People Before Profit blog

Letters

Fri, 27 Feb 2004 06:58:00 +0000

Liked excerpt from Du Bois

I really enjoy the (W.E.B. Du Bois) article. I wish we had more information like this ... but more visible. Because I know there are positive things happening in the Black community. I really enjoy reading about Black history. And reading other people’s views.

Paul WilliamsVia e-mail

Bush’s new world order

Your streamer-banner headline, “Voters riled by war, health costs, economy,” (PWW, 1/31-2/6) really did hit the mark about Bush and his administration and may hurt him in the election in November.

Hitler, it is known, was influenced by Nietzsche. And Nietzsche said that he would not worship science if he couldn’t worship at the altar of God, hence nazism became a new religion, in itself, of nationalism and “national socialism.”

Bush is not a fascist with a new religion but he listened to the war hawks about Iraq and hence, the war.

Your little paper is of high excellence and enclosed is a donation for your trouble.

George T. Gaylord Jr. Tustin CA

Lawmakers’ special treatment

After reading your article about the job situation I wondered could this be part of the problem? Our senators and Congress members do not pay into Social Security and they do not collect from it. They feel they should have a special plan for themselves. You and I pick up the tab for this plan. It is a great plan: when they retire they continue to draw the same pay until they die, except it may increase from time to time for cost-of-living adjustments.

Social Security could be very good if only one small change were made: jerk the “golden fleece” retirement plan from under the senators and Congress members. Put them into the Social Security plan with the rest of us … then sit back and watch how fast they would fix it.

Debra A. HarperLos Angeles CA

Bulgarian blues

A few weeks ago I dropped off some Kucinich literature to the gas station attendant where I get my gas. Last week, when I was pumping, he came out and talked with me. He indicated he would vote for Kucinich, but couldn’t because he is from Bulgaria and is not eligible.

He indicated that things in Bulgaria were good before the collapse of the Soviet Union and they had universal health care as Kucinich has proposed for our country. He indicated people in Bulgaria are very dissatisfied with the U.S. domination since the collapse. He said people were unhappy with the dismantling of the social network including universal health care, and free education for all. Interesting.

P. ThomasHouston TX

Homophobes and property

The homophobes are afraid that people celebrating their love will destroy civilization. That’s obviously stupid, so it must be something else: property. The homophobes seem to have this misogynistic fantasy that the basis of marriage is male property rights. The true Christian says that love will conquer all, in spite of those who bastardize Jesus’ teachings.

Richard CurtisVia e-mail

Bush’s insider trading

George W. Bush’s four Harken stock transactions, worth more than $1 million, while on the board of directors of Harken, were months over deadline reporting to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bush claims he had no idea Harken was in trouble when he dumped his stock in late June 1990. But he was warned twice by Harken’s CEO that Harken would run out of money before the end of the month. The stock Bush sold for $4 was selling for $3 two months later and fell to around a dollar. Bush violated federal securities laws on three other occasions during his tenure at Harken by missing the deadline for filing documents about his stock transactions with the SEC. He reaped a windfall in profits by purchasing the additional shares before they were sold on the New York Stock Exchange. An internal SEC memorandum concluded he broke the law, but no charges were filed. Everyone insists this had nothing to do with the fact that his father was president.

Peter LeaheyNew York NY

Editorials

Fri, 27 Feb 2004 06:49:00 +0000

End U.S.-backed bloodshed in Haiti!

Haiti is in deep crisis, with so-called rebels overrunning the country’s second-largest city, Cap-Haitien, and threatening to attack the capital, Port-au-Prince, in a bid to violently overthrow the democratically-elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

The three-week-old rebellion is led by right-wing, criminal elements associated with the bloody regime of the notorious “Papa Doc” Duvalier and the fascist-like military government of the early 1990s that wantonly killed 5,000 Haitians in a reign of terror. Several prominent leaders of the rebellion have longstanding ties to the CIA.

The paramilitary gangs rampaging across the northern half of Haiti have been executing Aristide’s supporters and burning government buildings. If they succeed in invading the capital, a terrible bloodbath will certainly ensue.

The rebels have plenty of arms, most originating from the United States. The weapons come from remnants of the disbanded U.S.-backed army of the early ’90s and, reportedly, from the Dominican Republic, a large recipient of U.S. military aid. Aristide has only a 3,500-member, poorly equipped police force.

