December is Human Rights Month.
Black Alliance for Peace is petitioning for US Africa Command (AFRICOM) to be abolished: www.change.org/p/house-armed-services-committee-put-an-end-to-the-u-s-africa-command-africom (in 6 languages).
Annual Haw River Assembly Holiday Sale
Support this conservation group by buying a t-shirt, books, etc. during this sale December 3 - 21st (weekdays 10am - 4pm, and Saturday, December 8th and 10th 10am - 2pm, but call 919 542 5790 beforehand to make sure someone will be there) at the HRA's office (143 Bynum Church Road).
Solar Panel Leasing in North Carolina
Last year House Bill 589 Competitive Energy Solutions for North Carolina was passed, allowing the leasing of solar panels and making some Duke Energy customers (residential, commercial, and non-profit) eligible for NC Solar Rebates through 2022. October 15th Eagle Solar and Light became the first company licensed by the NC Utilities Commission to do solar leasing in the State.
Cool Congregations Challenge
December 15th is the deadline for religious groups to join Interfaith Power and Light's annual Cool Congregations Challenge, a chance for religious groups doing work on climate change or sustainability to get recognition and a $1000 dollar prize ( www.coolcongregations.org/ ).
Library booksales
The last Friends of the Durham Library book sale of the year will be December 1 - 2 (10am - 12pm is members only on the 1st, and 12 - 4pm is open to all; the 2nd is a bag sale, from 1 - 4pm) at the usual Northgate Mall location ( durhamcountylibrary.org/friends/ ).
The sales in 2019 will be February 2 - 3, April 6 - 7, June 1 - 2, August 3 - 4, October 5 - 6, and December 7 - 8, and the hours for all of these sales will be 10am - 12pm members only and 12 - 4pm open to all on Saturdays and 1 - 4pm $10 paper grocery bag sales open to all on Sundays.
The Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library will have a sale December 7 - 9th. December 7th is 3 - 5:30pm and for members only (I think people can join at the door, as they can at the FODL sales above), December 8th is 10am - 5:30pm, and the bag sale December 9th is 11am - 3pm. There will also be a Holiday Sip and Shop event, free for members and guests, December 7th 7 - 9pm with wine, appetizers, and dessert. Next year there will be sales April 5 - 7, September 13 - 15, and December 6 -8 ( friendschpl.org/FCHPLevents ). I wonder if the CHPL has become more rightist or less open to the community (such as free newspapers) since it was renovated and even the Durham County Library's branches, while offering many amenities, often seem more impersonal and unconnected to the community than their older incarnations, sometimes in rented commercial buildings.
The Wake County Public Libraries' Annual Book Sale will be at the State Fairgrounds around May.
Rendition Revisted and NCCIT
Part one of the Al Jazeera documentary Rendition Revisited, covering North Carolina's role in the extraordinary rendition and torture programs and the NC Commission of Inquiry on Torture (www.nccit.org), will be broadcast November 28th and streamed online at: www.aljazeera.com/programmes/peopleandpower/
The NCCIT will brief members of Congress and their staff in Washington December 5 - 6th, and will present a former military interrogator and a doctor who treated survivors of the CIA torture program, and could use donations. This is the Commission's last official event.
Russian Marxist Georgi Plekhanov was born November 29, 1856 and was upheld as a founder of the Russian Marxist movement, but was an opponent of the Bolsheviks.
In the Sand Creek Massacre, starting November 29, 1864, Federal soldiers attacked peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho villagers camped along Big Sandy Creek in what is now Colorado (where they had asked them to gather, displaying a US flag and a white flag), killing about 230 Indians, predominantly women, children, and elders, as well as committing torture and mutilation, before leaving the area December 1st. Some soldiers refused to attack the village, but the perpetrators received little punishment and no criminal prosecution (from Wikipedia as well as www.nps.gov/sand/learn/historyculture/index.htm ).
Mark Twain (Samuel L Clemens), acclaimed author as well as vice president of the American Anti-Imperialist League, was born November 30, 1835 in Florida, Missouri.
Rendition and torture discussed on The State of Things
WUNC 91.5FM's program The State of Things ( www.wunc.org/programs/state-things#stream/0 )will look at the US government's recent torture program Friday, November 30th (12 - 1pm Friday and broadcast again Saturday, December 1st at 6am, otherwise it would be re-aired the same day at 8pm). Guests will include Joe Margulies, a defense attorney, and Dr Kate Porterfield, who treated survivors, some with connections to the NC component of the program [this program might have been moved to a different date].
Toxins in the Kitchen: A Practical Guide to Safer Food
Rob Coffin and Elizabeth Miller will talk about toxins that get into the food supply, especially Roundup (or glyphosate, a common herbicide invented by Monsanto, to which GMO crops are immune) and BPA (Bisphenol A, a common endocrine disrupting chemical used in cans, receipts, and many other everyday items and spread into recycled materials), and show an excerpt from Bill Moyers' documentary Trade Secrets Friday, November 30th at 6:30 at the Ecolounge in Durham (2811 Hillsborough Road; communecos.org/recyclique-shop/ ). There will be light refreshments and there is a suggested donation of $5 dollars, but it is not required to attend.
December 1st is World AIDS Day, the first global health day ( www.worldaidsday.org/about/ )
Waste Not : Living the Low Carbon Life
Learn about the connections between greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the soil, food waste, and how to have a positive impact at this conference Saturday, December 1st 9am - 2pm at the Church of the Good Shepherd in downtown Raleigh (125 Hillsborough Street). For more information and registration, see: www.zerowastechurch.org/2018/11/21/save-the-date/ and www.eventbrite.com/e/waste-not-living-the-low-carbon-life-tickets-47025647979?aff=efbeventtix
Durham Tree Giveaway 2018!
Keep Durham Beautiful will give 250 free tree seedlings to residents of Durham, one per person, December 1st 1:30 - 4:30pm. People can reserve their tree, but it is also first come, first served ( keepdurhambeautiful.org/events/ ). Several businesses will offer specials to people who have a receipt from KDB and a selfie with their planted tree. The event will be in East Durham Children's Initiative's parking lot (2101Angier Avenue).
