LaborGroups News 31Jan04
www.laborgroups.org/LaborGroupsNews31Jan04.pdf
www.laborgroups.org/LaborGroupsNews31Jan04.doc

1) Public Outrage over AOL Censorship
2) Last Day to Vote !
3) 24 Hour Work Week for 40 Hours Pay, by Harold Taggart
4) The DisInformation Newsletter
5) European Cartoons
6) The New American
7) David Rovics: Concert in Chicago on March 7th, anyone...?
8) Mydoom Worm (VIRUS) on the RAMPAGE !
9) SOA Watch
10) Job Openings with SEIU
11) MSN SOA Watch Spring Mobilization and Lobby Day
12) OBAMA WEEKLY REPORT
13) Public Citizen Calls for Ethics Investigation of Rep. Tauzin
14) Secrecy News
15) Take Action: Tell Houston's "Taste of the NFL XXXVIII" to take a stand on Gallo wines!
16) LabourStart's Eric Lee
17) Ski Masks OUTLAWED despite cruel winter temperatures across US
18) Chicago: DL21C Events
19) Homeland Security Ruse Used In Grocery Battle
20) NYC Rally-Thurs 2/5- Support 70,000 Ca. Supermarket Workers On Strike!!
21) The DISH
22) LCV
23) Chicago Calendar of Events
24) Nora Castañeda, President of the Women’s Development Bank
25) SW Online
26) U.S. TREASURY CHEATS WITH PHONY TRUST FUNDS
27) Teamster eDispatch
28) "Reject CAFTA" Update
29) Safety Online
30) Russian Underground City Financed By US Gas Buyers
31) Women protest US award to Venezuelan coup leader
32) Holding the Line for America's Health Care, On the Move 1/28/04
33) TAKE ACTION: Safeway refuses to help dairy workers as well as its own employees
34) "Supersize Me"
35) CLG News
36) Chicago: Calendar of Anti-War/Anti-Racist Events -- Updated January 30, 2004
37) FactCheck.org
38) January 31, People’s Weekly World/Nuestro Mundo
39) Another BIG victory for Pan Am Hospital workers/FTAA police hearing next week
40) TruthOut
41) CWA Endorsement of John Kerry
42) Join the One-Minute Boycott of CBS
43) Chicago: THE PINOCHET CASE, SUNDAY 02-01
44) John W. Hazouri: The Times are CHANGING !
45) Rob Sanchez's JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER !
46) Stop the FTAA Campaign Tools
47) US/LEAP's Violence Against Colombian Workers: an Advocacy Kit on U.S. Aid now available!
48) The Twenty-eighth Amendment
49) The human cost of the computer age
50) DNC: Stop Bush's attack on overtime pay
51) Carolyn Kay: NO TAXATION WITHOUT EQUAL REPRESENTATION!
52) YDS Winter Conference
53) Smoke THIS !
54) 1/6 SF Labor Forum: Union Fight Against War, Repression
55) Federico Fasano Mertens

First they came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I
wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a
Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because
I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was
a Protestant.
Then they came for me, but, by that time, no one was left to speak up.
--Pastor Martin Niemoeller, Nazi Germany

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1) Public Outrage over AOL Censorship

Please help get the word out on this AOL situation
before it spreads like a cancer.
Who will be next until it becomes you too.
We all know what it isabout.
Nov. elections approach. They plan to steal it again.

Some of you folks operate listservers, have publications,
newsletters, web sites, or other mailing lists, or know people
who do. Get the word out.

If some organization can compile a report of the facts,
and the opinions of those both outraged and harmed,
I can get it out to several hundred media outlets
as a press release. We will be able to reverse AOL's actions
and prevent this problem form spreading to other ISP's.

I am putting something big together.
There are some solutions.
This AOL problem just may be blessing in disguise.
I will show everyone how to increase their membership and supporters,
create new allies, and reap some financial gains if they are willing
to pursue the issue. A chance to really put a few feathers in their caps.

I have put together a web page:
www.LaborGroups.org/solutions.htm
These are alternatives to AOL currently offering promotions.
They also represent affiliate programs which pay commissions.
For those who wish to participate, we can put any revenues
into a pool, to be equally distributed to their organization
or group, to aid them in the funding of their campaigns.

Secondly, I will announce assistance in helping people put together
their own freemail like I have. (www.LaborGroups.org/freemail.htm)
If all their subscribers had a co-branded e-mail account, current list
owners could send their newsletters to all of their e-mail service
end users.
Here is what the freemail services are capable of:

Advantages of administration are the following:
1) promotional outgoing e-mail signature on all end users to promote your campaign
2) 50% banner exposure ratio to advertise campaigns
3) return links to your site, increasing web traffic
4) option to add signup/login boxes to your site to increase return visitors,
increasing exposure to new news alerts and announcements
5) Ability to e-mail your end users with your publication/e-zine

Any web operator knows the advantages of controlling mail operations.
That is why I use admin (at) 73.org from my 73.org domain name instead
of from my ISP which happens to be sbcglobal.net.
I decide what I will and will not receive, not them.

Those interested in participating,
let's move this discussion to a new list I have created:
Everyone (at) LaborGroups.org
everyone.laborgroups.org

In Solidarity,
Bob

*******************************************************
Bob:
Check these two messages out! They are from Jeri Cooper, a dedicated activist and UAW member. This is bigger than we know.
In Solidarity,
Tom
Hi Tom-

1.


I copied & pasted the letter from your & Bob and sent them to my address book. Every single aol was returned.

Next I sent them 1-by-1 including to my own aol. On the 2nd try I added my own note to let everyone know what was happening.

Here is what is strange. I sent the same thing to my aol from my hotmail & yahoo accounts and neither came back, but it has been 1.5 hours and neither has shown up in my aol yet. At the same time I sent some other e-mail to my aol just to see that it was working and it all showed up. It did not matter if I had spammed myself or sent it single.

I will voice my concerns to aol. Thank you & Bob for letting us know what is going on.

Jeri Cooper

2. UAW members employed by General Motors all can receive AOL for $3.00 a month. Maybe the UAW needs to be told what is going on.

Jeri Cooper



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2) Last Day to Vote !

vote.laborgroups.org

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3) 24 Hour Work Week for 40 Hours Pay, by Harold Taggart

24-HOUR WORK WEEK FOR 40 HOURS PAY

TEN TENATIVE TENETS OF NEOLIBERAL TYRANNY

By

HAROLD TAGGART

(Former employee of SSA and IRS)

A century ago, Robber Barons argued that a reduced workweek would destroy businesses and bankrupt the American economy. The workweek was reduced several times and businesses prospered. Those Barons made the same argument about children laboring in mines and factories. The Barons were wrong about the workweek and child labor just as they were about numerous other worker benefits, leisure time and safety measures. The Barons’ mythical theories endure because their control of the media and schools determine how most common people think. If we jettison their philosophy and penetrate and destroy their myths, we can have an egalitarian, peaceful, prosperous and more leisurely society. Below are 10 major misconceptions that fool common people into accepting or even demanding rule by a corrupt, parasitic Nobility.

