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NEWS DISSECTOR: Happy Birthday Nelson Mandela, Wish We Had You Here
NEWS DISSECTOR July 17, 2008
Happy Birthday Nelson Mandela, Wish We Had You Here
Sam Smith of Undernews Says What Others Fear to Say:
It is against the journalist's code of ethics to say so, but the presidential campaign has become incredibly dull. Over the past few weeks, the candidates have become becalmed, drifting in the electoral ocean, sails flapping lazily, awaiting for nature and history to cause something to happen..
Actually it has. We're on the verge of war with Iran and the banking system is collapsing, but neither candidate has much to say on these topics. Instead the hope huckster lectures the NAACP on how to raise their children and his opponent struggles to find some justification for his existence since he was a prisoner of war
WORLD CHEERS AS MANDELA TURNS 90
SHOULD WE BAIL OUT FREDDIE AND FANNIE?
NACA'S HOMEOWNER OFFENSIVE IN WASHINGTON
June 18th is Nelson Mandela's 90th Birthday, so let me start the singing a day or two early before he can blow out the candles. He is one of those leaders who not only helped free his own country and people but became an icon and symbol for freedom in the world.
At a time when darkness seems to be descending again, with the economy on the edge amidst protracted wars and pervasive abuses of powers, he is the one person that people the world over look to as a symbol of that saying that 'another world is possible.' He is not perfect-who is. He has taken great risks, and made his share of mistakes, but the love and adoration he inspires speaks to how special he is-even as he sees himself as part of a collective, a movement,
We at Globalvision certainly wish Madiba (the clan name by which he is widely known) our greetings, in part, because of his kindness and graciousness, and the access we were given to document a front seat to history and to film part of his unique contribution to world history first through our South Africa Now series and then in five documentaries.
I was blessed to be invited back to South Africa last month to work with two great local filmmakers, Catherine Myburgh and Executive Producer Anant Singh, on a new tribute, VIVA MADIBA, that will air on South African Broadcasting Friday night, and hopefully later around the world. I am especially honored that a non-South African would be trusted this way.
Here is part of the press release from Videovision, the South African company that made the film:
Viva Madiba: A Hero For All Seasons, a feature length film produced by Anant Singh and Videovision Entertainment as a 90th Birthday Tribute to former president, Nelson Mandela, will have its World Premiere when it is broadcast on Friday, 18 July 2008 on SABC 2 at 21h00.
Viva Madiba: A Hero For All Seasons is a celebration of Nelson Mandela's epic life and his status as an international icon. In this, the year of his 90th birthday, he remains a man at the centre of attention, not only in South Africa, but around the world as a moral leader, an elder statesman and an exceptional human being.
Viva Madiba: A Hero For All Seasons takes one on a journey behind the headlines and away from the public eye and looks at Madiba as a loyal friend, a dependable comrade, a trusted confidant, a respected mentor, and a man who has touched and transformed countless lives.
For the first time his complete story is being told - a life of struggle, humanity, destiny and greatness is recalled and celebrated by those who knew him best and who worked with him in the quest to break the chains of oppression, taking us beyond the political and into the personal. The programme features exclusive interviews with politicians, close friends and comrades of Madiba, among whom are Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Oliver Tambo, George Bizos, Ahmed Kathrada, Pik Botha, Dorothy Masuka, Nthato Motlana, Cyril Ramaphosa, Helen Suzman, Zolani Mkiva, Jessie Duarte, *** Pienaar, Sydney Kentridge, Mac Maharaj, Christo Brand and Gill Marcus.
I hope Americans and others will eventualy get to see it.
I will be on San Francisco's KQED Forum Friday to talk about my experiences with this world changing prisoner turned President.
There are many songs we could sing-and, now, apparently there is a new one.
This just in: Mandela gets new birthday song
A band is to release a song celebrating Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday after being encouraged to do so by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
A spokesman for the band said that Archbishop Tutu had heard some of Manchester indie group International One's music before inviting them to record a song for Mr Mandela's birthday.
