Liberty Belle Log "Onions for Democracy" (my newsletter)

All--This is my newsletter, the Liberty Belle Log. The formatting gets lost when I post here. If you'd like to subscribe, pm me and I'll add you to the list. It's free. Also, if anyone knows a place where I could get free website hosting, please let me know. Thanks! -- Liberty Belle

Liberty Belle Log

February 3, 2005

Onions for Democracy

A raucous crowd filled the pizza parlor in San Diego, where more than 80 Democracy For America members gathered at a “State of the Onion” party. (The name was chosen, a DFA leader informed me, because “the more you peel away the layers, the more you want to cry.”)He was referring to the President’s State of the Union Speech, which evoked boos, hisses, and shouts of “Liar!” from DFA members. The crowd was certainly warmed up by the time I spoke on the need for media reform! An enthusiastic audience embraced the idea of bypassing traditional outlets and transmitting the news directly to others, as we become the media.

In Washington, a few Democratic legislators actually booed when the President told a whopper about his Social Security plan. Thankfully, that plan’s popularity is falling faster than the bombs on Baghdad during the “Shock and Awe” assault. Harry Reid pulled no punches in revealing the bare-knuckled truth during the Democratic Response afterwards. Likening the President’s Social Security plan to “roulette,” he warned viewers about the dangers posed by Bush’s administration, criticized the President for adding trillions of dollars to our debt, and accused Bush of creating a “birth tax of $36,000 on every child that is born.” He then laid out a positive vision of Democrats’ plan for America. Nancy Pelosi followed, reminding viewers that the President has announced no exit strategy for Iraq, which Bush has transformed into an “international magnet for terrorists.”

Today, Democratic leaders and Independent Jeff Jeffords, posed boldly in front of the FDR Memorial to denounce Bush’s Social Security plan as “immoral,” quoting a Bible verse on debt to prove their point. Talk about reframing the debate! Even some members of the President’s own party are unhappy with his scheme to dismantle Social Security; Republican Olympia Snow refused to applaud the President’s remarks on the issue. (That doesn’t mean we can rest on our laurels, though. Bush is launching a whirlwind tour of red states with Democratic Senators, in hopes of twisting arms.)

The Propaganda-Payola scandal continues to grow. Media Matters exposed a White House correspondent who reported “fake news” copied from RNC materials. His credentials in journalism\? A two-hour course at a fundamentalist school—and a stint as a GOP delegate. Meanwhile, the networks extended their right-wing bias by refusing to air ads critical of Bush’s bill that would limit consumers’ rights to sue big corporations. The same networks that regularly air sex- and violence-laden sensationalism during prime time have suddenly developed a conscience about offending viewers, adopting a policy barring “controversial” issue-oriented ads!

Besides striving to curtail class action lawsuits (our last protections against wanton corporate greed), Bush has continued his assault on democracy by seeking to make tax cuts for the wealthy permanent and decimate employer-sponsored healthcare plans, among other offensive moves. In another outrageous action, dozens of North Dakota Democrats were prohibited from attending a Bush speech in Fargo, including 33 DFA members, a City Commissioner, and the producer of the Ed Schultz Show—the highest-rated liberal talk radio program in America. Just as banning a book boosts its popularity, barring Schultz’s producer resulted in Schultz delivering a tirade against the Bush administration’s disregard for civil liberties before a national audience.

On the bright side, the Bush cabal lost some key court cases this week. Thanks to a few honest judges still on the bench, the Bush administration has been ordered to turn over CIA records on Abu Ghraib to the ACLU and stop gerrymandering wolf territory to evade protections under the Endangered Species Act. Also, a court ruled that liberal-minded colleges can kick military recruiters off campus because the U.S. military discriminates against gays. (Oh, how the fundamentalists must be fuming over that one!)

You’ll find some doozies in this week’s “Republican Immoral Values” section, including links to shocking new Enron tapes and revelations that Halliburton is abetting the “Axis of Evil,” Iran.
There are also several essays exposing the Administration’s lies and hidden agenda.

I’ve also added several new features. The “Rogues Gallery” highlights Bush cabinet members and appointees. “Labor Pains” covers issues related to jobs and workers. Finally, I’ve added a “Take Action!” section, where you can now sign petitions and send messages to Congress about important issues all with the click of your mouse. It only takes a few minutes, but please follow through on the action alerts at the end of this newsletter, then paste the alerts into an e-mail and forward them to everyone in your e-mail box. Print out copies, too, and hand them out everywhere you go. Some of these measures will be coming up for votes in the Senate any day now. If we all let our voices be heard and share these concerns with as many others as possible, we can preserve the freedoms that we cherish.

-- Liberty Belle


STATE OF DISUNION
REACTIONS TO THE STATE OF THE UNION SPEECH
LESS PERFECT UNION: FALLING SHORT

TOMPAINE.COM (2/3/2005) -- The World Policy Institute's Hartung thinks President George W. Bush is utterly sincere in his idealistic rhetoric. Yet he pays no mind to the human costs of his unique brand of democracy promotion by gunpoint, says Hartung. And Democrats remain unable to distinguish their foreign policy from Bush's—thus ceding to him the noble goals of fostering liberation and freedom.. .
(Commentary by William D. Hartung is a senior research fellow at the World Policy Institute and the author of How Much Are You Making on the War, Daddy? A Quick and Dirty Guide To War Profiteering in the Bush Administration) http://www.tompaine.com/articles/less_perfect_union_falling_short.php

WHILE BUSH PREACHED FEAR, DEMOCRATS OFFERED HOPE: EXCERPTS FROM THE DEMOCRATIC RESPONSE TO THE PRESIDENT’S STATE OF THE UNION SPEECH
Tough talk from Minority Leader Harry Reid , a former boxer and Nevada legislator who once took on the Mafia in Las Vegas:
“…It's time that America's government lived by the same values as America's families. It's time we invested in America's future and made sure our people have the skills to compete and thrive in a 21st century economy. That's what Democrats believe. That's where we stand. That's what we'll fight for.

