local stuffs

this is truly an inordinately long local stuffs. i am sorry, especially
since there's some very good stuffs in it. hope you won't be put off...
g

1. aspartame. It...
2. Poem 9
3. GMO field spraying suspected of sending Waimea Students to the -
comment
4. Kaniakapupu Cleanup
5. OHA: Before Any Settlement, Audits Are Needed - comment
6. [Felicity Arbuthnot] Operation Desert Slaughter, Thoughts On Holocaust
Memorial Day
7. Combat, family stress bring soldier to desert
8. Healthy News Article from Mercola.com
9. Disappeared News - 2 new articles
10. More Knowledge Better than More Lawsuits
11. A Bushed State of the (dis)Union?
12. Voices Health/Environment News
13. Alchemical and Medicinal Properties of Food...letter G
14. NEW, FREE, and LEGAL Music Download Service ...ipods too
15. Trying to Stop the u.s. Titanic! - interesting and probably true
16. sovereignty update french-occupied polynesia -- also, federal min.
wage fallout in u.s. colonies
17. war between chuukese warriors and samoan warriors in hawai'i?
18. We need you tonight 19. Stryker Brigade, Makua Key, Mixon
Says.......................
20. from Grist: Environmental News and Commentary
21. First year report available - learn more about the Ombuds Office
22. Paradise Lost: Military Training in Makua Valley
23. Nanakuli Homeless Pack Up Soon - comment
24. Action Alert from Life of the Land / Protest President Bus...
25. Power package: Governor pushes clean energy initiative
26. "Unprecedented Collapse" of Pasifik Salmon Fishery
27. OHA Ceded Land Settlement Misleading & Manipulative
28. [Disappeared News] New comment on A glimpse at Hawaii's new friends,
the Indonesian....
29. Responding to Hawaii - Indonesia military cooperation and re-response
30. NEW SPECIAL! Healing From Within
31. OHA Phone bank=Overtime!
32. OHA settlement=Alleged Grant support!
33. Pasifik Fisheries and Corruption
34. Voices Health/Environmental News
35. What to do with/about white folks?
36. The Masquerade
37. Layers Of Feeling Coping With Passive Aggression
38. Free Hawai`i TV - "Stop The OHA Land Sell Out!"
39. Disappeared News - 5 new articles
40. Racist Ontology of "Cow Inoa" by Tony Castanha
41. Put your students in touch with Iraqi students/refugees!
42. Help Celebrate RecycleMania on Friday
43. kumulipo's trip to molokai in jan 08...
44. ARTICLE LINK: Chile hunger strike puts focus on Indians' plight
45. Hawaii 2050 Update
46. Civil Rights in America Forum
47. The People Are One Not Three or Four by Rafael Cancel Miranda /
Special for Cla
48. Australia to apologize to Aborigines
49. imperial maine -- somebody pls read this and do a book review!!
50. Look what i found.....Hummm
51. annexation that never was -- check out great website!
52. i ka 'olelo no ke ola -- 9 pages
53. NY TIMES: Beyond the Stimulus Package - from Suddenly Senior
54. Hana Fresh
55. Object to HB 2863
56. Island Food Security News: Let 'em Eat Dirt
57. excerpt from a review
58. IIIIIt's Snowtime!

1. aspartame. It...
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 01:58:34 -0500 (EST)
From: bchingkahoola@pol.net

Aloha kakou,

Don't know what to say about aspartamine. If you have certain metabolic
diseases it can cause a lot of problems.

It is a substance not found in nature in these concentrations. Sort of
like Ajinomoto. That stuff is just an amino acid so theoretically should
not be so bad. But then again it may be causing the Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome.

And then there was the B6 fiasco, it used to be given to pregnant people
and for insomnia and all sorts of wild things. Then they found out that B6
is a pro vitamin and is not active until the liver activates it. Because
of the huge doses which overwhelmed the liver's ability to activate it,
almost all of the vitamin in the blood was not active, and when the
inactive vitamin was taken up in the enzyme the enzyme was inactive. So in
a paradoxical fashion, taking huge doses of the stuff produced the same as
a deficiency. This caused sometimes irreversable nerve damage.

So my advice is that you can drink tap water, save a lot of bucks, and you
don't have to expose yourself to possible problems with aspartamine.

Malama pono,

Kaho`ola
------

Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 23:26:44 -1000
From: Leota Souza <tuwahine@hawaii.rr.com>

Mahalo. Back to basics...water. pilipo
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Poem 9
From: Mahealani Wendt
Sent: Monday, January 28, 2008 6:20 PM

^ÓA long time I have lived with you^Ô

A long time I have lived with you
And now we must be going
Separately to be together.
Perhaps I shall be the wind
To blur your smooth waters
So that you do not see your face too much.
Perhaps I shall be the star
To guide your uncertain wings
So that you have direction in the night.
Perhaps I shall be the fire
To separate your thoughts
So that you do not give up.
Perhaps I shall be the rain
To open up the earth
So that your seed may fall.
Perhaps I shall be the snow
To let your blossoms sleep
So that you may bloom in the spring.
Perhaps I shall be the stream
To play a song on the rock
So that you are not alone.
Perhaps I shall be a new mountain
So that you always have a home.

--Nancy Wood
------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. GMO field spraying suspected of sending Waimea Students to the -
comments
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 21:36:26 -1000
From: Tane . <Tane_1@msn.com>

So, how long has the "stinkweed" been growing there? Did Syngenta plant
them there? If it's wild and has been growing all around for decades;
then the only conclusion is the odor of the "stinkweed" is not what made
the students and teachers sick. Duh!!!! Who was the asshole that let
those GMO companies plant their frankenstein crops in the first place?
We don't need their stylized fertilizers or pesticides in our soil. Kick
them off the island!

Tane
-------

Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:08:42 -1000
From: Lc <palolo@hawaii.rr.com>

yikes!
----- Original Message ----- From: Na Maka o ka 'Aina
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 11:21 PM

hi everyone,

just to answer some of Terri's questions.

Earthjustice (Hawai'i office) has had two precedent-setting court
victories on GMO issues in Hawai'i.

attached is an August 2006 press statement from Earthjustice that was
released after the federal district court agreed with Earthjustice that
the USDA (Dept. of Ag) violated the Endangered Species Act and the
National Environmental Policy Act when it gave permits to biotech
companies in Hawai'i (Monsanto, Prodigene, Garst Seed Company and Hawai`i
Agriculture Research Center) to grow corn and sugar cane that were
genetically-engineered to produce experimental vaccines and other
"industrial" proteins.

experts testified in court that these biopharmaceutical substances could
produce autoimmune responses or severe allergic reaction in people that
might be exposed to them.

these test crops were being grown in unmarked, open fields in locations
that the industry and the government refused to disclose to the public, or
even to lawmakers.

earlier Earthjustice had won another court victory when it took the
Hawai'i Board of Agriculture to state court, challenging the permitting of
open air tests of pharmaceutical algae on the Kona coast.

these court victories have been used as precedent in other cases in the
U.S. involving the permitting of GMO test crops.

the implication is that government agencies "have to assess the
environmental and human health impacts of these crops before they allow
private companies to go out and plant them and expose people and the
environment to these crops." (Paul Achitoff (lead attorney, Earthjustice)
quote from ISLANDS AT RISK - GENETIC ENGINEERING IN HAWAI'I at
http://www.namaka.com/catalog/environment/genetic.html

read more about Earthjustice's lawsuits at http://www.kahea.org/gmo/

so now, companies that want to test biopharmaceutical crops in Hawai'i
will have to do environmental studies first.

from what we understand, the companies involved stopped doing tests with
biopharm crops (or at least they say they stopped) and are only raising

GMO food crops which were not covered by the court suits.

however, you can still drive up Kunia road to the UH agricultural station
and see a sign that says: "Experimental crop - not for human consumption

nor animal feed"

there is so much more that we learned in the process of producing the
ISLANDS AT RISK video.

it's all there on the Internet.

follow the URLs. ~Joan Lander
------

On Jan 29, 2008, at 4:36 PM, Terri Kekoolani wrote:

> Aloha Aunty Nani and Melissa....
>
> Fast one ..this article is old / January 21, 2001 - but it gives
> background on Kekaha, Kauai facilitiy.
>
> Seeds of Biotech Take Hold on Kauai
> http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2001/01/22/focus4.html
>
> " At it's Kauai facility in Kekaha, Syngenta's focus has mostly been
> on producing different types of inbred corn stock and, more recently,
> soybeans. The corn seed stock eventually becomes the parent of new
> hybrid corn varieties used worldwide. "
>
> Two things I picked up at the Save Haloa / No GMO gathering at the
> Iolani Palace.
> First, the visiting "Corn Warriors" from Arizona talked to us about
> their struggles to prevent the spread of exactly these types of "corn
> seed stock" products from polluting their aina & native corns. Native
> to Native...the biotech agribusinesses can be seen as dangerous to the
> environment and to our "relations." SEED, a co-sponsor of the
> gathering sold T-shirts which said: Native Hawaiians consider
> themselves to be descendants of the sacred taro plant. In the same
> way, many Native American Tribes consider themselves descendants of
> corn. Over half of the corn grown in the US today is Genetically
> Modified, Patented and controlled by the Biotech industry. Is Hawaiian
> taro next ?
>
> Well...now we know that alot of the GMO corn seed stock is grown right
> here in Hawai'i AND kalo, Haloa may be the next GMO product unless we
> fight back...double whammy.
>
> Second, at the Palace, we saw a video production by the HemoWai
> brothers (Hano & KalaniUa). The video documented a very simiilar
> situation on Moloka'i. A GMO field situated next to a school and
> elderly care home. It was a good video presentation because they got
> footage of the facility and it's promixity to the school and care
> home.
>
> Who allows or permits these fields? anybody know? I think
> Earthjustice had a suit to force the disclosure of GMO fields in
> Hawaii, but I don't know what the outcome was. This is an old 2003
> article:
>
> Fears Grow With Genetic Crop Secrecy
> http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2003/Oct/19/ln/ln01a.html
> " Crop researchers maintain that the secrecy is needed to protect
> their proprietary work from competitors and shield their crops from
> eco-terrorists."

> More from the Pacific Business news article on Kauai Biotech industry:
>
> " While what's happened in the seed crop industry in Hawaii is
> impressive, it's the end value of the seed material produced in Hawaii
> that's truly staggering, says Mike Harrington, a professor of molecular
> biosciences and biosystems engineering and former dean of the University
> of Hawaii School of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. Harrington
> estimates the end value of seed material produced in Hawaii is worth at
> least $5 billion. There are several reasons for the growth of seed crops
> in Hawaii, Harrington says. With the decline of the sugar industry, more
> acreage is now accessible for use. The industry worldwide has also been
> expanding rapidly in recent years through a series of acquisitions and
> mergers. " grrrrrr
>
> Last thing, I came across this paper by Winona LaDuke She spoke at the
> UH as a "rice warrior" and an Ojibway from White Earth Reservation,
> Minesota. (By the way, her res is huge; 837,000 + acres which is like
> the combined land mass of O'ahu & Maui.)

Winona LaDuke: Native People have taken great care to fashion their
societies accordance with the flow and law of Nature.
http://www.resurgence.org/resurgence/articles/laduke.htm

tk
________________________________________________________________________________

4. Kaniakapupu Cleanup
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 02:37:58 -0500 (EST)
From: bchingkahoola@pol.net

Aloha kakou,

This Sunday coming is the first of the month.

It is Kaniakapupu cleanup time again.

Next month Kua`aina students will be there.

Come out and enjoy the breeze, gentle rains and the sun.

See you all 0900-1200.

Malama pono,

Kaho`ola
-----------------------------------------------------------------

5. OHA: Before Any Settlement, Audits Are Needed - comment
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 22:00:53 -1000
From: Tane . <Tane_1@msn.com>

Why stopp there; there should be an inventory on all ceded lands like some
have asked for decades ago. I can remember Lilikala asking for it to be
done. Add to that an audit of the state in its trust obligations and
where the money? They tossed it into the general fund and mixed it up.
So many irregularities abound. Inventory and audit the state and then
OHA.

Tane
________________________________________________________________________________

6. [Felicity Arbuthnot] Operation Desert Slaughter, Thoughts On Holocaust
Memorial Day
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 22:16:00 -1000
From: viviane lerner <vivlerner@gmail.com>

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=7920
Operation Desert Slaughter
Thoughts On Holocaust Memorial Day
By Felicity Arbuthnot
GlobalResearch.ca
1-28-8

It is seventeen years since America and Britain embarked on their 'Final
Solution' for the population of Iraq.

