Daily Report

Wonks scapegoat Jews

There's nothing new in this, except that it comes from scholars at Harvard, not cranks at Counterpunch. It's publication shows that the worm may be turning in the US against the supposedly privileged Jews. It greatly emphasizes "the Lobby" (guess which one) in the Iraq debacle, and poo-poos the notion of a war for oil. John Mearsheimer, University of Chicago professor and author of The Tragedy of Great Power Politics, and Stephen Walt, of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and author of Taming American Power: The Global Response to US Primacy, write for London Review of Books March 10:

Action alert: Venezuelan indigenous oppose coal project

Paula Palmer writes for Global Response Action Alerts:

In late January at the World Social Forum in Caracas, Venezuelan indigenous leaders asked Global Response to support them in their struggle to stop construction of open-pit coal mines in their territories. I joined them in an all-day march through the streets of Caracas, carrying banners saying "No al Carbon!" (No to Coal).

Iraq: 800 US troops sent in ahead of Arabeen celebrations

From the New York Times, March 16:

The U.S. military has sent about 800 troops from Kuwait to Iraq for extra security to coincide with an expected surge of pilgrims to Muslim shrines in coming days, officials said in Baghdad on Wednesday.

Arctic ice disappearing fast

From the New York Times, March 15:

Ice Retreats in Arctic for 2nd Year; Some Fear Most of It Will Vanish
For the second year in a row, the cloak of sea ice on the Arctic Ocean failed to grow to its normal winter expanse, scientists said yesterday. The finding led some climate experts to predict a record expansion of open water this summer.

India: Naxalite rebels in new attacks

India's Maoist Naxalite rebels have been very busy lately, but the wave of attacks is going virtually unreported outside India. From PTI via The Hindu, March 14:

Naxalites this morning released the passenger train that they had seized last evening in a thick forest area in Jharkhand, without causing any harm to the passengers.

FBI spies on peaceniks: documents

An ACLU press release, March 14:

PITTSBURGH – The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Pennsylvania today released new evidence that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is conducting investigations into a political organizations based solely on its anti-war views.

Killer robots fight in Iraq

Just in case you thought it was still the 20th century. From the technology news site The Inquirer, March 15:

Robots break Asimov's first law

And so it begins

Lynne Stewart battles cancer

A March 3 press release from the Lynne Stewart Defense Committee:

Attorney Lynne Stewart now faces another battle for her life: the battle against breast cancer. Ms. Stewart's sentencing is pending following her conviction last year on charges of aiding terrorism in a case where the government stretched her conversations with a reporter regarding her client into serious, felony charges. Ms. Stewart, 67 years old, faces 30 years in prison and has already lost her ability to practice law - her beloved profession. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in November, 2005. On January 9, 2006, doctors removed a 2.4 centimeter tumor from her left breast that was discovered to be an invasive ductal carcinoma. Over the past two months, Ms. Stewart has consulted with a number of medical specialists about her cancer, the treatment options, and the risks of recurrence.

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