"Too many of the President's economic policies have left Americans and American companies struggling. And after we worked so hard to eliminate the deficit, his policies have added trillions to the debt - in effect, a 'birth tax' of $36,000 on every child that is born.

"We Democrats have a different vision: Spurring research and development in new technologies to help create the jobs of the future. Rolling up our sleeves and fighting for today's jobs by ending the special tax breaks that encourage big corporations to ship jobs overseas. A trade policy that enforces the rules of the road so that we play to win in the global marketplace instead of sitting by and getting played for fools. . .
http://reid.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=231454

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi calls for exit plan from Iraq; proposes a G.I. Bill of Rights for the 21st Century
“Despite the best efforts of our troops and their Iraqi counterparts, Iraq still faces a violent and persistent insurgency, and the Chairman of the National Intelligence Council said in January that Iraq has become a magnet for international terrorists.

“We have never heard a clear plan from this Administration for ending our presence in Iraq. And we did not hear one tonight. ..
“In our New Partnership for America's Future, House Democrats have made a commitment to guarantee a military second to none; to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction; to build strong diplomatic alliances; to collect timely and reliable intelligence to keep us safe at home; and to honor our veterans and their families by making sure they have the health care and benefits they have earned.

“For those returning from military service – our newest veterans – Democrats are calling for a G.I. Bill of Rights for the 21st Century to guarantee access to education, health care and the opportunity for good jobs.

“And we protect and defend the American people, we must also protect and defend our Constitution and the civil liberties contained therein. That is our oath of office….
http://democraticleader.house.gov/press/releases.cfm?pressReleaseID=838

The CORRECTED TEXT OF THE STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS (SATIRE)

(2/3/2005)--Mr. Speaker, Vice President Cheney, Republican members of Congress, carefully selected guests, and fellow Red-Staters: America this evening is a nation called to great responsibilities. And we are rising to escape them…
http://www.deadbrain.com/news/article_2005_02_03_4950.php

DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA TODAY
DEMOCRATIC UNDERGROUND (2/5/2005) It's time to take a serious look at what we consider to be our democratic way of life and what it holds for us as we look into the future.

We have serious economic issues and disturbing socio-economic plans being presented as conclusions rather than proposals. Citizens of the United States are paying the price for having an international trade policy of war and empire-building with the fiasco in Iraq. On the domestic front, huge tax breaks for the wealthiest people only complicate the debt picture the war has created.

And then to add insult to injury, the government is feeding the public a daily dose of misinformation about Social Security and Medicare and plans to dissolve those quality-of-life commitments to the citizens. The reality, which leading economists have identified, is that if 1/5 of the tax break just given to the wealthiest Americans was repealed, Social Security would be solvent beyond the foreseeable future (beyond 2052). Another solution might be to allow the Social Security tax to be applied to incomes above $90,000. Ironically, these wealthy Americans would not be hurt by either of these measures.

The alternative plan now being offered by the Bush administration would add trillions of dollars of debt to our already burgeoning deficit, though it has been clearly identified that the people will not benefit for nearly half a century, even if they do have any success with the stock market. This plan is ignorant and immoral. . .

We must re-harness the power of democracy in America before we are thrown back into a two-class society, where most of us may become the nameless, faceless, voiceless and poor.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/05/02/05_democracy.html

SOCIAL INSECURITY
WINDFALL ON WALL STREET?

The Bush boondoggle could divert up to a trillion dollars from retirees’ Social Security fund into the pockets of Wall Street firms over the next 75 years, making it the biggest windfall ever for the financial industry, Business Week Reports.

(1/24/2005) -- As Washington begins to battle over letting workers invest a portion of their Social Security in private accounts, Wall Street's big guns are staying silent. Private accounts could pump vast sums into the markets -- $54 billion a year, by the Social Security Administration's estimate. Yet financial firms aren't endorsing the accounts, and their legions of lobbyists haven't descended on Congress. The reason: Financiers argue that running those accounts would be a low-margin, high-regulation business that's hardly worth the effort.

But don't think for a minute that the Street is giving up on that gusher. Private accounts could be a boon for some firms -- and their impact on stock trading will pump up the entire industry. Reform would further extend and entrench the equity culture that has taken root over the past 20 years.

Financial executives know that if their scandal-plagued firms lead the charge, they'll hand opponents of private accounts a killer issue. The AFL-CIO has already put 46 financial firms on notice that Big Labor will hammer them if they stump actively for the plan. "Social Security privatization is a risky scheme for America but a sure bet for the financial-services industry," argues AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney. So Wall Street is lying low. . .
Industry executives point out that, at least initially, Social Security accounts would be modeled on the retirement plan for federal employees, which allows individuals to invest in only a clutch of low-fee index funds managed by a handful of firms. That could be a boon to such big index-fund managers as Barclays Global Investors, which has run the federal worker plan's index funds since 1988, and State Street Global Advisors (STT ).

But as accounts grow, the Bush Administration tilts toward letting owners put their money, 401(k)-style, into actively managed funds. Under that scenario, fee income could balloon. Goolsbee says that if funds charged 0.8% of assets -- close to the average for big equity funds -- Wall Street could rake in $940 billion in investment fees over 75 years. It would be "the largest windfall gain in American financial history," says Goolsbee….
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_04/b3917014_mz001.htm

DEMS RALLY AGAINST SOCIAL SECURITY PLAN
CNN (2/3/2005) -- House and Senate Democrats rallied Thursday against President Bush's plan to revamp Social Security, to show they would not let it pass without a fight.

