The Whole World has said NO to the Honduran coup. Even the United States which for decades supported right wing dictatorships has agreed so. Amazing, we all breathe a sigh of relief that Democracy will be supported in Latin America.

Because we understand and know that

the United States has invaded or interfered in more than 50 countries in the last century and draws a dark portrait of US interventions, the most recent having occurred in Haiti in 2004 and Venezuela in 2002. The latest demonstration of U.S. hegemonic intent: the agreement between the United States and Colombia to establish seven military bases in this country sharing a border with, amongst others, Ecuador and Venezuela.

United States Involvement in the Coup in Honduras

Then we read: IMF bails out Honduras Coup Regime with $150 million

Obama has caved to the right wing talk show fanatics.

Van Jones is one of the few both extraordinarily gifted and committed to empowering all people that the administration has, and they let him go without a fight. He has a lot of respect in the community as both a great organizer and a stand up guy.

There was no signal from the White House that they would support him even a little bit.

What a shame.

UPDATE - Below

Dear Friends,

We just spoke again with our people aboard the Spirit of Humanity. The Israeli Navy is continuing to try and intimidate the ship, and is actively jamming its radar, GPS, and navigation systems in direct violation of international maritime law. This jamming is extremely dangerous and directly threatens the welfare and safety of everyone aboard our civilian ship.

Because their instrumentation is being jammed, they are using compass & paper to attempt to navigate. They are in international waters & they believe their location is approximately 110km off of the town of Hadera. Everyone is tired but determined. They are not being deterred by the Israeli aggression & are continuing toward Gaza. Please help them.

Please CALL or FAX Major Liebovitz from the Israeli Navy at:
Tel + 972 5 781 86248 or +972 3737 7777 or +972 3737 6242
Fax +972 3737 6123 or +972 3737 7175

CALL Mark Regev in the Prime Minister's office at:
Tel +972 2670 5354 or +972 5 0620 3264
mark.regev [at] it.pmo.gov.il

CALL Shlomo Dror in the Ministry of Defence at:
Tel +972 3697 5339 or +972 50629 8148
mediasar [at] mod.gov.il

Interesting article below the fold.

But first, how has the rabid anti-socialism hysteria fed the vulnerability that US citizens will have in this impending pandemic.

Lizz Winstead subbing on the Ed Schultz show, interviewing her sometimes Republican brother mayor of Bloomington, Minn: they are talking about their 90 something mother who has social security, medicare and veterans benefits but rails against socialism. He calls it "classic" in typical Republican fashion trying to minimize it to an "eccentricity" or quaintness.

Read below for a good description of what the flu means to US and how it's devastating effects could have been significantly minimized and then decide if it's time to take off the gloves and fight for Single Payer.

I take the position that 3 factors mitigate towards Israel needing to negotiate in good faith and stop the land grab.

Hamas agreed to the 67' borders for Palestine; a major concession considering Israel doubled it's size through theft and terrorism between 48 to 67.
Former President Jimmy Carter (A Democrat and a Humanitarian since leaving office) was a witness.

There were only 12 rockets fired from the beginning of the ceasefire in June till November when Israel in a runnup to its elections began attacking in Gaza.

All 3 candidates for office bloodied their hands with the deaths of 1300 Palestinians so they could win office. The Israel citizens (with Arabs disenfranchised by not having representation) chose overwhelmingly these 3 hawks and few votes for peace candidates.

Secretary of State Clinton carries on from where Bush left off. She demands that Hamas recognize Israel to get aid. They have already accepted the 67' borders; it is a defacto recognition coupled with a 10 year ceasefire would make those borders permanent

Now The Most Recent Atrocity

FCC Review Murdock's Special Treatment
in light of the racist cartoon in the Post.
Sign Petition Below:

Rev. Al Sharpton and several councilmembers have on the heels of the racist cartoon in the NY Post begun a petition drive to look into the special treatment that Rupert Murdoch is getting. He is allowed to own more newspapers and tv stations in the same city than the rules ordinarily allow and that others can.

It is the monopoly control which increases the likelihood of hubris which leads to arrogance in the media like the cartoon.
(Update: In the discussion below it was pointed out that it would be more accurately called "oligopoly".  

"Oligopoly = disproportionate control by a small number of companies, thereby dampening competition."

Now taking the combination of offense at racism and imaging violence towards President Obama along with the inherent and multifold problems with monopoly control there is an opportunity to change some of this. That is if we act now.

Sign the petition which calls for a FCC investigation into Murdoch's special treatment.

Even the Share Holders Agree. See Below

One by one the justifications given by Israel for its latest war in Gaza are unravelling.

The argument that this is a purely defensive war, launched only after Hamas broke a six-month ceasefire has been challenged, not just by observers in the know such as Jimmy Carter, the former US president who helped facilitate the truce, but by centre-right Israeli intelligence think tanks.

The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, whose December 31 report titled "Six Months of the Lull Arrangement Intelligence Report," confirmed that the June 19 truce was only "sporadically violated, and then not by Hamas but instead by ... "rogue terrorist organisations".

Instead, "the escalation and erosion of the lull arrangement" occurred after Israel killed six Hamas members on November 4 without provocation and then placed the entire Strip under an even more intensive siege the next day.

Who will save Israel from itself?  Al-Jazeera

What is missing from this condescending parable for the "children of San Francisco who are bothered by the Israeli raining of death on over 400 Palestinians.

Below the fold is his lecture

What is left out; what is distorted?

Israel will be electing a prime minister in two months.
Whose hands are not bloody in this massacre in Gaza?

Ehud Barak led the attack
Tzippy Livny refused to negotiate with Hamas at an Egyptian sponsored meeting several days before the attack
Binyamin Netanyahu has called for "something that removes this Hamas regime from the scene...With all the means necessary to achieve it."

