US base in Britain
* US, Colorado: Peace protesters interrupt McCain speech
* IRELAND: Die-in against cluster bombs
* US, Florida: "New generation of protesters" against Iraq war
* US: Blair heckled in visit to Yale
* US, Grand Rapids: Lie-down protest against war
* US, California, San Diego: Blackwater facility protested
* US, Washington: Protest against nuclear weapons
* US: Impeachment protest
* US, California: Peace protest targets Schwarzenegger
* US: "Iconic voice of protest" keeps protesting war at 69
* CANADA: Census refusers at risk of imprisonment; protesting Lockheed
Martin role
* US: Nationwide protests say "no Iran war"
* US, Anoka: Protest at ammo maker
* CANADA: Protest at plan to deport war resister
* INDIA/US: Protest against nuclear deal
* US: Rallies "for an oil-free president" target McCain
* US, California: Peace protesters target McCain
* US, Florida: Students protest war
* US: War resister withholds taxes
* US, Wisconsin: Peace activists on long march; seek to enter base
* US, California: Nuclear tech at lab protested
* US, Massachusetts: Protest at psychology conference over interrogation
role
* UK: Anti-nuclear protest at dockyard
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,3340979,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf
Bundeswehr | 16.05.2008
Conscientious Objector Protests Conscription with Hunger Strike
Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Matthias Schirmer wants no
part of this
A 21-year-old man has begun a hunger strike to protest his conscription into
the army. The case throws the spotlight anew on Germany's conscription
policy, which many view as unfair.
Mathias Schirmer, stationed at a Bundeswehr base in the state of
Mecklenburg-Western Pommerania, has refused to eat for a week, saying
conscription is "not compatible with democracy and freedom as well as with
human rights."
According to the German Peace Society, Schirmer was ordered to report to the
Bundeswehr on April 1. When he did not show up, he was picked up by military
police and sent to a base in the town of Viereck in north-eastern Germany.
But Schirmer refused to wear a uniform or conform to other Bundeswehr
requirements, such as shaving.
He rejects both military service or civilian alternative service, which is
an option for conscripts who do not want to serve in the armed forces.
After 12 days of confinement to his quarters, Schirmer was sentenced to a
further 21 days of detention. As his standpoint did not change, the military
imposed a 21-day arrest sentence on him, which began on May 9. It was then
that he began the hunger strike.
A spokesman for the army in Koblenz reports that Schirmer's condition is
"good, considering the circumstances" and that force feeding has not yet
become necessary. Schirmer is seen once a day by a doctor and army officials
check on his condition every three hours.
The Bundeswehr has said releasing Schirmer from his duty can only be decided
once his 21-day sentence is completed, or if "other circumstances" arise.
Fairness question
There is one other conscientious objector serving a sentence in Germany,
although he is not on a hunger strike.
The cases are likely to again raise the question of the fairness of
Germany's conscription program. For years, fewer then one-third of those of
draft age are called into the armed forces. Calls regularly go out that the
Bundeswehr should be converted into a voluntary, professional body.
Most of Germany's major NATO partners have done away with mandatory service.
However, the federal government in Berlin has resisted calls to do away with
conscription all together, arguing that it creates a force made up of all
sections of society. Purely professional militaries tend to be recruited
largely from underprivileged groups.
In two other cases similar to Schirmer's last year, conscientious objectors
were let out of the army after serving short sentences. Courts imposed fines
and sentenced them to community service.
http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh/War-protest-group-trashes-firm39s.4159923.jp
War protest group trashes firm's offices
ANTI-WAR campaigners have targeted a city business for a second time,
smashing its windows and daubing graffiti.
Members of the F*** the War Coalition claimed to have hit the Selex offices
on the city's Ferry Road.
In a statement they said they wouldn't let up in their campaign against the
company because it produces technology used by the armed forces in Iraq.
It is understood windows at the factory were smashed while the phrases War
Profiteers Work Here and Smash The Arms Trade were painted on walls and
billboards.
It is the second time the company has been targeted. In March the windows
were smashed, while the US Consulate and an Army recruitment centre was also
hit.
A spokesman for the organisation said: "Once again we have struck out at the
weapons company Selex letting people know what really goes on inside the
slick, shiny building."
The group have vowed not to stop until the forces pull out of Iraq and
Afghanistan.
http://www.abcnewspapers.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3207&Itemid=26
War protest at Federal Cartridge
Wednesday, 02 July 2008
Eight Project to Stop the War Industry (PSWI) members laid down their law
outside Federal Cartridge Company Wednesday morning. (Photo by Sue Austreng)
by Sue AustrengThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you
need JavaScript enabled to view it
Staff writer
The Project to Stop the War Industry (PSWI) laid down their law outside
Federal Cartridge Company's Anoka entrance Wednesday morning, staging a
protest and blocking the company's entrance at the intersection of Main
Street and Wedgewood Drive.
At 7:50 a.m., eight members of the Project
lined up, handcuffed themselves together, wrapped their outstretched arms in
PVC tubes wrapped in black electrician's tape and lay down on the asphalt
road.
Personnel from Anoka and Coon Rapids police departments, the Coon Rapids
Fire Department, and the Anoka-Champlin Fire Department responded to the
incident.
"If you choose not to disperse you will be under arrest," police warned the
protesters.
To see slide show, go to Photo Gallery
By 8:44 a.m., protesters failed to move and police responded.
"At this point, you are all under arrest," a police officer announced.
Then work began to remove the PVC tubes and release the protesters from
their self-induced bondage.
PSWI members at each end of the lay-down had been secured to a metal Federal
Cartridge sign on one end and a sand barrel on the other.
Police and fire personnel used scissors, wire cutters and, finally, a
Sawzall to release the eight protesters who were then escorted to squad cars
and taken to the Anoka County Jail.
Anoka Police Capt. Scott Nolan said police arrested eight adults and one
juvenile, charging them with unlawful assembly, disorderly conduct and
disobeying a lawful order.
PSWI released a statement at the protest site claiming that Federal
Cartridge is part of Alliant Techsystems, a weapons manufacturer, and
Minnesota's largest military contractor.
"Federal Cartridge Company...won a $30 million contract to produce frangible
ammunition for the U.S. military in 2003," the statement read. "It is
currently manufacturing ammunition for...its current $9 million contract for
ammunition for use by the U.S. military."
Those supporting the protest stood at the intersection of Main Street and
Wedgewood Drive, waving signs bearing messages of protest.
A few passing motorists gave their honking support as they slowed to view
the scene.
After police and fire exited the scene, a PSWI supporter launched a kite
festooned with a peace sign and a dove, the international symbol of peace.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/08/02/20080802tr-peace0726.html
Protester sprouts peace sign in lawn
by Paula Hassler - Aug. 2, 2008 07:00 AM
Special for The Republic
Meet Edward "Jack" Lowell: age 59, Arizona State University graduate,
geologist, gemologist, Tempe resident and tireless war protester since the
Vietnam era.
Lowell achieved some notoriety about four years ago when he built a
10-foot-diameter peace symbol made of plastic pipe covered with 200 shiny
CDs. His home is due east of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, so he
figured people in approaching aircraft could see the glittering design
strung up on his roof with the help of some backyard trees. Last month,
Lowell devised a watering technique that enabled him to grow grass in his
front yard in a way that formed three large peace signs and the words "Out
of Iraq."
"My lawn was brown and pretty much dying of thirst at that time, so I
watered the designs and not the rest of the grass," he said. "I had gotten
in trouble for letting my lawn go totally dead and I figured this might be
one tactic, to say it was an art project."
The grassy symbols stood out boldly until recent storms greened up the
entire lawn. "My work was looking fine until the rains came and sort of
erased it on me, but when the monsoons are over I'll reseed the designs and
make them larger and more visible," he said.
"I know how to use my weed eater to sharpen up the image, and it will be a
permanent fixture in my front yard. When Google Earth retakes its satellite
pictures in our area, my symbols will show up to the whole world that I do
not like our government making war for bad reasons."
Lowell said he appreciates the folks who honk in approval of his work as
they drive past his home.
"The neighbors are cool with it, and it could give people the idea to
express themselves," he said. "If you see someone do something that you
believe in, and it's a novel idea, then you might go out and also do
something creative. It's sort of suggesting to the world that you expressed
your feelings and your beliefs in any way you can that's not hurting anyone
else."
Lowell keeps busy these days with his Web site, writing letters to
newspapers and tending to his home-based gemology business. His 1982 Toyota
pickup, usually parked in his driveway, is plastered with anti-war bumper
stickers and political slogans.
Thinking back to his treetop peace-symbol project of 2004, Lowell regrets
that it didn't last very long.
"The sun ruined the CDs after a period of time, and replacing all 200 of
them was not an option," he said.
But he did find a way to recycle it.
People who drive by his home in December will see the plastic-pipe peace
sign festooned with Christmas lights on his roof - or propped up by his
front door.
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/3321010/
N.C. group protests war with Iran
Posted: Aug. 2, 2008
Updated: Aug. 3, 2008
Raleigh, N.C. - A group protesting against a possible war with Iran
demonstrated in Raleigh Saturday.
The North Carolina Coalition to Stop War on Iran held a march and rally to
protest the growing threat of western-led attacks on Iran. Similar protests
took place in 60 cities across the country.
A group supporting United States troops also protested in Raleigh.
http://www.theolympian.com/breakingnews/story/530203.html
3 arrested protesting movement of Stryker vehicles
The Olympian . Published August 04, 2008
Comments (17)
Police arrested three anti-war activists - including two South Sound
residents - early Sunday morning for blocking the Fort Lewis main gate.
Lakewood Police spokeswoman Heidi Hoffman said the three were arrested on
suspicion of disorderly conduct at about 2:40 a.m. at the Interstate 5
onramp at Milepost 120.
Protestors have been trying to block the return of Stryker combat vehicles
from Iraq via the Port of Tacoma. So far nine people have been arrested,
Hoffman said.
About 900 vehicles - including Stryker vehicles, trucks and Humvees - are
being convoyed to Fort Lewis following the return of the 4th Brigade, 2nd
Infantry Division Strykers after more than a year in Iraq.
http://www.thenewstribune.com/front/topphoto/story/429228.html
Protest at Port of Tacoma leads to arrest
Ian Demsky; ian.demsky at thenewstribune.com
Published: July 30th, 2008 11:54 PM | Updated: July 31st, 2008 06:09 AM
A handful of people showed up at the Port of Tacoma on Wednesday night to
protest the return of Stryker combat vehicles, which had been in Iraq. The
members of the Port Militarization Resistance group said the returning
vehicles were part of a cycle, which would eventually see them sent back to
war again.
. RELATED STORY Police, others prepare for new anti-war protests
"We're opposed to the cycle at all points," said Wally Cuddeford.
Unlike past protests in Tacoma and Olympia, the protesters mostly stood
around. They didn't chant. They didn't hold signs.
One man was arrested on suspicion of obstructing a police officer. Two
others were given trespassing warnings.
The two who were given warnings declined to talk about their encounter with
police.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008094651_portprotests06m0.html?syndication=rss
August 6, 2008 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
12 anti-war protesters arrested at Tacoma-area demonstration
Clashes between Tacoma-area police and anti-war protesters trying to gum up
a military transport operation have resulted in at least 12 arrests in the
past week.
By Noelene Clark
Seattle Times staff reporter
Clashes between Tacoma-area police and anti-war protesters trying to gum up
a military transport operation have resulted in at least 12 arrests in the
past week.
The protesters, who began demonstrations at the Port of Tacoma and Fort
Lewis on Thursday night, are part of a movement targeting civilian ports
used to support the Iraq war. The 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division
Strykers - armored combat vehicles recently returned from Iraq - were being
moved from a transport ship to Fort Lewis.
The same group of protesters, the Port Militarization Resistance, was
responsible for demonstrations at the Tacoma port in March 2007 that ended
with three arrests and police launching tear gas. The group also protested
at Olympia's port in May 2006, in which paramedics treated protesters after
police fired pepper spray, and again in November 2007, when police used
pepper spray and arrested more than 40.
This week's protests were much tamer, police said.
"It wasn't like last year," Tacoma police spokesman Tom Williams said.
"There was nowhere near the volume of protesters out there. It was
relatively calm this year."
Protesters estimate about 50 people demonstrated each night between Thursday
and Monday, compared with 200 people in March 2007 when the Strykers were
transported to Iraq.
Patrick Edelbacher, who is part of the Port Militarization Resistance, said
the protesters briefly delayed some military transport vehicles by linking
arms to block roadways. The equipment - more than 260 Stryker vehicles, more
than 400 other vehicles such as Humvees and trucks, and almost 700
containers - was transported according to schedule, said Fort Lewis
spokesman Joe Piek.
