WHERE: Corner of Penn and Highland
WHAT: Birthday Party for Me!/ Something about a war... ***
THREE MILES FOR THREE YEARS
| This Saturday, March 18th, the Thomas Merton Center Anti-War Committee is organizing a permitted mass rally and march that begins at 1:00 pm at the corner of Penn and Highland. The event kicks off with performances by Soma Mestizo, Short Dark Strangers and poet Debra Bowen followed by a few brief remarks by local activists. MARCH! Then, at 2:30 pm we will lead a three mile march that spans three neighborhoods, marking three years since the U.S.-led war on Iraq began. The march will proceed from the East Liberty Presbyterian Church to the Shadyside shopping district before terminating at Oakland military recruiting station on Forbes Avenue. (If you're worried about getting back to East Liberty note that there are several buses that can take you there: 71C, 77C, 78C and the 81B.) |  |
BLOCS: Throw on your pink attire and join regional Codepink chapters for their fiesty Pink Bloc. Look for the big "Impeach Bush" banner...Or, join Pittsburgh Organizing Group's raucous Youth/Counter-Recruitment contingent. Look for the Youth Against Militarism banner at Baum and Liberty. Other contingents include Anti-Racist Action's Radical Pro-Choice Contingent and the free-wheeling Drop Bikes not Bombs protest ride that meets up in Friendship park at 1pm.
Or march with Democracy for Pittsburgh (one of the sponsors)/Allegheny for Pennacchio. We'll meet up at PNC office on 5934 Baum Boulevard at 12:30PM. It's about 2 blocks from the rally, has a parking lot and the bank itself closed on Saturday. (Mapquest -- Please note, there is also a PNC bank located on the corner of Penn & Highland. This is NOT the location that DFP will meet at, but instead we'll meet at a nearby PNC bank with a parking lot.) We will then walk together a couple of blocks to the rally at Penn and Highland. There will also be some of us with signs/support for Chuck Pennacchio, who is the only candidate in the race for Pennsylvania Senator, who actaully has an exit strategy for our troops to bring them home from this terrible war. (Any questions, please email or call Janis Williams at 412-680-1626/janis.jmw@comcast.net . ) Please make a sign!!!
AFTER THE MARCH: we invite you to join us for a post-march chill-down at the Shadow Lounge (5972 Baum Blvd., East Liberty) from 5:30 to 8:00 pm. Or join us for a special screening of Why We Fight at the Regent Square Theater (1035 S. Braddock Ave, Edgewood) at 9:15pm. Why We Fight is Eugene Jarecki's new must-see documentary about the military industrial complex. Representatives of the Thomas Merton Center will be present to introduce the film and lead a discussion afterwards.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: If you'd like to help out on the day of the event, come to a meeting at 12:30 pm at the rally site. Complete details can be found at http://www.pittsburghendthewar.org/.
***More than 300 events are being held across the country for my birthday! Check for one in you area here!
SPY-IN TO RESIST FBI & PENTAGON SPYING AND INTIMIDATION
| You've heard of sit-ins, sleep-ins and die-ins. Well, you are invited to resist the FBI and Pentagon spying on local anti-war activists and join us for a SPY-IN on Tuesday, March 21st, 12-1pm at the Federal Buildling downtown (Grant and Liberty). Dress in spy gear––trench coats, black suits/fedoras (a la Abramoff), sunglasses, etc., try your local thrift shop. Bring cameras, toy cameras, note pads, binocs, telescopes. Organized by Thomas Merton Center Anti-War Committee and Pittsburgh Bill of Rights Defense Campaign. |  |
Also consider filing your own Freedom of Information Act request to find out if the Feds have been watching. Attend the "File your own FOIA" party at the Thomas Merton Center on Wednesday, March 29th, 7pm.
Learn more about the recent release of documents which show that Thomas Merton Center anti-war efforts are being targeted by the FBI.
Happy Birthday Maria! I'm sorry I'll be missing the rally. Last year, I marched on a (unknown to me) broken foot. Sad to think an entire year has passed.
ReplyDeleteThe plan I am sending you has been approved by many prominent thinkers and
ReplyDeleteactivists in the field. Which includes: Benjamin Ferencz, Chief Prosecutor
at the Nuremburg Trials, Tom Hayden, Matthew Rothschild, Danny Schecter,
Tony Benn- Former Member of the British parliment ,Reggie Rivers,
Robert Jenkins, Andrew Bard Schmookler and others.