Biggest distortion: Hamas wants to drive Israel to the sea. Wrong they have agreed to a 10 year ceasefire if Israel returns to '67 borders.

Biggest overlooked opportunity: .The Arab League has offered a serious plan for negotiations which peace advocates on both sides have accepted.The war hawks in the 3 major parties have refused this offer.

Democrats Have Overwhelming Majority in Vt Legislatures

Ranked Choice Voting Legislation which has the support of Gov. Dean and Sen.
Bernie Sanders failed because too many Democrats did not make this sensible move.

The Consequence of this recalcitrance:

Vt will elect a Republican governor or Democratic Party controlled legislatures will appoint a non-winner.

And you thought he only played Bass

He is a strong supporter of Instant Runoff Voting.

Shouldn't we be able to vote for who we want, at least our 1st vote?

If you are near SF join us tonight.
If you are aren't read below all the cities hoping to join the growing number.

Vermont almost passed it at the state level.

Pretty soon we will be able to vote for who we want.

WHEN:     7:30 pm to 9 pm, July 9
WHERE:     Foreign Cinema, http://www.foreigncinema.com/...
WHAT:     Updates on this fall's campaigns and how they fit into a national strategic vision for reform
WHO:     Krist Novoselic, Steven Hill, Rob Richie -- and many more, including you!

Obama and Clinton didn't even have the saavy or fear of losing anti-war & anti-occupation support to avoid the vote. Obama went out of his way to chastise McCain for voting against the war funding.

Today, Wednesday, and tomorrow, Thursday,
please contact your Representative in Washington, DC - and ask your friends to do this -
Phone: 202.224.3121

We’d like to see
YES votes on the McGovern(MA)-Sestak(PA)-Bishop(GA) Amendment to HR 5658
(the Defense Authorization Bill) from the Northern California  Reps.
The amendment would make public the names of the students and instructors at WHINSEC
so that their past and future human rights records could be tracked.

More details available at www.soaw.org and in the email below

Anybody who ever considers civil disobedience or appreciates those willing to do that should weigh in with their comments; this is the last day to stop this.

We used to be presumed innocent!

Public Comment at:

DNA Collection Expands from Convicted Felons to All Arrested

The government plans to begin collecting DNA samples from anyone arrested by a federal law enforcement agency — a move intended to prevent violent crime but which also is raising concerns about the privacy of innocent people.

Using authority granted by Congress, the government also plans to collect DNA samples from foreigners who are detained, whether they have been charged or not. The DNA would be collected through a cheek swab, Justice Department spokesman Erik Ablin said Wednesday. That would be a departure from current practice, which limits DNA collection to convicted felons.

The above is from an article:
Feds to collect DNA from every person they arrest By EILEEN SULLIVAN, Associated Press Writer

Amy Goodman inteviewed Matt Gonzalez, former President of the Board of Supervisors of San Francisco. He almost became Green Party mayor of San Francisco, narrowly losing to Gavin Newsom 53-47. He actually won the race by 10,000 votes on election day and lost in absentee ballots

Thursday 4/17 Democracy Now with Matt Gonzalez, Ralph Nader's VP
In the wide ranging discussion Amy Goodman played tapes of Clinton and Obama at last night's debate and he commented. He also mentioned the need for electoral reform.
Election Reform to end the spoiler problem is sorely needed.
Look below to see how doable it is.

Instant Runoff Voting legislation was enacted in San Francisco 6 years ago. So far it has been successfully used there 3 times, and it has been adopted by 15 additional cities and a county in Washington.

From  Beyond Chron, the Voice of the Rest.

We provide coverage of political and cultural issues often distorted or ignored by the Bay Area's largest newspaper, the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Obama Craze: Count Me Out by Matt Gonzalez

After admitting that he is also influenced by enthusiasm people are feeling for Obama he begins examining his record compared to his rhetoric

<blockquoteBut his record suggests that he is incapable of ushering in any kind of change I’d like to see. It is one of accommodation and concession to the very political powers that we need to reign in and oppose if we are to make truly lasting advances. </blockquote>

How well does Obama stand up to scrutiny in over 10 key areas by Gonzalez?

Hundreds of real and suspected Allende supporters were gunned down in Santiago's soccer stadium, fashioned into a torture center and concentration camp.  Across the nation, in the streets and military detention centers, Pinochet's forces murdered 20,000 and tortured 60,000 in the first few months after 9/11/1973. One million Chileans were forced into exile. According to leading international relations analyst William I. Robinson, it was "the bloodiest coup in Latin-American history" (Robinson, Promoting Polyarchy: Globalization, US Intervention, and Hegemony [Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 1996], p. 46).

Remembering Chile's 9/11 by Paul Street

The terrorists hate our freedoms," the Chilean workers, peasants and students could have echoed George W. Bush's post 9/11/01 comments. They would be explaining, however, what lay behind the US and Chilean military plotters who helped make the coup possible, just as George W. Bush simplistically explained the 2001 attack from the mostly Saudi Arabian terrorists.

Chile: The Other, Almost Forgotten 9/11 by Saul Landau

On her way to NYC from Camp Casey Cindy Sheehan and the Journey for Humanitywill join others Monday, July 23 at the office of John Conyers to push for impeachment. We Will Sit In for Impeachment

From:

Why Would Anyone Protest John Conyers?
By David Swanson

John Conyers has a great quote in John Nichols' book "The Genius of Impeachment" (pointed out by attentive reader Gordon Bennett):

"I have a choice. I can either stand by and lead my constituents to believe I do not care that the president apparently no longer believes he is bound by any law or code of decency. Or I can act

David Swanson of After Downing Street writes: