Some weekend reading...
The Bush administration's push to privatize war is swiftly turning the military-industrial complex of old into something even more far-reaching: a complex of military industries that do everything but fire weapons. For-profit military companies now enjoy an estimated $100 billion in business worldwide each year, with much of the money going to Fortune 500 firms like Halliburton, DynCorp, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon.

These companies, known as "Privatized Military Firms" (PMFs), sell everything from small teams of commandos to massive military supply operations. PMFs have operated in places as diverse as Sierra Leone and Iraq, including on behalf of the U.S., and signal an important new development in the way that war is now carried out. Unfortunately, the legal side has not yet caught up to events.

This article by Peter W. Singer examines the applicability of present international laws and definitions to PMFs and finds a gap in effectiveness. It next looks at national attempts at legal regulation and the challenges that they face. Finally, it surveys some of the possible solutions that have been offered to this legal quandary, seeking to offer workable proposals for how the PMF industry might be brought under some standard of regulation.

War, Profits, and the Vacuum of Law: Privatized Military Firms and International Law (PDF—129kb)
Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, Spring 2004
by Peter W. Singer, National Security Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies

And, here's a transcript of the P. W. Singer interview by Terry Gross on Fresh Air, 9 July 2003

Signs of spring...
Fish Creek's Skyway Drive-in Movie Theater, one of eight remaining drive-ins in Wisconsin, opens this Friday evening May 7, with "50 First Dates" and "Secret Window" - Gates open at 7:45 with the first movie rolling at 8:20 PM and the second feature at approximately 10 PM.

And a hot summer ahead... in film politics anyway.
AP reporter Christy Lemire says:

Mel Gibson, director of "The Passion of the Christ," had difficulty finding someone willing to release his graphic telling of the last hours of Christ's life. Major studios were wary because some religious leaders feared it would foster anti-Semitism. But whether filmgoers showed up at theaters to be inspired or appalled, they showed up - and "The Passion," under independent distributor Newmarket Films, has made more than $366 million in the past 10 weeks.

Meanwhile, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., has asked the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation for a hearing on what he called a "disturbing pattern of politically based corporate censorship of the news media and the entertainment industry."

Lautenberg argued Wednesday in a letter to his committee chairman, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., that Disney (through Miramax) has the violent "Kill Bill - Vol. 2" in theaters now, but is blocking Michael Moore's film, "Fahrenheit 9/11." based on its political viewpoint.

In the movie, Moore interviewed author Craig Unger about his book "House of Bush, House of Saud," which details the Bush-Saudi relationship going back to the 1970s.

"I found about $1.4 billion in investments and contracts going from the House of Saud to companies in which the Bushes and their allies - I'm including Dick Cheney, for example - have had prominent positions," Unger said.

The book and the film also say the government helped 140 Saudis leave the United States on Sept. 13, 2001 - two dozen of whom were bin Laden's relatives.

Unger said that while he hadn't seen the film, "There's clearly a big audience for this and I think the intent to kill it will fail." He pointed to several recent books besides his own that critically examine the Bush administration, including Ron Suskind's "The Price of Loyalty," Richard Clarke's "Against All Enemies" and Bob Woodward's "Plan of Attack."

At the start of weekly staff meetings, Wal-Martians must do the Wal-Mart chant. For those of you sitting on the edge of your seat, here's how it goes. "Gimme a 'W'!" - "W!" "Gimme an 'A'!" - "A!" "Gimme an 'L'!" - "L!" "Gimme a squiggly!" (A 'squiggly' represents the dash between the "Wal" and the "Mart"). Here, instead of yelling "squiggly" the Wal-Mart associates wiggle their asses. I'm not kidding. Then the cheerleader proceeds to yell the M, A, R, and T to the appropriate responses. Then the lead yells "What's that spell?" - "Wal-Mart!" "Who's NUMBER ONE!?" - "Customers, ALWAYS!".

A further probe inside Wal-Mart corporate culture reveals another official Wal-Mart chant:

Stack it deep.
Sell it cheap.
Stack it high and watch it fly.
Hear those downtown merchants cry

Sprawl-Busters response - "Your quality of life is worth more than a cheap pair of underwear."