The terrorist-like “contras” have formed an unholy alliance with opposition elements in the capital dominated by the wealthy elite, including sweatshop owners. They, too, want Aristide ousted so they can more freely exploit the Haitian people and serve their U.S. corporate masters.

Having spurned all offers to negotiate a political solution (unlike Aristide, who has welcomed negotiations), this unholy alliance is now poised to bring down Aristide in a coup.

Though Secretary of State Colin Powell has said the U.S. is not seeking “regime change,” that is precisely what is under way. For years the U.S. government has imposed a financial blockade on Haiti, starving it of needed funds. At the same time, both the U.S. and France have been funneling money to opposition political groups and radio stations.

Military intervention is not the answer to the crisis. The U.S. should stop its destabilization campaign, release much-needed humanitarian funds and loans to Haiti, and stop aiding the terrorists and the opposition. No coup in Haiti! No U.S. intervention!

* * * * * *

No discrimination in the Constitution

Taking his State of the Union threats one step further, George W. Bush this week encouraged Congress and the states to pass a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. This divisive step would promote perpetual bias and inequality.

Bush’s Feb. 24 speech has already drawn ire from both Republicans and Democrats. While some oppose the idea because they are reluctant to engage in a struggle over amending the Constitution, more oppose it on the basis that this measure is open bigotry and a form of “gay-bashing.”

They rightly feel that an amendment banning gay marriage would be a codification of discrimination. Historically, constitutional amendments have expanded the rights of citizens. The rights that most people hold dear – the freedom of speech, religion, the right to vote, the end of slavery – have been the result of struggles to amend the Constitution to guarantee equality. The idea of using this document to forever keep a section of the population as second-class citizens is appalling.

Bush’s action may very well blow up in his face, with voters recognizing it as an election-year maneuver to appeal to the most conservative sections of the voting public. Nevertheless, the people’s movements must unite to ensure that this move is stopped.

Marriage laws and civil unions are currently issues decided by states. Bush’s attempt to mold the Constitution into an instrument to enshrine discrimination should be used as a call to action to guarantee his removal from office in November and a resounding defeat to the forces of reaction and bigotry.

Memory & History

Fri, 20 Feb 2004 06:55:00 +0000

NEW YORK – From 1892 to its official close in 1954, more than 12 million immigrants passed through the gates of New York’s Ellis Island, yearning for freedom and a new life on American shores. The residue of their experiences, as well as the lives they left behind, lives on in the work of Italian American artist B. Amore and Jewish American artist Pauline Jakobsberg.

“Memory & History,” an exhibition at Queens College’s Godwin-Ternbach Museum, will feature the work of these artists. The exhibition opened Feb. 18 and runs through June 4.

Through their uniquely individual yet universal artwork, Amore and Jakobsberg explore the themes of immigration, family, and history, and in the process confront the highly charged subjects of personal and group cultural memory. In these artworks, family photographs, letters, keepsakes, and personal items mingle with family stories, nostalgia, and history.

“B. Amore’s work is colorful and sculptural, while Jakobsberg’s is quiet, with the specter of the Holocaust present in its dark, graphic tones,” said Amy Winter, curator of the exhibition and director of the Godwin-Ternbach Museum.

“The exhibition touches on sociology, history, and cultural identity,” Winter said. One topic this exhibition will begin to explore is the nature of the early wave of immigration at the turn of the 20th century and that of the “new immigration‚ currently occurring in Queens and all over the United States.”

On Wed., Feb. 25 at 12 noon, Dr. Winter will lead a tour of the exhibition. This free event is open to the public. No reservations are needed.

Located in Klapper Hall on the Flushing campus (65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, Queens, Exit 24, LIE), the museum is open Monday to Thursday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., and for this exhibition, on Saturdays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. For more information, call (718) 997-4724 or (718) 997-4736.

Letters

Fri, 20 Feb 2004 06:05:00 +0000

Uncle Fred was larger than life

A special thanks to Tim Wheeler for his article about my uncle, Fred Gaboury. Tim’s family knew Fred well. Uncle Fred was definitely larger than life. When I was growing up I was afraid of this big man. It was not until my late teens that I really saw the other side of him. Uncle Fred always stood up for what he believed in and will be missed by many. Thank you again.

Caren Sherwin RatnourVia e-mail

Keep fighting in Fred’s spirit

To all who worked with and knew my Uncle Fred (Gaboury), I would just like to say thank you for the piece written by Tim Wheeler regarding my great-uncle’s prolific life and his recent passing (PWW, 2/14-20). May you all continue to be true to the PWW’s slogan, “We take sides ...Yours!” and always remember how important your jobs as journalists-writers are. It takes a lot of courage and strength to speak up against social injustices and inequality and thank goodness there are people out there who find that courage and strength on a daily basis.