The forty two day carpet bombing, enjoined by thirty two other countries,
against a country of just twenty five million souls, with a youthful,
conscript army, with broadly half the population under sixteen, and no air
force, was just the beginning of a United Nations led, global siege of
near mediaeval ferocity. Having, as James Baker boasted they would,
reduced 'Iraq to a pre-industrial age', the country was denied all
normality : trade, aid, telecommunications, power, sanitation, water
repairs, seeds, foods, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment.

As I write, seventeen years ago, Iraq would be entering the second week of
a barbaric, near twenty four hour a day, carpet bombing, which, then, as
now (lest we forget - yet again) scrupulously ignored Protocol 1,
Additional to the Geneva Convention of 1977: 'It is prohibited to attack,
destroy, remove or render useless objects indispensable to the survival of
the civilian population, such as foodstuffs, agricultural areas for the
production of foodstuffs, crops, livestock, drinking water installations
and supplies such as irrigation works (denying them) to the civilian
population or to the adverse Party ... for any motive.'

The blitzkrieg on Iraq deliberately targeted all 'indispensable to
survival'.

Within twenty four hours, most was destroyed. The electricity went off
within two hours, leaving patients on life support machines and vital
equipment, babies in incubators, or those on oxygen to die.
Refrigerators defrosted, all medicine needing refrigeration, blood banks
and vital saline solutions for the injured were destroyed. Food rotted and
between the bombing and the bank closures (latter for fear of looting)
replacements were scarce to unbuyable.

In Najav, seventy dialysis patients, 'old friends', said the senior nurse
in charge of the unit, died for want of electricity. The water supply was
deliberately destroyed, parts denied subsequently by the pathetic, US-UK
dominated Sanctions Committee - a Committee without a backbone between
them - and remains lethal to this day.

This was the plan by US Central Command, it seems, all along. The
destruction of Iraq's water system has been described by Professor Nagy
and Stephanie Miller as: 'a slow motion holocaust'. Few could have put it
better.

(See: How the US deliberately destroyed Iraq's water. by Thomas J Nagy
http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/NAG108A.html )

The telecommunications tower was also one of the earliest casualties, an
elegant, soaring, structure on the edge of Baghdad's Mansur district. It
lay, broken and crumpled, as did the remains of those who worked inside
it. Iraq was thus cut off from the world, the extent of the bombing and
atrocities largely unknown for considerable time. Iraqis throughout the
world had no way of knowing if their families, friends, loves, were dead
or alive. Radio and television stations across Iraq were blitzed so no
warnings to populus could be given (journalists too have special
protection in wars, but decision makers, seemingly are not only
illiterate, but ignore legalities.)

Hospitals, health clinics, schools and kindergartens were bombed,
education eradicated so totally that the stores for educational materials,
in buildings separate from the schools (usually in a central distribution
point some miles away) were also bombed. Agriculture in all forms was
deliberately targeted. Chicken farms bombed, flocks of sheep and goats,
broadly half of all buffalo were killed, dairy farms obliterated. Crops,
food processing factories reduced to rubble. A war crime stupendous in its
immensity, for which not one murderous, genocidal, infanticidal, decision
maker or pilot has stood trial.

Pharmaceutical factories were bombed, the medical syringe factory was
destroyed. And in an especially psychotic policy, the countries who were
Iraq's trading partners and had built factories and installations for the
country, bombed those which they had built. America's gung-ho goons
whooped over bombing the Pepsi and Coca Cola factories. 'Bravery' doesn't
come more deviant, sub-normal and retarded than that.

Due to the use of defoliants and napalm, half of all Iraq's trees,
including the great, ancient palms, died. Remaining palms did not bear
their succulent fruit for about five years. In the tranquil, family
farming settlements, amongst the palms, women and livestock alike aborted
and often died. Survivors consistently described a 'vapor' coming from the
'planes, then the horrific aftermath, affecting those living in the
shelter of the palm groves or copses of trees, where dwellers settled for
relative cool from Iraq's searing summers. And, of course, in this
decimation from above, which dropped more ordinance daily than was dropped
daily in the second world war, five times more explosive power was dropped
than on Hiroshima.

The weapons used were depleted uranium, which continues to irradiate Iraq
and the region, the people, flora and fauna -and will continue to do so
for four and a half billion years. '..protection of the natural
environment against widespread, long term and severe damage', is another
absolute dictate under the Geneva Convention. It proscribes absolutely
'... damage to the natural environment (prejucing) the health and survival
of the population.' Contraventions don't come bigger than condemning
inestimable generations yet unborn, to death and deformity. The Nuremberg
Principles are exercised by the treatment of both civilians and prisoners
and the: '... murder or ill treatment ...of prisoners of war ... further,
extermination ... and other inhuman acts against any civilian population'.

The 'inhuman acts', committed against the Iraqi people in 1991 constitute
war crimes which, since no one was brought to justice, one can only hope
haunt those responsible for all time.

The slaughter on the Basra Road, after the ceasefire, the fleeing
civilians and retreating troops, ripped to pieces, or incinerated in
General Norman Schwartzkop's 'turkey shoot'. The whole war, of course, was
nothing else. Saddam Hussein had offered, indeed, started to retreat from
Kuwait before the carnage began, but as ever, for the United States,
conciliation was 'too late'. Buses, lorries, cars were also targeted
throughout the forty two day massacre. Lorries carrying medicines, meat,
essentials were burned, with their drivers. Western troops took their
repulsive 'trophy photos', with the pathetic remains of the incinerated
and dismembered.

When the (UK) Observer, to its credit, printed the picture which became
the symbol of the 1991 atrocities, the Iraqi soldier, with his near melted
face welded to the windscreen of his vehicle, there was an outcry. The
sensitivities of readers should not be exposed to such horrors. Maggie
O'Kane, writing in the Guardian Weekly (16th December 1995) describes
searingly, reality. Relatives, praying, hope against hope, that those they
loved, had somehow miraculously survived the hadean inferno that was the
Basra Road massacre. "On the day the war ended, at a bus station south of
Baghdad, dusk was falling and the road was covered with weeping women.

The Iraqi survivors of the `turkey shoot' on the Basra Road were crawling
home with fresh running wounds. Their women were throwing themselves at
the battered minibuses and trucks, pulling, pleading, begging. `Where is
he, have you seen him ? Is he not with you ?' Some fell to their knees on
the road when they heard the news.

