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EXCLUSIVE! HOW THE FBI SPIED ON EDWARD SAID First look at secret files: How G-Men kept Said under surveillance from 1971. David Price traces years of snooping on US's best known Palestinian Bush says 30,000 dead in Iraq but real number caused by 2003 US attack is AT LEAST 180,000, maybe twice that as Andrew Cockburn digs out the real numbers Is the US Constitution worth saving? Hmmm, maybe ... New York Times takes a year to make up its mind. Cockburn and St Clair on NYT and NSA ... 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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January 7 / 8, 2006 Lawrence Velvel January 6, 2006 José
Pertierra Joe Allen Winslow T. Wheeler John Bomar Jason Leopold Norman Solomon Robert Pollin
January 5, 2006 Scott Boehm Zoltan Grossman Heather Gray Haninah Levine Pierre Tristam Remi Kanazi Gilad Atzmon Kathleen and
Bill Christison
January 4, 2006 Ron Jacobs Lila Rajiva Huibin Amee
Chew Pat Williams Linda Milazzo Nick Dearden James Petras Website of
the Day
January 3, 2006 James Ridgeway Laith al-Saud Dick J. Reavis Joshua Frank Rochelle Gause Missy Comley
Beattie Paul de Rooij
January 2, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Clancy Sigal Cindy Sheehan Alexander Cockburn
Dec. 31 / Jan. 1, 2005/6 Patrick Cockburn Alexander Cockburn Ralph Nader James Petras Peter Montague J.L. Chestnut, Jr. Vijay Prashad P. Sainath James Brooks Eileen E. Schell Christopher
Brauchli Jo Guldi Fred Gardner Ben Tripp St. Clair /
Walker / Pollack Poets Basement Website of
the Weekend
December 30,2005 Evo Morales Earl Ofari
Hutchinson Dave Lindorff Gary Leupp Ron Jacobs Brian Concannon Sandra Lucas T.W. Croft Website of
the Day
December 29, 2005 Norman Solomon Missy Comley
Beattie Dave Zirin Kevin Zeese Derrick O'Keefe Sam Bahour Macdonald Stainsby Bill &
Kathleen Christison Website of the Day
December 28, 2005 Jeffrey St.
Clair Lila Rajiva Amira Hass Joshua Frank David Swanson Richard Thieme Paul Craig
Roberts Website of the Day
December 27, 2005 Evan Jones Uri Avnery Mike Whitney Gideon Levy David Swanson Norman Solomon
December 26, 2005 Lawrence R.
Velvel Lance Olsen Ben Terrall Scott Boehm Charlie Ehlen Tom Kerr
December 24/25, 2005 Aleander Cockburn James Petras Ralph Nader Lila Rajiva Fred Gardner Ron Jacobs Dave Lindorff Gary Leupp Saul Landau John Chuckman Dr. Susan Block St. Clair / Vest / Pollack
/ Donnelly Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
December 23, 2005 John Ross Chris Floyd Lawrence Mishel
/ Ross Eisenbrey Joanne Mariner Eric Johnson-Debaufre Ray McGovern J. L. Chestnut,
Jr. Website of
the Day
December 22, 2005 Ingmar Lee Elisa Salasin Christopher
Brauchli Robin Blackburn Evelyn Pringle Amira Hass Francis A.
Boyle Stew Albert Website of
the Day
December 21, 2005 Paul Craig
Roberts Lila Rajiva Joshua Frank Dave Zirin Ramzy Baroud Sonia Nettnin Ben Saul Jonathan Cronin Patrick Cockburn Website of
the Day
December 20, 2005 Jackie Corr Earl Ofari
Hutchinson Michael Donnelly Gian Paulo
Accardo Pierre Tristam Norman Solomon Sen. Robert Byrd Dave Lindorff Website of the Day
December 19, 2005 Mike Marqusee Gary Leupp Ron Jacobs John Blair Gideon Levy Kevin Zeese Missy Comley Beattie Don Santina Website of the Day
December 17 / 18, 2005 Cockburn /
St. Clair Gabriel Kolko Susan Alcorn Werther Ralph Nader Patrick Cockburn Fred Gardner Dave Lindorff Ned Sublette Lee Sustar Jason Leopold Laura Carlsen Jeff White Ray McGovern Chris Floyd William Loren Katz Rose Miriam
Elizalde Greg Moses Heather Gray Alison Weir St Clair /
Walker / Pollack Poets' Basement Website of
the Day
December 16, 2005 Tom Kerr Mark Engler John Bomar Patrick Cockburn Pierre Tristam William S. Lind Cyril Neville Robert Jensen Saul Landau Website
December 15, 2005 Oren Ben-Dor Stan Cox Joshua Frank Ben Terrall Patrick Cockburn Monica Benderman Walter A. Davis Vijay Prashad Website of
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Patrick Cockburn Paul Craig
Roberts Lawrence R. Velvel Wayne Garcia John Sugg Gary Leupp Ray McGovern Alan Maass April Hurley, MD Kevin Alexander
Gray
December 13, 2005 Stephen T.