Christine Ratnour-OrtizVia e-mail

Reject ‘attack politics’

Please remember that during the election season both parties will viciously attack one another, and it is up to you to separate fact from fiction. At the moment, Bush seems to be on the losing end with there being no WMDs, no jobs, and a patchy military record, so in defense he’s planted a rumor about Kerry and an intern. This to me is beyond disgusting. Please remember how important your role is to the average American, and don’t give in to innuendo or gossip. The media is losing respect daily, and you can stop this by reporting the truth.

Steven FishmanNew York NY

A Sunday afternoon in Florida

After a minor lapse in handing out copies of People’s Weekly World, I felt Sunday would be a great chance for me to start distributing a bundle of PWW newspapers. For such a task, I now wear my de rigueur Cuban Five red T-shirt, with “Prisioneros del Imperio” on the front. I prefer to load my bicycle into the van, park the car in a convenient location, and to work the streets and neighborhoods on my bike, handing out PWW papers at random. I selected the usual routes as before – the labor pools, grocery stores, laundromats, and convenience stores scattered around the poorer sections of town. I no longer have any apprehension about approaching complete strangers on the street. In most cases, they are quite happy to receive a free copy of the PWW. Passing by a newspaper stand, I read the headline: “Heroes welcomed back in town!” How is it that we can create “heroes” in this manner, after we easily overthrow a poor, impoverished country with overwhelmingly superior firepower in a matter of months, if not in weeks or days? No, I thought to myself, the real heroes have been living here all along, the American people with whom I came into contact today, the ones who must struggle in the daily battles of human survival, without having a job, without any money, without any hope of finding a permanent home to live in. For the most part, the enemies in this very real war are unemployment, homelessness, poverty, racism, lack of medical care and insurance. And who will choose to fight on their side? At least I hope I have given them a little bit of encouragement with the PWW, a newspaper always dedicated to defending the interests of the working class.

Nathan M. GantSanford FL

Tackle Minnesota poverty

Rep. Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.) should be asked what he intends to do to help reverse impoverishment of working people in Minnesota. Four remedies come to mind: To drastically increase the minimum wage to a living wage; for organized labor to take up the question of organizing the unorganized; to restrict the work week in the industrial sector to 36 hours with 40 hours’ pay so many more people work in well-paying jobs; and to restrict the hemorrhaging of our jobs to low-wage areas overseas. Another thing that would go a long way toward alleviating poverty is for the U.S. to implement a universal, comprehensive, single-payer health care system. Many working people are thrown into poverty when confronted with huge medical bills. This dirty war in Iraq is not only causing senseless human misery, but the financial costs will continue to mount … these resources could be used to alleviate poverty. Instead, those programs that assist the poor will be cut to pay for Bush’s war for oil. Hopefully with a new president in November, UN peacekeepers will go into Iraq as U.S. troops are pulled out.

Alan L. MakiWarroad MN

Editorials

Fri, 20 Feb 2004 05:59:00 +0000

Wisconsin surprise

Wisconsin produced some surprises with Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) coming in a close second to Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), thanks to Edwards strong appeal to independents in the state’s open primary Feb. 17. Kerry will face a continued challenge that is likely to turn out record numbers of voters for the March 2 Super Tuesday primary in eight states.

So far the enthusiasm, and the underlying unity against the ultra-right displayed in the primaries, bodes well for the general elections in November.

Wisconsin was the end point for former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who poured a lot into the state and came up with a third-place finish. While falling short of early expectations, Dean’s role in the primary should not be dismissed. He played a galvanizing role in this primary season, laying the basis for a voter movement to defeat Bush Nov. 2. He and his supporters used the Internet, phone banking, and “meet-ups” to pull millions, especially first-time voters, into the anti-Bush crusade. Dean’s early antiwar message helped to energize the more progressive segments of the electorate. He also spoke out against racism and urged multiracial unity. He garnered important labor and Democratic endorsements. All in all, the movement and message helped to push current frontrunners Kerry and Edwards to embrace a more combative, populist stance, exposing the bankrupt “Republican lite” policies of the more conservative Democratic Leadership Council.

After Iowa, the media gang-up with Dean’s speech, the governor’s own negative responses, and voters’ worry about “electability,” his campaign never recovered.