Edelbacher said the recent demonstrations were a victory for the anti-war
movement because of how costly it is for the government to manage protests.
"We want cities to say, 'We don't want to be involved with this anymore
because it's economically ineffective and disastrous when it comes to police
activity and conflicts with protesters,' " Edelbacher said.
Local law-enforcement agencies and the Port of Tacoma spent $500,000 to
$800,000 on extra support during last year's protests, said Port spokeswoman
Tara Mattina.
"It's definitely a security expense for the surrounding cities, the military
and for the port," she said.
This year's protest was more orderly, Mattina said, partly because
communication among police, the military and port security has been
improved.
"There were some lessons that we learned from the last time about how best
to handle this kind of situation," she said.
Lakewood police arrested nine people, three each on Friday, Saturday and
Sunday, on suspicion of disorderly conduct and failure to disperse, said
spokeswoman Heidi Hoffman. The protesters were blocking the roadway, Hoffman
said.
Tacoma police arrested three protesters, one of whom was struck with a
Taser, hospitalized and later booked on suspicion of third-degree assault,
Williams said.
That man, 20-year-old Forest Student, was part of a group of protesters
surrounding a police vehicle and making threats, Williams said. An officer
struck Student in the chest with a Taser after he and other protesters
ignored repeated warnings to back off, Williams said.
Edelbacher said demonstrators approached the vehicle and asked the officer
to leave but that he wasn't acting in a threatening manner.
All arrested protesters have been released from the Pierce County Jail. It
wasn't clear Tuesday if charges would be filed.
http://www.kcra.com/news/16658792/detail.html?rss=sac&psp=news
Protestors Ask CalPERS To Divest In Iraq
Pension Fund Invested Millions In War Contractor
POSTED: 4:30 pm PDT June 19, 2008
UPDATED: 6:21 pm PDT June 19, 2008
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Protestors said Thursday they want the California
Public Employees Retirement System to divest from the war in Iraq.
"We feel now that this is immoral, unpatriotic and treasonous," Karen Bernal
from truemajority.org said.
CalPERS, the largest public pension fund in the country, has approximately
$27 million invested in a company called KBR, Inc. The company is considered
to be one of the nation's largest war contractors.
Armed with petitions bearing 20,000 signatures, a small band of war
protestors was determined Thursday to make a point to the CalPERS Board.
"Our government is wasting billions of dollars of my tax money and CalPERS
is profiting from that money, which is being used illegally, unethically to
continue the operation of Iraq," retired state employee Maggie Coulter said.
CalPERS has an investment portfolio of nearly $250 billion in assets, so any
decision to divest from Iraq would have worldwide implications.
But if the protestors are looking for any sort of immediate action, they're
likely to be very disappointed.
"Divestment is always a slippery slope. We take this as a last-resort
measure. What we're interested in today is to just receive the information
... We've never divested for political reasons, let me make that very
clear," CalPERS spokesman Pat Macht said.
CalPERS recently divested from tobacco companies after numerous lawsuits
changed the market conditions, making cigarettes an unhealthy investment.
The protesters said they were triggered to speak out Thursday after a New
York Times article filed this week raised serious questions about the role
of KBR, Inc. in Iraq
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/15/nuclear.scotland?gusrc=rss&feed=uknews
Hundreds protest in Faslane human chain
Paul Kelbie
The Observer,
Sunday June 15 2008
Article history
Up to 500 demonstrators formed a 2,000-metre long human chain alongside the
fence of the Faslane Naval Base on the Clyde yesterday as part of a protest
against nuclear weapons
The protest took place on the 40th anniversary of the first nuclear
submarine patrol from the base, and marked one year since a vote in the
Scottish Parliament against the replacement of Trident.
MSPs taking part included the SNP's Bill Kidd, Marlyn Glen of Labour and
Green Robin Harper.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-gun-protest_web_15jun15,0,1884762.story
Jackson leads protest at Lake Barrington manufacturer of semiautomatic
weapons
Assault rifles turning Chicago into war zone, he says
By Robert Channick | Special to the Tribune
8:40 PM CDT, June 14, 2008
Vowing to intensify his campaign against gun violence, Rev. Jesse Jackson
held a protest rally Saturday at a Lake Barrington semiautomatic rifle
manufacturer.
Leading 80 supporters to the remote industrial park that houses D.S. Arms,
Jackson said assault weapons were turning Chicago into a war zone.
"It does not stand to reason that we'll fight a war to end weapons of mass
destruction from flowing in Iraq and increase the flow of weapons at home,"
he said.
Notably absent from the protest was Rev. Michael Pfleger, who often joins
Jackson's protests against gun violence. Both were arrested last June after
a confrontation during a protest at a south suburban gun store. Criminal
charges of trespassing were dropped.
Pfleger is on a mandated leave from his parish at St. Sabina Catholic Church
following incendiary comments he made last month about Sen. Hillary Clinton
during a guest sermon at Trinity United Church of Christ.
Last summer, Jackson, accompanied by Pfleger, first visited D.S. Arms, the
closest gun manufacturer to Chicago. The company has a catalog of 20- to
30-round semiautomatic rifles geared mostly for military and police use.
"We're a very convenient target, even though we don't manufacture any of the
type of weapon systems that are used by the gangbangers in the city of
Chicago," said Michael Danforth, an attorney for D.S. Arms.
The company has been in business for more than 20 years, the last eight on
Industrial Avenue in Lake Barrington. The company's 25 employees work in the
gray, aluminum-sided building with temporary placards reading, "Support Our
Troops and Law Enforcement Professionals."
"They can't manufacture guns in Chicago because it's illegal," Jackson said.
"So they come to the suburbs to hide in the sanctuary of a very peaceful
community."
Marching to the beat of shakers, Jackson led his supporters on a 30-minute
march, carrying signs and circling the sleepy street in front of two dozen
Lake County sheriff's police and a small gaggle of onlookers.
Setting up on the curb in front of D.S. Arms, which was cordoned off by
yellow police tape and a row of officers, Jackson took the microphone and
called for a ban on assault weapons, universal screening and a limit on the
number of guns an individual can purchase.
His speech rang ever stronger for some in the crowd who lost relatives to
gun violence.
"This is a cancer, and it's got to be removed," said Stephen Young of
Evanston, a spokesman for the Illinois Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
whose son was shot to death 12 years ago. "We don't need these weapons;
things have got to change."
Alice Norris of Hillside, a member of the Million Mom March, which is part
of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said her daughter was killed
by a semiautomatic weapon in Chicago 15 years ago.
"When I got there, there were bullet casings all over the ground," she said.
"It's a war weapon, and why would honest, decent citizens need the right to
have that kind of weaponry?"
Though Danforth acknowledged that the company's weapons are available for
purchase at the retail level, he said they have never been linked to a crime
in Chicago.
Undeterred, Jackson said he would return again soon and enlist many more
supporters.
"We're going to visit the churches in this area, and meet the city councils
in this area, and meet with students in this area, and build a mass
demonstration," Jackson said. "We shall march in big numbers in this place,
across the state and across the nation."
Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran Jr. said Saturday in a statement that his
office provided a security detail for last year's visit by Jackson and
Pfleger that cost county taxpayers $5,200. The cost of Saturday's visit has
yet to be determined, the release said.
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/88005
Protests in Belfast against Bush Visit.
antrim | anti-war | news report Monday June 16, 2008 22:05 by Paula Geraghty
The Union Jack no where to be seen, replaced, bravely and daringly with an
Iraqi flag over City Hall. Hundreds protested at the lunchtime protest. The
protests continued at Stormont. More reports to follow.
Bush, a president on the way out, finished his last European tour today in
Belfast. Hundreds commemorated the struggle for peace and justice in the
world at City Hall, calling to mind the Civil Rights struggle in the 6
counties. Eamon McCann one of the Raytheon 9 acquitted of criminal damage
against the arms manufacturer Raytheon spoke of how we are told we live in a
global village and thus Iraqi, Iranian, Lebanese, Palestinian and all
nationalities are now are neighbours. There was much celebration as the
Iraqi flag was to be seen, raised over City Hall, replacing the Union Jack,
a brave gesture and symbol of solidarity. An Iraqi man spoke of his
gratitude for the solidarity shown by those present in Belfast.
Many Trade Unions were represented; Unison Unite and there was a
spokesperson from NIPSA. Éirigí, the Workers Party, some Ógra Sinn Féin,
Socialist Party, SWP and SDLP were all in attendance. It was made quite
clear that those who desire peace should not invite the world's greatest
terrorist to Belfast.
http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-239/0806161578145528.htm
Protests in Belfast ahead of Bush visit
London, June 16, IRNA
UK-Bush Visit
US President George W Bush was being greeted Monday with a renewed series of
anti-war protests against his visit to Northern Ireland.
Ahead of his visit, human rights activists staged a protest outside Belfast
City Hall on Sunday calling on the First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy
First Minister Martin McGuinness to confront Bush on the US abuse of terror
suspects.
Director of Amnesty International's Belfast branch, Patrick Corrigan, said
protestors took the opportunity to send a message to the US president ahead
of a major security clamp-down on the visit.
Bush was greeted on Sunday with customary anti-war protesters during his
farewell visit to London on Sunday before he steps down from office in
January.
Despite the whole area of Belfast's assembly at Stormont being closed to the
public since Saturday and a no-fly zone has been imposed, a whole series of
anti-war demonstrations were planned across Northern Ireland's capital on
Monday.
The US president was flying for his second visit to Belfast since 2003 with
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on the final leg of his tour of Europe.
Apart from Robinson and McGuinness, they were being accompanied during the
visit with Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen to assess progress one year
after the restoration of the region's devolved administration.
Later in the day, Bush was due to visit an integrated school in Belfast
where he will meet Protestant and Catholic pupils who are educated alongside
each other.
http://www.myantiwar.org/view/154163.html
Bush shrugs off protests to meet with Berlusconi
Bush to meet with Italian Premier Berlusconi and Pope Benedict XVI in Rome;
hundreds protest
DEB RIECHMANN
AP News
Jun 12, 2008 06:06 EST
President Bush can look forward to a hearty welcome from his old friend, the
charismatic Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, and Pope Benedict XVI during
his visit to Rome. That's not what was found on the streets, however, where
anti-Bush sentiment over the war in Iraq still lingers.
Anti-war activists and hundreds of other demonstrators marched through the
Italian capital on Wednesday as Bush arrived for a visit that was to include
meetings with Berlusconi on Thursday and the pope on Friday.
The president, as usual, kept about his business. He encountered scant signs
of protest on his motorcade route on Thursday.
At the elegant hillside Villa Aurelia, part of the American Academy in Rome,
Bush met with young Italian entrepreneurs who receive training in the United
States through an exchange program. He encouraged them to come get the
"firsthand truth about America" and disputed what he called misinformation
and propaganda about the United States.
"We are compassionate, we are an open country, we care about people, we are
entrepreneurial," Bush said. "We love the entrepreneurial spirit."
A short time later, Bush was greeted by Italian President Georgio Napolitano
at Quirinale Palace, situated atop the highest hill in Rome. Originally
built as a summer home for popes at the end of the 16th century, the palace
is now the official residence of the president.
Security is extremely tight for Bush's two-day stay in Rome. Commercial
flights have been banned over the city. Dozens of buses and trams have been
rerouted. Thousands of policemen have been deployed as part of a plan to
monitor any further protests, though Wednesday's march drew far fewer
demonstrators than previous visits by Bush.
Slovenia and Germany, the first two stops on Bush's trip, were devoid of
demonstrators. That was evidence that trans-Atlantic relations, fractured
over the U.S.-led invasion in Iraq, are on the mend, that European leaders
have moved beyond their anger over the war. The Rome protests are evidence
that the Italian public still opposes the Bush administration.
Unlike other European leaders, such as former German Chancellor Gerhard
Schroeder and former French President Jacques Chirac, Berlusconi supported
Bush on Iraq from the start. The 71-year-old media mogul defied domestic
opposition and dispatched about 3,000 troops to Iraq after the fall of Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein.
Those troops came home, and Berlusconi, recently elected to his third stint
in power since 1994, has pledged not to send any back.
More than 2,000 Italian troops, however, are deployed as part of the
NATO-led mission in Afghanistan.
Italy, along with Germany, France and Spain, have restricted their troops to
less dangerous areas in northern Afghanistan. That has caused a rift because
other NATO members are deployed in the more violent regions of the nation.
The Italian government is reviewing the restrictions and Berlusconi's office
said the premier would talk to Bush about that when they meet.
Bush's wife, first lady Laura Bush, on Wednesday pledged $10.2 billion on
behalf of the United States to Afghanistan's reconstruction. She spoke at an
international donors conference in Paris, where the president himself will
be headed on Friday.