Forty-three of the 44 Democrat senators, plus Independent Sen. Jim Jeffords of Vermont, signed a letter to the president saying it was "immoral" to borrow more money to pay for the plan, even quoting from the New Testament to make their point.

"We are spending enough of our kids' money," the letter said. "Our country needs to get back to following the teachings of Romans 13:8, which says we should 'let no debt remain outstanding.' "
http://www.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/02/03/dems.ss/


BUSH RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS PLAN DEAD—TOP DEMOCRAT

Reuters ((2/1/2005) - The top Democrat in the Senate on Tuesday predicted that President Bush (news - web sites)'s plan to revamp social security by diverting taxes into private investment accounts would fail to pass Congress.

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid was speaking as Bush prepared to use his State of the Union address on Wednesday to argue for his proposals and then follow up with a five-state tour to campaign for the new investment accounts.

"President Bush should forget about privatizing Social Security (news - web sites)," the Nevada Democrat said. "It will not happen. The sooner he comes to that realization, the better off we are."
. . . Without Democratic support, the plan will fail to win the 60 votes needed to overcome procedural hurdles which can block any major piece of legislation in the 100-member Senate. Reid said none of the 44 Democrats in the Senate would back a plan that diverts Social Security taxes into accounts that workers would invest in stocks and bonds.. .

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050202/us_nm/retirement_congress_dc_6

BUSH TO GEEZERS: SAVE YOURSELVES!
ON SOCIAL SECURITY, THE PRESIDENT SAYS TO THROW THE KIDS OVERBOARD
SLATE (2/3/3005) -- In his State of the Union address, President Bush claimed, for the first time during his presidency, to be asking Americans to sacrifice. The man who told the country, and the government, that the patriotic way to respond to 9/11 was to spend lots of money now says he wants the nation to be more penurious. Think of the children, Bush said, "on issue after issue," but especially with regard to Social Security. The president painted his plan to alter the Social Security system as a grand bargain in which the current generation of older Americans, like parents saving for their children's college tuition, would forgo some small benefit so that the next generation could reap huge rewards.

Sounds terrific. Except what Bush proposed is actually the exact opposite: His plan would allow the current generation of retirees and near-retirees to keep the current system, the one where they receive far more money than they put in during their lifetimes, while requiring the next generation to subsist on their own earnings for retirement. This isn't the equivalent of parents saving for Johnny's 529 plan. This is Mom and Dad asking Johnny to invest part of his allowance so that they won't have to bother with paying for college. You could call Bush's idea the Screw Your Grandchildren Act…
http://www.slate.com/id/2113055/

LESS PERFECT UNION: SHOCK JOCK PRESIDENT

Behind Bush's unpopular obsession with Social Security lies a greater political purpose—creating more Republicans. Luckily, the GOP faces stiff opposition.

Robert L. Borosage , a veteran strategist and institution builder, is co-director of the Campaign for America's Future.

TomPaine.com (2/3/2005) --Calling for “courage and honesty,” Mr. Bush delivered a State of the Union address notably lacking in both. The speech covered the normal bedsheet of issues, but its core was the president’s plans on Social Security. Bush and his political guru Karl Rove believe that they have a chance to consolidate the right in power for a generation—and they are pushing to privatize Social Security. But their plans fit neither the needs nor the desires of most Americans, so the president didn’t bother to level with Americans about them. He is once more selling a lie…
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/less_perfect_union_shock_jock_president.php

DEMOCRATS TAKE AIM AT SOCIAL SECURITY PROPOSAL, CALLING IT A RISKY GAMBLE

New York Times (2/2/2005) - President Bush's address on Wednesday left some already-anxious Republicans worried about the difficulties of pushing through a Social Security overhaul, as Democrats hammered Mr. Bush's cornerstone proposal as a risky gamble that would swell the nation's deficit and imperil the retirement of millions of Americans…

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/03/politics/03congress.html?oref=login&pagewanted=print&position

PROPAGANDA WATCH

4 NETWORKS REJECT AD OPPOSING BUSH ON LAWSUITS
New York Times (1/31/2005) -- An advocacy group, USAction, said on Monday that four television networks had turned down its request to run an advertisement opposing President Bush's effort to clamp down on medical malpractice lawsuits.

The group wanted to run the spots just before Mr. Bush's State of the Union address on Wednesday. But networks said the advertisement violated their standards for advertising on controversial issues.
The NBC Universal Television Network, owned by General Electric, told the group, "We are sorry that we cannot accept your ad based on our network policy regarding controversial issue advertising."
As a general rule, the policy says, "time will not be sold on NBC Network facilities for the presentation of views on controversial issues." The policy does not apply to candidates for public office in election years.

ABC, CBS and the Fox Broadcasting Company said they had also turned down the advertisement.
But CNN plans to run the advertisement…
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/01/national/01ads.html?adxnnl=1&oref=login&adxnnlx=1107278420-FmXeDXkvW4eeNyG9mjmS6Q

LETTER FROM MEDIA MATTERS TO WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY

January 31, 2005

Dear Mr. McClellan:

I am writing to ask you to consider revoking the White House press credentials apparently granted to Jeff Gannon of Talon News. Mr. Gannon and Talon News appear to be political activists rather than actual journalists, and as such should not be presented to the public as an independent news agency.
Consider:

· Talon News is virtually indistinguishable from an organization called GOPUSA, which describes itself as "dedicated to promoting conservative ideals." Both are run by Bobby Eberle, and websites for both entities are registered to Mr. Eberle at his home address. The contact information listed for Talon News includes Mr. Eberle's GOPUSA.com email address.

