| Dear Editor... |
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In Jamaica, you've made great strides as well. Your purchase of the National Commercial Bank, along with CVM communications, has placed you in elite company on the island. These two acquisitions top the list of your many islandwide corporate endeavours. There seems to be no end to the cash flow destined for AIC's coffers. I'm a firm believer in the biblical philosophy that "to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required". Mr Lee-Chin, you've certainly proved to the world that you know what it takes to make money. There's no disputing that. But the question is, what have you given back to Jamaicans living in Canada and Jamaica? Sure, we have an undeniable sense of pride in your success. But I'm referring specifically to monetary contributions. In no way do I believe that you should be simply handing out funds to random Jamaicans living in Canada and Jamaica. Not at all. Instead, I feel that the creation of a foundation which provides grants to deserving individuals would be ideal. Namely, those seeking higher education, artistes with projects geared at positively promoting Jamaican culture internationally, and for those with business concepts possessing great commercial appeal. I am one of the aforementioned individuals: an internationally published veteran writer turned filmmaker now in search of financing for a new project. --David Dacosta, Toronto, Canada, sunfeedback@gmail.com
Fresh from her triumphant victory in the Pennsylvania primary, but trailing behind Senator Barack Obama by ten points, Hillary Clinton is still down, but not out. Obama leads Clinton 1,719 to 1,586, CNN estimates. With the win, Clinton will picked up 81 of Pennsylvania's 158 delegates, and Obama won 69. Eight delegates have yet to be allocated. On NBC's "Today," show, Clinton said "At the end of the day, people have to decide who they think would be not only the best president, which is the most important question, but who would be the better candidate against Senator McCain. And I think the coalition that I've put together, as demonstrated once again last night, is a very strong base for us to beat Senator McCain." That said, American voters better brace themselves for another round of bitter and negative campaigning. With two more weeks to go until the Indiana and North Carolina primaries where the stakes are high and 187 in pledge delegates are up for grabs, will Hillary Clinton continue on the low road to the DNC while Barack Obama hopes to lead a clean victory as? There is no doubt that Hillary Clinton packs a mean punch as a tough and formidable candidate. But are her negative campaign attacks really necessary after she has consistently stated throughout her campaign that her thirty-five years of experience (including 8 years as first lady) is all she needs to win the race for the White House. By invoking fear and scare tactics to convince voters she can save the nation, it is vividly apparent that she lacks experience in handling upsets. While Obama takes her broadsides, he continues to take the high road even after falling short in his effort to close the polarizing competition. Why? He understands that moving on to more important campaign issues like the economy, health care, national security, the war in Iraq, and the housing crisis in America are more important to voters than redefining the word "bitter" in reference to his comments he made at a San Francisco fund-raiser about small-town Americans in Pennsylvania clinging to guns and religion because of their economic hardships. So, despite his defeat, Obama gained the support of Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry, a superdelegate to the national convention. Which ever candidate turns out to be the winner or sore loser at the Democratic National Convention, both candidates will not only come out bruised and bummed out, but also recognize that they might have seriously wounded their party by polarizing the Democratic electorate. The effect of the former would seemingly hand Senator John McCain the ammunition he needs against his opponent (courtesy of the Democrats) to lock and load voters to the polls in favor of Republicans in November. Moreover, party leaders are growing impatient and fatigued with the drawn-out slugfest and are watching nervously as McCain climbs in opinion polls. Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, says he is not prepared to wait until the end of primary season on June 3rd to hear from remaining superdelegates because he fears the prolonged fighting might do damage to the party. "I need them to say who they're for, starting now," he told CNN. "We cannot give up two or three months of active campaigning and healing time." Okay, so what if Obama wins both Indiana and North Carolina on May 6th, will Clinton concede and bow out gracefully or will she continue to take her votes, victories and pledge delegates all the way to the National Convention? Not likely if she doesn't have the financial support to keep her campaign afloat and steamroll her opponent. Keep in mind, a serious defeat in states she's expected to win will slow the money down. And then she'll be out for the count. But if she keeps winning enough primaries to maintain the cash flow, she will keep campaigning -- no matter what her eventual prospects for securing the nomination may be. At this point, it looks like any card can play after seeing her decisive victory in Pennsylvania. Clinton's campaign chair Terry McAuliffe claimed they have raised $10 million in 24 hours through online fund-raising, once again boosting her fight fuel to go into Indiana and North Carolina in an effort to persuade superdelegates that she is the best candidate for the job. For now, the question on the mind of voters and superdelegates is simply who can beat John McCain and lead the Democratic Party to victory in the presidential election? If the answer to that question is "both," then the next question may boil down to whether America wants a white woman or black man for president? Whichever candidate the remaining superdelegates throw their support to, either candidate will surely make history. Save the dates of the remaining Democratic primaries and the number of pledged delegates at stake: May 3: Guam (4) May 6: North Carolina (115), Indiana (72) May 13: West Virginia (28) May 20: Oregon (52), Kentucky (51) June 1: Puerto Rico (55) June 3: Montana (16), South Dakota (15) August 25-28: Democratic National Convention --Falana Fray, P: 347.223.1150, E: fbfray@yahoo.com
A pilot farm has been established in Demizène, the fourth communal section of Miragoâne in the department of Nippes where training and planting has already been launched. The aim of the proposed project is to expand the training to include farmers beyond the initial pilot project participants to the general population of farmers in the area. When the pilot is scaled up the program is expected to have approximately 200 direct participants with even wider spillover benefits as knowledge is diffused to family members and associates. The pilot farm program has already planted a variety of seedlings including lima beans, corn, bananas, watermelon, peppers, and green beans. Training has included an array of planting techniques ranging from poly to monoculture, to demonstrate first hand to the "student farmers" which is the more productive technique practice after the crops have been harvested. Tomato seedlings have also been planted for training and experimentation purposes and a dual tomato project is in process with the ultimate goal of creating a processing company able to produce tomato paste. To this end, we have planted two types of tomatoes on a rotating basis: a larger tomato for cooking, and a smaller variety of tomato for salad making. Experimentation has revealed that the larger tomato is more resilient than the smaller requiring significantly less care and fertilization. Most of the seedlings for both of these varieties have required between three to six months from conception to consumption or commercialization. As a result of the dual-tomato seedling activities farmers are now more prepared for what each variety will require for successful planting and marketing.Haiti faces a dire situation due to the hunger problem that has recently developed in some areas of the country. Soil has eroded and some areas have experienced drought-like conditions. It is incumbent upon social organizations advocating for the wellbeing of Haiti to develop viable solutions in order to help alleviate the burdens of its ordinary citizens. Project 2000 International a 501c3 organization has been working since 1994 in Haiti to create sustainable communities by providing the tools necessary to become self-sufficient. By educating the masses, we at Project 2000 International believe that we are on the road to creating an environment for self-sustainability. With advances in technology, there should be no reason that farmers still need to use machetes and rakes. We constantly find ourselves in situations in which drastic decisions have to be made in order to respond to the community's growing needs. Tools are available today to make the work easier and more effective. Recently, famine has encroached on many of the most remote areas of Haiti. Project 2000 believes that in order to respond quickly and according to the needs of our community, we ought to have tools available that will enable the community to work the land year round. Once crops are ready to harvest, we will call the participating members of the community and give them a percentage of the harvest. We sell the beans by the pound. If they harvest one hundred pounds, we give them 25 pounds and they also purchase another 25 pounds for a small pricethey can sell or they can keep whatever amount they like. In order to accomplish our goals, we are in need of several backhoe loaders and agricultural tools for the South and the far Northwest. Two major regions will benefit from this help. One to the South in Demizaine, and far Northwest in Bombardopolis-an area that made international news because the people have resorted to eating dirt due to lack of available food sources in the area. Aside from the lack of food, two other needs are of vitally important at this point in time i.e. agricultural tools including seeds and fertilizers, and a canalization project capable of bringing water into the area. We currently have an ongoing project in Haiti that is available for inspection, however, is also in need of further development. Agriculture in a sense is still practiced as if we were in the dark ages because of the inaccessibility of tools, seed, fertilizers, and adequate irrigation systems to assist the farmers. Having some backhoe loaders, tools, seeds, fertilizers, as well as an irrigation system to assist the farmers will bring much needed life to communities that are in dire need of help. Project 2000 International remains open to any other kind of help that anyone including corporations and foundations are able to offer as assistance for the betterment of the lives of the Haitian people. Our challenge remains the acquisition of modern farming equipment, funding for fertilizer, seedlings, and an irrigation system for higher crop yield. Until we overcome these challenges with the infusion of funding, our crop yield will remain low and the effectiveness of the introduction of better farming methodology will be suppressed. Funding is needed in order to take the program to the next level. The approach has been proven; all that is now needed is the funding to roll out the next phase of implementation. The pilot farm program is replicable and scalable on all levels. Success and demonstrable benefits from the project will help the knowledge and techniques spread to other areas of Haiti. Similar weather patterns across much of the country (with the exception of the west) also ensure that the techniques can be adopted with little modification. The success of replication lies in the pledge of farmers to engage with farmers outside the initially targeted community. Scalability is only limited by resources to enlarge irrigation systems and secure modern farming tools. As the program succeeds and farmers are able to earn regular income from the marketability of their crops, they are more able to purchase some of the smaller ticket items that will enhance productivity such as seedlings and fertilizer. --info@hpp4haiti.com Project 2000 International Inc, PO BOX 882546, Port St Lucie, FL 34988 Majolie Zephirin, President, 954-914-9803 Jacob François, Founder, 312-735-6071, 561-968-2623 Fax
