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PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS ON HOW THE 'FREE TRADE' CASE FOR OFFSHORING AMERICA'S JOBS HAS COME UNGLUED Roberts on the sensational exposure of the faked "gains" and phantom stats of the free traders. Who was America's most anti-imperialist president? Try Grover Cleveland! JoAnn Wypijewski on the unlikely hero of Hawai'i's restoration movement. Alexander Cockburn reports on evangelical Christians in crisis amid fresh onslaughts by forces of darkness. The Warbler's Parable: Rosa Miriam Elizalde on the black-masked visitors to Cuba defying the US economic blockade.
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Today's Stories June 30 / July 1, 2007 John
Ross Alan
Farago Peter
Quinn Robert
Fisk Uri
Avnery Judith
Siers-Poisson Saul
Landau Ralph
Nader Mike
Whitney Jacob
Hill Kenneth
Couesbouc Missy
Beattie Ramzy
Baroud Leonard
Peltier
June 29, 2007 St.
Clair / Frank Brian
Cloughley Patrick
Cockburn Gilad
Atzmon Dave
Lindorff Jennifer
Matsui / Kevin
Zeese Daniel
Klimek David
Michael Green John
Chuckman Website
of the Day
June 28, 2007 Bill
Quigley Vijay
Prashad Margaret
Kimberley Winslow
T. Wheeler Philip
Rizk D.
K. Wilson Bill
Williams Mahmoud
El-Yousseph Richard
Rhames Paul
Krassner Website
of the Day
Marjorie
Cohn Dr.
Susan Rosenthal, MD Alan
Farago Carla
Blank Matthew
Abraham Sunsara
Taylor Russell
D. Hoffman Robert
Weissman Sen.
Russ Feingold Paul
Buchheit Website
of the Day
June 26, 2007 Jonathan
Cook Ralph
Nader Corporate
Crime Reporter Ron
Jacobs Martha
Rosenberg John
Chuckman Denny
Haldeman Anthony
DiMaggio Stephen
Fleischman William
S. Lind Website
of the Day
Paul
Craig Roberts Jennifer
Loewenstein Bob
Anderson Robert
Pollin Patrick
Cockburn Eva
Liddell Dan
Bacher Larry
Atkins Mark
Brenner James
Rothenberg Website
of the Day June 23 / 24, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Jeff
Taylor Oren
Ben-Dor Gary
Leupp Robert
Fisk David
Rosen Russell
Mokhiber Alison
Weir Robert
Fantina D.
K. Wilson Nicole
Colson Stephen
Soldz, Steven Reisner and Brad Olson Dave
Lindorff Benjamin
Dangl Michael
Dickinson Poets'
Basement Website
of the Weekend
June 22, 2007 Andy
Worthington Sherwood
Ross Eliana
Monteforte Robert
Weissman Richard
Rhames Christopher
Brauchli Ramzy
Baroud Ehud
Krinis, David Shulman and Neve Gordon David
Michael Green Kathryn
Webber Website
of the Day
June 21, 2007 Peter
Linebaugh Natsu
Saito Ron
Jacobs Saree
Makdisi John
Stauber Scott
Liebertz Tom
Clifford Robert
Jensen Michael
J. Smith Jeb
Sprague Website
of the Day
Omar
Barghouti Andy
Worthington Margaret
Kimberley Robert
Weissman Russell
D. Hoffman Rannie
Amiri Stephen
Lendman Dave
Lindorff David
Swanson Anne
Dachel Website
of the Day
June 19, 2007 Ralph
Nader Dr.
Shepherd Bliss Bill
and Kathleen Christison Jeff
Leys Dave
Zirin Chris
Floyd Ben
Terrall Anthony
Papa VIPS Linda Flores Website
of the Day
John
Ross Paul
Craig Roberts Martha
Rosenberg Norman
Solomon Don
Santina Isabella
Kenfield James
Brooks Eva
Liddell Sam
Husseini Akiva
Eldar Website
of the Day
Alexander
Cockburn John
Halle Robert
Fisk Andy
Worthington Uri
Avnery Fred
Gardner Saul
Landau P.
Sainath Missy
Comley Beattie Alan
Gregory Walter
Brasch Website
of the Weekend
June 15, 2007 Alan
Farago Andy
Worthington Michael
Simmons Franklin
Lamb Gary
Leupp John
Ross Website
of the Day
June 14, 2007 Michael
Donnelly
Faisal
Kutty Harry
Browne Charles
Jonkel Steven
Higgs Bruce
Dixon Bruce
K. Gagnon
Website
of the Day June 13, 2007 Glen Ford Marjorie Cohn Bill Christison Charles Jonkel Silvia Cattori Richard Gott Firmin DeBrabander William S. Lind Keith Rosenthal Website of the Day June 12, 2007 Jeffrey St.