· The staff of Talon News and GOPUSA is comprised almost entirely of Republican activists with no journalism experience whatsoever…
http://mediamatters.org/items/200501310004

THE GOP MEDIA MACHINE CHURNS ON

Robert Parry, Consortium News

Armstrong Williams and Maggie Gallagher are not breaking new ground in accepting money for favorable coverage. The ethical line separating conservative "journalism" from government propaganda has long since been wiped away.
www.alternet.org

A FEISTY FREE PRESS--IN RUSSIA
RUSSIAN NEWSPAPER MOCKS BIG COURT FINE IN MOSTLY BLANK ISSUE

(First the Ukranian broadcasters at the state-owned press revolted. Now a Russian newspaper takes a stance against suppression of the truth. Why can't OUR media be this feisty in resisting partisan and corporate domination? Send this to the MSM and show them how REAL journalists should act!)

Washington Post (2/1/2005) MOSCOW – The authoritative business daily Kommersant published an edition yesterday that was blank except for a court-ordered retraction – published upside down – and other items related to an $11.4 million judgment against the publication.

The edition was a satirical protest of a court finding that the newspaper erred last summer in suggesting in an article that Moscow-based Alfa Bank was in financial trouble. Yesterday's edition also included the text of the court's ruling and a photo of the bank's principal shareholder Mikhail Fridman shaking hands with President Vladimir Putin...

After the original judgment in October, the Paris-based World Association of Newspapers and the World Editors Forum wrote Russia'a High Arbitration Court: "We would like to draw your attention to the belief widely held among the global press that the award of such massive damages, which are almost 10 times higher than any sum previously awarded, might appear to be politically motivated and intended to intimidate critical media."
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050201/news_1n1russia.html

…AND SUPPRESSION OF THE PRESS IN AMERICA
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SAYS GROUP MUST PAY $372,799 FOR AGENCY TO CONDUCT DETAINEE RECORDS SEARCH

The Associated Press (1/31/2005) -- The Justice Department says a group that wants to see secret documents about the detention of people jailed after the Sept. 11 attacks first must pay nearly $373,000 to cover the cost of searching for the information.
And the advance payment won't guarantee anything that's found will be released. . .

Under the Freedom of Information Act, government agencies must provide the public with access to government documents, unless the information falls under certain exemptions. The first two hours of a search are free. Agencies then charge for searches, the rate dependent on the level of the employees who do the work. People for the American Way Foundation, which sued for the records last year, accused the Justice Department of making the cost exceedingly high to deter its request.

"Unfortunately it's part of a pattern of the Justice Department trying to foreclose access to this kind of information," Elliot Mincberg, the group's legal director, said Monday. . .
Public interest and media groups can seek waivers to fees. People for the American Way, a civil rights and constitutional liberties group based in Washington, will request a waiver and will go to court if the request is denied, Mincberg said. ..
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=458913

ARNOLD ALERT:
CALIFORNIA NURSES ASSOCIATION DEBUTS ANTI-SCHWARZENEGGER ADS—DURING A&E DOCUMENTARY MOVIE ON ARNOLD!
Click here to view the CNA’s TV ad exposing how the Terminator Governor is endangering patient care:
http://www.calnurse.org/?Action=Content&id=611

ROGUES GALLERY:
BUSH APPOINTEES & CRONIES
IRAN-CONTRA FIGURE TO LEAD DEMOCRACY EFFORTS
News Service (2/3/3005)—Elliott Abrams, who pleaded guilty in 1991 to withholding information from Congress in the Iran-contra affair, was promoted to deputy national security adviser to President Bush.
Abrams, who previously was in charge of Middle East affairs, will be responsible for pushing Bush’s strategy for advancing democracy. . .
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59235-2005Feb2.html

REPUBLICAN IMMORAL VALUES
HALLIBURTON DOING BUSINESS WITH THE `AXIS OF EVIL’
Washington Post (2/3/2005) --The award for oddest geopolitical couple of 2005 goes to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Houston-based Halliburton.
You might not think that a charter member of President Bush's "axis of evil" could enlist the oil-services firm once run by Vice President Cheney to bolster its bargaining position with an international community intent on curbing its nuclear ambitions.
But that is apparently what happened last month…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58298-2005Feb2.html
ENRON SCHEME CAUGHT ON TAPE

After a grand jury indicted Kenneth Lay, Enron CEO and the top campaign contributor to Bush’s 2000 campaign, new tapes have surfaced that reveal a startling level of callousness and outright greed. CBS News has aired a few choice segments:

CBS (2/3/2005) -- During the West Coast Power crisis homes went dark and streetlights were out in California — causing injuries and accidents. But the danger didn't stop Enron's energy traders from having a good laugh.

CBS News Correspondent Vince Gonzales reports on the Enron scheme, as caught on new audio tape. The traders and plant operator laugh and plot in a display that seems to prove the theory that years before the energy crisis, Enron manipulated markets.

"They had to do a rolling blackout through the town and there was a red light there he didn't see," one Enron trader says on tape.

"That's beautiful," a second voice responds…
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/02/03/eveningnews/main671618.shtml
RUMSFELD DEBATING WHETHER TO AVOID GERMANY

REUTERS (2/3/2005) -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Thursday he has not decided whether to attend an international security conference next week in Germany, where he might be subject to arrest on a war-crimes complaint.

"I have not made a final decision on that (attendance). And there are several factors," Rumsfeld told reporters when asked if he would go to the prestigious annual private Munich Conference on Security Policy Feb. 12-13 when he is in Europe next week.

