From: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com (abolition-usa-digest) To: abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: abolition-usa-digest V1 #113 Reply-To: abolition-usa-digest Sender: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-abolition-usa-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk abolition-usa-digest Friday, April 16 1999 Volume 01 : Number 113 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 23:19:51 EDT From: DavidMcR@aol.com Subject: (abolition-usa) Reporter challenges propaganda consensus << Subj:=09 jhurd_newparty: Reporter challenges propaganda consensus Date:=094/14/99 7:34:05 PM Eastern Daylight Time Sender:=09owner-jhurd_newparty@indiana.edu =20 The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Wednesday, April 14, 1999 =20 REPORTER CHALLENGES REPORTS OF MASSACRES IN PRISTINA =20 "There is no evidence that such a thing happened in Pristina"=20 =97 Paul Watson, journalist for the Los Angeles Times=20 =20 By Marcus Gee =20 One of the few Western journalists reporting from inside Kosovo=20 says his impressions clash with NATO reports of what is happening=20 in the war-torn province. Paul Watson, a Canadian who works for the Los Angeles Times,=20 says he has seen no evidence that Serb authorities have massacred=20 Albanians in the Kosovo capital of Pristina. In an interview yesterday with the CBC radio program As It=20 Happens, he said he has toured ethnic-Albanian neighbourhoods=20 several times and has not seen any bodies. "It is very hard to hide an anarchic wholesale slaughter of=20 people," said Mr. Watson, who has been in Kosovo since the North=20 Atlantic Treaty Organization began bombing on March 24. "There is=20 no evidence that such a thing happened in Pristina." NATO blames Serb troops for the exodus of hundreds of=20 thousands of ethnic Albanians in the past three weeks. It says they=20 have been raped, massacred and burned out of their homes. The=20 reports of refugees in border camps support that version. Yugoslavia, however, says the NATO bombings are forcing the=20 ethnic Albanians to flee. "I am certain it is a mixture of both," said Mr. Watson, who won=20 a Pulitzer Prize for news photography when he was covering the=20 international intervention in Somalia for The Toronto Star. "I have spoken personally to people who have been ordered to=20 leave their homes by police in black. I've also spoken to people who=20 are simply terrified." For example, he said, many people fled the area around Pristina's=20 airport after a NATO bombing there. "I see a pretty clear pattern of=20 refugees leaving an area after there were severe air strikes." Mr. Watson said the effect of the NATO bombing has been to=20 "stir the pot" in Yugoslavia. "We shouldn't be surprised that it has=20 spilled over. And in spilling over it has created anarchy in the=20 countryside." That does not excuse Serb atrocities, he said. "But I don't think=20 that NATO member countries can, with a straight face, sit back and=20 say they don't share some blame for the wholesale depopulation of=20 this country. "If NATO had not bombed, I would be surprised if this sort of=20 forced exodus on this enormous scale would be taking place." He said the centre of Pristina has been devastated by the NATO=20 bombing. The police headquarters, the post office and other=20 government buildings are in ruins. A graveyard and a children's=20 basketball court have also been hit. Even so, people continue to walk in the streets. "Even this=20 morning at 10 o'clock, as large explosions were rocking high-rise=20 buildings in the centre of the city, there were people strolling up and=20 down and oohing and aahing as if they were watching a fireworks=20 demonstration." Mr. Watson said most of the villages between Pristina and the=20 Albanian border to the southwest were deserted when he travelled=20 through them. He also saw large convoys of vehicles carrying=20 refugees. He did not see large groups of refugees living in the open, as=20 NATO has reported, but he stressed that does not mean it is not=20 happening.=20 =20 =20 Louis Proyect (http://www.panix.com/~lnp3/marxism.html) =20 >> - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 23:28:15 EDT From: DavidMcR@aol.com Subject: (abolition-usa) WAS A PEACEFUL KOSOVO SOLUTION REJECTED BY ... Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 20:07:14 -0400 Reply-To: fair-l-request@AMERICAN.EDU Sender: "media analysis, critiques and news reports" From: FAIR Subject: [FAIR-L] ACTION ALERT: WAS A PEACEFUL KOSOVO SOLUTION REJECTED BY U.S.? To: FAIR-L@AMERICAN.EDU FAIR-L Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting Media analysis, critiques and news reports ACTION ALERT: WAS A PEACEFUL KOSOVO SOLUTION REJECTED BY U.S.? April 14, 1999 Since the beginning of the NATO attack on Yugoslavia, the war has been presented by the media as the consequence of Yugoslavia's stubborn refusal to settle for any reasonable peace plan, in particular its rejection of plans for an international security force to implement a peace plan in Kosovo. An article in the April 14 New York Times stated that Yugoslavian President Milosevic "has absolutely refused to entertain an outside force in Kosovo, arguing that the province is sovereign territory of Serbia and Yugoslavia." Negotiations between the Serb and Albanian delegations at the Rambouillet meeting in France ended with Yugoslavia's rejection of the agreement adopted, after much prodding, by the Albanian party. But is that the whole story? On February 21, the Yugoslavs assented to the terms of the political portion of the Rambouillet agreement. Their rejection stemmed from their opposition to the requirement that 28,000 NATO troops be stationed in Kosovo to oversee the implementation of the accord. This military clause, requiring NATO troops, was inserted without the knowledge of the Russian representatives, who opposed the provision. By the close of the first round of the Rambouillet talks in late February, Serb President Milan Milutinovic had already declared Serbia's willingness to to discuss "an international presence in Kosovo" to monitor the implementation of the accords. On February 21, Madeleine Albright responded by insisting that "We accept nothing less than a complete agreement, including a NATO-led force." On March 23, the day before the NATO bombing began, the Serbian parliament adopted a resolution again rejecting the military portion of the accords, but expressing willingness to review the "range and character of an international presence" in Kosovo. According to the Toronto Star's correspondent in Belgrade on March 24, "There have been hints Serbia might ultimately accept a U.N. force." But the U.S. appears to have been unwilling to consider any option other than NATO troops. At a March 24 State Department press briefing, spokesman James Rubin was asked about this development: QUESTION: Was there any follow-up to the Serbian Assembly's yesterday? They had a two-pronged decision. One was to not allow NATO troops to come in; but the second part was to say they would consider an international force if all of the Kosovo ethnic groups agreed to some kind of a peace plan. It was an ambiguous collection of resolutions. Did anybody try to pursue that and find out what was the meaning of that? MR. RUBIN: Ambassador Holbrooke was in Belgrade, discussed these matters extensively with President Milosevic, left with the conclusion that he was not prepared to engage seriously on the two relevant subjects. I think the decision of the Serb Parliament opposing military-led implementation was the message that most people received from the parliamentary debate. I'm not aware that people saw any silver linings. QUESTION: But there was a second message, as well; there was a second resolution. MR. RUBIN: I am aware that there was work done, but I'm not aware that anybody in this building regarded it as a silver lining. In other words, the State Department was aware that the Serbian parliament expressed openness to an "international presence," but this was not seen as a "silver lining," apparently because only a NATO force was acceptable to the U.S. Those who support the bombing of Yugoslavia argue that all peaceful options for arriving at a settlement in Kosovo had been exhausted. Journalists need to do more reporting on the Rambouillet process to see if that in fact was the case. *** ACTION: Please contact local and national media and call on them to report on the U.S. State Department's insistence that only a NATO-led force in Kosovo could keep the peace there. Did this position make it more or less likely that the rights of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo would be protected? You can contact the New York Times at: Andrew Rosenthal-- Foreign Editor mailto:letters@nytimes.com; andyr@nytimes.com Contact information for other media outlets can be found at: http://www.fair.org/media-contact-list.html For more information on media coverage of the war in Yugoslavia, see http://www.fair.org/international/yugoslavia.html . >> - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1999 00:36:24 EDT From: DavidMcR@aol.com Subject: (abolition-usa) NYC metro area / URGENT / Rally for Peace, Friday, April 23 Friends and co-workers, Please note the broad range of sponsors. If your group agrees with the