The Student Insurgent (March 2006)

The Insurgent is a newspaper in the Eugene-Springfield, Oregon community. We are unaffiliated with any partisan organization. We seek to provide a forum for those working towards a society free from oppression based on class, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, species and free from the threat of ecological collapse.

Subscriptions to the Insurgent are $15 a year by mail. The Insurgent is distributed freely to UO students, the community, and prisoners.

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We reserve the right to edit anything and everything we recieve for grammar, clarity, or length. All articles, with the exception of unsigned Editorials, reflect the view of their authors and not the rest of us.

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Collective:

Editorial

The US touches “Operation Swarmer” in Iraq, bombing everything in sight. In Denmark, the Jyllands-Posten publishes 12 seemingly innocuous cartoons that set off another firestorm. You may be aware that the Moslem work! went up in flames with riots attacking the Danish embassies and boycotts of Danish products in many countries. What is “not a big deal” in the US is apparently a humongous big deal to others. W hy should we assume it would not be?

Meanwhile, US deaths in Iraq top 2300. US injured somewltcic over 20.000 and Iraqi deaths we don’t even try to keep track of. Estimates are between 30.000 and 100.000 Iraqi dead. Plus, we are lighting in Afghanistan, we have I9.IXX1 troops in Pakistan not to mention Colombia, the Phillipines and more, none of which we count.

The Commentator, the ASUO-sponsored right-wing badly laid out publication that hates everything printed the 12 cartoons in its hist issue. They wrote a full page justification saying their intent is to provoke dialogue and comprehension, among other things.

We also intend to provoke dialogue. Why do so many Christians support this war and all wars? Why are they calling for a pre-emptive strike on Iran? Why are there so many dead bodies every time a Christian president lakes office?

We approach this issue from a different angle. We drew our own 12 cartoons and print them here. They depict Xtianity in all its humorous Xness. We are sure Xtians will get the joke and support our right to prim them on campus. After all. Xtians now control the whole government and certainly hallow the First Amendment of the Constitution just behind the bible. Without it. wc would expect that wc would be taken out aud lynched and our olfices burned. Wc hurbor no illusions about die superiority of the Western world. This is the nation that announces that we now । torture suspects when we feel like it. The veneer of “civilization” has ripped apart.’

We are amazed that the Commentator stands behind us and supports us completely in our endeavor. We quote from the article that printed the cartcxms: “Our interest in publishing these images is to play a role in educating the public about the full scope of a pertinent controversy of our time—as well as to underline our deeply held belicl that in campus journalism, as in all public discourse, the most immoral action that can be taken is to declare a given topic ‘off limits.’”

Therefore we give you our 12 cartoons. If you want to see the ones that caused the riots, you’ll have to google them yourself. As the Commentator suggests, try zombielime and they’ll pop right up.

Why am I getting this newspaper?

We mail out over 600 copies of our paper every issue. Our LAMP (Left Alternative Media Project) sends our paper to any alternative paper we can find.

If you publish something we expect you to send your paper to us. We keep a library in our office for University of Oregon people to look. Many of you are not keeping up with us. More than 10 people per day read and appreciate your publication. Send it to us!

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Write to us, tell us your situation. We would like to hear about prisoner abuse and the conditions in prisons generally, especially the privatized prisons. Or anything else.

Your Insurgent

We notice prisoners have some of the weirdest addresses we’ve ever seen, especially the numbers. A lot of them are what you’d expect, like 854432 or 59322. but there are a bunch with hyphens: 39384–066 or 87651–025 and some make no sense: T9025l/D3-140or W- 40058 HA619L What’s up with that?

News Briefs:

Your Insurgent is financially embarrassed!!

This year for the first time, the student government office has made fund-raising a major part of the distributrion of student funds.

The reason for this is a supposed lack of money for student activities. We are just one of many student groups that receive funds from a money pool created by the incidental fees charge every student pays every quarter. At the moment, this is $191 up front. Next year it goes over $200. You pay whether you take 22 credits or 1.

Your Insurgent has been taken unaware. We spend our time putting out a paper you want to read. We are not money-grubbers. We run on a shoestring. Our main costs are printing, which is through the roof, and postage, which increased again in January.

The ASUO, which decides who gets what, has a surplus this year of $144,000, but they say there is not enough money for student groups.

SO, we ask YOU, our readers, to SEND US SOME MONEY.

You have been receiving this publication free for a long time. That’s fine with us, but now we ask you to help us out. We need to show fund-raising to $1000. Currently we are at $ 125. Buy a subscription. They are $ 15 for a year, which is 7- 9 issues. We need your help to reach our goal.

Table o’ Contents

Cover

Editorial page

Table o’ Contents

Letters to the Editor/Gov’t, waste

Phoenix Feathers/lmmigration bill

Lies, scandals & crimes of G W Bush

Danish cartoon editorial

FBI attacks “eco-terrorists

8&9

Biscuit logging/Australia goes fascist

Insurgent cartoon pullout section

Bant about Christianity.

Brief history of catholic church

Centerfold

Editorials and cartoons

Second cartoon page

Sud Africa

Burning Man-last part

Take sides on animal experimentation

Abortion rights under attack.

Herbal EC and Abortion___

Urban Herbal

Word mechanic

Back cover.

Letters to the Editor

Dear Young’uns,
(I mean that with utmost respect)

Being an old man who lived through the revolution. I have enjoyed reading your paper, where I have picked it up at Smith’s Book Shop. Sundance, etc., and I like it very much. This should be mainstream media, and as author Alvin Toffler said in “Future Shock,” “It should be the young people making the decisions for the future...or all will be lost.”

Although I was disappointed there were no editorial letters. I really enjoyed the article on capitalism (and my 78-year-old mother did too) very good. concise, focused, good job.

But that is not why I am writing you this letter. Under “Newspinions” you pointed out 8 to 14 crimes, lies and scandal of GWB or Jr. as I like to call him.

May I add to the list? After Junior was illegally in power and became president, the first thing he did was attack reproductive rights of women by cutting off parts of funding for it in Europe. The second thing he did was attack unions by striking down “ergonomics,” that unions had fought so hard to get for the previous ten years. Ergonomics covers repetitive movement injuries. which affect not just laborers but office personnel too.

Third, he said we are no longer going by the initiative that former President Jimmy Carter put in place to eliminate nuclear proliferation (Salt II talks) and said. “We are going to make more nuclear war heads and I suggest you do the same.” (Now he whines about countries that are taking him up on that.)

Fourth, he said we aren’t going by that Kyoto agreement to reduce carbon emission anymore. That pissed off a hit of people including Germany and Japan (the Kyoto treaty was ratified by 140 nations, with some notable exceptions—the United States and Australia did not sign the treaty). He began to try to build 16 more coal burning plants up north (Michigan, I believe) but the people up there said, “Hell no!”

Five, he refused to lower arsenic levels in drinking water (Clinton left him that one).

Six, he started the drug wars back up via Ashcroft by raiding medical marijuana growers in a state-sanctioned program and has refused to legalize and process hemp, a viable source of products from food to fabric to supplying oxygen (it doesn’t even need bug spray or fertilizer). Seven, he made it illegal to import drugs cheaper from Canada. Then he privatized Medicare so he could get his hands on the SSA money (the only money that is not in the red) stole $30 billion from SSA and $10 billion from Civil Service pensions just to keep his administration financially afloat. This showed fiscal irresponsibility on his administration’s part right before the 2004 elections,

Eight, he re-employed the “trickle down” effect that Reagan had boasted would stimulate the economy. Looking back now it would be hilarious if it were not so tragic that people actually bought that lie which tripled the national debt. (Actually the most prosperous this country EVER was happened during the Clintion administration, because he poured money into the middle class and unions, which dispersed money to ALL).

Nine, he let Texas senators led by DeLay illegally redistrict the state to eliminate the democratic process.

Ten, he violated international law and the United Nations by invading Iraq (war crime), killing innocent people and using untrained National Guard to do it without proper equipment.

Eleven, he has let the Anti-Trust laws lie dormant, expediting large corporations to conglomerate and dominate and eliminate competition, such as Wal-Mart, the Media, etc., facilitating fascism while eliminating ingenuity.

Twelve, he has and is stacking the courts with radical right wingers, which brings the “Great Experiment” (the US Constitution) to an end because all three tiers of government are unchecked and the “Great Experiment” is a failure.

Thirteen, the Patriot Act is a violation of the Constitution (see commentary by Jack Dresser, Nov. 30, 2005. Springfield News, page S-5A.

This should give you some work to do and ammo. 1 wilt not but mention the same people who killed Kennedy are in power today, “Texas Oil Money” and all the land stolen from the Indians “that made this country great”.

Fred Samuels

<strong>Thanks Fred for reminding us of all the nasty things Bush has done, such as cutting money for abortion and birth control overseas, attacking unions, allowing arsenic in drinking water and stacking the courts. These cause us much alarm, but technically are not illegal, lies or crimes. We think they are bad policy anil extremely short-sighted, but the president, even if illegally elected, can decide policy. Since the congress refuses to investigate election irregularities, the election can’t be challenged unless the people do it themselves. The Patriot Act, Election 2000 and 33 more “irregularities” appear updated in this issue.

If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

Your government again shows it knows how to waste your money.

Last year, the Department of Public Safety (the U of Oregon campus police) decided to scrap the parking meters around campus and replace them with the latest high-tech fix. They spent $10,000 each on six new “smart” machines. These are all die rage nowadays. Why?—we can’t money in. Much more complicated to use than the old meters, they print out a paper receipt to the minute that must be stuck to the inside window of your car.

Problems with these machines: DPS put one up for the parking lot at die back of the EMU, our building. It worked for less than five months and now DPS has announced the machines don’t work. They taped over them stating they are not in use. Problem two: When they do work, it is easy to use them wrong. They take only quarters (problem three). First, you press the green button to wake them up. They sleep a lot. and you stand there in the rain waiting. A screen tells you how many minutes you have and what time they will be used up.

You put a quarter in. You then push the green button again, only to find that it didn’t give you more lime; it printed your ticket. If you wanted more time, you should have put in another quarter first, before you pushed Ute green button, but it doesn’t explain that. Now if you want more time, you have to either (a) start again and put in more money, wasting your first quarter, or (b) come back when your lime is up and get a new ticket. Since you probably don’t want to do that, the machine gets your quarter.

Problem four: parking meters take dimes and nickels, so you can get almost the exact amount of time you want. These new machines don’t, so you end up with extra time.

Problem five: the old meters stayed in one place, so you could get lucky by parking in a place where someone left early and gave you their minutes. The machines print a ticket which goes with you. so no more free minutes. You are allowed to use your ticket somewhere else, but this is bogus, since the time needed to drive to another parking place uses up the 10 or 15 leftover minutes.

Problem six: With meters, you don’t have’to walk halfway down the block, wait for someone else to figure it out, figure it out yourself and walk back. You could get out of your car and plug the meter and go off. If it’s raining or you’re late, this matters.

Once again, the University has made things more expensive and broken a system that worked fine. Now, they have taken away all the EMU backlot spaces. To use them, you have to get a visitor’s permit (free, but a big hassle) so students ican’t park there any more, except after 6 pm.

On a larger scale, the City of Eugene is building ;bus stations and a terminal in Springfield. Eugene ^already has one. All this is a huge waste of money. Buses should go from the farthest end of one main street to the farthest opposite end. Instead, they [detour all over, make loops and circles, and start down one street, then sharply turn and parade off in another direction. Eugene decided all city buses should detour to the bus terminal where they sit for 10 or 15 minutes. Then they all go off at once. This does not make sense. It slows down the bus ride immensely. Now. we are repeating the mistake in Springfield (the new terminal is finished and in use) and doubling it by putting pointless bus stop platforms on many major streets. These platforms are concrete, raised off the street about one foot, and take away a whole lane that formerly was used for traffic. There is nothing wrong with bus stops on turnouts along the street, the way they already are. That way, the bus can stop and traffic can pass by. Now the bus stops in the middle of the street, blocking traffic. Why do we need a platform raised one foot? The old way worked fine for years, so we rip it out and replace it with a new way that is not thought out well. Millions went out the window with this one.

Finally, the University is building new dorms on campus where the tennis courts used to be. These brand new buildings have red brick walls to the third floor. The buildings are not even finished yet. and the bricks or mortar are leaking giant white stains that cover the whole wall. Didn’t we used to be able to make bricks? I see many old buildings, some over 100 years old. made of red brick that hasn’t stained a bit. When did we lose this ability? Do you think the U will get its money back? HAH!

march 2006 volume 174

Phoenix Feathers

By fay Onyx ©2004

[[]]

Attack On Immigrants: Emergency Action Needed

by pjk

On December 16, 2005, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the ‘‘Border Protection. Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act” sponsored by James Sensenbrenner (R-Wl) and Peter King (R-NY). This act includes a vast range of punitive and restrictive provisions and is described as “the harshest immigration measure to pass cither body (the House or the Senate in over 50 years” by PCUN (Pineros y Campesinos Unidos Del Norocste).

If passed, this act will make it an aggravated felony Io he an undocumented immigrant and mandate imprisonment and de|N*nuiion This would effectively cut oil any chance lot an undocumented immigrant lo obtain legal citizenship, at it is generally not poMihle tit Ixwirx- a citizen alter being convicted of a felony. It will criminalize anyone win* helps of site I tors mi undocumented immigrant. This means that health-care workers, church groups, and carpool-driving parents, amonjj many others, could be considered felons.

The act will also give state and local law enforcement authority to enforce immigration law and cull for additional fences to be built in Cidilormu and Arizona. Several thousand people have died in the past decade trying to cross the border; the death rate has increased as more fences and law enforcement have forced people into harsher parts of the desert.