Looking back on May Day...
In olden times May Day welcomed the coming of summer with villagers putting out all home and hearth fires and gathering in common to light a new fire. Families would take a bit of the new flame to rekindle home fires. Dancing around a Maypole, filling May baskets with flowers and leaping over fires all marked the pagan festival of Beltaine. During the 1880s May Day took on a new twist with labor unions demanding that beginning May 1, "eight hours shall constitute a legal day's work." By April 1886, a quarter of a million workers had committed themselves to go on strike as part of the May Day movement.

In Chicago, between 2,000 and 3,000 people attended a May 4, 1886 rally that erupted in violence when someone threw a bomb at police officers. The ensuing Haymarket Square Riot plunged the city into hysteria and Mayor Harrison declared martial law. In conjunction with the bombing, the state arrested and indicted eight anarchists, charging them with conspiracy to murder. Despite the fact that the state could not provide evidence that any of the men had knowledge of the bomb or that they had incited or participated in the violence, all but one of the defendants were found guilty and condemned to death. But it wasn't the men so much as their ideas that were considered dangerous. The seven were hanged on November 11, 1887.

After Haymarket, workers all over the world pointed towards May 1 as their day. After 1886, rallies, strikes and other militant actions promoted the cause of the working class around the world. A conservative element within organized labor- combined with the crushing, government repression of left-wing politics in the United States- allowed the significance of the day to become lost in this country. In 1894, President Cleveland signed a bill naming not May 1, but the first Monday in September, as Labor Day. This creatively sidestepped the day that carried such historical significance. Adding further insult, President Eisenhower proclaimed May 1 as "Law Day" in 1958.

The Backroads Bike Club will hold an organizational meeting for the upcoming spring and summer cycling season on Thursday, May 6 at 6:30 PM in the social lounge of the Door County YMCA Northern Door Program Center in Fish Creek.

The Backroads Bike Club meets once a week for an adult two-hour ride of moderate intensity. Most rides end with an optional social stop, sometimes ice cream, sometimes dinner. Riders of different abilities are welcome and no one is left behind! The group also intends to talk about "Women's Only" rides and "Family" rides for those who are interested.

If you can't make the meeting, stop at the Fish Creek "Y" and leave your name, address, phone number or e-mail and interests. A club representative will get back to you.

The American Lung Association's State of the Air: 2004 report was released today... Details on Wisconsin's air quality once again reveal that, while Door County didn't "earn it," we once again get an F on the quality of our air - with 18 orange alert days and 2 red alert days during the last measurement season. People considered to be "at risk" on these alert days include: kids 14 and under, adults 65 and over, individuals with pediatric or adult asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema or cardiovascular disease. Out of a population of 28,101, there are 7,736 Door County residents considered to be "at risk."

Find out what you can do about the problem at Environment 2004.

The latest upgrade to the Door County Compass Web Board allows you to pick a personal Avatar... up to a 100 X 100 px image that represents you. You can pick from the collection of avatars we supply, use an actual photo or look for a distinctive avatar at Avatarity is a site dedicated to being the best place on the net to come for Avatars.

Individuals are consuming oil as fast as it's pumped out of the ground - to the tune of 75 million barrels a day. While each drop we consume took millions of years to develop, we use it up in seconds. One thing you can count on... someday that oil will run out.

Until recently, Shell Oil executives were among the cheerful optimists who estimate that we have enough oil to last at least 100 years. Geologists and other analysts counter the Shell opinion, estimating global oil reserves to be dangerously exaggerated.

The New York Times reported that internal documents and other data indicated that Shell had over-estimated its proven oil reserves in Oman by as much as 40% - because everyone there hoped the latest drilling techniques would reach more deposits than in the past and merit upgrading the estimates. If you take oil prices currently at around US $37 a barrel, the highest for nearly 15 years, and add in the effects of war and terrorist attacks on diminishing supplies, you have a recipe for inflation and economic slowdown.