Some have voiced fears that Dean’s movement will fall apart, that his supporters will sit out the election. Our hunch is that the millions who poured into the Dean movement are in this fight until victory. It transcends any particular candidate. Many put it simply: “Anybody but Bush.”

* * * * * *

Bush’s Afghanistan

With 15 weeks until Afghanistan’s elections, only 8 percent of the nation’s 10.5 million eligible voters have registered and only 2 percent of eligible women. Even these voters are clustered in Kabul and a handful of other cities. The countryside is so dangerous it is impossible to venture out to register people.

The United Nations hopes to register millions but UN envoy Jean Arnault warns that it may be necessary to postpone the election.

Last week Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, convened a hearing on opium production in Afghanistan, pointing out that the narcotic is 50 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. Afghanistan could become a “narco-terrrorist state,” he warned. It already supplies 70 percent of the world’s heroin, and last year, opium production doubled.

There is a mountain of evidence that the CIA trafficked in drugs – from opium during the Vietnam War to crack cocaine during former President Ronald Reagan’s “dirty war” in Central America. It would be foolish to expect the Bush-Cheney gang to eradicate the opium scourge and shepherd Afghanistan toward democracy. They have a class interest in perpetuating the trade.

The real hope lies in redoubling UN assistance, pulling U.S. troops out, and helping the Afghan people establish the infrastructure of a civil society in which the rights of labor, women and national minorities are protected. It means creating the wherewithal for Afghan farmers to grow urgently needed food and fiber. It means providing low interest loans to build factories, roads, schools, and hospitals. Money for rebuilding Afghanistan should be taken from U.S. corporate war profits and oil companies, like Unocal, which still seeks to build a pipeline there.

The war against Afghanistan has often been referred to as a dress rehearsal for Iraq. The current state of affairs in Afghanistan serves as a warning. The U.S. administration’s plans for supposedly “bringing democracy” to the region is nothing but a fig leaf for disaster.

LABOR UPDATE

Fri, 20 Feb 2004 05:05:00 +0000

Government adopts ‘Wal-Mart’ personnel policies

Hundreds of federal workers, members of American Federation of Government Employees, took to Capitol Hill last week to protest a new personnel plan for the Department of Defense that would eliminate collective bargaining for nearly 750,000 civilian employees.

Last year Congress gave Defense Secretary Rumsfeld the power to rewrite the department’s personnel rules. Rumsfeld argued that managers needed more power over the work force in the name of the war on terrorism. John Gage, president of the AFGE, called the new rules “union-busting,” and said, “This has nothing to do with national security.”

Under the new rules, current collective bargaining contracts would not be renewed, and management could institute policy changes that conflict with existing contracts.

“The Bush administration would like to dictate that federal workers have no more options and right than the typical Wal-Mart worker,” said John Sweeney, president of the AFL-CIO.

Flower growers stink

Dozens of Central Coast flower workers were fired on Feb. 6, four days after the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board certified their election for the United Farm Workers Union. The UFW says 24 workers were fired for trying to improve working conditions at the nursery owned by Watsonville, Calif.-based McCahon Floral. They seek clean bathrooms, decent drinking water and fair pay. The UFW is asking consumers to pressure Trader Joe’s, one of McCahon’s biggest customers, not to carry its potted plants.

Judge puts anti-union reporting rules on hold

A one-year injunction has halted the enforcement of new financial reporting rules for unions. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler came in response to an AFL-CIO lawsuit challenging the Bush administration’s proposed new rules which the federation says could cost local and national unions as much as $1 billion a year. The rules would require unions to devote vast amounts of time and money to purchase new computers and train staff to fill out forms. Judge Kessler wrote that forcing unions to wade through bureaucratic red tape on such short notice would cause unions “irreparable harm.”

Unless things change, future jobs will pay less

The Steelworkers Union Rapid Response newsletter says, “According to a forecast released Feb. 11 by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, a large share of new jobs will be in occupations that don’t require a lot of education and pay below average. Indeed, educated workers are hardly exempt from the forces roiling the economy. In fact, the Economic Policy Institute calculates that workers with at least a bachelor’s degree have seen a bigger increase in long-term unemployment since 2000 than workers with a high school degree or less.”

The report points out that workers with less education are being battered by two powerful forces. Computerization and automation are wiping out jobs in both manufacturing and office work. Offshoring is sending other jobs abroad.

