April Fools Day or St. Stupid’s Day

King Gyanendra of Nepal

On this day we honor all the fools of the world.

Pat Robinson

President George Bush

Another fine day in the Iraq war

President George Bush says it’s all going swell.

Shootouts still take place in Texas - Many other states will follow

Think the shoot outs of the 1800s are a thing of the past. In Texas today, a person can take a gun ANYWHERE including a BAR.
And this may be the wave of the future. Kansas just passed a “conceal and carry” law. Could shout outs in bars be far behind?

Let’s Drink and Shoot! Bang! Bang!

ETA declared a cease-fire

The battle over the Bask lands is finally over. Both ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna) and the Spanish government have agreed to end the fighting. ETA declared a permanent cease fire and the government has responded positively to this. According to the Baltimore Sun, March 23, 2006:

“The ETA declared the cease-fire, effective tomorrow, through a videotaped statement released around midday and broadcast on Basque and Spanish television. Unlike two previous cease-fires that collapsed after several months of negotiations, this declaration uses the term "permanent" and makes no conditions.
In the announcement, three members of the guerrilla group, wearing white masks and the black berets typical of Basque country, sit at a table bearing the words Euskal Herria, a reference in Basque to a greater Basque homeland. Behind them hung a banner with the ETA insignia of a snake twisted around a hatchet. The statement was read, unusually, by a woman, who sat in the middle. The group said its purpose was to "drive the democratic process" in the Basque country that ensures "the development of all political options."
"ETA has shown its desire and will that the process now begun should reach a conclusion and thus achieve true democracy in the Basque country, overcoming long years of violence and constructing a peace based on justice," the statement said.
A 1979 referendum established the Basque Autonomous Community on the Bay of Biscay near the French border, comprising the provinces of Alava, Vizcaya and Guipuzcoa. It has its own police force, education system and health system.
Basques, who number about 2.2 million in Spain, are descendants of what may be one of the oldest ethnic groups in Europe. Polls indicate about half favor a free state more loosely associated with Spain. Many who advocate statehood, however, do not support the ETA's violent ways.
The ETA - whose initials are an acronym for Basque Homeland and Freedom in the Basque language (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna) - declared cease-fires in 1989 and 1998, but the negotiations that followed collapsed within a few months.
But this announcement may be different, analysts say, coming after the arrest and imprisonment of senior leaders, the capture of a major arsenal and the banning from politics of its political wing. Opinion polls have shown a widening weariness of violence in the Basque country and growing rejection of bloodshed.
"There can never be a total guarantee, but what's clear is that [the cease-fire] is a solid base for a peace process," said Gorka Espiau, director of Elkarri, a Basque organization in the city of Bilbao that promotes dialogue. "They are showing a will to disappear and end the violence. It is extraordinary."
Espiau, a senior fellow at the Washington-based U.S. Institute of Peace, pointed out that the wording of the communique released yesterday emulated the language of the landmark statement by the Irish Republican Army. “
ETA has been fighting for independence, from Spain, since the Franco years, after World War II.

Colombian ambassador comes to a small Kansas town of Sterling – Will he whitewash that governments crimes?

The Colombian ambassador to the United States, who is also that nation's former president, will be the commencement speaker at Sterling College, located in a small town in western Kansas..

Andres Pastrana will speak at 3 p.m. May 13 at Smisor Stadium. Sterling College is in Sterling, northwest of Hutchinson, according to The Wichita Eagle, Mar. 19, 2006.

“Plan Colombia,” As in Iraq and Afghanistan, is President George Bushes attempt to remake the South American country in his own image and likeness. As in Iraq and Afghanistan, the casualties are local combatants and civilians caught in the crossfire. There are U.S. advisors and military personnel on the ground in Colombia. Washington poured more than $4 billion into Colombia since 2000 and most of that is military aid.

At first, the “war on drugs was used as an excuse for the intervention. According to Knight Ridder Newspapers, Nov. 18, 2005:

“- Declaring a key victory, U.S. drug czar John Walters on Thursday said cocaine has become more expensive and less pure on U.S. streets this year -- the first sign that billions of dollars in counter-drug aid to Colombia may be having an impact.
Walters' aides said the new data reverses three years of steadily declining cocaine prices, which had perplexed policymakers as Washington poured more than $4 billion into Colombia since 2000 as part of an effort to increase Bogota's ability to curb drug production and trafficking.”
Also according to the report:
“While a gram of cocaine cost just over $120 this April, the price rose steadily to more than $170 in September, according to the Drug Control Policy data. And cocaine purity -- another key indicator of availability -- fell 15 percent between February and September. The data showed similar trends in the price and purity of Colombian heroin reaching U.S. streets.”