Your financial contribution can be sent to the undersigned at P.O. Box 1102, St. John's, Antigua or directly to our Building Fund at the Antigua Commercial Bank, Account Number 56-553. All contributions will be acknowledged appropriately. Thanks for any support you can give! --Dr. Hayden Thomas, CMG, President
Sen. McCain noted that he was not receiving government health care for the six years he was in captivity. That is true. But it has nothing to do with my point - which is that the problem with Sen. McCain's health care plan is not how it affects us - but how it affects the tens of millions of Americans with preexisting conditions who, unlike Sen. McCain and me, do not have the resources to pay for quality health care. That is not a cheap shot, it is a potentially life and death question for tens of million of Americans. And it is a question Sen. McCain must address. McCain's health care plan is centered around the idea that we'd be better off if more Americans bought health coverage on their own, rather than receiving it through a job or government program. But maybe since he has never purchased insurance in the individual market, he does not know the challenge it presents for Americans with preexisting conditions. A recent study showed that nearly nine out of every ten people seeking individual coverage on the private insurance market never got it. Insurers will disqualify you for just taking certain medicines because of the possibility of future costs, including common drugs as Lipitor, Zocor, Nexium, and Advair. People who have had cancer are denied coverage and those who get cancer run the risk of simply being dropped by their insurer for any excuse that can be found. And insurers make it a practice to deny coverage to individuals in high risk occupations, such as firefighting, lumber work, telecom installation, and pretty much anything more risky than working in an office. McCain opposes universal health care because he claims it represents a "big government takeover and mandates." But yesterday, he said he would help cover people with preexisting conditions by creating a "special Medicaid trust fund." A "special Medicaid trust fund?" Talk about a big government take over. Tens of millions of Americans have preexisting conditions. If he is going to expand Medicaid to cover Americans with preexisting conditions, he is talking about a massive, massive increase in the Medicaid program. He says he opposes more government involvement in health care, but his idea really would be government-run health care. My questions is: why is he doing this? If he is so concerned about expanding government's role in health care, why doesn't he just tell the insurance industry that they have to cover people with preexisting conditions? Why is he more concerned about protecting the insurance industry - an industry which, by the way, his corporate tax cut plan gives a $1.9 billion tax cut to - than the tens of millions Americans with preexisting conditions? McCain's advisors still can't say how this special Medicare trust fund will work. I gather we will find that out when Senator McCain gives a speech on health care later this month. Rest assured, I will be paying attention. --Elizabeth Edwards Editor's Note: Elizabeth Edwards is the wife of former Presidential candidate John Edwards and soon-to-be IOP Fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics.
Very sadly some immigrants/ethnic minorities themselves have been guilty of joining in, like Mr Rageh Omar with his very flawed documentary series on C-4 (which is clearly designed to be sensationalist) and in the last two days the BBC's Mr Mhir Bose, BBC Sports Editor. Possibly motivated to demonstrate their Britishness? Like the Kapoors, sorry Coopers, in the BBC's Goodness Gracious Me. I won't go into all the evidence that shows racism is rife in the UK except that it is all practiced with deviousness because 99% has been reported by you good folks. Like the provocation of riots in Bradford by the BNP using religion knowing that they could not be prosecuted for inciting 'religious' hatred. However, I ask why they were not prosecuted for just inciting the riots or disturbing the peace? Indeed, C-4 showed a docudrama on it a couple years ago, showing the racism in the British Justice system. Don't be fooled by the BBC's diligent efforts to show harmonious race relations. Like when reporting on the Singapore Airlines A380's inaugural flight to Heathrow, London. This aircraft carries about 500 passengers and its reporter had two black passengers to put in front of the camera. Just to put the immigration into perspective, what of all Europeans in Australia, New Zealand, North & South America, and elsewhere? I do a deal with you folks, why not ship all these wonderful white folks back to Europe in the clothes they stand in as obviously all the wealth generated was from the exploitation of the resources (including slavery for which you folks find so hard to apologise for) of these lands and its people. We would even accept the mixed race folks just so that you do not feel burdened by any ethnicity at all. Then we will truly see how crowded you folks feel given that you say Britain can't take anymore immigrants etc, etc. --Shoukat, shoukat@ntlworld.com
Let's face it, Zimbabe is now an excellent example of a badly run country. Once the breadbasket of Africa, Zimbabwe is now a basket case. It is estimated that the rate of inflation has now reached a staggering 100,000 per cent. With a loaf of bread costing in the millions of dollars, it is clear that Zimbabweans are in an economic black hole from which there is not the slightest glimmer of light. How did a country with a potentially bright economic future degenerate into one of the most impoverished countries on the face of this planet? To answer this question, one has to go back to the root cause of Zimbabwe's deep-seated problem which is specifically the issue of land claims, and how Mugabe has dealt with this particular problem. First, it should be remembered that when Mugabe attained power in 1980, he inherited a country with a skewed system of land ownership wherein the whites made up less than two per cent of the population, yet they owned and controlled about 70 per cent of the productive, arable lands. Under these conditions no one could deny the fact that something had to be done to address this gross imbalance in land ownership. It was very clear that the issue surrounding the Zimbabwe land claims was one of legitimacy and fairness. The demand that the lands be returned to the original owners, the Zimbabwean people, was a legitimate demand since the lands were confiscated from the indigenous population. Likewise, Mugabe's proposal to compensate the white occupiers for improvements made to the land, but not the land itself, was a fair one. The proposal that the British should have compensated the white farmers for the land itself was a fair and legitimate one also since that government was directly responsible for the confiscation, sale and distribution of the land to the white population. It is regrettable that instead of trying to settle the land issue in a fair and reasonable manner, Mugabe has allowed, and is still allowing his militant supporters to force the white farmers off the land without compensation. This continued land grab by Mugabe's supporters is not only fanning the flames of racial unrest, but it has plunged the country into widespread economic instability. There is no doubt that this land grab and violence against the white farmers has resulted in a significant decrease in farm output that in turn is largely responsible for skyrocketing inflation. To make matters worse, the Western powers have isolated this African country and have subjected it to severe economic sanctions. In reply to these external pressures, Mugabe has dug in his political heels and has held his beleaguered country hostage by clinging tenaciously to power through foul means. Reports have revealed that all elections for the last 20-odd years have been plagued with major irregularities designed to help Mugabe remain in power. The latest election is no exception. Although it is quite obvious that he has lost the presidential election held over two weeks ago, he still bluntly refuses to accept defeat and is still bent on carrying on with his despotic rule. Although no one should deny the fact that Zimbabwe's agonising problem can be linked to the legacy of British colonialism with its skewed land ownership policy, however, this sordid affair has been exacerbated by Robert Mugabe's determination to remain in power at the expense of all Zimbabweans, both black and white. --Rupert Johnson, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M1C 3M7, r.b.johnson@sympatico.ca
Aime Cesaire is now dead. A light that declined into that final darkness at the end of his 94 years. The great poet and essayist whom Derek Wallcott said he expected to have been awarded the Nobel Prize died in his native Martinique after a long life of political action and reflection. Cesaire as a writer is listed by Prof Harold Bloom as author of work that has earned a place in the worldwide canon. Cesaire is undoubtedly one of the greatest poets that humanity has known. His "Notebook" written in the 1930s is one of the best works ever composed in the French language. It is significant not only for its contribution to the denunciation of racism and colonialism, but for the way in which it takes poetry onto a higher plane. Cesaire's juxtapositions of ideas and images, the transitions from one conceptual and lyrical domain into another, the range of allusion, the bitter and the comic, makes of this work a distinctive and unrivalled contribution to letters. One expects that the Caribbean community will join the rest of the world in paying him homage. Stabroek News, which quoted from the "Notebook" in an editorial some time ago ought to carry some extracts. --Abu Bakr, France