Others kept running from bus, to truck, to car, looking for their
husbands, their sons or their lovers - the 37,000 Iraqi soldiers who would
not come back. It went on all night and it was the most desperate and
moving scene I have ever witnessed." There was worse. Think of the
excesses of horrors the Western media has deluged its readers with over
the years, those perpetrated by people of other cultures, with other
features: Stalin, Pol Pot, indeed Saddam Hussein and consider this in
Maggie O'Kane's article: '

When Sergeant Joe Queen returned to his home town of Bryson City North
California, after the Gulf war, the first thing he saw was a huge banner
draped outside Hardees Burger Restaurant, which read: `Welcome Home Joe
Queen.' Joe Queen, who'd been awarded a bronze star, wanted to chill out
after the war, but Bryson City wouldn't let him Joe, 19-years old, had
gone straight from Desert Storm to become one of the first American troops
to cross the Saudi border in an armored bulldozer. His job was to bury the
Iraqis alive in their trenches and then cover over the trenches real
smooth so the rest of the Big Red One, as The First Armored Mechanized
Brigade is called, could come nice and easy behind him. 'Joe Queen doesn't
know how many Iraqi troops he buried alive on the front line.

But five years later, in his military base in Georgia, he remembers well
how it worked:

`The sand was so soft that once the blade hits the sand it just caves in
right on the sides, so we never did go back and forth. So you are
traveling at five, six, seven miles an hour just moving along the
trench... You don't see him. You're up there in the half hatch and you
know what you got to do. You did it so much you could close your eyes and
do it... I don't think they had any idea because the look on their faces
as we came through the berm was just a look of shock. `While I was
retreating, I saw some of the soldiers trying to surrender, but they were
buried. There were two kinds of bulldozers, real ones, actual ones, and
also they had tanks and they put something like a bulldozer blade in front
of them. Some of the soldiers were walking towards the troops holding
their arms up to surrender and the tanks moved in and killed them. They
dug a hole in the ground and then they buried the soldiers and leveled
it.' One survivor described the friends buried alive, who he had laughed
with, eaten with ...'I really don't know how to describe it. We were
friends. I ate with some of them. I talked to some of them. I cannot
express how I felt at that moment..... I saw one soldier and his body was
just torn apart by a bulldozer. The upper part was on one side and the
lower on the other side.'

I hope your nightmares and those of your colleagues haunt for all time Joe
Queen. May the specter of those for whose live burial you and your
murderous colleagues were responsible, follow in all your footsteps, for
all time.

These mass graves also carry the names of the leaders who ordered the
decimation of Iraq in 1991,their military Commanders and soldiers, on
every one of them. Ironically, the mass graves of Saddam Hussein have
seemingly not materialized, just war graves and those from the uprising
encouraged by the US and UK at the end of the 1991 decimation. The war, of
course, never ended. The thirteen year subsequent embargo cost maybe one
and a quarter million lives.

Additionally, the US and UK, bombed Iraq (illegally) until the (illegal)
invasion of 2003. In 2002, they stepped up their destruction of life, limb
and of entire housing projects with families within, children playing,
doing homework, flocks of sheep and goats with their child shepherds.
'Approximately a year before the United States initiated Operation
Southern Focus, as a change to its response strategy, by increasing the
overall number of missions and selecting targets throughout the no-fly
zones to disrupt the military command structure in Iraq. The weight of
bombs dropped increased from none in March 2002 and 0.3 in April 2002 to
between 8 and 14 tons per month in May-August, reaching a pre-war peak of
54.6 tons in September 2002.' (Wikipedia.)

A recent study by the Centre for Public Integrity, has also uncovered lies
of impeachable stature, leading to invasion, by the Bush Administration..

'The study counted 935 false statements in the two-year period. It found
that in speeches, briefings, interviews and other venues, Bush and
administration officials stated unequivocally on at least 532 occasions
that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or was trying to produce or
obtain them, or had links to al Qaeda, or both. 'Bush led with 259 false
statements, 231 about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and 28 about
Iraq's links to al Qaeda, the study found. That was second only to
Powell's 244 false statements about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq
and 10 about Iraq and al Qaeda.' (<http://
www.publicintegrity.org>http://www.publicintegrity.org )

Iraq's post invasion (2003-2007) excess under five mortality has been
estimated at over one million. In Afghanistan, post invasion, at 1.9
million (2001-2007.)

For another humanitarian abomination of our time, the Israeli siege of the
Gaza strip (June 2007 and ongoing) total excess death figures are elusive.
CIA figures for infant mortality, however (2004) are woeful at 23.54 per
thousand births. Sweden (2007) just 2.76 per thousand births. Given
Israel's withdrawal of electricity and just about all needed to sustain
life since last June, some serious statistical data is needed - and
relentless and absolute demands for humanity and human rights for our
global neighbors in Gaza, Iraq and Afghanistan, the forgotten of Lebanon's
'Simmer Rain' decimation, by 'we the people ...' Like Joe Queen's
genocidal actions, the atrocities committed in these countries are being
carried out in our name. 'Silence is complicity'. (For much more shameful
complicity - since 1950 - please see Dr Gideon Polya: 'Body Count', an
academic, key and indispensable work:
http://www.globalbodycount.blogspot.com)

'There was no one left to kill', declared General Norman Schwartzkopf
after the Basra Road bloodbath, where even the injured holding white
flags, and doctors accompanying them were obliterated. 'Morally, we won',
an Iraqi doctor told me shortly afterwards. Indeed. 'We are the new Jews',
is an oft heard, Arab refrain now.

As I write, on Holocaust Memorial Day, it is impossible not to reflect
that is does not take forced labor camps, forced transport and Zyclon B to
create a holocaust. When the figures of the dead in Iraq, Afghanistan and
Gaza, reach six million, as the world stands by, will they too get their
own Holocaust Memorial Day? Will we all, regardless of color or creed,
ever learn, before it is too late?
=====------------------------------------------------------------------

7. Combat, family stress bring soldier to desert
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 22:20:54 -1000
From: viviane lerner <vivlerner@gmail.com>

http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/Headlines/frtHEAD05012608.htm
January 26, 2008
Combat, family stress bring soldier to desert
By AUDREY PARENTE 
Staff Writer

Early December 2007:

In the midst of a desperate firefight in Iraq, as shots ricocheted around
him, Sgt. Allen Robert "Robby" Keller IV froze for a moment. Any soldier
knows that can be a death sentence.