CAUSA of Eugene, along with PCUN. the Immigrant Solidarity Network, and others, support the Kennedy-McCain Act as an incomplete solution but a better one since it provides a path to citizenship rather than just a list of punishments. Tile Kennedy-McCain Act would allow people working in the U.S. without documentation lo apply for a 3 year work visa. After 3 years, they could reapply. After 6 years they would have to either leave or be in the process of applying for citizenship.

In Portland on March 4, 4.000 people rallied in Pioneer Square and marched to Portland State University. People have been protesting across the nation, including thousands who marched on Washington, D.C. and tens of thousands who marched in Chicago on March 7. Massive actions are planned in L.A. for the weekend of March 25–26.

Sources: PCUN (www.pcun.ore). Immigrant Solidarity Network I wiw, immigrant solidarity,ore). CAUSA

What you can do right now:

Call your Representatives and tell them to vote no:
If you live in Oregon, your representatives are:
Ron Wyden: (541)431–0229
Gordon Smith: (541) 465–6808

Representative Peter DeFazio, darling of the mainstream Eugene leftist scene, voted in favor of this bill. Give him a call and let him know what you think at 1-800-944-9603

The Lies, Scandals and Crimes of the George W Bush Administration

Did we fay 18?? Wow, were we wrong. 8ufh if clofing in on 50, almost any one of which would have brought Nixon down.

l=BUSH--draft dodger doming Vietnam, joined Texas Air National Guard protecting Texas against Vietnamese air strikes. Did Bush go AWOL? Desertion during wartime is punished by death by firing squad.

2=Business scandals-Harkin. Bush suggested off-balance-sheet partnership that significantly improved Harkin’s stock price. Although Bush did not profit personally, the scheme looks uncomfortably close to what Enron did.

3=Govemor of Texas—money scandal

4==Election 2000—Thousands of legal voters in FL illegally called felons and re­moved from voting lists. Bush lost, and Ralph Nader did not help Democrats lose. 5=Voting fraud—Voting machines-Diebold and ES&S-no paper trail

6=Voting fraud-FL 2000 and OH 2004-legal voters called felons, illegally kicked off voting rolls.

7=Cheney meets in secret with oil execs in March 2001 to make public energy policy

8=Anton Scalia. Supreme Court justice and Cheney go hunting just before Supreme Court hears case about releasing energy notes from March meeting

9=9-11 —Bush administration ignores FBI warnings

Serious questions about 9-11 ignored

10—9-11 — World Trade Center-mysterious Building 7, no apparent serious damage, housing New York City reinforced command center on 14“' floor, collapses at 5:30pm

11=9-11 — Wreckage from collapsed buildings hurriedly sold as scrap to Japan instead of being pieced back together as any airline crash would be

12=9-11 — hole in Pentagon supposedly from 747 but way too small

13=Reasons for war—weapons of mass destruction—never found

14=Downing St memo-“Sexing up" of intelligence —reveals Bush told Tony Blair, prime minister of England, to “fit the facts around war in Iraq”

15=Valerie Plame—who leaked name of CIA spy? Scooter Libby currently under indictment is leaking names. It might include Karl Rove or Dick Cheney

16=Where’s Osama? “I don't where he is. You know, I just don’t spend that much time on him.... I truly am not that concerned.” -George W Bush

17=Abu Ghraib torture pix—just a fraternity prank, sez Rush Limbaugh

18=Abu Ghraib 87 more pix held back (court case Hellerstein judge) released Mar 2006 in Australia. Available on internet, but not released in US

19=Billions in cash given out in Iraq by Paul Bremer March 2003—June 2004 (See Money for Nothing by Philip Giraldi)

20=Enron trial going on now —after 4 years. As of March 2006, Andrew Fastow, former Enron exec, is testifying. Kenneth Lay and Jeffery Skilling actively fixed the books

21=Warrantless spying on US/foreign calls began before 9-11 — Bush has signed renew orders 45 times

22==Katrina/FEMA huge fuckup—Bush, Brown discussed Katrina on TV and pos­sible breach of levees days before it hit. Bush on TV days after saying he had no idea

23=CIA—“Black budget” of $23 billion—CIA gets tax money with no accounting, no liability

24==C1A—in 2001 helped Afghanis drive semi trailer loaded with prisoners across desert. When they got there, half had died of suffocation, other half were taken out and shot

25=CIA—“Rendering”—a cute word for kidnapping “suspects” in foreign coun­tries, loading them on secret jets and flying them to third countries where they are tortured.

26=CIA—Secret prisons in foreign countries

27=CIA—Predator drone bombings (Pakistan)—CIA has a fleet of robot spy planes that fly high over other countries’ airspace. It was revealed the planes also carry and drop bombs after an unfortunate “incident” in Pakistan where predator drones bombed a house thinking the number 2 Al Quaeda leader was there. Instead the CIA killed 18 women and children, sparking large riots in Pakistan

28==A Q Khan. “Dr. Doom” in Pakistan—the head of Pakistan's nuclear program, accused in Dec. of giving nuclear help to Libya and North Korea. It turned out the US knew more than a year earlier but didn't say anything. Why? Bush needs Pakistan as an ally, a military base and a route for an oil pipeline.

29=Britain—spy cameras everywhere. The average citizen, in one day, can expect to be on camera 360 times.

30=Pentagon planting “news” stories in foreign papers. A $300 million operation pays journalists to plant fake news stories favorable to the US in foreign news sources

31=“Jeff Gannon”—White House press pool reporter whose function seems to be to lob softball questions at Bush. Discovered to operate a web site featuring himself as a male prostitute and his news credentials fake. Real name: Jeff Guckert

32=Armstrong Williams paid $40,(MX) to sell No Child Left Behind “story” on his TV show

33=Total awareness program-run by DARPA and Cheney — Data-mining computer program that stores information on all credit, bank, GPS and other transactions. Supposedly stopped it has not stopped, just moved. Now called “Basketball” it continues with black budget money and private contractors and no oversight

34=Airline no-fly list—secret computerized list of names that gives three color codes to each name. Data is secret and you have no way to get off the list.

35=Jack Abramoff—the lobbyist involved in bribing large numbers of congress people —

36=Harry Reid—democratic minority leader of the senate, accused of taking bribes 37=Bill Frist senate majority leader accused of money laundering

38=Tom Delay house majority leader indicted for money laundering

39=Randy “Duke” Cunningham now serving 8 years

40=Conrad Bums. R-MT senator took huge bribes from Abramoff

4l=William Jefferson, D-LA member of House of Representatives. Caught on wire soliciting bribes for helping electronic wiring firm cut government red tape to do business in Nigeria

42=Grover Norquist—famous quote “My goal is to cut government....to get it to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” Helped write 1994 Contract on America. Caught in emails from Abramoff taking bribes

43=Ralph Reed—former leader of Christian Coalition caught in emails taking bribes from Abramoff

44=Kathleen Harris, FL election commissioner who stalled and botched election 2000 investigation, later elected to US House of Representatives. She’s planning to run for senate but that has stalled as she’s deeply involved in bribe scandal

45== 19,000 troops in Pakistan? Who knew? When predator drones bombed house killing 18 women and children, it was revealed we have troops in Pakistan

46==Scorpion, Lion, Volcano Freedom brigades in Iraq—Secret death squads operating with training from US. Claims that US lets them violate curfew and kidnap and kill

47=Depleted uranium/ white phosphorus—US caught using white phosphorus in Fallujah in April and Nov 2005. US has been using depleted uranium bullets since 1991 in first Gulf War and Yugoslavia. During recent Iraq war. US is using many tons of DU

Ecuador

The battle against the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States continues in Ecuador. If Ecuador signs it will become the 15!h country to sign a FTA with the United States. After his surprise visit to the United States, President Alfredo Palacio has seemingly returned willing to sign the agreement. In exchange for the introduction of a few export products in the U.S. market, Ecuador would have considerable access to products exported by the United States. This would bankrupt Ecuador’s small-scale agriculture and dairy farming as these cannot compete with the large-scale subsidized agricultural produce of the United States. As time gets shorter, concern is growing among the social sectors that would be affected by the agreement. The labor unions of Ecuador, with some 200.000 members, announced last Wednesday the start of a strike against the Alfredo Palacio government. Ecuador expects to wrap up negotiations with the US after May 23.

Why I ran the cartoons

by FIemming Rose, editor, Jyllands-Posten

COMMENTARYCHILDISH. Irresponsible. Hate speech. A provocation just for the sake of provocation. A PR stunt. Critics of 12 cartoons of the prophet Muhammad published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten have not minced their words. They say that freedom of expression does not imply an endorsement of insulting people’s religious feelings, and besides, they add, the media censor themselves every day. So, please do not teach us a lesson about limitless freedom of speech.

I agree that the freedom to publish things doesn’t mean you publish everything. Jyllands-Posten would not publish pornographic images or graphic details of dead bodies; swear words rarely make it into our pages. So we are not fundamentalists in our support for freedom of expression.

But the cartoon story is different.

Those examples have to do with exercising restraint because of ethical standards and taste; call it editing. By contrast, I commissioned the . cartoons in response to several incidents of self-censorship in Europe caused by widening fears and feelings of intimidation in dealing with issues related to Islam. And I still believe that this is a topic that we Europeans must confront, challenging moderate Muslims to speak out. The idea wasn’t to provoke gratuitously — and we certainly didn’t intend to trigger violent demonstrations throughout the Muslim world. Our goal was simply to push back self-imposed limits on expression that seemed to be closing in tighter.

At the end of September, a Danish stand-up comedian said in an interview with Jyllands-Posten that he had no problem urinating on the Bible in front of a camera, but he dared not do the same thing with the Koran. This was the culmination of a series of disturbing instances of self-censorship. In September, a Danish children’s writer had trouble finding an illustrator for a book about the life of Muhammad. Three people turned down the job for fear of consequences. The person who finally accepted insisted on anonymity, which in my book is a form of self-censorship.

European translators of a critical book about Islam also did not want their names to appear on the book cover beside the name of the author, a Somalia-bom Dutch politician who has herself been in hiding.

Around the same lime, the Tate gallery in London withdrew an installation by the avant-garde artist John Latham depicting the Koran, Bible and Talmud tom to pieces. The museum explained that it did not want to stir things up after the London bombings. (A few months earlier, to avoid offending Muslims, a museum in Goteborg, Sweden, had removed a painting with a sexual motif and a quotation from the Koran.) Finally, at the end of September, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen met with a group of imams, one of whom called on the prime minister to interfere with the press to get more positive coverage of Islam. So, over two weeks, we witnessed a half-dozen cases of self-censorship, pitting freedom of speech against the fear of confronting issues about [slam.This was a legitimate news story to cover, and Jyllands-Posten decided to do it by adopting the well-known journalistic principle: Show, don’t tell.

I wrote to members of the association of Danish cartoonists asking them “to draw Muhammad as you see him.’’ We certainly did not ask them to make fun of the prophet. Twelve out of 25 active members responded. We have a tradition of satire when dealing with the royal family and other public figures, and that was reflected in the cartoons. The cartoonists treated Islam the same way they treat Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism and other religions. And by treating Muslims in Denmark as equals, they made a point: We are integrating you into the Danish tradition of satire because you are part of our society, not strangers. The cartoons are including, rather than excluding, Muslims. The cartoons do not in any way demonize or stereotype Muslims. In fact, they differ from one another both in the way they depict the prophet and in whom they target. One cartoon makes fun of Jyllands-Posten, portraying its cultural editors as a bunch of reactionary provocateurs. Another suggests that the children’s writer who could not find an illustrator for his book went public just to gel cheap publicity. A third puts the head of the anti-immigration Danish People’s Party in a lineup, as if she is a suspected criminal. One cartoon — depicting the prophet with a bomb in his turban — has drawn the harshest criticism. Angry voices claim the cartoon is saying that the prophet is a terrorist or that every Muslim is a terrorist. I read it differently: Some individuals have taken the religion of Islam hostage by committing terrorist acts in the name of the prophet. They are the ones who have given the religion a bad name. The cartoon plays also into the fairy tale about Aladdin and the orange that fell into his turban and made his fortune. This suggests that the bomb comes from the outside world and is not an inherent characteristic of the prophet.

On occasion, Jyllands-Posten has refused to print satirical cartoons of Jesus, but not because it applies a double standard. In fact, the same cartoonist who drew the image of Muhammad with a bomb in his turban drew a cartoon with Jesus on the cross having dollar notes in his eyes and another with the star of David attached to a bomb fuse. There were, however, no embassy burnings or death threats when we published those. Has Jyllands-Posten insulted and disrespected Islam? It certainly didn’t intend to. But what does respect mean? When 1 visit a mosque, I show my respect by taking off my shoes. 1 follow the customs, just as 1 do in a church, synagogue or other, holy place. But if a believer demands that 1, as a nonbeliever, observe his taboos in the public domain, he is not asking for my respect, but for my submission. And that is incompatible with a secular democracy. This is exactly why.Karl Popper, in his seminal work “The Open Society and Its Enemies,’’ insisted that one should not be tolerant with the intolerant. Nowhere do so many religions coexist peacefully as in a democracy where freedom of expression is a fundamental right. In Saudi Arabia, you can get arrested for wearing a cross or having a Bible in your suitcase, while Muslims in secular Denmark can have their own mosques, cemeteries, schools, TV and radio stations. 1 acknowledge that some people have been offended by the publication of the cartoons, and Jyllands-Posten has apologized for that. But we cannot apologize for our right to publish materia), even offensive material. You cannot edit a newspaper if you are paralyzed by worries about every possible insult

I am offended by things in the paper every day: transcripts of speeches by Osama bin Laden, photos from Abu Ghraib, people insisting that Israel should be erased from the face of the Earth, people saying the Holocaust never happened.

But that does not mean that I would refrain from printing them as long as they fell within the limits of the law and of the newspaper’s ethical code.That other editors would make different choices is the essence of pluralism.