Berlusconi and Bush also were expected to discuss Italy's interest in
joining with the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus
Germany that are making a diplomatic push to get Iran to give up what the
West believes is an effort to develop nuclear weapons. That might seem
unusual for Italy, which recently surpassed Germany as Iran's largest
trading partner.
But to show Italy's strong opposition to Iran's suspected nuclear ambitions,
Berlusconi and his government refused to meet with Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, who was in Rome for a U.N.-sponsored food summit.
Bush will meet with the pope on Friday before departing to Paris to continue
his farewell European tour. It will be Bush's third meeting with Benedict.
The two last met in April at the White House in Washington.
http://rss.xinhuanet.com/newsc/english/2008-06/10/content_8340920.htm
Protests planned against Bush's visit in Slovenia
BRDO, Slovenia, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Several Slovenian groups have
planned to stage protests against U.S. President George W. Bush on Tuesday
as the EU-U.S. summit gets under way in Brdo just outside the country's
capital of Ljubljana.
In Ljubljana, the Youth Party will stage a peace rally in front of the
U.S. Embassy Tuesday morning, to protest against the Bush administration's
policies on environment, human rights, minority rights and democracy,
according to Slovenia's STA news agency.
A loosely-connected student group, the "society for the rehabilitation
of rock 'n' roll," will protest in Kranj, some 10 km from the venue of the
summit.
Various leftist and anarchist groups also announced protests in cities
such as Maribor and Koper, but they have not reported the rallies to police,
according to STA.
Security has been tightened for the summit, with a motorway section
passing the venue being closed along with a number of local roads around
Brdo, some 30 km northwest of Ljubljana. Hundreds of policemen have been
deployed for the occasion.
During Bush's previous visit in 2001 to Slovenia, some 2,000 Slovenian
police officers were deployed. Traffic was diverted away from Brdo and a
no-fly zone was declared over the area.
Bush started his week-long European tour Monday morning in Ljubljana,
which will also take him to Germany, Italy, France and Britain.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/11/world/europe/11germany.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
In Germany, Bush Protests Lose Appeal
By NICHOLAS KULISH
Published: June 11, 2008
BERLIN - The young anarchists, middle-aged peace activists and established
left-wing politicians here have at least one thing in common: none bothered
to keep a six-year tradition alive by organizing a protest against President
Bush's arrival here Tuesday.
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Herbert Knosowski/Associated Press
President Bush arrived in Germany on Tuesday, where he was greeted by
Chancellor Angela Merkel but, oddly, no protesters.
"Bush is not even popular in the role of the enemy anymore," wrote Der
Tagesspiegel newspaper.
As in many other parts of Europe, Mr. Bush was a popular villain here even
before the Iraq invasion, in part because of his steadfast rejection of the
Kyoto Protocol limits on greenhouse-gas emissions. His visits to Germany
have reliably drawn thousands into the streets to denounce him and his
policies, beginning with his first visit to Berlin in May 2002.
In February 2005, the police essentially shut down the city of Mainz for Mr.
Bush's visit, closing six highways and stopping river traffic on the Rhine,
out of fear of enormous demonstrations. Two summers ago, Mr. Bush came for a
barbecue with Chancellor Angela Merkel in her east German electoral
district, Stralsund, and almost exactly a year ago he attended the Group of
8 summit meeting at the Baltic Sea resort of Heiligendamm. The protesters
turned out in force both times.
Monty Schädel, one of the organizers behind both the Stralsund and the
Heiligendamm protests, said the absence of public protests this time went
beyond Mr. Bush's often-cited lame-duck status. There has been a noticeable
shift here, he said, toward wrestling with German issues rather than
focusing judgment on the United States.
"The theme of U.S. war policy is no longer the biggest one," Mr. Schädel
said, emphasizing German deployments to Afghanistan rather than American
troops in Iraq. "German war policy is now the most important. We need to
return to our own doorstep."
Yet local residents say Berlin has lost none of its radical heartbeat. "We're
constantly demonstrating," said Zara Blumenstingl, 30, a D.J., as she walked
down Schlesische Street in the longtime counterculture neighborhood of
Kreuzberg. Ms. Blumenstingl said she protested repeatedly against the
opening last year of a McDonald's here and is part of the group fighting a
development of nearby office buildings along the Spree River. "That affects
our everyday life," she said.
Instead of painting banners on Tuesday, Berliners were enjoying the
cloudless skies, sunbathing and bicycling and debating the tournament for
the European soccer championship that began over the weekend. Mr. Bush, it
seemed, was an afterthought, if that.
"It just isn't worth it anymore," said Mike Steuer, 30, a student at Berlin's
Technical University and a Bush opponent, as he soaked up the rays with a
friend on a bench in Görlitzer Park in Kreuzberg. "He isn't president much
longer anyway."
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401263.html
Protesters back at Nottingham arms company
Shut Down H&K | 16.06.2008 12:05 | Anti-militarism | Nottinghamshire
On Tuesday June 10th around 40 protesters returned to Lenton Lane to picket
arms company Heckler & Koch. Protesters were entertained by music in the
sunshine while distributing hundreds of leaflets to workers and passers by.
Heckler & Koch is the world's second-largest manufacturer of assault rifles
and submachine guns. Millions of H&K weapons are in use and have caused 1.5
million deaths around the world. The company's international sales office is
based in Nottingham.
Now local anti-arms-trade activists have set up a campaign against Heckler &
Koch. For more information, see the website and join the Notts
Anti-Militarism mailing list by sending an e-mail to
nottsantimilitarism-subscribe at lists.riseup.net.
Shut Down H&K
Homepage: http://nottsantimilitarism.wordpress.com/heckler-koch/
http://wnyt.com/article/stories/s424001.shtml?cat=300
Group protests spending on war
ALBANY - Long thought to be the key issue in the 2008 Presidential Election,
the fighting in Iraq seems to have moved down on the attention scale in the
past couple of months.
MoveOn.org's first battle Thursday was talking down the federal building
manager because the group did not have a demonstration permit.
30 people gathered outside the Leo O'Brien Federal Building to protest all
the money spent on Iraq. One protester said the end to our recession is to
bring the soldiers home.
Also Thursday, the Finance Chairman of the John McCain Presidential campaign
flew into the area for a Republican gathering this evening. McCain has been
one of the most outspoken supporters of the continued fighting in Iraq,
famously saying we may be in the country for the next 100 years.
"First of all, he didn't mean in a literal sense to be there 100 years,
that's a fact," said Tom Loeffler, McCain Finance Chairman. "Number two,
John McCain is a man who believes very strongly, as I do, that in Iraq, we
cannot suffer a defeat. We must win."
It isn't Iraq... But neighboring Iran that has the attention of the Women
Against War.
They showed off the third billboard they've purchased in the last two years.
It says the US should use diplomacy and negotiations... Not planes and bombs
with Iran.
The Women Against War billboard is located on Central Avenue, just west of
Route 155.
http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/30627
Student Groups Join to Protest Five Years of Iraq War
By Alix Pianin
PUBLISHED APRIL 22, 2008
At both the figurative and literal center of this week's anti-war efforts
are two figures standing atop the College Walk sundial, with one sounding a
hand-held gong as another reads off the names of the dead in Iraq.
While the fifth anniversary of the Iraq War in March came and went with
little on-campus attention, student groups are now working to turn the
spotlight back on the American presence in Iraq with a week of anti-war
action intended to spark community discussion.
The effort, dubbed "5 Years of Occupation-5 Days of Action," is the
end-product of two months of planning from several student groups, including
the Columbia Coalition Against the War, Students for Justice in the Middle
East, the College Democrats, and Lucha. The ad-hoc campus coalition has
planned a week of events including a teach-in, documentary and panel
discussions, a walkout Thursday, and a final "Mourn-In," which will take
place on Low Steps Friday afternoon.
The centerpiece of the effort-the reading of the names of the American
soldiers and Iraqi citizens killed during the five years since the United
States invaded Iraq in March 2003-will continue all week, with numerous
participants serving rotating shifts on the sundial on College Walk from 9
a.m. to 10 p.m. each day.
Darryl Wilkinson, a second-year Graduate School of Arts and Sciences student
who helped organize the event, said the name reading was intended to mark
the hundreds of thousands of deaths in a "civil" manner, and bring the
efforts of those who died-both Iraqi and American-to the literal forefront.
"We wanted to create a dialogue on campus about the human cost of the war in
Iraq," Wilkinson said. "One of the key things we were trying to get at was
the scale of the deaths involved."
College Democrats media director Jonathan Backer, CC '10, said the fifth
anniversary of the invasion was "a time for deeper thinking."
But some wonder if the reading of the names of the dead sends an
inappropriate message. Brian Quillen, CC '11, said he felt such a reading
was an act usually reserved for a memorial service, and that the protesters
were "sending the message the war, in and of itself, is a crime."
"They seem to ignore and not really acknowledge any justification for the
war in Iraq," Quillen said.
But perhaps the most controversial activity planned is the one scheduled for
Tuesday on Low Plaza. There, the College Democrats will wash American flags
in a symbolic gesture of cleansing the blood supporters believe has been
illegitimately spilled in the war.
"They are free to criticize the war and the country," College Republicans
President Chris Kulawik, CC '08, said, "But I don't need 20-year-old College
Democrats telling me that my flag is so disgusting that they need to wash it
down." He said of the name reading, "I respect that far more."
Kulawik emphasized that he did not speak on behalf of all campus
Republicans.
Elizabeth Feldmeier, CC '09 and a cadet in the Reserve Officers Training
Corps (ROTC) program, said she was neutral on the week of action.
"A soldier always prays for peace," Feldmeier said, quoting a traditional
adage. But she added that it seemed most of the participants in the events
"weren't members of the Columbia community."
Despite the criticism, Backer emphasized that the goal of the week was to
open discussion, not shut it down.
"The point of this is to have a dialogue," Backer said.
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=136872
Protesters outside Blenheim courthouse
5/05/2008 13:04:02
Around 20 protesters marched through Blenheim this morning in support of the
men who are charged with vandalising Waihopai Spy base.
Dominican friar Peter Murnane, Otaki organic gardener Adrian Leason and
Hokianga farmer Sam Land, appeared in the Blenheim District Court this
morning.
The trio have been released on bail and a pre depositions hearing takes
place on June 9 ? their attendance at the hearing has been excused.
Protestors outside the courthouse carried banners saying, Peace and Justice,
Swords into Ploughshares, War is the Real Crime, Ban Bush's NZ Bases, and No
Balls U.S.
The Addington Women's Revolutionary Craft Circle staged action outside the
US Military Base at Hareward in Christchurch to coincide with this morning's
court appearance.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08126/879189-84.stm?cmpid=nationworld.xml
War protesters frustrated by apathy
Monday, May 05, 2008
By Jerome L. Sherman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
VWH Campbell/Post-Gazette
Marty O'Malley, a Forest Hills council member and Vietnam veteran, paces
outside the Downtown office of U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle on Thursday. He was
waiting for an anti-war petition that he planned to present to the
congressman's office, but the person with it did not show.
Three protesters, a half-dozen signs and a missing petition.
"People walk past and say, 'I'm glad you're doing something,' " said Marty
O'Malley, a Forest Hills council member who has attended more than 100
anti-Iraq war events, as he stood in front of Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike
Doyle's Downtown office last week with the small gathering of activists.
"I want to shake them and say, 'Why aren't you doing something!?' "
After $500 billion in spending and 4,000 military deaths, this was supposed
to be an election year dominated by the war.
Both Democratic presidential candidates, Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Hillary
Rodham Clinton, support a withdrawal, while Sen. John McCain, a Republican,
argues that the U.S. risks losing Iraq to terrorist groups and Iranian
influence if troops leave before the country is stable.
In Washington, D.C., Congress is preparing to consider President Bush's
latest emergency funding package for the fighting, with a price tag of $108
billion.
But a worsening economy has easily overtaken Iraq as the top concern for
voters, according to a New York Times/CBS poll released last week. Only 17
percent of respondents picked the war as the "one issue" they'd like to hear
the candidates discuss more.
Americans still have strong feelings about the conflict: 62 percent want the
next president to pull out of Iraq within a year or two of taking office,
the poll said. Yet war opponents and supporters are having trouble getting
the public's -- and the media's -- attention.
A March survey from the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
discovered that just 28 percent of Americans knew the approximate number of
U.S. deaths in the war.
"Obviously, I wish that the American people were more engaged in
understanding what's at stake in Iraq," said Pete Hegseth, who served there
with the 101st Airborne Division and is now executive director of Vets for
Freedom. "I think it's unfortunate that here on the homefront we're not
interested in what's going on overseas."