The 23-year-old had enlisted at 19 "to get on a good financial foot for
college." For months before that terrible instant of immobility, his
combat stress had led to sleeplessness, nightmares and loss of appetite.
He was wracked with worry about his wife, Michaelagh, at home having
problems with her second pregnancy.

For the first time in his four-year military career, during his second
deployment, Keller was losing control, having an emotional breakdown.

He made it safely out of the streets and sought help. He was soon going to
be headed home on leave to Holly Hill. He had "aid from the combat stress
people" in the form of medication, and surely everything would be OK.

While Keller was on leave, his wife went into early labor, and on
Christmas Day she had her baby boy in Canada, her native land.

Keller was supposed to be away from his post for only a few weeks, but on
Dec. 26 things changed.

That's when Keller went absent without leave.

He hasn't returned to his unit, and as of today he remains in Canada and
will be dropped from the rolls at Fort Drum, N.Y., as a deserter and a
warrant will be issued for his arrest.

Last year 4,698 soldiers deserted the Army, a number that has grown
steadily. The number is more than 80 percent above the count for 2003,
during the start of the Iraq War.

The Department of Defense said approximately 76 percent of the 2007
deserters were first-term soldiers.

"Desertion in the Army isn't the huge problem as it has been portrayed by
some organizations that assist soldiers who have deserted or by some of
the soldiers themselves," said Lt. Col. George Wright, spokesman for the
Army. "The vast majority of American soldiers serve their country
admirably and honorably. On average, the number of soldiers who desert is
less than 1 percent."

Although Keller doesn't fit the "first-term" profile, Wright said military
studies show most soldiers desert because of personal, family or financial
problems, not for political or conscientious objector purposes.

Keller's reasons are related to combat and to his family.

During his first yearlong deployment, Keller said his battalion lost only
a few soldiers. But his second time in Iraq didn't go as well.

"This time we lost eight and one to suicide, and the amount of contact has
been higher, a lot of casualties, and one of my buddies is paralyzed,"
said Keller, a sniper team leader. Keller was interviewed for this story
by phone and by e-mail.

Then came his breakdown in the field. He sought medical help and applied
for an early leave.

"The night I came home in early December, my wife went right into early
labor. We went to the hospital in New York. She was only 33 weeks, so they
stopped the labor and gave her meds," Keller said.

The couple spent some of Keller's leave time together in Volusia County,
where he grew up, where the couple married and where most of his family
lives.

"My wife wanted to be closer to her family and did not want to be in the
States. I really wanted the baby born in the States, but at this time
nothing was going my way, so I followed her up to Canada," Keller said.

On Christmas Eve, Michaelagh went into labor again. At 6:01 Christmas
morning, Grai Jacob William Keller was born.

On Christmas night, Keller heard from his commander with orders to get on
the plane and head back to Iraq.

"I was to leave at 5 a.m. in the morning. My commander told me that there
was too much going on in Iraq at this time to settle my problem right now
and that they would want me to come back and fix it there," he said.

"I know what they have to offer there and there's nothing to fix me over
there, so after spending two days in the hospital with my wife and son, I
made up my mind that I was not going back. I was staying to be with my
family. No matter what."

At Fort Drum, Keller's stateside base, public affairs spokesman Benjamin
Abel said that if a soldier needs help, "we cannot help if you are not
here."

He said it's a "soldier's responsibility to be at his place of duty," and
if not, he is breaking the law.

Keller knows this. "So now I'm AWOL and on the run, but to me it is worth
it 100 percent," he said. "I've done my time. I fought the battles and
continue to do so every time I fall asleep."

What happens next, according to the Department of Defense, is not much of
anything, other than the warrant issued for Keller's arrest.

"We do not actively look for deserters, but they can be returned to
military control by civilian law enforcement," Wright said. "This normally
happens when police check the identification during a traffic stop."

He said the "maximum punishment for desertion in a time of war is death or
such other punishment as a court-martial may direct." No recent deserters
have received the maximum punishment and such a sentence would be
unlikely, he said.

Keller said this has not been an easy decision, but he believes in his
choice.

"I've suppressed my issues and as long as I'm awake, I seem to be fine.
After much struggle, when I can finally fall asleep, I have hideous dreams
that are so real. My wife can't sleep in the same bed as me. . . . My
dreams bring me back to Iraq every night," Keller said.

He said he's even spoken to his commander a few times by phone since his
desertion.

"My commander knows me as a person," he said. "We have talked several
times before and I had even seen him before I left Iraq to tell him about
my issues a bit, so this was not a fully new issue to him. At this time
I'm doing the right thing."

audrey.parente@news-jrnl.com

Canada a haven for U.S. deserters

· An estimated 90 percent of nearly 100,000 draft and military resisters
during the Vietnam War went to Canada.

· Canadian law has changed from the welcoming Vietnam era; now
would-be-immigrants have to apply for residency and convince a Canadian
immigration board they are refugees.

· Jeffry House, a Toronto lawyer and Vietnam draft dodger who represents
deserters, reported receiving 100 inquiries from service members in 2005.

· Military deserters publicly embraced new lives in Canada, supported by a
visit from "peace mom" Cindy Sheehan in 2006. She said she wished the son
she lost in Iraq was among them.

SOURCES: Compiled by Audrey Parente from afsc.org; cbs.news.com; New York
Newsday; Washington Post

Penalty for AWOL, desertion

· Commanders have discretion to retain and rehabilitate, administratively
separate, or court-martial AWOL or deserted soldiers returned to military
control.

· Administrative action is not punitive but meant to be corrective and
rehabilitative.

· Maximum punishment for AWOL is a bad-conduct discharge, forfeiture of
all pay and confinement for six months.

· For desertion with intent to avoid hazardous duty or shirk service, some
charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice carry such punishments
as dishonorable discharge, five years' confinement, forfeiture of all pay
and reduction to private. The maximum penalty for desertion in time of war
is death or such punishment as a court-martial may direct.

SOURCE: Department of Defense

Did You Know?

Desertion through the ages:

· Deserters in the Roman Army, during the 4th Century B.C., were subject
to the death penalty as a deterrent. But in practice, enforcement was
rare. Clubbing and stoning was the method when enforced.

· In the French Foreign Legion during the 1800s, desertion carried a
penalty of 40 days in the Legion jail, often characterized as "the last
hell on Earth."

· Death penalties for U.S. Civil War desertions were enforced in both
Union and Confederate armies.