As a former correspondent in the former Soviet Union, I am sensitive about calls for censorship on the grounds of insult. This is a popular trick of totalitarian movements: Label any critique or call for debate as an insult and punish the offenders. That is what happened to human rights activists and writers such as Andrei Sakharov, Vladimir Bukovsky, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Natan Sharansky, Boris Pasternak. The regime accused them of anti-Soviet propaganda, just as some Muslims are labeling 12 cartoons in a Danish newspaper anti-lslamic.

The lesson from the Cold War is: If you give in to totalitarian impulses once, new demands follow. The West prevailed in the Cold War because we stood by our fundamental values and did not appease totalitarian tyrants. Since the Sept. 30 publication of the cartoons, we have had a constructive debate in Denmark and Europe about freedom of expression, freedom of religion and respect for immigrants and people’s beliefs. Never before have so many Danish Muslims participated in a public dialogue — in town hall meetings, letters to editors, opinion columns and debates on radio and TV. We have had no anti-Muslim riots, no Muslims fleeing the country and no Muslims committing violence.

The radical imams who misinformed their counterparts in the Middle East about the situation for Muslims in Denmark have been marginalized. They no longer speak for the Muslim community in Denmark because moderate Muslims have had the courage to speak out against them.

In January. Jyllands-Posten ran three full pages of interviews and photos of moderate Muslims saying no to being represented by the imams. They insist that their faith is compatible with a modem secular democracy. A network of moderate Muslims committed to the constitution has been established, and die anti-immigration People’s Party called on its members to differentiate between radical and moderate Muslims, i.e. between Muslims propagating sharia law and Muslims accepting the rule of secular law. The Muslim face of Denmark has changed, and it is becoming clear that c this is not a debate between “them” and “us,” but between those committed to democracy in Denmark and those who are not.

This is the sort of debate that Jyllands-Posten had hoped to generate when it chose to test the limits of self-censorship by calling on cartoonists to challenge a Muslim taboo.

Did we achieve our purpose? Yes and no. Some of the spirited defenses of our freedom of expression have been inspiring. But tragic demonstrations throughout the Middle East and Asia were not what we anticipated, much less desired. Moreover, the newspaper has received 104 registered threats, 10 people have been arrested, cartoonists have been forced into hiding because of threats against their lives and Jyllands-Posten’s headquarters have been evacuated several times due to bomb threats. This is hardly a climate for easing self-censorship.

Still, I think the cartoons now have a place in two separate narratives, one in Europe and one in the Middle East. In the words of the Somali-born Dutch politician Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the integration of Muslims into European societies has been sped up by 300 years due to the cartoons; perhaps we do not need to fight the battle for the Enlightenment all over again in Europe. The narrative in the Middle East is more complex, but that has very little to do with the cartoons.

FBI Continues War on Environmentalists

by pjk

The FBI’s crackdown on alleged “eco- terrorists” continues with four new arrests. Most of the people arrested before last month’s paper have been released on bail; however, Chelsea Gerlach, Darren Thurston, and Kevin Tubbs are still incarcerated in Oregon and Zachary Jenson and Eric McDavid are still incarcerated in California. People are also being subpoenaed to appear before grand juries.

Former prisoner Rod Coronado was arrested on February 22 in Arizona. He has been indicted by a San Diego grand jury for “distribution of information relating to destructive devices.” He has been released on bail and had one court appearance, and is scheduled to appear in court again on March 23. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. He is also awaiting sentencing for charges he was convicted of a few months ago relating to a mountain lion defense campaign.

Coronado gave a talk in 2003 during which someone asked how he made the explosive device used in an action for which he had previously been incarcerated, and he showed the audience how to make an incendiary device out of an apple juice jug and non-lethal fluid. Coronado told the San Diego Union-Tribune, “You’re damn right when you say I’ve shown people how to make a firebomb. I’ve done my time for my crimes, and I should be able to talk about them.” There is much doubt as to whether a law against speech that does not present an immediate danger is even remotely constitutional; however, in the words of one Indymedia community member, “it’s no coincidence that an outspoken Native American who condemns capitalism, government and the ecoterrorism wrought by industry faces such extraordinary levels of persecution.” For more information about the case and how you can support Rod Coronado and his family, see www.supportrod.org

On February 23 in Olympia, WA, the FBI arrested Nathan Block and Joyanna Zachar. They have been indicted by the Eugene grand jury on 15 charges relating to the Jefferson Poplar Farm fire in 2001 which has been attributed to the Earth Liberation Front. Thirteen charges are for arson and one is for attempted arson, which carry a sentencing range of 5–20 years. The 15^th charge is for “Use of a Destructive Device,” which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years that cannot be served concurrently with any other sentences. If found guilty, they face from 35 to 310 years in prison.

Former prisoner Matt Lamont was arrested on February 25. After asking repeatedly what he was charged with, a detective told him it was parole violation; while interrogating him, detectives suggested that he had been involved in a plot to target the Big Bear Dam and asked about the Southern California Anarchist Federation. Plain-clothes police also searched his car and apartment and seized his computer hard drive and various documents, including letters from prisoners. After a considerable amount of time during which his family was not told of his whereabouts, it has been revealed that he is being held at Chino State Prison, probably until May 5. He and his wife, Jenny, have both lost their jobs because of his arrest and are in serious need of financial help.

Kevin Tubbs, Chelsea Gerlach, and Darren Thurston have been denied release and may remain incarcerated until their trial on October 31. All three have been indicted on a charge of “conspiracy” relating to several actions attributed to the Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front that took place years ago. Chelsea’s family is particularly in need of financial help to post a bail bond. Darren is a Canadian citizen and was arrested on a green card violation, and is worried about receiving fair treatment in the U.S. Some prisoner support organizations have withdrawn support from Kevin because police testified during Daniel McGowan’s and Suzanne Savoie’s bail hearings that he had testified against them; others question whether the police were telling the truth or not and are continuing to offer support. More information is available at www.portland.indymedia.org, www. freedarren.org, www.supportchelsea.org, and www.supportkevintubbs.org.

One of the Auburn, California arrestees has been released on bail, while two remain in jail. Both have had trouble accessing adequate legal representation; on February 21, three weeks after his arrest, a judge approved Zachary’s court-appointed attorney. The delay, which prevented the attorney from getting discovery, hiring an investigator, or getting paid, was caused by the U.S. Attorney’s claim that Eric’s court-appointed attorney had a conflict of interest as a former public defender (the public defenders office has decided not to represent the defendents because they believe it would represent a conflict of interest because of another client). The U.S. Attorney’s claim may cause both Eric and Zachary to be denied legal representation.

Zachary does not have running water in his cell and is drinking from a bag. He is also in serious need of money for legal defense. As of this writing, Eric McDavid has gone on a hunger strike — please see the Emergency Action box to your left.

main source: portland, indymedia.,org

Emergency Action: Eric McDavid on Hunger Strike

Sacramento prisoner Eric McDavid has gone on a hunger strike after being consistently denied vegan food. The court is not taking his veganism seriously, despite his declaration reading in part: “... my vegan beliefs and morality are animated by the way of living which shows a respect for all life, recognizing the rights of living creatures... It is a truly ethical relationship between humans and other living creatures... It is healthier for me and the planet I live on.” A jail nutritionist recommended that he receive two vegan shakes per day, but the jail doctor denied them after Eric went through the necessary paperwork to get them. He has stopped buying food from the commissary because he believes that the jail is responsible for feeding him, and was eating only bread and frozen fruit until March 8, when he informed his lawyer that he was going on a hunger strike. Please call the jail and the Sacramento sheriff and request politely that Eric McDavid, x-ref #2972521, be given vegan food; they may tell you that he is fine, but they have a history of lying to supporters. Without healthy vegan food, his health will deteriorate rapidly.

Sacramento County Main Jail 6511 Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
916.874.6752
Sheriff Lou Blanas
916.874.7146
916.874.5332 fax
sheriff@sacsheriff.com

Also, please write letters to to Judge England and ask that he issue an order, to the Sacramento County Jail, that they provide Eric McDavid with vegan food daily, for the remainder of his time there.

Please DO NOT send your letter directly to Judge England. Instead, please send them directly to Eric’s lawyer:

Mark Reichel
655 University Ave. Suite 215
Sacramento, CA 95825

Please include the following at the top of your letter:

Judge England
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California-Sacramento
501 “F Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

Check portland.indymedia.org for updates.

Prisoner Support

what you can do to help

1. Write letters. This can really help people handle the stress of being incarcerated. Remember, DO NOT USE NICKNAMES AND DO NOT DISCUSS THEIR CASES! Things like glitter and glue are likely to be rejected. It’s best to just use white paper and blue or black ball point ink. Include your full name in the return address on the envelope. Write your return address on the letter itself, as the prisoners will not be given the envelope. Do not include blank paper, stamps or envelopes. The prisoner will not receive them and your letter will be rejected. It is, however, nice to write a pagc-and-a-half letter so they can reuse the blank portion of the paper.

Chelsea Gerlach #1308678
Lane County Jail
101 W 5^th Ave
Eugene. OR 97401
USA

Joyanna Zacher #1662550
Lane County Jail
101 W 5^th Ave
Eugene, OR 97401
USA

Darren Thurston #701415
Multnomah County Inverness Jail
11450 NE Inverness Dr.
Portland OR 97220

Kevin Tubbs #1213751
c/o PO BOX 3025
Eugene, OR 97403

Zachary Jenson X-4198632 8E213A
Sacramento County Main Jai!
651 “I” Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

Eric McDavid X-2972521 7EI14A
Sacramento County Main Jail
651 “I” Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

Nathan Fraser Block 36359–086
FDC SeaTac
Federal Detention Center
P.O. Box 13900
Seattle
WA 98198
USA

Matthew Lamont #T90251
East Facility / Butte Low / 149 WP
PO Box 500
Chino CA 91708

SHAC-7 Under Attack by the Pig Government

by Dragonfly

Right now one of the most important trials in history is going on and very few people know about it. Federal assholes are attempting to send six members of the Philadelphia-based SHAC (Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty) to federal prison for up to 13 years and assess lines of $750,000 each. Why?? For running a WEB PAGE that gives out information about Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS). The groups focused goal is to shut down HLS. Federal prosecutors say the site incited violence against the testing company and its employees. The group says it never told anyone to break the law or commit illegal acts. A section of its Web site urging people to call Huntingdon and companies that deal with it “and ask them io justify their involvement in animal cruelty” includes a caution that “SHAC does not encourage repetitive, rude or threatening phone calls and e-mails. Make your point politely.” The activists call this free speech. The government wants to portray it as domestic terrorism. These are the same people that have already undergone the stupidity of the same trial in 2004, which resulted in a hung jury. Now the federal assholes are at it again but this time the defendants are the first to be charged in New Jersey under the federal Animal Enterprise Protection Act. This is a 1992 law that was expanded after 9/11 and equates their alleged activities with domestic terrorism. Total charges are animal enterprise terrorism, conspiracy and interstate stalking.

The trial began Monday February 6,h at the federal courthouse in Trenton, New Jersey. The day started with about 80 animal rights protesters shouting and chanting outside the courthouse for their fellow activists. Inside, jury selection was taking place. The prosecuting attorney started presenting the US case on the second day. The DA is alleging that numerous acts of vandalism, harassment and intimidation were a result of information posting on the group’s web page. These acts include the overturning of a Huntingdon employee’s car and throwing of rocks through his windows, the smoke-bombing of two Seattle insurance companies that did business with Huntingdon, spray-painting and threatening to bum down the homes of several officials of companies doing business with Huntingdon, and a cyber-attack on Huntingdon’s computer network. Yet, so far the DA has not been able to produce one person that said they did these acts because of what they read on the web site. This is a blatant viscous attempt to disrupt the activities of SHAC and other direct action animal activists. These people deserve and must have our support.

How many animals does HLS use?

HLS kills approximately 180,000 animals every year, or 500 per day. Average numbers of specific animals arc as follows (yearly): Dogs (2600); Cats (400); Rodents (132,894); Rabbits (5106); Fish (10,300); Birds (7800); Primates (1700); other animals (19200).

The trial is over and the defendants have been found guilty of all charges. This is a big fucking blow to our civil liberties and another attempt to close down animal rights movements. There is a huge battle in front of us now, as J really believe the attacks are getting more serious because we are being successful in closing down Huntingdon Life Sciences. Tffie SHAC movement must continue on dispite this step back. But we must continue to support these persecuted people during their hard times. The defendants at this time implore the activist community to not publicly comment on th case, to keep their frustration with the outcome in check, and to remember that the scrutiny on them and actions perceived to be on their behalf can do nothing but hurt them at this point.

All of the defendents have been released and are on house arrest until their sentencing in June. You can write to them via the email addresses at www.shac7. com. Remember not to say anything about the case or sentencing. You can also reach their support committee at info@shac7.com, or write to SHAC7 c/o New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance PO Box 174 Englishtown, NJ, 07726 Donations to help with legal defense can be sent to the above address, made payable to NJARA. Rise up and go to the SHAC web page: http://www. shac.net and see what you can do!!!!!

Leave no Tree Behind: Logging in the Biscuit Continues

by pjk

The Biscuit has become well-known in recent years as the U.S. Forest Service has consistently targeted it for “salvage logging” as part of the Bush Administration’s “Healthy Forests Initiative.” Now Blackberry and Mike’s Gulch, in the North and South Kalmiopsis Roadless Areas, may be sold for to timber companies within the next few weeks.

Salvage logging, marketed as a way to get the most commercial use out of an area’ after a forest fire, has been thoroughly criticized by environmentalists and scientists as unhealthy and nonsensical. Fires are a natural part of forest ecology that promote and sustain biodiversity. Recently, the Forest Service’s Bureau of Land Management pulled funding for an Oregon State University study after the researchers reported that logging in post-fire areas damaged seedlings and left dry tinder on the forest floor, increasing the risk of future fires. The funds have been restored, amidst controversy over why they were pulled in the first place.