Among the prayerful group was the Ambassador to the United States of America and the Organisation of American States, Mr Bayney Karran who was accompanied by his charming wife, Donna. Dr Richard Van-West Charles, a former minister of health and now a PAHO representative was also present. There were prayers for peace and harmony among the six races of the nation; for God's wisdom, love and unity among all political leaders of the land; peace between Guyana and its neighbours Suriname, Venezuela and Brazil, and prayers for divine wisdom in overcoming the threats of the Atlantic, in this time of global warming. Guyanese pastors who led the prayerful congregation were Eion Greaves, Andrew Husbands, Dr Walter Bipat, John and Ruth Goddard, Brother Ivor Yearwood and Apostle Barbara Clark from Botswana. They all came together in response to a call for an evening of prayer which was issued by Pastor Kwesi Oginga of the New Life Ministries of the Christian Life Mission. In addressing the gathering Oginga said, "We are a wonderful people of six races and God has blessed us with an absolutely good country. We cannot live without God. He is Sovereign. He has all human solutions in His hands. We should focus less on casting blame and more on petitioning God for our survival." Added inspiration was provided for the crowd by the powerfully sacred and worshipful dances of the Dance Ministry of the Victory Christian Fellowship Church of Delaware. They were led by choreographer, Neil Heywood, a former member of the National School of Dance, Guyana. Mr Forbes Skinner represented Guyanese in Texas. It was a wonderful evening, and Guyanese left the church with feelings of hope. --Pastor Kwesi Oginga
It is not my desire to descend with them into the cesspool of gutter politics to hurl filth, as it is beneath my dignity. People who are bankrupt and cannot compete in the arena of ideas and lack vision, do so best. I must note however, that I have never seen as much as a letter to the press, from this so-called "PNCR of North America" group. I am therefore happy that they have fired up their engines to attack me. I am amused that Mr. Corbin could mobilize his few supporters in North America to attack me but cannot mobilize ten people for a street march in Guyana. I am even further amused that he could not muster the courage to attack and mobilize against Head of the Presidential Secretariat in Guyana, Dr Roger Luncheon. He remained as quiet as a church mouse then, but has now galvanized his obsequious minions to attack me. That not withstanding, his machiavellian politics cannot intimidate me. Their response is bereft of substance and is symptomatic of a hollow leadership. It's school-boyish, infantile platitudes are infradig. They claim that "Rickford Burke was eager to ingratiate himself to President Jagdeo during last year's (2007) Folk Festival in Brooklyn." Even if this were true, what has it to do with the price of cheese in Scotland or Mr. Corbin being an incompetent leader? It is a desperate and pitiful stringing together of a clumsy lie, by an idle mind, to spawn a mendacious cocktail of vitriol. But it is cowardly and laughable. Their statement also foolishly claimed that I asked for a photo opportunity with Jagdeo at the Folk Festival; another blatant lie. I was at the event with a New York State Supreme Court Judge, a State Senator and an Assemblyman and was introducing them to the event organizers when Jagdeo came by and photographers asked for a group photo. In any event, even if I had asked for a photo of the President, what is its relevance to a discussion about Corbin's competence as opposition leader? This is an amateurish diversion. Corbin's so-called North America group also suggested that I emigrated from Guyana while he (Corbin) remained. How imbecilic can they be? This contention would have been slightly credible and less ridiculous and hypocritical, had Corbin not asked his supporters, who have themselves emigrated from Guyana, to make this charge. Furthermore, their attack on me for emigrating is an insult to all Guyanese immigrants in New York. If this is how Mr. Corbin truly feels about us, then why come to us for financial donations? Mr. Corbin group also asked? "If, indeed, Mr. Burke is interested in the removal of the Jagdeo regime, as he so robustly proclaims, perhaps he should explain why he was so eager to ingratiate himself to President Jagdeo?" I don't know what this question is expected to achieve as I have never "ingratiated" myself to Jagdeo or attempted to (or intend to attempt) to remove his regime. Mr. Corbin and his supporters seem confused. CGID is not the political opposition and is certainly not in the business of "removing regimes." If Mr. Corbin intends to continue to hope that others will do his job for him, then he should look elsewhere. The removal of the "Jagdeo regime" might be his agenda but it is certainly not an expressed objective of ours. I hope that his so-called North America group can actually contribute to his agenda. They need not worry about ours. I have also argued that "Mr. Corbin appears to be nonplussed, like a deaf man amidst a sonic boom, unmoved by events and circumstances. I hold firm to the above views and make no apologies. I will however "talk half and lef half." --RICKFORD BURKE, Guyana Caribbean Institute for Democracy
But the selectors went on nevertheless to exclude him. Against all logic, good sense, fair play and the economics of the choice, they decided that Amit was expendable. Why? Is it because they lack that critical faculty which is often required to make balanced judgements? Or are they exponents of that pervasive insularity in West Indian cricket often directed against Trinidad as in the case of the now notorious comment from a well-known Jamaican commentator about Trinidad some years ago, or the more recent Barbadian perception of Trinidad's success as an attempt to dominate WI cricket? If not, are these selectors a symptom of a wider Third World malaise manifested in all aspects of its existence, in which the exercise of power is seen as opportunity to flex the muscles in true Mugabean style as if to say "I am in control no matter what you think", rather than a challenge to demonstrate a sense of fair play, good sense and a concern for public opinion. Whatever the reason, we, as the paying public must show our displeasure at their continuing ineptitude and the best place to start is where it should hurt the most: the gates, and I am doing just that. --Dr Errol Benjamin, (ebenjamin522@hotmail.com)
In addition to reinforcing the continuing importance of the region to the United States, our joint visit was a direct follow-up to the June, 2007 Conference on the Caribbean, hosted by President Bush and Secretary Rice in Washington, D.C., and President Bush's recent high-level dialogue with the Prime Ministers of the Bahamas, Barbados, and Belize. In each nation visited, we received a warm welcome both in formal conversations with our interlocutors and informally from the friendly people of three vibrant and diverse democracies. In each of our stops, we found a confluence of views about the security challenges throughout the south and eastern Caribbean. Each of these probably applies throughout CARICOM and is worth mentioning as the leaders of the region gather from today for a high level discussion of broad security issues facing the Caribbean community: -Crime and related violence . In addition to street crime, the emergence of gangs and organised crime is of serious concern to Governments intent on protecting their citizens and creating a safe environment for the economically vital tourist industry. -Movement of illegal weapons . The flow of small arms and ammunition continues to plague the region, many of them coming from the United States. This fuels criminal violence and presents a unique threat to police and other law enforcement personnel. -Deportees. In the Caribbean, there is significant and legitimate concern about the deportation to their native countries of Caribbean citizens who commit crimes in the United States. In Guyana, we are pleased that a U.S.-funded programme implemented by the International Organization for Migration will commence activities shortly; this programme will offer tangible reintegration assistance to Guyanese nationals deported from the United States. -Narcotics trafficking . The presence of drug dealers, moving through difficult-to-control sea and air space, is of deep concern. In addition to the effects of the drugs themselves on young populations, there is the potential and actual corruption of Police Forces and judiciary. -Money Laundering. Often related to crime and drug issues, this problem has the potential to corrupt the financial systems as well as provide the "fuel" for corruption. -Natural and ecological disasters. Caribbean societies and economies are especially vulnerable to hurricanes and other natural disasters. Building CARICOM capacity to anticipate and respond to such disasters is a major security concern. Also, as global awareness of the potential damage to the environment from illegal logging, mining, pollution, reef decay, and other forms of eco-destruction rises, nations of this region are exploring security solutions. -Pandemics and other health risks . The impact of HIV/AIDS, malaria, diabetes, and other diseases can have a devastating impact on the small, cohesive societies of the Caribbean. Managing or eradicating these diseases is understood as key to national security and economic vitality. In Guyana, President Bush's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has provided more than US$100 million since 2004 to support initiatives of the Government of Guyana, civil society, and the private sector in combating HIV/AIDS; these initiatives have been a resounding success, and have made Guyana a world leader in several facets of HIV/AIDS treatment and care. Fortunately, the nations of the Caribbean have well-developed structures in place, beginning with CARICOM, to discuss these threats and fashion regional strategies to address them. Additionally, the impressive Regional Security System of the Eastern Caribbean is a mature entity with real operational successes and impressive capability. In our meetings with top officials there, it is clear these regional organizations are cognizant of the concerns and moving rapidly to seek solutions. The recent superb work by the nations of the region and these organizations in producing a successful Cricket World Cup was noteworthy. We in the United States want to be helpful in any way that is sensible and effective for the nations of the region. There is a wide variety of mechanisms available, from intelligence and information sharing, to mutually beneficial exchanges of trainers, to transfers of equipment and technology. Our message in Guyana, Barbados, and Suriname is really a message for the entire region the United States is a caring friend and partner, and we genuinely welcome the opportunity to discuss ways we can be helpful in addressing regional security concerns. Each of our embassies in the region and all of U.S. Southern Command are ready and willing to engage in any way to discuss issues and craft solutions to security challenges in the region. We eagerly await the outcome of Caribbean leadership discussions about the security challenges, and pledge to work with individual countries and regional organizations. The Caribbean is not "America's backyard," an expression that is wrong in every dimension. Rather than anyone's backyard, the Americas are a home we share together; and in our home, we must all work together to help each other face the security challenges of this turbulent but ultimately promising 21st century. --Ambassador Thomas Shannon, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs --Admiral James Stavridis, U.S. Navy, Commander, U.S. Southern Command