Yet for this “huge victory,” if in fact it is one at all, there has been a heavy price to pay. Spike, sprayed from planes to destroy coca plants, has destroyed other crops and foliage besides. The guerrilla war, which really has little to do with the coca problem, has intensified.

Today, the “war on terrorism” is now the main excuse for intervention in that country.

According to Amnesty International:

“For more than two decades Colombia has suffered from a human rights crisis. The Colombian government of President Alvaro Uribe has recently argued that there are less killings and that it is taking action against paramilitary forces. Amnesty International has documented that there has been no substantive improvement in the human rights situation, that human rights conditions have worsened in several conflict zones, and that collusion between the armed forces and illegal paramilitary groups continues.”

In honor of the Irish - James Connolly

In honor of the Irish, for St. Patrick’s day, here are the lyrics from the Irish band Black 47. The Irish have had to fight for their independence for over a thousand years and they still aren’t completely free. James Connolly was a labor leader and Marxists.

Born Edinburgh, Scotland of Irish parents – said to have first come to Ireland in his youth as a member of the British Army – married in 1889 – active in The Socialist movement in Edinburgh in the early 1890s – came to Ireland in 1896 and founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party – lectured on socialism in Britain and U.S., 1902 – emigrated to U.S. in 1903 – member of Socialist Labour Party (U.S.) and the Industrial Workers of the World – founded the Irish Socialist Federation in New York, 1907 – returned to Ireland in 1910 as organiser for The Socialist Party of Ireland – Belfast organiser of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union, 1910 – acting Gen. Sec. of I.T.G.W.U. and Commandant of the Irish Citizen Army, 1914 – Commandant General of Dublin Division of the Army of the Republic, 1916 – executed following the 1916 Uprising.

“James Connolly”

Marchin' down O'Connell Street with the

Starry Plough on high

There goes the Citizen Army with their

fists raised in the sky

Leading them is a mighty man with a mad rage in his eye

"My name is James Connolly - I didn't come here to die

But to fight for the rights of the working man

The small farmer too

To protect the proletariat from the

bosses and their screws

So hold on to your rifles, boys, and

don't give up your dream -

Of a Republic for the workin' class and economic liberty"

Then Jem yelled out "Oh citizens,this system is a curse

An English boss is a monster, An Irish one even worse

They'll never lock us out again and

here's the reason why

My name is James Connolly, I didn't come here to die..."

And now we've got the GPO with the bullets whizzin' by

With Pearse and Sean McDermott

biddin' each other goodbye

Up steps our citizen leader and roars out to the sky

"My name is James Connolly, I didn't come here to die...

Oh Lily, I don't want to die, we've got so much to live for

And I know we're just goin' out to get slaughtered,

but I just can't take any more

Just the sight of one more child screamin'

from hunger in a Dublin slum

Or his mother slavin' 14 hours a day for the scum

Who exploit her and take her youth and

throw it on a factory floor

Oh Lily, I just can't take any more

They've locked us out, they've banned our unions,

they even treat their animals better than us

No! It's far better to die like a man on your feet than to

live forever like some slave on your knees, Lily

But don't let them wrap any green flag around me

And, for God's sake, don't let them bury me in some field

full of harps and shamrocks

And whatever you do, don't let them make a

martyr out of me

No! Rather raise the Starry Plough on high and

sing a song of freedom

Here's to you, Lily, the rights of man and

international revolution"

We fought them to a standstill while the flames

lit up the sky

'Til a bullet pierced our leader and we gave up the fight

They shot him in Kilmainham jail but they'll

never stop his cry

"My name is James Connolly, I didn't come here to

die..."

Workers Comp. under attack by Kansas Republicans

Once again, the republican controlled Kansas Congress has stuck it to the workers in favor of their rich corporate backers. Yes it’s the corporations that have our congress people’s ear, while the common working man doesn’t mean squat. This time they are out to cheat injured workers out of their just compensation.

According to The Wichita Eagle, Mar. 11, 2006:

“Some workers injured on the job could collect significantly less money under a bill passed by a House committee Friday.
The proposal would cut workers' settlements based on the percentage of their injury that a doctor believes resulted from a pre-existing condition.
Labor leaders say that means in some cases injured workers' compensation would be reduced based on problems they didn't know they had.
Kansas already allows employers to reduce compensation settlements for previous health problems, but only if they can provide proof of that with the worker's prior medical records.”


Don’t expect much money if your injured on the job.