Last summer and fall, forest defenders fought to save parts of the Biscuit that the Forest Service was selling to timber companies. Several areas were logged, including a protected botanical reserve. The North and South Kalmiopsis Roadless Areas are connected to the Kalmiopsis Wilderness; altogether, this makes up 300.000 acres of roadless forest. It is one of the most botanically diverse temperate forests on Earth and includes some of the most productive wild salmon streams on the West Coast. The Forest Service is expected to contract the logging to Columbia Helicopters for roadless logging. While roadless logging is sometimes marketed as less environmentally destructive than conventional logging, it simply means that the timber from a clearcut will be carried out by helicopters rather than trucks. It is used in areas that are not accessible by trucks, and therefore would otherwise remain untouched.

To reach the South Kalmiopsis, timber companies will have to cross the Green Bridge. This bridge became notorious a^year ago when 75-year-old Joan Norman began a campaign of civil disobediance there. On March 7, 2005, she got out her lawn chair and sat down on the bridge in the way of the logging trucks. In Joan’s words, “they came and removed me from the bridge I was blocking by carrying me in my chair to the edge of the sheriff’s vehicles. They put me down there and thought I would stay put. Then the officers went off to arrest someone else. 1 got up and moved my chair back to my space. My sovereign space. An officer yelled, ‘Hey you’re not supposed to do that! Get back over where I put you.’ I just laughed. People have been trying to get me to be where they put mt all my life. I have a right to stand up against evil and I will.” A week later, she said, “I don’t know what to do, so I am sitting down again,” and did.

She was arrested again, and spent 16 days in jail along with several other activists. She would be going to trial with them this month, had she not died in a car crash last July. Her actions inspired many people, especially women forest defenders, to continue the struggle.

Where to call and complain:

Senator Ron Wyden (541)431–0229
Representative Peter DeFazio 1-800-944-9603

Governor Kulongoski
(503) 378–4582 ~

Representative Greg Walden
(541) 776–4646 or 1-800-533-3303

Senator Gordon Smith
(541)465–6808

Sources: Rolf Skar and The Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (www.kswild.org), ■ Portland Indy media (www.portland.indymedia.org). Register Guard 2.09.06

Australia Goosesteps Into Future

The newest chimera of terrorism plays well with US allies. All the countries propped up by US dollars are leaping onto the bandwagon to be “toughest on terror.” In January, the right-wing government of John Howard in Australia passed a package of laws that send the country far down the road to absolute fascism. Although many were calling for more debate and pointing out how open to abuse the new laws were, they passed, first in the six Australian states, then in parliament.

The new terrorist package does all these things:

It allows police to hold anyone considered a “terrorist risk” for 48 hours. Then they can hold anyone for 14 days further. This is called “preventive detention,” the very thing the odious Richard Nixon tried to obtain, but never did.

Preventive detention hearings are secret. The detainee is not allowed to see any evidence presented, the person’s lawyer gets only a summary of the detention order, not the full text. Lawyers can’t see any other documents relevant to the detention, including the evidence. The proceedings may be sealed by any judge, all or in part. The public is excluded from all proceedings regarding preventive detention and anyone revealing any part may get up to 5 years in prison for disclosing information.

Lawyers’ conversations with detainees arc overheard by monitors. Any monitor who reveals any part of the discussion can get up to 5 years in prison.

Police can now burst into houses to catch a person named in a preventive detention order.

Detainees, including children, can be held in prisons while in detention.

As a safeguard, any person who subjects a detainee to cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment can get up to 2 years in prison (compare with 5 years for revealing information.)

It is a new crime to give money io terrorists directly or indirectly. It is possible someone could give money to a charity organization and be accused of supporting terrorism. It is unlawful to encourage another to act in a way viewed as assisting an organization or country at war with Australia, whether or not war is declared, or engage in any form of hostility against the Australian Defense Force. Critics of the Iraq war could be charged under this new law.

Sedition laws have been updated and a new offense of inciting violence against the community is a crime.

The police have been given a “Notice to Produce” so they can take information from any person or business.

Detention without trial can extend up to 10 years as the police can hold someone for 14 days, hold them again, and again. No provision exists to challenge detention.

A separate part establishes control orders. These include house arrest and electronic bracelets for detainees, a ban on named actions and named items, even if they are necessary to earn a living, a ban on use of telephone and the internet and communication with certain groups of people. Control orders last one year before any review. People point out by the time a year is up, detention is institutionalized and evidence is lost or outdated. Control orders can be extended after a year passes.

These new powers may sound reasonable to some people (who will certainly not be affected) but it is easy to see how abuse could quickly creep in and become entrenched. While the law package destroys rights to freedom of speech, association, warrantless arrest and many others, it says nothing about how to challenge abuses or any punishment for anyone found abusing detainees. Secret evidence and jail without charges or trial opens the door wide to falsification, revenge and intimidation.

Critics point out that the UN allows suspension of rights only while the nation’s very life is endangered. These laws permanently suspend Australia’s rights and Australia has not even had an attack on its land.

The few rights many people have fought and died for have been swept away by this avalanche of anti-terrorism.

A Little Ranting And Raving: Christianity

Do I Dare??? Oh yeah baby

-Jess

---

I recently went to a website called Theocracy Watch. This is an organization dedicated to keeping the U.S. government separate from religion. They describe a disturbing trend in U.S. government that involves Republicans using the Christian Right to get votes and “a group of religious leaders using the Republican party as a way to gain dominion over society”. These people actually want America to become a Christian nation and do have significant influence over our government.

I believe that Christianity is a destructive institution in America, and the world for that matter, It functions as a stagnant force that prevents growth j and development in society. It perpetuates inequality and serves as a means of control. The fact that it is becoming increasingly influential in our government is very upsetting.

So what is the point of religion anyway? Well, it depends. It is a way for those in power to maintain control, and in return provides a sense of understanding and belonging in an otherwise very mysterious and fucked up world. But in my opinion this understanding is make believe. It is a construction that has been created to ease the rather disturbing fact that we really don’t know ANYTHING. We have no idea what is out there in the universe, how it was all created and what happens when we die. The more I learn in science, the more I learn about how much we really don’t know.

Unfortunately people have the desire to know. We i, s want a purpose. The vastness and age of the universe, i the complexity and mysteriousness perhaps make human beings feel very insignificant. Clinging to fairy tales that pivot the world in a human-centered way helps \ many to feel more comfortable. These fairy tales are constructed and maintained by a group of people with 1 “ control in mind. They help people to deal with the fact 1 that life is often very difficult and very painful. Why ! is there so much suffering and cruelty in the world? i Why is a typical forty-hour work-week life so shitty? I Why don’t we just do whatever the fuck we want to do?

Why can’t our society be arranged in a more humane and j satisfying way? Without religion, everything might j fall apart; the oppressed may no longer be pacified. We might not be as willing to accept things as is if we acknowledge the possibility that this is IT.

So religion allows people to ‘know’. They now know that when they die, if they live a certain way, they will go to heaven. They ‘know’ this despite very little evidence to prove this. They ‘know’ this because their families ‘know’ this, their preachers ‘know’ this, most everyone ‘knows’ this. And they .can rationalize this knowing with the concept of ‘faith’. Faith is the treasured concept in Christianity that is the key to keeping millions of people believing in a completely irrational belief system.

I don’t really give a damn about what people believe. If it makes you happy to worship earthworms, I’m not going to try to stop you. There is not necessarily anything wrong in believing in heaven and god and what not. If you want to believe in something with very little evidence, power to you. But Chris- । tianity is like an iceberg and society the ship. It seems really pretty when you look at it from afar, but it scratches the shit out of the bottom of your boat, and leads to a hole that sinks you. There is a hidden and ominous aspect just under the surface. Christianity influences our way of thinking, language, institutions, government and society in general. It influences our society in a way that I find extremely backwards, because I think that the belief system is fundamentally flawed as well as the institution.

The belief system is fundamentally flawed if it promotes the belief that all those who don’t believe are going to burn in hell for eternity. The concept of heaven and hell seems fundamentally flawed to me because it is a very black and white way of looking at things in a very gray world. It is a way of thinking that leads some people to feel morally superior. It forces people to define morals in way that may not be up to date with the times and more j importantly may happen to really fuck over certain groups “ of people, like women. In addition, heaven and hell is like the lure, it freaks people out because they don’t want to fry in hell for eternity. Heaven is the bribe for worshiping god. The term god-fearing anyone? Fear is ! not what should drive a belief system. The belief system is flawed because in my opinion, god is an asshole. He creates everything in seven days and demands obedience M of Ins creations. He is on a fucking power trip. J mean . : ‘eaj’ly, to give very little evidence of your existence, give people logical minds, and then send them to hell if they don’t believe. It seems rather idiotic to me. f , J And what about the dinosaurs! And the bones showing the evolution of humans...did he just plant those there? Did he just create all of these inconsistencies to force us to have faith in him? Seriously. This makes no sense, and if it did god would look like a complete asshole. He creates everything, so he must have created evil and r” ‘i temptation as well. He created beings that are supposedly fundamentally flawed, so he must be fundamentally flawed. Then they fuck up, naturally, and he does things \ like create a massive flood and kill them all. If I were going to believe in a god, it wouldn’t be this one.

So a fundamentally flawed belief system leads to a fundamentally flawed institution. Besides outright violence, । religion happens to be one of the best methods of control. For example, it was used in an effort to control slaves. Today, Christianity is used as a political tool by certain groups in power to persuade people to vote against their economic interest and human rights. The Christian right backs the republican party which supports tax cuts for the rich, cutting of social services, and deregulation of labor, environmental and other protective laws. So you find a person living in a trailer and working for McDonalds voting republican even though that is obviously completely not in her interest. It is also used to perpetuate sexism, through anti-choice initiatives against women and by promoting hatred against gay people.

It is funny that extremely evil things are always disguised as good. Christianity uses concepts like virtue, purity and piety to promote the idea that it is morally superior to other belief systems. But again they define morality as if it is something to be defined in a blanketing sort of way. Even to say murder is always immoral is difficult to do. So how can one say that it is immoral to be a lesbian? Why does that apply to everyone? Who decides this? It doesn’t make any sense to me. In my opinion this ‘purity’ is a disguise as something good, but really it is an ideology that serves to repress people from doing what they want.

Well, this is my ranting about Christianity. I think it needs to be exposed for what it really is: a scam. It is a means of control that is very profitable and powerful. It is a highly detrimental aspect to society, and yet many people are very entangled with it.

A Brief History of the Catholic Church

Christians were involved in a struggle for their lives, although more and more people joined aspects such as book burnings, anti-sexual attitudes and intolerance of any disagreed! formal pattern that has dominated the following millennia. The destruction of**pagaji and statues and writings crystallized the hatred of knowledge and scientific inquiry tin characteristic of the Catholic church through the ages. From the fall

Catholic church dominated Europe exclusively until Martin Luther (1483 AD)y witmtl acting much as kings. In fact, it has been claimed that the pope was the continfration’c man Empire. During the dark ages of Europe the church’s serfs, the monks, are crcd|t< saving the knowledge of the ancient world, particularly Greek and Latin, while the Ar is considered “caretakers”. While it cannot be denied that the Arabs came intofcosse^i written works of the ancient world, the claim that they did not understand whajt iheyih merely held it until the Europeans could reclaim what was the sum of knowledge mfc that time is ridiculous. Tn fact, the Arabs read and added to what remained atter the Cl burned books and tortured people who tried to save them. One of the most important.

contributions to the world’s knowledge is the invention of the zero. This made it jiossible to calculate using a number system based on teh, without which our science,of (odqy wbfi^l l>e much more difficult. The Arabs did not bum libraries or books.

thoughts tpda/ Medicine hit ajlSw point. Where the.’ Ilians, the quacks of fit iof bat dung, ground C idle favorite, bleeding aS its peak had an estimated pppulati^ jf 30.000,000. Modi- i

In spite of the danger involved with speaking against the church, many’tltocs people did. some Rowing into tpovcme|l* Complaints abput the corruption of the priests and higher ups abounded, especially the salq,£>f indulgences and tire luxurious lives of the cardinals and bishops. Around 1000ADqtwo big groupskbrokeawqjy.fflie IValdcnsiansand Albigensians grew up in southern France. disgusted by the corruption arid what they saw as errors in church teachings.

indslTlisoldicrSslaughterecLas they went, up in castle fortresses in the foothills of ached by catagylt^and the/oldiprs poured huge pile of wood lay sur- &nd the wood set tire. This

began tfie’Caiholu^chuxchj^prcible suppression did not uccejmevcH worfipfCath^lic teaching.

The Catholic Inquisition could be said to have begtfn at this time. At first it wag only a way to recognize people,whSstrayed from the strict Catholic views, burnt quickly became a force that squashed all dissent jmd with dissent, pro jress*Backw^rus methods of astxrtaining truth, such as torture, staryaf ion ahd long periods of imprisonment became flandard. It is true that all countries used torture and execution when it suited them, but the Catholic church elevated these methods to an art fynnl By 1492. when ford inand’and Isabella instated the Spanish Inquisition, these methods hadjjeen in use for more than SUU years..Tiie Inquisition came under the rule of Torquemnda who used it to begin a reign of terror and persecution against Jews and Moslems.

would set up in a church and go around asking for names of heretics. Once they had a list, they f These praeiices, which continued until the $i(Jdle 1850s in parts of Europe, crushed thousands ‘oflivcsand retarded all science and art. OA after the ^inerican revolution of 1776 was Mie ■ Catholic hqld loosened. The French revol udot) of 1789tlirew oft thany of the restrictions of aristocracy!and church, but kings, toirtiire and the church remained in power in Austria, Eastern Europe. Russia and other places until Worid War I swept them away in 1919. Today we regard the practices of the Inquisition as nKdicval and back^a^ls, which they are, but they have not been^eradicated. As recently as 1933 Adolf Hitler revived them. Modem thought believes that Hitler was an anomaly,.but in fact he was an-atavism, a throwback to a previous time. Read the history of Spain from 1000 AD In 1492 and jtoukvalize that Hitler merely continued the persecution of the Jewsf adding modern technology. Tn Spain, thti JeWs under the Moslem rulers were tolerated, allowedjlo practice their religion and recognized fdr their Jalcnts. As the Christians reconquered Spain, the Jews’ lives became more enclosed. They Were forced to live in ghettos where the gates were barred at night, keeping them inside. They were limited to certain occupations such as money lending,and rag picking. They were required to wear certain recognizable hcadgedr They were required to wdar yellow Jewish slabs on ihaifisleeves, an innovation most P<g4>!.c.ljqipk ^Tgkr invented. Jews could not buy property, or marry any but Jews, and on and on. This wa/m<rrc tteiin 500 years before Hitler next to the kings,and queens were the Catholic bricSs. bishops and cardinals, justifying these rules on the basBiriadhe Jews were heretics.

