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May Day in New Castle
by Isaac Ludwig
Tuesday, Apr. 08, 2003 at 4:26 PM
ludwigih@westminster.edu
May 1st, May Day, New Castle, PA will host a permitted march and rally. The event is slated to start at 4:30 p.m. at Kennedy square or the “diamond” at corner of Jefferson and East Washington.
Westminster College Green Party
Contact: Isaac Ludwig
Phone: (724) 946-3815 Support Our Troops, Not Our Foreign Policy. On May 1st, May Day, New Castle, PA will host a permitted march and rally. The event is slated to start at 4:30 p.m. at Kennedy square or the “diamond” at corner of Jefferson and East Washington. You're Wrong !! You are not going to "tackle" anything. And why shoudl anyone protest our foreign policy. It looks like this foreign policy has liberated an entire nation of repressed people, giving the opportunities that the UN would have denied them. Even as the atrocities of hte Hussein Regime are exposed you will continue to criticize the only method of stopping htat genocide and oppression? No name - Why the sudden concern... ...for human rights? I mean, it's nice to see your concern for for the Iraqi people under the Saddam govt, but: I wasn't Alive During The Spanish-American Was As such, I really don't give a damn about that. . So, spare me your phony concern for human rights!
Er, so if I've made mistakes in the past I can't stop making them? What if I wasn't even alive for most of the events you mentioned?
Bottom line is human rights ARE being violated. All over the world. We have to start dealing with them somewhere and sometime, and I have yet to hear anyone explain why not Iraq and why not now? We SHOULD deal with human rights violations in Iraq... Of course, why not? However, lets think about what has been standing in the way of human rights in Iraq. we are and have been BOMBING them. Tens of tousands of them. Thats not helping thier citizens a hell of a lot, now is it? reply to no name... "I wasn't Alive During The Spanish-American War... So You Think French Jews Don't Need Refuge Jacques Chirac's pro-Saddam stance seems to have emboldened his nation's anti-Semites. "Street protests against American and British military action in Iraq have escalated into attacks by Muslim youths on Jewish demonstrators, sparking fears of a new wave of anti-Semitism across France," the Telegraph reports. "Protesters, some of them carrying pictures of Saddam Hussein, burnt the Israeli flag and turned on Jewish students, attacking one of them with an iron bar, during a series of anti-war rallies." Sometimes people miss the point entirely Yes, I'm not shocked to hear some people learn about Isreal committing grave human rights atrocities and genocide against Muslims in Palestine and become, as you put it "anti-semites". I'm not condoning violence against Jews in France, but the rest of the world cannot keep quiet about, let alone condone, the systematic genocide of an entire people for the last 50 years. Get a grip "...for human rights? I mean, it's nice to see your concern for for the Iraqi people under the Saddam govt, but: Where was your concern while US-ally Suharto was comitting Gencide in E. Timor? " et al.... no, dave He wasn't saying we should police the world. He was making the point that is we went into Iraq to help it's citizens, why didn't we do it in E. Timor... clarification By saying lets do something about human rights in Iraq, I meant the people of the U.S. should insist on stopping the armed forces from killing thier people, and end the economically oppressive occupation. The plan appears to be for the U.S. to basically pirate Iraqi oil while maintaining a puppet goverment run by the pentagon. Under this plan, Iraq will have LESS social and economic independence and democracy. Sound like Nazi-era occupation tactics to anyone else? about anti-semitism in France It's way more complex than that. Anti-Semitism is deep-rooted in French culture and persists among a small percenage of the population. It dates back through the Dreyfus affair and way beyond - there were widely publicized incidents of desecrating Jewish cemeteries, along with bombings/attacks in the Jewish Marais area of Paris, all throughout the 80s and 90s, and the far-right National Front party (LePen) is unashamedly anti-Semite. If Chirac's anti-war stance encouraged the far right in its anti-Semitism, that's only because the far right will jump on any bandwagon that will give them an excuse to promote racism. It's ironic that elements of the Muslim community should apparently jump on that same bandwagon for different reasons (Palestine? pan-arabism..?) since the National Front hates them as much as it hates Jews, probably more in fact because they "take jobs" and "have too many children."