1. The Nobility respects the common people. TRUTH: The Nobility of plutocrats and corporate executives that rule the U.S. loves the hard work and obedience of the common people that enables the Nobility to live an idle, luxurious lifestyle. They love most the willingness of common people to sacrifice their lives and limbs in wars for business profits.

2. It’s the taxes that determine the prosperity or poverty of the common people. TRUTH: The average worker has two types of dollars: tax dollars and consumer dollars. Tax dollars average $20 of every $100 dollars of income. The other $80, the consumer dollars, goes mainly to purchase products and services. It’s obvious that the disposition of the $80 has the greater impact on our poverty and prosperity. The “high taxes” ruse distracts hard working people from noticing the massive diversion of their money into the pockets of the idle Nobility. Consumer goods and services providers overcharge in amounts far in excess of the 20% that goes to taxes. The overcharges provide the luxurious lifestyles enjoyed by the idle rich stockholders and overpaid, semi-idle corporation executives. Overcharges or our consumer dollars provide fancy buildings, mansions, plush furnishings, cars, jets, helicopters, box seat tickets at entertainment events, servants, tropical vacation condos and sycophants so a few can live like kings at the expense of the many. Other overcharges go into advertising that dupes peasants into doing what is not in their interest and convinces them that the Nobility acts in the interest of common people. The overcharges pay for public relations propaganda that falsely justifies the exorbitant lifestyles of the few and the sacrifices of the many. Finally, our consumer dollars are used by the Nobility to buy influence over politicians, police, judges and media. The common people pay for the military and police that violently suppress or kill those who don’t believe the Nobility acts in the interest of the Peasantry. The politicians constantly remind us that “our” tax dollars are squandered. Of course it is those politicians who do the squandering. They never remind us that “our” consumer dollars are being squandered, stolen and extorted, and used to control and intimidate us and to pillage Third World people. Tax cuts are a zero-sum game for working people. It taxes are cut at the federal level, they must be increased at the local level. Only the rulers profit from a tax cut.

3. You will have Social Security benefits even though Ronald Reagan spent the Trust Fund in the 1980s to build his massive military. TRUTH: You will have Social Security benefits if you pay back what Reagan borrowed plus the interest. In other words, you will pay for your Social Security benefits three times. Due to mismanagement of the Social Security Trust Fund beginning with Reagan and to a lesser degree, Jimmy Carter, you will receive only 75% of what was promised, if you are lucky. One partial remedy is to charge payroll taxes (Social Security taxes) on all income. Now it is paid only on wages and only up to $85,000 making it a flat and regressive tax. Cap the benefits at the living wage level. Each benefit tied to wages such as Social Security and healthcare is another set of handcuffs that chains common people to their workstations.

4. Hitler killed more than 30 million people. We constantly must be vigilant for Hitlers and destroy them. TRUTH: Hitler was a harmless, demented person. He became a monster only when millions of Germans and others, including Americans such as the grandfather of the current occupant of the White House, consented to be his police, soldiers, bureaucrats and supporters. The Nobility vilifies Hitler to create an individual image of evil. The Nobility knows images have a deeper, longer-lasting, more emotional affect than logic and reasoning have. Then the Nobility criticizes Hitler to convince naive people that Hitler personifies evil and, therefore, the Nobility isn’t and doesn’t. Our leaders want us to believe that evil comes in the form of a person, not a group of gangsters such as the Nobility or a whole nation, so we shouldn’t search there for the sources of iniquity. In truth, most people would follow a Hitler, or not oppose him, given the right circumstances and mind control. America is ripe for a Hitler. In fact, American might have its own Hitler now. The roots of justice and democracy are very shallow in the U.S. A truly just nation would not tolerate what is happening at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba or the categorization of people as “enemy combatants” and treated outside the normal channels of law. Nor would they designate someone to be subject to execution without presenting the evidence in an impartial court. To prevent a future Hitler, people must be taught universal principles. They must place those principles above nationalism, patriotism and loyalty. A nation must rise to those principles. Only then does that nation deserve any loyalty. Otherwise, the Hitlers will continue to be common in our lives.

5. The “death tax” is an odious levy that destroys family farms and and small businesses, deprives individuals of an incentive to save and prevents their descendents from becoming wealthy. TRUTH: Nearly all of the “death tax” or “estate tax” is paid by the richest 50,000 families in the U.S. No farm has ever been bankrupted or lost due to the “death tax.” The government collects $40 billion per year from estate taxes. If the wealthy don’t pay that $40 billion, average Americans will. Those advocating the abolition of the “death tax” are demanding: “Let me pay David Rockefeller’s taxes. Let me pay Bill Gates’ taxes. Let me pay Warren Buffet’s taxes.”

6. Only under the free market system can true democracy and justice exist. TRUTH: Democracy and justice can’t exist under the free market system. The free market system is merely the latest scam justifying rule by a Nobility. In the past, aspiring nobles have claimed to be gods, demi-gods and god’s chosen leaders. At one time they even claimed they had blue blood flowing through their veins while peasants’ blood was red. The free enterprise system is driven by greed and other undesirable human characteristics. It worships property and dehumanizes people. It puts the interests of economics above people. The free enterprise system breeds crime not justice. It needs 6% unemployment to function somewhat smoothly. That 6% in America equals eight million people. Many of the unemployed are forced into crime, sex occupations or drug dealing to survive. Executives have the power and freedom of a petty despot. They rarely can resist stealing no matter how much they are paid. The more free the private sector is the more crime is produced. That’s the real reason the U.S. is the crime king of the industrialized world.

7. Supply-side economics calls for stimulation of the economy with tax cuts for rich people. Rich people then use the money to generate employment opportunities for all who want to work. TRUTH: Supply-side economics assumes one-third of the economy can drive the entire economy. The demand side, the other two-thirds, follows, supply-side proponents argue. Supply-siders claim that, given the money, businessmen who are socially conscious people by nature, will invest that money in the creation of new jobs. The reality is that the nature of businessmen is to eliminate jobs, not create them. Their instinct is to pocket every dollar they can. Only when the demand is powerful and a large profit is guaranteed will they expand and create new jobs. One troubling example of how the free enterprise system often causes more harm than good is the HIV epidemic. When it came on the scene in the early 1980s, pharmaceutical companies did no research because the number of cases was too small to justify the expenditures. Only when it reached epidemic proportions did in become a profitable investment.

8. Capitalism is the end of history, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher liked to say, quoting neo-liberal Francis Fukuyama. It is the most efficient, sophisticated, democratic and fair economic system possible. TRUTH: The neo-liberals make that claim but don’t believe it themselves. If Capitalism is so superior, why do the Capitalists violently and ruthlessly suppress anyone who tries an alternative system? Why do they do everything in their power to undermine experiments with other economic strategies? If other economic systems are inferior, they would fail on their own. The Capitalists spend trillions of dollars undermining them and insuring that they don’t work.