I would greatly appreciate referrals to anyone in the New York region who might be interested in volunteering 3-4 hours of their time to meet with me and an applicant to our pro bono legal assistance program. The meeting is designed to gather information about the applicant's asylum claim, so that we can determine whether or not our program will be able to assist her. Due to the applicant's work schedule, the meeting will need to be a morning one and will take place at our office (address below). The day of the interview can be determined according to the translator's availability. We will reimburse any transportation expenses incurred for the meeting. Please contact me by email or at the number below as soon as possible if you are interested and / or available, or if you have suggestions of interpreters. Thanks in advance for any assistance you may be able to provide! --Lily Dalke, Program Associate and Legal Assistant, Human Rights First, Refugee Protection Program 333 Seventh Avenue, 13th Floor, New York, NY 10001 Tel: (212) 845-5231, Fax: (212) 845-5299, DalkeL@HumanRightsFirst.org, www.HumanRightsFirst.org
"The CNYCN is a ground-breaking partnership that will help to protect homeowners and to build stronger, more stable neighborhoods," said Housing Commissioner Donovan. "We are extremely lucky to have a leader like Michael Hickey taking the reins. Michael has worked at the intersection of the finance and not-for-profit worlds. We know that he will continue to develop and nurture the kinds of relationships that have allowed him to be so successful in all his previous endeavors." "The CNYCN will be the City's front line of defense in the battle against the foreclosure crisis," said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. "With Michael Hickey at the helm, we have someone who has achieved success in both the private and non-profit sectors. I look forward to working with him as we figure out the best way to help all New Yorkers who are at risk of losing their homes." At Deutsche Bank Hickey acted as the community development program officer of the Americas Foundation, and co-managed a $350 million loan and investment portfolio as well as the bank's New Initiatives Fund, a $15 million Program Related Investment (PRI) loan pool for high-risk, innovative community development initiatives. Prior to his work at Deutsche, Hickey served as an accounting consultant to Bankers Trust, a national leader in risk management, and ran his own consulting company, where he provided bookkeeping services, database solutions and business advisory for developing non-profits and small businesses. "This is a critical time for New York City," said Executive Director Hickey. "The growing mortgage foreclosure crisis is the most important issue likely to be faced by our communities in this decade. I'm confident, however, that if we can establish a real dialogue that extends from individuals to the mortgage industry leaders who have such an impact on the local and regional economy, we can act as an honest broker and provide the quality information and services needed to help keep families in their homes. In this effort, I am extremely lucky to have the support of an outstanding board and a committed and capable group of non-profit partners that have already done tremendous work." "It's great to have someone with Mike Hickey's qualifications on board," said Council Member Lew Fidler. "Now we can get down to the business of helping people in foreclosure distress in our city." The CNYCN will be the largest, most comprehensive program of its kind in the nation. Funding in the first year will include $1 million from the Bloomberg administration via the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development and $1.6 million from the City Council. In addition to these significant public funding commitments, the CNYCN planning committee has secured generous contributions from the Open Society Institute ($1 million a year for two years), the Rockefeller Foundation, Robin Hood, NeighborWorks America, Paulson & Co., Inc., Freddie Mac, Bank of America, Citi, Countrywide, Deutsche Bank, Fannie Mae, JP Morgan Chase, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Ltd. and HSBC. The Center for New York City Neighborhoods is governed by a Board of Directors, chaired by Herb Sturz, Senior Adviser to the Open Society Institute, and consisting of representatives from government, philanthropic institutions, the lending industry, academia, community based organizations and community leaders. Its work builds on the success of a pilot anti-predatory lending program, Preserve Assets and Community Equity (PACE) launched by the Mayor in October, 2005, and the City Council Predatory Lending Initiative New Yorkers will be able to access the services of the Center by dialing 311, the City's customer service hotline, as well as through direct walk-ins to participating community-based organizations. --Seth McM. Donlin, Press Secretary, City of New York, Department of Housing Preservation and Development 100 Gold Street, Room 5-P9, New York, NY 10038 (T) 212.863.5176, (F) 212.863.8071 www.nyc.gov/hpd
detrimental, dangerous, abusive and almost discriminatory plan that will possibly affect the neediest members of our community. Bronx County has the highest rates of asthma in the entire nation, our children and adults suffer with respiratory problems and many lives are lost due to problems with pollution in our air. This plan from the Mayor does not guarantee that these conditions will be reversed. On the contrary, there is a possibility that drivers from Westchester County or other areas will park their vehicles in the Bronx, in order to take the train and avoid the $8.00 fee. This would increase traffic in the Borough, the respiratory ailments and asthma in our children. This plan will force poor people to pay $8.00; however, rich individuals with their limousines entering Manhattan will only pay $1.00. Buses from millionaire companies such as Greyhound, would be exempt from paying, yet, buses from organizations transporting senior citizens and/or community groups are obligated to pay the full $8.00 Any person, who does not pay the $8.00 within 40 days, will be obligated to pay between $40.00 and $65.00 including interest. Furthermore, there are no guarantees that the $8.00 fee or "new tax" for drivers will not rise annually as it did in Europe which began charging $10.00 to drivers and rose to $16.00 For these any many more reasons, I am asking all of you, as legislators representing the County of the Bronx, that we together, send a solid and concise message to Mayor Bloomberg , that we as Bronx legislators in Albany will not vote for a plan that is as detrimental for our communities. -- NYS Senator Rev. Ruben Diaz
Performing simple and inexpensive vehicle maintenance does not only save gas money, perhaps as much as $1,200 per year, but it also improves a vehicle's safety and dependability. In fact, according to the survey by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association, 75 percent of drivers said they are maintaining their vehicles better because of rising gas prices. These simple gas-savings maintenance tips can add up to serious savings: * When tires aren't inflated properly, it's like driving with the parking brake on, and can cost a mile or two per gallon. * An air filter that is clogged with dirt, dust and bugs chokes off the air and creates a "rich" mixture too much gas being burned for the amount of air, which wastes gas and causes the engine to lose power. Replacing a clogged air filter can improve gas mileage by as much as 10 percent, saving about 15 cents on a gallon. * A vehicle can have either four, six or eight spark plugs, which fire as many as three million times each 1,000 miles, resulting in a lot of heat, electrical and chemical erosion. A dirty spark plug causes misfiring, which wastes fuel. Spark plugs need to be replaced regularly. * Keep your car properly tuned. A 21st Century tune-up can improve your gas mileage by an average of four percent. Fixing a serious maintenance problem, such as a faulty oxygen sensor, can improve your mileage by as much as 40 percent. * Check your vehicle gas cap. About 17 percent of the vehicles on the roads have gas caps that are either damaged, loose or are missing altogether, causing 147 million gallons of gas to vaporize every year. You can receive a free 56-page Car Care Guide designed to help motorists save money, conserve energy, improve highway safety and help protect the environment. To order your free guide, visit the Car Care Council's Web site at www.carcare.org. --Rich White, Executive Director, Car Care Council 7101 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, MD 20814 301-654-6664
On any given day we, collectively, become the Goddess of the Three Directions and can look back into the past, look at ourselves just where we are, and take a glance, as well, into the future. It is a space with which I am familiar. When I was born in 1944, my parents lived on a middle Georgia plantation that was owned by a white distant relative, Miss May Montgomery (during my childhood it was necessary to address all white girls as "Miss" when they reached the age of twelve) She would never admit to this relationship, of course, except to mock it. Told by my parents that several of their children would not eat chicken skin, she responded that Of course they would not. No Montgomerys would. My parents and older siblings did everything imaginable for Miss May. They planted and raised her cotton and corn, fed and killed and processed her cattle and hogs, painted her house, patched her roof, ran her dairy, and, among countless other duties and responsibilities, my father was her chauffeur, taking her anywhere she wanted to go at any hour of the day or night. She lived in a large white house with green shutters and a green, luxuriant lawn. Not quite as large as that of Tara, she of Gone With The Wind fame, but in the same style. We lived in a shack without electricity or running water, under a rusty tin roof that let in wind and rain. Miss May went to school as a girl. The school my parents and their neighbors built for us was burned to the ground by local racists who wanted to keep ignorant their competitors in tenant farming. During the Depression, desperate to feed his hardworking family, my father asked for a raise from 10 dollars a month to 12. Miss May responded that she would not pay that amount to a white man and she certainly wouldn't pay it to a nigger. That before she'd pay a nigger that much money she'd milk the dairy cows herself. When I look back, this is part of what I see. I see the school bus carrying white children, boys and girls, right past me, and my brothers, as we trudge on foot five miles to school. Later, I see my parents struggling to build a school out of discarded army barracks while white students, girls and boys, enjoy a building made of brick. We had no books; we inherited the cast-off books that "Jane" and "Dick" had previously used in the all-white school that we were not, as black children, permitted to enter. The year I turned 50, one of my relatives told me she had started reading my books for children in the library in my hometown. I had had no idea - so kept from black people it had been - that such a place existed. To this day, knowing my presence was not wanted in the public library when I was a child, I am highly uncomfortable in libraries and will rarely, unless I am there to help build, repair, refurbish or raise money to keep them open, enter their doors. When I joined the freedom movement in Mississippi in my early twenties it was to come to the aid of sharecroppers, like my parents, who had been