A year ago, the situation was very different. In the face of growing public
angst, President Bush committed nearly 30,000 additional troops to the war.
News coverage was then absorbed by a showdown between the new congressional
Democratic majority and the president over war funding.
With Democrats unable to gather enough votes to overcome a presidential
veto, attention turned to September, when Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador
Ryan Crocker delivered a positive progress report on President Bush's troop
"surge."
The media's focus on the war then began a steady decline. In February, only
3 percent of print, television and online coverage was dedicated to Iraq,
according to the Project for Excellence in Journalism, or PEJ, a
Washington-based organization. That's down from 22 percent a year before.
Mr. Hegseth faulted media organizations for covering bombings and the death
count in the war's early years, while ignoring the steady drop in violence
that accompanied the U.S. troop increase in Iraq.
But two other issues loom larger in the decline in coverage: a sinking
economy and a presidential campaign that has tended to revolve around
questions of personality, such Mr. Obama's relationship with his former
pastor and his decision not to wear a flag pin.
"[The candidates] are talking about Iraq," said Tom Andrews, a former
Democratic congressman from Maine and the national director of Win Without
War. "Unfortunately, the press coverage seems to be more focused on lapel
pins than on the war."
All three major candidates do bring up Iraq in their stump speeches. Still,
none is willing to make the war a centerpiece issue.
Mr. Obama emphasizes his opposition from the war's beginning; yet he faces
concerns about his lack of experience on the international stage. Mr. McCain
focuses on his criticism of the Bush administration's early handling of the
war and cites his backing of the surge; but he needs to contend with a
strong majority of Americans who want to see a change of course.
And Mrs. Clinton highlights her experience as first lady and a member of the
Senate Armed Services Committee; but scores of anti-war Democrats remain
angry about her 2002 vote to give President Bush the power to invade Iraq.
"It's a tough topic for all candidates involved," said Amy Mitchell, PEJ's
deputy director. "They all have potentially problematic views."
Some observers say the war will resume a prominent place in the campaign
once the Democrats settle on a nominee and can stress Mr. McCain's unpopular
stance.
The Democratic National Committee is already trying to do that. A week ago,
the party started a nationwide airing of an advertisement that attacks Mr.
McCain for telling a town hall meeting in January that staying in Iraq for
100 years "would be fine with me."
Republicans have called the ad dishonest because it cuts off the rest of the
senator's quote: "As long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or
wounded or killed, it's fine with me, and I hope it would be fine with you,
if we maintain a presence in a very volatile part of the world where
al-Qaida is training, recruiting, equipping and motivating people every
single day."
In response, DNC Chairman Howard Dean said Americans weren't willing to stay
in Iraq for that long under any circumstances. "Think of the hundreds of
billions of dollars that are being spent in Iraq which we need right here at
home right now to preserve American jobs," he said on NBC's "Meet the
Press."
At the grassroots level, anti-war activists are also trying to keep the war
in the public eye. Last month, nine protesters gathered in front of the
Regional Enterprise Tower, Downtown, where U.S. Sens. Arlen Specter and Bob
Casey have offices.
"Please think about this. It's important," Lynne Flavin, 60, of
Lawrenceville, told passersby. She held a blood red sign that said, "Support
the Troops. End the War."
Few people gave more than a glance.
In an interview last week, Mr. Casey said he shared the frustrations of
Pennsylvanians who want to see a change in Iraq.
"People have a profound concern about this war," said Mr. Casey, a supporter
of Mr. Obama. "If there's anything we can all come together on, the one area
of resounding consensus is that we need a new president."
Both he and Mr. Specter, a Republican who backs Mr. McCain, have been
critics of the war, but they've been reluctant to tamper with funding for
troops who are already on the battlefield.
"Had we known that Saddam did not have weapons of mass destruction, we would
not have gone in," Mr. Specter said last week. "Now that we're there, we
don't want to destabilize the situation by leaving precipitously."
Last Thursday marked the fifth anniversary of President Bush's speech in
front of a "Mission Accomplished" banner on the deck of the USS Abraham
Lincoln. Anti-war groups had planned events across the region to bring
attention to the continued cost of the American presence in Iraq.
Mr. O'Malley stood outside Mr. Doyle's Downtown office, wearing a Vietnam
veteran hat and seven Obama buttons. He blamed last-minute organization
efforts for the poor turnout.
As he and two other protesters waited, Maddie Smith, a student at the Art
Institute of Pittsburgh, approached Mr. O'Malley and asked for a sign for
her lawn in Brookline.
He gladly gave her one. He also gave her instructions: "Put it so it's
facing traffic. Otherwise no one will see it."
Jerome L. Sherman can be reached at jsherman at post-gazette.com or
412-263-1183.
First published on May 5, 2008 at 1:48 pm
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/5/5/10_arrested_at_general_dynamics_protest
May 05, 2008
10 Arrested at General Dynamics Protest in Vermont
On May 1, activists locked themselves together in the lobby of weapons
manufacturer General Dynamics in Burlington, Vermont. The activists were
demanding "General Dynamics stop giving campaign contributions to the
politicians responsible for regulating it, stop making Gatling guns,
missiles and other weapons of mass destruction, and give back the $3.6
million in Vermont tax breaks General Dynamics received in 2007."
AMY GOODMAN: In Vermont, ten activists were arrested Thursday during a
protest at a General Dynamics office in Burlington. Sam Mayfield produced
this report.
PROTESTERS: No justice, no peace!
PROTESTER: There are nine of us here today inside General Dynamics, and we
are locked together with lockboxes. So we're not leaving until they take us
out of here.
PROTESTER: We are here protesting General Dynamics. We have three demands.
First is that General Dynamics stop contributing to political campaigns.
Second is that General Dynamics stop producing Gatling guns and rockets and
weapons of mass destruction. And the third is that General Dynamics give
back the $3.6 million in tax breaks.
PROTESTER: It's the fifth anniversary of when George Bush said "Mission
accomplished," which is not, in our eyes, a mission accomplished. There's
been 1.2 million Iraqis killed and over 4,000 American troops. A mission
accomplished for us would be all US troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan and
an end to this war and paying reparations to the Iraqi people. And we want
General Dynamics out of this war and to stop producing weapons of mass
destruction.
PROTESTER: The US is now spending $720 million a day on this war. And right
now in Vermont, there's 65,000 uninsured Vermonters. and there's more than
that across the country. This money can be used for our education, for our
healthcare. And right now we're in economic crisis. We need that money here,
not overseas killing other people.
PROTESTER: We're interested in an economy that supports working people who
are working to make the state a better place, a more productive place, a
place that's better prepared to take care of its people and to support life,
versus creating arms that perpetuate war and war profiteering.
PROTESTERS: We are the people. Two, you can't ignore us. Three, GD are
accountable. One, we are the people. Two, you can't ignore us. Three, GD are
accountable.
POLICE OFFICER: We're preparing to come and reach a formal statement that
says General Dynamics has indicated that you're trespassing. They've asked
us to have you leave. We don't have a whole lot of choice but to ask you to
leave. If you choose to do that, that's great. If you don't, you're subject
to arrest for trespassing.
PROTESTER: We would happily leave if someone from General Dynamics would
come to talk to us.
AMY GOODMAN: That report by Sam Mayfield. The ten activists were arrested
when they refused to leave General Dynamics's office.
http://www.wcax.com/global/story.asp?s=8259685
Police Arrest War Protestors
Burlington, Vermont - May 1, 2008
Police arrested a group of people for protesting inside a Burlington
business.
Ten protestors chained themselves together inside the General Dynamics
weapons manufacturing facility on Lakeside Avenue. They were demonstrating
against funding the Iraq War. Nearly 24 other people marched outside the
building.
The group claims General Dynamics is the sixth largest profiteer in the Iraq
War. A similar protest took place outside the facility last month.
http://newsblaze.com/story/20080430180252tsop.nb/topstory.html
Peace Activists Protest War by Refusing Taxes
On Sat., May 3, in Birmingham, AL, $93,000 of unpaid "war taxes" - federal
income taxes - will be publicly redirected away from the Internal Revenue
Service to a New Orleans health clinic and to a group in the Middle East
aiding Iraqi refugees. This redirection ceremony will take place during a
meeting of the National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee.
For reasons of conscience, over 520 people from 44 states have "boycotted"
$325,000 of their 2007 federal taxes. Of that total, $50,000 has been
designated for the Common Ground Health Clinic in New Orleans and the Direct
Aid Initiative will receive $43,000. The remaining $232,000 has been
designated for scores of other humanitarian projects in the United States
and around the world. These taxpayers are committing civil disobedience to
demonstrate to Congress how to cut off the funds for this war and redirect
resources to the pressing needs of people.
The money will provide healthcare to survivors of Katrina and refugees from
the Iraq war, living in Jordan and Syria. (For details on each project, see
www.cghc.org or www.directaidiraq.org.).
The National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee is a 25-year-old
coalition of groups who support war tax resisters.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=455128&rss=yes
Anti-war protesters breach NZ security
16:39 AEST Wed Apr 30 2008
100 days 6 hours 59 minutes ago
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An anti-war group has embarrassed the New Zealand government by breaking
into a high-security global communications centre, and vandalising the
facilities in a protest against the US war on terror.
The group, calling itself Anzac Ploughshares, hacked its way through fences
around the Waihopai base on South Island operated by the Government
Communications Security Bureau and deflated one of two 30-metre rubberised
domes covering satellite interception dishes, officials said.
GCSB chief Air Marshal Bruce Ferguson described Wednesday's attack as "a
very serious breach" of security, and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark
called it a senseless act of criminal vandalism that was "just imposing a
cost on the taxpayer."
Ferguson said security alarms had failed to operate and perimeter monitoring
cameras had been "no help" because of heavy fog surrounding the base.
The domes acted purely as a waterproof jacket to protect the antennae from
bad weather, Ferguson said.
A statement by Anzac Ploughshares said its action was in response to US
President George W Bush saying intelligence gathering was the most important
tool in the war on global terrorism.
"This war will have no end until citizens of the world refuse to let it
continue," the group said, vowing to spread its disarmament message by
disabling warplanes and military equipment.
Three group members were detained and later appeared in Blenheim District
Court, where Judge Richard Russell ordered them held in police custody
because he could not rule out further attacks on military facilities by the
group.
He said police estimated the cost of damage to Waihopai base at more than
$NZ1 million ($A830,841).
The Waihopai base is a satellite communications monitoring facility.
Opponents claim it is part of Echelon, a worldwide network of signals
interception facilities run by the US and British intelligence agencies.
Ploughshares spokesman Manu Caddie said three group protesters took about 30
minutes to cut through three fences and deflate the dome with two sickles.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10507404&ref=rss
Waihopai spy base protesters on hunger strike (+ photos)
5:24PM Thursday May 01, 2008
Two of the three protesters who are accused of damaging a protective dome
over a satellite dish at Waihopai Valley spy base are on a hunger strike.
Dominican friar Peter Murnane, 67, along with farmer Samuel Land, 24, and
organic gardener Adrian Leason, 42, were arrested after allegedly breaking
into the spy base early yesterday morning.
A Blenheim police spokesman today told NZPA that since yesterday afternoon
Land and Leason were only taking water and Murnane was only eating dry food.
It was not clear if they were planning on continuing the hunger strike until
Monday when they were due to reappear at court, the spokesman said.
"They are being treated in a human fashion and we've involved our police
medical officer in keeping an eye on the prisoners to make sure they are in
good health."
The trio allegedly used sickles to deflate one of the distinctive orbs at
the Waihopai satellite communications interception station, near Blenheim.
Calling themselves the Anzac Ploughshares, the group said on their website
they wanted to draw attention to the war in Iraq.
They attacked the spy base in reaction to United States President George
Bush's statement that intercepting communications was one of the key weapons
in the so-called "war on terror".
They have all been charged with intentionally damaging a satellite dish, the
property of the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), and
entering a building with the intention to commit a crime.
Police told Blenheim District Court yesterday they were considering charging
the men with sabotage under the Crimes Act, an offence which carries a
maximum sentence of 10 years' jail.
Damage to the Marlborough base was estimated at more than $1 million.
GCSB director Bruce Ferguson said the security breach was "deeply
disturbing" and remedial measures would be put in place to ensure it did not
happen again.
Two 2m cuts were sufficient to deflate the dome. Then the activists ran
around the base of the aerial randomly slicing at other areas, he said.
The domes, made of a rubberised material, acted purely as a "waterproof
jacket" to protect the antennae from adverse weather.
Prime Minister Helen Clark has called the incident an act of "senseless
vandalism".
