by Gerry Foley / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action The assassination of Rafik al-Hariri, former premier of Lebanon and leader of the anti-Syrian opposition in that country, touched off a major political crisis, with mass demonstrations against Syria. It led finally, on Feb. 28, to the fall of the pro-Syrian government. However, the … Continue reading Threat Rises of New Middle East War
Month: March 2005
Frightened Jurors Convict Attorney Lynne Stewart
by Jeff Mackler / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action On Feb. 10 a New York federal district court jury convicted progressive attorney Lynne Stewart on five felony-count charges of conspiracy to aid and abet terrorism, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and making false statements to the government. The frame-up charges stemmed … Continue reading Frightened Jurors Convict Attorney Lynne Stewart
Iraqi Armed Resistance Faces Political Isolation
by Gerry Foley / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action Militarily, the Iraqi resistance has continued to strike against the U.S. and its allies since the election of the Interim National Assembly at the end of January. However, it seems to face a more serious threat of political isolation. The actions of the Iraqi … Continue reading Iraqi Armed Resistance Faces Political Isolation
The Debate in the AFL-CIO
by David Jones / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action The present decline of membership in U.S. unions to 8.2 percent of those working for private employers is the low point of the past century, a fact that has been cited frequently in the current debate about reforming the structure of organized labor initiated … Continue reading The Debate in the AFL-CIO
Israel Puts ‘Peace Process’ on Hold
by Gerry Foley / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action As expected, the election of Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) as the new president of the Palestinian Authority (PA) in January has been followed by new attempts to achieve some sort of compromise between the Zionist rulers and the Palestinian leaders. From the Israeli … Continue reading Israel Puts ‘Peace Process’ on Hold
U.S. Increases Pressure on Venezuela as Chavez Declares for Socialism
"Mr Chavez's claims of an assassination plot come as he is embarking on one of the most radical phases of his promised revolution," The British Guardian reported Feb. 22. The article continued: “The [Hugo Chavez] government has announced it will take over the running of land and businesses that are not being fully exploited … Continue reading U.S. Increases Pressure on Venezuela as Chavez Declares for Socialism
The Bush Agenda: No Aid for Medicaid
by Joe Auciello / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action Critics of President Bush’s scheme to privatize Social Security have pointed out that the president has exaggerated the danger of that program’s future difficulties and has misled the public to pursue his political agenda—reducing a guaranteed benefit for many retirees to finance income tax … Continue reading The Bush Agenda: No Aid for Medicaid
Battles Over Land Sharpen in Brazil’s Amazon Region
by Gerry Foley / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action The murder of an American nun in the Amazon on Feb. 12 has brought to a head a growing land war in Brazil. Dorothy Stang, age 74, had been a decades-long campaigner against the destruction of the Amazonian rain forest. She was shot down … Continue reading Battles Over Land Sharpen in Brazil’s Amazon Region
‘Terrorism’ at Wal-Mart
by Aaron Donny-Clark / March 2005 MONTREAL—Wal-Mart will close, on May 6, its store in Jonquiere, Quebec, about 300 miles northeast of Montreal, one of only two unionized Wal-Mart stores in North America. One hundred and ninety employees will lose their jobs. According to Wal-Mart, the store is being closed because it is not … Continue reading ‘Terrorism’ at Wal-Mart
Northern Lights: News & Views from SA/Canada
by Barry Weisleder/ March 2005 issue of Socialist Action Martin: No to missiles, yes to military On Feb. 24, Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin, dubbed “Mr. Dithers” by the London-based Economist magazine, finally said no to the U.S. ballistic missile defence (BMD) plan. But Martin’s Liberal federal minority government softened the blow to … Continue reading Northern Lights: News & Views from SA/Canada
College of St. Scholastica Tries to Block Vagina Monologues
Below is an interview conducted by Socialist Action newspaper with a pair of student activists at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth. The Vagina Monologues is a performance that highlights violence against women and girls, and has become an important fundraiser for numerous programs dealing with these issues. It has become an annual event … Continue reading College of St. Scholastica Tries to Block Vagina Monologues
In Memory of Ossie Davis
by Gaetana Caldwell-Smith / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action Actor, activist, playwright Ossie Davis died on Feb. 5 of natural causes in Miami while making the film, “Retirement.” His wife of over five decades, actor Ruby Dee, was in New Zealand at the time of his death. She had starred with him in … Continue reading In Memory of Ossie Davis
YSA’s First Seven Years
by Marc Rome / March 2005 It's accurate to characterize the overall student and youth radicalization in the United States today as uneven and erratic. Without a clear political program, it has not been able to sustain the consistent action necessary to fight capitalist globalization, attacks on women's rights, rising tuition costs—and most important, … Continue reading YSA’s First Seven Years
Global Warming: Earth’s Time Bomb
by Michael G. Livingston / March 2005 issue of Socialist Action To watch TV news and read the papers in the United States, you would be pretty much in the dark about the time bomb ticking away on the planet, a time bomb that threatens humanity with extinction. The time bomb I am talking … Continue reading Global Warming: Earth’s Time Bomb