thrown off the land they'd always known, the plantations, because they attempted to exercise their "democratic" right to vote. I wish I could say white women treated me and other black people a lot better than the men did, but I cannot. It seemed to me then and it seems to me now that white women have copied, all too often, the behavior of their fathers and their brothers, and in the South, especially in Mississippi, and before that, when I worked to register voters in Georgia, the broken bottles thrown at my head were gender free. I made my first white women friends in college; they were women who loved me and were loyal to our friendship, but I understood, as they did, that they were white women and that whiteness mattered. That, for instance, at Sarah Lawrence, where I was speedily inducted into the Board of Trustees practically as soon as I graduated, I made my way to the campus for meetings by train, subway and foot, while the other trustees, women and men, all white, made their way by limo. Because, in our country, with its painful history of unspeakable inequality, this is part of what whiteness means. I loved my school for trying to make me feel I mattered to it, but because of my relative poverty I knew I could not. I am a supporter of Obama because I believe he is the right person to lead the country at this time. He offers a rare opportunity for the country and the world to start over, and to do better. It is a deep sadness to me that many of my feminist white women friends cannot see him. Cannot see what he carries in his being. Cannot hear the fresh choices toward Movement he offers. That they can believe that millions of Americans - black, white, yellow, red and brown - choose Obama over Clinton only because he is a man, and black, feels tragic to me. When I have supported white people, men and women, it was because I thought them the best possible people to do whatever the job required. Nothing else would have occurred to me. If Obama were in any sense mediocre, he would be forgotten by now. He is, in fact, a remarkable human being, not perfect but humanly stunning, like King was and like Mandela is. We look at him, as we looked at them, and are glad to be of our species. He is the change America has been trying desperately and for centuries to hide, ignore, kill. The change America must have if we are to convince the rest of the world that we care about people other than our (white) selves. True to my inner Goddess of the Three Directions however, this does not mean I agree with everything Obama stands for. We differ on important points probably because I am older than he is, I am a woman and person of three colors, (African, Native American, European), I was born and raised in the American South, and when I look at the Earth's people, after sixty-four years of life, there is not one person I wish to see suffer, no matter what they have done to me or to anyone else; though I understand quite well the place of suffering, often, in human growth. I want a grown-up attitude toward Cuba, for instance, a country and a people I love; I want an end to the embargo that has harmed my friends and their children, children who, when I visit Cuba, trustingly turn their faces up for me to kiss. I agree with a teacher of mine, Howard Zinn, that war is as objectionable as cannibalism and slavery; it is beyond obsolete as a means of improving life. I want an end to the ongoing war immediately and I want the soldiers to be encouraged to destroy their weapons and to drive themselves out of Iraq. I want the Israeli government to be made accountable for its behavior towards the Palestinians, and I want the people of the United States to cease acting like they don't understand what is going on. All colonization, all occupation, all repression basically looks the same, whoever is doing it. Here our heads cannot remain stuck in the sand; our future depends on our ability to study, to learn, to understand what is in the records and what is before our eyes. But most of all I want someone with the self-confidence to talk to anyone, "enemy" or "friend," and this Obama has shown he can do. It is difficult to understand how one could vote for a person who is afraid to sit and talk to another human being. When you vote you are making someone a proxy for yourself; they are to speak when, and in places, you cannot. But if they find talking to someone else, who looks just like them, human, impossible, then what good is your vote? It is hard to relate what it feels like to see Mrs. Clinton (I wish she felt self-assured enough to use her own name) referred to as "a woman" while Barack Obama is always referred to as "a black man." One would think she is just any woman, colorless, race-less, past-less, but she is not. She carries all the history of white womanhood in America in her person; it would be a miracle if we, and the world, did not react to this fact. How dishonest it is, to attempt to make her innocent of her racial inheritance. I can easily imagine Obama sitting down and talking, person to person, with any leader, woman, man, child or common person, in the world, with no baggage of past servitude or race supremacy to mar their talks. I cannot see the same scenario with Mrs. Clinton, who would drag into 21st Century American leadership the same image of white privilege and distance from the reality of others' lives that has so marred our country's contacts with the rest of the world. And yes, I would adore having a woman president of the United States. My choice would be Representative Barbara Lee, who alone voted in Congress five years ago not to make war on Iraq. That to me is leadership, morality, and courage; if she had been white I would have cheered just as hard. But she is not running for the highest office in the land, Mrs. Clinton is. And because Mrs. Clinton is a woman and because she may be very good at what she does, many people, including some younger women in my own family, originally favored her over Obama. I understand this, almost. It is because, in my own nieces' case, there is little memory, apparently, of the foundational inequities that still plague people of color and poor whites in this country. Why, even though our family has been here longer than most North American families - and only partly due to the fact that we have Native American genes - we very recently, in my lifetime, secured the right to vote, and only after numbers of people suffered and died for it. When I offered the word "Womanism" many years ago, it was to give us a tool to use, as feminist women of color, in times like these. These are the moments we can see clearly, and must honor devotedly, our singular path as women of color in the United States. We are not white women and this truth has been ground into us for centuries, often in brutal ways. But neither are we inclined to follow a black person, man or woman, unless they demonstrate considerable courage, intelligence, compassion and substance. I am delighted that so many women of color support Barack Obama -and genuinely proud of the many young and old white women and men who do. Imagine: if he wins the presidency we will have not one but three black women in the White House. One tall, two somewhat shorter, and none of them carrying the washing in and out of the back door. The bottom line for most of us is: With whom do we have a better chance of surviving the madness and fear we are presently enduring, and with whom do we wish to set off on a journey of new possibility? In other words, as the Hopi elders would say: Who do we want in the boat with us as we head for the rapids? Who is likely to know how best to share the meager garden produce and water? We are advised by the Hopi elders to celebrate this time, whatever its adversities. We have come a long way, Sisters, and we are up to the challenges of our time. One of which is to build alliances based not on race, ethnicity, color, nationality, sexual preference or gender, but on Truth. Celebrate our journey. Enjoy the miracle we are witnessing. Do not stress over its outcome. Even if Obama becomes president, our country is in such ruin it may well be beyond his power to lead us toward rehabilitation. If he is elected, however, we must individually and collectively, as citizens of the planet, insist on helping him do the best job that can be done; more, we must insist that he demand this of us. It is a blessing that our mothers taught us not to fear hard work. Know, as the Hopi elders declare: The river has its destination. And remember, as poet June Jordan and Sweet Honey in the Rock never tired of telling us: We are the ones we have been waiting for. Namaste; And with all my love, --Alice Walker Cazul, Northern California
Far too often we toss this coin, gambling heads-or-tails with our own best interests. We all sin, but because Christ willingly paid the penalty - suffering death on the cross in our stead - we are redeemed. We need only believe in Him and the gift of eternal life is ours. We can confess our sins, repent (which includes making every effort not to repeat those sins) and move on. Still, there are those who prefer the tarnished side of the coin to the polished, those who, with haughty hearts and sardonic "pride," willfully choose sin over Christ; death over life. It's a self-evident reality which is bolstered by medical science, but Scripture additionally reminds us in both the Old and New Testaments that those who choose to engage in homosexual conduct do so at their own peril. Consider Romans 1:26-27 (NIV), which a presidential candidate recently referred to as an "obscure passage in Romans": "Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion." It's sad when people yield to disordered sexual temptations that can literally kill them spiritually, emotionally and physically. Nobody with any compassion enjoys watching others "[receive] in themselves the due penalty for their perversion." But a corollary to free will is living (or dying) with the choices we've made. That said, it's an entirely different proposition when bad behaviors place others at risk. This should not - and must not - be "tolerated." Current U.S. health regulations prohibit men who have sex with men (MSM) from donating blood. Studies conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) categorically confirm that if MSM were permitted to give blood, the general population would be placed at risk. According to the FDA, MSM "have an HIV prevalence 60 times higher than the general population, 800 times higher than first time blood donors and 8,000 times higher than repeat blood donors (American Red Cross). "[MSM] also have an increased risk of having other infections that can be transmitted to others by blood transfusion. For example, infection with the Hepatitis B virus is about 5-6 times more common, and Hepatitis C virus infections are about 2 times more common in [MSM] than in the general population," according to the FDA. A recent CDC study rocked the homosexual community in finding that although MSM comprise only one-to-two percent of the population, they account for an epidemic 64 percent of all syphilis cases. And Matt Foreman, outgoing Executive Director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, further shocked his fellow "gay" activists by admitting, "HIV is a Gay Disease." Although the risks extend far beyond potential HIV infection, the FDA notes, "All donated blood is tested for HIV, but the virus can go undetected until the immune system has produced a testable amount of antibodies." This would pose a "small