statement below, you are invited to join as a sponsor. If you have problems with the statement but agree on the need for an immediate large rally for peace, endorse. War Resisters League is acting as a coordinating point for this time, you can reach them by phoning 212 / 228.0450 and asking for Chris Ney or Carmen Trotta. Leaflets are available. Get them out as widely as possible. PLEASE SEND THIS EMAIL ON TO ANY LIST YOU THINK WOULD BE INTERESTED, AND ANY FRIENDS WHO SHARE YOU CONCERN, AND ASK THEM TO RELAY THE NOTE IN TURN. TIME IS SHORT. PUBLIC OPINION MUST BE MOBILIZED. Thanks, David McReynolds Rally for Peace in the Balkans Friday, April 23, 1999, 4:30 PM Washington Square Park (West 4th St.) Stop the Bombing! Return Kosovars to their Homes! NATO Out of Yugoslavia! Sponsors: Catholic Worker, Debs Local Socialist Party, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Greenwich Village Coalition for Peace and Priorities, International Freedom Socialist Party, MADRE, New York Committees of Correspondence, Nicaragua Solidarity Network, NY CP/USA, Pax Christi USA, Peace Action, Radical Women, Shorefront Peace Action, Socialist Party USA, War Resisters League, West Side Peace Action, Women In Black For more information: War Resisters League, (212) 228-0450 ------------------------------------- Rally for Peace In the Balkans Washington Square Park 4:30 PM, Friday, April 23 Stop the Bombing! Stop the Expulsions! Peace in the Balkans now! We demand an immediate halt in the NATO air strikes against any part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and an immediate, unconditional end of NATO military actions. These actions are in violation of international law and of the Charter of the United Nations and thus the treaty obligations of the U.S. Constitution. We say "No!" to both NATO ground forces and to arming the Kosova Liberation Army, which will turn Kosovo/a* into a war zone where outside powers create permanent chaos. We call for an immediate return to diplomacy, by involving the good offices of the United Nations, and through a direct involvement of the Russian government, with every hope that this will result in the return of the refugees to their homes in Kosovo/a. We deplore the murder and forcible expulsion of the Albanian Kosovars, whose numbers are now in the hundreds of thousands, as both a human and a political tragedy. It is surely criminal to force people, through terror and intimidation, from their homes and from a nation where they have lived for centuries. At a human level, it is no less criminal for NATO to launch air attacks on Yugoslavia, hitting targets that clearly include civilian sites. And at a political level the forced expulsion has meant that NATO, rather than achieving its purported goal of protecting the people of Kosovo/a, has been a party to their being forced from their homes. The presence of the refugees in Montenegro, Macedonia, and Albania has now caused deep concern that what little stability exists in those nations will be destroyed as a result of the NATO actions. We underline the stark reality that with every day that passes, the tragedy deepens and the political problems become greater. Stop the war now. Catholic Worker, Debs Local Socialist Party, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Greenwich Village Coalition for Peace and Priorities, International Freedom Socialist Party, MADRE, New York Committees of Correspondence, Nicaragua Solidarity Network, NY CP/USA, Pax Christi USA, Peace Action, Radical Women, Shorefront Peace Action, Socialist Party USA, War Resisters League, West Side Peace Action, Women In Black For more information: War Resisters League, (212) 228-0450 * Kosovo is the Serbian spelling, Kosova the Albanian; we use Kosovo/a out of respect for all people of the area. >> >> - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1999 15:46:03 EDT From: JGG786@aol.com Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Fwd: More info on the church leaders' meeting with the PM nancy ignatious at cns is working on this issue as I have also been. also, bettina gray from berkeley cal. is working on this issue jgg - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1999 15:55:04 EDT From: JGG786@aol.com Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Fwd: More info on the church leaders' meeting with the PM alice, this was my contribution at united religions initiative DECLARATION ON GLOBAL ELIMINATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS: Declared by consensus at the Third Global Summit of the United Religions Initiative, June 25, 1998. ********************* We recognize that the United Nations General Assembly's first