He conceded in response to questions at a press conference that one problem was the jurisdiction of a German court over a 160-page criminal complaint filed Nov. 30 with the federal prosecutor's office in Germany accusing him of war crimes in connection with detainee abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

That complaint was brought by the New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), a group of lawyers representing Iraqis who say they were mistreated by U.S. forces at the Baghdad prison. . .

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=7533075

ALBERTO GONZALEZ CONFIRMED BY SENATE;
36 DEMOCRATS VOTE AGAINST TORTURE-MASTER

The lawyer who wrote a Presidential Memo authorizing use of torture in violation of the Geneva Convention has been confirmed as U.S. Attorney General by the Republican-controlled Senate. A man who has shown no respect for the law or human rights is now the top cop in America—the highest ranking law officer who decides how, when or if to enforce laws protecting our civil liberties.

Thirty-six Democratic Senators, along with Independent Jeff Jeffords, stood up for Democratic values by voting “No” on the torture-master. All Republicans voted “Yes.” Sadly, eight Democrats did, too. The “traitorous eight” Senators who betrayed our moral values were: Ken Salazar (Colo.), Joseph Lieberman (Conn.) , Ben Nelson (Neb.)., Senator Mary Landrieu (La.), Senator Pryor (Ark.), and Bill Nelson (Fla.).

EYE ON OUR ENVIRONMENT:
SOMETHING TO HOWL ABOUT: VICTORY FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES
US LOSES RULING ON GRAY WOLVES

Associated Press (2/1/2005) Grants Pass, Oregon--- A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the Bush administration violated the Endangered Species Act when it relaxed protections on many of the nation's gray wolves. The decision by U.S. District Judge Robert E. Jones in Portland rescinds a rule change that allowed ranchers to shoot wolves on sight if they were attacking livestock, said Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group.

In April 2003, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service divided the wolves' range into three areas and reclassified the Eastern and Western populations as threatened instead of endangered. The Eastern segment covers the area from the Dakotas east to Maine, while the Western segment extends west from the Dakotas. The agency left wolves in the Southwest classified as endangered.
But the judge ruled that the government acted improperly by combining areas where wolves were doing well, such as Montana, with places where their numbers had not recovered.

"Interior Secretary Gale Norton tried to gerrymander the entire contiguous 48 states so that wolves in a few areas would make up for the absence of wolves in much larger regions," Robinson said. "Now, instead of drawing lines on the map based on political considerations, any future lines must be based on science."
Full story at: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/wolf_ruling

WE WON’T SINK WITH OUR ICE:
AN INUIT GROUP SAYS THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS JEOPARDIZING ITS PEOPLE’S LIVELIHOOD—AND THAT U.S. GAS EMISSIONS ARE TO BLAME

Newsweek Web Exclusive (2/3/2005) -- The Inuit living in some of the world’s iciest regions are feeling the effects of global warming. The ice caps where they hunt are thawing earlier every year; polar bears are hunting in unfamiliar places; non-indigenous species are being seen in the Arctic and last summer local inhabitants saw their first wasp on Canada’s Baffin Island. None of this is news to global-climate experts, who are meeting this week in Exeter, England, to discuss the scope and rate of climate change. Indeed, the English conference comes on the heels of a warning released last week by the International Climate Change Task Force that politicians have less than a decade to prevent worldwide disasters caused by global warming.

But for the 155,000 Inuit spread across Russia, Canada, Greenland and Alaska, the issue has taken on a greater urgency. Sheila Watt-Cloutier, chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC), says that the Inuit livelihood is being affected by the changes--and that the United States is at least partly to blame. Watt-Cloutier and her group are planning to file a petition in the next few weeks with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, claiming that their human rights have been have been endangered due to excessive U.S. gas emissions. In a phone interview from her home in Iqaluit in northern Canada, Watt-Cloutier spoke to NEWSWEEK’s Ginanne Brownell about the group’s plans and the Inuit experience of climate change…
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6908719/site/newsweek

MONEY MATTERS

THE INCREDIBLE, SHRINKING GOVERNMENT
TomPaine.com (1/31/2005) -- When President Bush unveils his budget next week, it's likely to be the opening salvo in a battle over priorities. Should President Bush be allowed to keep his tax cuts at the expense of programs that help low-income families—who notably get little benefit from the tax cuts? Greenstein—of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities—explains why the stakes are so high for the U.S. economy and ordinary Americans….
(Robert Greenstein is executive director of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.)
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/the_incredible_shrinking_government.php

DEMOCRATS WITH SPINES

KUCINICH DEMANDS BROAD INVESTIGATION OF MISSING $9 BILLION IN IRAQ: Ranking Member on National Security Oversight Committee Calls For Federal Grand Jury Investigation and Congressional Hearings
(1/31/2005)-- Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH), the Ranking Member on the House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations, today demanded a broad investigation of the $9 billion in missing reconstruction funds in Iraq, including a criminal investigation and Congressional hearings.

Kucinich will send two letters today calling for a full investigation into the missing $9 billion in funds in Iraq. One letter will be sent to Congressman Christopher Shays (R-CT), Chairman of the House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations, requesting an immediate Congressional hearing. The second letter will be sent to United States Attorney General-designate Alberto Gonzales demanding a criminal investigation, including a grand jury, by the United States Department of Justice…
http://www.commondreams.org/news2005/0131-11.htm

HEALTH STEALTH

HEALTHCARE OVERHAUL IS QUIETLY UNDERWAY

The Los Angeles Times (1/31/2005)--Emboldened by their success at the polls, the Bush administration and Republican leaders in Congress believe they have a new opportunity to move the nation away from the system of employer-provided health insurance that has covered most working Americans for the last half-century.
In its place, they want to erect a system in which workers instead of looking to employers for health insurance would take personal responsibility for protecting themselves and their families: They would buy high-deductible "catastrophic" insurance policies to cover major medical needs, then pay routine costs with money set aside in tax-sheltered health savings accounts…

With Democratic strength reduced, President Bush, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (R-Bakersfield) are pushing for action. Supporters of the new approach, who see it as part of Bush's "ownership society," say workers and their families would become more careful users of healthcare if they had to pay the bills. Also, they say, the lower premiums on high-deductible plans would make coverage affordable for the uninsured and for small businesses.