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/397755.html
trident protesters arrested out side rolls royce derby
peter ambler | 28.04.2008 15:38 | Climate Chaos | Terror War |
Nottinghamshire | World
dorothy skrytek arrested out side rolls royce with foe comrades in derby
foe cordinator dorothy and comrades made concreete blocs with thier arms
inside weighing about 250 kile were placed outside rolls royce gate .another
2 prottesters chained thierselves to other gates ,police with specailist
equip ment spent 4 hours chisseling away at the concreete .it was obvious
they were not used to this hard work .they strugled the prottesters were
uncomfotable as it was wet but enjoyed thier bacon cobs and chocolate .while
the polie strugled on to free them.it may have been the beautiful smell of
the bacon .that made the chiselers sweat whie the prottesters relaxed with a
smile of content .good luck prottesters keep up the good work .we dont want
trident or newclear .were already a dumping ground for its waste 4 america
pete derby
peter ambler
29.04.2008 11:39
UPDATE: 10 arrests, all under SOCPA legislation. All released late last
night, most with bail conditions banishing them from Debyshire. One vehicle
(which is used by its owner for his livelihood) had been impounded. The 10
have been bailed to return to Derby police HQ on the 6th and 8th May
For five and a half hours, Trident Ploughshares blockaded the Derby Rolls
Royce Raynesway site which houses a nuclear reactor which is used to
assemble the reactor core for Trident submarines.
Workers were offered leaflets exploring the concept of illegal weapons of
mass destruction and war crimes. Workers in their turn offered helpful
personal advice to the blockaders.
Strong media coverage on local TV, radio (full spectrum domination through
the morning) and the main evening paper.
After the success of Faslane 365 and the strident oppostion in Scotland,
some Trident Ploughshares affinity groups are focusing on one of the UK's
most famous brands - a brand which is profiting from weapons which are
illegal in international law. And an inland site which houses a rickety old
Vulcan (corroding parts-r-us) reactor.
There are plans to hold monthly protests and to escalate the campaign. It
might not be long before we see a Rolls Royce 365.
Thanks for the bacon butties and choclate, Pete - yes, the veggies
appreciated the thought but just scoffed all the chocs.
Malcolm
And oh what lovely lock-ons: the main gate blocked for over 5 hours.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/7407268.stm
Sunday, 18 May 2008 15:56 UK
Four arrests at USAF base protest
Lakenheath Action Group has held regular protests at the base
Four people have been arrested after more than 100 people demonstrated
against nuclear weapons at a US airbase in Suffolk.
The protest at RAF Lakenheath, near Bury St Edmunds, was organised by the
Lakenheath Action Group - which has campaigned at the base for six years.
Police said the protest was generally peaceful, but four people were
arrested for breaching bail conditions.
Police added the four had been taken to Bury St Edmunds Police Station.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/05/27/war-protesters-interrupt-john-mccains-foreign-policy-speech-in-colorado/
War protesters interrupt John McCain's foreign policy speech in Colorado:
Updated
By: John Amato on Tuesday, May 27th, 2008 at 9:31 AM - PDT
As John McCain was speaking at the Cable Center at the University of Denver,
giving a speech on foreign policy issues, including nukes-war protesters
shouted, "endless war, endless war," and I believe, "end this war, end this
war, "causing him to pause his speech a few times.His supporters then
started to yell John McCain.
Download | Play Download | Play
McCain: Forty five years ago, President John F Kennedy asked the American
people to imagine, what the world would look like if Nuclear weapons spread
beyond the few powers that then held them. To the many other nations that
sought them. Stop and think for a moment he said, what it would mean to have
nuclear weapons in so many hands large and small.
Protester: Endless war, endless war, Endless war, endless war.. end this
war, end this war.
Crowd: John McCain, John McCain.
McCain: You know ahhh, it's not too important, but I have town hall meetings
all the time, I'll be having one tomorrow where people are allowed to come
and state their views and we exchange them and the one thing we don't do is
interfere with other people's right to free speech, but that doesn't seem to
be the case with these people
Weren't these people exercising their right to free speech, Mr McCain? It
happened a total of four times from what I've heard so far. They were
removed peacefully. John is proud of the fact that he has town hall meetings
and let's people speak-well-he better buckle up. I imagine they'll go to the
Bush/Cheney loyalty oath pledges soon enough..McCain actually uses part of a
John F. Kennedy speech to try and scare the nation into voting for him.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/05/27/9230/
Published on Tuesday, May 27, 2008 by The Denver Channel (ABC News
affiliate)
Protesters Interrupt McCain Speech In Denver
DENVER - A least three groups of protesters interrupted the beginning of
Republican presidential candidate John McCain's campaign speech at the
University of Denver campus Tuesday morning.
His speech was billed as a foreign policy address.
Two minutes after he started his prepared speech, a protester with a large
sign was escorted from the room. It read, "Iraq Vets Against The War."
A few minutes later, a second group of hecklers started yelling and were
escorted out. A few minutes after that, a third group started chanting, "No
more war." They held up a banner, which could not be read from the back of
the room and they were also escorted out.
"I will never surrender in Iraq," McCain said in response to the protesters.
"Our American troops will come home with victory and with honor, and they
are winning."
The crowd gave him a standing ovation.
"We must continue to deploy a safe and reliable nuclear deterrent. I will
seek to reduce the size of our nuclear arsenal to the lowest possible
number," he told the crowd.
Regarding the threat of nuclear proliferation, McCain said, "The civilized
nations of the world must act as one."
TheDenverChannel has his entire address online.
McCain concluded his speech about 30 minutes after he started and shook a
few hands be exiting the Cable Center.
Later in the day, McCain will attend fundraisers in the metro area. McCain
said that Western states like Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada will be
critical to winning the White House. And he says that as a senator from
Arizona he'll enjoy a political advantage over the Democratic nominee.
On Wednesday, Democratic front runner Barack Obama will visit the metro
area. Obama plans to talk about urban high school reform at a town hall
meeting in Thornton. Mike Johnston of the Mapleton Expeditionary School of
the Arts in Thornton says Obama will tour the school before the town hall
meeting. Both Obama events are by invitation only.
President George W. Bush will also be in Colorado Wednesday. Bush will be
delivering the commencement address to 950 graduating cadets at the United
States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Bush last spoke to graduates
at the Academy in 2004.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/0522/breaking39.htm
Thursday, May 22, 2008, 11:40
Lie-down protest targets cluster bombs
Jason Michael
More than 100 campaigners against cluster bombs staged a lie-down protest in
the middle of O'Connell Street in Dublin this morning.
According to gardaí, the protest started at 7am and lasted about an hour.
Campaigners, including survivors injured by cluster bombs, laid down in the
median of O'Connell Street close to the Spire.
The protest was as part of the campaign to secure an international agreement
banning cluster bombs. An international conference taking place this week in
Croke Park aims to ban the manufacture and use of cluster munitions.
Representatives of more than 100 states are attending the conference,
although the United States, Russia and Britain - some of the most prolific
users of the small munitions - are not attending.
Cluster bombs open in mid-air and scatter as many as several hundred
"bomblets" over wide areas. They often fail to explode, creating minefields
that can kill or injure anyone who comes across them.
The UN Development Programme says cluster munitions have caused more than
13,000 confirmed injuries and deaths around the world, the great majority of
them in Laos, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq and Lebanon.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/local_news/epaper/2008/05/26/m1a_peace_0527.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=76
New generation of protesters unites against Iraq war
By STACEY SINGER
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 26, 2008
They stand vigil close to traffic: a new generation of antiwar protesters,
urging motorists to "Honk for peace," "Send the troops home now!" and
"Invest in health care, not war!"
In West Palm Beach, they stand at Parker Avenue and Okeechobee Boulevard or
at the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial on Flagler Drive. In south Palm Beach
County, they're at St. Andrews Boulevard and Glades Road in Boca Raton, and
Old School Square in Delray Beach.
Some belong to organized political and religious groups such as Move On, the
Greens and Pax Christi. Many drop by on their own, from no affiliation at
all.
Unlike the teenage flower children of another war, these activists tend to
be middle-aged parents and retirees, hoping to feel less alone, less
powerless, in their opposition to the war in Iraq.
Each Saturday since August 2005 in Boca Raton, a dozen or more activists
have stood during the noon hour near the Town Center mall.
They came together after a few members of the nearby Unitarian Universalist
Fellowship of Boca Raton organized a candlelight vigil in support of Cindy
Sheehan, the bereaved mother who demanded that President Bush explain why
her son Casey, a soldier, had died in Iraq.
More than 200 people came to that first vigil and left their e-mail
addresses, wanting to do more. The Boca Peace Corner was born.
'It gives people courage'
Susan Caruso organized the first vigil at a time when her youngest son was
19, and she simply felt empathy for Sheehan's loss.
Now, still protesting, she's a mother of a soldier. The irony tears at her.
Steven Caruso, 22, enlisted in the Army on Mother's Day two years ago. A
helicopter mechanic, he is to be deployed to Iraq this summer.
"I think that he was really distressed that it was all these guys who had no
other choice who were signing up to go out there," his mother said. "He
said, 'If they're risking their lives to go up in those helicopters, I'm
going to make sure their helicopters are being maintained by someone as good
as me.' "
Susan Caruso is a flutist who copes with her worries for her son by playing
a Bach sonata in A minor, alone, just for herself. In her 40s, she manages
an early childhood education and parenting program in Boca Raton. She
introduces small children to theater and music, and imparts conflict
resolution lessons in the hope that they will grow into empathetic adults.
She believes that her Saturday vigils are having an effect, if only by
helping like-minded people realize they are not alone.
"Because we're there, I think it gives people courage to vote the way they
need to vote," Caruso said.
Her son understands that her activism is in support of the troops, she said.
She is deeply distressed at the number of repeat tours his fellow soldiers
have served in Iraq.
"They've been asked to do something pretty impossible, but because of their
honor and their caring about their country and each other, they are carrying
on. It is the responsibility of our leaders to only ask for these sacrifices
in the most dire of circumstances."
A momentary connection
Betsy Angert, 53, is the one who stands by herself at the peace corner.
She tries to catch the eye of each passing driver. She's hoping for a smile,
a nod, some sort of acknowledgment as her sign implores, "Love! Not war,
love!"
She's an educator and avid blogger who moved to Boca Raton from California
two years ago. The daughter of a psychotherapist, she stands on the corner
nearly every Saturday analyzing each car, hoping to make contact, even if
it's for only a second.
"Sometimes I'll see people read the sign and talk to the other people in the
car," Angert said. "It still does make me cry, to see that they're
reflecting."
Angert grew up in Milwaukee and marched in her first civil rights protest at
13. For her, it's part of participating in democracy.
Most passersby honk or give a thumbs up, including bus drivers and police
cars. It sustains her. But she's urged on, too, by those who react to her
message angrily.
"Occasionally you get people who are unkind," she said. "You get people who
will swear at you. One person threw a bottle. Some give us the finger or the
thumbs down. I often look at this from a psychological point of view. People
will try to justify whatever it is they believe."
Compelled to act
Jill and Scott Liberto run a computer repair and service business out of
their Boca Raton home. Neither has done much protesting. But from the day
they attended the vigil for Sheehan in 2005, they have been regulars at the
peace corner.
"It just was so obviously wrong," said Scott, 40. "And when I looked around,
nobody was protesting and I felt we needed to stand on the side of a street
corner and do something."
Both have found a sense of community at the corner.
"We have some very fun discussions out there," said Jill, 41. "We have
Republicans and Democrats alike, some conservatives and some real hippies.
We agree on one thing: This war is ridiculous and it's got to stop."
One of the regulars was an 80-year-old whose e-mail address was
"Contraryone." She never got his name and knows little about him, except
that he was usually the first one out on the corner, holding a sign and
waving a Mickey Mouse hand puppet. One day he called Jill and said he was
sick, and could she carry his sign? That was the last she heard from him.
"It says, 'Stop the killing in Iraq,' with blood dripping on it," Jill said.
"He's too sick to go to the corner anymore, so I hold that sign for him."
Scott Liberto grew up in Florida, never thinking much about protest. But
when public sentiment equated war opposition with a lack of patriotism, he
grew frustrated.
"Once people realize that it's OK to protest your government, then things
can change," he said.
Veteran stands out
Mike Budd makes sure to wear a shirt identifying himself as a veteran when
he goes to the peace corner.
"I felt it was important for me as a veteran to speak up, because there's
this confusion that if you're for the troops, then you must support the
war," said Budd, 63, who teaches film at Florida Atlantic University. "You
know, veterans are not a monolithic group. There are a lot of veterans who
are antiwar."
He was midway through graduate school in Boston when he was drafted in 1968,
during the Vietnam War.