9. The American people are cunning and perceptive and can’t be fooled by charlatans, crooked politicians, the media and class exploitation. TRUTH: The Nobility believes the common people are mental juveniles and fooled easily. The Nobility believes the common people are dim-witted, plump chickens ripe for the plucking (only they substitute “pl” with the letter “f”). Their guru Leo Strauss says the Nobility must lie to the people. It’s for their own good, so they are noble lies. They believe the common people are like children who want to be lied to and told there is a Santa Claus and Easter Bunny and that storks deliver babies. In an atmosphere of fear, most people naturally forego their mental capacities and revert to primal instincts and reactions. The insecurity drives them to seek a paternalistic relationship with a leader, a “superman,” to protect them. They eagerly surrender their freedoms and independence to that person in return for a promise of safety and life with minimum disruptions. Americans have never evolved out of the primal mode. The primacy of primal instincts consigns Americans to a savage state where they are capable of the most barbaric actions. The U.S. invasion of Iraq placed savages in control of the Cradle of Civilization—a revulsion of great proportions. Taking advantage of these human frailties, the Nobility acquires the power, wealth and status of Medieval Despots. Schools are structured after assembly lines to turn out obedient, submissive soldiers that do the bidding of the Nobility and aren’t intelligent enough to ask profound questions. By the same token, the Nobility goes to great lengths to conceal itself and hide the puppet strings it pulls to manipulate every level of government, the media and the economy.

10. The United States is the most noble, civilized and compassionate nation the world has ever known. TRUTH: The U.S. is a city on a hill of lies. It is a nation built on a mountain of atrocities. When history is written in 200 years, the U.S. will be listed among Great Britain and Nazi Germany as the most ignoble nations that ever existed. Throughout history, there have been atrocities. Conquerors frequently annihilated tribes and nations they conquered. The Bible relates how the Jews were ordered by God to annihilate whole cities. At the time, that was accepted behavior. Great minds brought us an Enlightenment. Humans have advanced morally. The international community developed laws outlining ethical human behavior. Those laws were solidified after the Second World War in public trials of German and Japanese “war crimes.” Only one nation has committed every imaginable atrocity. That nation is the U.S. Americans murdered nearly 10 million native-Americans in one of the world’s most egregious genocides. The U.S. has used weapons of mass destruction numerous times and is using them today including the latest, depleted uranium. It is the only nation that used nuclear weapons not only against military targets, but deliberately against innocent men, women, children and babies. The U.S. has always had a plantation mentality. It was the last industrialized nation to outlaw slavery and did so then not for moral reasons but to weaken the Confederacy during the Civil War. Over 6,000 African-Americans were lynched and not a single person was arrested let alone convicted. When Hitler was a child, the U.S. was practicing eugenics. The U.S. sterilized nearly 70,000 Americans in an effort to purify the white race. The U.S. is the only nation ever convicted by the World Court for “terrorism.” The U.S. currently operates a terrorist training school at Fort Benning, Ga. The U.S. widely practices assassination. In the Philippines and Vietnam after the Second World War, the U.S. deliberately killed civilians and destroyed villages in an effort to demoralize freedom fighters who wanted only to rule themselves. If the U.S. sincerely opposed terrorism, it would be bombing itself.

Harold Taggart can be reached at: www.ChicagoDSA.org

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4) The DisInformation Newsletter

Disinformation Newsletter: Tuesday January 27, 2004
Edited by Alex Burns (alex (at) disinfo.com)

Our first book for children, 'Lines In The Sand', Russ Kick's '50 Things
You're Not Supposed To Know', Richard Metzger's 'Book of Lies' and the
long-awaited "Disinformation' DVD are now available from our online store!
.

Today's "Oblique Strategies" Reading:
"What were the branch points in the evolution of this entity?"

Today's Quote: "The [World Social] Forum was born in opposition to the
entire alphabet soup of neo-liberal institutions like the WTO, IMF and
World Bank, and the imposition of those neo-liberal policies by force in
Iraq. It serves as a crucial outreach venue, or space, for action networks
like Our World Is Not for Sale, which has led recent campaigns in Cancun
and Miami against proposed trade agreements."
~~ Tom Hayden, "Post-Marx From Mumbai"
(www.alternet.org/story.html)

The legendary 'Disinformation' DVD hits retail stores from today, so if
you've been contemplating a late night viewing session of Joe Coleman,
Paul Laffoley or the Wall of Vagina, now you can turn up to your local
mall, walk into your store, and freak everyone out. We'll have many more
DVD releases planned for this year, including documentaries on Joe Coleman
and The Yes Men (an RTMark prank of the World Trade Organization). And
who knows---maybe even a live format event, like the Disinfo.con 2000, may
occur in 2004. Keep your fingers crossed.

Large Voter Turnout for New Hampshire Primary
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53741-2004Jan27.html

Blair Cleared Of 'Dishonourable Conduct' In Kelly Affair: Report
www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/68281/1/.html

Libya Nuclear Components Arrive in US
abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20040127_1883.html

Lugar: More Troops Needed in Afghanistan
www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/7807840.htm

-----====
Village Voice: New Hampshire Primary
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1958.html

Killing Time On The Ghetto Blue
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1957.html

American Newsroom
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1956.html

The Bush Dynasty's Dark Magic
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1955.html

This Is Your Brain In Love
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1954.html

Baby, Let Me Follow You Down
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1953.html

Sex Slaves Of West 43rd Street
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1952.html

MoveOn Petitions CBS To Play SuperBowl Ad
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1951.html

Court Rules Against Patriot Act
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1950.html

Spiritual Development And The Esoterica Fetish
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1949.html

-----====
50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know (Russ Kick)
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle370.html

'Russ Kick has proved himself a master at uncovering facts that "they"
would prefer you never hear about. The giant Disinformation Guide series
edited by Kick has become the definitive place to find revelations about
government cover-ups, scientific scams, corporate crimes, medical
malfeasance, historical whitewashes, media manipulation, and other
knock-your-socks-off secrets and lies. This CD-sized book packs the same
powerful punch in a small, attractive package.'

-----====
Book of Lies (Richard Metzger)
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle369.html

'Disinformation's "wicked warlock" Richard Metzger gathers an
unprecedented cabal of modern occultists, magicians and forward thinkers
in Book of Lies. Whereas past Disinformation volumes like You Are Being
Lied To, Everything You Know is Wrong and Abuse Your Illusions focused on
secrets and lies from the mainstream media, government and other
establishment institutions to rethink what a political science book could
look like, Book of Lies redefines occult anthologies, packaging and
presenting a huge array of magical essays for a pop culture audience.'

'Disinformation's BOOK OF LIES is a 21st century grimoire, a How To book
designed to inspire the young magician-warriors of this new and turbulent
century. In the apparent derangement of our times, this book is both a
call to arms and an armory also. Get tooled up, get out there . . . and
start bending reality.' –Grant Morrison (www.grantmorrison.com)

**************************************************************************

Disinformation Newsletter: Wednesday January 28, 2004
Edited by Alex Burns (alex (at) disinfo.com)

Our first book for children, 'Lines In The Sand', Russ Kick's '50 Things
You're Not Supposed To Know', Richard Metzger's 'Book of Lies' and the
long-awaited 'Disinformation' DVD are now available from our online store!
.