I formulated this plan in September 2004, based on a comprehensive
study of the issues. For my plan to be successful it must be implemented
with all seven points beginning to happen within a very short period of
time.
I have run up against a wall of doubt about my plan due to it's
rational nature ,and due to it's adherence to placing the blame on the
invaders, and then trying to formulate a process of extrication which would
put all entities in this conflict face to face, to begin to finally solve
the dilemmas that exist.
If you read my plan you will see that it is guided by a reasonable
and practical compromise that could end this war and alleviate the
internecine civil violence that is confronting Iraq at this juncture in it's
history.
I am making a plea for my plan to be put into action on a wide-scale.
I need you to circulate it and use all the persuasion you have to bring it
to the attention of those in power.
Just reading my plan and sending off an e-mail to me that you received
it will not be enough.
This war must end-we who oppose it can do this by using my plan.
We must fight the power and end the killing.
If you would like to view some comments and criticism about my plan
I direct you to my blog: sevenpointman
Thank you my dear friend,
Howard Roberts
A Seven-point plan for an Exit Strategy in Iraq
1) A timetable for the complete withdrawal of American and British forces
must be announced.
I envision the following procedure, but suitable fine-tuning can be
applied by all the people involved.
A) A ceasefire should be offered by the Occupying side to
representatives of both the Sunni insurgency and the Shiite community. These
representatives would be guaranteed safe passage, to any meetings. The
individual insurgency groups would designate who would attend.
At this meeting a written document declaring a one-month ceasefire,
witnessed by a United Nations authority, will be fashioned and eventually
signed. This document will be released in full, to all Iraqi newspapers, the
foreign press, and the Internet.
B) US and British command will make public its withdrawal, within
sixth-months of 80 % of their troops.
C) Every month, a team of United Nations observers will verify the
effectiveness of the ceasefire.
All incidences on both sides will be reported.
D) Combined representative armed forces of both the Occupying
nations and the insurgency organizations that agreed to the cease fire will
protect the Iraqi people from actions by terrorist cells.
E) Combined representative armed forces from both the Occupying
nations and the insurgency organizations will begin creating a new military
and police force. Those who served, without extenuating circumstances, in
the previous Iraqi military or police, will be given the first option to
serve.
F) After the second month of the ceasefire, and thereafter, in
increments of 10-20% ,a total of 80% will be withdrawn, to enclaves in Qatar
and Bahrain. The governments of these countries will work out a temporary
land-lease housing arrangement for these troops. During the time the troops
will be in these countries they will not stand down, and can be re-activated
in the theater, if both the chain of the command still in Iraq, the newly
formed Iraqi military, the leaders of the insurgency, and two international
ombudsman (one from the Arab League, one from the United Nations), as a
majority, deem it necessary.
G) One-half of those troops in enclaves will leave three-months after they
arrive, for the United States or other locations, not including Iraq.
H) The other half of the troops in enclaves will leave after
six-months.
I) The remaining 20 % of the Occupying troops will, during this six
month interval, be used as peace-keepers, and will work with all the
designated organizations, to aid in reconstruction and nation-building.
J) After four months they will be moved to enclaves in the above
mentioned countries.
They will remain, still active, for two month, until their return to
the States, Britain and the other involved nations.
2) At the beginning of this period the United States will file a letter with
the Secretary General of the Security Council of the United Nations, making
null and void all written and proscribed orders by the CPA, under R. Paul
Bremer. This will be announced and duly noted.
3) At the beginning of this period all contracts signed by foreign countries
will be considered in abeyance until a system of fair bidding, by both
Iraqi and foreign countries, will be implemented ,by an interim Productivity
and Investment Board, chosen from pertinent sectors of the Iraqi economy.
Local representatives of the 18 provinces of Iraq will put this board
together, in local elections.
4) At the beginning of this period, the United Nations will declare that
Iraq is a sovereign state again, and will be forming a Union of 18
autonomous regions. Each region will, with the help of international
experts, and local bureaucrats, do a census as a first step toward the
creation of a municipal government for all 18 provinces. After the census, a
voting roll will be completed. Any group that gets a list of 15% of the
names on this census will be able to nominate a slate of representatives.
When all the parties have chosen their slates, a period of one-month will be
allowed for campaigning.