"I was stationed in Long Binh, a very large Army base right outside of
Saigon," he recalled. "My son was born while I was over there, just as I was
born while my father was in Europe," fighting World War II.
Budd said he always felt that his father's war was the "just war," one of
heroism.
"It has taken people of my generation a long time to understand what was
going on in Vietnam," he said.
Part of what bothers him about the war in Iraq is that people go on with
their daily lives as if there were no war. Which is why the corner of a
shopping mall is the ideal place to protest, he said.
"What did the president say when people asked, 'What should we do to support
the war?' He said, 'Go to the mall, go shopping,' " Budd said. "The problem
is, we don't seem to be paying the price. There is a price, but it is being
hidden, because all the money is being borrowed from our children."
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1021935/Tony-Blair-barracked-Iraq-students-Yale.html
Tony Blair is barracked over Iraq by students at Yale University
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 3:07 PM on 26th May 2008
Comments (9)
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Tony Blair was left reeling last night after students disrupted his debut
speech at Yale University to protest at his role in taking Britain and
America to war in Iraq.
The former Prime Minister, who is normally immensely popular in the US for
his support for President George W Bush's 'war on terror', faced an
unexpected protest from anti-war protesters when he arrived to give his
lecture at the Ivy League university.
Some smuggled banners bearing anti-war slogans into the venue which they
held up as Mr Blair was speaking and when he had finished boos could be
heard amid the applause.
Mr Blair's arrival was met by a small but vocal contingent of protestors
waving placards that read "No to Blair" and "Yale! Don't Support a War
Criminal", but police held them back from the ceremony, which was held in a
large gated garden.
But as he took to the podium, Mr Blair, 54, was met with dozens of red signs
that students had hidden under their graduation robes, reading "Peace Now"
and "No War".
One student, a young woman wearing a headscarf, stood throughout the
ceremony, holding a "Peace Now" sign above her head just 10ft in front of
the former Prime Minister, who appeared to be doing his best to avoid
looking at her.
Mr Blair also avoided referring to Iraq by name as he talked about the rise
of India and China as future world superpowers, the problem of climate
change, and the threat of "terrorism fueled by religion".
"Each new generation finds the world they enter," said Mr Blair, who is
returning to Yale next year as a lecturer on issues of faith and
globalisation. "But they fashion the world they leave."
Staff from the university took photographs of those holding signs, prompting
some to hide them under their chairs, but as the parents stood to give a
standing ovation following the 20-minute speech, several boos were heard
from the students as the protest signs came out again.
The incident was especially embarrassing for Mr Blair because Yale is the
university from which his son, Euan, has recently graduated.
The identity of the 2008 guest speaker at Yale had been confirmed in
February, but was kept secret until just a few weeks ago because of
"security concerns", claimed the university newspaper.
It is the second time in two months that Mr Blair has been the focus of
protests over his role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq by American and British
forces on the false pretext that Saddam Hussein was stockpiling weapons of
mass destruction.
In early April hundreds of anti-war protesters converged on Westminster
Cathedral, London, where they tried to drown out Mr Blair's words as he
delivered his debut speech on religion at the invitation of Cardinal Cormac
Murphy-O'Connor, who had received him into the Catholic Church at Christmas.
The presence of anti-war protesters in American as well as Britain suggests
that Mr Blair's decisions on military intervention in Iraq could haunt him
for years to come.
Soon after leaving Downing Street last June, after a decade in office, Mr
Blair accepted the role of the Middle East peace envoy of the quartet of the
UN, EU, America and Russia.
Then in March he accepted a job at Yale University - one of the top three
universities in America - giving seminars on 'faith and globalisation' in
which he will focus on how religion can be used to further international
relations.
In London this summer he will launch the Tony Blair Faith Foundation which
will have similar objectives.
"Be prepared to fail and to succeed," said Mr Blair in his closing
comments. "I tried for years to be a politician, and failed, and nearly
gave up - some would say I should have."
Now pursuing a life in the lucrative private sector, Mr Blair added: "No one
ever died saying; 'I wish I had one more day in the office'."
http://www.wzzm13.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=92748
People Lie Down in Protest of Iraq War
Web Editor: Joshua Aldredge 3 months ago
One group in Grand Rapids used chalk outlines of bodies to help get their
point about the Iraq War across.
About 200 people took part in the Bodies Against the War protest in Clader
Plaza Saturday afternoon.
The participants dressed in white shirts painted with a number representing
how many have died in the Iraq war, both Iraqi and American.
They then laid down in the plaza and drew chalk outlines around the bodies.
the group says they want people to think critically about the war and
question the intent behind it.
"What we're trying to accomplish is people walking by can realize this is
what it looks like to have people lying on the street every day," said
Justin Krenselewski, one of the protesters. "This is what it looks like to
go to work next to dead bodies every day."
"We get told by soldiers all the time that they really appreciate us doing
this," said Juliea Paige, one of the organizers. "We also get told that this
is what they're fight for, the freedom to do things like this and to stand
up and say what we see as an injustice and to question what's going on. This
isn't about a disrespect for our soldiers, this is about a respect for them
and questioning whether their lives should be risked for the politicians'
agenda, basically."
The Grand Rapids portest was modeled after a similar one done in California.
http://www.10news.com/news/16516942/detail.html?rss=sand&psp=news
Blackwater Opens South Bay Facility Despite Protests
POSTED: 5:33 pm PDT June 5, 2008
UPDATED: 6:25 pm PDT June 5, 2008
SAN DIEGO -- On Thursday, Blackwater was in Otay Mesa at a non-descript
building that is a stone's throw from the U.S.-Mexico border.
"You know, we're not getting a lot of protesters from this area. It's an
industrial area," said Brian Bonfiglio, vice president of Blackwater
Worldwide.
The private security company did get an earful last Friday as protestors
demonstrated outside a federal court.
Despite the protest, a judge gave the company a temporary thumbs up that
allows them to begin training 24 Navy sailors Thursday morning.
"There needed to be another level of training, if you will, beyond what they
learned in boot camp and that's what we provide here," said Bonfiglio.
While training has been going on inside the facility for several hours,
there are still people trying to actively kick Blackwater out of Otay Mesa.
Anti-Blackwater activist Ray Lutz said, "It's not a done deal for me."
Lutz has actively campaigned against Blackwater, saying the company is
illegally training a private army in the South Bay.
"And we want this addressed. And if they're not going to address it then
well have to go to state court," said Lutz. "Blackwater also has a
reputation for being a shoot first, ask-questions-never type of company."
Bonfiglio said that is not true. He said the facility is only being used to
train American sailors.
"If we weren't Blackwater, if we were any other company then we would have
come right in here and there wouldn't have been any issues," said Bonfiglio.
San Diego city officials have tried blocking Blackwater's opening.
However, a federal judge said the company had enough permits approved to
open on Thursday.
Both sides said they expect more lawsuits to be filed.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004451767_apwabangorprotest.html
Sunday, June 1, 2008 - Page updated at 07:55 PM
12 arrested at Bangor anti-nuclear protest
POULSBO, Wash. -
Twelve people were arrested during an anti-nuclear weapon demonstration at
the Navy's Trident submarine base at Bangor.
The demonstration Saturday was peaceful.
But five people were arrested by deputies on a sidewalk that had been closed
for security when they attempted to hang a banner from an overpass. They
were booked into jail for investigation of disorderly conduct and failure to
disperse. They were then released.
The other seven arrestees were apprehended by base security officers for
trespassing, attempting to deliver a letter to the base commander. They were
released at the scene, said Glen Milner, a member of Ground Zero Center for
Nonviolent Action.
That group organizes demonstrations at the base, usually three times a year,
to draw attention to nuclear weapons at the site. Milner says Saturday's
demonstration was an additional protest, organized with the Tacoma Catholic
Worker group.
Milner says about 75 demonstrators showed up; Wilson estimated about 50 to
60.
The Trident sub base, officially Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, is on Hood Canal
about 20 miles west of Seattle.
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/34026
Veterans for Peace Demand Impeachment of President Bush and Protest in John
Conyers' Office
Submitted by davidswanson on Thu, 2008-06-12 01:27.
Impeachment
Nonviolent Resistance
On June 11, 2008, members of the Veterans for Peace (VFP) organization held
a press conference, at 1 PM, on Capitol Hill, demanding the impeachment of
President George W. Bush. The event took place in room 1629 of the Longworth
House Office building. Later in the day, the activists planned to meet with
House Judiciary Chairman, Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), to personally deliver to
him their "Petition for Impeachment" which, according to VFP's President,
Elliott Adams, contains "over 22,000 signatures." Please check the VFP's web
site, at:
http://www.veteransforpeace.org for the result of that session and for
future updates. The VFP was founded in 1985. It now has 7,000 members and
120 chapters around the country. This video contains excerpts from the press
conference. A longer version of it will appear on Google later tonight.
http://newsblaze.com/story/20080627062233tsop.nb/topstory.html
Published: June 27, 2008
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Six Arrested in Front of Schwarzenegger's Office During Anti-War Protest
Six people were arrested at a demonstration opposing the war in Iraq
THURSDAY about 12:15 p.m. at the State Capitol near Gov. Schwarzenegger's
office.
The California Highway Patrol charged the activists with several
misdemeanors, including allegedly demonstrating without a permit and
illegally entering the Capitol, and released them. The demonstrators have a
July 23 court date.
The arrests took place following a "Freeze-In for Peace," where about two
dozen people participated in a demonstration that required them to freeze in
place for five minutes. Similar "freeze-in" actions for peace are popping up
all over the country.
"This is absolutely linked the budget deficit mess in California. Our share
of the war in Iraq is $67 billion," said Maggie Coulter, one of those
arrested. "In fact, just spending the money for these officers to arrest
peaceful demonstrators doing little more than what happens in a legislative
hearing is also a waste of taxpayers' money," she added.
judythpiazza at newsblaze.com
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2008/06/23/2003415446
Iconic voice of protest keeps a roadside vigil
Most Saturdays, Pete Seeger protests against the war in Iraq. It's a long
road from 1969, when to protest the Vietnam War he sang John Lennon's 'Give
Peace a Chance' at the foot of the Washington Monument
By Dennis Gaffney
NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE, WAPPINGERS FALLS, NEW YORK
Monday, Jun 23, 2008, Page 13
Pete Seeger at his post at Route 9 and Route 9D in Wappingers Falls, New
York, June 7. The area is the site of weekly vigils against the war in Iraq.
PHOTO: NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE
Pete Seeger pulled his black Toyota Highlander into the Staples parking lot
here and plucked some signs from the back seat, including one with "Peace"
spray-painted in large orange letters. With that, he slung his banjo over
his shoulder like an old musket and marched toward the intersection of
Routes 9, a bustling six-lane thoroughfare, and 9D, the "Hudson Valley
POW-MIA Memorial Highway."
But before the 89-year-old folk singer flashed his anti-war signs to passing
drivers from this no-man's land - a patch of green about an hour north of
New York City on the Hudson River - he bent over again and again, picking up
litter.
"This is my religion now," said Seeger. "Picking up trash. You do a little
bit wherever you are."
Seeger, the man behind the founding of the Clearwater Festival, which was
held over the weekend at Croton Point Park, appeared there yesterday.
But for the last four years, most Saturdays he has been keeping his vigil in
Wappingers Falls, New York.
"This is my religion now ... Picking up trash. You do a little bit wherever
you are."
He is usually not recognized by the hundreds of drivers who whiz by. It is a
long road from 1969, when to protest the Vietnam War he sang John Lennon's
Give Peace a Chance at the foot of the Washington Monument.
"After two minutes, thousands were singing," he recalled. "After three
minutes, four minutes, a hundred thousand were singing. At the end of eight
minutes, all five hundred thousand were singing."
These days, fewer than a dozen protesters usually participate, while nearly
as many who support the war in Iraq hold a counterdemonstration across Route
9. Seeger, a political activist who has traveled the world, rarely ventures
farther than the few kilometers from here to his home in Beacon, New York.
He stays close to his wife, Toshi Seeger, 85, who fractured vertebrae in a
fall a few years ago.
On this particular Saturday, Seeger chatted easily with Chris Miller of
Poughkeepsie. "He's an ex-Army member," Seeger said, "and they're trying to
send him over again."
Miller, 38, served as a therapist for four years before receiving an
honorable discharge in January 2006. But on Dec. 22, 2007, he said, he
received orders to return to Iraq.
Miller said he had spent countless hours listening to Seeger's stories, like
the one about how his car windows were shattered in Peekskill in 1949 as he
and his family left a performance he had given with the singer Paul Robeson,
who was thought to have Communist sympathies. Or the one about the Vietnam
veteran who said he had come to a concert in the Catskills to kill Seeger
because of his anti-war stance, but was turned around by the performance and
made his way backstage to tell of his transformation.