Steelworkers for Healthcare

Over 110,000 Steelworker union members have signed on to a petition calling for support of the “USWA Health Care Bill of Rights for All Americans.” The Bill of Rights calls for universal health care coverage, cost controls and a prescription drug benefit for all, according to the Feedback Report of the USWA Rapid Response network. In addition to asking co-workers to sign the petition, local unions’ Rapid Response teams from across the U.S. have met with their congresspersons and delivered the signed petitions.

Poverty reduction key to peace

Overwhelming majorities in both industrialized and developing countries believe that “poverty reduction is key to achieving global peace and stability.” So says the International Labor Organization’s newsletter, ILO Focus, reporting on a survey on globalization conducted by the World Bank among leaders in government, labor, business media and academia. Poverty reductions will be difficult, the survey report admitted, given that the gap between rich and poor has widened in the respective countries.

Labor Update is compiled by Roberta Wood (rwood@pww.org). Jackie LaValle contributed to this report.

Letters

Fri, 13 Feb 2004 06:48:00 +0000

Patriotism and the left

Emil Shaw’s recent contribution (PWW 1/31-2/6) could serve as a catalyst for a much-needed debate on the left regarding the proper role and function of patriotism.

In his book “Land of Idols: Political Mythology in America,” author Michael Parenti draws a useful distinction between super patriotism (also know as pseudo-patriotism) and genuine or progressive patriotism.

When these two patriotisms collide, the left has a tremendous advantage (although many on the left don’t realize this). Stripped to its bare essentials, super patriotism consists of an almost pathological desire to kill and die for one’s country, combined with an excessive preoccupation about how much freedom exists within nations deemed official enemies by the U.S. moneyed elite.

Progressive patriotism is far more attractive. While not for a minute neglecting the building of friendships with citizens of other countries, progressive patriots pay healthy attention to the standard of living, civil liberties and democratic rights of those residing within our own borders. Progressive patriots unapologetically embrace a form of enlightened self-interest. Our concern is not with a contentless reverence for the United States as an abstract entity. We are far too busy involving ourselves in popular struggles that will improve the lives of the flesh and blood individuals who make up our great and diverse nation.

Adam MinskyBrookline MA

Liked story on 9/11 inquiry

Just came across your excellent article “Questions about 9/11 refuse to go away,” by C.F. Niles (PWW 1/24-30). Please keep up the good work.

M. Grimes Rockville MD

Bush an ‘evil pirate’

I enjoy reading the PWW’s articles, especially those that criticize Bush and Cheney. Please keep on printing stories that condemn Bush and keep on discrediting him. I think President Bush is an evil pirate and rotten to the core. I also do not want them elected another term. Nov. 2 is “ejection day” for Bush. Let’s show him the door. He needs a pink slip. We would all be even happier to get Bush-Cheney out before Nov. 2. After Bush is fired he should be put on a one-way bus ride back to his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Even better would be to send him to Mars. Keep up the good work and reach out to voters to vote Bush out forever!

Edward BroderickWest Haven CT

Wants wider scope on sports

I was greatly pleased to see the addition of a regular sports section in the PWW, which began several months ago. Chas Walker brings a welcome new element to the PWW, and does an excellent job at it as well.

However, I have never considered myself a football fan, and I have found myself skipping over the column a lot recently, as it seems there has been nothing but football coverage. How about some NHL coverage? Some coverage of women’s sports? Maybe even box scores? Or even some perspective on issues in sports such as corporate ownership, contract struggles, or male dominance and chauvinism within the industry?

Gabriel SmithBuffalo NY

Kucinich still raising issues

The following is excerpted from Rep. Dennis Kucinich’s (D-Ohio) Feb. 11 audio postcard message to campaign supporters.

Well, there’s been a lot of excitement around the country after we finished third in both Maine and in Washington state. And I can tell you that people are now starting to take another look at our campaign because they realize that we have the ability not only to finish in the money, but that we have the ability to change the whole debate.

The debate is needed so much now on Iraq. All the other candidates would like not to talk about it, and yet as we have 130,000 troops there who could be there for years and years, we understand our obligation to keep that issue in the forefront. The same goes for not-for-profit health care and with canceling NAFTA and the WTO, starting a whole new debate on what we can do to keep jobs in this country.

As you know, ultimately what the race ends up being about, as far as the Presidency, is the ability to gather delegates … to be able to put together a block of delegates that will put us in contention at the convention in Boston.

So I’m asking you to continue to keep organizing … to continue to keep showing the kind of dynamic courage, the quality of heart, which each and every one of you who have supported this campaign along the way have demonstrated.

Dennis KucinichVia e-mail

Editorials

Fri, 13 Feb 2004 06:42:00 +0000

The alphabet soup of lies

Using WMD and GDP, the Bush administration has created an alphabet soup of lies to push its extreme, pro-Wall Street agenda, while trying to bully its way back to the White House in November.

Some say there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics. The president’s recent economic report is a case in point. With its projections of 2.6 million new jobs (or 3.8 million new jobs – White House spokeswoman and fuzzy mathematician Claire Buchan said both numbers are accurate) the 2004 report, as part of their election year strategy, tries to put a shiny new coat of paint on an economic “recovery” that is just a lemon for most people. Last year, Bush forecasted that 1.7 million jobs would be created, but the U.S. actually lost 53,000 jobs. Over 3 million jobs have been lost since Bush took office.

Working-class families are facing economic insecurity, poverty is rising, as are racist disparities. Bush says he is the “war president,” well he is conducting a war on workers here and around the world for one goal – U.S. corporate domination and profit.

N. Gregory Mankiw, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, claimed that “outsourcing” jobs is actually good for the economy since it provides cheaper goods and services. But how much can the jobless buy? No, that argument tries to justify a global race to the bottom, whip sawing workers around the world. It’s good for the economy of maximum profit.

During the Great Depression – with great pressure from masses of people – President Franklin Delano Roosevelt created an “alphabet soup” of programs, called the New Deal, that put people to work, built the state and national park system, promoted the organization of unions, helped farmers, relieved some forms of discrimination, and curbed the control of monopolies. The WPA and the CCC – to name a couple – made life better for millions of working people. That’s quite a contrast to this administration’s alphabet soup of lies.

* * * * * *

Phony talk on nukes

George W. Bush’s speech against nuclear weapons proliferation at the National Defense University Feb. 11 oozed with hypocrisy and deceit. Bush ordered other nations to abide by rules against nuclear proliferation even as he exempted the U.S., with its enormous, growing nuclear stockpile. Bush said that “terrorist states” regard nuclear weapons as “weapons of first resort.” Yet Bush himself vows to use “bunker-buster” nuclear bombs as if they were ordinary battlefield weapons. And Bush made it clear in his Nuclear Posture Review of 2002 that he’s prepared to use nukes first, even against a non-nuclear country.

Bush should lead by example. Instead of requesting billions for nuclear weapons programs he should put a moratorium on the production of U.S. nukes.

Bush spoke of a “black market” operated by Dr. A.Q. Kahn, the so-called father of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, who has confessed to selling nuclear technology to other countries.

But we have to ask: Why did Bush invade Iraq, which had no nuclear weapons, while next door Pakistan was apparently operating a bazaar where nuclear technology was on sale? The question serves to highlight the lies and hypocrisy of this administration. Pre-emptive war and invasion will not curb production of nuclear weapons. Nuclear nonproliferation advocates had predicted that Bush’s preemptive war doctrine would touch off a scramble by many nations to acquire nuclear weapons to defend themselves against a unilateral U.S. attack.

Greg Palast and David Pallister charged in a BBC/Guardian exposé that, “according to both sources and documents obtained by BBC,” the Bush administration had earlier spiked the investigation of Dr. Kahn’s lab, and that this “followed from a wider policy of protecting key Saudi Arabians including the bin Laden family.”

Hidden in Bush’s “war president” speech was the threat of a preemptive strike against Iran, North Korea, or another nation in the months ahead. He must not be allowed to carry out such threats. The world cannot afford another pre-election “October surprise.”

CPUSA urges global solidarity

Fri, 13 Feb 2004 05:39:00 +0000

The National Committee of the Communist Party USA adopted the following solidarity resolutions during its meeting in New York on Feb. 1, 2004.

Free the Cuban 5!

The incarceration of Gerardo Hernández, René González, Antonio Guerrero, Ramón Labañino, Fernando González, the “Cuban Five,” since Sept. 12, 1998, is a gross miscarriage of justice, a violation of U.S. and international law. It is a glaring episode in the decades-long vendetta by the far right and successive U.S. administrations against the Cuban people and their right to self-determination. We believe their convictions must be overturned and the Five freed at once to return to their homes and families.

We wholeheartedly support the appeal of the Cuban Five now pending before the Federal Appeals Court in Atlanta. When the Five were tried, the prosecution intentionally distorted and omitted evidence and it was impossible for them to be fairly tried in Miami. We condemn the extreme hardships to which they have been subjected in prison, and the almost insurmountable obstacles to family and consular visits and to adequate legal preparations.

The Five have stated they were defending the Cuban revolution by gathering information on activities of terrorist groups operating from U.S. territory to launch violent attacks on Cuba. U.S. authorities have presented no evidence that the Five intended to damage the U.S. In fact, a nearly 45-year-long trail of evidence reveals repeated attacks on Cuba from U.S. soil, with involvement or acquiescence of U.S. authorities.

Justice for the Cuban Five is a vital part of the struggle to end the blockade and sanctions against Cuba, to normalize political and economic relations, and open up the channels of communication and friendship between our two peoples. We pledge to intensify our work for their freedom, and call on the People’s Weekly World/Nuestro Mundo to campaign on their behalf.

Solidarity with the ICP and the people of Iraq

The CPUSA expresses our shock, sorrow and anger at the terrorist attack Jan. 22 on the office of the Iraqi Communist Party in the Al-Jadida/Mashtal district of Baghdad.

We express our deepest sympathy and most heartfelt condolences to the families of comrades Yasser Aboud and Shaker Jassem Ajeel, who lost their lives in the criminal and cowardly assault, to their comrades and friends and all members and supporters of the Iraqi Communist Party.

The Bush administration’s invasion and occupation of Iraq is based on a power grab for energy resources and strategic position, and on lies, which are daily being revealed for all to see. These actions have only brought the Iraqi people growing turmoil, poverty, oppression, death and destruction.

We pledge our intensified solidarity with the Iraqi Communist Party, which together with other progressive forces is struggling to win a democratic and sovereign Iraq whose people can decide their own destiny, control their own resources and rebuild their economic and social life.

Our first task is to defeat once and for all the Bush administration’s aggressive drive for world domination through perpetual war and intimidation, and to remove the Bush administration and its look-alikes from office once and for all in November.

Letters

Fri, 06 Feb 2004 06:02:00 +0000

Credibility gap on WMD’s

David Kay’s report on the absence of Iraqi weapons programs must have landed with a thud on the president’s desk, not to mention Don Rumsfeld’s head. A humbled and bemused Kay had concluded that there were, after all, no WMDs in Iraq or active programs capable of producing them, and that this had been the case for many years. Kay detailed how a successful combination of UN inspections, international sanctions and key Clinton bombing sorties had eliminated Iraq’s WMD capabilities. Kay reported that Saddam’s grip on power had even appeared to be fading prior to the war, his advisors simply humoring the increasingly deluded and isolated leader. Nevertheless, the White House continues to preposterously maintain that Saddam somehow presented a “clear and gathering threat” to the American people, one that justified a U.S. invasion which has now claimed the lives of more than 520 service men and women, with thousands more crippled and wounded and no real end in sight. Evidently, the president’s handlers feel comfortable, for now, in relying on the seemingly boundless credulity of the American people, a rather slim reed, it seems to me, on which to base an entire electoral campaign. Still, when it comes to cynicism, I’m no Karl Rove.

Cord MacGuire Boulder CO

Memory problems

Why on earth would President Bush need a commission to investigate why he went to war with Iraq? Everyone knows he lied to do it. Here we go again with yet another useless debate about facts. If he would just take one of those memory enhancing drugs or supplements I hear advertised all the time on the radio, he’d remember what he did.

A readerVia e-mail

Citizens abroad oppose war

I am an American who moved to Germany in 1976. I and another American comrade are in the German CP (DKP). We both studied at Berkeley and are both active in the Munich-American Peace Committee (www.mapc-web.de), which, in turn is part of the new “American Voices Abroad” (www.americanvoicesabroad.net) peace and justice coalition. If you would look at the web sites and report on what progressive U.S. citizens abroad are doing to fight the U.S. imperialist policy, domestic economic and repression policies, U.S. comrades would be heartened. I send you solidarity.

J. SchevitzFuessen, Germany

What about Kucinich and Sharpton?

