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How a Tiny Alaskan Indian Tribe Got Billions in Pentagon Contracts by Jeffrey St. Clair; Dems and Dives by Alexander Cockburn; Spooky Grants: More on the CIA's Recruitment of Campus Professors by David Price. Remember these stories are available exclusively in the print edition of CounterPunch. CounterPunch Online is read by millions of viewers each month! But remember, we are funded solely by the subscribers to the print edition of CounterPunch. Please support this website by buying a subscription to our newsletter, which contains fresh material you won't find anywhere else, or by making a donation for the online edition. Remember contributions are tax-deductible. Click here to make a donation. If you find our site useful please: Subscribe Now! or write CounterPunch, PO BOX 228, Petrolia, CA 95558 |
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Other Lands Have Dreams: From Baghdad to Pekin Prison by KATHY KELLY  Today's Stories April 6, 2005 Cindy Ellen
Hill April 5, 2005 Jim Connolly Paul Craig
Roberts Gary Leupp Dave Lindorff Ron Jacobs Dan Smith Mark Engler Richard Oxman Greg Moses Website of the Day
April 4, 2005 Kevin Zeese Paul Craig Roberts Larry Birns
/ Sarah Schaffer Karyn Strickler Joshua Frank Michael Dickinson Surendra R.
Devkota Derrick O'Keefe Uri Avnery Website of the Day
April 2 / 3, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Stan Goff John Ross Saul Landau Robert Creeley Mike Roselle Joshua Frank Fred Gardner Greg Moses Fran Quigley Kurt Nimmo Nicole Colson Chris Genovali Alan Farago Lawrence Reichard Ben Tripp Avantika Regmi Lee Sustar Ron Jacobs Dave Lindorff Poets' Basement Website of
the Day
April 1, 2005 Tom Barry Rahul Mahajan Charlie Cray
/ Jim Vallette Dave Lindorff Zeynep Toufe Suzan Mazur Michael Dickinson Stan Cox Ra Ravishankar Daniel Wolff
March 31, 2005 Sharon Smith Ron Jacobs Tariq Ali Michael Dickinson Kanak Mani
Dixit Mitchell Zimmerman Xuan-Trang
Ho Dave Zirin Joe Bageant Jeff Halper Website of
the Day
March 30, 2005 Gary Leupp Ralph Nader
/ Kevin Zeese Chase Madar Toni Solo Jackie Corr Ahmad Faruqui Mike Roselle Jude Wanniski Francis A.
Boyle Jeffrey St.
Clair Website of
the Day
March 29, 2005 Ralph Nader Gary Leupp Sonia Cardenas Stew Albert Mark Weisbrot Dave Lindorff Carl G. Estabrook
March 28, 2005 Jeremy Scahill Sonali Kolhatkar Sasha Kramer Kevin Zeese Tom Stephens Dr. Teresa Whitehurst Newton Garver Paul Craig
Roberts Website of the Day
March 26 / 27, 2005 Gary Leupp Peter Linebaugh Marc Robert Laura Carlsen Saul Landau
/ Puja Patel Dave Foreman Fred Gardner Jennifer Matsui Dave Lindorff Dharma Adhikari Joshua Frank Patrick Barr Christopher
Brauchli Ramzy Baroud Jackie Corr Ben Tripp Dr. Susan Block Mickey Z. Justin Taylor Richard Joseph Poets' Basement
March 25, 2005 Scott Richard
Lyons Yoshie Furuhashi Pat Williams Mark Engler Rahul Mahajan Lance Selfa Ralph Nader John R. Llewellyn Jo Guldi
March 24, 2005 Joshua Frank Talli Nauman Martin Espada Dave Lindorff Elaine Cassel Jack McCarthy Jack Random Barbara Ferguson Suzan Mazur Dorreen Yellow Bird Andrew Wimmer
and Mark Chmiel
Patrick Bond Mike Whitney Becky White Michael Donnelly Niranjan Ramakrishnan Ashley Smith David Swanson Derrick O'Keefe Paul A. Moore Dalton Walker Patrick Cockburn
March 22, 2005 William Blum Jim Vallette Greg Moses John Farley Ron Jacobs M. Junaid Alam Rep. Cynthia
McKinney Dave Lindorff James Petras
March 21, 2005 John Walsh Werther Mike Stark David Swanson James T. Phillips Mike Ferner Robert Jensen Paul Craig
Roberts Stew Albert Website of
the Day
March 19, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Tom Reeves Saul Landau Alan Maass Ron Jacobs David Green John Blair Steve Greenfield Ben Tripp Mike Roselle Joshua Frank Mark Weisbrot Dave Lindorff Sarah Schaffer Warren Hastings Poets' Basement
March 18, 2005 Dave Zirin Richard Thieme John Walsh David Swanson Ben Terrall David Boyle Dorreen Yellow Bird Mokhiber /
Weissman Greg Moses Website of
the Day
March 17, 2005 Christopher
Brauchli Bill Quigley Brian Cloughley Gary Bass / Adam Hughes Dave Lindorff Jude Wanniski Alexander Billet John Ross Website of the Day
March 16, 2005 Ralph Nader William Cook Kevin Zeese Jackie Corr Alan Maass David R. Kolker Cindy Ellen
Hill Paul Craig
Roberts
March 15, 2005 Gary Leupp Dave Lindorff Greg Moses Hadas Their
/ Katrina Yeaw Alison Weir Matt Koehler Evelyn Pringle Harry Browne
March 14, 2005 Ralph Nader David Miller Stan Cox Mike Roselle David Swanson Simona Sharoni Dave Lindorff Dorreen Yellow Bird Tom Barry Website of the Day
March 12 / 13, 2005 David H. Price Noam Chomsky Laura Carlsen Stan Goff Valentina Nicoli Michael Leonardi Saul Landau
/ Sarah Anderson Joe Bageant Manuel García,
Jr. Greg Moses James J. Brittain Ben Tripp Joshua Frank Fred Gardner Walter Brasch Ramzy Baroud Christopher
Brauchli Michael Donnelly Ron Jacobs Richard Oxman Poets' Basement
March 11, 2005 Jerry Fresia Ron Jacobs Dave Lindorff William James
Martin Muqtedar Khan Kathryn Ledebur Mike Whitney Dave Zirin Website of the Day
March 10, 2005 Paul Craig