Clair Paul Craig
Roberts P. Sainath Ralph Nader Omar Waraich Dave Lindorff Harvey Wasserman Malini Johar
Schueller Ramzy Baroud Website of
the Day
June 11, 2007 Patrick Cockburn Paul Craig
Roberts Uri Avnery Norman Solomon Eva Liddell Rannie Amiri Rachel Voss Christopher
Brauchli D. K. Wilson Website of
the Day
Alexander Cockburn George Ciccariello-Maher Saul Landau Robert Fisk Brian Cloughley Ron Jacobs Ward Boston Conn Hallinan Leonard Peltier Lawrence Davidson John Ross Kate Allan Fred Gardner Stephen Fleischman Monica Benderman Geoff Bailey Missy Beattie Patrick Dyer Tim Lengerich James Irani
Gary Leupp Michael Tillery Michael Simmons Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
June 8, 2007 Serge Halimi Patrick Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair
Paul Craig Roberts William Blum Joshua Frank Lance Selfa Dave Lindorff Lawrence Ferlinghetti Website of the Day
Marjorie Cohn Soldz, Reisner
and Olson: Soldz, Reisner
Paul Craig Roberts Bill Quigley Silvia Cattori Carl G. Estabrook Ellen Taylor Corporate Crime
Reporter Brenda Norrell D. K. Wilson Kevin Zeese Website of
the Day
Alain Gresh Gary Leupp Steven Sherman Bruce Dixon Corporate Crime Reporter Brian M. Downing Ron Jacobs George Bisharat Nicole Colson Bruce K. Gagnon Website of the Day
June 5, 2007 Michael Neumann Jonathan Cook David Vest Robert Fantina Hoffman, Parsneau and Chowdhury John V. Walsh Richard Cretan Adam Engel William S. Lind Myles Hoenig Jim Minick Website of
the Day
Nizar Latif Diana Johnstone Gregory Wilpert Paul Watson Susan Rosenthal,
MD Richard Ward Eva Liddell Zahi Khouri Evelyn Pringle China Hand Karyn Strickler Website of the Day
June 2 / 3, 2007 Alexander Cockburn Marc Levy Martin Smith Diana Johnstone John Ross Uri Avnery Sunsara Taylor Richard Neville P. Sainath Missy Comley
Beattie Nisrine Abiad Rannie Amiri Margot Pepper Eric Stewart Ralph Nader Dan Bacher Shaun Harkin Richard Rhames Frederick Hudson Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
Dave Marsh Saul Landau David Phinney Robert Jensen Stanley Heller Yifat Susskind Robert Weissman Paul Buchheit William S.
Lind Sherwood Ross Stephen Lendman Website of the Day
Robert Bryce Patrick Cockburn Gary Leupp Kathy Kelly Marjorie Cohn Chris Kutalik
Corporate Crime Reporter Dave Lindorff Website of the Day
May 30, 2007 James Ridgeway Franklin Lamb Terrence E. Paupp Uri Avnery Alan Maass Rock and Rap
Confidential Ralph Nader Nirmal Ghosh Jean Daniels Tom Barry Website of the Day
Stephen Soldz Eliza Ernshire Ron Jacobs Dave Lindorff Evelyn Pringle Mike Whitney David Swanson John Holt Cynthia McKinney Martha Rosenberg Website of the Day
Bill Quigley Col. Dan Smith Cindy Sheehan Dr. Susan Block Jeeni Criscenzo Douglas Valentine Website of the Day 
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Weekend
Edition Two Books, One TaskEnding the War, Organizing for ChangeBy RON JACOBS Tom Hayden' has credentials when it comes to movements opposing war and racism. From the early days of the original SDS to the Chicago 8, his Berkeley days with the Red Family collective to his time in the California legislature and today, his approaches have included confrontation, mass rallies and lobbying. Likewise, his theoretical takes have gone from ending a particular war to revolution to reform. Hayden utilizes this experience quite wisely in his new book Ending the War in Iraq, at least to a point. He opens the book with a discussion of the history of the antiwar movement of the 1960s and 1970s, detailing its growth and setbacks. Taking into account the particular elements of that period in history, Hayden acknowledges the role the counterculture played in the opposition to that war, while rightly stating that the military draft was also important to the movement's growth. From there, he moves into a brief history of US involvement in Iraq, including Washington's support of Saddam Hussein in the aftermath of his rise to power and during the war between Iraq and Iran during the 1980s. As his discussion shifts to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the rise of the insurgency, Hayden provides brief analyses of the various phenomena on the Iraqi ground and in its political minefield. Simultaneously, Hayden points to the failure of the warmakers to anticipate the insurgency and the arrogance of its postwar assumptions. It is here where Hayden stumbles. Like many antiwar progressives, Hayden tends to lay way too much blame for the post-invasion failures on the neoconservative elements of the Washington power structure. This analysis ignores the role played by the Democratic liberals in their acceptance of the lies used by the White House to justify the war. Furthermore, it tacitly accepts the idea that the war will end when the neocons are driven from power. While Hayden is not as simplistic in his apparent belief in this scenario as many other antiwar "leaders," the fact that he places as much blame on the neocons without an equally angry attack on the liberal elites' votes for the war and its subsequent expansion make it clear that Hayden's sympathies lie with those in the movement who believe the best way to end the war is to pressure the Democrats. This is despite the recent surrender by the Democrats in Congress regarding the war funding measure passed in May 2007. Behind these sympathies lies a belief that the power of US is inevitable and permanent and can only be manipulated but not overturned. It is this lesson that Hayden seems to have drawn from his years in the political ring. It's not that he doesn't believe in the necessity of a mass movement; it's that he thinks the primary role of that mass movement should be to pressure the politicians into changing their allegiances. Once again, the most recent example of this strategy's shortcomings is the recent votes in Congress that ultimately gave the White House and the Pentagon exactly what they wanted in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet, there are many positive elements present in this book. Hayden makes some important and useful connections between the way US power