Even during Wotld War II the.pope consorted with Hitler anti stood by a$ Jews and other groups were’attacked. Recent disc ‘ of secret papers from WWJI reveal the pope colluded with

Hiller.-Thd Catholic clinch next to the dictators of Ccnfr.il and South America as the US

jjclppd them murder rlfoux their cifizens.The few radical priests and nuns have long been

purged from the raniefasthe new pope. Joseph Ratzinge&irim actually served in Hitler’s army.

Hped oqt any progress the church might have made/

“were caught in false

Rations and tortured horribly sb they would Confess. They were men burned at the stake. The ifamous US case is tlx: SStefti ‘witeh trials, but thewweie others,

on crime” posturing reflects the

Finaljy, the church

to 1700. As one exabijilc. when Galileo perfected the telescope, he used science’ in the toon of . actually looking qfjupiter and its moons. £ftcr months of watching the ftiotion of the small sta

that followed Jupiter, he concluded thaftlie Stars were actually ns and that theyrcvolved ’

around Jupiter. Frorfi this, he hypothesized that if moons co olve around Jupiter, the eart!

was not the denier of everything dnd it could revolve arou the sum The Catholic church, river the antithesis of science] did hot fit^k through GalileotaU ;cope to see for themselves. They already knety the answer. TfreTfrbli^said that the earth \vas the center of the unrversi and nothing could be allowed to coriflFadiCt the Qible. So, instead of

f Gallleo and made the ll^i years’of his life miserable. T , was-in 1640, tfic European periodliflown as the Enlighfenment.

tfgh is enibroilqd in giant scandals;involVing pedefigt priests, ns slieep remain faithful to its teachings. Two millennia after Christ. the church stands strong against any emancipation of women. fierce agjmst coniraecption or sex education and rabid against abortipn. in spite of the vast overpopulation of the entire world. Don’t mention gay<P ’ the church wriuld like to bum them all at the stake if they tould This corrupt, false, doctrinaire

policy Continues to wreak havo&‘in today’s world.

What The Hell Wei? We Thinking???

Jessica sez:

So, we figured that we should have a little explanation of why on earth we would create and print these offensive cartoons. The rioting resulting from the anti-Muslim cartoons printed first in Denmark and then by other European countries was what gave us the idea. Danish embassies are being attacked around the world as a result of the cartoons. The US is also a target and protestors are attacking embassies and doing things like burning effigies of President Bush. Rioting is going on in Syria, Iran, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Indonesia, Thailand, Gaza, Afgani- stan, and other countries as well.

I have mixed feelings about the situation. I believe that Denmark did have the right to print these cartoons, just as the Insurgent has the right to print our cartoons. However, this does not mean I am criticizing the riots. To me it seems like the cartoons were the little piece of straw that finally broke the camel’s back. Muslims are putting up with a lot of shit. Many have seen bombs destroying their countries, have had to endure suicide bombings and political turmoil. Many have endured countless dictators put in by western nations. And some have experienced much worse. Furthermore, there is a large amount of anti-Muslim sentiment going around. It seems pretty obvious to me that this is not only about the cartoons. It is about a group of people trying desperately to hold on to what little they have. If I were them I would be fucking pissed too. I realize I am coming from a completely different situation and know very little about the experiences of these people. I also would like to point out that this is a very simplified explanation, and this is certainly a complicated issue. But, out of respect for these people we have decided not to print the cartoons.

However, we have made some of our own. In America, I am hearing a lot of comments that kind of piss me off. Some call these people extremists, and ask what is the big deal anyway? To me, we have plenty of religious extremists in the US. If they had their way (and they are getting it), things may begin to look similar to what some criticize about Muslim communities. The Insurgent wonders how people will respond to similar cartoons about Christianity. Plus, I have to say it is really fun to offend people. It is fun to break the rules, and to do things that are just not done. At least it will stimulate an emotion and create some argument.

If it pisses people off... good that’s the point!!! It already has here in this office. So read, get pissed and talk about it and maybe...act????

Love,

Dinze sez:

In the spirit of self-disclosure, I feel the need to state several things in this opening paragraph. The first is that I have not yet read any of the other articles in this issue. 1 work in the Survival Center, the same office where the Insurgent is published, and I have heard the talk surrounding and leading up to the publication of this issue. I’ve heard much of the dialogue surrounding the reasons for its content this issue, and I’ve heard brainstorming about articles and cartoon ideas. Throughout the production of this issue, I have remained adamantly opposed and have voiced these views every time I’m in the office. For their part, the Insurgent writers I’ve spoken with have listened patiently to my critique and responded with grace to the issues I’ve raised. They encouraged me to submit an article. That said.

The main problem 1 have with the thrust of this issue is how it evolved in response to the cairtoons of Mohammed. I think that bashing Jesus as a method of recourse to sacrilegious cartoons of a completely different faith further instantiates Christianity and Muslim as dichotomous. Read: opposites. No doubt the Insurgent will be accused by some conservatives as being sympathizers for Muslim extremists. Yay for the dichotomous spectrum. If you’re not for one, you’re presumed to be for the other. Although, clearly any cartoon illustrating Jesus in a compromising position would be blasphemous for either faith. Never mind that.

It seems to me like when you see a little kid hit another little kid, and you’re supposed to say. “Hey Jennie, that’s not nice. Now apologize.” In this instance, what’s being said is, “Hey Stacy, punch Jennie!” This is a gross oversimplification because Christianity and Islam are more diverse than two kids on a playground. And Jesus never hit people to begin with.

Let’s look at that. Jesus. Not such a bad dude. Something of a pacifist, a champion of the poor, and a bit of a political radical in his time. Did some cool stuff, pissed off the rich, and what does the Insurgent have against him? Something having to do with Mohammed. How does this make sense, and why does it seem like an obvious connection? To what degree does drawing this obvious connection reinforce it? Think about it: this is not about either of these prophets. This is about their followers, and how we think of them as antagonist and protagonist on the global stage, regardless of where we stand. And 1 am invoking the “we,” here, that is defined by the mentality of FOX news network, the “we” that is echoed in every major program on the four television networks that control nearly all television media. I am invoking the “we” that shops at Wal-Mart. Because, to the degree that we think of Christianity and Islam as opposites, we are reflecting the mentality of this “we.” We have been indoctrinated and socialized into having certain attitudes even as activists, even as the rebellious element of society.

The mentality of our society is deeply characterized by violence. This is a bold claim, but I’m not the first to make it. We have a fear of confrontation, because violence is seen as the ultimate method of conflict resolution. All conflict is represented as “escalating into violence,” and then, “violence escalates.” This is the mentality that is perpetuated in the idea behind: they did something to Mohammed, we’ll do something to them. When we think of conflict in relation to violence^ in relation to antagonistic relations, we are the cogs in the machine, we are the lies that they tell us, and we are the monkey on our own back. Jesus, by the way, didn’t say “an eye for an eye,” Jesus said, “turn the other cheek.”

No, I’m not Christian. I grew up in and around strong churches with generous and devout Christians who • fed the homeless on the weekends and worked tirelessly for their communities. I have no religion but I was profoundly affected by the idea of “God’s work” as a child. My stepfather was a preacher, and as far as he was concerned, he worked for God. Now from my understanding of Jesus. Christians don’t bash on other religions, they don’t wage wars, and they’re not out to screw people over. When one of these people, doing God’s work (we can contest this term later) sees one of these cartoons. I don’t think they’d be too pleased with either rendition of sacrilege. I do not honestly have any strong feelings about either of the cartoons 1 am referencing here. (And as I said. I have not read the articles.) If I saw either of them on someone’s wall. 1 would roll my eyes and wander off. as they

Don sez:

You may be aware of the riots sweeping the A^uslrm world due to the publication of some cartoons that Auislhns consider offensive. First published in the JylLands-Postcn, a Denmark daiy, they have since been reprinted in other European countries. We have printed the reasons given by Flemming Rose, the editor, on a different page. Attacks on Danish products and embassies have occurred and have spread to US icons lice /McDonalds. Although the cartoons have not been published in the US yet we have heard plenty of heated guff on talk radio and in letters to the editor. Many callers say the Muslims sbodd “get over it”, that we have freedom of speech here and that Muslims in general are violent and crazy. Mixed in with this is frequently something about how we are in a holy war, another crusade and we should ndee the sands into glass. It’s clear the US is a deeply racist country with little understanding of other cdtures or religions. And by the way, we are at war with Iraq and Afghanistan. We are kiling Muslims by the hundreds every week.

This makes it a little na ve for Rose to justify his cartoons by claiming freedom of speech. That is certainly important. The insurgent is all about freedom of speech We are the free speech fundamentalists Rose talks about. We print “FUCK” when we feel it ts. The Christian cartoons in this issue push the envelope.

All the same, how codd Jyllands-Posten /‘JOT realize those cartoons wodd cause a lot of trouble? The case of Salmon Rus- die, target of a fatwa for years for a book he wrote, and the knowledge that the A^uslim religion, unlice Christians, forbids any representation of AAohammed shodd have given them a klew. Muslim mosques are famous for their geometric patterns with no human forms. So seriously, Flemming Rose, you codd not think this was only a matter of freedom of speech The US currently occupies two Arab countries and supports Israel occupying a third. Don’t you think these people resent seeing foreign invaders in their lands? Do you suppose they are thrilled to see their young men marched off in the middle of the night with hoods over their beads? Perhaps those young men are not aware they are being beaten and worse by our soldiers?

When the situation is so lopsided, any small provocation can blow up into a big deal. Muslim worship and freedom of speech are not the same ideas as in the Western world. Although Rose claims the cartoons are only an answer to ’’incidents of self-censorship and feelings of intimidation’’ we can’t believe he codd not see that Muslims wodd see it .is another instance of Western domination and insdt to their cdture So we have riots.

At the Insurgent, we decided to make some cartoons that wodd be offensive to Christians. We want to see if the US is as tolerant as we claim It’s ne to be smug and pompous when it’s someone else’s ox being gored in a faraway Land, but what happens when it’s right here at home? We present these cartoons as a test- Just bow much do we honor our own freedom of speech and bow well do we deal with opposition to the US religions?

This is not an idle question Rose ’‘wodd not publish pornographic images or graphic detais of dead bodies,- swear words rarely make it into our pages.” We feel this is hypocrisy at its worst. “Pornography” stil has no de nition, but the reactionary right uses the word tp ban all nudity, sex and anything that might concern the body from the navel down. The real issue of freedom of speech is the right to publish naked pictures of human beings. That issue is stil in its infancy. Few wodd gbt for someone else’s right to print “fdl frontal nudity” but they wil send the marines to kil a whole nation strike me as “poor taste.” What I have issue with is the political reinforcement of certain ideas.

Why are so many people 1 know comfortable bashing on Christianity? It’s not kosher to rip into any other religion and tear it to shreds. Is it just that we’re comfortable with what’s ours? In what way is it ours? Is it that we acknowledge it as dominant? How long can we go without evaluating these questions?

Damian sez:

I have a lot of Christian friends. I admire their love and faith, and I have no beef with them, nor desire to fuck with them. My greatest fear with this issue is that they will be hurt. I hope that doesn’t happen. Jesus can take a few jabs, I think. The guy’s been alive or dead for two thousand years, depending who you ask. Either way he’s seen worse, but there are a lot of Christians out there who actually love their fellow folk, who are actually meek, or better yet, outspoken in their love. This issue is not meant for them.

In reality, the issue is meant only to stir up discourse, but if it were meant to piss anybody off, it would be those who call themselves Christian in order to have an excuse to spew hate and violence. Those so-called Christians who answered Jesus’ plea for compassion with a thousand years of repression and terror. Fuck you. We are fucking with you, and the strange, silent, bloody Christ to whom you give lip service and in whose image you build your idols. My second greatest fear is that this issue will spark censorship on campus. I’m not sure if it’s worth it. I’m very optimistic about the amount of debate that these cartoons could kick off, but I’m not sure if it’ll be the good kind of debate, and I don’t want to gamble the paper on the mere possibility of starting the stupid kind of debate. I guess we’ll see where it goes.

Comision de Verdad y Reconciliacion de Sud Africa: Alternativa a la resolucion e conflictos fuera de tribunals de justicia

by Alvaro

Mi propia experiencia como nacional de un pais que vivio 17 anos bajo una dictadura militar me lleva a afirmar que cuando pai’ses como Sud Africa, Argentina o Chile viven la transition de un regimen abusivo y dictatorial a uno democratico re- ciben un terrible legado de violencia, brutalidad y dolor. Las nuevas democracias son generalmente debiles y se encuentran constantemente expuestas a la amenaza o bien de un golpe militar o de una guerra civil. Cuando pienso en estas nacientes democracias la primera imagen que viene a mi mente es la de un bebe. Por ejemplo cuando tu tienes un hijo de unos seis meses de edad o un ano no seria responsable sacarlo de la casa sin la ropa apropiada. Tambien tienes la responsabilidad de alimentarlo apropiadamente, darle la comida que el va a ser capaz de digerir. De lo contrario, corres el riesgo que se enferme. Tambien tienes que estimularlo y ayudarlo a dar sus primeros pasos. Tienes que darle pequenas instrucciones para dirigir sus primeros pasos y al mismo tiempo estar atento de que nos e vaya a caer o se vaya a lugares peligrosos como por ejemplo caer en un jardfn con espinas.