Also:

“Bill 461 passed the Senate in a 28-12 vote two weeks ago and was approved by the House Commerce and Labor committee in a mostly partisan 10-7 vote Friday.
It will now head to the House floor where it will likely face a fierce debate. With few exceptions, the bill has highlighted the divide between Democrats and Republicans…”

“Democrats have sided with labor, firefighter and trial lawyer groups who say the bill will allow employers to hold undiagnosed injuries and health problems against workers in compensation cases.
Jeff Cooper, who represents the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association and teaches about workers' compensation at Washburn University School of Law, said the proposed changes will lead to a spike in lawsuits.
He said employers will hire physicians to find previous health problems and link them to workplace injuries.”


The local Kansas Democrats still play the role of an opposition party, but they are a small minority. They really can’t win. If this were a nation-wide vote, many Democrats would cross over and vote with the Republicans, leaving the common worker with no serious support. There may be fierce debate, but the fate of this bill is already known since the pro-business Republicans already have a clear majority in both houses.

“Jeff Cooper, who represents the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association and teaches about workers' compensation at Washburn University School of Law, said the proposed changes will lead to a spike in lawsuits.
He said employers will hire physicians to find previous health problems and link them to workplace injuries.”

“Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has not said whether she would veto the measure if it reaches her desk. But her spokeswoman, Nicole Corcoran, said that when similar measures have surfaced, Sebelius has said that Kansas has some of the lowest workers' compensation insurance premiums in the country.”

The Democrats need to vigorously oppose such measures. Some Democrats, nationally, continuously vote with the Republicans, leaving the common worker with no serious support. There may be fierce debate, but the fate of this bill is already known since the pro-business Republicans already have a clear majority in both houses. If this debate goes nation-wide, Republicans can depend on the support of some Democrats and they can probably count on President George “Spoiled-Rich-Frat-Brat” Bush.

According to PARADE, March 12, 2006:

“Despite a flourishing economy American workers are less confident about their financial security than they were two years ago. The U.S. has enjoyed four straight years of economic growth, but most families have lost ground: In 2005, more than 80% of American workers saw their inflation-adjusted wages fall for the second year in a row.While the economy has been growing since 2001, all the benefits of that growth have gone into corporate profits, says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com, a Pennsylvania-based consultant firm: “Corporate profits’ share of the national income is at a 60-year high—and that has come directly out of wages and salaries, which are at a record low.” And wages of the top 10% of earners—people making more than $90,000 a year—have risen much faster than everyone else’s. The average worker’s pay stayed almost flat at $27,000 from 1990 to 2004, one study finds.”

So how much money do the rich need to take away from the rest of us before they feel their wealth is safe? How much is enough for them, or is there any point were they feel they have enough? The rest of us keep loosing money to them and there doesn’t seem to be any changes on the horizon anytime soon.

Injured worker’s monument

Jesse Helms – You may come out of the closet now!

Jesse Helms is known for being a racist, among other things. He’s not really a conservative, in the traditional sense of the word. He’s supported death squads in El Salvador, defended burning college students in Chile, by military authorities, during the Augusto Pinochet regime. Yet through all of this, moderates in both parties have given him the respect of a seasoned colleague. It is a respect he has never earned.
Just as homophobes (people who fear they may have gay tendencies) are the most anti-gay, here we see why Helms is so racist and sexist.

Jesse has a few secrets. Is he another J. Edgar Hoover?

Xanga.com are crooks

Any one who is considering using Xanga would be aware the company uses unscrupulous practices aimed at making money on a worthless site. They offer to sell you a premium site for a small fee, for one month or for a larger fee, 5 months. What they do is continue to bill you indefinitely each month.So what do you get for this service? A site that no one will actually see. The site is loaded with so many sites and so much clutter it is virtually useless.After a year, this is the only blog I have where I have never received a single comment. And all of my other Blogs are free.So don’t get ripped off. If you see this Xanga message- run from that site and don’t look back.

Take off the rose colored glasses - Turkey

Once again, there is a lot of armed action against the US empire, in countries that are supposed to be stable allies of the U.S. Is this making our local news – our national news? No. It is being ignored. How long can our leaders and their puppet news media continue to white wash the information they give us?
I received this from MAOIST_REVOLUTION@yahoogroups.com:


MILITARY ACTIONS FROM TKP/ML TIKKO
(COMMUNIST PARTY OF TURKEY/MARXIST LENINIST
LIBERATION ARMY OF WORKER PEASANT OF TURKEY)
FOR THE MARTIERS’ WEEK (End of January)
(This article is translated from the “Worker-Peasant” newspaper’s 41st edition)