· During World War II, desertion was punishable by death by firing squad,
and Pvt. Eddie Slovik became an example.

· More than 1.5 million AWOLs were documented during the Vietnam War, and
desertion rates hit an all-time high during 1971 and 1972. Many went to
jail or received dishonorable discharges.

SOURCES: Compiled by Staff Writer Audrey Parente from roman-empire.net;
foreignlegionlife.com; worldwar2history.com; civilwarhome.com; American
Friends Service Committee
------------------------------------------------------------------------

8. Healthy News Article from Mercola.com
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 23:24:04 -1000
From: Leota Souza <tuwahine@hawaii.rr.com>

Aloha kakou,

With all the dis/mis information within "for the people" government
programs I thought I'd share information that is detrimental to your
existence. Pray this affords you an insight on what you have come to
believe and that it is not your own doing. We have been programed to their
agenda without us knowing.

After 70 plus years of seeing the same over and over, one must come to
realize something is wrong. Thru these years I have witnessed the
deterioration of a society that boost they are the ultimate answer to the
world.There is a group of people who also believe we are useless-eaters.
In the pursuit of truth this site sticks it neck way out.

Fighting in their wars and taxing us to death is not enough. For your own
good spend the time in this reference source. Before you begin, just ask
yourself why is it so? If you haven't reach the stage of why in your life,
I am sorry to have bothered you.

Aloha ke Iesu Kristo,
pilipo
-----
A friend of yours highly recommends you read this health article:
http://www.mercola.com/display/router.aspx?docid=25535 This article comes
from http://www.mercola.com, one of the Web's most visited and trusted
health information sites.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

9. Disappeared News - 2 new articles
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 04:38:53 -0500
From: FeedBlitz <feedblitz@mail.feedblitz.com>

"DISAPPEARED NEWS" - 2 NEW ARTICLES - www.disappearednews.com

1. Superferry cancels three days in a row...
2.Working folks are gonna miss Kucinich
3.More Recent Articles
4.Search Disappeared News

Superferry cancels three days in a row...

by Larry Geller The summer will be better. But the frequent
cancellations further cast doubt on whether the ferry can be used for
commercial purposes. I'm also wondering if they really waited until 4:30
p.m., as this alert from their website indicates, before making the
decision to cancel. It's one thing to go on vacation with the kids,
spouse, dogs, cats, gerbils, etc., and find you're....

Working folks are gonna miss Kucinich

One of things that most debate moderators found so frustrating about
Kucinich was his determination to talk about the bread-and-butter issues
that matter most to working Americans, rather than to play their games.
Kucinich forced the anchormen and the reporters, as well as the other
candidates, to pay a little attention to the problems of factory workers,
shop clerks and farmers. There is no...

More Recent Articles

* Don't get burned by alternative energy schemes
* Honolulu Advertiser dumbs down its comics in overnight coup
* At last-a tax refund to stimulate the economy
* Gov. Lingle threatens public education in Hawaii
* Strong opposition voiced to the Kahului Harbor 2030 master plan
________________________________________________________________________________

10. More Knowledge Better than More Lawsuits
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 17:03:02 -0500
From: e-neil.abercrombie@HOUSEMAIL.HOUSE.GOV

January 2008
More Knowledge Better than More Lawsuits

Dear Friend,

The battle between the U.S. Navy and the environmental community over the
effects of underwater detection equipment on marine mammals continue to
escalate. Just weeks ago, a California federal court barred the Navy from
conducting sonar training exercises in an area off the Southern California
coast because of its abundant population of whales and dolphins.

In a surprise move, President Bush issued an Executive Order exempting the
Navy from having to comply with the region's major environmental
protection law, which provides states the opportunity for input on federal
activities along their shores. This law has been used to prevent the use
of powerful new types of sonar that many believe harm whales. In response,
the court changed some of the restrictions on the Navy. Although this case
specifically involves the use of active sonar in exercises off Southern
California, Hawaii has also faced this issue during the international
RIMPAC ( Rim of the Pacific) naval exercises.

At the heart of the dispute is a disagreement over the exact effects sonar
has on marine mammals. Active sonar sends out pulses of sound that reflect
off objects underwater, like submarines. That echo can tell a surface ship
exactly where and how deep a submarine is and how fast it's moving.
Unfortunately, the sound pulses may also interfere with a whale or
dolphin's hypersensitive sense of hearing. Remember, these mammals have
their own 'sonar' systems, and use sound pulses to navigate, communicate
and find food.

Environmentalists point to mass beachings of whales in the Bahamas, Canary
Islands and Spain as evidence that sonar can confuse, injure and even kill
the animals. In July 2004, a distressed pod of between 100 to 200
melon-headed whales crowded into Kauai's Hanalei Bay while the Navy
conducted active sonar exercises nearby. The Navy argues that there is no
conclusive evidence that sonar harms marine mammals, and also makes the
point that active sonar training is essential to national security; that
the kind of sonar in question is critical because of new generations of
quieter submarines, and that all practical steps are being taken to
minimize the risk to marine mammals.

Congressman Abercrombie gets briefed on research programs at the
University of Hawaii's Marine Mammal Institute

I believe the dispute should be resolved through knowledge and science
instead of lawsuits. I have introduced a bill that will help us learn more
about the problem by establishing a marine mammal research program
admnistered by the Marine Mammal Commission, an independent agency of the
U.S. government. Grants will fund research to improve our understanding of
marine mammals, especially the impact of sound and, more precisely, Navy
sonar, on these animals.

The need for expanded research into marine mammlas has been identified by
the National Research Council, the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy and the
Marine Mammal Commission. All recognize significant gaps in our
understanding of marine mammal science. The only way to fill the gaps is
through a focused, dedicated research program.

The measure also provides flexibility to address other significant threats
to marine mammals, including entanglement in fishing gear, contaminants,
harmful algal blooms, disease, habitat loss and environmental change.
Understanding more about biology of these animals will make it easier for
federal agencies to develop conservation and management measures to allow
the military and maritime industries to coexist with marine mammals. This
bill is the first step toward actually answering the question of how human
activities affect marine mammals, so the kinds of cinflicts in the courts
today can be avoided in the future.

Aloha,

Neil Abercrombie
Member of Congress
________________________________________________________________________________

11. A Bushed State of the (dis)Union?
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 06:17:43 -0500
From: DLIMay7@aol.com

Aloha midPac PeacePals,
Despite the fact that few people would give a "rat's ass" to listen to
the monologue given by the White House mouse that roared, here's a short
critique of the speech that was NOT heard 'round the world. Enjoy, and
your feedback welcome.