Today's "Oblique Strategies" Reading:
"What most recently impressed you? How is it similar? What can you learn
from it? What could you take from it?"

Today's Quote: "

Today has been dominated by the epochal release of the Hutton Inquiry's
report into David Kelly's death. In less than 24 hours, the BBC's head
has resigned, Tony Blair and adviser Alistair Campbell have had their
political fortunes regenerated, and journalist Andrew Gilligan has gone on
the defensive. The fallout from Lord Hutton's findings, which damned the
BBC, but few others, will have a long-term impact on Britain's national
broadcaster at all levels. Lord Hutton's findings will change how stories
are managed at an editorial level, how journalists and public servants
talk about highly sensitive issues, and how intelligence data is presented
to the general public. There's a clear trend here, in the UK and
Australia, that public investigations do not often blame the intelligence
community. Institutional thinking, yes, just don't call it a conspiracy. We'll be posting further updates on the Hutton Inquiry's findings as they
are reported.

Kerry Heads Out to Take Campaign National
www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml

Former US Weapons Inspector: Intelligence on Iraqi Weapons Was Inadequate
www.voanews.com/article.cfm%3FobjectID%3DC8FFCCFD-0F35-4F6B-BDD609F77B6E2772


Asia Vows Cooperation On Bird Flu
www.iht.com/articles/127070.htm

How To Fix NASA
msnbc.msn.com/id/4089237/

-----====
Regime Change Movement Picks Up Steam
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1979.html

Hutton Report Released
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1978.html

US Plans Spring Invasion Of Pakistan
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1977.html

Weighing The Value Of Privacy
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1976.html

Uta Hagen, 1919-2004
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1975.html

The Last Bohemian, RIP
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1974.html

Mutating Software Could Predict Hacker Attacks
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1973.html

New Hampshire: Kerry Wins Again
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1972.html

Social Nets Not Making Friends
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1971.html

A Night Of Comedy That's Here And Totally Queer
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle1970.html

-----====
50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know (Russ Kick)
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle370.html

'Russ Kick has proved himself a master at uncovering facts that "they"
would prefer you never hear about. The giant Disinformation Guide series
edited by Kick has become the definitive place to find revelations about
government cover-ups, scientific scams, corporate crimes, medical
malfeasance, historical whitewashes, media manipulation, and other
knock-your-socks-off secrets and lies. This CD-sized book packs the same
powerful punch in a small, attractive package.'

-----====
Book of Lies (Richard Metzger)
www.disinfo.com/site/displayarticle369.html

'Disinformation's "wicked warlock" Richard Metzger gathers an
unprecedented cabal of modern occultists, magicians and forward thinkers
in Book of Lies. Whereas past Disinformation volumes like You Are Being
Lied To, Everything You Know is Wrong and Abuse Your Illusions focused on
secrets and lies from the mainstream media, government and other
establishment institutions to rethink what a political science book could
look like, Book of Lies redefines occult anthologies, packaging and
presenting a huge array of magical essays for a pop culture audience.'

'Disinformation's BOOK OF LIES is a 21st century grimoire, a How To book
designed to inspire the young magician-warriors of this new and turbulent
century. In the apparent derangement of our times, this book is both a
call to arms and an armory also. Get tooled up, get out there . . . and
start bending reality.' –Grant Morrison (www.grantmorrison.com)

-----====
Disinformation Newsletter Automated Subscribe:

Although we have an idea why you would want to do so, you can subscribe from the Disinformation Newsletter here:

www.disinfo.com/site/newsletter.php


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5) European Cartoons

Bush calls for a translator to tell him what the Shi'ites want
medias.lemonde.fr/medias/image_article/04012705_irak+x1se.jpg
Bush: "It was God that told me to go to war, and he has my full confidence"
www.letemps.ch/custom/imagesChappatte/chap276.gif
At the World Economic Forum in Davos: "I'm afraid that the data processing was outsourced to Bombay" (site of the World Social Forum)
www.letemps.ch/custom/imagesChappatte/chap275.gif
George Bush's electoral campaign
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040121/veenenbos.gif
The Dollar & the Euro
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040124/turner.gif
Bush faces criticism of his intellect head-on
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040118/turner.jpg
Bush eyes Mars
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040113/olle.jpg
Mars Preview
autsch.rtl.de/schandmaennchen.jpg
Light signals in the Balkans
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040118/behrendt.gif
Harder than he thought
cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040118/hansen.gif

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6) The New American

Amnesty and Betrayal
President Bush's proposed immigration reform package is a shocking betrayal of our nation's sovereignty, culture and economy. It must not be allowed to pass.
www.stoptheftaa.org/artman/publish/article_114.shtml

Backtracking on al-Qaeda Ties
Colin Powell's admission that the Bush administration had no "concrete evidence" of an Iraq-al-Qaeda terrorist connection is a full reversal of his earlier statement to the UN.
www.thenewamerican.com/tna/2004/02-09-2004/ties.htm


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7) David Rovics: Concert in Chicago on March 7th, anyone...?

Hey folks in Illinois,
So I just talked with Michael James at the Heartland Cafe, and me and Attila the Stockbroker will be doing a show there at 8 pm on Sunday, March 7th. The Heartland is at 7000 N. Glenwood Ave.
Here's the catch... There is no single group that's involved with promoting this event. Normally I don't do this, booking a place myself, because I can not do promo for the event from afar, this is entirely up to people in Chicago to get the word out. Usually this means a local group needs to head that up, otherwise it doesn't get done. I'm hoping this situation will be different, but this will require that most everybody who receives this message takes some initiative and spends some time and energy announcing the event to local listservs, telling your friends, downloading the poster that will soon be up on my website for my tour with Attila and putting it up around town, etc.
I'm hoping I'm taking a risk worth taking, and people receiving this message will take the initiative to do a bit of promotion for this event, and we can once again pack the Heartland Cafe. Please be encouraged to email or call me to let me know what you might be able to do to help promote this, and I'll feel better... Also feel free to look at the "booking" section of www.davidrovics.com , which has lots of ideas on how to promote events.
Hope to see you all at the Heartland!
Yours,
David
David Rovics
drovics (at) aol.com
(617) 747-4460 (voicemail)
(617) 872-5124 (cell)
PO Box 995
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

www.davidrovics.com
www.everreviledrecords.com
www.akpress.org
www.daemonrecords.com
www.soundclick.com/davidrovics
www.folkweb.com/davidrovics

------------------------------------------------------------------------
8) Mydoom Worm (VIRUS) on the RAMPAGE !

A week of gloom and Mydoom
By John Hogan, News Editor

Sobig.F doesn't look so big now. Last summer, that worm infected
systems worldwide within a matter of days and, in the process, blazed
a path to infamy as the Internet's most virulent e-mail worm. This
week, Mydoom-A eclipsed that record.

