12 NOON PRESS CONFERENCE & PROTEST BOALT HALL (steps), BERKELEY
Procession Against Torture and Complicity begins 12:30
MONDAY AUG. 16, 2010 (first day of Fall 2010 classes at Boalt)
John Yoo, a key legal architect of the torture program erected during Bush-Cheney and still operating today, is teaching Constitutional Law at UC Berkeley Law this Fall.
Times Square Recruiting Station
7th Avenue & 44th Street
5:30-7 pm
On Monday, August 16th New Yorkers will show support for Pfc. Bradley Manning, accused by the U.S. military of leaking the video called "Collateral Murder" to the website WikiLeaks. The footage, made public in April 2010, shows US Army Bravo Company 2-16 killing civilians in Bagdad in July 2007.
Wednesday, June 23, President Obama held a press conference to announce what he had decided to do about Stanley McChrystal—the general in charge of the U.S. war in Afghanistan.
The day before, an article about McChrystal in Rolling Stone magazine had hit the internet. And by the time the general was on a plane, summoned to Washington, people all over the world were reading how he had mocked and disrespected U.S. officials in charge of foreign policy and made comments challenging the president’s authority. This was a big deal. And airwaves quickly filled with speculation about what would happen next.
In 9 years of US occupation of Aghanistan, thousands of Afghan lives have been lost; thousands of people displaced and impoverished. Drone attacks bring death by remote control; “special ops” night raids upon farming villages; bombing of wedding parties. Obama’s replacing General McChrystal for General Petraeus can’t cover up an illegitimate, unjust, immoral war. As Obama himself said, “this is a change in personnel but not a change in policy."
Even those closest to McChrystal know that the rising anti-war sentiment at home doesn't begin to reflect how deeply fucked up things are in Afghanistan. "If Americans pulled back and started paying attention to this war, it would become even less popular," a senior adviser to McChrystal says. - "On the Ground With Runaway General Stanley McChrystal"
The point is not whether this war can be “won”; whether “counter insurgency” pursued by Obama, McChrystal, and Petraeous is “effective;” or what affect July 2011 as a tentative “pullout date” has on its prosecution. The essence of this war was expressed by McChrystal when he said “We have shot an amazing number of people, but to my knowledge, none has ever proven to be a threat.” Countless civilian lives have been taken by U.S. and allied forces, and the toll is growing as more U.S. troops arrive.
Crimes are crimes, no matter who commits them. This war, from its onset to now, has been a crime against humanity, and people of conscience must oppose it. You must oppose it. The point that must be grasped, and acted on with the courage, creativity, daring, and moral clarity of our convictions, is that this war is unjust, immoral, and illegal, regardless of who is in charge.
"I have said repeatedly that I intend to close Guantanamo, and I will follow through on that. I have said repeatedly that America doesn't torture, and I'm going to make sure that we don't torture."
- President-elect Barack Obama, November 16, 2008
From Witness Against Torture
On January 22, 2009, President Obama committed his administration to closing the prison camp at Guantanamo within a year. Since that time, the process of releasing, relocating, or prosecuting its remaining detainees has become mired in bureaucratic machinations, Congressional grandstanding, fear-mongering, and political backsliding. Despite his claim to break from the past, President Obama has upheld many of the worst Bush policies - from the denial of habeas corpus, to immunity for torturers, rendition, and indefinite detention without charge or trial.
The U.S. organization “The World Can’t Wait,” having organized weeks of protest against President Barack Obama’s escalation of troops to Afghanistan, announced today that it accepts the wisdom of the Nobel Committee’s choice of Obama as winner of its most famous prize. We find no irony in December 10 being International Human Rights Day.
“We hope the Nobel Committee is satisfied that Barack Obama’s increase of US troops to occupy Afghanistan is enough to merit the prize. The speech he delivered at West Point on December 1 echoed 8 successful years of George Bush justifications, and Obama’s commitment to “win” certainly should have removed any reservation that he deserves the prize.
As you know President Obama is shortly expected to announce an increase in the number of troops sent to Afghanistan.
Will this expansion...
Rebuild the houses, villages and farms destroyed by bombs and artillery?
Provide security so that children can attend school?
Protect women from rape and other violence perpetrated by war lords and their minions?
Staunch the flow of drugs from the country and the drug lords (and others) who profit from them?
Provide food and basic medical necessities for all?
Make the world a more secure and peaceful place?
The obvious answer is NOT at all LIKELY!
Will the expansion ...
Increase the flow of refugees to camps in overburdened cities?
Increase the number of Afghanis held in "indefinite detention" in US-run prisons?
Increase manyfold the number of civilian deaths?
Cement the direction that the US has taken in the Middle East and that may very well end in disaster for the world as we have known it?
The obvious answer is VERY Likely!
We are the people responsible for ending the wars! Since it seems likely that Obama will not announce the expansion until very near Thanksgiving, we must act immediately to demand not expansion but withdrawal from Afghanistan.
World Can't Wait Plans an "Eyes Wide Open" Exhibit This Weekend!
We have requested permits and expect to be in Washington Square on Saturday or Sunday and in Times Square on Monday. A confirming e-mail will follow.
Bring signs or other representations of opposition to the expansion of the war.
World Can't Wait has been able to do some amazing things while operating on a shoestring budget.
We've organized War Criminals Watch protests, disrupting business as usual in Grand Central Station, New York, and hounding war criminals like Karl Rove and John Yoo.
We've mobilized to support the targeted abortion doctor in Nevada, Dr. LeRoy Carhart, after his colleague, Dr. George Tiller, was murdered.