perceives those that it fears--from the Islamist driven forces in Afghanistan to the young urban Black males in its cities to popular forces against global capitalism. Because Washington fears those it can not control, it brutalizes them, locks them up and kills them. Hayden discusses how these forces are portrayed as evil by the power elites media and are, therefore, without conscience. Because they are "evil," they deserve no quarter. Hence, Guantanamo and the supermax prisons of the United States. A section of Hayden's book is dedicated towards organizing tactics--all of which are useful despite their brevity. If the reader wants to explore the tactics and strategies of organizing in more detail, however, let me recommend Building Powerful Community Organizations: A Personal Guide to Creating Groups That Can Solve Problems and Change the World by veteran organizer Michael Brown. This text is reminiscent of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals and could play as important a role in the future as Alinsky's text did for organizers in the 1970s. Going well beyond Hayden's brief but useful suggestions on organizing against the war in one's community, Brown's book is a veritable step-by-step guide to creating and maintaining a viable and effective grassroots organization. He intersperses anecdotes of various organizing successes and failures with straightforward instructions and practical exercises to make an indispensable addition to any serious organizer's bookshelf. Whether a group's goal is to organize against public transit fare hikes, getting a stoplight at a dangerous intersection or building a large antiwar coalition, the strategies discussed in Brown's book will have something to offer. Nowadays, with so much communications technology available, many organizations tend to assume that mass emails and a website can replace one-on-one conversations and other person-to-person contacts. While the internet and text messaging are certainly important tools for notifications and tactical decisions during actions, especially for those already in a particular organization, they tend to be pretty ineffective for recruiting new members and inviting the public to meetings. Building Powerful Community Organizations points out the necessity of personal contact over and over. In addition, Brown makes note of the important role that providing services to the community can make. While reading this section, I was reminded of the Black Panthers free breakfast and community schools program. It was through this type of outreach that the Panthers were able to become a cherished part of the communities they organized in. Another example of this from another part of the world is the social services provided by Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank. According to most observers it was the services Hamas provides that furthered their integration into the community, not their armed tactics. Another less controversial example of the role services can play in developing support for an organization is the counseling and other psychological services provided to US veterans of the war in Vietnam by the antiwar group Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Brown, of course, has not written a manual on revolution here. The fact that I chose these examples is only to prove the universality of his methods. Most of us who read and utilize Brown's text will find ourselves involved in considerably more local endeavors. Yet, it is such local endeavors that can ultimately become something much greater. Indeed, not only can they become greater, it seems to me essential that they do. He also discusses the need and role of actions. Most telling, Brown tells the reader that an effective action will create tension and that it is tension that creates change. To hearken back to Tom Hayden and the movement against the war in Iraq, it is the very lack of tension created by the major antiwar mobilizations that has allowed those with the power to turn off the flow of money to kill and destroy in Iraq to continue funding the war. This ineffectiveness tells us that we must go beyond the recitation of facts regarding the war's costs on every US resident (not to mention the Iraqis) and make those costs obvious. Most importantly, Brown makes it clear that in order to organize effectively, people must see things as they are and work from there. Furthermore, he points out that there can be no success without organization and that an organization must be effectively organized in order to be successful. The current discussions by various national antiwar organizations regarding more effective strategies must hear from the grassroots. They've listened to their leadership councils and the politicians for way too long. In fact, the grassroots must show the way. The time to raise the level of tension is now. The ways to do it are many and Mr. Brown's text makes them easily accessible for us all. Ron Jacobs is author of The
Way the Wind Blew: a history of the Weather Underground,
which is just republished by Verso. Jacobs' essay on Big Bill
Broonzy is featured in CounterPunch's collection on music, art
and sex, Serpents
in the Garden. His first novel, Short
Order Frame Up, is published by Mainstay Press. He can be
reached at: rjacobs3625@charter.net
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CounterPunch Books of the Crossroads: HOW THE IRISH INVENTED SLANG By Daniel Cassidy  Click Here to Buy! How the Press Failed The Gang's All Here: Judy Miller, Bob Woodward, Rupert Murdoch, Bill O'Reilly...End Times Leaves No Reputation Unstained!  Buy End Times Now! CounterPunch Books! Saul Landau's Bush and Botox World with a Foreword by Gore Vidal  Click Here to Order!  Michael Neumann's Devastating Rebuttal of Alan Dershowitz Grand Theft Pentagon: Tales of Greed and Profiteering in the War on Terror by Jeffrey St. Clair           The Occupation by Patrick Cockburn   Humanitarian Imperialism By Jean Bricmont               CITY BEAUTIFUL By Tennessee Reed        Bruce Springsteen On Tour By Dave Marsh                   |
