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Independent Media Has a Role to Play in Bringing the War Home
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At the UUSC workshop entitled Bring the War Home, UUSC Associate for Civil Liberties Fatema Haji-Taki began by quoting Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's recent majority opinion from the Boumediene decision (a writ of habeas corpus made on behalf of a Guantanamo Bay detention camp detainee), in which he declared that our rights are designed to withstand intense pressures, that our nation's Constitution should survive in extraordinary times. That decision, another razor thin 5-4 rebuke of the Bush administration's steady erosion of civil liberties, probably got less media attention than what some Hollywood celebs were up to that day.
In fact, media and its impact was a large part of the discussion. Camilo Mejía, who was court martialed and imprisoned for refusing to return to his post in Iraq after deciding the war was morally unjust, spoke to the group, telling how the mainstream media was not giving the full picture of the war from the outset. News outlets were not talking about the killing of civilians and not showing the blood and the suffering. Instead, they focused on the morale of the troops and whether it remained high in the name of patriotism. He reminded the audience that as much as mainstream media may choose what to report or ignore based on its parent company's interests, the independent media, bloggers, and activists have a power too - many times not fully realized - but which has enormous potential for impact.
Toward the end of the workshop, Haji-Taki reminded participants that another potential place for change is fast approaching in November, but she added that "elections are not a panacea." She noted that even with a White House and Congress that respects human rights, the hard work only begins after the election. We must struggle to ensure that our government respects its citizens enough to tell them the truth and to restore its peoples' constitutionally guaranteed liberties.





Wayne Smith, Camilo Mejía, and Fatema Haji-Taki.









Comments
The UUA must speak loudly
The UUA must speak loudly against an attack on Iran! The imminent attack on Iran by the U.S., Israel, or both, is certainly not about Iran wanting to build nuclear weapons. Both the Israeli and U.S. governments know quite well that Iran: (1) has no intention of building nuclear weapons, (2) does not want them, (3) considers them useless to Iran, and (4) wants a nuclear-weapons-free Middle East.
Iran’s cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in all mandatory areas has been stellar. Iran has recently undergone 14 surprise inspections of its enrichment facilities and has always been found to be operating within announced parameters. There is also 24-hour video surveillance over Iran’s enrichment facilities, and IAEA seals and video surveillance are used to monitor Iran’s fissionable material.
Bush is trying to spread the lie that he would prefer to settle the dispute with Iran by diplomacy. On that he is completely full of manure, no more truthful about Iran than he was regarding Iraq. The only thing he’s done is threaten Iran with military attack if Iran does not stop its fully legal enrichment activities. On April 18, 2006, he even threatened Iran with nuclear attack. That’s not diplomacy! Bush wants war with Iran. He wants it as badly as he wanted war against Iraq in January 2001, immediately after his first inauguration and eight months before 9/11. (Fortunately, we know the truth about how much Bush wanted war with Iraq from the book, The Price of Loyalty, by Bush’s first Secretary of the Treasury, Paul O’Neill.)
Bush and the other Cheneyites want war with Iran (1) in order to encourage regime change in Iran and (2) to keep Israel the strongest Middle East power after the U.S. (According to the Project for the New American Century’s September 2000 Rebuilding America’s Defenses, the U.S. should not allow any regional power to become strong enough to threaten the U.S.’s will even in its own region. The task for the century is to preserve the Pax Americana, peace on America's terms, all over the world. I am NOT making this stuff up!) There are currently 119 countries (out of the world’s 195) in NAM, the non-aligned movement. (Fifteen more nations have observer status.) NAM countries recently unanimously voted to support Iran’s right to do its own uranium enrichment. On May 13 Iran delivered through the UN a comprehensive proposal to hold talks with the U.S. and other countries on several of the world’s biggest problems, including the following nuclear issues: (1) obtaining a further assurance about the non-diversion of the nuclear activities of different countries; (2) establishing enrichment and nuclear fuel production consortiums in different parts of the world, including in Iran; (3) cooperation to access and utilize peaceful nuclear technology and facilitating its usage by all states; (4) nuclear disarmament and establishment of a follow up committee; (5) improved supervision by the IAEA over the nuclear activities of different states; (6) joint collaboration over nuclear safety and physical protection; and (7) an effort to encourage other states to control the export of nuclear material and equipment. Iran’s whole two and one-half page proposal was impressive (see http://www.endusmilitarism.org/iran_May_13_2008_proposal.html ).
But look especially at item #2 in the above list. Iran has indicated its willingness to accept the “Pickering Proposal” to have an international consortium in charge of uranium enrichment in Iran. Several experts have said Iran’s offer could well provide the basis for settling the present impasse over Iran’s enrichment.
But your President and your Republican candidate for President don’t think we should talk to Iran. They say Iran’s leaders must stop Iran’s fully legal enrichment activities before we should even talk to them. They are eager to bomb, but slow to talk. McCain even sang a song about it, “Bomb-Bomb-Bomb. Bomb-Bomb Iran.” Again, I did NOT make that up; he actually thought it was funny!