During january and february, TKP/ML TIKKO organized military actions against the fascist institutions. “To commemorate our martiers and to strenghten our struggle, the militants of TKP/ML TIKKO Karadeniz (Black Sea) Regional Command targeted the fascist state.”
On 25th of January, TKP/ML TIKKO bombed the office of MHP (Nationalist Movement Party-knowns as Gray Wolfs) at 16.30 in Trabzon. MHP is a fascist party that organizes lynching campaigns against the revolutionary democratic people. On the 6th of April, in Trabzon and on the 2nd of November in Rize, they tried to lynch the members of TAYAD. Also they organized lynching campaigns over the members of Kurdish national movement in Afyon, Bozuyuk, Ayvalik, Eskisehir.
On the announcement of TKP/ML, “We know that state would not punish these fascists. The attacks over the members of TAYAD and patriotic people of Kurdish people are the attacks over the all progressive, revolutionary, democratic forces and our people. As grasping the meaning of these attacks with this consciousness, we bombed the officis of MHP and it’s youth organization that organizes these lynching campaigns.”
On the 2nd of November, the members of TAYAD who visited the graves of revolutionary martiers, Canan and Zehra Kulaksýz, tried to be lynched by the fascist groups in Rize. And the head of the municipality of Rize actively supported these lynching campaigns. To punish this fascist person, Halil Bakirci, TKP/ML TIKKO bombed his office on the 25th of January at 14.30.
On the announcement of the TKP/ML, it is declared that the mayor of Merzifon was bombed on the 25th of January at 16.30. In Merzifon, there is a NATO base.
On the 27th of January at 16.30 mayor of Malatya in Turkey’s Kurdistan was bombed by the TKP/ML TIKKO. The chauvenistic attacks over the Kurdish people have been raised during the last year. Fascism organizes military operations against the guerilla forces, counterguerilla attacks over the progressive people and imprisoned hundreds of revolutionary democratic patriotic Kurdish people. The mayor of Malatya is infamous with it’s counter revolutionary practices and became a target of TKP/ML.
And on the 27th of January, Turkish-American Assosiation was bombed by the militants of TKP/ML. On the announcement, it is mentioned that these civil assosiations are the tools of the US imperialism in attacking all the peoples of the world. Their goal is raising the collaboration and creating support for the imperialist aggresiveness. Because of these activities, this assosiation was bombed by the TKP/ML.
Also, the militants of TMLGB - Marxist-Leninist Youth Unity of Turkey- (the comsomol -youth organization- of TKP/ML) organized tactical attacks against imperialist banks. On the 10 th of January, 2 banks in Mersin and on the 20th of January, 2 banks in Istanbul were attacked by the militants of TKP/ML TMLGB

President Bush visits and deceives India

While President George Bush went to India to rally his supporters there, his rose colored glasses prevented him from seeing the real problems that country has.

From the BBC World Service, 02 March, 2006:

“President Bush has been formally welcomed at the start of a three-day visit to India, aimed at building a new strategic partnership between Delhi and Washington.
Both sides hope to finalize a deal on civilian nuclear co-operation. The agreement would see India open up its facilities to international inspection and in return get access to US nuclear technology.
However, the visit has been criticized by left-wing and Muslim groups, which have begun a series of rallies against Bush and the United States.”

Bush was able to put together a deceptive photo-op that made his trip look like a stunning successs. But that was façade. In reality, violence has plagued much of the country leaving some of its states in civil war. Shortly before he made his “goodwill” visit:

Five feared killed in Maoist attack in West Bengal
Kolkata February 26, 2006:

Five people were feared killed and three injured after Maoist rebels blew up a police jeep in West Midnapore district of West Bengal Sunday evening.

The driver of the vehicle, a Home Guard constable, two policemen and a villager were feared killed, while three were injured, Inspector General (Law and Order) Raj Kanojia told IANS.
Police sources in Kolkata said the Maoists had laid a landmine at Nakrajhora under Belpahari area of the district, about 100 km from here.
The convoy of West Midnapore District Superintendent of Police Ajay Nanda on a combing operation was on its way to Belpahari from Nakrajhora when the incident occurred at around 6 p.m., the sources said.
Nanda had a miraculous escape in the blast, the sources said.
Maoists in West Midnapore' adjoining districts, Purulia and Bankura, had been laying landmines in recent times.
A landmine was detected hours before West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya's visit to the area recently.
Stepping up their activities in the three districts, the rebels looted a bank in Bankura earlier this month.
On Feb 8, a fierce gun battle between police and Maoists in the Belpahari forest area had ended with the death of at least two rebels and arrest of two women cadres.
In a late night attack Jan 23, Maoists blew up a forest bungalow under construction at Bandowan in Purulia district.
Earlier on Dec 31, the Maoists had blown up a police camp and killed Communist Party of India (Marxist) district committee member Rabi Kar and his wife in the district.
The state government is planning to deploy helicopters for aerial vigil on Maoists in the affected districts in the run-up to the coming assembly elections.