resolution, 1(I), in 1946 calling for the elimination of atomic weapons has yet to be fulfilled. The threat posed to all life by the sheer destructiveness of nuclear weapons presents an unacceptable risk for this and future generations. This unacceptable risk presents a moral imperative for the elimination of nuclear weapons. The International Court of Justice has called upon States to conclude a treaty on elimination of these weapons. The failure to fulfill this legal duty provides impetus for their hazardous proliferation. We diligently and passionately call upon all religious leaders and ethically conscious individuals to heed this moral imperative by pressing with all persuasive means available to raise public concern with the purpose of causing the nuclear weapons states to make an unequivocal commitment to nuclear disarmament demonstrated by immediate: 1) Commencement of multilateral negotiations leading to a treaty on the elimination of nuclear weapons; and 2) Implementation of practical first steps such as taking all nuclear forces off current hair-trigger alert and pledging no first use. The proposition that nuclear weapons can be retained in perpetuity and never used -- accidentally or by decision -- defies credibility. We refuse to accept living under an unworthy peace which might make us the earth's last generation. At present, the Vatican is the only religious voice at the level of government at the United Nations. It has declared that reliance on nuclear deterrence is immoral. We wish to join that voice and make it a clarion call that will resonate throughout the heart of humanity and move governments. As people of faith and moral conviction, we believe it is our duty to address this global evil, for no person is removed from its effect. It emphasizes the requirement that we learn to live in cooperation and harmony or we shall all perish together. May we continue to learn ways of peace. Signers: Bettina Gray, member of board, North American Interfaith Network, USA Jonathan Granoff, Temple of Understanding, USA Juana Albornoz Guevara, Chile Doreen Da Costa, La Salle Youth Centre, Malaysia Dr. Deri Joy Ronis, Interntl. New Thought Alliance, USA Stephen Fuqua, USA Rev. Mary E. Gaylord, Graduate Theological Union: Center for Women & Religion, USA Dr. Javid Iqbal, Pakistan Gurudev Singh Khalsa, SIGMA, USA Rev. Dale White, Wilgespirit Fellowship Center, S.A. Hugh Adamson, World Congress of Faiths, UK Catherine Margerin, Millenio, USA Christian De La Huerta, Q Spirit, USA Bruce Curtis, USA Fr. Luis Cabrera, Conferencia Episcopal Ecuatoriana, Ecuador Mary Finney, SIGMA, Case Western Reserve University, USA Lilian Curaming, Movement for Muslim-Chrisitian Dialogue, Philipines Barbara Bernstein, Association for Global New Thought, USA Rolf Carriere, UNICEF, Bangladesh Tom Mahon, Writer, USA Els Braeken, Brahma Kumaris, Belgium Sally Ackerly, United Religions Initiative, USA Patricia Elsberg, Alliance for Cooperative Economics, USA Rev. Deborah Light, Covenant of the Goddess, USA Socrates Olympio, Global Youth Alliance, Ghana Kay Lindahl, Alliance for Spiritual Community, USA P.K. McCary, USA Yoland Trevino, Transformative Collaborations Int., USA/India Ann Miller, Bosch Bahai Retreat Center, USA Ms Mary Page Sims, USA Alison Van Dyk, Temple of Understanding, USA Rev. James Parks Morton, Temple of Understanding, Interfaith Center of New York, USA Bawa Jain, Temple of Understanding, Interfaith Center of New York, USA Lois Gundlack, URI board member, USA Mr. Robert Walter, President, Joseph Campbell Foundation, USA The Hon. Guido Vansina - former Ambassador of Belgium, Belgium Reverend Betsy Stang, The Wittenberg Center for Alternative Resources, USA Ebrahim Patel, American Rhodes Scholar in Residence at Oxford, USA Rev. James Channan OP, Executive Secretary, National Commission for Christian-Muslim Relations, Pakistan Dr. Hum D. Bui, M.D., CaoDai Overseas Amanda Trosten-Bloom, Colorado, USA A. Dell Drake, USA Joel Beversluis, CoNexus Press, USA Rev. Heng Sure, Institute for World Religions, USA Michael N. Nagler, University of California, Berkeley, USA Mr Mussie Hailu, Representative - World Peace Prayer Society, Ethiopia Sr Laetitia S. Borg, Representative - Franciscan International, Ethiopia The Rev. Charles Gibbs, United Religions Initiative,USA William W. Rankin, United Religions Initiative, USA Elizabet Sahtouris, Author, Biologist,USA Dr. Weldon E. Woodard, Venezuela Dr. Carol Zinn, SSJ, Global Education Associates,USA Paul Chaffee, Presidio Interfaith Center, USA Dr Natubhai Shah. Chairman Jain Academy, UK David L Cooperrider, Professor of Organization Studies, Case Western Reserve University, USA Andrea