One of the most incredible things about the present situation is how Iran’s enrichment came to be referred to the UN Security Council. The U.S. government felt it needed India’s help on the IAEA Board of Governors. So it bribed India (admitted by people on both sides – see http://www.endusmilitarism.org/india_iran_articles.html ) to vote to refer the matter. It did this by illegally offering India help with its nuclear program. In effect, the U.S. government, in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), welcomed India into what has been referred to as the “nuclear club,” or “nuclear haves.” Under the NPT, all assistance in nuclear technology is forbidden to countries that have refused to sign the NPT (as India has) or have secretly developed nuclear weapons (as India has). The Non-Proliferation Treaty hasn’t accomplished all that was hoped, such as bringing about nuclear disarmament. But, overall, the NPT has served us well.
The truth is that “nuclear haves” have violated the NPT far more often than the “nuclear have-nots.” And, of all the “nuclear haves,” the U.S. has indisputably violated the NPT far more than any others, perhaps more than all the others together. The recent promise of nuclear aid to India is one serious violation, but probably far from the most serious. Among the most serious are the distribution of nuclear weapons to NATO countries and the training of military personnel from those NATO countries in their handling and use. Another serious violation has been providing a large number of planes capable of serving as nuclear weapons delivery systems to a country which secretly developed the weapons.
In the current dispute between the Bush government and Iran’s leaders over Iran’s enrichment, Iran is totally right and the Bush administration is totally wrong. Think of that when Iranian babies are murdered by U.S. and/or Israeli bombs, when all the unintended consequences of an attack on Iran develop, and when you, your children, and grandchildren get the bill for still another stupid war.
George Desnoyers Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Human Rights Report
Human Rights Report 2008 ह्यूमन रिघ्ट्स रिपोर्ट २००८
Human rights are the inherent dignity and the foundation of fair trade, freedom, justice and peace only for privileged member of a religion whom symbol is sword for humanity. The Greedy 8 nations have set a new standard of humanity in which no one has the right to fair trade, peace in life, liberty of color and security of harassment from the homeland security due to the terrifying policies. Any person of color can be held in slavery or servitude and can be subjected to torture, cruel and inhumane treatment without justice which is philosophically based on certain history. Thus no doubt when culture, religion and nature develop based on symbolism of sword that religious can not be sympathetic to other belief.
At this moment on this earth any sober human beings can not seek religious asylum from persecution to a developed country that is based on humanity due to whitish circle of humility. Freedom was the birth right of all living things just before creation of an organization for human rights. It is time to reform colorful humanity based on fair trade, freedom, population and fair mainstream media.
Fair trade is the business in which a person travels regularly without thinking of religious, color and country any where but in Greedy 8 Nations. The new policy of fair trade is an organized system which promotes standards for the colorless labor and there social policy. The policies in areas related to the production of private and brand goods such as cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, sex toys and problems to keep them busy in vicious circle. The system focuses in particular on exports from developed nations to poor and developing countries.
Fair mainstream media is where educated colorful people or an Independent Association based on humanity ensures the free flow of any report in a true democratic Society. Justice was the ideal, morally correct state of things and persons. It was the social, political movements of humanity for injustice.
We Americans are in very difficult position for human rights and justice. Thus, Justice in the Christian America is the fisa act, the patriot act, the religious act, the act of war, the water boarding act, Guantanamo bay act, abu grab act the only act is missing is the act of humanity.
The only way of democracy is love of colorful humanity. It is time to start silencing whitish nature to create true nature of human faith by realizing that we all have trust in God (Rab) and faith in humanity (Rabi). Human faith has great respect for all religion especially Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. It is time to stop growing army of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism and select sober spiritual leaders for humanity to dissolve problems.
Human faith religious members would like to request from all nations and there dictators, kings, monarchies, army chiefs, organizations, government officials, presidents, vice presidents, and religious leaders to arrange dialogue with there major and minority religious leaders to confirm that they are not been used by the third party. The complications of this current method of dividing wealth, education and health and introducing democracy by force are wrong. How could a human being aspire to freedom in any field when he is deprived of the freedom of his life?
Human faith religious is a public school for humanity. The leisure of learning truth, honesty and freedom. It is the eminent brain for batter society and the library of knowledge. It is the sacred water of life that emerges with the seven colors of human diversity to dissolve racism. Human faith method of teaching moral values and humanity can give realistic purpose of achieving complete fulfillment of internal life. The spiritual change from loneness to loveliness is based on love by giving unlimited trust in God (Rab).
Human mind is miracle of Supreme Being when we struggle to boil it at luck warm temperature of wisdom to understand fundamental of life by reading (Rabi). The ever lasting stage of satisfaction for mind is to reach Supreme Being before death. The journey of memories can be pleasant with nine affirmations of human faith. We believe that it is time to joggle every conscious to show them that human mind is superior matter not material.
The festival of life can be celebrated with wisdom of human faith knowledge once we realize that we are part of the superior race. It advocates spiritual and moral principles on very high scales for the longest term in human history. Human faith is Adam's monotheistic faith and knows that God is the creator and overseer of the universe at all the time and all matters. It is time to modernize our faith by adopting true faith and educate mankind in accordance with basic principle of life. IN GOD (Rab) WE TRUST WE HAVE FAITH IN HUMANITY (Rabi). Rabi has many meaning in our language. 1. Rabi is Book of Human Faith. 2. Rabi is brain. 3. Rabi is humanity. 4. Rabi is our tongue.