Peace With Iran Summit 2018
Discuss the situation and how to oppose the Trump Administrations sanctions and push for a major war with Iran Saturday, December 1st 9am - 5pm at the First Congregational United Church of Christ (945 G Street NW in Washington, DC. Registration is on a sliding scale, $100 to $10 dollars. Organized by CODEPINK, with many cosponsors. For more information, see www.codepink.org/iransummit or www.facebook.com/events/390712754800268/
Help pull English ivy in Greensboro
The Triad Chapter of the NC Native Plant Society and the Pearson chapter of the NC Audubon Society are organizing a cleanup of invasive English ivy in a bog garden in Greensboro (along the Nell Lewis Trail) Saturday, December 1st 9:30am - 12pm, meeting at the Starmount Farms Drive entrance. The site is a slope and participants might want to bring food, water, work gloves, and a shovel. For more information, email annwf7 at gmail period com.
Remembering Bolin Forest
Friends of Bolin Creek is organizing a memorial for the 40 acres of Bolin Forest being clear-cut in Orange County on Sunday, December 2nd 4 - 5pm in Smith Middle School's auditorium (9201 Seawell School Road, Chapel Hill) for people to share their memories, followed by a candlelight/flashlight walk and silent vigil at the entrance to the Chapel Hill North Woods, 5 - 5:30pm]. The Paperhand Puppets will also be there. For more information see: bolincreek.org/blog/join-us-at-the-vigil/
Important hearings at the Durham City Council meeting December 3rd
Among other things, there will be a quasi-judicial hearing (meaning comments are sworn testimony with cross-examination and so can't be sent in before the meeting) on the Durham Public Schools Elementary School C Major Site Plan (D1600105), for a 86,325 square foot, two-story facility on 17.70 acres of the 46.30 acre site on the south side of Scott King Road near its east end at Grandale Road. There is also an attendant Special Use Permit (M1800003) and Transportation Special Use Permit (T1600001). There was an uproar over plans for residential construction (Scott Mill) at this former homestead or farm, bordering a large area of forested Jordan Lake Gamelands along Northeast Creek and near the American Tobacco Trail several years ago, so a deal was made to use it for a school instead. There was a small two-story house, seemingly self-built, and a small dark-colored farmpond with bladderworts in the center, and another house nearby. Some of the land is cleared and crossed by powerline and gas pipeline corridors, and the soil seems very poor or degraded, but there are still rare sights around the edges. On the edges of the site there are what seem to be pink ladyslipper orchids and milk-vetch, and there have been indigo buntings and something like a whippoorwill was nesting, so it is more than just eroded and exhausted former farmland, and the DPS doesn't seem to have taken this into consideration in its plans. Building a school there might be a good use of the site, if something has to be built there, but was it planned with due consideration for the ecological value of the site? Scott King Road can also be dangerous and needs work.
There will also be a hearing on rezoning for a Rail Operations and Maintenance Facility (ROMF) for the light rail project. The Durham People's Alliance is mobilizing people to attend in support of the ROMF rezoning and asking people to email Duke President Vincent Price, asking that Duke support the project. The meeting will start at 7pm at City Hall ( durhamnc.gov/AgendaCenter ).
The first Plowshares direct action disarmament in Europe and 7th in all was December 4, 1983. Carl Kabat, one of the Plowshare Eight defendants from the first action, in Pennsylvania, and Herwig Jantschik, Dr Wolfgang Sternstein, and Karin Vix of Germany cut through a fence at a US Army base in Schwabisch-Gmund, West Germany and damaged a Pershing II missile launcher. The deployment of these American intermediate-range nuclear missiles in West Germany was apparently very unpopular and they no longer exist, thanks to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, which Trump wants to withdraw from (Russia and China support the INF Treaty). Kabat left the country while the three Germans were charged with trespassing, attempted sabotage, and destruction of property. The defendants had the option of imprisonment or fines, so Jantschik was imprisoned for 90 days, Vix for 60 days, and Dr Sternstein paid 1800 Deutsche Marks. Similar direct actions are still going on today. See Swords Into Plowshares: Nonviolent Direct Action for Disarmament, edited by Arthur J Laffin and Anne Montgomery, published in 1987.
24 Hours of Reality
This streamed documentary on the impact of climate change on human health around the world will start with the USA December 3rd at 9pm, gets to Europe at 9am on the 4th, and will look at this country again on the 4th at 7 - 9pm. It is online at: www.24hoursofreality.org
Monthly Earth Justice Potluck and film
This event will be December 4th, with a potluck meal at 6pm and a showing of the documentary HOPE [Healing Of Planet Earth] What You Eat Matters, which looks at the food system in Europe, India, and the USA, from 6:30 - 8pm. Apparently there are potentially disturbing descriptions and video of the way animals are treated in industrial agriculture. This will be at the Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship's fellowship hall (4907 Garrett Road, Durham); for more information contact jonsheline at gmail period com.
Consider This ... Artificial Intelligence
There will be a panel discussion on economic, legal, and ethical aspects of artificial intelligence and machined learning Tuesday, December 4th 6:30 - 8pm at the Friday Conference Center (100 Friday Center Drive, left/south off of NC 54 going into Chapel Hill from Durham). There might not be a working class perspective offered, but if advances in computing and robotics occur as predicted, especially under capitalist economic relations, artificial intelligence will be a major problem for the working class and all of humanity in the 21st century. On the other hand maybe advances are being exaggerated for corporate purposes and something with general human capabilities won't be invented anytime soon or ever. This is a public and free event organized by the UNC General Alumni Association. For more information or registration, see: alumni.unc.edu/events/consider-this-artificial-intelligence/
Soviet Constitution Day was December 5th from 1936 until 1977, when a new constitution was promulgated (October 7th, the more recent Soviet Constitution Day).
