Family tragedy as a Great Political Issue
Two weeks ago, few outside Florida had heard of Terri Schiavo. As of this writing, her family has run out of court appeals and legislative efforts to reconnect her feeding tube. This is probably not the end of the national horror show over the future of this brain-damaged woman or the Republicans’ use of a private, heartbreaking situation for their own ends. The case has implications for congressional intrusion into the most intimate areas of our lives and the separation between Congress and the courts.
Reproductive rights struggle in Missouri
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Nearly 500 members of Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri, the National Organization for Women and the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice converged here March 15 to pressure Republican Gov. Matt Blunt and the state Legislature to back off their assault on the reproductive rights of this state’s women.
Investment tip drink heavily and recycle
Labor editor’s note: A while back, cost-cutting employers began promoting stock market-based 401(k) plans as an alternative to pensions with defined benefits. Many of these 401(k) plans took a bath when the stock market dipped, so it’s no surprise that today workers have serious doubts about relying on the stock market to take care of them in their old age. In the spirit of April 1, the PWW offers the following plan, re-printed from an Internet message, to the retirement security debate.
Why are gasoline prices high?
As gas prices in the U.S. shoot up to record levels, the official explanation is that there is a supply and demand imbalance. Limits on production by oil-producing countries and growing petroleum usage by developing nations such as China are said to be responsible for skyrocketing gas prices for U.S. consumers. This storyline, however, hides more than it explains.
Pakistanis protest Rice visit
Supporters of Pakistan’s Labour Party protest near the U.S. consulate in Lahore, March 17, to condemn the visit of the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
WORLD NOTES
Britain: Rail union calls for public ownership. Bosnia-Herzegovina: CP leader fights firing from university. Pakistan: National strike against unemployment, privatization. Guatemala: Protest killings of demonstrators. S. Africa: Solidarity with food workers grows.
Haiti elections set to exclude key opponents
Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) recently announced that elections will take place later this year. Up for grabs will be local and regional posts in October and the presidency and legislative seats in November. One hundred forty parties are registered to participate and 100 candidates will run for president.
Joint appeal for a just peace in Mideast
The Communist parties of Israel and Jordan and the Palestinian People’s Party met March 13 in Amman, Jordan, to discuss a coordinated approach to U.S. imperialism and its strategy of “war, occupation, the theft of national resources, privatization and the enslavement of the people as a cheap work force for the multinational corporations.”
Brazil rejects Rumsfelds criticisms of Venezuela
Shortly after statements by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld questioning Venezuela’s recent weapons purchase, Brazil’s ruling Workers Party (PT) issued a statement in defense of Venezuela, asserting that Latin America is no longer an extension of the Unites States.
Parties cite dangers from U.S. policy toward Iran
A statement initiated by the Tudeh Party of Iran and joined by 62 left, Communist and workers parties around the world warns that U.S. policy toward Iran is part of Washington’s drive to control the Middle East politically, economically and militarily, and pledges solidarity with the popular movement for freedom and democracy in Iran.