"I smiled and shook his hand," Seeger said. "I had my banjo. We sat down and
sang, Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" Afterward, Seeger said, the man told
him, "I feel clean now."
Seeger said he wrote that song in the mid-1950s accompanied by the same
banjo he totes around today.
As for Miller: "Seeing what Pete has gone through and always standing up for
what he believed in, despite the consequences, made my decision easier to
resist the war. It made me comfortable that in the long run I'll be all
right."
At one point, Seeger looked across the highway to the knot of
counterdemonstrators. "They always have more flags," Seeger said. "But our
signs are more fun." He said he crossed the street once about a year ago and
talked to a veteran.
"I shook his hand and said, 'I'm glad we live in a country where we can
disagree with each other without shooting at each other.' He had to shake my
hand. He didn't know what to say. I even picked up a little litter over
there."
He said that working for peace was like adding sand to a basket on one side
of a large scale, trying to tip it one way despite enormous weight on the
opposite side.
"Some of us try to add more sand by teaspoons," he explained. "It's leaking
out as fast as it goes in, and they're all laughing at us. But we're still
getting people with teaspoons. I get letters from people saying, 'I'm still
on the teaspoon brigade.'"
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080705/census_jail_/20080705?hub=Canada
Man, woman face jail time in census protest
Updated Sat. Jul. 5 2008 4:06 PM ET
The Canadian Press
TORONTO -- At least two people who defiantly refused to complete the 2006
Canadian census in protest of a software contract awarded to an arms
manufacturer say they are willing to go to prison over the issue.
Todd Stelmach and Sandra Findley have never met, but are linked both by
their cause and subsequent legal fight.
The two refused to hand in their 2006 census forms because Lockheed Martin
won the contract to upgrade Statistics Canada's software.
The billion-dollar American arms dealer supplies weapons to armies around
the world, including for the war in Iraq.
Findley, 59, said she first heard about Lockheed Martin's potential bid for
the software contract in 2003 and immediately got in touch with Statistics
Canada to voice her displeasure.
"(Lockheed Martin) makes billions of dollars through the business of killing
people, and destroying the environment in the process of killing people,"
Findley said from her home in Saskatoon.
"So there's no way that I'm going to see my tax dollars go to help enrich
them."
Stelmach's decision to protest the company's involvement in gathering
Canadian data was quite different.
The 32-year-old Kingston, Ont., resident actually filled out his form before
he and his wife heard about a census opposition group called Count Me Out.
"We discovered Lockheed Martin was outsourced by (Statistics Canada) to
upgrade their software and do a lot of the processing of the 2006 census,"
said Stelmach.
"This just shocked me and at first I thought it was a bit of a hoax."
Failing to complete the national census is a federal offence. Findley and
Stelmach both face a maximum penalty of three months in jail and a $500
fine.
Stelmach said he met with Crown lawyers on Friday and was offered the
opportunity to fill out the form and receive a reduced fine with no jail
time.
Stelmach has already refused similar offers and said he will plead not
guilty in court Aug. 8.
Findley's court date is set for early 2009.
Statistics Canada forwards the files of people who refuse to fill out the
form to federal authorities, who then decide if charges should be laid.
Census branch director-general Peter Morrison said charges are only laid
against someone "who has made a very conscious decision numerous times not
to comply with the legal requirement of the census."
"It is the law."
The federal government uses the census to determine the level of funding
jurisdictions across the country receive. In 2007/2008 nearly $70 billion
was transferred, Morrison said.
Most of the 65 people charged for not filing the 2006 census have now
complied, he said.
Morrison called the response to the census a "resounding success,"
especially on Canada's native reserves.
Still, residents of 22 reserves failed to complete the form, but Morrison
blamed the number on rural access.
"You're not going to charge everybody on the reserve because you can't get
access to it," he said.
Fifty-two cases of incomplete forms were referred to the federal Justice
Department after the 2001 census, with seven people being convicted.
Because of trade agreements such as NAFTA the bidding process for government
contracts is open internationally to companies like Lockheed Martin.
Morrison also said concerns the arms dealer would be handling Canadians'
personal information is unfounded.
He likened the company's role to that of a programmer upgrading a personal
computer.
"Under no circumstances does anyone other than a Stats Can employee, sworn
in under the Statistics Act ever have access to any confidential census
information," he said.
Findley and Stelmach both said they've received resounding support from
family, friends and co-workers -- many of whom had no idea Lockheed Martin
was involved in the census.
Both say they're comfortable with their decision and hope the Canadian
government will be more "ethical" in the contracts it awards in the future.
"There's no reason on Earth that the Canadian census, any part of it, needed
to be contracted out to enrich (Lockheed Martin)," said Findley
The next census is in 2011, with the bidding for the next software contract
currently underway.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/19/10473/
Published on Saturday, July 19, 2008 by OneWorld.net
Nationwide Protests to Oppose War with Iran
by Alison Raphael
WASHINGTON - Street demonstrations, teach-ins, vigils, and "freezes" are
among the events planned for this weekend as part of a nationwide protest
against what are widely perceived to be moves by the George W. Bush
administration toward military conflict with Iran.
"Freezes," involving a large number of people standing in place for five
minutes, are planned for key locations in New York City such as Grand
Central Station and Penn Station, as well as Chicago's Millennium Park and
Santa Monica, California.
The term and new form of street action derive from the state of U.S.-Iran
relations. The Bush administration says Iran must freeze its uranium
enrichment program in order to "defrost" relations between the two countries
and avoid further sanctions.
Elsewhere anti-war and religious groups, students, trade unions, and others
will participate in "Call to Action: No War with Iran" co-sponsored by New
York-based United for Peace and Justice and Washington, D.C.-based Peace
Action.
Actions are planned in such diverse locations as Champaign-Urbana, Illinois;
Melbourne, Florida; Philadelphia; San Francisco; and Waterloo, Iowa.
Two thirds of Americans asked during a recent Gallup poll whether they favor
diplomatic initiatives or military action against Iran said they wanted the
U.S. government to pursue peaceful negotiations.
While demonstrators around the United States drive home that point, a
high-ranking U.S. diplomat will attend a meeting Saturday in Switzerland
with an Iranian diplomat - a rare break with Bush administration practice
that has largely shunned direct talks with Iranian officials.
William Burns will attend the Geneva meeting involving Iran and a group of
European Union countries trying to break through the current impasse, but
White House spokesperson Dana Perino has characterized Burns' presence as a
"one-time U.S. participation."
The meeting is aimed at convincing Iran to accept a package of incentives
offered last month by Western nations, in exchange for ceasing to enrich
uranium.
To date Iran has rejected the package, and earlier this month held highly
publicized missile tests to show its level of seriousness. At the same time,
rumors were rife that Washington is working behind the scenes with Israel to
prepare a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.
Some experts argue that these rumors, whether or not they are true, have a
negative impact by fueling Iranian nationalism, entrenching the stance of
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, heightening tensions, and ultimately leading
to intransigence and events such as the Iranian missile tests.
Media reports suggest that a pro-Israel lobby group is pressuring Congress
to impose a naval blockade on Iran, which would be considered an act of war.
In response, protestors in Columbus, Ohio plan a "Peace Boat Blockade" for
Monday, involving a march on the offices of Republican Congressman Patrick
Tiberi, who supports the blockade, carrying toy boats, submarines, and
airplanes to "demonstrate the crazy policy that this blockade symbolizes."
The demonstrations are scheduled for Jul. 19-21. Following the series of
street actions planned for Saturday and Sunday, Monday has been designated
"Congressional Education Day." Protestors will lobby Congress to hold back
plans for war with Iran.
http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=516970
9 protestors arrested at Anoka ammo plant
War protestors locked down the ATK offices and blocked traffic in Anoka
Wednesday morning. Activists protested outside the ATK facility by taping
their arms together. Police had to use a saws and wire cutters to break the
protestors free from each other.
Anoka Police say 8 adults and one juvenile were arrested.
The protest shut down traffic for about an hour near Wedgewood Drive and
East Main Street in Anoka.
ATK is an aerospace and defense company with its corporate headquarters in
Minneapolis. The protest happened near the ATK - Federal Cartridge Company
in Anoka.
(Copyright 2008 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)
http://www.nationalpost.com/nationalpost/story.html?id=656709
Supporters of U.S. war resister to protest deportation order
Linda Nguyen, Canwest News Service Published: Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Don MacKinnon/Canwest News ServiceU.S. war resister Robin Long
An anti-war demonstration was to be set up at the Vancouver-Seattle
international border crossing Tuesday morning to condemn Ottawa's decision
to deport American army deserter Robin Long.
The deportation order was upheld Monday by Canada's Federal Court. If the
order is carried out Tuesday, it is believed that Mr. Long would become the
first American war resister to be sent back to the United States.
Sarah Bjorknas, co-ordinator for the Vancouver chapter of War Resisters
Support Campaign, said the group has spent the hours since the judge's
decision to organize a protest at the Canada-U.S. Peace Arch border
crossing.
Demonstrators were expected from Vancouver, Washington State and Nelson,
B.C., Mr. Long's last place of residence.
"We know we're going to have a strong response," she predicted Tuesday. "We
have placards and banners. It's going to be a show of solidarity to the
government that they made a faulty decision on this [deportation order]."
There are an estimated 200 American army deserters who have sought refugee
status in Canada. Long lived in Ontario before moving to Nelson, about 700
kilometres west of Vancouver.
The 25-year-old filed a refugee claim in 2005, arguing that he was going to
suffer irreparable harm if he is deported back to the United States. He
argued that he was going to be forced to participate in war crimes if he was
sent to Iraq as a soldier.
Mr. Long's claim has since been struck down by the Immigration and Refugee
Board of Canada. The board ruled there was insufficient evidence to support
the allegations. He was ordered out of the country.
Immigration officials issued a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest last
October.
Ms. Bjorknas said her group and Mr. Long's lawyer have both lost contact
with the war resister in the past few days. He is currently in the custody
of Canada Border Services Agency and is thought to be held in the Vancouver
area.
The agency's policy is that they do not reveal when deportations will take
place and have not confirmed that Mr. Long was to be deported Tuesday.
A message to the agency was not returned.
Mr. Long's supporters, however, believe the deportation will happen quickly.
"They seem to be in an awful hurry to get him out of here [Canada]," Ms.
Bjorknas said.
It's not clear where Mr. Long would be taken to once he arrives back on
American soil. However, because he is still considered a soldier, he would
most likely be returned to his army base at Fort Knox in Kentucky.
American war resisters in Canada have garnered considerable attention in
Canada recently. Last week, Canadian courts granted deserter Corey Glass a
stay of removal and, in a separate case, ordered the Immigration and Refugee
Board to reconsider the failed refugee claim of another resister, Joshua
Key.
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/12/stories/2008071253220400.htm
Karnataka
Protest against nuclear deal
KOLAR: Under the banner of Students Federation of India, scores of students
formed a human chain at College Circle here on Friday to protest against the
Indo-U.S. nuclear deal. The students raised slogans against Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh for his alleged haste. The agitators burnt an effigy of Mr.
Singh. Traffic was
affected for some time owing to the protest.
- Staff Correspondent
http://blogs.timesunion.com/localpolitics/?p=1638
Rallies for an oil-free president
July 8, 2008 at 9:38 am by Dennis Yusko
Area MoveOn.org members will hold rallies across the Capital Region for an
"Oil-free President" on Wednesday.
The events will profile John McCain's close ties to Big Oil.
They are: 4 p.m. in Albany at the Mobil Station at Lark Street and Madison
Avenue; 4:15 p.m. in Troy at the Stewarts Shops at Congress Street and
Pawling Avenue; 5 p.m. in Saratoga Springs at the Mobil at Broadway and
Lincoln Avenue; and in Hudson at 5:15 p.m. at the Stewarts at Route 9 and
Green Street.
The events are part of hundreds around the country.
"John McCain's close ties to Big Oil mean he can't be trusted to lead our
country toward real relief at the gas pump," said Lauren Turczak of
Greenwich. "Most Americans are struggling to make ends meet, but oil
companies are making record profits. We need a President who will stand up
to Big Oil, not protect their profits like John McCain."
http://www.nbc11.com/news/17006562/detail.html?rss=bay&psp=news
War Protesters Primed For McCain Fundraiser At Fairmont Hotel
Organizer: 'Americans, Iraqis Can't Afford 4 More Years Of Mistakes'
POSTED: 11:22 am PDT July 27, 2008
UPDATED: 11:46 am PDT July 27, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO -- Grassroots campaigners plan to protest the continuation of
the Iraq war Monday outside a fundraising event at a San Francisco hotel for
presumed Republican presidential nominee Arizona Sen. John McCain.