Meanwhile, here in Wisconsin Jason Toews has decided to do something for the average Joe... And, it confirms my greatest fears - that gas prices in Door County are among the highest in the state. If you want to find the best deal on gas prices, Jason offers an elegant Web-based solution. GasBuddy.com and the more specific WisconsinGasprices.com rely on you, as a network of volunteer "gas price spotters" to update price listings at filling stations around your neighborhood. The Web site is actually 4 years old, but co-founder Jason Toews says the audience has grown with the recent spike in prices.

Wisconsin's U.S. Rep. David Obey (D) became the first lawmaker to "demand to know whether the Bush administration transferred $700 million to Iraq war planning efforts out of counterterrorism funds without informing Capitol Hill." According to Bob Woodward, the $700 million came out of a supplemental Appropriations bill meant for Afghanistan operations. And a close look at the two supplemental Appropriations bills that passed between 9/11 and July 2002 when the secret transfer took place shows that both bills mandate the White House to inform Congress if money is moved.

Similarly, while the summer 2002 supplemental bill allows the administration to transfer "up to $275 million" in unused money within the Pentagon budget, it requires the president to notify Congress within 15 days of moving money. So far, the administration has not produced a shred of evidence that it followed these laws and informed Congress. As Woodward said, "Congress, which is supposed to control the purse strings, had no real knowledge or involvement, had not even been notified that the Pentagon wanted to reprogram money."

From: http://www.americanprogress.org/

The Ontario government is acting to correct some of the problems of ozone pollution by completely phasing out its coal-fired power plants by 2015.

"Coal-fired power plants account for more than 60 percent of the nation's sulfur dioxide and 23 percent of its nitrogen oxide emissions, which contribute to acid rain, smog, and nitrogen pollution that damage forest and aquatic ecosystems. These plants also produce more than 32 percent of mercury pollution, which ends up in our waters to poison wildlife throughout the food chain and imperil human health. In addition, coal-fired power plants emit more than 31 percent of the nation's carbon dioxide, the gas chiefly responsible for global warming that threatens wildlife, ecosystems, and human communities around the world."

From... The Toll from Coal How Emissions from the Nation's Coal-Fired Power Plants Devastate Wildlife and Threaten Human Health


Here in Door County recent headlines have once again brought to light the problems of invisible ozone pollution... and yet Wisconsin Energy gets go-ahead to build 2 coal power plants in Oak Creek.

Connect the dots.

I like documentaries - candid shots vs. posed grip-n-grins. Talking with my young friend Myles, a filmmaker, about the media and censorship led me to call Randi Rhodes on Air America Radio. I asked her to help me trace the problem of censorship in the media. Randi advised me to explore The Fairness Doctrine, in place from 1949 until 1987, when the Federal Communications Commission discontinued it.

The Fairness Doctrine once required broadcasters, as a condition of getting their licenses from the FCC, to cover controversial issues in their community, and to do so by offering some balancing views. It did not require equal time for opposing views. It merely prevented a station from day after day presenting a single view without airing opposing views.

In 1987 a bill to place the Fairness Doctrine into federal law passed the House by 3 to 1, and the Senate by nearly 2 to 1, but President Ronald Reagan vetoed it. In 1989 the Fairness Doctrine easily passed the House again, but didn't proceed further as President George Bush threatened to veto it. In 1991, hearings were again held on the doctrine, but President Bush's ongoing veto threat stymied passage.

Myles and I got into this topic while talking about the the effect that Clear Channel (which owns about 1,200 radio stations in the United States) is having on freedom of speech. I played him a copy of Barry McGuire's 60s mega-hit song "Eve of Destruction," explaining that with the run up to the war on Iraq, Clear Channel banned all such anti-war songs. Even Willie Nelson backed down. After writing a Christmas anti-war song titled "What Ever Happened to Peace on Earth," that he sung once in Austin at a Kucinich raly, Willie refused to record and release it as a single.