Roberts John Marc Leas, Colleen McLaughlin
and Ashley Smith Larry Birns Michael Donnelly Luis Gomez Jackie Corr Uri Avnery Website of the Day
March 9, 2005 Jeffrey St.
Clair Ward Churchill Robert Fisk Bernice Powell Jackson Mickey Z. Dave Zirin Michael Donnelly James Reiss Vijay Prashad
March 8, 2005 Paul Craig
Roberts Robert Fisk Kurt Nimmo Suzan Mazur Evelyn Pringle Giuliana Sgrena Elaine Cassel
March 7, 2005 Dave Zirin Brian Cloughley John Chuckman Mike Whitney Mark Weisbrot Fred Gardner Richard Neville Uri Avnery
March 5 / 6, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Gary Leupp Ron Jacobs Tom Reeves Jenna Orkin Tom Barry Joshua Frank Moshe Adler Jane Stillwater Omar Barghouti / Jacqueline
Sfeir Christopher
Brauchli John Pilger Raúl
Zibechi David Krieger Three Takes on Nepal Surendra R. Devkota Bhishma Karki Joseph Pietri Ben Tripp Poets' Basement Website of
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March 4, 2005 Frederick Hudson
March 3, 2005 Pat Williams Brian Cloughley Dave Lindorff Amira Hass Greg Moses Lynne Landes Nelson P. Valdés John Ross
March 2, 2005 Saul Landau
/ Farrah Hassen Mike Roselle M. Junaid Alam Suzan Mazur Jackson Thoreau Michael Donnelly Jeffrey St.
Clair Website of the Day
March 1, 2005 Scott Richard
Lyons David Lindorff Patrick Cockburn
/ David Enders Ron Jacobs Tanya Garcia Joseph Pietri Kona Lowell Paul Craig
Roberts Website of
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April 6, 2005 Domestic Security and the Culture of FearThe Eco-Terror HoaxBy KEVIN WEHR Sacramento, California It has become popular in recent years to designate any non-mainstream political activity as "terrorism." Activity as widely disparate as marching in the streets, holding placards and chanting, sitting in trees to prevent logging, and vandalism have all been put on par with the actions of al Qaeda on September 11th, 2001. Since that fatal day, such normal political actions (vandalism notwithstanding) undertaken by normal Americans-that protected political speech that we supposedly hold so dear and must defend from extremists-has been legally restricted, criminalized, and actively suppressed. Political actions on behalf of the environment that have involved property destruction or trespassing have been widespread-from California to Colorado to Indiana to New York-by people acting on their own and those associated with groups such as the Earth Liberation Front (ELF), the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), Earth First!, and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), among others. Some have targeted new housing developments, others have opposed commercial projects. The activists have ranged from the 23 year old Julia Butterfly Hill who sat in an old-growth redwood tree for two years to keep it from being harvested for timber to the 42 year old John Quigley who quietly sat in 200 year old oak tree in Los Angeles County for 70 days to protect it from being cut down for a housing development. The response by authorities has largely been to engage in grandstanding and suppression, and is most clear in the state of Oregon, which has become a hotbed of activity by the Earth Liberation Front (ELF), which has claimed responsibility for property damage in many locations across the state. There have also been several arrests. One activist, who is 5 years in to a 23 year mandatory-minimum sentence for the arson of an SUV sales lot resulting in damages of less than $50,000, said "I am not a terrorist. I am a man guided by my conscience." But being guided by your conscience towards property destruction is terrorism, at least according to the FBI, whose definition of terrorism is so broad it, well, strikes terror into the hearts of ACLU members. Terrorism, the FBI says, is the "unlawful use of force or violence, committed by a group of two or more individuals, against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives." But individuals have been targeted, as have been loose affiliations and organized groups. So does that make the Watergate break-in terrorism? How about police brutality in the war on drugs? What about jaywalking while wearing a campaign button? Further elision is shown by Oregon's Douglas County Sheriff in a speech to the Roseburg Chamber of Commerce, where he equated members of ELF, ALF, and all "anarchists" as terrorists: "There is definitely a place for peaceful and productive demonstrationsbut this is no Boston Tea Party, this is not a Martin Luther King activity, this is terrorism." Of course, today the activists who dumped tea in the Boston harbor in 1773 would be branded terrorists for such blatant actions of property destruction. Martin Luther King, Jr. would have been a terrorist under the FBI's definition. But what is property destruction? Is it violence? Most people probably think so, but they should rethink this stance. Violence against people is different than violence against things, and groups such as ELF specifically avoid any and all violence against people. I may feel violated when someone scratches my car with their