En ese escenario, pienso que cada pais debe encontrar su propio camino par retomar a la democracia. Este debe ser un camino que diga relation con valores, la historia y cultura de cada pais. Esa pienso es la mejor manera como los pai’ses pueden lidiar con su pasado. La principal decision que, los pai’ses deben efectuar si quieren vi- vir una transition exitosa es determinar si desean recurrir a la justicia criminal o por el contrario buscar la verdad sin condenar ni absolver a los responsables. Si una sociedad elige seguir el ultimo camino, el resultado sera el de asignar mayor valor a bien comun contribuyendo a un proceso de reconciliation. De esta manera, se deja de lado entonces el bien individual y el de las victimas de crimenes pasados de buscar sancionar a los responsables.

Conceptos como el de justicia retributiva tan incorporados en las democracias occidentales no seran parte necesariamente de los nuevos gobiemos democraticos. Primero que nada y de acuerdo a mi propia experiencia, creo que es muy dificultoso- si no imposible- perseguir y sancionar a los responsables de violaciones a los derechos humanos de acuerdo a la ley penal. El deseo de sancion va a ser reemplazado por un bien mayor; la paz social y la reconciliation. Uno podria preguntarse entonces, /,por que la pena, la posibilidad de ir a la carcel, tiene que ser la natural consecuencia de la violation de derechos humanos o de un crimen? Para muchos yo afirmaria la carcel es la unica solution. Es mucho mas facil eliminar del paisaje a todos aquellos que no tienen las mismas oportunidades que los miembros de la cultura dominante que incorporates a la sociedad. Pensemos por ejemplo en los Estados Unidos y su sistema de prisiones cuya poblacion penal esta constituida mayoritariamente por Africanos Americanos y Hispanos. Este punto me lleva a otro; durante la dictadura militar el gobiemo se deshizo de de todas las casas de los miembros de las clases bajas que se encontraban cerca de los barrios residenciales de las clases medias y altas. Una vez que se deshici- eron de la “fealdad” de la pobreza uno podia interactuar en Santiago bajo la ilusion de que no existia gente pobre en Chile y que “todos” vivfan en una casa de dos pisos con antejardm, tres automoviles y acceso a centros comerciales en los que “todos” podfan comprar.

Gobiemos como el de Sud Africa no quisieron olvidar las atrocidades cometi- das por los criminales en el pasado reciente. /.Como poder encontrar un mecanismo que pudiera hacer que todos aquellos autores de violaciones a los derechos humanos respondieran por sus crimenes? /Como podrian estas democracias encontrar un camino para el futuro sin olvidar el dano causado por miembros de los anteriores gobiemos en contra del resto de la poblacion? La creation de Comisiones Especiales de Verdad y Reconciliation fue la respuesta a estas interrogantes. A traves de estas comisiones las comunidades a como un todo examinaron y examinan aun que sucedi6 en el pasado como una manera de sanar y consecuentemente seguir trabajando en la construction de su proyecto nacional. Estas comisiones se crearon con valor simbolico. El objetivo fue no el de encerrar al responsable de delitos en la carcel. Ellas son los hitos que separan la historia oficial nacional entre un pasado tortuoso y el futuro. Una vez sabido lo que realmente sucedio con los seres queridos y aprendida la lection del pasado se espera que abusos similares dejen de tener lugar.

El caso de la Comisidn de Verdad y Reconciliation representa una perfecta altemativa a la resolucten de conflictos fuera d e los tradicionales tribunales de justicia. Como tuve la oportunidad de ver en el documental “Long Night’s Journey Into Day” (30 de enero del 2000, dirigido por Frances Reid y Deborah Hoffmann), es a traves de estas comisiones que Sud Africa busco obtener la reconciliation nacional y paz en un pais intemamente dividido por el “apartheid”. Como consecuencia, estas comisiones asumieron la tarea de escuchar y ver en TV los testimonies e historias de victimas de violaciones a los derechos humanos. Elios tuvieron la oportunidad de expresar sus propias subjetivas versiones de un pasado mayoritariamente escondido. En un pais sin prensa libre y sin respeto a los basicos derechos humanos las voces de las vi’ctimas nunca habi’an sido oidas con anterioridad. Estas comisiones dieron la oportunidad de hablar a personas que en otras condiciones hubiesen permanecido invisibles para la cultura dominante. Personalmente pienso que £sta es la ventaja de estas comisiones; crear espacios seguros donde las personas puedan abrirse y hablan sin ningun tipo de censura. Ellas dieron y siguen dando a las victimas, una oportunidad real de confrontar a aquellos que o mataron o torturaron a sus familiares.

La creation de estas comisiones constituye una suerte de catarsis colectiva a traves de la reconstruction de los crimenes. Asuntos como o tiempo, lugar y la manera como tuvieron lugar los crimenes se dan a conocer a toda la comunidad. Por ejemplo, en el documental mencionado se pueden apreciar algunos asesinatos previamente grabados para efectos de control intemo. Las comisiones dieron entonces a las victimas la posibilidad de observar como tuvo lugar el asesinato de sus hijos, ensendndoles dichas grabaciones.

Estas comisiones representan una oportunidad para las victimas y familiares de enfrentar cara a cara a los perpetradores de crimenes. Esta oportunidad les da la posibilidad de o perdonarlos o expresarle a ellos sus mas fntimos sentimientos, pensa- mientos, frustraciones, radia y dolor. Mientras observaba este documental no pude evitar pensar en que en este proceso nadie es forzado a perdonar a los perpetradores de los crimenes. A diferencia de los procesos judiciales tradicionales, aquf a las victimas y familiares se les potencia y en cierta medida ya que en cierto mode ocupan el rol que tradicionalmente le corresponderfa al jurado o juez. El hecho que sus voces e historias sean ofdas les proporcionara a las victimas un sentimiento de alivio. Elios tendran la oportunidad de perdonar, si lo desean y pueden hacerlo. Por otro lado, los criminales mismos podran pedir perdon.

En casos como estos, las victimas y sus familiares para obtener el recono- cimiento de su dignidad; como ciudadanos ellos tiene la oportunidad de ser ofdos. Elios no hablaran de situaciones abstractas. Al contrario, van a hablar de una situacten concreta; la muerte de un hijo, esposo, pareja. Van a estar en frente de un individuo con un rostro concreto qilien, si no pide perdon por lo menos tendrd la oportunidad de expresar su arrepentimiento por su crimen o crimenes. Las victimas y sus familiares a traves de sus voces e historias personales de dolor actuan como agentes simbdlicos de un proceso mds grande; la reconstrucci6n de una sociedad, la fundacten de un nuevo orden democrdtico.

Probablemente tomara un par de generaciones en Sud Africa para hablar de reconciliacten. Sin embargo, los testimonies de los actores van a permanecer escritos y grabados como una manera de mantener intacta la memoria historica asi.como un modo de evitar la repetition de violaciones a los derechos humanos. Ciertamente, solo el paso del tiempo podra dar paz y objetividad- si es que realmente existe — en su tra — bajo de contar la historia de la nacten. Una cosa es clara; el esfuerzo de la comunidad para construir un futuro sin olvido, un futuro en el que todos los actores de la sociedad puedan encontrar un espacio y respeto.

Burning Man Part IV: The shimmering image fades away

by the Automator

We wandered out to the cube. This art featured ping-pong balls on wires in a 10 x 10 x 10 cube. They light up at night. The colors flash in waves through the cube. Trippy. We continued to the clock tower. Some crew from Berkeley made a tower with outriggers and four clock faces. It has stairs and a balcony. The clocks didn’t seem to be working but it’s a fine piece of work. Bret said some city should buy it. We all agreed it would make a fine addition to any city square. Then we found a large tent. We walked all around it and found the entrance. As we walked in, a naked guy got up from the couch. He was lying under a sheet of paper, his face was all puffy from sleep and drugs and had his underpants on his head! Classic! A lot more people came in and we left. We continued to the temple. Nearby are about six fireplace chimneys made of steel. They have different fantastic shapes and the sides are cut with line pictures. The fires burn HOT and they shoot sparks out the top that blow away. Carl got totally turned on and raved about how he wants to make one for his back yard. [Note: when we got back to Eugene, Carl got some sheet metal and a torch and did indeed make a bum box. One side is a map of Burning Man from the air, another is bamboo. Aaron, his roomie, did the other two. One is pine trees and mountains. We used it in his yard several times before school started. On we wandered. This time we found the light circles on the ground and played with them for a while. Where the circles intersected, there were bigger white circles you could stand on. It seemed that when you stood on one, it made the lights in that circle flash, but we couldn’t quite f figure it out. Carl was leaping around and jumping on the circles. When we left we walked further out to the Big Nipple, but it was on the ground. I guess the wind the night before scared them so they let out the air. We just happened to come along at the one time when it was up and running. We got all the way to the jE orange fence at the end of the galaxy. Several art cars including the Cheshire Cat were out there. We found the Haunted Gardens at the fence at the end of the galaxy. Inside a bunch of people had sleeping bags and were camping out. In fact, people were sleeping in every ■?’ structure out there. Finally we had enough. We walked back to the lag MAN. Carl split off to his house in the suburbs (He’s at 8:30 and Hysteria, on the outer edge of the camps) and we came back to the Tower of Power.

Yesterday was Saturday. Tonight the MAN bums! I got up I at noon. I’m starting to feel played-out. The dust is on everything. The inside of the van is covered, even stuff that is packed under other stuff. My nose has bloody boogers. SO WHAT! Lance, Igor and Bret were sitting around talking. I took a sponge bath. It felt linn’........ good for about 30 minutes. As soon as 1 put on clean clothes they are covered in dust. I put on my last clean socks. I went walking to Carl’s and found Gabe and Jack on the way. Jack was on the upstairs deck of their bus. I don’t know whose it is, but it’s a city bus with an upstairs deck and stairs on the back. It’s beautiful in fresh wood. The railings are shiny copper pipes. I came back from Carl’s and Bret and I went walking. We went back to Jack’s. We talked to him for a while on the deck. Bret and 1 went to the East Side since we had hardly gotten over to that part at all. We walked around and came back around 4:10. Jack came by our camp but we iitF missed him. I put on the wedding dress for the fashion show at Center Camp. There was a crowd of people in all sorts of wild costumes. 1 filmed it all. I was last. Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and some guy in green were the MCs. Dorothy was great but the guy was rushing everyone out. 1 got Dorothy’s mike and gave my speech about my fianc£, the green crocodile named Max. who borrowed $10,(XX) for our honeymoon and I’ve been waiting THREE WEEKS has anyone seen him? The MC in green got all bent out of shape because I took too long. He grabbed my arm as I crossed in front of him and pushed me out. I almost tripped over some wires. You don’t push someone wearing a mask, unless they’re robbing a bank. As usual it didn’t go over too well, but Carl saw it. He thought it was hysterical. He filmed me outside the tent. so at least 1 got some small record of myself, Carl. Adam (Carl’s friend) and I walked to~ Carl’s. I stopped at Jack’s and gave him my zine. They were all taking shrooms and acting weird. Carl was raving about this big roast beef = j dinner his neighbor cooked, how delicious it was, how the guy had been cooking all day on a special cooker he had made, so we walked all the way out to the burbs drooling. They stepped over the entrance to the tepee. 1 got tricky and did a somersault thru the hole. That got a laugh,.but the dinner was ALL EATEN.

The tepee was full of people, there wasn’t even a place on the floor to sit. We sat around Carl’s. It got dark. The MAN was about to bum. Carl’s group was all raving about Leanna. She got a full body paint job and came over naked to show them. They were all like homy puppies, including Carl’s dad. Carl was taking far too long, so his dad left. Carl, Adam, Joe, Carl’s brother and I walked to the playa. A huge crowd was gathered to see the MAN bum. His arms were being raised up in preparation. All the art cars circled the outer edge, while fire spituiers, light shows and other freaky amazing things cavorted in the center. Carl had my tall hat with star lights on. He was amazed when his dad found us. 1 kept telling him the hat sticks out and can be seen far away. He couldn’t get over it. We stood packed in the crowd trying to see the fire dancers. Suddenly the burst out in fireworks. The crowd screamed. A big display splattered the sky as the MAN caught fire. First one arm fell, then he tilted, then he fell. The crowd howled. Carl, Wobblie (Carl’s dad), Joe and I walked around and checked out the giant flower, the bookmobile, art cars and Dickie’s Box. Dicky is living in this box on the playa and won’t come out til Sunday. He has a bed. table, chair, food and piss jug. The box has an awning and fan. The walls are clear plastic.

He has a tiny hole to talk through and a box drawer to pass things couldn’t see out. It was one of those good ideas that needed too much work, so it didn’t happen. We came back to our camp at midnight. Leanna was there with a Polaroid of her painted body but she had already washed it off. She said it itched and when she moved it pulled out the tiny hairs. I was beat so I went to sleep. Oops, when we got back we found Igor and Bret had packed up and left. They said they weren’t leaving until morning. There were rumors that they said Burning Man wasn’t any good this year and that they said they weren’t coming back next year. Some people come to Burning Man on Wed., stay one day and leave before the MAN bums. The bum is the whole point of it all. Why they would spend so much time and money when they don’t care what’s going on is beyond me.