They are joined by members of the London African Gospel Choir and the Vox Choir on the single 'Inyaniso' which translates as 'The Truth'.
Back in our Bush World, we have this development that has more to do with surpressing truth.
AP: WASHINGTON - President Bush has asserted executive privilege to prevent Attorney General Michael Mukasey from having to comply with a House panel subpoena for material on the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity. BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia misused the symbol of the Red Cross in this month's military rescue of politician Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other guerrilla-held hostages, the government said on Wednesday, admitting a possible violation of the rules of war.
THE PRESIDENT OF COLUMBIA REGRETS
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia misused the symbol of the Red Cross in this month's military rescue of politician Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other guerrilla-held hostages, the government said on Wednesday, admitting a possible violation of the rules of war. The International Commitee of the Red Cross denounced this tactic.
COMMITTEE TO HEAR KUCIINICH IMPEACHMENT CALL
Comments his supporters; "It's really a major step forward, and thanks to the hard work of thousands of us, that this long, seven years overdue hearing will commence. The cynical crew at the Democratic Leadership Council believes that by "throwing this bone" to us, they can quiet the will of most all Americans that wants Bush and Cheney held to account for their proven criminal acts of treason against the United States. Now we need to put even more pressure on the House Judiciary Committee members to demand that the hearings progress to the logical conclusion, and that is to proceed to the removal of Bush and Cheney from office now."
YOU READ ABOUT IRAN'S MISSILE ATTACK
But You don't know when events like that occur, Pentagon salesman spring into action to play on the fears of neighbors. Presto:
TML: Kuwait Orders U.S. Patriot Defense System
Kuwait has placed a $156 million-order with an American company to purchase the Patriot air and missile defense system, according to news reports Kuwait was awarded the deal through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program.
OBAMA: ABOLISH ALL NUCLEAR WEAPONS
WORLD COURT TO US: STAY EXECUTIONS
The Hague, Netherlands - The U.N.'s highest court on
Wednesday ordered the United States to stay the
executions of five Mexicans on Texas death row pending
review of their cases.
Mexico had appealed to the World Court to block the
executions. At hastily convened hearings last month,
Mexico argued that the United States is defying a 2004
International Court of Justice order to review the
cases of 51 Mexicans sentenced to death by state
courts.
That order was based on the Hague-based court's finding
that the condemned prisoners had been denied the right
to help from their consulate following their arrest.
Wednesday's ruling comes less than three weeks before
the first of the death row inmates, Jose Medellin, was
scheduled for execution by lethal injection in Texas
for taking part in the gang rape and murder of two
teenage girls 15 years ago.
At last month's hearings, Mexico's chief advocate Juan
Manuel Gomez-Robledo told the court the cases had not
been systematically reviewed, and the U.S. was "in
breach of its international obligations."
Should We Bail Out Freddie and Fannie Or Let Them Fail?
BULLETIN: THE FBI HAS OPENED A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE FAILURE OF INDY MAC
WATCH: Investor Jim Rogers says let Fannie and Freddie Fail
WILLIAM GREIDER IN THE NATION
When the monied interests whined, they made themselves heard by dumping the stocks of these two quasi-public private corporations, threatening to collapse the two financial firms like the investor "run" that wiped out Bear Stearns in March. The real distress of the banks and brokerages and major investors is that they cannot unload the rotten mortgage securities packaged by Fannie Mae and banks sold worldwide. Wall Street's preferred solution: dump the bad paper on the rest of
us, the unwitting American taxpayers.The Bush crowd, always so reluctant to support federal
aid for mere people, stepped up to the challenge and
did as it was told. Treasury Secretary Paulson (ex-
Goldman Sachs) and his sidekick, Federal Reserve
Chairman Ben Bernanke, announced their bailout plan on
Sunday to prevent another disastrous selloff on Monday
when markets opened. Like the first-stage rescue of
Wall Street's largest investment firms in March, this
bold stroke was said to benefit all of us. The whole
kingdom of American high finance would tumble down if
government failed to act or made the financial guys pay
for their own reckless delusions. Instead, dump the
losses on the people…We are witnessing a momentous event-the great deflation of Wall Street-and it is far from over.