but definite increased risk to people who receive blood transfusions if the policy were changed." But risking lives is apparently of little concern to radical homosexual activists such as Joe Solmonese, president of the so-called "Human Rights Campaign" (HRC), the nation's largest and most radical homosexual pressure group. Solmonese recently placed politics over science, falsely declaring this commonsense public health precaution to be "discriminatory." He has called for the ban to be lifted, with the wildly irresponsible claim that, "[T]here is no medical or scientific rationale for this discriminatory policy." In light of the irrefutable medical data, Solmonese's demand is not only reckless, it's incredibly dangerous. Unfortunately, it's a common demand among his fellow extremists. In South Africa, militant homosexual activists have been "protesting" by deliberately and surreptitiously violating that nation's blood ban, aiming to flood blood banks with 70,000 units. Who knows how much blood has been contaminated or how many innocent people have been infected. This isn't a protest; it's an act of violence. In recent days, Oklahoma State Rep. Sally Kern has been viciously attacked and ruthlessly maligned, even receiving death threats, for saying publicly that "the homosexual agenda is destroying the nation." She even went so far as to say that, in her estimation, homosexual behaviors and "gay" activism pose a greater threat than terrorism. Reasonable people can debate that opinion, but the actions of "gay" activists in South Africa provide one example among many which would seem to illustrate her point. To intentionally and surreptitiously defy valid health and safety regulations - very likely contaminating the blood supply and infecting untold numbers of innocent people - sounds an awful lot like terrorism to me. Sally Kern can rest her case, but Joe Solmonese still has a big hole from which to dig himself. With his blunder, he has severely damaged his own credibility and has caused a tremendous setback to the radical movement he leads (a good thing, really). It's unconscionable that he would place a deceptive and dangerous political agenda above the health and well-being of American men, women and children. Homosexual activists who disingenuously cry out for "equal rights" should put the "rights" of others to be safe and healthy above their own selfish political ambitions. Critical U.S. health regulations must not be ignored - or done away with - simply to further some twisted notion of "tolerance" and "diversity" or so that a small minority of people can feel better about the aberrant lifestyle choices they've made. Intravenous drug users are also prohibited from giving blood, but no one in his right mind would demand that addicts be permitted to donate. It's not because of who they are, it's because of what they do. The aforementioned studies, and many others like them, prove that, like intravenous drug use, male-male anal sodomy is extremely high-risk behavior. As I've often said, unnatural behaviors beget natural consequences. Regrettably, harmful and often deadly infectious disease can be just one of them. --J. Matt Barber Editor's Note: Matt Barber is one of the "like-minded men" with Concerned Women for America. He is an attorney concentrating in constitutional law and serves as CWA's policy director for cultural issues.
--William C. Thompson, Jr., New York City Comptroller
Munaf and Omar, both American citizens, were arrested in Iraq by American military personnel and have been in the custody of U.S. authorities operating as part of Multi-National Force Iraq. Both of these Americans are challenging attempts by the Bush Administration to deny them access to U.S. courts and transfer them into Iraqi custody, where they could very well be subjected to torture and given the death penalty. The Bush Administration insists that even though the men are being held at a U.S. Army-run detention center near the Baghdad airport, the U.S. has no control over what happens to them. Because 26 other nations are represented to a lesser degree in the U.S.-led and dominated military command, the Bush Administration has reasoned that Omar and Munaf are not entitled to the habeas corpus protections found within the Constitution and, thus, cannot challenge their detentions in American courts. Yet as Supreme Court Justice Breyer noted during the oral argument, "this multinational force operates subject to a unified American command, and the chain of command ultimately runs to the President. So as a practical matter it's the President and the Pentagon, the Secretary of Defense, and the American commanders that control what our American soldiers do." Thus, regardless of whether the U.S. military holds prisoners within U.S. borders or on foreign shores, as long as they are in U.S. custody, they have a right to a hearing by way of the writ of habeas corpus. Clearly, this really isn't about Omar and Munaf but is just another of Bush's blatant attempts to gut the Constitution and establish an imperial presidency. George W. Bush wants us to operate under the premise that whatever he says goes. As attorneys for The Rutherford Institute and the Constitution Project pointed out in a brief supporting Munaf's and Omar's right to habeas corpus proceedings: "If left unchecked, the Executive's proclaimed detention power would authorize the Government to detain indefinitely-and unlawfully-American citizens held in American custody, so long as the Government dressed up that detention with a multinational-forces fig leaf." No matter what President Bush insists to the contrary, government officials cannot pick and choose when or to whom the Constitution's protections should be applied. America's founders believed that the right of habeas corpus was essential if American freedom and democracy were to be maintained. They fought the War of Independence in part so that the lawless capture and detention of prisoners would never occur again. The right of habeas corpus is the foundation stone of American liberty. Alexander Hamilton, perhaps the most conservative of America's founding fathers, once said that the writ of habeas corpus was perhaps more important to freedom and liberty than any other right found in the Constitution. Believing that such arbitrary imprisonment is "in all ages, the favorite and most formidable instrument of tyranny," the founders were all the more determined to protect Americans from such government abuses. Indeed, the founding fathers thought this right was so important that it was enshrined within the body of the U.S. Constitution, rather than as an amendment. Latin for "bring forth the body," the Great Writ of Habeas Corpus ensures that if you're being held in a jail or prison and haven't been charged with a crime, you have the right to go before an impartial judge and ask, "Why am I being held? What is the evidence against me?" In other words, the writ of habeas corpus prevents the government from locking you up and throwing away the key. It ensures that justice is served: that the guilty are rightfully punished and the innocent are not wrongfully imprisoned and left without any recourse for gaining their freedom. This is especially critical for those who are suspected of wrongdoing, especially if they are American citizens, and holds particular significance as the Bush Administration's so-called War on Terror moves into its sixth year and the Supreme Court prepares to issue its ruling in this groundbreaking case. I am not saying that Munaf and Omar should be set free. Imprisonment would certainly be appropriate and necessary if the two men are guilty of what they were accused of. However, imprisoning American citizens without providing them access to the courts in order to challenge their detention represents a grave departure from the ideals of those who drafted the Constitution. This case will no doubt have far-reaching implications for all Americans, including journalists who cover the war. U.S. troops have occasionally mistaken reporters for insurgents and have detained over a dozen journalists for months at a time without charge. One photographer, Bilal Hussein, was held for almost two years after being mistaken for a terrorist in 2006. If the government prevails in this case, many such innocent American bystanders will find themselves in a legal limbo, unable to petition American courts for their release. Every prisoner's darkest moment is when he realizes that the outside world doesn't seem to care what happens to him. As Joseph Margulies, one of the attorneys for Omar and Munaf, wrote: "When I was in Iraq, I sat in cramped and bare concrete rooms with Shawqi Omar and Mohammad Munaf. After the nervous initial chatter about food and the weather, after the earnest discussion of legal cases and habeas corpus, after the long pause when conversations either come to an end or reach a more vital center, they began to speak of their fears, the greatest of which was that they had been, or soon would be, forgotten." --By John W. Whitehead
The Rapid Response Network has already had its first successful response to a raid. A woman called the hotline from her home in Elizabeth, saying that ICE agents were outside, demanding to be let in. The RRN phone volunteer reassured the woman that she had a right not to let the ICE agents in without a search warrant. Although the agents were waving various papers around through the window, they did not show any such warrant.. After some 20 minutes, the ICE agents gave up. No was detained and the Hotline worked as intended. But we need YOUR help to make the hotline work and be more effective. You can help in three ways: 1) If you are fluent in Spanish, we need more phone volunteers to cut down on the shifts. Volunteers will receive training. During an 8-hour per week shift, calls to the hotline will be directed to your cell-phone and you will be able to help immigrants involved in raids to avoid detention and deportation. Volunteers are confidential and status does not matter. 2) We need a lot of help in getting the word out to the Spanish-speaking immigrant community. We have eye-catching posters in Spanish and English which we need to get to organizations and individuals that can put them up in immigrant neighborhoods. We need help in printing lots of the posters. 3) You can join Rapid Response Teams who, when called by hotline volunteers, rapidly go as teams to the site of an ICE raid and act as witnesses. RRT witnesses will also receive training. As experience in LA and other cities has shown, the presence of such witnesses can deter ICE agents from rights violations (like breaking down immigrants' doors). Rapid Response Team members do not need Spanish, but since they will be dealing with ICE agents, they must be citizens, permanent residents or on a valid visa. Observing and commenting on the actions of ICE agents or any other law-enforcement authorities is lawful activity protected by the Bill of Rights and by Supreme Court decisions. To volunteer, please contact us at info@njmay1.org or call 973-736-0522. --Rapid Response Network, info@njmay1.org