Critics say the Republican approach is really an attempt to shift the risks, massive costs and knotty problems of healthcare from employers to individuals. And they say the GOP is moving forward with far less public attention or debate than have surrounded Bush's plans to overhaul Social Security. Indeed, Bush's health insurance agenda is far more developed than his Social Security plans and is advancing at a rapid clip through a combination of actions by government, insurers, employers and individuals.. . .
Health savings accounts, known as HSAs, have already been approved. They were created as a little-noticed appendage to the 2003 Medicare prescription drug bill….
-------
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/013105L.shtml


STOLEN ELECTION UPDATE

DEMOCRATS WILL INVESTIGATE OHIO VOTE:
NATIONAL PARTY TO SPEND UP TO $500K

Cincinnati Enquirer (2/1/2005)--The national Democratic Party will spend up to $500,000 to investigate voting problems that critics say might have occurred last year in the battleground state of Ohio, the party's leader said Tuesday.

"I want them to open up the machines," outgoing Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe told Gannett News Service and USA Today reporters. "If there's nothing wrong with the machines, we ought to be able to go in and take a look at them."
…McAuliffe and other Democrats have acknowledged that Bush won the election. "The election wasn't stolen," McAuliffe declared. But he said the DNC's investigation was a bow to "blogworld," referring to activists who write Web logs about politics and continue to talk about a stolen election. There's even a Web site, www.bushstole04.com, largely about the Ohio vote.

McAuliffe said he has assembled a team of about 20 experts in law, statistics and computer analysis. They'll crunch numbers, file freedom of information requests and talk with election officials…
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050202/NEWS01/502020378/1056


POLITICAL MACHINATIONS: THE GOVERNMENT IS KEEN TO DEPLY E-VOTING DESPITE EVIDENCE OF BALLOT RIGGING—IN ENGLAND!

Now e-voting is tainting elections in the United Kingdom, too.. Amazing that the best summary I’ve seen of the U.S. stolen election is published in a British newspaper. Thanks to the free press fans at the Guardian for publishing this warning for Brits as well as Americans:

THE GUARDIAN (1/2/2005) --For the first time, vote-rigging may become a serious issue at a general election - perhaps in just three months' time. With several cases of alleged vote-rigging and fraud already under investigation - in Reading, Birmingham, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire - the Electoral Commission is pressing guidelines on detecting voting fraud on senior police and election officers.

Meanwhile, the government remains keen on electronic voting and is aiming at "an e-enabled election some time after 2006". Will this raise turnout or simply increase the risk of fraud? Several pilots have been held. In 2003, six local authorities electronically counted ballot papers where votes had also been cast electronically. Surprisingly, there has been no manual checking of the e-counting results.

However, a full-blown test run of e-voting has been carried out elsewhere, with very instructive results. It shows that e-voting is neither secure nor tamper-proof, and allegations are surfacing that it may have affected the result. This dry run was the recent US presidential election. . .

http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/comment/story/0,12449,1403545,00.html


COURT REPORT


BUSH PLAN TO LIMIT LAWSUITS MOVING FAST
Associated Press (2/3/2005) -- Efforts to curb class action lawsuits advanced Thursday as backers of legislation pushed by the Bush administration and the business community foiled initial attempts to alter a carefully crafted compromise. The Senate Judiciary Committee (news - web sites) left intact language that would send many class action lawsuits from state courts into federal court, despite an attempt by Democrats to use the bill as a vehicle to raise federal judges' pay.
The committee approved the overall bill on a 13-5 vote, and the Republican-controlled Senate will take it up next week. Supporters will try to get the legislation to a GOP-dominated House that has agreed to support the bill if it is not substantially changed.
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=512&u=/ap/20050203/ap_on_go_co/limiting_lawsuits&printer=1

CIA ORDERED TO TURN OVER PRISONER RECORDS
Associated Press (2/2/2005) -- A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the CIA to comply with the Freedom of Information Act and turn over to watchdog groups records concerning the treatment of prisoners in Iraq.
The spy agency also was given the option of explaining better why it cannot release the documents.
"Congress has set the laws, and it is the duty of executive agencies to comply with them," U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein wrote.
It was the second time in six months that the judge suggested the government was impeding the American Civil Liberties Union's quest to monitor government actions in the war on terrorism…
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DETAINEE_RECORDS?SITE=NJPAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

JUDGE: YALE CAN BLOCK MILITARY RECRUITERS
Associated Press (2/2/2005)-- A federal judge has ruled that Yale Law School can block military recruiters from campus without fear of losing federal funding.
U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall ruled Monday that a federal law requiring universities to let recruiters on campus violates the school's constitutional right to free speech.
School policy requires all recruiters to sign a nondiscrimination pledge, which the Pentagon has not done in light of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning open homosexuality. Defense officials argued that federal law requires Yale to allow recruiters on campus even without signing the pledge…
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/02/02/judge_yale_can_block_military_recruiters/


DOMINANCE ON GOP AGENDA: DEPRIVING DEMOCRATS OF VOTERS
AND MONEY IS AMONG WHITE HOUSE POLICIES' OTHER AIMS

WASHINGTON — As the nation's trial lawyers again funneled tens of millions of dollars to Democrats and their causes in the last election, Republicans were crafting a strategy to choke off that money for future campaigns.