Then in a popular election the group with the most votes will represent that
province.
When the voters choose a slate, they will also be asked to choose five
individual members of any of the slates.
The individuals who have the five highest vote counts will represent a
National government.
This whole process, in every province, will be watched by international
observers as well as the local bureaucrats.
During this process of local elections, a central governing board, made up
of United Nations, election governing experts, insurgency organizations, US
and British peacekeepers, and Arab league representatives, will assume the
temporary duties of administering Baghdad, and the central duties of
governing.
When the ninety representatives are elected they will assume the legislative
duties of Iraq for two years.
Within three months the parties that have at least 15% of the
representatives will nominate candidates for President and Prime Minister.
A national wide election for these offices will be held within three months
from their nomination.
The President and the Vice President and the Prime Minister will choose
their cabinet, after the election.
5) All debts accrued by Iraq will be rescheduled to begin payment, on the
principal after one year, and on the interest after two years. If Iraq is
able to handle another loan during this period she should be given a grace
period of two years, from the taking of the loan, to comply with any
structural adjustments.
6) The United States and the United Kingdom shall pay Iraq reparations for
its invasion in the total of 120 billion dollars over a period of twenty
years for damages to its infrastructure. This money can be defrayed as
investment, if the return does not exceed 6.5 %.
7) During the beginning period Saddam Hussein and any other prisoners who
are deemed by a Council of Iraqi Judges, elected by the National
representative body, as having committed crimes will be put up for trial.
The trial of Saddam Hussein will be before seven judges, chosen from this
Council of Judges.
One judge, one jury, again chosen by this Council, will try all other
prisoners.
All defendants will have the right to present any evidence they want, and to
choose freely their own lawyers.
Putting responsibility and depending on the United Nations for anything is fubar. The United Nations is filled with nothing more than Euroweenie, anti-Americans. Why bother? I mean, look how long it took for them to "verify" that there were no WMDs in Iraq, when Hussein had literal months to hide them and move them to Syria. By the way, I love how you folks ignore the tapes that were uncovered which contained Hussein himself speaking of WMDs and future terror to hit the West. Oh wait, you guys probably think those tapes were made up by Bush to promote the War in Iraq.
ReplyDelete"6) The United States and the United Kingdom shall pay Iraq reparations for
ReplyDeleteits invasion in the total of 120 billion dollars over a period of twenty
years for damages to its infrastructure. This money can be defrayed as
investment, if the return does not exceed 6.5 %."
Reparations?? Who's going to pay reparations for 9/11? I don't see any of you people complaining about that. I don't see any of you people feeling for the families of those who lost loved ones. Instead, you and your cronies will support illegal immigrants marching in Chicago, all while they get away with it. Why weren't these people arrested? After they are, they're ILLEGAL immigrants. You people are really ant-American, aren't you? All of you live in a pre-9/11 world, that much is blatantly obvious.
Braden-
ReplyDeleteLet me now address your comments:
1) IRAQ COMPLETELY DESTROYED ALL ITS WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION, WITH THE HELP OF UNSCOM BEFORE 1996.
NOT ONE ATOM OF THESE MATERIALS EXISTED AFTER THAT DATE.
2) My plan facilitates many global and local agencies, as well as the United States military.
It balances the needs of the population of the Iraqis
with our global responsibilities.
3) In the latest discovery of tapes by Saddam Hussein he clearly warned America that jihadists forces would be endangering the area if he was overthrown.
Since their were no Jihadists in Iraq during his regime, and now they make up about 1 or 2 percent of the fighters there, he was correct in his assessment.
He also tried to warned us about the impending possibility of 9-11, that he learned about from his own intelligence service in Kurdistan, but we blew him off.
4) If and when we find those people, who are alive, who were responsible for the attack on the Towers, we should freeze all their assets, and distribute it to the victims of 9-11.
5) Reparations are a result of fighting an illegal war and breaking many things, It also covers the material harm perpetrated by sanctions-which were imposed without reason.
6) SADDAM WAS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR 9-11 !!!!!!
When i found out, in the same poll where 72% of the American troops want us to withdraw from Iraq
in less than a year, that 85% thought Saddam had something to do with it, I was so angry at our ignorant military-media propaganda neo-con regime.
7) You lost me on the last point about immigrants.
Explain.