keys or writes graffiti on the fence in the alley. But this is a far cry from assaulting my body. One is violent, the other is merely rude. Treating them as the same thing actually devalues human life and any violence directed at it. But many in power do not seem to understand the difference between truly terrorizing a population by threatening their lives as compared to making a political statement through property destruction. Such an argument apparently is lost on the ears of officials like US Representative Scott McInnis (R-Colo) who in March of 2002 equated ELF to al Qaeda. This tempest of labeling is not the exclusive province of Sheriffs, Congressmen, or ambitious District Attorneys; even public citizens have joined the bandwagon. Rodolphe Streichenberger wants to line the ocean floor off of the California coast with old tires in an effort to "plant the sea" and grow a "marine forest" which he hopes can help "feed the world." The California Coastal Commission took exception to what they view as not much more than dumping trash in the ocean, and the case has gone to court. What is it that the Coast Commission is up to, according to Streichenberger? Why it's "eco-terrorism" of course. So called "eco-terrorism" is the flavor of the month in northern California, where three arson incidents have provoked authorities to declare the activists "eco-terrorists." US Magistrate Judge Peter Nowinski, at one defendant's bail hearing declared that the 21-year old had "betrayed" his parents and "will betray them again." So much for the suspension of bias: if a judge can make such a sweeping declaration without hearing a whit of trial evidence, a fair trial seems unlikely. Ryan Lewis, the defendant, has of course been categorized as an eco-terrorist-that is, a threat to domestic security. Be afraid, everyone. Be very, very afraid. Or that is what the media and the politicians want of you. But we should not be afraid of young people who feel strongly that the destruction of the earth in the name of "development" or "progress" is wrong, and attempt take action to draw attention to perceived abuses of the environment in the only way they know how. No, we should see this as an appeal, as a cry for attention. When people feel strongly enough about a political issue to destroy property, they clearly are not being heard-they feel that they have no voice through normal, approved political channels. What we should really be afraid of are those purveyors of fear that propagate irresponsible, politically motivated labels. Calling Ryan Lewis-and so many others-"eco-terrorists" contributes to our understanding that the enemy is everywhere, that we are unsafe at every turn. Such fear is functional for those who hold political power. If the citizenry is afraid, if they think that they might be subject to attack at any moment, then they will be compliant in the face of shrinking civil liberties and expanding defense budgets. If we do not resist such attempts to curtail fundamental rights, then we truly do not deserve what the founders of the nation saw as the goal of the American Revolution: freedom from tyranny. As Benjamin Franklin so aptly put it: "They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security." When we label individual political speech and action using a category as broad as "terrorism" we do a disservice to ourselves and honest political communication. Terrorism needs to be taken seriously, to be sure. The threats to national security cannot be underestimated. But certainly we must recognize that Americans themselves hold some responsibility in this realm. A set of 1991 Defense Department documents disclosed by Thomas Nagy in the September 2001 issue of The Progressive magazine showed that US forces undertook a program of violence in Iraq that specifically targeted civilian water and sanitation facilities. The Pentagon identified water treatment plants and delivery systems for bombing with the full knowledge that this would cause illness and death to normal Iraqi civilians. Is this not terrorism? Can Americans abide such action in our names? Certainly not. Terrorism is a term that cannot be used loosely, and must be confined to specific and well-defined actions, whether they are by governments (yes, even the US and Israel), government-sponsored groups (such as those financed by Syria or Libya), or non-governmental organizations such as al Qaeda. Calling kids from Oregon and California "eco-terrorists" simply serves to distract us from the real terrorists. What Lewis allegedly did was certainly criminal, and we have given our justice system the legitimate authority to punish such acts. But the political identification of such behavior as being the same as the intentional harm of innocent citizens is irresponsible and abhorrent. Those who pander to the public and whip up a culture of fear are to be resisted with all our might. Kevin Wehr is Assistant Professor of Sociology
at the California State University at Sacramento, and can be
reached at kwehr@csus.edu.
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