And with "fairness" a dead issue, Clear Channel can concentrate on further limits to freedom of speech... At WTKK-FM (96.9), host Jay Severin is no longer allowed to use the term "effing." In other cities, some stations have dropped risque talkers entirely, including the king of crass, Howard Stern. I am no fan of Howard and have only seen and heard him a few times but Puritanical intolerance is scarier than Stern himself.

Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR) just released "The Oh Really? Factor: Unspinning Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly" (Seven Stories Press, 2003). Written by FAIR's Peter Hart, the book sets the record straight on the errors and inconsistencies on the most-watched program on cable news.

If you want to find out what's really going on in Door County or Iraq ask a local - Rahul Mahajan provides a candid view from the streets in Blogging from Baghdad.

Watch for a screening of local student and filmaker, Myles Kristen's latest work on how the war is affecting people in Wisconsin at the Compass Internet Cafe. Join us on Thursday April 22, for the first Door County Kerry in 2004 Meetup, one of hundreds taking place all over the nation on the 4th Thursday of each month. So far, 94,036 participants have signed up on-line. In Door County Kerry Meetups take place at the Compass Internet Cafe in Fish Creek at 7 PM.

On a lighter note...
Thanks for this link to pranky Abby Polomis, who decided to torture her upcoming Gibratar Prom date with a picture of her new prom dress... a dress she searched for in the pages of UglyDress.com.

This twisted collection includes the publisher's running commentary like:
"My heart goes out to these two women. Not only did they have to buy these awful dresses and then be seen in public in them, but then they tried to sell the pair of dresses on E-bay."

And...
" I know what this bridesmaid was thinking and it was pure wrong. Some people get off on a strange tangent sometimes. They try to combine two things that frankly, should remain separate. This is how 'Goobers & Grape' was invented. You know 'Goobers & Grape' it is that jar in the supermarket with BOTH peanut butter and jelly in it. Who thought of that? This bride aparently thought that the corsages should later be hung from the rear view mirrors of everyone's cars."

The Mullet Hunters will entertain promgoers at Maxwelton Braes Resort this weekend. Check out their updated Web site... www.TheMulletHunters.com

Lest my Jewish friends begin to suspect me of fueling anti-semitism for pointing out that the weapons of mass destruction are located in Israel... Meet the Neturei Karta. Yesterday this group of Orthodox Jews demonstrated at the White House in opposition to the visit of "Israeli" Prime Minister Sharon. The Neturei Karta oppose what they describe as "the so-called State of Israel" not because it operates secularly, but because they believe that the entire concept of a sovereign Jewish state is contrary to Jewish Law.

Yesterday they affirmed that, "Sharon and the State of 'Israel' are illegitimate and they do not represent the Jewish people."
And further stated...

Let it be known that:

* The State of "Israel" does not represent the voice of Judaism and/or the Jewish people. The Torah clearly forbids the formation of a State, for the Jewish people, in their time of exile.
* The Torah forbids stealing land, subjugating and oppressing a people etc.
* The root cause of the endless bloodshed and suffering in the Holy Land is Zionism and the State of "Israel".
* The root cause for the continual rise of worldwide anti-Semitism is Zionism and the State of "Israel".
* The Jewish people have been living in Muslim countries, including Palestine, in peace and harmony with their Arab neighbors, until the advent of Zionism.
* True to the above and for many other reasons, the rabbinic authorities universally, have vehemently opposed the State of "Israel" since the time of its inception.

Neturei Karta says, "The only working solution to a true and lasting peace is the total dismantling of this illegitimate State of "Israel" - a transformation to a Palestinian rule. Any other of the countless proposals for peace, whereby the State of "Israel" would continue to exist, is futile."

Over a year ago I came across a map developed by MSNBC as an interactive aid to an on-line news story. At the time, it was rumored that the map was no longer linked to any story and that the only way to see this "orphaned" peice of Flash media was by using this link to call it up from the archives of MSNBC's servers. I studied the details provided on the map, and was shocked to see the exact locations of most of the Weapons of Mass Destruction still located in the Middle East. Soon after looking at the map I lost the link... and have continued to look for it using numerous searches ever since.

Well, today I found it... Take a look at the map of WMD's in abundance.