I won't argue with someone who ignores the truth. You only know what CBS News, along with the rest of the mainstream media tells you. I have several sources IN Iraq, and believe you me, what you see and hear about the going ons in Iraq as reported by the mainstream media here is completely falsified. It's just more of the liberal media attempting to Vietnamese this war on terror.
ReplyDeleteNow, before you go out on your tangent, perhaps you should ask yourself how leaving Saddam Hussein in power could promote peace, and justice to the people of Iraq.
Liberal media-CBS news !
ReplyDeleteA psychotic position of the right once more thrown in the face of the truth.
99.9% of all media is controlled, like a tortured prisoner in any U.S-iraqi death squad prison, by
neo-conservative corporate cheer leaders for capital.
As for your sources: they are embeded in the propaganda machine- and have no independent contact with the Iraqi people-and can never leave their determined listening posts for more than fifteen minutes -to shop, relate or draw inferences.
I am more interested in how Saddam got into power than the phony end game of regime change.
The seventh point of my plan implements a legal vehicle to punish all people who committed crimes against the iraqi people, including Saddam.
The smirking chimp replaced the Butcher of Baghdad with the Butchers of Teheran and Beirut,
being coached and orchestrated by the Butcher of
Washington.
What's the difference ?
Read my plan more carefully, this time !
Sir, your plan does nothing but ignore the truth and foster anti-Americanism over here. So, my sources who are directly within Iraq are wrong, and you are right, of course. See, the truth doesn't matter to you, no matter what. In your eyes, the truth is thy enemy. Oh well, may the blind lead the blind in your case.
ReplyDeleteBraden-
ReplyDeleteWere any of your responses to Col. Hackwood's questionaire positive ?
Do you reside in any of the eighteen provinces of iraq ?
Are you under the protection of any intelligence agency or organization-or are you a free lance nomad ?
Are you working in a project for a corporate interest in Iraq ?
Are you an embeded journalist ?
Are you receiving any briefings from any internal military unit ?
Are you outside the country-and are getting e-mails from military personel who you strongly trust are conveying the facts ?
Are you corresponding with a newspaper or videorapher who is under the auspices of CentCom?
Are you a retired military veteran with connections?
Are you an Iraqi citizen living in exile ?
Are you a native iraqi ?
If your answer to any of these questions is yes-you will probably agree with most of my plan.
What is Anti-American about honestly seeking a solution to a dangerous, illegal policy of a government that has constantly lied to it's citizens,
killed and maimed thousands, tortured hundreds,
stole billions, spyed on millions, and won't listen to the majority of its peoples desires for a reasonable exit strategy, to save lives and prevent more acts of terrorism.
I think our government is as about Anti-American as it gets ?
Is this too much truth for you ?
Read my plan.
Pass it on to your contacts.
Let them choose for themselves !!
"I think our government is as about Anti-American as it gets"
ReplyDeleteAllow me to translate the above statement for you. What you're really saying is that you think our government is about as anti-American as it gets ONLY when a Republican is in office. Because 8 years of the Clinton Administration were glorious times for you. Also, if a Democrat were in office right now, you'd be hailing this as a historical event for all humanity. It just so happens a Democrat isn't in office, which is obvious as far as Democrats are concerned judging by their actions. It's laughable. Really, it is. *sniff sniff* Oh man, the strong scent of hypocrisy cometh from you, sir.
Braden-
ReplyDeleteI ferociously attacked Bill Clinton's policies on using sanctions to kill and impoverise iraqis, his grotesque daily bombings of Iraqi villages when he ordered the internationally illegal no-fly zone pilots to jam Iraqi radar to pinpoint targets, his monstrous disregard of the genocide in Rwanda, his blatant and cruel bombing of Serbia for more than a month, his support of every program designed to strengthen demonic globalization, his cozying up to pharmaceutical czars who, with his help, blocked the lowering of Aids drug prices, for the millions who died in Africa , his covert training of former muhjadeen fighters to transport arms to rebels in Afghanistan(with the help of the Saudis) in an attempt to secure the rights to the oil pipeline, his implementation of a regime change for iraq, etc.
I am not a supporter of the two-winged corporate
plutocracy we call a two party system.
As far as i am concerned they are the lesser of two weasals.
I support the sustainable participatory rights, laws
and cultures of human praxis of the multitude, against the empire.
Now that I have set the record straight, could you begin to answer my questions, and start posing
new ones about my plan?