E-mail: ludwigih@westminster.edu
Written: 4-8-03
The Westminster College Green Party is currently organizing the event to shed light on a variety of issues. Some of the issues the event will tackle include: Rumsfield’s threats to Syria, the ongoing war in Colombia, and the current state of globalization pertaining to a post war Iraq. With the outcome of the current war in Iraq in preverbal limbo and a future focus needed for the anti-war movement’s view of our nation’s current foreign policy there are additional issues that need to be brought to light. The title of the event is aimed at dispelling the notion that people not supporting a certain foreign policy cannot be supportive of their armed forces. This event will follow the previous success of February 22nd’s “Storm the Castle” and March 5th’s “Books Not Bombs” student strike at Westminster. Organizers of the group are currently looking for people to speak, and groups to formally endorse the march and rally.
Those wanting to formally endorse the march, speak or those simply wanting more information can contact either Isaac Ludwig at 724-946-3815 (ludwigih@westminster.edu) or Ken Jae at 724-946-6475 (jaekc@westminster.edu).
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by No Name For Fear Of Open Spaces
Wednesday, Apr. 09, 2003 at 4:30 PM
by ...
Wednesday, Apr. 09, 2003 at 6:40 PM
Where was your concern while US-ally Suharto was comitting Gencide in E. Timor?
Where was your concern when the Nicraguans were fighting for their freedom against the US-equipped contras?
Where was your concern for the tens of thousands of Salavadorenos killed by their US-sponsored govenment's marauding death squads?
Whereis your concern about the present-day thug-junta in sweatshop Burma?
Where is you concern about the Colombian US-sponsored govenment's marauding death squads currently murdering anyone who dares try to organize a union of talk back to their boss?
And finally, since we now done with Saddam, will you now support our military going right to Palestine, to save it's people from their ongoing genocide at the hands of the Israelis?
And finally, where will your concern be a year or two when the (formerly thankful) Iraqis are fighting for their freedom from a US oil-oligharchy occupation and puppet regime? (oh, that's right, by then they will all be called "terrorists" or "Saddam loyalists")
Since 1991, the left has offered many possible nonviolent measures - such as sanctions and UN inspections which would have targeted Saddams human rights abuses and weakened him politically, instead of sanctions that killed at least 500K Iraqis, only dealt with weapons and only made Saddam stronger. Surely you (and the United State's government) can imagine lots of ways the international community could have been weakened and overthrown Saddam without resort to bombing and destruction? But they didn't want to!
So, spare me your phony concern for human rights!
Read a goddamn history book. Pay particular attention to the Spanish-American war and the brutal US colonialization of the Philippines. The US does not
by No Name For Fear of Open Spaces
Wednesday, Apr. 09, 2003 at 7:17 PM
However, I have always thought that we should have gone into Rwanda with a big stick, but the Clinton Adminstration was opposed to even listening to anyone about Rwanda.
I have also thought that we should be more involved in E.Timor, but the problem is that unlesss we clean house there and install our own government there isn't a solution since all of the parties are about equally undesirable.
And I am a strong supporter of intervention in France, or at least offering refugee status to any French Jews who wish to come to America to escape the anti-semitic oppression of the French people and government.
by .
Wednesday, Apr. 09, 2003 at 7:51 PM
by wheatpaster
Wednesday, Apr. 09, 2003 at 8:12 PM
A UN study warned before this began that war with Iraq would result in many thousands dead, an estimated 2 million displaced persons and refugees, as many as 500,000 civilian casualties requiring medical treatment, and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis with war-related diseases such as cholera and dysentary. UNICEF estimates over 50% of the population of Iraq is under the age of 15. You do the math on these figures and maybe you will know why General Franks refuses to do a body count, and further why the corporate media is too chickenshit to ask him to start.
The U.S. are committing the human rights violations. The U.S. are bombing against the will of the UN, killing at a far more rapid pace than Hussein killed Iraqis since the first Gulf War. I don't care how happy a handful of scared Iraqi civilians appear on Fox News right now. Wouldn't you be putting on a happy face if a few thousand enemy ground troops just took over your town?
Yes, lets do something about human rights in Iraq.
Lets do it now.
by pjd
Thursday, Apr. 10, 2003 at 12:32 AM
As such, I really don't give a damn about that."