In a speech of less than 10 minutes, on January 17, 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower delivered his political farewell to the American people on national television from the Oval Office of the White House. Those who expected the military leader and hero of World War II to depart his Presidency with a nostalgic, "old soldier" speech like Gen. Douglas MacArthur's, were surprised at his strong warnings about the dangers of the "military-industrial complex."

It's a speech that should be read once again in light of our current dilemma ...

EISENHOWER'S FAREWELL ADDRESS
The Speech in Its Entirety

When the Twin Towers fell on Sept. 11, 2001, among the thousands killed was the one man who may have known more about Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda than any other person in America: John O'Neill.

The former head of the FBI's flagship antiterrorism unit in New York City, O'Neill had investigated the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Africa and the USS Cole in Yemen. For six years, he led the fight to track down and prosecute Al Qaeda operatives throughout the world. But his flamboyant, James Bond style and obsession with Osama bin Laden made him a controversial figure inside the buttoned-down world of the FBI. Just two weeks before Sept. 11, O'Neill left the bureau for a job in the private sector -- as head of security at the World Trade Center. He died there after rushing back into the burning towers to aid in the rescue efforts.

Learn more about
The Man Who Knew...
an 83 minute Frontline PBS special that originally aired on Oct. 3, 2002 and is available in streaming format on-line.

Recordings by School of Music faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison now can be purchased via an online CD store.

The new store, a Web-based shopping site, will carry all recordings published by the School of Music and, as available, independent discs produced by various faculty members and released on commercial labels.

"We have essentially become a distributor, on a very limited basis," says John Schaffer, director of the School of Music, "so that we can bring together in one convenient location all of the recorded publications that represent our highly creative faculty."

Offerings include the school's centennial commissions and recordings by the Pro Arte String Quartet, Wisconsin Bras Quintet and the UW-Madison Jazz Big Band. Revenues fund scholarships in the School of Music.

To browse the CD store, visit http://www.wisc.edu/music and click on "Recordings and Publications."

A few highlights from Claim vs. Fact: Condoleezza Rice's Opening Statement

CLAIM: "We decided immediately to continue pursuing the Clinton Administration’s covert action authorities and other efforts to fight the network."

FACT: Newsweek reported that "In the months before 9/11, the U.S. Justice Department curtailed a highly classified program called ’Catcher’s Mitt’ to monitor al-Qaida suspects in the United States." Additionally, AP reported "though Predator drones spotted Osama bin Laden as many as three times in late 2000, the Bush administration did not fly the unmanned planes over Afghanistan during its first eight months," thus terminating the reconnaissance missions started during the Clinton Administration. [Sources: Newsweek, 3/21/04; AP, 6/25/03]

CLAIM: "The strategy set as its goal the elimination of the al-Qaida network. It ordered the leadership of relevant U.S. departments and agencies to make the elimination of al-Qaida a high priority and to use all aspects of our national power -- intelligence, financial, diplomatic, and military -- to meet this goal."

FACT: 9/11 Comissioner Jamie Gorelick: "Is it true, as Dr. Rice said, ’Our plan called for military options to attack Al Qaida and Taliban leadership’?" Armitage: "No, I think that was amended after the horror of 9/11." [Source: 9/11 Commission testimony, 3/24/04]

CLAIM: "We bolstered the Treasury Department’s activities to track and seize terrorist assets."

FACT: The new Bush Treasury Department "disapproved of the Clinton Administration’s approach to money laundering issues, which had been an important part of the drive to cut off the money flow to bin Laden." Specifically, the Bush Administration opposed Clinton Administration-backed efforts by the G-7 and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that targeted countries with "loose banking regulations" being abused by terrorist financiers. Meanwhile, the Bush Administration provided "no funding for the new National Terrorist Asset Tracking Center." [Source: "The Age of Sacred Terror," 2003].


Paul Sowinski sends the following post-election chuckle:

It is time to elect a new world leader, and only your vote counts.
Here are the facts about the three canddates.

Candidate A
Associates with crooked politicians, and consults with astrologists. He's had two mistresses. He also chain smokes and drinks 8 to 10 martinis a day.