Banko, III Patrick Cockburn Laura Carlsen Karl Grossman Niranjan Ramakrishnan Kevin Zeese Norman Solomon Michael G.
Smith Stew Albert Bob Dylan Phil Gasper Website of
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December 12, 2005 Paul Craig
Roberts Lawrence R.
Velvel Jessica Stewart George Bisharat Nate Mezmer Earl Ofari
Hutchinson Alison Weir Seth Sandronsky Patrick Cockburn Website of
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Alexander Cockburn Landau / Hassen Ralph Nader Linn Washington, Jr Bill Christison Mike Ferner Elizabeth Schulte Neve Gordon / Yigal Bronner Linda S. Heard Ingmar Lee Ray McGovern John Chuckman John Ryan Dick J. Reavis Christopher
Brauchli Behzad Yaghmaian Aseem Shrivastava John Ross Ben Tripp St. Clair / Pollack / Vest
/ Despair Poets' Basement Website of the Week
December 9, 2005 Linn Washington,
Jr. Dave Zirin
/ Mike Stark Patrick Cockburn Alexander Cockburn Lila Rajiva Gary Leupp Jason Leopold Bruce K. Gagnon Andrew Cockburn Website of the Day
December 8, 2005 Kathy Kelly James Petras William S.
Lind Laura Carlsen Justin Akers Thomas Graham, Jr Norman Solomon Tariq Ali /
Robin Blackburn Website of
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December 7, 2005 John Ryan Gary Leupp Fran Quigley Jeremy Brecher
/ Brendan Smith Joshua Frank William W.
Morgan Dave Lindorff Patrick Cockburn Harold Pinter Website of
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December 6, 2005 Ron Jacobs Patrick Cockburn Yifat Susskind Mike Whitney Pat Williams Paul Craig
Roberts Website of
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December 5, 2005 John Walsh Brian Cloughley Mokhiber /
Weissman Robert Jensen Norman Solomon Peter Rost, MD Lila Rajiva Website of the Day
Alexander Cockburn Lawrence R.
Velvel Rev. William Alberts Saul Landau Ralph Nader Paul Craig
Roberts Mike Whitney Allan Lichtman Dave Lindorff Brian Concannon,
Jr. Fred Gardner Manuel Garcia,
Jr. Carol Wolman St. Clair /
Vest / Walker / Pollack Poets' Basement Website of
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December 2, 2005 Stan Goff Mike Ferner Christopher Brauchli Niranjan Ramakrishnan Manuel Talens Peter Phillips J.L. Chestnut,
Jr. Website of
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December 1, 2005 John Walsh,
MD Ron Jacobs Jenna Orkin Joshua Frank Tiffany Ten
Eyck Missy Comley Beattie Eli Stephens Elaine Cassel Website of
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January 7 / 8, 2006 Will Bernie Sanders Take a Stand?Would Ethan Allen Pay to Protest?By RON JACOBS I left Burlington, Vermont last June. After twelve years there, leaving was bittersweet at best. Having grown up as a military brat, twelve years was the longest that I had ever lived in one town consecutive years, plus Vermont is an incredibly tolerant place. In fact, with the exception of its bitterly cold winters, it would be ideal. Politically, it tends towards a libertarian communitarianism--a combination of New England independence/live-and-let-live philosophy born in the muskets of Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys and their fight for independence and against monied land speculators from New York and Britain. This belief is complemented by a general assumption that every resident deserves a decent shelter and food on the table. This combination of independence and social welfare is part of the reason that Bernie Sanders gets reelected every two years as the state's congressperson. I always thought that part of the reason for Vermont's generally progressive social and economic policies stemmed from its small size. As of 2000, there were only around 500,000 residents. Now, that's less than one-third the number of people who live in Manhattan spread out over almost 300 times the area. Even in Burlington--the state's largest and most densely populated city--this means that there is a lot of room to move around. In addition, the small population breeds a familiarity. One can walk down Burlington's Church Street pedestrian mall and get into an argument with Bernie Sanders or the mayor if they so desire. In addition, the relative amount of room each individual has tends to make people feel quite comfortable and even relaxed. Manhattan seems to do the opposite to most folks. The progressive politics of modern Vermont stem from a combination of factors. Foremost among them would be the influx of counterculture and new leftist types during the late 1960s and the 1970s--refugees from the Nixonian reality of the Northeast cities in the era of Kent State and Watergate. Additional elements are the numbers of liberal thinking young professionals who moved to the area in the 1980s and 1990s, along with the ever expanding lesbian and gay population. The latter population enjoys the relative tolerance and acceptance that they find in the state, especially after Vermont became the first state to recognize civil unions between same sex couples. Of course, one must still have a desire to live in a basically rural environment [i.e., live five months , January to May, marinating in freezing mud, ACC] to move to Vermont, but that too contributes to Vermonters' sense of community-based politics. During my twelve years in Burlington, I went to dozens of protests and demonstrations. Some, like the People's Economic Summit in 1995 during the National Governors' Conference or the convergence against the FTAA meetings taking place in Quebec City in 2000--were events that took months to plan and involved people from around the country. Others, like the protest against