By Tuesday, Mydoom-A had infected one out of every 41 e-mail
messages. And so far, the U.K.-based e-mail monitoring service
MessageLabs said that it alone has blocked 7.4 million copies of
Mydoom-A.

The worm attempted to harvest e-mail addresses from unsuspecting
accounts and aimed to launch a denial-of-service attack against the
Web site of SCO Group, the software company that has filed lawsuits
against IBM and Novell over their alleged use of System V Unix code
on behalf of the open source community.

Has Mydoom become your doom? It has for millions. Click here to
read more about this weeks e-mail worm:
www.searchWin2000.com/columnItem/0,294698,sid1_gci947146,00.html

POTENT MYDOOM WORM FLOODING INBOXES | SearchSecurity.com

A new mass-mailing worm called Mydoom-A is infecting one in every 41
e-mail messages. searchwin2000.techtarget.com/infoCenter/newsItem/0,294271,sid1_gci946369,00.html


Symantec has released an update to a severe virus/worm called W32.Novarg.A@mm (My Doom). W32.Novarg.A@mm is a mass-mailing worm that arrives as an attachment with the file extension .bat, .cmd, .exe, .pif, .scr, or .zip. You can read the entire security update here:

w32.novarg.a (at) mm.html">securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.novarg.a (at) mm.html

U. S. Department of Homeland Security
US Computer Emergency Response Tm.
Issues Cyber Security Alert for the MyDoom.B

Click Here for details

www.emergencyemail.org/cyber1.asp


------------------------------------------------------------------------
9) SOA Watch

Retired NY Firefighter, Three-time Nobel Peace Prize Nominee and 20 Others Sentenced to Prison and Probation for Actions to Close the SOA/WHISC - Trials in Georgia Continue.

** TAKE ACTION: CONTACT YOUR LOCAL MEDIA AND ASK THEM TO PUBLISH THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ARTICLE FROM THE TRIAL AFTER EVERYONE HAS BEEN SENTENCED (later today) **

For updates from the trial, the names, trial statements, photos and sentences of the defendants visit the SOA Watch webpage at www.SOAW.org

Twenty-two of the 27 courageous human rights activists who are standing trial for "crossing the line" during the November 2003 vigil to close the SOA/WHISC have so far been sentenced. The defendants received sentences ranging from twelve months probation to six months in prison and a $1500 fine for their courageous witness.

In a statement about their action of conscience, several defendants state that “[Latin American military forces] do not exist primarily to defend one nation against another, but rather to protect an unjust and inequitable distribution of resources within each country against movements of social and political change.”

Over the past decade, 190 SOA Watch activists have been sentenced to more than 80 years (collectively) in federal prisons and jails across the United States. Since 2000, not a single day has passed when there hasn't been a human rights defender imprisoned for speaking out against SOA violence. Forty-seven activists have served or are currently serving terms of probation for actions to close the School of the Americas. "Those who speak out for justice are being prosecuted while SOA-trained torturers and assassins are operating with impunity," said SOA Watch founder Fr. Roy Bourgeois.

New legislation to close the school was introduced by Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass) and has been co-sponsored by 105 Members of Congress. SOA Watch activists around the country are preparing for a large-scale Spring Mobilization and Lobby Day from March 27-30, 2004 in Washington, DC. Stand up for Justice! Hold your Representative and Senators accountable. Contact SOA Watch at (202) 234 3440 or info (at) soaw.org info (at) soaw.org> to receive an Organizing Packet. Close the School of Assassins!


------------------------------------------------------------------------
10) Job Openings with SEIU

The following is a job posting from SEIU:

Fight the Good Fight--Become a Union Organizer!

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) organizers help
working people win dignity and respect on the job. Using
aggressive and innovative tactics, together we challenge some of
the largest and most powerful corporations in the world. And we
win!

SEIU has openings for both entry- level and experienced
organizers. Our Organizer-In-Training Program gives new
organizers extensive training and placement throughout the
union, with great opportunities for career advancement.
Job qualifications-you must have:
Excellent communication skills; Good judgment; Ability to work
with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures; Commitment to
justice for working people; Willingness to travel and work long
& irregular hours.

Positions are available nationwide on an ongoing basis-apply
anytime. We will be holding a One-Day Organizing Training and
Screening for our Program in Chicago on February 16th, 2004.
Salary begins at $30,466 (with excellent benefits). EOE. Women
and people of color are encouraged to apply. See our website for
more information: www.unionvoice.org/ct/fdzVzln1z1Od/.

To apply, send cover letter and resume to Maria Svart at: svartm (at) seiu.org or fax to 202/898-9016.


------------------------------------------------------------------------
11) MSN SOA Watch Spring Mobilization and Lobby Day

The Mexico Solidarity Network is endorsing and supporting the SOA Watch Spring Mobilization and Lobby Day

*Check our website for soon to come information about human rights abuses by SOA graduates in Mexico*

Come to Washington, DC from March 27-30, 2004 and tell Congress to ?Shut It Down! ? Not in Our Name and Not with Our Tax Money!"
T
he Pentagon lobbies hard to keep SOA money flowing. At taxpayers? expense, the Army operates a huge PR campaign that is directed at Congress. We are countering their attempts with grassroots power.

A vote on the School of the Americas/ Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation is comming up in the U.S. Congress in the summer of 2004! It is our job to make sure that enough Representatives will be on board to vote against the school. Hold your Representative accountable.

The SOA Watch Spring Mobilization will also include trainings, skill-shares, street theatre, social and educational events. Check out www.soaw.org for more information.

Spread the word! Download the Spring Mobilization Flier. Make plans to come to Washington, DC from March 27-30, 2004 and organize others to join you.

Order a Spring 2004 Organizing Packet for $3 from School of the Americas Watch:
SOA Watch
PO Box 4566
Washington, DC 20017

Tentative Schedule:
Saturday, March 27
Registration
SOA Watch Film Festival
Concert

Sunday, March 28
Workshops including: Lobby skills training, legal training, media training, political theater, anti-racist organizing
Panel presentation
Legislative strategizing
Non-violent direct action planning and coordination

Monday March 29
Lobby visits (We are suggesting folks try to lobby on Tuesday when they have a better chance of getting a meeting with their members of congress. However, if it is not possible to stay on another day, Monday is still a great opportunity to lobby for change.)
Direct Actions
Tuesday, March 30
Lobby visits
Press briefing
#############################################################
Mexico Solidarity Network www.mexicosolidarity.org

------------------------------------------------------------------------
12) OBAMA WEEKLY REPORT

OBAMA WEEKLY REPORT—JANUARY 28—49 DAYS UNTIL VICTORY

PLANNED PARENTHOOD ENDORSES OBAMA!

Recognizing his leadership on women’s health care and reproductive rights in Illinois, Planned Parenthood endorsed Barack Obama last week. Planned Parenthood, renowned for its commitment to protecting a woman’s right to choose, cited Barack’s 100% pro-choice voting record in the Illinois Senate. Join us in helping Barack bring his record of commitment to women’s health and reproductive rights to the U.S. Senate. On Monday, February 23rd the Women for Obama will be hosting a luncheon at the Hyatt Regency. For more information on how to obtain tickets please email kpage (at) obamaforillinois.com.