FT: EUROPE FACES MAJOR GAS PRICE HIKES
he price of natural gas in continental Europe is to double in the space of a year as a result of the rise in oil prices, according to a leading consultancy. Such an increase would put a further squeeze on hard-pressed European consumers and businesses, and add to the upward pressure on inflation in the eurozone, which has been estimated at 4 per cent in June. It would also stoke concerns about the prevalence in continental Europe of long-term contracts for gas supply, which link the price to the cost of oil products such as heating oil. European gas prices -typically follow the price of oil with a lag of about nine months, so if the price of crude oil remains at record -levels, the future price of gas can be calculated with a -reasonable degree of -confidence.
CRISIS STILL IN MOTION
RGE, The Economic analysts on fears of a financial meltdown:
Neither immediate access to the central bank liquidity, nor an expected large increase in credit lines from $2.25bn each, nor the prospect of recapitalization - effectively a public bailout plan - were able to calm markets about the financial health of FannieMae and FreddieMac, the government-sponsored enterprises (GSE) that own or guarantee $5.3 trillion in mostly prime mortgages. Agency bond spreads widened again and the share prices tumbled further after Moody's downgraded the GSEs preferred stock and financial strength rating, helping to spread selling pressure on commercial banks and brokers. In order to restore some calm in the markets, the SEC had to step in by putting a limit on short sales of GSE and broker dealer stocks in a move reminiscent of an earlier emergency intervention by the UK FSA.
US MILITARY SPENDING DUE TO RISE
BL writes: "According to estimates from Jane's, total military spending in the United States is set to rise to $696 billion, or 4.9 percent of GDP, this year and $708 billion next year from $630 billion in 2007. It may then dip to $671 billion in2010.
Danny, did you know this already?"
AN ISRAELI CRITIQUES US ECONOMY
Homeowners Converge On Washington For Economic Justice; West Nile is Back
I am off to DC today Thursday after talking with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now about my new book in progress PLUNDER and the economic crisis it covers. I am hoping do something about the crisis by helping NACA-the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America for the next 6 days in the Save The American Dream Event:
Here's their release on what's happening:
"Wall Street made billions off the backs of homeowners. But when the mortgage crisis blew up, a pit bull named Bruce Marks stood up for the Average Joes and, incredibly, got some of the biggest banks to bend." - Boston Globe Magazine 12/30/07 with Bruce Marks at Bostonian of the Year
Media Outlets Invited to Put a Human Face on the Victims of the crisis; • an Opportunity to document NACA at work; • a combination of timely images and strong interviews; a Focus on Solutions, Not Just Problems
THOUSANDS OF HOMEOWNERS SIGN UP FOR NACA'S "SAVE THE DREAM" EVENT AT THE CAPITAL HILTON IN WASHINGTON, DC JULY 19th (Saturday) - July 23rd (Wednesday)
Goal is to demonstrate how to provide mortgage solutions: affordable mortgages and
direct assistance to stop foreclosures while pressing Members of Congress, the
Administration and lenders to act.
The housing crisis is at the center of America's economic crisis. Policy proposals and new laws claiming to bring relief to at-risk homeowners are everywhere. Now, The Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America ("NACA") the nation's top homeownership organization is showing how what homeowners demand-affordable mortgages and restructured loans-can be accomplished for thousands of at-risk homeowners over a few days.
