Social Justice News, 2/23/07

Hey everybody,
It’s been a crazy week. Both personally and for the world in general. Chlorine bombs going off in Iraq, immigrant children locked up in prison here, the weather haywire everywhere –all of its enough to make me want to bury my head in the sand! Work has been a nightmare; someone joked yesterday that they must have hung a sign out front that read “Psychotics this way please”. It was that bad. The day before one of my relatives, who I haven’t seen or spoken to in years and who doesn’t even live in town, came into the restaurant. To see me, and of course I refused. I don’t know how this person found out where I work, but I’m not happy about it.

FEATURED ARTICLES
Locking Up Family Values: Please, please, PLEASE listen/watch Friday’s Democracy Now. Or at least the first half hour. We are one step away from fascism. When will we learn? We did this crap to the Native Americans, to Chinese Americans, to Japanese Americans, and now to everyone else who immigrates here (or even pass through). This is how things started with Hitler –and when things in the country got really bad (mostly because of his policies, but that’s another discussion), he had a ready scapegoat and “final solution” at hand. You don’t think that could happen here? Remember what happened to the first people who inhabited these shores.
http://www.democracynow.org/

China to need dykes within a decade: Sea level is now rising so fast that China will need to build dykes within the next ten years to protect low-lying cities. Global whatsit?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070216/sc_afp/chinaclimatewarmingoceans_070216081935;_ylt=Aq4OgkeH99OGGB3FxvptdxNrAlMA

GOOD NEWS
The Mashpee Wampanoag Finally Win Federal Recognition: They are now considered a sovereign Native American Nation, after decades of trying to prove their status. I would have thought being there to greet the Pilgrims and hosting the first Thanksgiving would’ve been enough, but hey, what do I know?
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/city_region/breaking_news/2007/02/mashpee_wampano_1.html

Investors Steamed About Global Warming: A group of investors is taking some companies to task for not responding to climate change. About time, too!
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0214/p02s02-usec.html

CLIMATE CHANGE
Winds Shifting, Dead Zones Expanding: Long stable wind and current patterns are changing thanks to climate change. This is causing even more dead zones and wiping out whole marine ecosystems, sometimes overnight. I’m not a pessimist by nature, but sometimes I agree with one of my friends, who looks at the issue of climate change and says “we’re ****ed”.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/story/0,,2015826,00.html

Grim Future for West: Now isn’t the time to move to California, or any of the Sunbelt.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/02/03/MNGR9NUBLN1.DTL

POLITICS
Patents on Life: Yes, a corporation should be able to patent a gene that has existed pretty much since the beginning of time. Not. Well, not unless said corporation is really an entity named God.
http://www.commondreams.org/views07/0213-25.htm

POLLUTION
Low-Level Toxicants Can Harm Brain: It turns out that even lower levels of mercury and other toxins can harms fetuses. Maybe there’s a reason the coal industry has blocked so many studies on mercury. The emissions from our power plant didn’t do you or your baby any harm. Of course not. Don’t you know that mercury is good for you?
http://www.newsday.com/news/health/ny-hslead0206,0,3014503.story?coll=ny-leadhealthnews-headlines

More Plastic Problems: More discussion on the fertility risks associated with plastics. Gee, maybe polyester and cheap cooking utensils weren’t such good ideas after all!
http://www.alternet.org/envirohealth/47849/

ENVIRONMENT
Bye Bye Honeybees? Colony Collapse is devastating the bee population all across the country. And since bees are vital to the pollination of most plants (including all the major food crops) this is Bad News. GMOs strike again?
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=2867049&page=1

OTHER
Learning to Live as Voluntary Peasants (discusses The Farm): This is an interesting piece, and discusses several ecovillages with a focus on our neighbors just to the north, The Farm.
http://culturechange.org/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=100&Itemid=1

“Perfect Storm” of re-enactors: This is a hoot! But it’s a good thing neither the Civil Rights folks or the Confederate ones were in the mood for a uh, confrontation.
http://www.nashvillescene.com/Stories/Columns/The_Fabricator/2007/02/08/Re_enactor_Perfect_Storm_Strik/index.shtml

Arrows for the War: These people are flippin’ mad. I can’t help but wonder what will happen to them as the economy tanks and depression sets in, Peak Oil starts affecting this country, and climate change becomes obvious. Will they still think having 6 or more children is a good thing when they can’t even feed three?
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20061127/joyce


Website of the Week: A practical approach to organic gardening.
http://www.momsorganichouse.com/a-practical-approach-to-organic-gardening/

UU Joke of the Week: Jesus said to them, "Who do you say that I am?" The Unitarian Universalist Christian replied "You are the eschatological manifestation of the ground of our being, the kerygma of which we find the ultimate meaning in our interpersonal relationships." And Jesus said "What?"

Have a good weekend everybody!
-Rebecca