OBAMA WINS DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF EVANSTON ENDORSEMENT!

In one of the most important endorsement sessions of the campaign, Barack scored an overwhelming win at Democratic Party of Evanston endorsement meeting this Sunday. 90% of DPOE members chose Barack, who beat his next closest opponent by over 250 votes. Thank you to Evanstonians for Obama for all your hard work!

Get active in your neighborhood! Organize your community, turn your neighborhood Obama Blue, sign up for Election Day! To join the Barack Brigade, go to: www.obamaforillinois.com/forms/forms.cgi
LISTEN TO BARACK ON CHICAGO PUBLIC RADIO DEBATE—OR JOIN US!

Senator Obama and all of Democratic senatorial candidates will be participating in a live radio debate on Chicago Public Radio, WBEZ 91.5, on Wednesday, February 4 from 6:30 until 8:00 p.m. Tune in, or join us at the campaign headquarters, 310 S. Michigan, Ste. 1720, for a debate-listening party. Please e-mail adam (at) obamaforillinois.com if you can join us! Outside of the Chicago area, tune in live from the Internet on www.wbez.org.
For a complete list of upcoming events, go to: www.obamaforillinois.com/artman/publish/events.shtml
CALLING ALL WEST SIDE & WEST SUBURB VOLUNTEERS!

There will be a very important volunteer meeting in the West Side campaign office for west side and west suburban volunteers this Saturday, January 31st from 10 am to noon. Join us at 15 N. Mayfield (5800W at Madison) for valuable instructions on how you can play a critical role in making sure the west side and west suburbs turn out in big numbers to elect Barack Obama the next United States Senator from Illinois! Call LaDerrick at 773-626-3844 with questions or to RSVP. Coffee, juice and donuts will be provided.

The west side/west suburban office is open for business and volunteers Mondays through Saturdays 10 am to 7 pm and Sundays noon to 5 pm.

JOIN RAMSEY LEWIS & BARACK AT THE SYMPHONY CENTER TONIGHT!

Tonight, world-renowned jazz artist Ramsey Lewis will be playing a concert in support of Barack's campaign for the U.S. Senate. The concert will be held at the Chicago Symphony Center, located at 220 S. Michigan. Tickets for the V.I.P. reception which begins at 5 p.m are $1000; tickets for the concert that begins at 6 p.m. are $150. If you have any questions or need further information, please e-mail kpage (at) obamaforillinois.com. To make a contribution, please click on:

www.obamaforillinois.com/contribute.shtml
RALLY IN ROGERS PARK WITH BARACK!

Fresh off winning the endorsement of the 49th Ward Democratic Organization this weekend, Barack will appear on “Live from the Heartland” on Saturday, February 7 at 9:30 a.m. and then rally with supporters at the Heartland Café at 7000 N. Glenwood, Chicago. Listen to Barack on “Live from the Heartland” on WLUW 88.7 FM at 9:30 am, then join the Barack Brigade Rally in Rogers Park at 10 a.m. to enjoy food and refreshments.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE PROFILES OBAMA
“Few Democrats would disagree that among the packed field of Senate hopefuls, Obama carries the most commanding presence—and arguably the most impressive resume,” wrote the Chicago Tribune in their profile of Barack on Sunday. “…Among the new laws he pushed in 2003: mandating that interrogations and confessions in capital cases be videotaped, requiring hospitals to mane annual reports public and expanding health coverage to poor families and children.” To read the complete profile, go to: www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0401250368jan25,1,231024.story
To make a contribution, please click on:
www.obamaforillinois.com/contribute.shtml

For more information or to volunteer, call (312) 427-6300 or visit www.obamaforillinois.com.


------------------------------------------------------------------------
13) Public Citizen Calls for Ethics Investigation of Rep. Tauzin

Public Citizen Press Releases
Providing the latest information about Public Citizen activities
-------------------------------------------

Jan. 28, 2004

Public Citizen Calls for Ethics Investigation of Tauzin

Did Tauzin Negotiate Lucrative Job With Pharmaceutical Lobbying Group
While Crafting Industry-Friendly Medicare Drug Bill?

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Public Citizen today called for an investigation
into whether U.S. Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-La.), who had a key role in
writing the Medicare prescription drug law, broke House ethics rules
when negotiating a lucrative job with the drug industry's top lobbying
group.

Tauzin has received an offer to represent the Pharmaceutical Research
and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the drug industry's main lobbying
group, which was heavily involved in the crafting of recently passed
legislation to create a prescription drug benefit under Medicare. The
legislation contains key provisions beneficial to the drug industry; it
subsidizes private insurers to provide prescription drug coverage to
seniors - thereby increasing demand for drugs, bars the Medicare
administrator from bargaining for lower drug prices and effectively
prohibits the reimportation of lower-priced drugs from Canada.

In a letter to the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct,
Public Citizen asked officials to investigate whether Tauzin began
negotiating for a job with PhRMA while crafting the legislation. If he
did, he may have violated House conflict of interest rules. The job
offer is rumored to be worth $2.5 million, likely the largest
compensation package on record for anyone at a trade association.

"The record size of the PhRMA contract and the fact that the offer
became public less than two months after the drug industry scored a
major victory with this legislation raises serious questions about
whether Rep. Tauzin's actions were tainted," said Joan Claybrook, Public
Citizen's president. "While Rep. Tauzin was writing the bill, he put out
the word that he was retiring from Congress and looking for new work.
This doesn't pass the smell test."

Added Frank Clemente, director of Public Citizen's Congress Watch, "It
is distressing that Rep. Tauzin has negotiated private employment with a
business interest that was so actively engaged in lobbying for the
Medicare legislation. Apparently, the prescription drug bill was not
only a windfall for the pharmaceutical industry, but also for several
public officials involved in negotiating the measure."

Public Citizen in December filed an ethics complaint against Thomas
Scully, former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services, who received a waiver from ethics laws, thereby allowing him
to represent the Bush administration in discussions about the new drug
bill while negotiating employment with three lobbying firms and two
investment firms that had major stakes in the legislation.

If Tauzin takes the PhRMA job, that could subvert the House's
"revolving door" policy, which prohibits former members of Congress from
directly lobbying their former colleagues for a year after leaving
office. Even if Tauzin never picks up the phone to call a member,
lawmakers who are approached by PhRMA representatives will know that
PhRMA's requests ultimately are coming from Tauzin.

Tauzin's job negotiations are proof of the need to tighten the House's
notoriously lax ethics rules. Under the rules, members are merely
discouraged from negotiating employment with business interests involved
in legislation but are not prohibited from doing so. So it may be
determined that Tauzin broke no rules even if he did negotiate his new
job while crafting the Medicare bill.

"Members of the public already have low confidence in the ethics of
congressional lawmakers," Clemente said. "This is another scandal that
will taint the image of Congress. The ethics committee needs to act to
clean up its House."

A copy of Public Citizen's letter to the committee is available at
www.citizen.org/documents/Tauzin_complaint_ltr.pdf.

###

Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization
based in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit
www.citizen.org.


------------------------------------------------------------------------
14) Secrecy News

SECRECY NEWS
from the FAS Project on Government Secrecy
Volume 2004, Issue No. 9
January 28, 2004


** 2004 INTELLIGENCE BUDGET DISCLOSED IN FRANCE
** LEAKS AND LEAKS AND LEAKS
** HOUSE DEMOCRATS INVOKE SEVEN MEMBER RULE
** PROLIFERATION: LEARNING FROM THE DECLASSIFIED RECORD
** ARMY STUDY ON MIDCOURSE DISCRIMINATION (1989)
** DIA ON SOVIET MILITARY SPACE DOCTRINE (1984)
** MARS: NO UFO COVERUP


2004 INTELLIGENCE BUDGET DISCLOSED IN FRANCE

There was a time within living memory when the United States
set the standard for democratic decision-making and
government accountability. In areas such as intelligence
spending, that is no longer the case.

The government of France has recently published its
intelligence budget total for 2004, in the amount of 291.1
million Euros. See:

www.senat.fr/rap/a03-076-4/a03-076-420.html

France joins nations such as the United Kingdom, Canada, the
Netherlands, Serbia and Brazil that routinely disclose
baseline intelligence spending information (SN 06/12/03,
10/08/03, 10/24/03).

This contrasts with the stubborn refusal of the U.S.
government to provide even a general accounting of
intelligence expenditures.

According to the classification policies of the Central
Intelligence Agency, even disclosure of 50 year old budget
information would damage national security and jeopardize
intelligence sources and methods. See:

www.fas.org/sgp/foia/1947/cia121400.pdf

Ironically, budget secrecy may have actually damaged U.S.
intelligence by impeding public debate over the declining
level of spending during the mid-1990s, and facilitating the
diversion of intelligence dollars to defense accounts.


LEAKS AND LEAKS AND LEAKS

Congressional Democratic leaders this week asked the General
Accounting Office to investigate White House procedures for
protecting classified intelligence information in connection
with the unauthorized disclosure of the identity of
undercover CIA officer Valerie Plame. See:

www.fas.org/irp/congress/2004_cr/h012604.pdf

Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg urged more officials to
leak documents that would "expose government lies" and
"drastically alter the public discourse on whether we should
continue sending our children to die in Iraq":

www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1131997,00.html

Ellsberg hailed the actions of Katherine Gun, a UK government
employee who is charged under Britain's Official Secrets Act
for leaking classified information. See:

www.liberty-human-rights.org.uk/issues/katharine-gun.shtml

Not only leakers of classified information, but journalists
who publish leaked information should be held accountable for
their actions, argued CIA official James Bruce in a stern
2002 presentation to the American Bar Association, featured
by the Counterintelligence Centre:

www.cicentre.com/Documents/DOC_Classified_Leaks.htm


HOUSE DEMOCRATS INVOKE SEVEN MEMBER RULE

Democratic members of the House Committee on Government Reform
are invoking a little-known statutory provision known as the
"seven member rule" to try to extract information from
reluctant government agencies.

According to the rule, which originated in 1928, the executive
branch is obliged to ("shall") provide "any information
requested of it relating to any matter within the
jurisdiction" of the Committee when so requested by at least
seven members.

In January 15 letters, the Committee members, led by Rep.
Henry Waxman, thus requested certain information from the
Department of Energy:

www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2004/doe7-011504.pdf

and from the Department of Health and Human Services:

www.fas.org/sgp/congress/2004/hhs7-011504.pdf

See also "Waxman testing 7-member rule for access to lobbying
files" by Klaus Marre, The Hill, January 27:

www.thehill.com/news/012704/waxman.aspx


PROLIFERATION: LEARNING FROM THE DECLASSIFIED RECORD

"The declassification of several Cold War-era Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Defense Intelligence Agency
(DIA) estimates of nuclear proliferation trends offers
interesting insights into what previous U.S. governments
believed--and ultimately did--about the international spread
of nuclear weapons."

See "Predicting Nuclear Proliferation: A Declassified
Documentary Record" by Peter R. Lavoy, published in Strategic
Insights, Center for Contemporary Conflict, Naval
Postgraduate School, Vol. III, Issue 1, January 2004:

www.fas.org/man/eprint/lavoy.pdf


ARMY STUDY ON MIDCOURSE DISCRIMINATION (1989)

One of the enduring challenges of ballistic missile defense is
the problem of "midcourse discrimination" -- i.e.,
distinguishing between actual missiles in flight and decoys.

The issue was explored in a 1989 report of the Army Science
Board, which noted that "discrimination is not a problem that
can be 'solved'. Rather it will be a continuing race between
the offense and defense to institute, respectively, more
effective pen-aids and more capable means to counter those
pen-aids to a degree that is adequate to maintain the
defense's desired level of effectiveness. It will be a chess
game that requires looking ahead several moves, and its
effectiveness will probably always be a matter of judgment
rather than a demonstrable fact."

"The technical issues identified and discussed in this Panel
Report are as relevant today as they were in 1989," said MIT
professor Ted Postol, a critic of missile defense programs.

See "Midcourse Discrimination for the Phase One Strategic
Defense System," Army Science Board, February 1989:

www.fas.org/spp/military/asbmidcourse.pdf


DIA ON SOVIET MILITARY SPACE DOCTRINE (1984)

In 1984, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) conducted an
analysis of Soviet military space programs. Based on
published statements and other sources, the DIA was able to
infer "a Soviet military space doctrine that elucidates the
ultimate Soviet objectives in outer space."

The resulting pamphlet, entitled "Soviet Military Space
Doctrine," dated 1 August 1984 and marked "for official use
within the US Government," is now available here (24 pages,
3.3 MB PDF file):

www.fas.org/irp/dia//sovmilspace-4mb.pdf

or in a smaller (2 MB), slightly fuzzier version:

www.fas.org/irp/dia//sovmilspace.pdf


MARS: NO UFO COVERUP

"A spokesbeing for the Mars Air Force denounced as false the
rumors that an alien spacecraft crashed in the desert outside
of Ares Vallis," according to a mock news release circulating
at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, home of the Mars rovers Spirit
and Opportunity.

See "Martian Air Force Denies Stories of UFO Crash":

www.fas.org/sgp/news/2004/01/marsaf.pdf


**********************************************************************



SECRECY NEWS
from the FAS Project on Government Secrecy
Volume 2004, Issue No. 10
January 30, 2004


** BUSH AND IRAQI WMD: A GATHERING EMBARRASSMENT
** HARMAN LAMENTS PARTISANSHIP ON HOUSE INTEL COMMITTEE
** CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS
** FROM THE ARCHIVES: INTELLIGENCE REVIEW (1946)
** A FRENCH SHOE FOR INDOCHINA (1954)


BUSH AND IRAQI WMD: A GATHERING EMBARRASSMENT

Confronted by mounting evidence that the threat posed by Iraqi
weapons of mass destruction was massively overstated, President
Bush has been unwilling or unable to admit error.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein was a gathering
threat to America and others," he said this week. "That's what we
know."