We broke into national news - twice this year - with large protests shutting down the military's new video-game based recruitment center in Philadelphia.
We organized the We Are Not Your Soldiers speaking tour, taking the brutal truth about the reality of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to high school students in their classrooms.
We're leading visible resistance this coming week, the start of the ninth year of the war and occupation of Afghanistan.
While we don't operate on a shoestring out of principle… even a shoestring wears out!
Donate this coming Monday and Tuesday towards our goal of $5,000 in 48 hours. This will sustain this national movement and its website and office through the fall and enable World Can't Wait to continue and grow this much-needed resistance movement.
Think of all the amazing things done with so little (and compare but don't despair at the enormous cost of death and destruction your tax dollars are financing now to the tune of $915 billion!).
To: Homeland Security & Elected Officials & Law Enforcement in Pennsylvania
Thousands of people gathered in Pittsburgh during the recent "G-20" meetings came to dissent and express political demands. They were repeatedly denied the right to assemble over several days, and were met with a militarized police state.
We denounce the city of Pittsburgh, especially the Mayor, for combining domestic and military agencies for the purposes of surveillance of the protesters; riot squads on bicycles, and military troop transports; use of agent infiltrators into political groups, and provocateurs on the streets; revocation and denial of permits to assemble and mass arrests of protesters & bystanders alike, with weapons of mass destruction used on the people who only stand to exercise their freedom of speech.
Nearly 300 people were arrested, including juveniles. Some were physically abused, with use of batons and projectile devices. The charges are demonstrably political charges devoid of actual crimes committed.
Chicago is TUESDAY Nov 4 near Grant Park Obama Rally.
Hook up with World Can't Wait at Michigan and Jackson from 7pm on. Look for the large
banner "No Wars for Empire." 773 227 2453
Seattle WEDNESDAY November 5
5:30pm. Meet at 4th and Pine at Westlake Center.
San Francisco WEDNESDAY November 5
Meet up with World Can't Wait crews at
the following election night (Tues) gatherings:
-6pm in S.F. at Yerba Buena Gardens. Contact Stephanie Tang 415-410-4484
-6pm in Oakland at Jack London Square. Contact MaryAnn Thomas 510-502-8947
Wednesday, Nov. 5, meet up with World Can't Wait, 5pm at Powell & Market
Streets in San Francisco.
New York City WEDNESDAY Nov 5
Join press conference at the Federal Bldg, 26 Federal Plaza, Manhattan announcing the call: "No Matter Who the President is, STOP ENDLESS WAR".
SIGN the petition against DNC/RNC arrests, brutal treatment & surveillance of protesters.
The St. Paul City Council is now doing some investigation, and we want to get this national petition to them.
To: Local Elected Officials and Law Enforcement in Denver, St. Paul and Minneapolis:
CC: Homeland Security
{xtypo_rounded_right2}background at: worldcantwait.org rnc08report.org New Left Notes {/xtypo_rounded_right2}
Thousands of people came to your cities during the recent national political conventions to protest the U.S. occupation of the Middle East, widespread violations of international law by the Bush administration, and abuses of the rights of people living in this country.
They were met in each instance with $50 million spent on military tactics and material, and:
involvement of US "fusion centers" combining domestic and military agencies for the purposes of surveillance of the protesters;
riot squads on bicycles, motorcycles, horses, and military troop transports;
use of agent infiltrators into political groups, and provocateurs on the streets;
revocation and denial of permits to assemble and mass arrests of protesters & bystanders alike, with pepper & tear gas, concussion grenades, and batons;
raids featuring drawn weapons at homes and offices and on private cars, on the basis not of crimes committed, but of speech.
Nearly 1000 people were arrested, including 40 members of the press, and including juveniles. Many of them were detained for days. Some were denied medication, medical care, and timely legal representation. Some were illegally interrogated as to their political beliefs and associations. Some were physically abused, with reported use of tasers, hoods, batons, and denial of food and bathroom facilities.
The charges range from vague misdemeanors to "conspiracy to commit riot in the 2nd degree in furtherance of terrorism" in the case of the RNC 8. These are demonstrably political charges devoid of actual crimes committed.
It may be that with the huge budget, the designation of the conventions as "national security events" and the ominous and baseless warnings from federal authorities that the political protests would be violent, such abuses against protesters were predicable. But they are NOT acceptable. We demand:
1) Charges against people involved in political protest at the conventions be dropped immediately. In particular, the indictment of the RNC8 must be withdrawn.
2) A thorough investigation of methods employed by law enforcement, and directed by Homeland Security, including the methods and justification for surveillance of political activists; the insertion of agents into political organizations; the crowd control methods and mass arrests; the conditions of detention of those arrested; and any ongoing surveillance and interference with the rights of those accused, arrested, or involved in the protests are contrary to the expectation of the rights to freedom of speech and assembly. Such investigations must include public hearings, and a real search for the truth in what happened.
3) A public report, dissociating your city from those methods found to suppress speech and assembly, and guarantee to the people that they will not be used again.
4) Rejection of the use of military involvement in surveillance, activation of national guard units or active duty military in future political protests.
WHY IS JOHN YOO STILL ON THE UC BERKELEY FACULTY?.jpg)
From World Wait, New York
.jpg)
.bmp)
The U.S. organization “The World Can’t Wait,” having organized weeks of protest against President Barack Obama’s escalation of troops to Afghanistan, announced today that it accepts the wisdom of the Nobel Committee’s choice of Obama as winner of its most famous prize. We find no irony in December 10 being International Human Rights Day.