the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the takeover of Bernie Sanders' office during the bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999--were spontaneous and primarily involved Vermonters and college students attending college in the area. Almost all of them came off peacefully and were occasionally attended by various local politicians. Suffice it to say that Burlington is the only place that I have protested our government's actions where I never worried about getting arrested or beaten without warning. Although I always had the thought in my mind that protest in that situation was exactly what Herbert Marcuse was talking about when he wrote of repressive tolerance, I enjoyed the freedom from fear I grew to expect in Burlington. So, imagine my surprise when I received an email from a friend still living and working in Vermont that described a new ordinance that the Burlington City Council wants to turn into law. In essence, the proposed law is an attempt to create so-called free speech zones in Burlington. Although the law doesn't state this explicitly, it does explicitly state where residents can not hold a protest: in front of the City Hall Building and in front of the office building where Bernie Sanders maintains his Burlington offices. So, by default, the ordinance does create "zones" of free speech. Furthermore, the ordinance would require 100 days advance notice for marches of 100 people or more and seven days advance notice for those of less than 100. On top of that, it would require a so-called administrative fee of fifty dollars and require groups to pay for any police protection, even if the marchers do not request such protection. Now, I don't know about you, but it seems to me that this law would not only restrict people's right to peaceably assemble and speak, it pretty much forbids that right to those unable or unwilling to pay the required fees. On top of that, the restrictions against groups gathering in front of the City Hall or the Congressperson's office contradict the very essence of a government of the people. After all, who the hell do they think built City Hall and who the hell do they think the Congressperson is working for? Both of the aforementioned buildings are on the aforementioned Church Street. For those who have never been to Burlington, this street is essentially an open air shopping mall. Knowing the arguments of those who want to restrict the rights of those on the street who do not shop--be they politicos, street performers, teenagers looking for their friends, or homeless people--this ordinance is not a surprise. Indeed, the city attorney who drew up the measure (a so-called progressive), insists that the law is "content neutral" and just designed to permit equal access to all, shoppers and non-shoppers. The reality is the opposite. Since political protests are the primary large gatherings on the streets, it is clear to most everyone that this ordinance is intended to restrict such events. Of course, most of the folks who have lobbied the hardest for the restrictions are some of the merchants with shops on the street. The first amendment guarantees the right to peaceably assemble. It does not say we can only do this in certain areas and only after notifying the authorities. Nor does it say we should have to pay for this right. (Besides, isn't that what taxes are supposed to pay for?). Indeed, a recent, magnificently written decision by U.S. District Court Judge John A. Woodcock, Jr in Bangor, Maine says as much. Judge Woodcock determined that an Augusta, Maine parade statue that required marchers to obtain insurance and pay other fees to the city before they could get a permit was unconstitutional. Not only did he find the ordinance unconstitutional, the judge defended the right adamantly in his 51-page opinion. He quoted previous cases that said that public streets are traditional public fora and that "the government must bear an extraordinarily heavy burden to regulate speech in such locales." (City of Richmond, 743 F.2d at 1355.32) Furthermore, wrote the judge, since "the streets are natural and proper places for the dissemination of information and opinionone is not to have the exercise of his liberty of expression in appropriate places abridged on the plea that it may be exercised in some other place". (Schneider, 308 U.S. at 163.) Nor, he continued, should there be fees associated with the right to march in city streets. Let Representative Sanders denounce the proposed regulation in Vermont. Or does Sanders now take the view that In the land where the dollar reigns supreme, free speech will have to pay. A list of Burlington's City Councilors appears on this page. Email them. http://www.ci.burlington.vt.us/ct/citycouncil/ Judge Woodcock's decision can be found here: http://www.aclu.org/images/asset_upload_file907_23280.pdf 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 new collection on music,
art and sex, Serpents
in the Garden. He can be reached at: rjacobs3625@charter.net
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from CounterPunch Books! The Case Against Israel By Michael Neumann  Grand Theft Pentagon: Tales of Greed and Profiteering in the War on Terror by Jeffrey St. Clair                           Sick of sit-on-the-Fence speakers, tongue-tied and timid? CounterPunch Editors Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St Clair are available to speak forcefully on ALL the burning issues, as are other CounterPunchers seasoned in stump oratory. Call CounterPunch Speakers Bureau, 1-800-840-3683. Or email beckyg@counterpunch.org. |
