September 14, 2007 archive

“As indigenous people, we have always depended on the environment . . .”

also posted at Truth & Progress


The quote in the title is from a letter which in its English version begins


Dear AES Shareholders:

We are addressing you on behalf of more than 15 indigenous Ngobe communities which live on the banks of the Changuinola River, located in Bocas del Toro Province, Panama. We have lived along this river for many years, this river which borders La Amistad International Park – a World Heritage site shared by Panama and Costa Rica. We work the land as our ancestors taught us, cultivating oranges, corn, bananas and other crops which grow together with the small number of animals we raise. But also, the fish and shrimp of the Changuinola River are an important part of our diet and our culture.

Currently, our lifestyle and the ecosystem surrounding us are facing a grave threat: the construction of three hydroelectric dams on the river, located above and below our communities. These dams, called Chan 75, Chan 140, and Chan 220, are being financed and constructed by AES Corporation. While some of us have been temporarily employed to clear trees and prepare the ground for construction, the reality is that in the long term these dams will have disastrous effects for us.


The dams are expected to rapidly eradicate up to eleven species of diadramous fish and shrimp on which the Ngobe traditionally rely. For a technical analysis, see Probable Effects on Aquatic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function of Four Proposed Hydroelectric Dams in the Changuinola/Teribe Watershed, Bocas del Toro, Panama, with emphasis on Effects within The La Amistad World Heritage Site (22-page pdf)

AES’s Panama page, which features a smiling young Indian boy, sounds benevolent enough:

. . . we’re not just running a business, we know that the impact of our work goes far beyond that. Bringing electricity to places that never had it before, working for the social good-these are often profound outcomes of our business. Providing electricity can radically improve the quality of life, especially in developing countries, and especially because AES does so reliably, safely and responsibly.

The Morning News

Bush preserves big troop level in Iraq
By JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writer
1 minute ago

WASHINGTON – President Bush’s claim that progress in Iraq justifies preserving a large U.S. military presence there for at least 10 more months was shadowed by discouraging developments on the security and political fronts.

Friday morning, 12 hours after Bush’s address to the nation, the White House was to report that Iraqi leaders had gained almost no new ground in meeting U.S. benchmarks on bringing about reconciliation and stability. The report being sent to Congress by the White House underscored the difficulty of Bush’s argument that American sacrifice was creating space for political progress by Iraqis.

Other bad news hit 12 hours before Bush’s speech, when Iraqi police reported the assassination in Anbar province of a prominent figure in a local alliance with U.S. troops against al-Qaida. It was a sharp blow to Bush’s frequent celebration of military gains in that region as a model for the rest of the country.

We’re not gonna take it

To the tune of Twisted Sister’s We’re not gonna take it

Muse in the Morning

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket
Muse in the Morning

The muses are ancient.  The inspirations for our stories were said to be born from them.  Muses of song and dance, or poetry and prose, of comedy and tragedy, of the inward and the outward.  In one version they are Calliope, Euterpe and Terpsichore, Erato and Clio, Thalia and Melpomene, Polyhymnia and Urania.

It has also been traditional to name a tenth muse.  Plato declared Sappho to be the tenth muse, the muse of women poets.  Others have been suggested throughout the centuries.  I don’t have a name for one, but I do think there should be a muse for the graphical arts.  And maybe there should be many more.

Please join us inside to celebrate our various muses…

Immanentizing The Eschaton – “A Pot to Piss In”

Yesterday began the search for my own paradise on earth, both in the physical and spiritual sense.  I covered a third of a state in my search, visiting seven pieces of property that could soon become a studio/gallery/workshop/home and small working farm. 

Something made me remember a moment in college just now, my friend Wendy had just completed a “left-handed bacon stretcher” for one of her assignments and I asked her, “What’s next?!” She replied matter-of-factly, “a pot to piss in.”  Sure enough a few days later there was her pot, along with a toiletpaper dispenser and cupholder, created in a rustic Americana style.  Simply perfect.

The Joy of Lobbying or Talking Impeachment With Jerry Nadler

The Joy of Lobbying or Talking Impeachment with Jerry Nadler

At the end of August Representative Jerry Nadler (Nadler) from New York City’s Congressional District 8 met with about twenty of his constituents to discuss impeachment.  This meeting was arranged in response to letters the Congressman received from his constituents indicating their concern about what is going on with our government and requesting that he support impeachment.  It says volumes that Nadler set aside the time to meet with us and gave us a full hour.  It was clear in how he addressed us and how he ran the meeting that he took our concerns and the issue of impeachment seriously.  What follows is what he and we had to say…

 

A little rant

So Buhdy says go for it. “You can literally write anything you want, in any form you want, at any length you want, in the recent essay list.” Okay I will.

Shit!

I hear…
What happened to this country?
You, you stupid shit. You voted for dubya, you drank the koolaide, you waved the flag, you placed the magnet, you thought that’s all you had to do. They wouldn’t lie to you now would they? They’re family, just like the guy at the car dealership and the jewelry store; “We’re just like family!”

To Restore Our Image Abroad, We Need Al Gore

(crossposted from Daily Kos and Truth & Progress)

Foreign policy is the collective face a nation puts forth for the rest of the world to accept or reject; admire or detest; cooperate with or defy; and emulate or ignore.

The objective of foreign policy goals is not just to advance our “vital national interests” but also to project our values of fairness, cooperation, and morality for mutual benefit.  Contrary to the traditions established by both Democratic and Republican Administrations since World War II, an important and essential component has been the pursuit of these goals with the help of our traditional allies. 

For almost all of the Bush Years, American foreign policy has been the face of a dominant bully hellbent on intimidating other countries to get in line and support our perverted agendas, with little or no success.  In other words, our foreign policy face has been that of The Ugly American.

To reverse this ugliness and restore our country’s shattered international image, we need Al Gore to put a human face on these international endeavors.

The Jena Six-Notes from a Black Man

I have been politically active since 2003. My political beliefs have been progressive since my undergraduate years and despite my frustration with the direction the country has taken over the past 27 years, I have believed that at heart there was something worth saving in this country.

Midnight Cowboying – How to be a paparazzi in London (¡Open Thread!)

How to be a paparazzi in London

I have had many jobs in many lands, some more honorable than others. But at the end of the day, they were all amusing. And one of the most amusing ones was my time as a paparazzi. And as with most of my dealings with the world, I had to do it in style. I worked for the most notorious paparazzi in the world, Big Pictures. Some might wonder how does one become a paparazzi, since you can’t exactly put your resume in somewhere. Well, here is how to be one in London, England.

Have you digested Bush tonight?

Have you had a chance to fully digest the insanity of the man that is leading the nation?

There is only one solution to this. Mike Malloy on his show was right on tonight.

You don’t negotiate with terrorists.
You don’t negotiate with psychopaths.

This unchecked rule, usurped from the Balance of Power envisioned by our founders and obtained illegally by the Executive must be fought. Our Constitution is at stake here.

The upper part of this graphic is the original from Ben Franklin’s treatise as it addressed the very future of the nation. Humbly, I have added today’s version to Franklin’s original.

The threat to our nation’s future is real. The imperative of making this action is no less stark.

Votes or not, we – Americans of conscience must try. Democrats, Republicans, Independents all.

Pooties and Critters

We’ve got ponies….lots of ponies and none of that stuff that comes with them so far. Someone had to start the pootie and other critter presence. We’ve got puppies, aka bitches, so the cats are fighting back! But in the interest of mellow moods of zen….I give you mellow pooties!


Rockin’ the night away!


Friends of all sorts

Load more