Pressed by reporters for a response to weapons inspector David
Kay's statement that pre-war intelligence on Iraq had been wrong,
the President could do no more than repeat:

"There is no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein was a grave and
gathering threat to America and the world. There is just no doubt
in my mind."

The "gathering threat" formulation, which has not previously been
part of the President's vocabulary, may be a speechwriter's
allusion to the first volume of Winston Churchill's history of
World War II, "The Gathering Storm."

But if so, the dignity of this borrowed rhetoric rapidly became an
embarrassment, as it was parroted no less than half a dozen times
by the White House press spokesman on January 28:

www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/01/20040128-7.html

In retrospect, it now appears that Saddam Hussein was more of a
receding threat than a "gathering" one. His military forces had
never fully recovered from the first Gulf War or the effects of UN
sanctions, and his regime was riddled with corruption.

Yet Congress was told as a factual matter that Saddam Hussein had
weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them even to
the United States, recalled Sen. Ben Nelson (D-FL) this week.

"I was looked at straight in the face and told that [Iraqi] UAVs
could be launched from ships off the Atlantic coast to attack
eastern seaboard cities of the United States," he said. "Is it
any wonder that I concluded there was an imminent peril to the
United States?" See:

www.fas.org/irp/congress/2004_cr/s012804b.html

A new report from the non-governmental British American Security
Information Council examines the record of pre- and post-war
evidence of Iraqi weapons programs and forcefully critiques US and
UK intelligence assessments on Iraq.

See "Unravelling the Known Unknowns: Why no Weapons of Mass
Destruction have been found in Iraq" by David Isenberg and Ian
Davis, BASIC, 2004:

www.basicint.org/pubs/Research/2004WMD.htm


HARMAN LAMENTS PARTISANSHIP ON HOUSE INTEL COMMITTEE

Rep. Jane Harman, the moderate ranking Democrat on the House
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, this week rebuked the
Committee chairman, Rep. Porter Goss, for violating his commitment
to openly deliberate a pending resolution on the leak of an
undercover CIA officer's identity.

"As one committed to honoring the long tradition of careful
bipartisan stewardship of the intelligence community by our
Committee, the Chairman's actions are deeply disappointing to
me," she said in a January 28 news release.

"Careful, bipartisan oversight is what the men and women of the IC
deserve, and, sadly, they were let down today," Rep. Harman said.
See:

www.fas.org/irp/congress/2004_cr/harman012804.html


CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS

The origins of the state secrets privilege apparently derive from
English common law and certainly predate the 1953 Supreme Court
ruling in U.S. v. Reynolds. Therefore it was an error to write
(SN, 01/26/04) that the Reynolds decision "established" the state
secrets privilege. (Thanks to MB.)

It should have been noted that the 2004 intelligence budget
information published by the French government (SN, 01/28/04) is
far from complete. Thus, it explicitly excluded certain military
intelligence and hardware expenditures. Moreover, close students
of French intelligence say there are indications of other,
irregular forms of intelligence financing that leave no trace in
official budget records. (Thanks to HOB.)


FROM THE ARCHIVES: INTELLIGENCE REVIEW (1946)

Out of miles of declassified files, an old U.S. Army publication
called "Intelligence Review" recently surfaced. Intelligence
Review was a classified journal published after World War II and
prepared by the Army's Military Intelligence Service.

The first issue, dated 14 February 1946, explored a diversity of
topics and regional conflicts.

One paper with current resonance, bluntly entitled "Islam: A Threat
to World Stability," examined the dynamics of Islamic politics as
perceived at the time. Another paper, "Wheat: Key to the World's
Food Supply," addressed a global food shortage in 1946.

See Issue 1 of Intelligence Review (80 pages, 3.7 MB PDF file)
here:

www.fas.org/irp/agency/army/intelreview1.pdf


A FRENCH SHOE FOR INDOCHINA (1954)

A 1954 U.S. Army intelligence report viewed with admiration "a
significant achievement in French military footwear design."

The intelligence report, originally classified Confidential and
cleared for release in 1999, noted that the French "armored-sole
shoe" provided an effective defense against the concealed barbs
and spikes used by Viet Minh forces in Indochina.

See "French Develop Shoe with Puncture-Proof Sole to Reduce Foot
Casualties in Indochina," which appeared in the April-May 1954
edition of the Army's Intelligence Review, here:

www.fas.org/irp/agency/army/shoe.pdf


_______________________________________________
Secrecy News is written by Steven Aftergood and published by the
Federation of American Scientists.

To SUBSCRIBE to Secrecy News, send email to
secrecy_news-request (at) lists.fas.org
with "subscribe" in the body of the message.

OR email your request to saftergood (at) fas.org

Secrecy News is archived at:
www.fas.org/sgp/news/secrecy/index.html

_______________________
Steven Aftergood
Project on Government Secrecy
Federation of American Scientists
web: www.fas.org/sgp/index.html
email: saftergood (at) fas.org
voice: (202) 454-4691

------------------------------------------------------------------------
15) Take Action: Tell Houston's "Taste of the NFL XXXVIII" to take a stand on Gallo wines!

I responded to this campaign on behalf of Gallo of Sonoma farm
workers telling Houston's "Taste of the NFL XXXVIII" to take a
stand on Gallo wines!. I think it is important. Please get
involved too. Help the farm workers by e-mailing the
coordinators of "Taste of the NFL XXXVIII" and Matt Gallo with
Gallo of Sonoma today.

Thanks for lending your voice too.

You can take action by going to:
www.unionvoice.org/campaign/TasteofNFL


------------------------------------------------------------------------
16) LabourStart's Eric Lee

Dear brothers and sisters,

I wanted to invite you to consider an idea we've had to offer your union's members the best possible protection against spam and viruses, at the same time earning money for your union and supporting LabourStart. For full details, check out this page:

www.laborstart.org/mailwasherpro.shtml

If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to get in touch with me.

Eric Lee

Hey ! Check out:
radio.labourstart.org

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17) Ski Masks OUTLAWED despite cruel winter temperatures across US

Face of a Protester
LAPD wants to ban ski masks from demonstrators' wardrobes
by Robert Greene L.A. Weekly

The Los Angeles Police Department is seeking the fast track for new laws to ban face coverings, gas masks or even goggles at public demonstrations, where the devices could weaken officers who want to control crowds with pepper spray and other chemicals. The proposal advanced this week after Police Commission members dismissed any First Amendment objections as premature

Read it Here:
www.laweekly.com/ink/04/07/news-greene.php


Female GIs Report Rapes in Iraq War
37 seek aid after alleging sex assaults by U.S. soldiers
www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36%7E6439%7E1913069,00.html#


Reflections on "Living Out"
by Carlo Botero
Revolutio