Bartoli, Columbia University, USA The Right Rev. William E. Swing, Bishop of California, USA Mary Taylor Swing, USA Jack W. Lundin, vice-Chair, Board of Directors, United Religions Initiative Nahid Angha, Ph. D., Co-Director, Int. Assn. of Sufism; Founder, Int. Sufi Women Organization, USA Malcolm Stonestreet, United Religions Initiative, UK Ghazala Munir Zeenat Shaukat Ali, Professor Islamic Studies, St. Xaviers College, Mumbai, India Brahma Das, Media Chair, Parliament of the World's Religions, USA Media, Director, Kashi Foundation, USA Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati, Kashi Foundation, USA Krishnapriya Hutner-Kashi Foundation, USA DeAnna Martin, International Coordinator, Global Youth Alliance Sharon Franquemont, The Circle, USA Thomas One Wolf, USA, Sherri One Wolf, USA Phil Lane Jr., The Four Worlds International Institute form Human and Community Development, USA Dr Diana Whitney, Ph.D., Corporation for Positive Change, USA Avon Mattison, Pathways to Peace, USA Jane Hascall, Senior Partner, Hascall Consulting, USA Ravi Peruman, radio interview host, USA Marina Villalobos Diaz ?Cynthia Melea Melburn,representitive-Earth Council,Washington,D.C., USA *Jessica H. T. Forrest, USA *Clare Nolan, NGO representative, Sisters of the Good Shepherd, USA *Fr. Pasquino Panato, Comboni Missionaries, USA *Marjorie Sorensen, Association for World Education *Linda Sorrento, USA *Patrick McNamara - New York, USA *Diane Robbins, DBRobbins Consulting, Seattle WA. *Barry Bloom , USA *this declaration is being circulated beyond the United Religions Initiative Global Summit and those indicated have added their names. The additional list of names has not yet been returned. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1999 18:21:21 -0700 From: "David Crockett Williams" Subject: (abolition-usa) 2 Messages, Sacred Peace Pipe Keeper, Prayers for World Peace April, 1999 *From Chief Arvol Looking Horse : IMPORTANT STATEMENT ON YUGOSLAVIA My name is Chief Arvol Looking Horse of the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota Nation, I would like to share a viewpoint about the "Ethnic Cleansing", mass killing of innocent people in Yugoslavia. I am the Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe of Peace, a gift of a sacred bundle given nineteen generations ago to my people providing guidance of teachings for assurance of Peace within our lives. The White Buffalo Calf Woman gave this gift of the Sacred Pipe providing guidance of teachings for assurance of Peace within our lives. Along with these teachings of this Sacred Pipe of Peace, has been prophecies passed down from significant people who walked their harmony. They based their lives on teachings given from sacred bundles, such as the Sacred Buffalo Calf Pipe or many other gifts of bundles and teachings from the Creator. They foretold of these times of great change, which coincide with many other Nations' archives recording their own Prophecies. The reality of the accuracy of these Prophecies which has predicted events upon Mother Earth, as well as the history of our own people, have come to pass, so we have learned to pay attention. There are foretold Prophecies of a very dark time, more significant than any other times in History. We will be at a crossroads in which a dark cloud will envelop the earth, chaos and diseases will erupt and we will witness blood from our relatives' eyes. Humankind has to make a decision and have courage to make a stand for Peace, even when their relatives' minds are restrained from spiritual awareness of healing the mind. We still have a chance to choose to make a change. Mother Earth is a living spirit that clothes, feeds and nourishes all walks of life, but when fighting erupts, the land and life cease to flourish, as well as the spirit of humankind. Mother Earth needs our help! I call upon the World to Pray at once for Peace, to make your stand spiritually, you must see the ignorance of this situation in Yugoslavia will only make us blinder to our own empowerment of making a positive change for our next generations to come. Pray with me every day at 10:00 AM Central Time for a peaceful resolution to this continuing destruction of the World. You must realize this "disease of the mind" will spread even faster, if we don't take control of our behavior. I have been initiating an event called "World Peace and Prayer Day" to bring awareness of these times by uniting the world spiritually on June 21st, praying at the sacred sites, for Global Healing, this being the fourth year to the South in Costa Rica. When this day arrives, please pilgrimage to your local sacred site and continue the daily praying