A union presence at the Sago mine might well have prevented the disaster. Training at a union mine is strictly enforced. Workers, in rotation, walk the three alternate escape routes monthly and train on priorities in case of an emergency. Barricading as was done at Sago is the fourth and final resort. There were no […]
Geography Archives: Americas
South America, Central America, United States & Canada
“Nuestro Himno”: Overcoming an Anthem to the Empire
A Review of “Nuestro Himno,” in Somos Americanos, Urban Box Office (www.ubo.com) $10 ($1 goes to support the immigrant rights movement). Release date May 16, 2006 A Spanish-language version of the US national anthem was distributed to radio stations Friday, April 29th, in time to be played over the air to build the May 1st […]
Chechnya, Darfur, and Jewish Activism
The Sudan Liberation Army signed a peace agreement with Khartoum. Now, only the Justice and Equality Movement is left (Lydia Polgreen and Joel Brinkley, “Biggest Rebel Faction in Darfur Poised to Sign Peace Deal,” New York Times, 4 May 2006). Will the “30 Days for Darfur” campaign, “inspired by a meeting between Rabbi [David] Saperstein […]
“Hispanic Quebec” Makes Its Entrance [L’entrée en scène du «Québec hispanophone»]
En ce Premier Mai 2006, des milliers et des milliers de Latinos se sont absentés du travail et de l’école, ont manifesté dans les rues des principales villes américaines et ont fait grève de consommation pour protester contre le projet de loi HR 4437 sur le contrôle de l’immigration illégale et faire reconnaître leur apport […]
What’s in a Name? Of West Point, War, and Pizza
When is a “West Point” graduate no longer a “West Point” graduate? That’s easy, according to the legal experts at the United States Military Academy. Any time you have an organization using the term, West Point, of which they do not approve. In fact, according to a letter received by us from these authorities, any […]
May Day in Asheville, North Carolina
May Day in North Carolina, USA. The weather is perfect. A march for immigrant rights begins this afternoon — part of the nationwide movement to prevent the passage of a legislation that would make it a felony offense to be in the US without papers or to help anyone that is here without said papers. […]
Seymour Hersh and the American Brain
Dear New Yorker Magazine: You’ve got your nerve, printing Seymour Hersh’s article, “The Iran Plans: Would President Bush Go to War to Stop Tehran from Getting the Bomb?” I have just thrown my April 17 issue of your so-called publication across the room, breaking the little shepherdess in my Hummel collection — so you owe […]
Stolen Birthright: The U. S. Conquest and Exploitation of the Mexican People [El patrimonio robado: La conquista estadounidense y la explotación de los mexicanos]
[This essay is the second installment of “Stolen Birthright: The U. S. Conquest and Exploitation of the Mexican People” by Richard D. Vogel. Read the first installment here.] La guerra de Estados Unidos en México La guerra de Estados Unidos en México de 1846-1848 fue la primera guerra estadounidense de agresión en contra de una […]
The Lobby: It’s Not Either-Or
[John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt’s essay “The Israel Lobby” (London Review of Books 28.6, 23 March 2006) rekindled the smoldering controversy over the relations among US foreign policy, Israel, and the Israel lobby in the United States. Norman G. Finkelstein‘s comment on the controversy below provides a very useful analytical perspective on the subject. — […]
Stolen Birthright: The U.S. Conquest and Exploitation of the Mexican People [El patrimonio robado: La conquista estadounidense y la explotación de los mexicanos]
Un espíritu del pasado está penando en América. Pero ese espíritu no es un fantasma — es la emergencia de millones de mexicanos y méxicoamericanos, descendientes de los desterrados, a quienes se les negaron sus patrimonio en el suroeste de los Estados Unidos, y quienes están creciendo en poder y tienen hambre de justicia. La […]
Whither Nepal?
Faced with an explosion of pro-democracy strikes and mass demonstrations, Nepal’s King Gyanendra was forced to reinstate parliament last week. Gyanendra had abolished parliament in October 2002 and seized absolute control in February 2005, but his attempts to regain his grip through repression last month only sparked further rebellion. On April 28, the Seven-Party Alliance […]
Who Wants Peace in Darfur?
The “Save Darfur” rally today was aired on C-Span. The rally was small — only several thousands according to Reuters (“Thousands March to Stop Darfur Killing,” 30 April 2006). And the crowd in attendance was overwhelmingly white. But, boy, it was a professionally-staged photo op, with celebs, politicos, and exiles from Sudan at the podium […]
Neil Young Kicks Out the Jams!
On April 30, 1970, Richard Nixon told the world that US forces were invading the country of Cambodia. Within twenty-four hours of his announcement, the streets of many cities and towns around the United States and elsewhere were filled with angry protests against the US action. On May 4, National Guard troops opened fire on […]
Worker-to-Worker Solidarity Committee to AFL-CIO: Cut All Ties with NED
On March 6, over 50 union members from several unions and activist allies picketed the headquarters of the AFL-CIO in Washington, DC., to demand that the AFL-CIO’s Solidarity Center immediately break off all ties with the misnamed National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The NED is a leading component of the US Government’s efforts to maintain […]
“Save Darfur”: Evangelicals and Establishment Jews
Yoshie Furuhashi, “Who Wants Peace in Darfur?” (30 April 2006) It’s embarrassing that America — and the world — will be witnessing a PRO-WAR rally in Washington, D.C. on April 30 (a project of SaveDarfur.org) that is far more highly publicized than an anti-war one (that appears to be poorly organized) in New York City […]
Nativo López on May 1: “You Get What You’re Ready to Fight for”
NATIVO LÓPEZ is president of the Mexican American Political Association and a spokesperson for the Great American Boycott 2006 — a national day of action for immigrant rights on May 1. Nativo talked about the huge protests against anti-immigrant legislation and plans for May 1 with SARAH KNOPP, a teacher in Los Angeles and […]
Persian Atoms: Enriching Facts, Diverting Fiction
“I don’t think the issue of enrichment right now, emotional as it is, is urgent. . . . So, we have ample time to negotiate a settlement by which, as I said, Iran’s need for nuclear power is assured and the concern of the international community is also put to rest.” “We have done our […]
Harperism: The First Three Months
The opening of the 39th Parliament of Canada on 3 April 2006 quickly revealed what should now be plain to all. Under the Conservative Party leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Canadians are faced with a government with an unambiguous right-wing agenda. The outlines of the “Harperism” project can readily be discerned: there is a […]
West Point Graduates Organize against the War
We mince no words. Time is of the essence. Iraq is a human and political catastrophe, stark testament to the deceitful behavior of the Bush administration. The dangers are clear and present, and too many human beings are dying for an ignoble cause. The preemptive war launched against Iraq on March 20, 2003 stands illegal […]
Nepal and Venezuela:For Popular Democracy, against Ceremonial Democracy
Any serious and honest survey of the Maoist movement would convey the truth that its main agenda has been to establish essential democratic institutions that devolve political and economic power to the masses. In every negotiation with the King and the parliamentary forces, the Maoists have asked for an unconditional constituent assembly, during whose election […]