President Bush's agenda for the next four years, much of which he will highlight in his State of the Union address tonight, includes many proposals that would not only change public policy but, the GOP hopes, achieve an ambitious political goal: Stripping money and voters from the Democratic Party and cementing Republican dominance for years after he leaves office.

One of the clearest examples is an effort to limit jury awards in lawsuits against doctors and businesses. The caps might not only discourage "frivolous" lawsuits, as Bush argues, but also deprive trial lawyers of income from damage awards that they could then give to Democrats...

Full article at: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-agenda2feb02,0,3477198.story?coll=la-home-headlines


LABOR PAINS

SHOW US THE JOBS

TomPaine.com(2/1/2005)-- Last week, the Congressional Budget Office revealed the U.S. deficit has reached staggering levels— and that’s without calculating the cost of the ongoing occupation in Iraq. Among his priorities this year, President George W. Bush wants to make his tax cuts permanent. Not only do these tax cuts heap billions onto our national debt, but Jonathan Tasini explains that the evidence shows they don’t produce the jobs his administration claims they will.

Jonathan Tasini is president of the Economic Future Group and writes his "Working In America" columns for TomPaine.com on an occasional basis.

When the president delivers the State of the Union address, he will lie. He will tell the American people that his tax cuts have helped people get jobs and boosted the economy as a whole. And he will use those untruths to push Congress to make his tax cuts permanent. . .

What’s happening here? The administration has to lie. To sell tax cuts overwhelmingly benefiting the wealthy, you have to promise something for the middle class. You can’t exactly call your economic plan “The Enrich The Wealthy, Let the Rest Eat Cake” plan. It just doesn’t have the right ring to it. So the administration’s domestic template bears a startling resemblance to its foreign policy approach for explaining reality: Fabricate a rationale for your policy and defend it no matter what the facts are, and no matter the costs.

Now—as with the war in Iraq—there will be some who say that calling the president a liar is unfair, that he made job promises in good faith. But that’s just not credible given the past evidence of the relationship between tax cuts and job creation. At best, the president can barely claim gross incompetence.

But certainly—with the past experience laid out for all to see—the public should not buy any State of the Union claims that more tax cuts will help create more jobs. There is, in fact, an argument to be made that the president’s tax cuts have contributed to job losses because of large annual deficits and the crushing financial burden passed on to state government budgets. When state governments are struggling, the private sector—particularly small business—is burdened. And that says nothing of the long-term consequences resulting from the additional 10 trillion dollars of additional long-term debt over 10 years that Bush will saddle us with if his tax cuts are made permanent. As Citizens for Tax Justice points out, because of the Bush tax cuts, “By 2013 and thereafter, the government is likely to be spending more on interest on the debt than on all domestic appropriations put together—from education, to the environment, to law enforcement, to science, to transportation, to veterans.”

In that sense, George W. Bush will leave office with generations of Americans in his debt—deeply in debt for generations to come.

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/show_us_the_jobs.php


A HANDFULL OF RICE

The Lone Star Iconoclast (12/2004) --As Uncle Hugh used to say, “I always wondered why the bank had a crippled janitor on the daytime payroll. Why would they have a floor sweeper settin’ there in the corner all day lookin’ pitiful and doin’ nothin’ ‘til after closin’ time. Then it come to me that he was there so’s I’d have somebody else to feel sorry for while I was gittin’ fleeced.”
Here’s why the Democratic Party is coming out second best to a hardluck oil hustler-turned crowd huckster for a losing baseball team.

Aside from the fact that the American people seem made for carnival barkers, that is.

First, let’s establish one incontrovertible fact: If you work, you don’t make enough money. If you draw a salary or run a local business, you’re being had by investment corporations who are putting your money in their pockets.

If the company paid workers more, they wouldn’t have to go to Waco to get cheap foreign crap at Wal Mart. And Wal Mart wouldn’t be able to sell cheap foreign crap a lower prices than working businesses if they had to pay decent wages.

So my basic premise here is to pay workers and let Wall Street go to hell…
http://www.iconoclast-texas.com/Columns/Fisher/05fisher.htm

WAR STORIES

HEADS ROLL AT THE VETERANDS ADMINISTRATION:
MUSHROOMING DEPLETED URANIUM (DU) SCANDAL BLAMED

56% of veterans who served in the first Gulf War have permanent medical problems related to depleted uranium weapons, Project Censored award winning journalist Bob Nichols reports. Note: The BBC has run stories indicating the U.S. continues to use DU weapons in Iraq, exposing thousands of U.S. soldiers and Iraqis to DU—and a long-term fate described in Nichols’ article as “a virtual death sentence.”

(1/24/2005)--The Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter today charged that the reason Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi stepped down earlier this month was the growing scandal surrounding the use of uranium munitions (DU) in the Iraq War.

Writing in the Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter # 169, Arthur N. Bernklau, Executive Director of the Veterans For Constitutional Law Center in New York, stated that "The real reason for Mr. Principi’s departure was really never given, however a special report published by eminent scientist Leuren Moret’s naming depleted uranium as the definitive cause of the ‘Gulf War Syndrome’ has fed a growing scandal about the continued use of uranium munitions by the US Military.”

Bernklau continued "This malady , that thousands of our military have suffered and died from, has finally been identified as the cause of this sickness, eliminating the guessing. The terrible truth is now being revealed.

He added that "Out of the 580,400 soldiers who served in GW1, of them, 11,000 are now dead. By the year 2000, there were 325,000 on Permanent Medical Disability. This astounding number of “Disabled Vets” means that a decade later, 56% of those soldiers who served have some form of permanent medical problems. (Author’s note: The "Disabled" rate for the wars of the last century was 5%, and 10% in Viet Nam.)