that has been done at the time of 10:00 AM Central Time. This is an invitation to the Serbian and Yugoslavian representatives to participate, whether it be in Costa Rica or at your own sacred place of prayer. Please begin to learn to understand the meaning of "Walking in Harmony and Peace" in having the courage to transform our spiritual consciousness to love and compassion! This is the real challenge and courage in life. As one of our spiritual leaders, Black Elk once said: "One who walks a dark road is distracted, who is ruled by his senses and who lives for himself, rather than for his people". Please "Look upon your children, with their children in their arms, that they may face the winds and walk to the day of quiet." From which there is no beginning and no ending in the Sacred Hoop of Life, I am sending you this message of Peace from my heart and the sacred altar, may our prayers for Peace be heard, may peace with you all... Hetcetuyelo! Mitakuye Oyasin (all my relations), Chief Arvol Looking Horse, 19th Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe of Peace COMPLETION CIRCLE OF THE FOURTH YEAR OF WORLD PEACE AND PRAYER DAY June 21, 1999 As keeper of the 19th generation Sacred White Buffalo Pipe of Peace, I, Chief Arvol Looking Horse of the Lakota, Nakota and Dakota Nation, would like to invite the world to recognize June 21st as a day of prayer for global healing. Our traditional indigenous ways are the way to strengthen our bonds and healing for our Mother Earth. We are the "root nation", Hutkan Oyate, with responsibility to turn the life of our Mother Earth around. It is now evident, with even the scientific findings, that our course is leading to the endangerment of our tired Mother Earth. We are now in the midst of what is prophesied as the crossroads, faced with either disaster, chaos, diseases, with tears from our relatives' (Mitakuye Oyasin) eyes, or uniting spiritually with all nations upon Mother Earth. This is a calling for the world to seek out the sacred sites and bring awareness to the energy and connection that exists there to our Mother Earth. In the past, there has been clear research findings of people coming together spiritually, praying for a healing, and our Mother Earth responded with a visible positive energy shift. This year we are completing the circle to the South direction in Costa Rica. This journey started in 1996 at Gray Horn Butte, Wyoming and circled to the North in 1997, to the Cree Nation of the Joseph Big Head Reservation, and then to the East at the Sacred Pipestone Quarries in 1998. Costa Rica has been chosen as the Southern site to complete the circle because of the need to support what is already established there with the efforts of the University of Peace and its non-military existence. We are inviting the surrounding Indigenous Peoples of the South and all Indigenous people of the world to either join us or go to their sacred site if it is not possible to journey to Costa Rica. According to our star knowledge, June 21st is a time to pray. We have this only chance to unite spiritually. In our way there is no beginning and no ending to continue to work toward peace and harmony for our Mother Earth so there is much healing for our nations of future generations. May peace be with you, all life upon Mother Earth. Mitakuye oyasin, (All my relations) Chief Arvol Looking Horse, Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe +~*~+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*~+~*~+*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+~*~+ World Peace and Prayer Day is the fulfillment of prophecy from our ancestors, not only Lakota, but that of other Peoples' of Earth. Chief Looking Horse is the catalyst for the vision he keeps, an inherited responsibility of what the White Buffalo Calf Pipe stands for - Peace - with the ancestral vision of obtaining Peace through the help of the spirituality of all Peoples! The vision and endeavor is for all people from all cultures and beliefs to come together and pray for Global Healing. If we view our ways with ethnocentricity we destroy the very empowerment through which we fully obtain the connection with the Creator. May peace be with you, WPPD '99 Staff +~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~ Website for World Peace and Prayer Day '99: http://www.worldpeaceday.com/1999/ E-mail contact: mosa@rapidnet.com *+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+* - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 14:05:10 -0400 From: ASlater Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Michael Moore on Kosovo >Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 13:56:28 -0400 >Subject: Michael Moore on Kosovo >Priority: non-urgent >X-FC-MachineGenerated: true >To: abolition@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca >X-FC-Forwarded-From: daren@ploughshares.ca >From: abolition@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca (abolition@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca) > >Here is Michael Moore of TV Nation and Downsize This! fame on the bombing >in >Kosovo. Where it says American or USA, I believe we can safely substitute >Canadian or Canada. > >Darren Puscas >Project Ploughshares Intern >(my email is dpuscas@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca not daren@ploughshares.ca as it >appears) > > > >The Bombing of Kosovo >By Michael Moore >April 15, 1999 > >Dear friends, > >As we file our taxes today (procrastinators, all of us), and we sign our >names on the bottom line of our 1040 tax forms, perhaps we should ask >ourselves if what we are doing is signing a death warrant for people we >don't even know. Because each night, for the past three weeks, millions of >dollars of bombs and missiles -- that you and I paid for -- are being used >to kill people in the former Yugoslavia. That makes you and I culpable in >their execution. > >Did you personally know any of the people who were killed in the village of >Pristina (capitol of Kosovo) last week? Had they ever done anything to harm >you? How about the children who were blown to bits in the building in >Prizren? Had they ever threatened you in any way to cause you to have to >kill them in self-defense? Perhaps you had met the people who were >incinerated by us on the train to Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Can you tell me why >you would want to take their lives? > >I'm sorry to personalize it in this way, but this slaughter is being >conducted in your name and mine, and I'll tell you, this is blood I don't >want on my hands. We will all have to answer for this some day, and I would >like to be able to say that I did not sit by silently while this was being >done, and that I did whatever I could to stop it as soon as possible. > >Right about now, some of you, with all good intentions, are saying, "But, >Mike, this Milosevic guy is a madman. He's committing genocide. We should >not ignore this as we did the Holocaust in the early days of World War II. >He must be stopped by any means necessary." > >Yes, he must be stopped. But bombing the people of his country is exactly >the wrong way to stop him. In fact, it has only strengthened him. There was >a growing dissident movement in Yugoslavia before the war, and every letter >I get from these brave souls tells me that the bombing has set back their >struggle so incredibly far that they worry they will now be stuck with >Milosevic for a long time. They are pleading with us to stop it. The >bombing >has made him a hero at a time when nearly half of the country was very >unhappy with his leadership. We did not consult the anti-Milosevic movement >in advance to see if they would like our help in the form of 10,000 bombing >sorties. We just went off half-cocked on our own, and started killing the >very people we were claiming to save. Anyone who remembers Vietnam knows >that sordid logic and insanity. We have strengthened Milosevic and >destroyed >his opposition. Happy now? > >Friends, Milosevic must be stopped, BUT BOMBING DOES NOT WORK. It has never >worked. It didn't work in Iraq -- Sadaam is still in charge no matter how >many bombs we have dropped. It didn't work in Vietnam. During the Christmas >week of 1972, the amount of bombs we dropped on North Vietnam was equal to >half the tonnage of bombs dropped on England during World War II.That >didn't >work, so one month later, we gave in and announced our complete pull-out. > >What a sad, pathetic man Bill Clinton is. Though many have criticized him >for dodging the draft, I actually admired the fact that he refused to go >and >kill Vietnamese. Not all of us from the working class had that luxury, and >tens of thousands of our brothers died for absolutely no damn reason. For >this "anti-war" President to order such a misguided, ruthless -- and, yes, >cowardly -- attack from the air is a disappointment of massive proportions. > >Bombing didn't work for either side in World War II. Hitler bombed Britain >mercilessly for years, but it didn't work. Our bombing did nothing to save >the lives of 6 million Jews, 4 million Catholics, Gypsies and other >"undesirables," and 20 million Russians. Our bombs couldn't even take out >one German machine-gun on top of the cliffs overlooking the beaches of >Normandy. World War II was won because my father and uncles and your >fathers >and