A few days ago, this festering racial sore was slit wide open by the Rev Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama's mentor and spiritual leader, causing excruciating pain in our North American society. We should not deny the fact that this racial sore has been masked and left to fester for many years, and it is only a matter of time before severe pain sets in, and immediate medical attention is required. It is unfortunate that this sore was opened up in such a way that the healing process was badly hindered. Luckily, Barack Obama, the skilled professional, rushed in to attend to this putrid sore, and applied the appropriate 'medical treatment' to bring about healing. In the meantime, a horde of racists are desperately trying to undermine Obama's 'medical work'. The fact is, both Canada and the United States are still in a chronic state of denial about the putridness of racism. There is no doubt that these two societies are still plagued by the legacy of slavery, which did not heal this massive, rotting sore. On the contrary, the legal abolition of this pernicious system only served to mask the putridness that existed and still exists today. The fact is, there has never been a concerted attempt to bring about reconciliation of the races in both Canada and the United States. This has given rise to a great deal of pent-up anger and resentment over the years and is finally causing the body politic to become very sick. The only way to bring about a cure to this chronic illness is to deal with it head-on. It is my firm opinion that Barack Obama is like a very skilled surgeon who is willing and able to treat this festering racial sore that has been opened up by Rev Wright. I hope everyone will grasp this opportunity to deal with this problem once and for all, for if it is left unattended it will poison the North American social and political system. --Rupert Johnson , r.b.johnson@sympatico.ca
Keep that in mind next time you hear a politician breathlessly decry the horrors of the American healthcare system and then explain how he intends to fix it. Some of the most popular talking points in the healthcare debate pass as the gospel truth simply because, well, they're popular -- not because they're true. Below, I debunk the five most prominent healthcare myths. 1.) 47 million Americans do not have health insurance. This figure comes from the U.S. Census Bureau. What most people don't know, however, is that the Bureau counts anyone who went without health insurance during any part of the previous year as "uninsured." So if you weren't covered for just one day in 2007, you're one of the 47 million. That figure also includes 10.2 million illegal immigrants, and approximately 14 million people who are eligible for public healthcare programs like Medicaid or the State Children's Health Insurance Program but have yet to enroll. And nearly 10 million of the "uninsured" have household incomes of more than $75,000 -- so they can probably afford to buy health insurance but choose not to. 2.) Universal health care coverage can be achieved through an "individual mandate." According to the federal census, nearly two-thirds of the uninsured are aged 18 to 34. This makes sense -- healthy people aren't going to pay for expensive insurance they'll never use. Those who support an "individual mandate" -- like Sen. Hillary Clinton and several governors -- believe that by legally requiring all Americans to buy health insurance, the young and the healthy will increase the size of the risk pool and therefore lower premiums for everyone. As a way to enforce an individual mandate, Sen. Clinton has suggested garnishing wages as a means of enforcement. But many states require insurers to charge everyone the same rate. So young people would end up paying far more in premiums than they should -- or could -- pay. It's patently unfair to force people to purchase insurance they can't afford. Even in Massachusetts, which offers substantial premium subsidies for low-income residents, the government had to exempt a fifth of Bay Staters from the individual mandate because insurance was still so expensive. And, the plan is already $147 million over budget. The real way to attract young adults into the insurance market is to lower premiums -- not to impose draconian sanctions. This can be done by having states reduce costly mandates like in-vitro fertilization and allowing people to buy insurance across state lines. 3.) Expensive prescription drugs are a big reason why healthcare costs are increasing. The real price of prescription drugs is actually decreasing. In 2007, inflation rose by more than 4 percent, while drug prices increased by just 1 percent. So in real terms, drugs were 3 percent cheaper last year than they were in 2006, on average. What's more, drug spending is but a small slice of total healthcare spending -- less than 11 cents out of every healthcare dollar goes to prescription meds. And drugs actually reduce healthcare costs in the long-term. Medicare, for instance, saves $2.06 for every additional dollar it spends on pharmaceutical drugs, according to a paper recently published by the National Bureau for Economic Research. This is because prescription drugs often obviate the need for expensive surgeries and hospital stays. 4.) Drug importation will save patients a fortune. At most, according to the Congressional Budget Office, foreign drug importation would save Americans one percent over the next decade. Brand-name drugs are cheaper in foreign countries because their governments impose price controls. Drug-makers can only afford to sell pills at cut-rate, controlled prices in Europe and Canada because Americans pay full price. If American politicians allow foreign drugs to enter the U.S. market, they'll in effect be importing price controls too. Such action will not only create practical problems, like shortages, it will also deny firms the return on investment necessary to plunge into the next round of research and development into new cures. It takes nearly $1 billion to bring a new drug to market. Investors are willing to take on such a risky investment because the rewards of developing a cure for Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, AIDS, or diabetes are considerable. If the profit motive vanishes, the miracle cures for which America's drug industry is responsible would vanish. 5.) The state-run healthcare systems in Canada and Europe are better and cheaper than America's People who make this claim usually point to the fact that life expectancy is higher in Canada and Europe. But life expectancy is influenced by a number of variables aside from the quality of a country's healthcare system -- like diet, genetics, exercise, smoking, pollution, and even marital status. A study published last year in the British medical journal The Lancet suggests that America is much better at treating cancer than Europe or Canada. Researchers found that Americans have a better survival rate for 13 of the 16 most prominent cancers. An American man has nearly a 20 percent better chance of living for five years after being diagnosed with cancer than his European counterpart. This study's findings tell us a lot more about the quality of a healthcare system than life expectancy rates do, because the relationship between treatment and outcomes is tighter, clearer, and more direct. --Sally C. Pipes Editor's Note: Sally C. Pipes is President & CEO of the Pacific Research Institute and author of "Miracle Cure: How to Solve America's Health-Care Crisis and Why Canada Isn't the Answer."
What is really interesting to bear witness to is how both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are regularly able to recast and transcend the limits that potential voters might place upon themselves given the accumulation of the battle wounds that they have both amassed in an increasingly bloody sparring match for the eventual Democratic Party's presidential ordination. The Obama-Clinton enigmatic duo is an ever combative tag team that has consistently been able to galvanize voters to flood their polling places in record numbers. All over America, the Democratic party's faithful choir and an ever growing newly democratically evangelized flock of voters, whether depicted in cozy town hall meetings or shown in huge standing room only amphitheaters, all appear to be organically connected to the theatrically inspired and retooled vision of the American Dream. As a neo-soul oriented faculty member who has for many years been urging students at a local liberal arts university to explore the deeper meanings found beyond the socially constructed modernist notions of identity, race, gender, social class and even the shifting nature of American politics; these are prolific times to be pushing the discourse about the construction of electoral realities and to synthesize the themes and actual meanings of the two democratic presidential campaigns as they are experienced in real time. As I sit here at twenty minutes past midnight, dutifully staring at the television screen and listening to the various pundits presented on the eve of Tuesday's election result-realities, "Hillary Clinton has just taken Rhode Island and Ohio, while Barack Obama has won in Vermont." Texas remains vexingly "too close to call" for the neatly combed gray haired male talking heads. The arguably viewed post-modernist voting results so far yielded by the sum total of states that have voted in the Democratic Party's elections continue to force Americans to think beyond the traditionally more simplistic and even erroneous theories that have been presented in the past as partial explanations for electoral life in America. Each day many Americans and other members of the electronically astute world are finding out that there are severe paradigm shifts to apply to what they had previously clearly understood only twenty-four hours earlier. The nature of truth related to who votes for whom in America moves in another direction once again. The no longer quantifiable reality and stalwart beliefs held even moments earlier about exit polls, gender roles, social class voting patterns, age cohorts, and the voting allegiances of white, African American and Latino voters have all changed. This newly emerging knowledgebase about America not only debunks the old markers that were used yesterday, it champions a new tipping point in America they we have likely quietly crossed into years ago in this formerly "red state blue state" oriented society . As one who regularly champions the notion that his students should tenaciously deconstruct the seemingly trite aspects of the American "melting pot," and other fictionalized Eurocentric pluralistic narratives, it seems like it is now time to recast or dare I say to even re-explore what it means to be an American today in the twenty-first century. The "Color-line" analysis popularized by the late sociologist Dr. W. E. B. Dubois at the dawn of the twentieth century implied that the mandatory redemptive work required for the construction of a better America meant significant social changes. In order for the true application of the old school democratic rhetoric created by sexist, capitalistic, and slave holding founding fathers to become an actualized Democracy for all of its then citizens, America had to work harder to live up to the claims made by these forked tongued politicians who sought to appease various stakeholders in the then emerging states under the developing U.S. Constitution. As I awakened to the glare of the television screen on Wednesday morning, Hillary Clinton reigned victorious in Texas by a "small" margin and she championed her newly acquired three state win as the continuation of a reframed "comeback campaign." Seconds later, Barack Obama appeared on the screen simultaneously triumphant, retorting Hillary Clinton's analysis of the dawn of the electoral outcome by restating the point that ultimately it's all about "the final delegate count." With a cool pose-like verbal cadence, Obama declared that an ultimate "promised delegate" count would happen by the time the faithful march with him to the promised land of the National Democratic Convention. As both of the candidates' campaigns move swiftly towards my home state of Pennsylvania, neither space nor time will afford me the opportunity to continue to extrapolate further about the colorful word play, metaphors and comparisons that are being applied to and by both Obama and Clinton today. I do however express great joy that for now, the ever emerging epistemologies of their unique presidential campaigns shall continue. Given the seven years plus rule under President George W. Bush, and his questionable initial rise to power over the now Oscar award winning Al Gore whose campaign was then dubbed "Hanging-Chad Gate" or the "U. S. Supreme Court Debacle;" I welcome the opportunity for Democrats to continue to publicly battle amongst its own clan as only incestuous family members can do; knowing that they will remerge as a unified family at some later point later to do battle with the Republican parties' shifting epistemological stepchild, Senator John McCain. --Richard M. Cooper Editor's Note: Richard M. Cooper, Ph.D. is a member of the Social Work faculty of Widener University and is a talk show host on 900 AM WURD radio station in Philadelphia. He can be contacted via email at drrichardcooper@gmail.com