Peace & Imua, Danny
-----

International | Anti-War
A last harangue from 'El Diablo'
by DLi
Tuesday Jan 29th, 2008 2:50 AM

Speaking with the defiance of a major War Criminal, the White
House Idiot-Savage took one more turn to hector Congress and
the U.S. Public, to give him one more year of "patience" to
continue his Operation Enduring Failure. Fortunately, most of
the nation has already concluded that the White House
Occupier's regime is a total disaster(an online AOL poll
tonight of over 177,000 votes came up with a 61% "Poor"
rating for W's overall job performance, versus only 17% for
"Good," and a pitiful 13% for "Excellent"!)

After spending his so-called 'political capital' on 2 catastrophic
Imperial invasions in Iraq and Afghanistan, and in the process bankrupting
the national Treasury to the tune of $10 Trillion, the Crawford Coward
still had the audacity to DEMAND "patience" on his wicked forced march
toward a self-inflicted "Abyss of Evil." And yet, because they themselves
are equally invested--both spiritually and materially--in the project of
the USA Empire, the Democrats in Congress(despite making some feigned
protests for political mileage) continue to fund the NeoCONs' pipeline
dreams of world domination and to support Chief Chickenhawk's systematic
dismantling of the U.S. Constitution.

Fortunately, the rest of the World has not kowtowed to the USA Empire's
militarist intimidation. In both Iraq and Afghanistan. heroic local
resistance managed to cripple the once-arrogant but now demoralized
Invading troops. Elsewhere, nations large and small are now dumping U.S.
Dollars faster than W's political flip-flopping. And his coddled
Capitalist robber barons have mismangled the doemstic economy so badly
that even the latest bailout plan of $150 Billion would not save the
Empire from a certain Depression, one that will dwarf the 1930s
"correction" as a mere walk in the park(it may not be too far fetched to
foresee a total meltdown of Trillions dollars of red link leading to the
collapse of the Capitalist financial house of cards!)

While Impeachment may be "off the table," the decline and fall of the
NeoCON project and its Bushed Reign of Terror will be the Prime Time
events of 2008. © 2000â^À^Ó2008 San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media
Center. Unless otherwise stated by the author, all content is free for
non-commercial reuse, reprint, and
________________________________________________________________________________

12. Voices Health/Environment News
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 18:27:50 -0600
From: nimchira <tepaatu@gmail.com>

Health and Environmental News
Published since Nov, 2005
Jan. 28, 2008

In This Issue:

Recalls:

Pet Turtles: Cute But Contaminated with Salmonella. FDA warns about the
risk of illness from pet turtles.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/turtles012508.html
================

Celebrex May Disrupt Heart Rhythm. Popular COX-2 drug can induce
arrhythmia, study finds.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2008/01/celebrex.html

Chemical Food Additives - Are They Slowly Killing Our Children?
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/012408HA.shtml

DENTAL DECAY: THE HIDDEN HEALTH CRISIS The current state of dental care in
the U.S. is horrifying. http://www.alternet.org/healthwellness/74749/

US scientists say they have taken a step towards creating synthetic life
in the laboratory. http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/sci/tech/7203186.stm

The contraceptive pill has prevented at least 100,000 deaths from ovarian
cancer, researchers say.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7207812.stm

Ventura County growers brace for strict pesticide rules.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10461/0/

Green groups target toxic toys.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10465/0/

In US, plastic shopping bag still rules.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10467/0/

Asarco offers $2.7 million to settle 51 claims in El Paso.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10468/0/

California program makes toilet water drinkable.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10471/0/

Study explores autism link to immune system.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10472/0/

FDA procedures draw scrutiny.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8429/3057/10475/0/

Consumers Advocate Group Urges Ban on Marketing to Children
http://www.newstarget.com/022542.html

The Truth About Honeybees Provide Clues to Their Disappearance
http://www.newstarget.com/022541.html

UK patients to get new HIV drug - A new class of HIV drugs will help
doctors treat patients who have become resistant to treatment.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7209470.stm

Hope over jab for lethal NHS bug - British scientists are developing a
vaccine to combat the life-threatening Clostridium difficile hospital bug.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7212920.stm

Coffee may make diabetes worse - Daily consumption of caffeine in coffee,
tea or soft drinks increases blood sugar levels for people with type 2
diabetes, research shows.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7209385.stm

A major step toward a more targeted treatment for auto-immune diseas
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-01/vfi-ams012308.php

Our bodies carry residues of kitchen plastics
http://sciencenews.org/articles/20080126/food.asp

The chemicals within.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8479/3057/10537/0/

Can beauty be dangerous? Lipstick tainted with lead. Mascara that contains
mercury. A hair-straightening treatment that slicks your tresses with
protein . . and formaldehyde?
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8479/3057/10539/0/

Galveston's lead-poisoning rates 10 times the national average. Nearly one
in five children in Galveston has enough lead in their blood to cause
learning disabilities and behavioral problems -- an alarming statistic
that officials have known for years but have done little to improve.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8479/3057/10540/0/

The ocean's biological deserts are expanding. Researchers are reporting
that the ocean's biological deserts have been expanding, and they are
growing much faster than global warming models predict.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8479/3057/10554/0/

Across the Mediterranean, water is being pumped out of the earth at an
unsustainable pace. http://www.alternet.org/water/74296/

Fight to curtail antibiotics in animal feed.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8509/3057/10586/0/

Water Crisis: Georgia runs dry as clout runs low.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8509/3057/10590/0/

Treating sewage for drinking water.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8509/3057/10591/0/
==============

Asteroid Closest to Earth in Over 2000 Years - Flyby on Jan. 29th
Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., have
obtained the first images of asteroid 2007 TU24 using high-resolution
radar data. The data indicate the asteroid is somewhat asymmetrical in
shape, with a diameter roughly 250 meters (800 feet) in size. Asteroid
2007 TU24 will pass within 1.4 lunar distances, or 538,000 kilometers
(334,000 miles), of Earth on Jan. 29 at 12:33 a.m. Pacific time (3:33 a.m.
Eastern time).