grandfathers risked their lives pouring out of amphibious carriers like >sitting ducks on a beach, crawling through the dead bodies of their friends >and fellow soldiers, and climbing up those cliffs in France and Italy and >the South Pacific. Over a quarter of a million of them, including my uncle, >died doing this. > >And that, my friends, as some are known to say, is the awful truth. If >genocide is really taking place, the only way to stop it militarily is to >send our children in there and accept the fact that thousands upon >thousands >of them will be killed. Are you willing to do that? Or better yet, this is >the question I always ask myself when confronted with whether or not I >should ever support a war: Do I believe strongly enough in this cause that >I >MYSELF would be willing to risk my life to go over there and square it with >my conscience to kill Yugoslavians. > >I have a feeling I know the answer most of you would give. We know Clinton >is lying to us. We know there is no "Holocaust" taking place. What IS >happening is that two groups of people are carrying on their centuries-old >mission to annihilate each other. The Kosovo Liberation Army announced >their >intentions to rid Kosovo of all Serbs (the Albanians are the majority in >Kosovo, the Serbs, a minority). That's all a nutcase like Milosevic needed >to justify his campaign to rid Kosovo of all Albanians. This is true >madness >and a lot of innocent people are losing their lives in the process. > >So here's my solution: > >Stop the bombing immediately. >Get the Russians, whom the Serbs trust, in there to be the peacekeepers and >help resolved the situation.No American or NATO forces on Kosovo soil. >Russia can do this in spite of the wanker in charge, Mr. Yeltsin. The Serbs >will let them in. Let's get them on board instead of alienating the >Russians >even further. >Let the Orthodox Church play a major role in bringing about the peace. The >Serbs are mostly Orthodox and a strong move by its Patriarch could do a lot >to ending all the bloodshed. >Look, I'm not an expert on any of this. I'm mostly busy getting my show on >the air each week. But as I sign my 1040 today, I must admit that I am >partly responsible, as an American citizen who pays his taxes, for this war >and I must encourage whoever I can to join me in demanding an end to this >now. > >Last fall, many of us participated in an incredible act of protest by >throwing a bunch of right-wingers out of Congress. We believed that they >were trying to overturn an election on the basis of someone's private >sexual >life and his lies about it. We won, and the Republicans are now chopped >liver. Good riddance. > >Now, it is time for all of us to stop Clinton and his disgusting, >hypocritical fellow democrats who support him in this war. It is amazing to >watch all these "liberal" congress members line up behind the President. In >a way, I'm glad it's happening, if only to show the American people there >is >little difference between the Democrats and the usually war-loving >Republicans. Aren't you getting a kick watching the Pat Buchanans and the >Henry Hydes sounding like pacifists! These politicians can change stripes >at >the drop of a hat (or bomb) because, ultimately, they are the same animal, >participants in a one-party system that tries to fool the people by going >by >two names ("Democrat" and "Republican"). > >Please call or write your member of Congress, send a letter to the editor, >let the Democrats know we have had it with the whole lot of them. This is >OUR country, not theirs and the corporate interests they really represent. >It's time to start taking it back. > >Each cruise missile that is launched could have built a dozen schools or >hired another hundred teachers or provided health care to a thousand >people. >Those millions of dollars could have been spent saving lives and educating >children. Every night, Clinton isn't just bombing Yugoslavia, he's bombing >you. > >Yours, Michael Moore > >MMFlint@aol.com > >http://www.michaelmoore.com > >http://www.theawfultruth.com > Alice Slater Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE) 15 East 26th Street, Room 915 New York, NY 10010 tel: (212) 726-9161 fax: (212) 726-9160 email: aslater@gracelinks.org GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, a global network working for a treaty to eliminate nuclear weapons. - - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------ End of abolition-usa-digest V1 #113 *********************************** - To unsubscribe to $LIST, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe $LIST" in the body of the message. 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