This morning Leanna, Lance and 1 got up at noon. So far we’ve sat around all afternoon talking. Carl’s dad and brother left, so Carl, Adam and Wink moved over here. Lean- =- na’s suitors have come by all day. They’re all hot for her. She went into a lecture (to Lance and me) about Ligplinn litter I

how everybody comes

the naked people, then back to Jack’s for a group hug, Lance, Leanna and Carl were asleep so 1 went to Center Camp. It’s almost gone, but Dave was there. We talked some more. He said he was ditching the girl Megan who was with him when I first found him. I thought he was fucking her but he said he couldn’t stand her. People started carrying out all the couches right past where we were sitting. Dave got up and helped but I just sat there filming. They were giving me dirty looks. I left and went back to our camp. Leanna and Carl were gone but Lance was up. We went and took a shit together. We drove my van

those big cars and buses and RV s wasting gas idling in line. It’s at least 3 hours to get out. Lance and Leanna are leaving later tonight, but Carl and 1 are waiting until tomorrow. We helped Lance and Leanna pack up all the camp stuff. Lance brought couches, tables, tent canvas and al) the other flotsam and jetsam that make up life in the USA. They didn’t get finished until it was pitch dark. While we were loading the bicycles 1 got a gash on my arm that was bleeding like crazy. I got a flash that was from Burning Man. that they didn’t like me much. Then again, it was weird mental thought that should be ignored.

Lance and Leanna got all packed and hugged us and got in the car to leave. As they drove off, Carl broke down and cried. I tried to explain it wasn’t the end of anything, it was the beginning but he was in love. We walked around some, then came back and went to sleep. 1 was in the van, Carl

next morning, Carl had a bright green praying mantis on his arm. We couldn’t figure out where it came from. It sure didn’t live on the playa. They can fly. but it stayed on his arm for an hour. 1 told him it was a message from Leanna. We packed all our stuff, went around our area picking up those little pieces of junk that get all over, and left. Burning Man was over.

Thus endeth the Burning Man series for 2005

Take Sides

“Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
Elie Wiesel
“The question is not, Can they reason? nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?”
Jeremy Bentham

Taking sides. This is just what people are doing to stop one of the most vile, evil and murderous companies in the history of the world. In 1999 a group of wonderful, committed, compassionate people started a campaign called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC). Their sole purpose was to close down Huntingdon Life Sciences, which tortures, maimes and kills thousands of animals each year in the name of profit.

They were assisted by four undercover investigations at different laboratories in the UK and the USA. SHAC is unique in that it works globally and targets not only Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) but also any and all companies that support litem. They have even received support from people within companies that do business with HLS who disagree with their company being involved with the inhumane treatment of animals. Hundreds of volunteers took on the task of informing the investors of HLS what a horrible company it is. Since die campaign started hundreds of companies have dumped their HLS stocks.

The SHAC campaign is all about action. Thinking, worrying, and crying about animal abuse does nothing for caged animals at HLS waiting to be tormented and killed. Action is demonstrations, writing letters, making phone calls, sending emails or faxes, telling other people about the campaign, distributing leaflets, fundraising, and putting up posters and stickers. Action is whatever you can do lawfully to close down the hell-hole that is Huntingdon Life Sciences.

Since the beginning of this year HLS is not looking very good. They have lost many of their investors and had their stock kicked off the OTCBB and moved to lower pink sheets. Massive demonstrations continue against HLS and their top customers and the New Jersey SPCA for cruelty to animals is now suing them. It will be interesting to see what happens when their millions of dollars in loans come due this fall. The pressure must be applied even harder now. More demos, more emails and phone calls, more press releases, more research into HLS customers and supporters in your area, and more outreach to others who don’t know about the campaign is crucial.

Activists run SHAC 7 days a week 365 days a year. Should you wish to contact them and get involved the details are below. You can call them to ask questions, order merchandise or just for a chat on anything related to the campaign. Please get in touch and they will be happy to help in any way they can.

Following are the four undercover investigations that have exposed a few of the horrendous acts that so many animals have had to endure.

Rotting Animals by Sarah Kite

In 1989 Sarah Kite exposed the cruelty ot two experiments done for the pharmaceutical company Hoffman La Roche over an eight month period. The first was to see any toxic effects of the food coloring Canthaxanthin. This is a chemical used to color the flesh of salmon and trout and also used in sun tanning pills. The rats used in this experiment endured cruel and painful effects, including lethargy, hair standing on end.

and swollen necks and abdomens. High doses resulted in orange fur and tail, with brick red feces and urine. The staff that had the unpleasant job of cleaning out the animals’ pens had to wear oxygen suits because the substance was considered so harmful. Even after Canthaxanthin was banned in December 1988, Huntingdon continued its experiments in poisoning animals for an additional six months.

She also witnessed another experiment for the tranquilizer Flucto Trazepam. This was a two year achronic toxicity study resulting in animals excreting large quantities of dark red blood and “gross and ill with greasy wet fur standing on end.” A technician described the animal as “rotting but still alive.”

Sarah was then transferred to the Dog Toxicology Unit were she lasted only eight weeks. She saw beagles poisoned with pesticides, dental hygiene products, drugs and food wrapping film. In one horrendously gross test 48 beagles backs were shaved and an anti-psoriatic cream was applied every day for 30 days. The result was open sores and blisters on the area. Then, to torture the dogs more, they wrapped tight sticky plaster around the area. The dogs had to wear head collars to stop them from getting to the painful places. Sarah described finding blood, vomit and diarrhea in the dogs cages. The dogs were very ill and extremely thin, scared and visibly shaking.

Shocking Video by Michelle Rokke

In 1997 Michelle Rokke made one of the most shocking and gross videos of the horrible time she spent at HLS. Highlights include a monkey being cut open during a necropsy (autopsy) while still alive.

Michelle took care of dogs that were mentally beaten into submission and horrible hungry for humane contact, as well as pigs with ear tag infections where the piercing was and abscesses where they had been stuck with needles. The pigs were carried upside down, held by one hind leg and one front leg. This appeared to terrify them. Again, this is unnecessary stress and cruelty. One technician said she did not feel bad about working on the monkeys because they are mean and wild. What a surprise, that wild monkeys ripped from their native environment to live out the rest of their lives in cold stainless steel cages maintained their wildness. The technicians used methods like grabbing whatever limb they could for injections, pulling it through the cage bars to avoid getting bitten. Michelle found all of the different animals she worked with to be cold, thin, sick, in pain, and neglected. The cages of animals were usually dirty with diarrhea, vomit, slime, blood, pus, and other material matted onto the bars, floors, and walls. She found animal technicians that did not seem in the least bit concerned about the inhumane methods used to administer drugs or other means of torment. Michelle witnessed a person tossing a dog into a cage by his front legs. When the dog tried to get out as he was closing the cage, the person repeatedly slammed the door on the dog’s head before finally getting it closed. When a technician could not find a vein easily, it was common to repeatedly jab into the flesh with the animal screaming in pain. This goes on in front of all the other animals, causing more tension and stress among them. Michelle found that there were many mistakes made using the wrong drugs or miscalculated doses given. She found dogs chewing at themselves, eating their feces, and scratching open bloody sores. One monkey had sucked on his penis so much that it just hung out all the time. She saw monkeys with bloody noses from the lack of humidity in the room.

Eyes Wide Open by Zoe Broughton

In 1996 Zoe Broughton applied for and got a job as an animal technician at HLS. At the time he believed animal testing was necessary to advance medical science and was under the misconception that the animals were treated humanely and compassionately. What he found was quite different..

Day 1 — His job is to take care of 32 puppies. He had to first evaluate the health of all the animals, knowing they would all to be killed at the end of the study. He states, “by the end of the day I was mentally and physically exhausted.”

Day 4- He finds he is getting attached to the puppies and having a hard time putting them back into their small concrete prisons after one hour of exercise. The cages are not cleaned well enough and shit is everywhere.

Day 8- Zoe has to help take blood samples from each puppy. The sample is taken from the neck while all the other puppies watch. The puppies feel, see, and sense the tension and pain and each one tries to escape its turn. Sometimes when the technician cannot find a vein they prod in different directions up to 15 times. Zoe describes himself as pretty queasy.

Day 10- Zoe is told to use only one shovelful of sawdust in each puppy cage, so the concrete floors are cold and hard. The Home Office inspectors come and chat with the technicians.

Day 15- The Home Office inspectors come again and speak with the technicians, but still do not look at any of the puppies.

Day 18- Zoe gets permission from the Independent Television Commission to film what is going on. He has hidden equipment strapped to his body. It is bulky and he is feeling sick with nerves wondering if the camera is visible.

Day 29- The torture begins with some of the puppies being put in a sling and injected with a chemical that is used in scanning human livers. The puppies become sick. Their legs swell. Blood is taken 10 times throughout the day. The puppies are hit or shaken if they wiggle. Zoe feels like a torturer with blood from the puppies on his hands.

Day 30- Another experiment is started on other puppies. It is an agrochemical toxicity test for a Japanese company. Each dose is suppose to be measured out and checked with a computer. But the technician only measures one dose correctly and prints this out seven times. Thus the rest of the doses are made more quickly and with less accuracy. Zoe wonders if the dogs are getting the right dose and how this might affect the validity of the results.

Day 32- Zoe finds puppy 1619 with a pint of congealed bloody feces around his cage. The vet examines the puppy and says it is all right to continue the daily doses of poison.

Day 33- The technician continues to inject the drug into the puppies legs, many times not finding a vein and jabbing continuously, often going right through the vein. Zoe witnessed twice the technician giving up and squirting the rest of the liquid into a disposal bin.

Day 40- Zoc reads files, writes notes and starts to establish which experiments are in which rooms, who the sponsors are, and which compounds are being tested on these innocence animals.

Day 45- Zoe films pictures of the animal technician, pets and listens to them talk about how lovely their pets are as they go on abusing the lest animals.

Day 56- The experiment is now finished and final blood samples taken.

Day 57- The dogs have been killed, HOW!! Unknown. Post mortems are started. Zoe wanted to smuggle his favorite puppy out as he was taking her to the Death Row cages but does not. He must think of the future of the other animals there and hope his film will help them.

Xenotransplantation Scandal: Company Lies About Study

In 2000 Lucy Johnston and Jonathan Calvert exposed what they call the Xenotranplantation Scandal. Just the thought of the project, which involved transplanting genetically modified pigs’ hearts and kidneys into monkeys, is enough to set your heart beating fast. The experiments were carried out at the Huntingdon Life Sciencels animal research laboratories in Cambridgeshire. The company Imutran claimed to be close to solving the crucial issue of organ rejection. Their work was so primitive that they were not allowed to try it on humans.

The not-so-shocking truth revealed in the study was that researchers had exaggerated the success of their work. It was found that they had used thousands of pigs, monkeys and baboons and that these animals had died painful and early deaths. One baboon survived for 39 days with a pig heart. The company described it as the greatest success to date and reported that the baboon was healthy throughout the 39 days. But the records showed later that the baboon suffered in the last days of his life and that the heart had tripled in weight. This significant fact was somehow not mentioned in the published report.

This baboon had begun his life in the scrubland and sparse trees of a Kenyan savannah. His final days were spent in a cramped, stainless steel-framed cell, four thousand miles away in Cambridgeshire. All he saw from his cage was 4 bare walls for

12 hours a day and then darkness for 12 hours a day. He had become baboon number X201 m — one of the thousands of residents in Europe’s biggest animal research laboratory. His monotony was broken March 23, 1998 when Baboon X201m was carried to the operating room. There his chest was sawed open and his heart was ripped out and replaced with a pig heart.

Imutran claimed the experiment was a huge success when he lived for 39 days and devoted a scientific paper to him. It was actually thirty-nine days of stress, pain, depression, and sadness. A paper called the Daily Express exposed the reality that the company had not been frank with the public and the scientific community. A volume of confidential documents — the largest set of data on animal experiments ever leaked — showed the information the company had failed to report. It showed that many animals have endured days or weeks of suffering in vain. The published report suggested that the baboon had led a perfectly normal life following its operation, stating: “Throughout the first 38 post-transplant days the baboon was active and energetic, moving freely about his enclosure.” But that is not the picture revealed in detailed scientific records of the baboon’s last days, seen by the Daily Express. Two weeks after his operation, experts noted that he was “quiet and huddled, reluctant to move, some abdominal breathing seen, slightly unsteady.” His condition rallied, but in the last 10 days of his life he was often only “occasionally active”. None of this is recorded in the company’s published data. Indeed, the five other animals in the experiment lasted on average just 10 days — which again is not mentioned in the paper.

Imutran of course says the animals do not suffer. But the laboratory technicians, whose morale was found to be really low, reported a much different story. They described the animals as quiet, huddled, shivering, unsteady and in spasm. Some had swellings and bruising and had blood or pus oozing from their wounds. Some vomited and had diarrhea. Written documents showed that over a quarter of the animals died on the operating table or within a few days from what were called “technical failures” in the surgical procedures. In one experiment 13 out of 22 monkeys died within two days of the operation. And again this was a fact not mentioned in their published paper.

I could go on and on here about the many more animals that suffered, but suffice it to say the project was A COMPLETE FAILURE.

for info on the SHAC-7 political prisoners, see p.9

women’s rights

Are We Going to Lose Our Right to Choose?

“Polls consistently show the majority of Americans support a woman’s right to choose,” according to Planned Parenthood. Despite this fact, women’s reproductive rights are becoming increasingly jeapordized. On March 6^th South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds signed legislation to ban abortion in South Dakota. The bill, HB1215, makes all abortions illegal unless the woman will die as a result of having a baby. Doctors could receive up to five years in prison for breaking this law. According to the legislation, life begins once the sperm has fertilized the egg. This could also affect contraceptive options like Plan B. Due ban in South to legal challenges, the law will not take effect Dakota until the Supreme Court upholds it, which may take many years of battle. Planned Parenthood in S.

Dakota is still planning its response, which will be either to challenge the law in courts or to attempt to pass a referendum to reverse the bill. The clinics will stay open and continue to respond to client needs. Sarah Stoesz, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood in North and South Dakota and Minnesota stated, “These abortion bans, and the politicians supporting them, are far outside the mainstream of America. A woman and her family, in consultation with her doctor and her conscience, should be making private, personal health care decisions — not politicians.”