Members of No Soldier Left Behind will rally outside the campaign fundraiser
and collect petition signatures calling for a responsible end to the war,
according to Peace Action West, an organization that fosters civic activism.
Protesters will hold signs advocating the end of the war and the well being
of Iraqis and Americans in the region.
"Sen. McCain is here raising money in support of an Iraq policy that will be
a continuation of the president's fail strategy," Peace Action West's
executive director, Jon Rainwater, said. "Americans and Iraqis can't afford
four more years of mistakes, so we are insisting that the next president
bring a responsible end to the war in their first year."
The protestors will assemble in front of the Fairmont hotel at 6:30 p.m.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flbprotest0720sbjul20,0,2084839.story
Students hit Weston streets to protest wars
By Jennifer Gollan | South Florida Sun-Sentinel
July 20, 2008
WESTON - At 16, Lili Stander barely remembers the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
But five years of war have tainted her teenage years all the same.
"Seeing people die in the Iraq war touches you personally," said Stander, of
Southwest Ranches, waving a placard that read "Bush lied, people died" at an
anti-war protest Saturday. "Now I'm inspired to speak out and push for
change."
She's among a growing number of teenagers who belong to Direct Action
Weston, a loose-knit group of students, who held their third rally at the
corner of Weston and Griffin roads to protest the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
The group plans to demonstrate on the same corner each month until the
presidential election in November. Their goal: raise awareness about
America's role in the Middle East.
Judging by the cacophony of honks and cheers from passing drivers, many feel
anything but apathetic.
"Seeing us here gives people something to think about," said Debbie
Rozanski, who at 55 was among the eldest of the protesters. "Such as, why
are we still in this war?"
Rozanski, an import specialist for the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, said
she was a "child of the '60s and '70s," who felt guilty when she raced past
the effervescent, budding protesters one afternoon last month. She turned
her car around and took her place among the demonstrators.
Hunter Althschul, 17, of Southwest Ranches, agreed.
"It becomes our duty to let people know that they need to stand up against
the government's wrongs," said Althschul, who will be a senior in the fall
at Cypress Bay High School. "These wars are costing us tax dollars we don't
have, and we're fueling these private contractors with money. We can't
afford to keep doing that."
Despite the withering heat, Althschul and the others said they planned to
soldier on with chants of "no more war" through the afternoon.
"I'm sweating, but it's worth it," said Stander, who will be a junior in the
fall at Pembroke Pines Charter High School. "When I was younger, I wouldn't
have had the courage to come out here."
Jennifer Gollan can be reached at jgollan at sun-sentinel.com or 954-385-7920.
http://www.lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080813/NEWS03/808130371/1019/RSS0102
War protester withholds taxes; IRS collects with interest
By Randi Weiner
The Journal News . August 13, 2008
UPPER NYACK - Ethan Vesely-Flad and his wife stopped paying a portion of
their taxes two years ago as a protest against the U.S. participation in the
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Internal Revenue Service collected the missing funds from their 2006
taxes, along with about $500 in penalties and interest, by withholding money
from Ethan Vesely-Flad's paycheck for six months this year.
In a sense, it was a moral victory, Vesely-Flad told members of the Rockland
Coalition for Peace and Justice last night during the organization's
operating committee meeting at the Fellowship of Reconciliation's
headquarters.
"It was about trying to do something that would deal with our conscience,"
Vesely-Flad said to the 14 people at the meeting. "It's a very minor thing
and may not have done much, but we are educating ourselves. If others are
inspired to do likewise, it could help to clog up" the system.
Vesely-Flad is co-director of communications for FOR and edits its magazine.
He and his wife, Rima, are connected with nonprofit social justice
organizations, he said.
The two had discussed what they could do to protest the use of their taxes
for military reasons and decided to withhold slightly more than half of what
they owed.
The War Resisters League estimated that 51 percent of income tax money goes
for past and current military uses, Vesely-Flad said. So they decided to
withhold 51 percent of what they owed the IRS for 2006 taxes.
Over the past two years, the couple put nearly $5,000 in an escrow account
held by Quakers, who maintain similar accounts on behalf of tax protesters.
They took out a portion of that money to recoup what the government took
from them, but are getting help from friends and groups to pay the penalties
and fees.
The IRS already is sending them letters asking for 2007 taxes.
Elaine Plenert, 79, of West Nyack said that what Vesely-Flad talked about
sounded intriguing.
"I love the idea of doing something," she said.
Fran Greenspan, 77, of New Hempstead,said she admired the Vesely-Flads for
their stance.
"So much is going for the war," she said. "I think we want to help him out
tonight as much as we can."
http://lacrossetribune.com/articles/2008/08/13/news/04march.txt
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Protesters march against wars
By CHRIS HUBBUCH / La Crosse Tribune
.
Eleven weary war protesters ambled off the La Crosse River Trail on Tuesday,
371 miles from their starting point and still more than 100 miles from their
destination.
They aren't walking for exercise, or because they can't all fit on the blue,
green and yellow 1979 school bus that serves as their support vehicle.
A group of protesters walk the bike trail from Bangor,Wi. to West Salem
Tuesday morning as part of their walk acrosse Wisconsin to protest the war
in Iraq. Dick Riniker photo
Their goal is to stop the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, bring troops home
and press the country to fund reconstruction of Iraq.
They left Chicago on July 21 and plan to arrive in St. Paul, Minn., on Aug.
31, the day before the Republican National Convention begins.
After walking the rest of the way into La Crosse today, the protesters plan
to visit U.S. Rep. Ron Kind's district office. They will make a presentation
Thursday at the La Crosse Public Library before heading Sunday to Winona,
Minn.
About half a dozen have made the entire walk, though others join for a day
or a week.
Along the way, they've enjoyed the hospitality of friends and strangers. In
three weeks on the road, they've only had to camp five nights, said Dan
Pearson, one of the walk's coordinators.
Tuesday, they ate sandwiches loaded with spinach, pickles and hummus made by
their last host family.
Leah Patriarco has filled five pages in her notebook with the names of
people she's met. They've gotten moral support, too, from motorists.
But not everyone has been so welcoming.
Thirteen protesters were arrested Sunday at Fort McCoy in a peaceful attempt
to enter the Army installation.
"It was one of the gentlest arrests I've experienced," said Brian Terrell, a
52-year-old director of Catholic Peace Ministry in Des Moines, Iowa, who has
lost track of how many times he's been arrested in 30 years of peace
activism.
All were ticketed for trespassing and released, except for Kathy Kelly, who
was held in the Monroe County Jail on a warrant stemming from a protest a
decade ago. The group wasn't sure when she would be able to rejoin the walk.
Several have been to Iraq.
Gene Stoltzfus went in 2003 and 2004 as the director of Christian Peacemaker
teams. The 68-year-old, now retired and living in Canada, joined the walk a
few days ago and plans to go to Winona.
Paul Melling went in 2003-04 with his Army unit. He said he didn't see any
reason for U.S. troops to be there.
"I never really understood (the war) in the first place," said the
27-year-old from Melrose, Minn.
He later met with Iraq Veterans Against War and got involved in peace
activism.
Melling, who has made the entire walk from Chicago, said opposing the war
has been easier since he was discharged from the Army in 2006.
"The vast majority of guys I know think the war is a bunch of crap," he
said. "Speaking out against it. . It's really tough."
http://www.channel3000.com/news/17157567/detail.html?rss=c3k&psp=news
13 Arrested At Fort McCoy War Protest
Protesters Cited For Trespassing
POSTED: 10:02 am CDT August 11, 2008
FORT MCCOY, Wis. -- Thirteen people protesting the Iraq war were arrested
after authorities said they tried to enter the Fort McCoy military
installation in western Wisconsin.
The protesters delivered a letter seeking an end to the war Sunday afternoon
and asked to enter the fort to talk with soldiers. They were denied access
and asked to leave.
Authorities said the 13 people were arrested after going beyond secured
boundaries.
Fort McCoy spokeswoman Linda Fournier said the demonstrators have a right to
express their opinion but not to breach security.
The protesters were cited for trespassing, fingerprinted and escorted off
the base. Authorities told them if they attempted to re-enter, they would be
taken into federal custody.
http://www.lacrossetribune.com/articles/2008/08/09/news/z05protest09.txt
War protesters on march to RNC stopping at Fort McCoy
By Tribune staff
.
A group walking across the state to protest the war in Iraq will arrive at
Fort McCoy this weekend.
Protesters with the Witness Against War project say they hope to foster
dialogues along the 450-mile route.
They plan Sunday to attempt to enter the Army base between Tomah and Sparta.
Walkers left July 21 from Chicago and plan to reach St. Paul, Minn., on Aug.
31, the day before the start of the Republican National Convention. They
plan to arrive in La Crosse on Wednesday and host a meeting at 6:30 p.m.
Thursday at the La Crosse Public Library, 800 Main St.
About a dozen people have been on the road for each segment of the walk,
said spokesman Dan Pearson. Participants sign agreements not to use violence
or damage property.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/17145891/detail.html
Protestors Denounce Nuclear Weaponry At Livermore Lab
POSTED: 5:27 pm PDT August 9, 2008
LIVERMORE -- On the 63rd anniversary of the last time an atomic bomb was
used in warfare, anti-war activists gathered outside the Lawrence Livermore
National Laboratory Saturday to protest the facilities work on nuclear
weapons.
The protests centered around a speech by Nobuaki Hanaoka, a retired
Methodist minister from San Francisco, who lived in Nagasaki with his family
at the time of the bombing.
"I was seven-and-a-half months old when the bomb fell," said Hanaoka. Our
family was spared from the effects of the blast and the heat, but we were
exposed to the radiation."
Hanaoka's mother, sister and brother all died from leukemia in the years
following the bombing.
Anti-nuclear activists are critical of weapon's research at the Lawrence
Livermore lab, which they claim could endanger the Bay Area after a major
accident or terrorist attack.
http://www.myantiwar.org/view/159965.html
200 protest psychologists' interrogation role
Updated 8/16/2008 3:03 PM
By Sharon Jayson, USA TODAY
BOSTON - About 200 demonstrators rallied Saturday outside the convention
hall where some 14,000 are attending the annual meeting of the American
Psychological Association to protest the role of psychologists in military
interrogations.
Psychologists have traditionally played a part in questioning of U.S.
captives done by the military or intelligence agencies. Some psychologists
have criticized such work during the Bush administration's anti-terrorism
effort as a code of ethics violation, while others say eliminating the
psychologists' participation would make the interrogations more harmful for
detainees.
At the two-hour rally, groups of psychologists, including Psychologists for
an Ethical APA and Psychologists for Social Responsibility, as well as human
rights organizations, including representatives of the American Civil
Liberties Union and Amnesty International, blasted those psychologists for
their part in the Bush administration's practices. And they say they're
outraged over the APA's acceptance of psychologists' participation because
of what they say are human rights violations by the government.
"Who would have thought that the APA - whose code of ethics mandates a
respect for basic principles of human rights and holds psychologists 'to a
higher standard of conduct than is required by the law' - would be so
reluctant to prohibit psychologists from participating in interrogations
from Guantánamo to Abu-Ghraib," Nancy Murray of the American Civil Liberties
Union in Massachusetts told the crowd. "The APA has justified this 'policy
of engagement' by stating its involvement is intended to stop unethical
interrogations."
The APA approved a policy last year that defined parameters for
psychologists, prohibiting 19 coercive procedures, including waterboarding,
the use of hoods and any physical assault. In a statement issued Saturday,
the APA re-iterated its position by saying "No psychologist - APA member or
not - should be directly or indirectly involved in any form of detention or
interrogation that could lead to psychological or physical harm to a
detainee. ... Doing so would be a clear violation of the profession's
ethical standards."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/7576219.stm
Friday, 22 August 2008 12:43 UK
Anti-nuclear protest at dockyard
Some protesters chained themselves to crash barriers
The entrance to Devonport Dockyard has been barricaded by a group of
anti-nuclear campaigners.
Police were called to the dockyard's Camel's Head gate in Plymouth at 0720
BST after protesters tied ladders together to block the entrance.
Campaign group Trident Ploughshares said they were protesting about money
being spent on renewing the UK's Trident nuclear fleet.
Dockyard traffic was redirected until the barricade was removed.
'Safety issue'
About 14 people were involved in the protest.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) told BBC News there had been a safety issue as
some of the protesters had chained themselves to crash barriers.
One man was arrested by MoD Police on suspicion of obstruction of a highway.
The 33-year-old, from Plymouth, was arrested after repeatedly lying in the
road and refusing to move on.
He is being held in custody at Charles Cross police station.
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