"Yup, the standard mindless reply of a typical TV-brainwashed totally ahistorical, insular, ignorant, amoral american. I guess you never heard the saying about history about being ..."condemned to repeat it"? Well, let me educate you. In the Philipines, we slaughtered at least one half million of people fighting for their freedom from US imperialism - only a year after they too had been jubilant for the US freeing them from a tyrant - but not going home afterward.
"I have also thought that we should be more involved in E.Timor, but the problem is that unlesss we clean house there and install our own government there isn't a solution since all of the parties are about equally undesirable."
You must be talking about East Timor, Andromeda Galaxy. You really don't know much about East Timor, don't you?
The East Timor I know will complete their first year of democracy and independence on May 20. They won it through largely nonviolent resistance - even after they lost a third of their nation's population (200,000 dead) to the US-supported Suharto regime. The US could have literally ended the killing with a phone call. The rsistance and current government is led by Xanana Gusmao and Nobel peace prize winner Jose Ramos Horta.
I thought you were concerned about human rights? One big aspect of human rights is this thing called democracy and self-determination. But, alas, you must know knothing about democracy or you would know that the Timorese people or those of any real democracy don't give a flying fuck about whether you or Mr. Bush consider their policies "desirable" or not!
"And I am a strong supporter of intervention in France, or at least offering refugee status to any French Jews who wish to come to America to escape the anti-semitic oppression of the French people and government."
Like no-name's first remark, this is another typical american remark which I used to think was flippancy, (the most common one I hear at work is "we ought to just kill all those uncivilized arabs") but an coming to the horrific conclusion that they are actually serious.
by No Name For Fear Of Open Spaces
Thursday, Apr. 10, 2003 at 10:34 AM
This isn't the first time this has happened. Last month the Jerusalem Post ( http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/ShowFull%26cid=1048305299381 ) reported that anti-American demonstrators attacked and wounded two young Jewish boys. And in an earlier incident, "three masked men attacked a 21-year-old female Jewish student in the French town of Aix-en-Provence Wednesday and carved a Magen David [Star of David] on her arm." (http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1047445632295 )
by wheatpaster
Thursday, Apr. 10, 2003 at 7:52 PM
I have not kept up on the plight of Jews in France as closely as this poster, but I do know some people react violently to learning about violent and murderous injustice against a meeker adversary. I'm a social worker, I study this stuff. Some people see a police officer beating on a neighbor and come to the rescue of the neighbor, only to get shot for attacking an officer. I sat on a jury for such a case. Some people attend KKK rallies and get arrested for kicking Klan ass. Does anyone in Ireland really know why Northern and Southern Irish murder each other with carbombs? If Britian didn't invade and colonize -at first with Catholicism then with Anglicanism- all of Ireland would be happy Celtics living in harmony.
Most people agree that we live in a violent society. Finding peaceful alternatives must become a goal of societies throughout the world, or else the "chicken or the egg" debate will become a self-fulfilling prophesy in each and every world conflict. Lets examine what powerful countries are doing to their economically less fortunate neighbors, and find peaceful ways to end systemic oppression.
by Dave Z
Friday, Apr. 11, 2003 at 9:12 AM
SO....which is it...do you WANT us to be the "world's police" or not??
In one breath you condemn this person for feeling for the Iraqui public but in the next you want the US to clean up problems everywhere else???
Geez...get a grip.
by .
Friday, Apr. 11, 2003 at 9:58 AM
answer.....
You got it, King Oil, it owns you.
by wheatpaster
Monday, Apr. 14, 2003 at 12:43 PM
I stand by my statement that some people miss the point entirely.
by Rebecca
Monday, Apr. 14, 2003 at 3:30 PM
malekincat@earthlink.net
I'm no fan of Chirac's but to blame all that on the government's anti-war position is stretching it a bit. If you want a real root cause look at poverty, unemployment, inhuman inner city projects in the big cities of Paris, Marseille, Toulon, unequal job opportunities, a justice/police system that can be outright racist, and general scapegoating... those are the things that create a base for the NF, generate frustration among young French people of Algerian and Moroccan descent in the country and thereby encourage anti-Semitism. It's easier to blame the anti-war stance though I guess.
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