Like other states, South Dakota has been trying to get anti-abortion legislation for years. Now they have gleefully succeeded, and women are a big step closer to losing their right to choose. Reproductive rights have been steadily eroded in the past few years. Forty-two states now require parental notification or consent for underage abortions. According to Kim Sprague, who works at Eugene Planned Parenthood as a community organizer, 60% of minors who have abortions are already talking with their parents and those who don’t usually don’t have access to judical bypass. The judical bypass allows young women to be exempt from parental notification with the approval of a judge. Oregon is one of the states without parental notification or consent laws.

South Dakota is not the only state where legislators are attempting to ban abortion. The Mississippi legislature passed an abortion ban recently which is awaiting the governor’s signature. Louisiana, Texas, Indiana, Utah and Missouri are talking about banning abortion as well. Many anti-choice organizations in Oregon are mobilizing as well. “Oregon is a prochoice state and its going to stay that way,” Sprague said.

On Friday March 10^th, Planned Parenthood in Eugene, Oregon, had an hour of solidarity with the women of South Dakota in front of the federal court house. A group gathered at about noon and held up signs expressing their solidarity.

The Supreme Court justices will have an opportunity to either uphold or overturn the Roe v. Wade decision made in January, 1973. By looking at how Supreme Court justices have voted in the past, one can make a guess as to how they will vote in the future. George W. Bush has recently appointed two new justices, Samuel Alito, Jr and Justice John Roberts. Both are considered conservative. Two cases that the other justices have voted on are Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania vs. Casey in 1980 and the Stenbery vs. Carhart in 1999. In 1980 a Pennsylvania statute that required physicians to provide patients with anti-abortion information and other restrictions was upheld by the supreme court. One of thp provisions included a required notification of the spouse of a married woman, which was overturned. The more recent case, involved a “partial birth” abortion ban in Nebraska. The Supreme court barely overturned that in a 5–4 vote, citing a lack of a woman’s health exception as one of the main reasons for its overturn. Looking at how some of the justices voted in these cases can give us some idea of how they will vote today.

The following information is adapted from a zinc called Hot Pantz, which has lots of other great info about female bodies and health. It is distributed by Blood Sisters. Check out their website at www.bloodsisters.org.

As their disclaimer says, this is not intended to provide diagnoses or prescriptions, and if you’re not sure about anything, please consult an herbalist, doctor, or health practitioner.

-Pjk

Using Herbs for Emergency Contraception

These are not methods of birth control and should not be used on a regular basis. They can help prevent pregnancy in an emergency.

Method #1: In the first moments following risky sex, insert one non-chewable Vitamin- C tablet (ideally a 500 milligram tablet) into your vagina. The acidity will change the pH-balance in your vagina and prevent sperm from staying alive. Insert 1 or 2 1 ablets every 12 hours for 3 days. Also take high doses of vitamin C orally (ideally 500 milligrams per hour, or 6000 milligrams per day).

If this method causes vaginal burning or irritation, try inserting a teaspoon of plain natural yogurt (unpasturized and containing live lactobacilli) into your vagina. Insert yogurt up to 3 or 4 times a day for 5 to 10 days, depending on how severe the irritation is. Wear a pad, because the yogurt will flow out. This is also a good treatment for yeast infections.

Method #2: Wild carrot seed (also known as Queen Anne’s Lace) can prevent a fertilized egg from attaching to the uterine wall, thereby avoiding pregnancy. Take 1 teaspoon of seeds every day, starting at the time of ovulation or immediately after risky sex that happens while you are fertile. You can chew on the seeds, swallow them with water or juice, or swallow them in capsules. Some people take the seeds for a week, while others keep taking them until menstruation begins. Be sure to use seeds that have not been chemically treated, as this may destroy their effectiveness. You may be able to pick it yourself, as ii grows wild in many places, but be careful because it’s easy to confuse it with poison hemlock, which can kill you. Wild carrot seed roots can also be made into tea as a diuretic useful in treating urinarv stones and worms.

How to Bring Menstruation

..if you think you might be pregnant and don’t want to be

An Easy Method

This treatment lasts for 3 days. It is cheap and has no known side effects. It is not recommended for use on a regular basis or as a method of contraception. It’s less effective for people who regularly lake high doses of Vitamin C. and you shouldn’t use it if you have kidney problems. If it works, you will start to bleed within 2 or 3 days.

1. Insert a sprig of fresh parsley as far into your vagina as you can. Change the parsley every 12 hours. It might be tricky to remove the parsley when it’s soft, but it’s not dangerous.

2. Drink parsley infusions.

To make an infusion, put 2 ounces of parsley (use the whole plant) into a mason jar and pour 4–5 cups of boiling water over it (I oz. plant material to 2–3 cups water). Leave as little air space as possible and screw the lid on tightly. Let it steep for 4–6 hours. Strain when it is ready Infusions cun he preserved in the fridge for 2–3 days in tightly capped jars. Don’t ever boil them. Take 2–6 tablespoons 4 times a day.

1. Take high doses of Vitamin C, about 500 milligrams per hour (6000 milligrams per day) for up to 6 days. Vitamin C is very effective at bringing on menstruation, and you can begin taking it orally immediately after unsafe sex. Be aware that Vitamin C can also lessen menstrual flow, so if you take a lot of it when you’re not pregnant your period might be very light.

2. If you have cramps, take ginger infusions. Making a ginger infusion is like making a parsley infusion. Grate a large amount of ginger and pour boiling waler over it, then let it steep for 30–60 minutes.

2 Emmenagogue Recipes

The following 2 recipes use more concentrated combinations of herbs and are designed to induce a miscarriage. They are not to be used as contraceptives. They do not work every time, but you have a pretty good chance if you arc aware of your menstrual cycle and are able to use the herbs exactly as indicated.
cannot begin using them before the end of your menstrual cycle (the night before you expect to get your period). They work by encouraging uterine contractions and thereby encouraging menstrual flow, which means that the fertilized egg has to have attached lo the uterine wall for them to eliminate it. The egg is fertilized when you’re ovulating (this is usually a few weeks before your period), but doesn’t attach to the uterine wall until later.

In addition to causing uterine contractions, these herbs can cause dizziness, nausea, and/or vomiting. Get lots of rest, and cat lightly if you feel nauseous. The side effects are more advanced if the pregnancy is farther along. Don’t begin this treatment more than 6 days after a missed period.

Keep in mind that if these herbs do not cause an abortion, they will harm the embryo. You may want to have a pregnancy lest within the first 6 days of beginning treatment, and you may also want to schedule an appointment for an abortion (you can cancel it if the herbs work).

Having an abortion can be a physically and emotionally intense experience. Be sure that you have a trusted friend around to be with you and support you. It’s also a good idea to find someone you trust who knows something about herbal medicine and can help be sure the herbs are being used properly.

Use only one of the following recipes, not both. You will probably begin menstruating within 48 hours. You can add honey to make it taste better.

Motherwort, mugwort, goldenseal root, blue cohosh root, fresh ginger root. If you can’t find mugwort, you can substitute pennyroyal. Don’t use pennyroyal oil, because it is toxic.

1. Infuse: 1/2 ounce of motherwort and 1/2 ounce of mugwort (14 grams or a medium-sized handful of each), in 2 or 3 cups of water. How you do this is boil the water and pour it over the herbs (don’t boil the herbs in the waler). Sleep covered on low heat for 20 minutes and strain.

2. Make a decoction of 1 ounce (28 grams) of blue cohosh root in 2 cups of cold water. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes

(covered) and strain.

1. Mix the infusion from step 1 and the decoction from step 2 together.

Dosage: Drink hot, 1/4 cup. 4–5 times per day. or drink a total of 1 and 1 /2 cups per day, taking a small amount every hour.

Also take 2 goldenseal root capsules 3 times a day; chew on fresh ginger and/or drink ginger infusions.

Emmenagogue Recipe #2

Ingredients:

1. tablespoons dried blue cohosh root

2. tablespoons dried pennyroyal leaves (NOT pennyroyal oil)

2 tablespoons dried tansy leaves and flowers (or leaves from the plant in flower)

Put the blue cohosh root in 6 cups of water and bring it to a boil. As soon as it boils, add the remaining herbs, cover, and remove from heat. Let it steep for at least 30 minutes. Strain out the herbs and reheat (do not boil) before using. Dosage: 1 cup. as hot as possible, every 3 to 4 hours for no more than 5 days. Drinking this recipe while sitting in a hot bath increases its effectiveness.

You can take ginger infusions or eat fresh ginger to help with cramps.

Even though complications are very, very rare, if you experience any of the following symptoms after using one of these recipes, go to the hospital immediately: extremely severe nausea, very high fever (103–104 degrees F), hemorrhaging (soaking through more than 2 pads an hour for over 4 hours). In the case of an incomplete miscarriage (indicated by passing large blood clots and/or hemorrhage), a D&C (dilation and curettage, or scraping of the uterine wall) may be necessary.

THE URBAN HERBAL — COMFREY, MULLEIN, AND BENZOIN

WITH DAMIAN KEMP

Big Hairy Comfrey

Comfrey is a big hairy plant. It’s great. Damned useful plant. Rabbits love it. (As well they should) Also known as knitbone, comfrey does just that, making it truly Unique in the herb world. So much so that I mention it despite its being Che most potentially harmful plant yet. The thing about comfrey is that its roots contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids, which are bad. Don’t use comfrey in large amounts, or the roots in any amount. Okay? Okay. That said, teas and leaf tinctures, as well as salves, plasters, and all other external applications of comfrey leaves, stalks, and flowers are still generally considered safe. Since there is some potential risk with frequent use, I’m just going to focus on good one-time uses, like, for instance, broken bones. Comfrey is, as I mentioned, famous for broken bones. Conferva, the latin origin of “comfrey”, means “rejoin”. This may be related to the old belief that if you boiled a bunch of chunks of flesh in a pot with comfrey, they’d all grow together. Just consider the medical applications. Oh yes. They used to laugh at me back at the academy. But who’s laughing now? Torches are useless against its many hides! Pitchforks do nothing! Frolic, my beautiful creation, frolic! Mwahahahaha!

Besides nasty root alkaloids, comfrey also contains allantoin, which directly promotes cell proliferation. Allantoin is also found in the milk of nursing mothers, and in the fetal allantois. The result is our friend knitbone. For breaks, fractures, even sprains, knitbone is the thing to use. Comfrey also helps other wounds heal, including cuts, sores, burns, and even swollen tissue, and has a number of other uses, but there are plenty of things that also have these effects and are less harmful. The best way to identify comfrey is to look for a plant that feels fuzzy like a closely shaved head, with an angular stem and drooping clumps of flowers. Comfrey’s flower clusters are scorpioid, or curved like a scorpion’s tail. They come in floppy, hanging hooklike bunches, each bunch consisting of two rows of about five flowers each.

Lots of old European remedies began with a decoction of comfrey, dock, and plantain. Since we’re avoiding overuse of comfrey, it might make more sense to decoct dock and plantain for general use (burns, cuts, stings), and keep comfrey around specifically for the repair of

slow-to-heal tissue. A comfrey poultice (mashed comfrey in cheesecloth) wrapped around a sprained ankle will speed healing considerably. A decoction of dock and plantain is only slightly more complicated.

A Decoction (of Dock and Plantain): You will need one pot

1 to 1 1/2 pints of water per ounce of roots plantain roots dock roots

So...decoctions...an infusion is just herbs in hot water, and a decoction is an infusion that’s been boiled down. However much water you use, boil it till most of it is gone. This decoction is a standard starting point because it’s so universal, and for the same reason it’s also very useful as is. It’ll help heal internal damage like deep bruises if drunk. Applied directly (soak a rag in it) it will kick the ass of wounds, rashes, bruises, burns, and stings. Add selfheal roots to make it more effective against sores and bruises, or Oregon grape root to add antibacterial power. It can also be made into a salve by combining it with oil and melted wax, and slowly cooking the water completely off. Needless to say this, as well as the decoction process tn general, requiren uxtnndod supervision. Finally, you may have noticed that the recipe abovi calls for coots, which 1 normally don’t even mention. Like most plants, two Nave similar profwrr t en Iff 1f’ root n a:

their rpots having a stronger effect but being considerably harder to ingest. However, If you’re going to boil something for a while, you may an well boil a root. The same principle applies to tinctures, and I recommend roots in tinctures too, for most plants (with the obvious exception of comfrey) .

Big Resinous Benzoin

(Gum) benioirt or (gum) benjamin is a resin that comes from several trees in the genus Styraf* These are evergreens with gray, resinous bark and gray leaves. The resin is used in a fashion very similarly to mullein to treat coughs, colds, mouth sores, and sore throats, and pretty much any other kind of respiratory tract infection. Like mullein, benzoin may also have some sedative effect. The only thing about benzoin is that it bums for [}^.KIZ.OLKI shit. As I mentioned, benzoin is tree resin, usually in powder form, so although it’s best burnt lil pretty damned.hard to burn. Kinda melts and smoulders. The good thing about benzoin is that you can mix it with mullein io make a pastille, which is a solid chunk of medicinal incense, like a pill or a little cone. Mix together mullein and benzOin powder, or just use mullein, add a little bit of water, and form the resultant paste into a cone. Dry it in the toaster oven or just leave it out, and burn it when your household gets coughy.

So where do 1 go to find benzoin, Damian?, Er, in Styrax trees of course. And where do I find those, Damian? Um, Indonesia. So, the condition on this one is that it’s not an urban herb at all. 1 mean, maybe in Sumatra it would be, but not in the Pacific Northwest. At all. With the notable exception of the insides of stores. That’s right, I’m telling you to buy something. Mrs. Thompson’s herb store has it, as will other pristine stozelands in the Willamette valley I’m sure. So search for this dried resin powder on the insides of stores, and bring some fucking money, because you are a capitalist whore. That, or be content to burn benzoinless pastilles like a schmuck. Seriously, though, mullein works just fine.

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