Daily crono / Murtha talks again / Cancer walk / Viva la resistance / Bananas,…

Intolerance betrays want of faith in one's cause. Mohandas Gandhi

Daily crono

Notes for me. Long phone-call with S in the morning, then running errands (mailing checks, and visiting bank etc), lunch in the local Chinese ("Same, same?", asks the owner) reading NY Times, working on my thesis, late dinner with Kumar in the Quality Indian. Quiet day.

Murtha talks again

Rep John Murtha has given a press conference and attacked Bush's lies in detail. This man has guts. It seems that the other democrats are quite a bunch of sissies - why cannot they start a powerful campaign now that majority of Americans are available for becoming their voters in 2006 elections?

Cancer walk

I saw an advertisement on the street calling people to join some cancer-treatment support walk. It made me wonder two things. First, we is it necessary to walk, run, or otherwise get something in return of giving some money for cancer-patients? Why is just giving money for a good cause not enough - why to be so selfish and want something in return? Just giving money would be more efficient - the cancer tumors do not really care about people walking on street, so the spending money on organizing such a walk is a waste. And, second, of course, why is there a need to gather money using walks etc in a country which uses 14.6 percent of its GDP on health care?

Viva la resistance

Enough is enough, say an increasing group of Americans. In yesterday's NY Times a group of ex-federal bankers, senators, and treasurers are asking the administration to put all options on the table and share the sacrifices. They have establised The Concord Coalition for informing the public about the need for generationally responsible fiscal policy. They published a whole page advertisement. In today's NY Times, again in a whole page advertisement, The world can't wait is asking everyone to stand up and push Bush away. They are not shy in their propaganda:

Your government, on the basis of outrageous lies, is waging a murderous and utterly illegitimate war in Iraq, with other countries in their sights.
Your government is openly torturing people, and justifying it.
Your government puts people in jail on the merest suspicion, refusing them lawyers, and either holding them indefinitely or deporting them in the dead of night.
Your government is moving each day closer to a theocracy, where a narrow and hateful brand of Christian fundamentalism will rule.
Your government suppresses the science that doesn't fit its religious, political and economic agenda, forcing present and future generations to pay a terrible price.
Your government is moving to deny women here, and all over the world, the right to birth control and abortion.
Your government enforces a culture of greed, bigotry, intolerance and ignorance.
People look at all this and think of Hitler - and they are right to do so. The Bush regime is setting out to radically remake society very quickly, in a fascist way, and for generations to come. We must act now; the future is in the balance.

When NY Times starts to publish this kind of stuff, the situation is ripe for a change. We are living interesting and dangerous times, my readers. Stay tuned, and if you live in USA, read what the website has, donate money, and join the demonstrations. It is your future, and your kid's too.

Bananas, prisons, and fear

For some interesting background discussion for the WTO-meeting in Hongkong, read Gary Younge's article on how we will pay for cheap bananas with prisons, fear and fragmentation . EU's chief negotiator Peter Mandelson said before the meeting that no agreement is possible. EU is the main culprit here: it should abolish its agricultural subsidies. It is not willing to do that, for fear of some small number of rich French farmers. How much do I shame to be European in this context. EU is still too much a colonialist, not willing to do what would be best for the whole world, not for EU's politicians short them election success.

Alun perin julkaistu kuukausikoosteessa "Blogs December 2005".