Since Independence, the theme of racism/ethnicity has dominated our national dialogue and our common culture. In the service of some few it has served well so that under the guise of personal success, this narrative often celebrates individual success as evidence for national well-being. But for the many, that routine has fractured society to the extent that individuals are cocooned into finding succor within defined race/racist blocs. We have also watched ruefully as race-based policies have been accentuated thus stagnating the nation as a whole into a state of perpetual misery. However, authentic evidence suggests that Guyanese have become tired of this racist approach to policy and to life in general. Signs indicate that the country is ready for a new inclusive vision and a new approach towards positive solutions. Central to this vision, as well as to the solution, is the notion of Community Values. This idea embraces the view that we share responsibility for each other, that our fates are linked and interlinked. Embracing Community Values means appreciating that we prosper as individuals, and as a people, that is, when our politics and policies reflect that we're all in it together. Whether described as interconnection, mutual responsibility, or loving your neighbor as you love yourself, Community Values are moral beliefs, a practical reality, a healthy destiny to mould. Culture of Individualism vs Culture of Community Through time and geographical space, history teaches that those committed to social justice have always promoted a culture of Community Values. However, we Guyanese, in an increasingly racist, isolationist huddling, have often lost the idea of championing values in the scramble to react against specific, issue-based threats. But, some of us believe, it's time we focus on a new culture in political conversation and everyday living. It's time we turn our attention to our long history of working collectively, standing up for each other, and upholding the common good. There's virtue in working for, rather than against, something. Incidentally, our country has long understood and honored the idea of Community Values. At times, we embraced the idea of six different peoples uniting to accomplish a common goal. We've embraced it magnificently in our efforts to meet common challenges like confronting the mighty British Empire and winning the democratic vote for our entire Nation under the strategic Jagan/Burnham leadership of half a century ago. We have achieved gallantly when we stick together - and attack together - we could in this case the scourge of racism. This story is genetically embodied in our national motto of "One People, One Nation, One Destiny". In embracing common tasks collectively, our culture rejects the selfish pursuit of individual interests at the expense of others. Popular rejection of the greedy drug lord, the marauding gangs of slaughter, the corrupt functionaries and other instruments of State show that our country, cross-board, passionately values community and collective responsibility. But Guyanese have also long valued the ideal of the rugged individual and the "up-by-the-boot-straps" narrative. In this story the lone striver conquers daunting challenges apparently with no help from anyone. But, this narrative, not always accurate, carries a lot of weight in our society. Over the last several decades, however, the political/social events visibly demonstrate the futility of such a vision. Top-down vs Bottom-up approach Earlier on, independent Guyana lost its virginity to Mephistopheles, the devil. That course introduced and maintained a top-down mode of governance. In our view, that crafty, top-down course has failed and has brought us to the abyss which faces us at this time. It has to be reversed. We believe that Civic society is the real engine for social development; it needs to be re-awakened from its lethal slumber. Therefore, here lies the essence of the task ahead: civic society needs to be transformed into a viable force, into a bottom-up force, into a force strengthened by the progressive elements which inhere in each social grouping be it ideological, religious, race, trade union, gender, whatever. But we are acutely aware that there is a weighty baggage within the society and between groups. Each flirts with the thought that its 'culture' is pure and, therefore, better. Although all Guyanese since birth, they are alienated from their home. I recall the little eight year old girl as reported by Red Thread after Lusignan. She implored her parents to take her to another country. Plaintively, and with deep passion, she uses the double negative in her entreaty: "I do not want to live in this country no more", she laments. If that poignancy does not bring tears to one's eyes I do not know what will. However, it's an indictment that grownups have failed her, an indictment they cannot escape and the shame! But, the child's trauma is symptomatic of the wider society's. People try to identify with cultures alien to them, to groups from far off places, even from mythical space. They conjure up halcyon deeds achieved by their "forebears". And, they have their allies: the shamans and the mountebanks. An unstable situation is fruitful ground for these deviant actors to do well. These pundits of wisdom in Guyana inhabit the prestigious positions as leaders of this or that group; and some, hired mercenaries, render lofty expositions from the topmost rungs of the educational hierarchy. With such powerful reinforcement who can blame a rudderless people for dancing to the tune of being numero uno. Culture: impediment vs prop In this respect, one recalls the tremendous opposition meted out to the Indian revolutionary and eventual seer, Mohandas Gandhi. His detractors, planted firmly in a fundamentalist tradition, accused him of uprooting himself from those mighty pillars of the past. Being a direct beneficiary of that past, he was caught in a serious dilemma. But, Gandhi, being the visionary that he was, understood how a proud, strong past informs a strong, proud future. Not floored, therefore, Gandhi declared: "If I can't swim in tradition, I'll sink in it." And, rather than sink in tradition, Martin Luther King, the Black Civil Rights Leader of the United States, dug deeply into his people's psyche, defined their strength, devised a dynamic strategy - and walked triumphantly with his people to the hitherto elusive ballot box. Vijay Prashad, Professor and Culture Critic at Trinity College, Conn. asks rhetorically: Are cultures discrete and bounded? Do cultures have a history or are they static? Who defines the boundaries of culture or allows for change? Do cultures leak into each other? To respect the fetish of culture assumes that one wants to enshrine it in the museum of humankind rather than find within it the potential for liberation and for change. We'd have to accept homophobia and sexism, class cruelty and racism, all in the service of being respectful to someone's perverse definition of culture. [My underlining] Positive culture is not the séance involving aged, ossified rituals overseered by purveyors of class or tribe or caste idiosyncracies, it resides in a fluid paradigm of living parts, it's created by innovative, motivated actors. It absorbs the best from one era and transfers its efficacy as it creates and recreates itself. Every culture is rich its music, literature, theater, art, drama, religion, cuisine, etc. Plural societies, like ours, have a rich infrastructure on which to build a healthy Guyanese edifice. It's a matter of each group shining in its beauty and develop its better characteristics and do not allow itself to cower under the fear of offending any other. The education system and the media, twin bulwarks for democratic stability, need a new orientation to reflect a new reality. The theme of racism/ethnicity which has dominated our national dialogue and our common culture for so long needs an overhaul. Societies like ours have the potential for weaving a colorful quilt of rich tapestry. We have to consciously recreate a focussed Guyanese culture, not by denigrating the better elements of the past but by using that past as a prop and not an impediment. Difficult tasks: scare vs challenge A forward looking agenda beckons young countries, like Guyana, to efficiently try solving the most daunting tasks. Speaking to the World Social Forum (2003), Justin Podur, author and journalist, following Columbia's Manning Marable's thesis suggested that "unequal racial universes" cannot successfully work towards 'restitution for which the history of racism has left us'. Podur summarises: Marable's formulation is 'valid globally. The demand for Black Reparations, like the demand for reparations for the 3rd world, is a demand to unmake the plunder that the poor have suffered over centuries and bring about equality. In order to win restitution, it will be necessary to build solidarity across lines of nation, culture and color". Experience teaches a wise lesson: criticizing other group/s and their culture is a well tested instrument for failure; it is valuable time spent on futility. And Guyana wears its pervert racist badge as a millstone around its neck. In such a cultural/social setting, we recall Nelson Mandela who once observed that there must always be a 'few good persons' left in the society. This being so, the subscribers to this letter, having been at work for a while, now invite others on board, those who feel that this society needs a new direction and a novel vision, one of Community Values. For starters please make contact: Email: persaudkaypers@gmail.com, or in Guyana, phone: 698-9982. We have already developed the architecture on which civic society can participate. It now needs all hands on deck, heads above the fray, and boots on the ground. Of course, we'll relish sharp critiques both pro and con to this bare boned, rather wobbly presentation. One one dutty buil' dam, so: Compatriots, we either float together or we shall all perish piece-by-piece. --Kenneth Persaud, New York; M. Rahman, London and Guyana.
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