Candidate B
He was kicked out of office twice, sleeps until noon, used opium in college and drinks a quart of whiskey every evening.

Candidate C
He is a decorated war hero. He's a vegetarian, doesn't smoke, drinks an occasional beer and never cheated on his wife.

Which of these candidates would be your choice?

Decide first... no peeking, then scroll down for the response.


Candidate A is Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Candidate B is Winston Churchill.
Candidate C is Adolph Hitler.

Can you imagine working for a company that has a little more than 500 employees and has the following statistics:

29 have been accused of spousal abuse
7 have been arrested for fraud
19 have been accused of writing bad checks
117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 22 businesses
3 have done time for assault
71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
8 have been arrested for shoplifting
21 are currently defendants in lawsuits
84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year...

Can you guess which organization this is?

Give up yet?

It's the 535 members of the United States Congress.

The same group of idiots that crank out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line.

You gotta pass this on

Within 6 hours of signing on air March 31, the Air America Radio network had three of the four 2000 major party candidates for president--all except President George W. Bush.

Scheduled guest Ralph Nader spoke to afternoon drivetime host Randi Rhodes, on her program The Randi Rhodes Show. After a particularly heated exchange, which included Rhodes telling Nader that Americans can't afford him running for president in 2004, Nader hung up her.

Later in the program, Rhodes spoke to 2000 Reform Party presidential candidate Pat Buchanan.

Earlier in the day on The O'Franken Factor, former Vice President Al Gore called into the show to speak to co-hosts Al Franken and Katherine Lanpher.

If you're sad to see NPR drop Bob Edwards from Morning Edition you can sign the Save Bob Edwards Petition ...or tune in to Air America Radio on-line.

Elena loves motorcycles. She lives in Russia, rides a Kawasaki Ninja and enjoys riding alone in places where there are, "no stoplights, no police, no danger of hitting any living thing." Her favorite place to ride is in the "Dead Zone"... Chernobyl. She writes very well in English, and shares her photos and stories on-line in an ongoing narrative called Ghost Town.

In Wisconsin, a state law prohibits the construction of any more nuclear plants until Yucca Mountain is licensed and until nuclear plants are economical. Rep. Mike Huebsch (R-West Salem) has introduced AB 555, a bill to overturn the state ban. But Federal law limits the capacity of the proposed Yucca Mountain repository to 70,000 metric tons of nuclear waste. When Yucca Mountain is full and another storage facility is needed, guess where the federal government thinks is 2nd best place to store nuclear waste?

Right here in Wisconsin in the Wolf River Batholith.

"If AB 555 leads to the building of new nuclear power plants ... we will have a hard time objecting to having the waste repository sited in our state," says Alfred Meyer, executive director of the Madison chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR).

According to PSR, 46,000 tons are currently being held in short-term storage at commercial nuclear facilities. However, by 2036, when Yucca is projected to be operational, an additional 68,000 tons of waste is projected to be produced, leaving an overflow of 46,000 tons of radioactive waste.

Clean Wisconsin (formerly Wisconsin?s Environmental Decade) released a report called Perspectives for a High-Level
Nuclear Waste Facility in Wisconsin, which examines the environmental impacts of such a facility in Wisconsin.

"During the 5 months I investigated the possibility of a high-level nuclear waste repository in Wisconsin, I became increasingly concerned about our state's groundwater," says Tammy Rauen, author of the report and geology student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The Wolf River Batholith - which includes land in Langlade, Shawano, Waupaca, Menomonee, Portage, Marathon, and Oconto Counties - acts as a groundwater source under certain circumstances and has potential for radioactive leaks into groundwater. The groundwater in the Batholith discharges into the Wolf River. From the Wolf River, contaminated water could continue into the Fox River, and ultimately contaminate Green Bay and Lake Michigan.

Meanwhile... last month we note the 25th anniversary of a near-catastrophic failure of a nuclear power plant that took place at Three Mile Island in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Thanks Elena, and stick to the center of the pavement... where the radiation levels are the lowest.

enuf4now,
steph