Imprisoned Japanese anti-imperialist Tsutomu Shirosaki was born December 5, 1947 in Toyoma, Japan. A few years ago he was released from US custody, but is now finishing a previous prison sentence somewhere in Japan. It might be possible to write to prisoners in Japan, but I haven't come across any information about where he is being held. For background, see a previous post ( durhamspark.blogspot.com/2015/01/tsutomu-shirosaki-japanese-anti.html ) and denverabc.wordpress.com/prisoners-dabc-supports/political-prisoners-database/tsutomu-shirosaki/ . If there is any news, it would probably be posted at: throwoutyourbooks.wordpress.com/tag/tsutomu-shirosaki/
Monthly tours of the South Wake Landfill and Sonoco Recycling Facility
There will be free one hour tours of these facilities near Apex once a month from December through May on Wednesdays or Saturdays (and private tours for groups with 5 to 14 people can be arranged). The December tour will be Wednesday, the 5th at 9:30am. For more information and registration see: www.wakegov.com/recycling/outreach/Pages/tours.aspx
Wild Ideas for Tomorrow, Today
Organized by the Triangle Land Conservancy, 5 speakers will each give 5 minute presentations on 5 issues in land conservation in the Triangle region, such as local population trends and climate change. There will also be an expo featuring related organizations and businesses. The next event will be Wednesday, December 5th 5:30 - 8pm at The Frontier at RTP (800 Park Office Drive in RTP 27709). For more information and registration, see: www.triangleland.org/explore/wild-ideas
Conserving North Carolina's Imperiled Plants
Lesley Starke, Plant Biologist of the NC Plant Conservation Program, will talk about what this program is doing to conserve rare or threatened plants and their habitats, in this free Lunchbox Talk Thursday, December 6th 12 - 1pm at the NC Botanical Garden. For more information and registration, see: ncbg.unc.edu/calendar/
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
The Japanese Empire attacked the US Navy base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii December 7, 1941. Apparently National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day isn't new, but this is the first year I noticed it on a calendar. There have been charges that FDR allowed the attack to happen so he would have a justification to officially enter WWII. Before the attack the US was pressuring Japan economically. The Trump Administration might have a similar plan today, to put so much pressure on Iran that they react militarily, giving Trump an excuse for the war he and many others in Washington seem to want. During WWII both the US and Canada put ethnic Japanese citizens in concentration camps, at least in the case of the US, continuing a West Coast tradition of racism against people of East Asian ancestry (for example, see: www.counterpunch.org/2018/11/27/the-dark-side-of-the-new-deal-fdr-and-the-japanese-americans/ ).
NC Green Party 2018 Statewide Fall/Winter Gathering and Celebration
The NC Green Party's annual meeting will be December 7 - 9 [moved to January 11 - 13th due to an early and heavy snowstorm] at The Seedbed (6602 Nicks Road, Mebane, just inside Alamance County from Orange County). The meeting is free and open to all supporters, though voting is limited to people who have paid dues and donations are welcome. The Seedbed has some space for people to stay overnight Friday and Saturday. There will a celebration and music December 7th starting at 7pm and there will be meetings (plus meals) December 8th 9am - 5pm and December 9th 10am - 3pm. For more information or to RSVP, see: ncgreenparty.nationbuilder.com/2018_fall_gathering
Durham's annual Holiday Parade will be Saturday, December 8th [starting at 10am], and includes contingents from Keep Durham Beautiful and other organizations. www.dprplaymore.org/309/Holiday-Parade-and-Fun-Fest
The Chapel Hill Holiday Parade will also be December 8th, 10am - 12pm [rain or shine] ( www.chapelhillholidayparade.com/ ).
Saxapahaw Holiday Market
This event at the Haw River Ballroom (1711 Saxapahaw-Bethlehem Church Road, Saxapahaw, in Chatham County) December 8 - 9th will offer local art and handicrafts and there will be food and live music. It will be 9am - 6pm on the 8th and 10am - 5pm on the 9th.
Winter Seed Share and Social
The Southern Piedmont Chapter of the NC Native Plant Society's Winter Seed Share and Social will be Sunday, December 9th at 2pm at the Reedy Creek Nature Center (2900 Rocky River Road, Charlotte), and is free and open to the public. Participants are asked to "bring a sweet or savory snack to share." For the seed share, bring clean seeds of plants native to the Southeast, with labelled their common and scientific names. Coin envelopes will be offered, up to 10 per person, and each can contain about 1 teaspoon. People can receive seeds even if they don't have any to share.
Donations to NCNPS on Giving Tuesday next week and during the last few weeks of the year will go to grants and scholarships ( ncwildflower.org/about/grants_and_scholarships ).
Human Rights Day is December 10th, marking the UN General Assembly's adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 ( www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/index.html ). There are some related events below.
From NC Stop Torture Now:
"
CALL-IN FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, Monday, Dec. 10, 2018: No More North Carolina Torture Taxis!
Please call or send a message to AG Josh Stein and Gov. Roy Cooper -- Sample Message:
Today, Dec. 10, is International Human Rights Day. Please take action in response to the report from the North Carolina Commission of Inquiry on Torture (NCCIT), which your staff have had for weeks. At least 49 human beings were flown to torture by aircraft based in Smithfield and Kinston. Supporting torture has left a stain on our reputation, and hurt our national security.
Make a public statement. Work with other law enforcement officials in our state to start an investigation of Aero Contractors. Acknowledge North Carolina’s role and take steps for transparency and accountability. Otherwise, our state may continue to play a role in torture.
Enforce state, federal, and international law. Stop hosting Aero at our public airports. Torture is always wrong. Don’t let North Carolina be home to “torture taxis.”
ATTORNEY GENERAL JOSH STEIN
North Carolina Department of Justice
GOVERNOR ROY COOPER
Twitter: @NC_Governor
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NCgovernor/
Background
North Carolina still hosts the CIA-affiliated Aero Contractors at the Johnston County Airport. The 2018 report from the NC Commission of Inquiry on Torture lists 48 men and one woman who were rendered to torture aboard Aero jets. See “Torture Flights: North Carolina’s Role in the CIA Rendition and Torture Program” (www.nctorturereport.org).
Governor Cooper and Attorney General Stein have had the report for weeks. It outlines how they can and should investigate Aero and end the era of “torture taxis” in North Carolina.
Does Aero continue to help the CIA violate human rights? We don’t know. And top U.S. government officials have defended or even helped lead the torture program. Over 40 prisoners still languish without rights at Guantanamo."
Chapel Hill activist calendar events:
"Four Civil/Human Rights Actions/Events in Triangle December 10 to 15, 2018
DURHAM POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY, WHERE ARE WE NOW? Speaker Dawn Blagrove, Executive Director, Carolina Justice Center. 1:15 - 2:15 p.m., Monday, December 10, Carol Woods Assembly Hall, 750 Weaver Dairy Road, Chapel Hill. Presented by Forum for Peace and Justice, judybellin [at] gmail [period] com. Submitted by Peace & Justice Committee
The DPRK launched its Kwangmyŏngsŏng [Bright Star or Lodestar]-3 Unit 2 Earth observation satellite into polar orbit December 11, 2012, making it one of the few countries able to independently carry out activities in space. There is tracking information online at www.heavens-above.com if you want to look for it.
Balance and Accuracy in Journalism
Below is BAJ's announcement email for this meeting featuring a censored Al-Jazeera documentary on Israeli meddling in British politics, to overthrow Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbin, who seems to be far more progressive, at least on foreign policy and militarism, than just about any US Democratic politician at the national level (thus many in the UK are trying to get rid of him, I think even including threats of a coup if he were to become prime minister):
December 13, 1980 Peter De Mott damaged the USS Florida (SSBN-728), an Ohio-class submarine originally equipped with Trident nuclear missiles, just before it was launched at the General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyard in Groton, Connecticut. DeMott was a member of Jonah House in Baltimore, Maryland and a former seminarian and Vietnam veteran. During the launch ceremony for the USS Baltimore (SSN-704), a Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine, DeMott came upon a security van left unlocked and with its keys in the ignition, and spontaneously used it to dent the USS Florida's rudder. He was convicted of criminal mischief and criminal trespass and was imprisoned for one year (Swords Into Plowshares). According to Wikipedia, the USS Florida launched cruise missiles to disable air defenses at the start of Obama's war on Libya in 2011, the first military action by that submarine or any of its sister ships. For more on DeMott see: www.commondreams.org/news/2009/02/21/peace-activist-peter-demott-dead-after-fall and www.ncronline.org/blogs/road-peace/committed-life-peter-demott
MERI: Stop the detention of Aboulie Sowe!
A press conference by the Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia demanding that Abdoulie Sowe from Raleigh be freed from ICE detention, has been rescheduled due to the snow to Thursday, December 13th, 4 - 6pm at the Terry Sanford Federal Building in Raleigh ( 310 New Bern Avenue ). He is from an immigrant from The Gambia, but has lived in Raleigh for over 25 years and is the primary breadwinner for his family, including 3 children, and his youngest daughter (6 years old) has special needs. He has kidney disease, diabetes, and hypertension, and has been hospitalized once while in detention and could die because of inadequate treatment if deported. People are being asked to contact Congressman David Price, Senator Thom Tillis, and Sean Gallagher, the director of the ICE office in Atlanta (404 893 1206) to ask that Sowe be given a stay of removal and that his medical treatment in detention be investigated (see: southernvision.ourpowerbase.net/civicrm/mailing/view?reset=1&id=547 and MERI's website is: merinc.org/ .
Koryo Tours Christmas Party and Winter Sale
If you're in Beijing, China this week you can join the Christmas Party at Koryo Tours' office at 27 Bei Sanlitun East Courtyard (next to Yashow Market), Chaoyang District, Dongzhimen, Beijing 100027 Thursday, December 13th 16:00 - 20:00. Hear from Nick Bronner, who made the BBC documentary Crossing the Line, on US personnel who defected to the DPRK. There is also a winter sale, with hand-painted posters from the DPRK, starting at 400 RMB. They are also offering a discount at www.nkshop.org/ and nknews.org is offering a discount at the same online store. Koryo Tours offers various trips to the DPRK, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and other ex-Soviet republics in Central Asia, and Russia. For more information see koryogroup.com/ or call +86 10 6416 7544
Secrecy and the Slaughterhouse talk
UNC Religious Studies PhD candidate Joanna Smith will discuss the connections between animal sacrifice in religion and the practices in modern meat production Friday, December 14th at 6:30 at the Ecolounge in Durham (2811 Hillsborough Road; communecos.org/recyclique-shop/ ). There is a suggested donation of $5 dollars, but it is not required to attend.
Muntadhar al Zaidi threw his shoes at George W Bush December 14, 2008 in Baghdad, among other things saying "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq!"
Bill of Rights Day is December 15th (the US Bill of Rights was ratified December 15, 1791). Durham City and County used to make annual proclamations for December 15th, thanks to a campaign by the Durham Bill of Rights Committee, but that might not be done now. The DBORDC no longer exists, but there might still be an Orange County BORDC, and there is a national organization (it changed names in 2016): rightsanddissent.org/news/bill-rights-day-celebrate-mobilize-remember/
Orange County's annual reading of the Bill of Rights will be December 15th at noon at Peace and Justice Plaza (in front of the post office at the corner of Franklin Street and Henderson Street, across from UNC.
December 15, 1970 the Soviet space probe Venera 7 (Venus 7) was the first human spacecraft to land on another planet and send telemetry, confirming that Venus is a hell of runaway greenhouse warming, sulfuric acid, and crushing atmospheric pressure, rather than a pleasant and watery, cloud-covered world.
Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi setting himself on fire in protest outside a government office in Tunisia December 17, 2010, setting in motion the protest movement that overthrew authoritarian President Ben Ali January 14, 2011 and spread to other countries, becoming the Arab Spring. Bouazizi was left comatose and died January 4, 2011. Many others in Tunisia and a few people in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Europe set themselves on fire in similar acts of protest in early 2011.
In Operation Linebacker II the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was heavily bombed (with about the same explosive force as the two nuclear bombs used on Japan) from December 18th to 29th in 1972, hitting a hospital, residential areas, dikes, electrical facilities, etc. and killing over one to two thousand civilians just weeks before the Paris Peace Accords were signed ( revcom.us/a/574/american-crime-case-number-34-1972-christmas-bombings-of-north-vietnam-en.html ).
George HW Bush attacked Panama December 20, 1989, resulting in hundreds to thousands of civilian deaths, including American civilians and a Spanish journalist. Poor neighborhoods were burned and demolished, thousands were deprived of work, and churches, embassies, unions, and other institutions were violated by searches and seizures ( revcom.us/a/540/american-crime-case-43-the-US-invasion-of-panama-1989-1990-en.html ). The war also allowed the US government to test new weapons, including the Humvee, AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, and F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter.
Georgian revolutionary and Soviet statesman Joseph Stalin was born December 21, 1879 or 1878 in Gori, Republic of Georgia, then part of the Russian Empire.
Thomas Sankara, born December 21, 1949, was President of Burkina Faso from 1983 until he was assassinated October 15, 1987, and is known as Africa's Che Guevara.
December 21st is the winter solstice.
Sen Katayama, co-founder of the Japanese Communist Party and an official in the Comintern, was born December 26, 1859. He was also one of the first members of the CPUSA and is buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.
Chinese revolutionary and statesman Mao Zedong (or Tsetung) was born December 26, 1893 in Hunan Province.
December 26, 1862, following the Dakota War, 38 Dakota or Dakota Sioux were hung, the largest mass execution in US history. 303 Dakota were convicted of murder or rape, some in trials lasting less than 5 minutes, and without defense attorneys, but Lincoln commuted 264 prisoners and one more received a reprieve. They were buried in a mass grave, possibly after skin was taken from some of the bodies, and graverobbers later stole some of the bodies for anatomy specimens. Except for a group that helped the American settlers, the rest of the Dakota lost their reservation and were exiled from Minnesota over the next few months, and many died during the journey. Any Dakota found in Minnesota could be killed for a bounty of $25 dollars. The unrelated Ho-chunk tribe was also expelled. Some Dakota remained in Minnesota or returned 20 years later.
The USSR intervened in Afghanistan December 27, 1979, killing President Hafizullah Amin, accused of conspiring with the CIA, and installing Babrak Karmal. The Afghan government had previously requested additional Soviet military support, but obviously not the overthrow of the Khalq faction of the People's Democractic Party of Afghanistan, in favor of Karmal's Parcham faction. The US and other countries were materially supporting Afghan Islamists before December 1979, later leading to the creation of al-Qaida, the Taliban, the Afghan branch of ISIS, and fueling the civil wars that destroyed Afghanistan. Getting involved in Afghanistan was also disastrous for the USSR. During this period the US, UK, China, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt aided anti-government forces, often brutal Islamic fundamentalists and warlords, though there were also Maoists.
Israel attacked Gaza from December 27, 2008 to January 18, 2009 (Operation Cast Lead), killing or displacing thousands of Palestinians, mostly civilians, while 10 Israeli soldiers were killed, four by friendly fire, and rockets fired by various armed resistance groups killed three Israeli civilians and injured or scared hundreds. Israel was accused of using white phosphorus as a weapon, as well as depleted uranium, and birth defects and blood cancer became more common after the war. Palestinian civilians were used as human shields, Israeli soldiers robbed homes, etc. though there was some prosecution in Israel later. Agricultural, fisheries, and humanitarian aid facilities, universities, schools, mosques, hospitals, and civilian shelters were damaged or destroyed, including the UN Relief and Works Agency headquarters in Gaza City where tons of food, medicine, and fuel for refugee relief was stored (hit by white phosphorus munitions, and the chemical fires could not be extinguished). As in Yemen today, much of this was done with American weapons, which supposedly are not to be used to commit war crimes. December 29th a Free Gaza ship carrying relief supplies, doctors, journalists, and others, including former Congresswoman and Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney was intercepted by the Israeli navy. Free Gaza says their ship was in international waters when shots were fired and it was rammed after refusing to turn back. Another Free Gaza ship was intercepted January 15th. The Gaza War was followed by a joint Israeli and Egyptian blockade. At the time, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said "We support Israel, very strongly as a national policy, because it is in our national interest to do so" (and the Democratic Party still has this in its platform, as well as an "undivided" Jerusalem that is the capital of Israel, giving Israel state of the art weapons, and condemnation of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement: democrats.org/about/party-platform/#middle-east ). In June 2010 Chuck Schumer endorsed Israel's policy of collective punishment, saying "...since the Palestinians in Gaza elected Hamas, while certainly there should be humanitarian aid and people not starving to death, to strangle them economically until they see that's not the way to go, makes sense." He also said Hamas was waging "total war." Pelosi and Schumer both have long advocated moving the US embassy in Israel to disputed Jerusalem. In the summer of 2008 and again in 2013 Obama went to southern Israel and said war is justified over rockets fired from Gaza, while doing little to end the suffering of the Palestinian people ( revcom.us/a/574/american-crime-case-30-us-armed-backed-massacre-in-gaza-en.html and Wikipedia).
The Wounded Knee Massacre was December 29, 1890 in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. US soldiers went to disarm a camp of Miniconjou and Hunkpapa Lakota and it became a massacre of 300 men, women, and children, with an additional 51 wounded, some fatally. 25 soldiers were killed and 39 wounded, some fatally. Many of the soldiers received the Medal of Honor.
NC Green Party Statewide Winter Gathering and Celebration moved to January 11 - 13th in Mebane ( ncgreenparty.nationbuilder.com/2018_fall_gathering )
George HW Bush's Gulf War began January 16, 1991.
January 27, 1973 'our' Vietnam War came to an end with the signing of the Paris Peace Accords, though the struggle in Vietnam was not over.
The annual HKonJ (Historic Thousands on Jones Street) march in downtown Raleigh will be February 9, 2019 ( www.hkonj.com/ ).
Creek Weeks in 2019
According to the Haw River Assembly, there will be creek weeks in the region:
Durham County (March 16 - 23)
Forsyth County (March 23 - 30)
Guilford County (March 23 - 30)
Alamance County (April 6 - 13)
And I think there is something similar around this time for Swift Creek in Wake County.
The HRA's annual Clean-Up-A-Thon will be March 16th.
The HRA will be doing water testing December 15 - 16th and March 23 - 24th.
There is a tradition of New Year's Day hikes at state parks, and the HRA is organizing a hike at the Lower Haw River State Natural Area on January 1st ( see www.hawriver.org or email info at hawriver ).
Support Palestine in DC 2019 will be March 24th in Washington ( www.facebook.com/events/322305558560731/ ).
A Call for a Mass Mobilization to Oppose NATO, War and Racism
Gather in Washington, DC's Lafayette Square, across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House, at 1pm Saturday, March 30th and there will be other events Wednesday, April 4th at the start of the NATO summit in DC. For more information or to endorse the United National Antiwar Coalition's call to action, see: nepajac.org/april4rally.html
Pyongyang Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Conference April 18 - 25 (register by February 10th; this is an international conference and Americans and others are welcome to attend): www.korea-dpr.com/dprk-blockchain-conference-2019.html
CALL-IN FOR INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY Call or send messages to Governor Roy Cooper and Attorney General Josh Stein to remind them at least 49 human beings were flown to torture by aircraft based in Smithfield and Kinston and supporting torture has left a stain on NC’s reputation and hurt our national security (ncstn.org/content/take-action/ ). Make NC a “No Torture State.” Governor: 919-814-2000; AG: 919-716-6400. Monday, December 10, 2018.
SHOW SUPPORT FOR ORANGE COUNTY'S NCCIT RESOLUTION County Commissioners consider a resolution to urge action to make NC a “No Torture State,” following Carrboro and Chapel Hill this week. If unable to attend, join call-in on Human Rights Day, December 10, to Governor Roy Cooper (919-814-2000) and NC Attorney General Josh Stein (919-716-6400) with same message or sign here (ncstn.org/content/take-action/). Attend 7 p.m., Tuesday, December 11, Southern Human Services Center, 2501 Homestead Road, Chapel Hill. NCCIT (www.nccit.org).
ANNUAL READINGS ON BILL OF RIGHTS DAY: Proclamations read by Penny Rich, Chair of Orange County Commissioners; Jessica Anderson, Chapel Hill Mayor Pro Tem; Lydia Lavelle, Mayor of Carrboro. Raging Grannies. Come read one of first 10 Amendments of United States Constitution. Note 8th Amendment citing cruel and unusual punishment relates to use of solitary confinement and treatment of detainees flown by NC pilots of Aero Contractors (www.nccit.org). Noon, Saturday, December 15, Peace and Justice Plaza, corner of East Franklin and Henderson Streets, Chapel Hill. Orange County Bill of Rights Defense Committee and Orange County Peace Coalition. 919-942-2535."
The DPRK launched its Kwangmyŏngsŏng [Bright Star or Lodestar]-3 Unit 2 Earth observation satellite into polar orbit December 11, 2012, making it one of the few countries able to independently carry out activities in space. There is tracking information online at www.heavens-above.com if you want to look for it.
Balance and Accuracy in Journalism
Below is BAJ's announcement email for this meeting featuring a censored Al-Jazeera documentary on Israeli meddling in British politics, to overthrow Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbin, who seems to be far more progressive, at least on foreign policy and militarism, than just about any US Democratic politician at the national level (thus many in the UK are trying to get rid of him, I think even including threats of a coup if he were to become prime minister):
7:30 PM Wednesday December 12, at the
Community Church of Chapel Hill, 106 Purefoy Road
Balance & Accuracy in Journalism
presents
THE LOBBY
an Al Jazeera Investigations feature
An undercover investigator is deemed a potential leader
and welcomed into the Israeli London embassy’s efforts
to manufacture opposition to bring down UK Labor Party
leader Jeremy Corbin and other elected officials over
their support for equal rights for Palestinians.
Accusations of Anti-Semitism figure prominently in the tactics.
Historian Ilan Pappe is one of the people interviewed, plus
extensive recorded discussion, mostly of young recruits
and their handler.
Its broadcast was censored after Qatar, the gas-rich Gulf emirate
where Al Jazeera is based, was subjected to intense pressure
by allies and representatives of the state of Israel.
The 4 half-hour segments were recently leaked and posted on Youtube
with the title, "The Lobby – USA", where viewing is frequently interrupted
by ads. (Our DVD is free of ads.) It’s not clear why the “USA” reference
is on the Youtube posts.
Depending on audience preference,
we will screen three of the four segments, or all four.
See what you think! We will have several DVD copies
available at the meeting.
[ ]
For Balance & Accuracy in Journalism
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
More censorship... this time about the plight of America’s newspapers.
"Author, commentator and activist Jim Hightower has been
fighting the Powers That Be on behalf of the Powers That Ought to Be
for over four decades."
Some years ago, columnist Jim Hightower spoke at the
Community Church, where he talked about “astroturf,”
the term for false grassroots organizations created by
corporations fending off environmental or other groups.
The Hightower Lowdown has been a staple of
humorous, aware and colorful advocacy for decades.
His November 27 column
“Free the free press from Wall Street plunderers"
was censored by Creators Syndicate.
See the story and the column, at the FAIR website
or at the Austin Chronicle, where clicking on the link downloads the column -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DIRECTIONS TO BAJ MEETING SITE
106 Purefoy Road, Chapel Hill
Community Church, Unitarian Universalist
FROM EITHER DIRECTION ON THE CHAPEL HILL BYPASS:
take 15-501 [or 54] to the 15-501 Pittsboro exit
As you exit, TURN at the traffic light toward Chapel Hill.
Almost immediately TURN RIGHT just short of the convenience store.
That's PUREFOY ROAD, and you take it almost half a mile,
passing two stop signs as it curves left up the hill
until you can - just - see the third stop sign ahead of you.
At that point, there is a driveway on the left
with a subtle, tan sign for the church.
That driveway takes you to the parking lot and the Community Church.
~~~~~~~~
December 13, 1980 Peter De Mott damaged the USS Florida (SSBN-728), an Ohio-class submarine originally equipped with Trident nuclear missiles, just before it was launched at the General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyard in Groton, Connecticut. DeMott was a member of Jonah House in Baltimore, Maryland and a former seminarian and Vietnam veteran. During the launch ceremony for the USS Baltimore (SSN-704), a Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine, DeMott came upon a security van left unlocked and with its keys in the ignition, and spontaneously used it to dent the USS Florida's rudder. He was convicted of criminal mischief and criminal trespass and was imprisoned for one year (Swords Into Plowshares). According to Wikipedia, the USS Florida launched cruise missiles to disable air defenses at the start of Obama's war on Libya in 2011, the first military action by that submarine or any of its sister ships. For more on DeMott see: www.commondreams.org/news/2009/02/21/peace-activist-peter-demott-dead-after-fall and www.ncronline.org/blogs/road-peace/committed-life-peter-demott
MERI: Stop the detention of Aboulie Sowe!
A press conference by the Movement to End Racism and Islamophobia demanding that Abdoulie Sowe from Raleigh be freed from ICE detention, has been rescheduled due to the snow to Thursday, December 13th, 4 - 6pm at the Terry Sanford Federal Building in Raleigh ( 310 New Bern Avenue ). He is from an immigrant from The Gambia, but has lived in Raleigh for over 25 years and is the primary breadwinner for his family, including 3 children, and his youngest daughter (6 years old) has special needs. He has kidney disease, diabetes, and hypertension, and has been hospitalized once while in detention and could die because of inadequate treatment if deported. People are being asked to contact Congressman David Price, Senator Thom Tillis, and Sean Gallagher, the director of the ICE office in Atlanta (404 893 1206) to ask that Sowe be given a stay of removal and that his medical treatment in detention be investigated (see: southernvision.ourpowerbase.net/civicrm/mailing/view?reset=1&id=547 and MERI's website is: merinc.org/ .
Koryo Tours Christmas Party and Winter Sale
If you're in Beijing, China this week you can join the Christmas Party at Koryo Tours' office at 27 Bei Sanlitun East Courtyard (next to Yashow Market), Chaoyang District, Dongzhimen, Beijing 100027 Thursday, December 13th 16:00 - 20:00. Hear from Nick Bronner, who made the BBC documentary Crossing the Line, on US personnel who defected to the DPRK. There is also a winter sale, with hand-painted posters from the DPRK, starting at 400 RMB. They are also offering a discount at www.nkshop.org/ and nknews.org is offering a discount at the same online store. Koryo Tours offers various trips to the DPRK, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and other ex-Soviet republics in Central Asia, and Russia. For more information see koryogroup.com/ or call +86 10 6416 7544
Secrecy and the Slaughterhouse talk
UNC Religious Studies PhD candidate Joanna Smith will discuss the connections between animal sacrifice in religion and the practices in modern meat production Friday, December 14th at 6:30 at the Ecolounge in Durham (2811 Hillsborough Road; communecos.org/recyclique-shop/ ). There is a suggested donation of $5 dollars, but it is not required to attend.
Muntadhar al Zaidi threw his shoes at George W Bush December 14, 2008 in Baghdad, among other things saying "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq!"
Bill of Rights Day is December 15th (the US Bill of Rights was ratified December 15, 1791). Durham City and County used to make annual proclamations for December 15th, thanks to a campaign by the Durham Bill of Rights Committee, but that might not be done now. The DBORDC no longer exists, but there might still be an Orange County BORDC, and there is a national organization (it changed names in 2016): rightsanddissent.org/news/bill-rights-day-celebrate-mobilize-remember/
Orange County's annual reading of the Bill of Rights will be December 15th at noon at Peace and Justice Plaza (in front of the post office at the corner of Franklin Street and Henderson Street, across from UNC.
December 15, 1970 the Soviet space probe Venera 7 (Venus 7) was the first human spacecraft to land on another planet and send telemetry, confirming that Venus is a hell of runaway greenhouse warming, sulfuric acid, and crushing atmospheric pressure, rather than a pleasant and watery, cloud-covered world.
Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi setting himself on fire in protest outside a government office in Tunisia December 17, 2010, setting in motion the protest movement that overthrew authoritarian President Ben Ali January 14, 2011 and spread to other countries, becoming the Arab Spring. Bouazizi was left comatose and died January 4, 2011. Many others in Tunisia and a few people in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Europe set themselves on fire in similar acts of protest in early 2011.
In Operation Linebacker II the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was heavily bombed (with about the same explosive force as the two nuclear bombs used on Japan) from December 18th to 29th in 1972, hitting a hospital, residential areas, dikes, electrical facilities, etc. and killing over one to two thousand civilians just weeks before the Paris Peace Accords were signed ( revcom.us/a/574/american-crime-case-number-34-1972-christmas-bombings-of-north-vietnam-en.html ).
George HW Bush attacked Panama December 20, 1989, resulting in hundreds to thousands of civilian deaths, including American civilians and a Spanish journalist. Poor neighborhoods were burned and demolished, thousands were deprived of work, and churches, embassies, unions, and other institutions were violated by searches and seizures ( revcom.us/a/540/american-crime-case-43-the-US-invasion-of-panama-1989-1990-en.html ). The war also allowed the US government to test new weapons, including the Humvee, AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, and F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighter.
Georgian revolutionary and Soviet statesman Joseph Stalin was born December 21, 1879 or 1878 in Gori, Republic of Georgia, then part of the Russian Empire.
Thomas Sankara, born December 21, 1949, was President of Burkina Faso from 1983 until he was assassinated October 15, 1987, and is known as Africa's Che Guevara.
December 21st is the winter solstice.
Sen Katayama, co-founder of the Japanese Communist Party and an official in the Comintern, was born December 26, 1859. He was also one of the first members of the CPUSA and is buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.