"We believe in practical solutions not government bailouts and political posturing," says NACA CEO Bruce Marks, "At the Save the Dream event we will obtain an immediate approval from many lenders to restructure loans to what homeowners can afford. NACA has established the national standard by getting lenders/servicers to reduce the interest rate to an affordable payment forthousands of owner-occupant homeowners. We will help people in need- Free. We will also challenge Congress, the Administration and Regulators to press the lenders and investors to make the mortgages permanently affordable."
NACA has done extensive outreach to inform homeowners of this incredible opportunity. The outreach consists of a $250,000 radio ad campaign in the major media markets in D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Hundreds of NACA HUD certified counselors will work with homeowners to solve problems that show how the crisis must be addressed.
For more info, check out NACA.COM
ONE ALTERNATIVE TO NACA: WEST NILE VIRUS
AP: Two plagues in California, fires and foreclosures, may be increasing the risk of another: West Nile virus.
Northern California wildfires have sullied the air in the Sacramento area so badly that officials there have held off aerial spraying of insecticide to combat the spread of the virus, which is transmitted to humans and animals by infected mosquitoes.
At the same time, water standing in backyard pools at abandoned, foreclosed properties has created a breeding ground for mosquitoes, raising the risk of West Nile infection.
The state has confirmed three human cases of West Nile in California so far this year - two in Stanislaus County, in the Central Valley south of Sacramento, and one in Tulare County, farther south in the valley.
The Sacramento-Yolo County Mosquito and Vector Control District held off spraying of mosquito insecticide last week because of concerns that airborne particulate matter from wildfire would bind with the insecticide, making it ineffective against the pests. The agency planned to start spraying on Wednesday.
The rate of infected mosquitoes in the Sacramento area is "pretty high - more than 10 in 1,000," making West Nile a significant concern, said David Brown, president of the Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California and manager of the Sacramento-Yolo agency.
To combat mosquitoes in standing water, officials in Sacramento and other parts of the state are turning to a tiny fish, the Gambusia affinis, which feeds on mosquito larvae.
Workers deliver the fish free to any homeowner who requests them, and the technicians plant the fish in pools if cities or real estate agents report abandoned homes, district spokeswoman Luz Maria Rodriguez said.
Statewide data on the number of foreclosed homes with pools aren't available, but in the Sacramento-Yolo district, workers have planted the fish at about 2,000 homes so far this year - compared with about 500 at the same time last year, Rodriguez said. (AP)
LETTER FROM LONDON
Bill Bowles writes re what I write on the financial crisis:
1. These events are not new to capitalism, it's been going on like this for literally centuries. You even make ref to the Glass-Steagall Act which was passed in order to try and forestall a repeat of '29 and repealed in the 1970s leading first to the S&L scam and now the inaccurately named sub-prime crisis.
2. Yeah, we know they're all crooks and gangsters but it's the entire system that's fucked. When 'wealth' is created out of thin air via global speculation in the futures market and currency and wads of dollar bills printed to pay for it, sooner or later, the chickens come home to roost. There's no REAL WEALTH being created so the bastards steal it from the poor of the p***t!
Time to call a spade a spade Danny."
ON THE NEW YORKER COVER
Dr Joan Magit writes from Northridge California:
The New Yorker's so-called cartoon about the Obama's is way over the top. First class irresponsible jerks are the only ones who would yell fire in a crowded room. What the New Yorker folks don't understand is that this plays right into the hands of democracy's enemies, the fearful folks that are gullible as well as the whisper campaigns started by the Roves et. al. and picked up by the Sidney Blumenthals, Lanny Davis' Joe Wilsons, Gene Lyon's, and other Clintonistas, including Hillary "as far as I know he isn't a Muslim" Clinton referring to Sen. Obama (I saw and heard her with my very own eyes and ears…shocking as they were all folks we used to admire, are such suckers)! We are NOT a sophisticated citizenry; the elitists will never understand that because they do not get out into the public and get their hands dirty
COLUMBIA JOURNALISM REVIEW: The New Yorker Cover Up
Why we're talking so much about so little
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