And:

Maoist rebels kill 55 in landmine blast in India

By Sujeet Kumar

RAIPUR, India (Reuters),
February 28, 2006 - Maoist rebels set off a landmine under a truck on Tuesday in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh, killing 55 people and wounding at least 20 who belonged to a government-backed anti-Maoist group, police said.
The attack came on the eve of a visit to the country by U.S. President George W. Bush and was one of the worst single acts of violence by Maoists in the past three decades.
Analysts said the attack showed New Delhi could ill-afford to take the growing Maoist threat lightly, saying that the rebels posed a bigger danger than Kashmiri Islamist militants.
"Maoists set off a landmine in Darmagura area in Dantewada district, killing 55 people," senior police officer S.K Paswan told Reuters, adding those killed were tribal members returning from an anti-Maoist meeting organised by the state.
Some of the wounded were taken to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh state by helicopter.
Last year the local Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party government set up and started funding local anti-Maoist groups in impoverished and underdeveloped areas and provided arms to some members to fight the guerrillas.
Officials said hundreds of police reinforcements had been sent to the area to search for those behind the attacks.
Darmagura, 500 km (300 miles) south of the state capital Raipur, is a stronghold of Maoists who claim to be fighting for the rights of peasants and landless labourers.
Indian Maoists, who operate in at least nine of the country's 29 states, have stepped up attacks in the past year, killing dozens of people, including police. India's home ministry said there are about 9,300 Maoist guerrillas operating in the country.

DANGER TO INDIA?

Security analysts say New Delhi ignores the seriousness of the Maoist threat in the country at its peril.
"This is a great error of judgement and the country will pay for this for decades," said Ajai Sahni, executive director of the New Delhi-based Institute of Conflict Management.
He said Maoists were already operating in 165 of the country's 602 administrative districts and expanding their influence.
Sahni criticised the federal government's dual policy of fighting the Maoists through the local police while developing impoverished districts where the guerrillas derive their support, especially among poor tribals and lower castes.
"Development is not the answer for terrorism. You cannot outdevelop a terrorist movement," Sahni said, calling for a modern, well-equipped police force to tackle the rebels.
India's Home Ministry said last week Maoist violence has been rising, with 892 people killed in 2005, compared to 653 in 2004.
The Maoists, who often target those they consider government informers as well as landlords and local officials deemed to be corrupt, temporarily seized parts of a town in eastern Bihar state in November.

International Women's Day - March 8

International Women's Day (8 March) is an occasion marked by women's groups around the world. This date is also commemorated at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. When women on all continents, often divided by national boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate their Day, they can look back to a tradition that represents at least nine decades of struggle for equality, justice, peace and development.

International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men. In ancient Greece, Lysistrata initiated a sexual strike against men in order to end war; during the French Revolution, Parisian women calling for "liberty, equality, fraternity" marched on Versailles to demand women's suffrage.


Here are just a few events planned:

On March 8:

UK - Greater London:
International Women’s Day 8 March is the global flagship day for women. This day inspires women to rise to their full potential and achieve more throughout the world. Aurora is the pulse that launches and connects this activity around the world on 8 March.

Contact details: Phone +44 (0) 845 260 7777 or email events@auroravoice.com.

Italy
Women workers and proletarians women in important cities of south italy Palermo Taranto and in factories of north italy milano-bergamo-ravenna struggle with strike,sit-in- demonstrationhonour to worker women of bangladesh, that as her sisters in Chicago 1908 are killed for imperialist and capitalist explotation. Their sacrifice impulse the big struggle of women against imperialist system for conquer a world without chains, communism !

MOVIMENTO FEMMINISTA PROLETARIO RIVOLUZIONARIOmfpr@libero.it - 347/5301704From: PCm-Italy inform

On March 4:

USA - , Olathe, KS

2 p.m. - 4 p.m. Saturday, March 4, 2006
Olathe Public Library
The ongoing First Saturday Cinema will show "Kandahar." Afterward, Shaheen Ahmed, M.D., of the Crescent Peace Society, will discuss women and Islam.
Meeting Room, Indian Creek Branch Library, 12990 S. Black Bob Road, Olathe, KS 66062
Break the Chains Unleash the Fury of Women as a Mighty Force for Revolution! ... Chiang Ching