Chinese revolutionary and statesman Mao Zedong (or Tsetung) was born December 26, 1893 in Hunan Province.
December 26, 1862, following the Dakota War, 38 Dakota or Dakota Sioux were hung, the largest mass execution in US history. 303 Dakota were convicted of murder or rape, some in trials lasting less than 5 minutes, and without defense attorneys, but Lincoln commuted 264 prisoners and one more received a reprieve. They were buried in a mass grave, possibly after skin was taken from some of the bodies, and graverobbers later stole some of the bodies for anatomy specimens. Except for a group that helped the American settlers, the rest of the Dakota lost their reservation and were exiled from Minnesota over the next few months, and many died during the journey. Any Dakota found in Minnesota could be killed for a bounty of $25 dollars. The unrelated Ho-chunk tribe was also expelled. Some Dakota remained in Minnesota or returned 20 years later.
The USSR intervened in Afghanistan December 27, 1979, killing President Hafizullah Amin, accused of conspiring with the CIA, and installing Babrak Karmal. The Afghan government had previously requested additional Soviet military support, but obviously not the overthrow of the Khalq faction of the People's Democractic Party of Afghanistan, in favor of Karmal's Parcham faction. The US and other countries were materially supporting Afghan Islamists before December 1979, later leading to the creation of al-Qaida, the Taliban, the Afghan branch of ISIS, and fueling the civil wars that destroyed Afghanistan. Getting involved in Afghanistan was also disastrous for the USSR. During this period the US, UK, China, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt aided anti-government forces, often brutal Islamic fundamentalists and warlords, though there were also Maoists.
Israel attacked Gaza from December 27, 2008 to January 18, 2009 (Operation Cast Lead), killing or displacing thousands of Palestinians, mostly civilians, while 10 Israeli soldiers were killed, four by friendly fire, and rockets fired by various armed resistance groups killed three Israeli civilians and injured or scared hundreds. Israel was accused of using white phosphorus as a weapon, as well as depleted uranium, and birth defects and blood cancer became more common after the war. Palestinian civilians were used as human shields, Israeli soldiers robbed homes, etc. though there was some prosecution in Israel later. Agricultural, fisheries, and humanitarian aid facilities, universities, schools, mosques, hospitals, and civilian shelters were damaged or destroyed, including the UN Relief and Works Agency headquarters in Gaza City where tons of food, medicine, and fuel for refugee relief was stored (hit by white phosphorus munitions, and the chemical fires could not be extinguished). As in Yemen today, much of this was done with American weapons, which supposedly are not to be used to commit war crimes. December 29th a Free Gaza ship carrying relief supplies, doctors, journalists, and others, including former Congresswoman and Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney was intercepted by the Israeli navy. Free Gaza says their ship was in international waters when shots were fired and it was rammed after refusing to turn back. Another Free Gaza ship was intercepted January 15th. The Gaza War was followed by a joint Israeli and Egyptian blockade. At the time, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said "We support Israel, very strongly as a national policy, because it is in our national interest to do so" (and the Democratic Party still has this in its platform, as well as an "undivided" Jerusalem that is the capital of Israel, giving Israel state of the art weapons, and condemnation of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement: democrats.org/about/party-platform/#middle-east ). In June 2010 Chuck Schumer endorsed Israel's policy of collective punishment, saying "...since the Palestinians in Gaza elected Hamas, while certainly there should be humanitarian aid and people not starving to death, to strangle them economically until they see that's not the way to go, makes sense." He also said Hamas was waging "total war." Pelosi and Schumer both have long advocated moving the US embassy in Israel to disputed Jerusalem. In the summer of 2008 and again in 2013 Obama went to southern Israel and said war is justified over rockets fired from Gaza, while doing little to end the suffering of the Palestinian people ( revcom.us/a/574/american-crime-case-30-us-armed-backed-massacre-in-gaza-en.html and Wikipedia).
The Wounded Knee Massacre was December 29, 1890 in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. US soldiers went to disarm a camp of Miniconjou and Hunkpapa Lakota and it became a massacre of 300 men, women, and children, with an additional 51 wounded, some fatally. 25 soldiers were killed and 39 wounded, some fatally. Many of the soldiers received the Medal of Honor.
NC Green Party Statewide Winter Gathering and Celebration moved to January 11 - 13th in Mebane ( ncgreenparty.nationbuilder.com/2018_fall_gathering )
George HW Bush's Gulf War began January 16, 1991.
January 27, 1973 'our' Vietnam War came to an end with the signing of the Paris Peace Accords, though the struggle in Vietnam was not over.
The annual HKonJ (Historic Thousands on Jones Street) march in downtown Raleigh will be February 9, 2019 ( www.hkonj.com/ ).
Creek Weeks in 2019
According to the Haw River Assembly, there will be creek weeks in the region:
Durham County (March 16 - 23)
Forsyth County (March 23 - 30)
Guilford County (March 23 - 30)
Alamance County (April 6 - 13)
And I think there is something similar around this time for Swift Creek in Wake County.
The HRA's annual Clean-Up-A-Thon will be March 16th.
The HRA will be doing water testing December 15 - 16th and March 23 - 24th.
There is a tradition of New Year's Day hikes at state parks, and the HRA is organizing a hike at the Lower Haw River State Natural Area on January 1st ( see www.hawriver.org or email info at hawriver ).
Support Palestine in DC 2019 will be March 24th in Washington ( www.facebook.com/events/322305558560731/ ).
A Call for a Mass Mobilization to Oppose NATO, War and Racism
Gather in Washington, DC's Lafayette Square, across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House, at 1pm Saturday, March 30th and there will be other events Wednesday, April 4th at the start of the NATO summit in DC. For more information or to endorse the United National Antiwar Coalition's call to action, see: nepajac.org/april4rally.html
Pyongyang Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Conference April 18 - 25 (register by February 10th; this is an international conference and Americans and others are welcome to attend): www.korea-dpr.com/dprk-blockchain-conference-2019.html
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