I am writing in regards to your article in the People’s Weekly World, “Voters riled by war, health costs, economy” (PWW, 1/31-2/6). I would only like to request that you make a conscious effort to include the likes of Congressman Kucinich and Rev. Al Sharpton when you write about Democratic Party candidates. The mainstream media has virtually ignored them and I believe that your newspaper should be one to count these candidates simply because they are candidates just as much as the other five, regardless of their chances. Disregarding them is inaccurate coverage. Disregarding them is also an undermining of democracy on the part of mainstream media. Unfairly and unequally spotlighting selected candidates is a very serious problem which a volunteer group of mine is struggling with and trying to bring attention to throughout this campaign. What’s more, Kucinich and Sharpton are the only candidates running for a major party nomination whose platforms are anywhere close to coinciding with the views of the People’s Weekly World, not to mention that they are perfect pictures of noteworthy activists.

Nik RitchieVia e-mail

Editors note: We agree. The omission of Kucinich and Sharpton from the results of the New Hampshire primary was due to an editing error. We have reported on their campaigns in other articles, and will continue to do so. We very much agree with the points you make about the importance of these candidacies and their progressive programs. The Kucinich, Sharpton and Moseley Braun candidacies have brought important issues into the debate and helped move the overall campaign in the fighting direction that is needed if we are going to defeat Bush in November.

Likes Iraq coverage

I found Susan Webb’s articles on the World Social Forum and U.S. business looting of Iraq articles very clear and informative. Thanks so much!

Paul LeuenbergerVia e-mail

Editorials

Fri, 06 Feb 2004 05:53:00 +0000

Bush’s attack on veterans

Years of training in the military could be the basis of a big pay cut for many of America’s 26 million veterans come March 1. That’s when the Bush administration plans to implement its new overtime regulations, which give employers the right to exclude vast new categories of the workforce from rules that require time-and-a-half pay after 40 hours.

Buried in one paragraph in the middle of the Labor Department’s new overtime rules is a change that explicitly says that “training in the armed forces” could give a worker professional level skills and thus be the basis for an employer to decide they shouldn’t get overtime pay.

This is another low blow from the Bush administration. Already veterans now have to wait an average of six months to be seen at Veterans Administration hospitals, and VA spending per patient is $624 less than eight years ago. The president has shut dozens of Defense Department schools for military dependents, and closed 56 commissaries used by military families to buy food and supplies on their limited income. Veterans groups also point to the Bush administration’s cuts in “imminent danger” pay and family separation allowances as signs of callous disregard.

Bush’s new budget proposes to increase the money for Veterans Affairs, but many commentators suggest this is an election-year ploy. Bush still refuses to show up at a funeral for any of the Iraq War dead.

As for the overtime law, opponents are looking to block the new rules by attaching an amendment to any coming fast track legislation. “We won’t stop there. If the rule becomes effective, we’ll have other opportunities to reverse it, and we’re confident we will,” said Bill Samuel, legislative director for the AFL-CIO in Washington.

Congress should feel the heat on this issue. For the sake of the veterans and for all other potential victims of this reactionary legislation, we should intensify the battle to overturn it.

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Sharon’s ‘pullback’

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced Feb. 2 that he has “given the order to plan for the evacuation of 17 settlements in the Gaza Strip,” i.e., from occupied Palestinian territory.

Vague as this initial statement was, Sharon instantly qualified his remarks and said he meant “relocation,” not evacuation, and that such a pullback would depend on reaching an agreement with the Jewish settlers currently living there. His aides further qualified his statement by saying such a possible pullback was “one of several options” that Sharon was considering, and said that some settlements would certainly remain.

While several members of Sharon’s Likud Party and other rightist parties protested his remarks, they did not bolt his coalition, a sign that they didn’t consider action against the settlements to be imminent or inevitable.

Palestinian leaders reacted to Sharon’s remarks with skepticism, if not scorn. “I’ll believe it when I see it,” said Saeb Erekat, a senior Palestinian leader.

It’s easy to see why. Aside from the largely symbolic dismantlement of a few house trailer “outposts” – the Israeli government has allowed and encouraged the continual expansion of the illegal settlements that encroach on Palestinian land. Such settlements, not to mention the apartheid “separation wall” that Israel is building on Palestinian territory, violate numerous UN decisions and international law.

Sharon is a skillful practitioner of the politics of gesture. He is embroiled in a deepening bribery scandal, and would like to shift attention away from it. He’s about to visit Washington, and such promises – empty as they are – make good press in the face of worldwide opposition to the Israeli occupation. And he has to reckon with public opinion, which shows 6 of 10 Israelis favoring an end to the settlements.

But no one should be fooled. Sharon’s words are cheap, and he enjoys the full support of George W. Bush.

Deeds, not words, are what count. The world awaits the complete and unqualified Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territories. Now.