Bernklau added "The VA Secretary (Principi) was aware of this fact as far back as 2000. He and the Bush administration have been hiding these facts, but now, thanks to Moret’s report, ... is far too big to hide or to cover up!"

Full story: http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/article_15334.shtml


MARINE GENERAL: IT’S `FUN TO SHOOT PEOPLE’
Commandant gives counsel, acknowledges wrong word choice

CNN (2/3/2005) -- A three-star Marine general who said it was "fun to shoot some people" should have chosen his words more carefully, the Marine Corps commandant said Thursday.
Lt. Gen. James Mattis, who commanded Marine expeditions in Afghanistan and Iraq, made the comments Tuesday during a panel discussion in San Diego, California.

"Actually it's quite fun to fight them, you know. It's a hell of a hoot," Mattis said, prompting laughter from some military members in the audience. "It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up there with you. I like brawling.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/02/03/general.shoot/index.html

UNCIVIL LIBERTIES

33 DFA MEMBERS BARRED FROM BUSH SPEECH IN FARGO

Bush’s march toward creating a police state continues. Members of Howard Dean’s Democracy for America, including the producer of Ed Schultz’s syndicated liberal talk radio show and a City Commissioner, were prohibited from attending a public speech by the President! The list of 33 DFA members barred in Fargo, North Dakota included citizens who wrote editorials opposing the president’s policies, campaigned for progressive candidates, or organized rallies on progressive issues.

Read more details in these two articles, published in the Dakota Democrat:

http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=82288
http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=82266

Also info at Democracy for America: http://blogforamerica.com/


PRINCIPAL BANKS ‘ANTI-MILITARY, ANTI-AMERICAN’ MATERIALS

ASSOCIATED PRESS (2/2/2005) -- A Cookeville (Tenn.) High School administrator said Veterans for Peace and a Quaker group can't come back into his school with materials considered ''anti-American'' and ''anti-military.''

The groups plan to go before the Putnam County school board tomorrow with claims that they're being denied privileges afforded to other organizations, including military recruiters…
http://tennessean.com/education/archives/05/01/65061319.shtml?Element_ID=65061319

COMIC RELIEF IN TEXAS

TEXAS HUMORIST KINKY FRIEDMAN TO RUN FOR GOVERNOR

Reuters (2/3/2005) -- SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Reuters) - Texas humorist Kinky Friedman, who wrote the song "They Ain't Makin' Jews Like Jesus Any More," announced on Thursday his independent candidacy for the state's governorship.
Friedman, joking he wants to move into the governor's mansion "because I need the closet space," launched his drive to become the state's first independent governor since Texas Revolution hero Sam Houston in 1859 in front of the Alamo.
Wearing a black cowboy hat and sporting a trademark lit cigar, Friedman's announcement was carried nationally on the MSNBC morning show hosted by radio personality Don Imus. ..

Like Minnesota's Jesse Ventura in 1998 and California's Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2003, Friedman's nontraditional candidacy could garner serious support, said political analyst Larry Hufford of St. Mary's University in San Antonio. . .

To get on the 2006 November ballot, Friedman must collect signatures of 40,500 registered voters next spring, and only those who did not participate in the major-party primaries are eligible to sign. .. We're going to wake up that great slumbering giant of Texas independence," Friedman said.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=YUWV4B5IDZNQECRBAEZSFEY?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=7529326



TAKE ACTION!


IMPEACH BUSH!
Ramsey Clark has almost half a million signatures.
Please sign and forward this link to others:
http://www.votetoimpeach.org/

More on how you can help persuade Congress to impeach Bush:
http://www.impeach-bush-now.org/

Tell Congress: Laws Should Protect People, Not Corporations
Petition: http://www.care2.com/go/z/21141
Congress could act soon on the so-called Class Action
Fairness Act, S. 5. This particular piece of legislative
"reform" would limit the rights of citizens to file class
action lawsuits when they are victimized by corporations
that pollute our communities or hide the truth about the
harm their products cause.

From FreePress.net:
Ask your Senators & Congressional member to investigate "payola pundits" (journalists taking taxpayer money to promote Administration propaganda): http://www.freepress.net/action/callcongress.php?a=nopayola

From Working Families:
Take action to protect Social Security by signing the petition:
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/171nc991rcrI/

Several media reform groups are pushing forward with plans to eliminate media.
Please sign and forward!
http://www.fairnessdoctrine.com/


Tell Congress: Support the Voting Integrity & Verification Act of 2005
http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=310278

Ask President Bush to stop blocking critical funding to the United Nations Population Fund. These funds could prevent 2 million unwanted pregnancies, 800,000 induced abortions, and 4,700 maternal deaths each year. Act here:
http://www.care2.com/go/z/21143

Over-the-counter access of the morning-after pill could prevent up to half of all unintended pregnancies, and is critical for victims of sexual assault. Urge the FDA to do the right thing now:
http://www.care2.com/go/z/21145

From CARE2: Social Security: Strengthen Protections for Families,
Not Wall Street. Petition: http://www.care2.com/go/z/21147



NOTABLE QUOTES

“Democrats are all for giving Americans more of a say and more choices when it comes to their retirement savings. But that doesn’t mean taking Social Security’s guarantee and gambling with it. And that’s coming from a senator who represents Las Vegas.” -- Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada)






The Liberty Belle Log is distributed free to subscribers. If you do not wish to receive this publication, send an e-mail to writerink@cox.net with “Cancel Subscription” in the message line.

but I get so much stuff now, it would be more than I can deal with.

I'll be posting the action alerts section here, so watch for those.