"With these first radar observations finished, we can guarantee that next
week's 1.4-lunar-distance approach is the closest until at least the end
of the next century," said Steve Ostro, JPL astronomer and principal
investigator for the project. "It is also the asteroid's closest Earth
approach for more than 2,000 years."

http://skywatch-media.com/2007_12_01_archive.html
============

Gardasil A Prime Suspect in Two Deaths Gardasil has been linked to the
deaths of two women in Europe, prompting more concerns about the
controversial cervical cancer vaccine. This week's deaths follow the
deaths of three other young women who died in the U.S. days after
GardaKILL was administered. FDA documents indicate Gardasil may be
responsible for at least eight deaths. Since its approval, there had been
3,461 complaints of adverse reactions to Gardasil.
<http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/2456>
=========

GardaKILLs again: Alert over jab for girls as two die following cervical
cancer vaccination - A jab that could be given to hundreds of thousands of
schoolgirls this autumn was at the centre at a safety scare last night
following the deaths of two young women. European regulators are
investigating the "sudden and unexpected" deaths of the women who received
Gardasil [GardaKILL], one of two jabs to protect against give cervical
cancer licensed for use in the UK. It follows the deaths of three young
women aged 12, 19 and 22 who were reported to have died in the U.S. days
after Gardasil was administered, with 1,700 patients suffering "adverse
reactions".
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23434060-details/Alert+over+jab+for+girls+as+two+die+following+cervical+cancer+vaccination/article.do
============

Health Effects of Aspartame on Diabetics (video) This is a video interview
with Lane Shore by Cori Brackett (creator of the "Sweet Remedy"
documentary about aspartame). In it, Lane Shore discusses the devastating
health effects of aspartame (Nutrasweet is the brand name) on his wife's
health. http://www.newstarget.com/022538.html

Lipitor Spokesman Dr. Jarvik Investigated by Congress. On January 7th,
2008 the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce
and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations sent a letter to
Pfizer, Inc. CEO Jeffrey Kindler regarding direct to consumer (DTC)
advertising. http://www.newstarget.com/022539.html

Research Biased on Harmful Chemical BPA, New Report States. For decades,
the federal government and chemical-makers have assured the public that
the hormone-mimicking compound Bisphenol-A is safe. This chemical is found
in baby bottles, aluminum cans and hundreds of other household products.
http://www.newstarget.com/022548.html

Vytoringate Builds Steam - Folic Acid Ignored. The Wall Street Journal now
calls it Vytoringate - one of the biggest drug frauds in history. Merck
and Schering-Plough sat on bad drug trial results of their cholesterol
drug and raked in close to 10 billion dollars selling snake oil.
http://www.newstarget.com/022549.html

Domega International Ltd., Inc. Issues Alert on Undeclared Sulfites in
Zebra Brand Sweetened Lotus Root Seed and Zebra Brand Sweetened Coconut
(Jan. 25) The recalled Zebra brand sweetened lotus root seed and the Zebra
brand sweetened coconut are both sold in 6 oz. un-coded plastic bags and
packed by Hong Kong Ever Time Food and Grocery Co. Ltd. Both products were
sold nationwide. http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/domega01_08.html

FDA Warns Public of Contaminated Syringes (Jan. 25) The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) today announced a nationwide recall of all lots of
heparin and saline pre-filled flush syringes manufactured by AM2 PAT,
Inc., of Angier, N.C. Two lots have been found to be contaminated with
Serratia marcescens, a bacterium that can cause serious injury or death.
ttp://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2008/NEW01785.html

Liver encephalopathy, a condition which can follow hepatitis C-related
cirrhosis of the liver, is more severe and potentially life-threatening in
patients with diabetes, one study found. Published in the American Journal
of Gastroenterology, the joint study was conducted by researchers at New
York's Cornell Medical Center and Mount Sinai School of Medicine.
Researchers studied a group of hepatitis C-positive patients who had been
diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver.
http://www.lifescript.com/NL/31486_20428878.htm

Cordis Corporation and FDA informed healthcare professionals of a Class I
recall of All Fire Star and Dura Star balloon catheters, lots 13173912
through 13315455, plus 52 additional lots above 13315455. Balloon
catheters are used in a medical procedure (known as percutaneous
transluminal coronary angioplasty or PTCA) to open narrowed or blocked
blood vessels or arteries of the heart. The product has a potential for
slow deflation or no deflation of the angioplasty balloon when inserted
into the artery or other blood vessels. This may potentially result in a
total blockage of the artery or blood vessels, resulting in a change in
the heart rate or heart rhythm, injury to the heart artery, a heart
attack, need for a surgical procedure, or death.
http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm
========

FDA provided healthcare professionals with an early communication about an
ongoing data review for Ezetimibe/Simvastatin (marketed as Vytorin),
Ezetimibe (marketed as Zetia), and Simvastatin (marketed as Zocor). This
early communication is in keeping with FDA's commitment to inform the
public about ongoing postmarketing drug issues.

Merck/Schering Plough Pharmaceuticals reported preliminary results from
the Effect of Combination Ezetimibe and High-Dose Simvastatin vs.
Simvastatin Alone on the Atherosclerotic Process in Patients with
Heterozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia (ENHANCE) trial. This trial was
designed to evaluate the amount of atherosclerotic plaque in blood vessels
located in the neck based on images obtained through ultrasound in
patients treated with Vytorin (ezetimibe plus simvastatin) or simvastatin
alone. Merck/Schering Plough stated that there was no significant
difference between Vytorin and simvastatin in the amount of
atherosclerotic plaque in the inner walls of the carotid (neck) arteries
despite greater lowering of LDL-cholesterol (bad cholesterol) with Vytorin
compared to simvastatin. Once Merck/Schering Plough completes the analysis
of the unblinded data from ENHANCE, it will submit a final study report to
FDA. Once FDA receives the final study report, FDA estimates it will take
approximately 6 months to fully evaluate the data. After reviewing the
data from the ENHANCE study, and considering all other available
information about the link between LDL lowering and reduction of
cardiovascular events, FDA will determine whether any further regulatory
action is warranted with regard to Zetia and Vytorin and also whether any
changes to FDA's current approach to drugs that lower LDL cholesterol are
warranted.

Patients should talk to their doctors if they have any questions about the
information from the ENHANCE trial.

http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm
=============

The news that is reported is not necessarily the viewpoint of Medical
Community News. Nothing within this message should be construed as
endorsing, promoting or abetting any illegal or unethical activity. The
articles in this newsletter are not necessarily the opinion of the editor.
Material appearing here is distributed without profit or monetary gain to
those who have expressed an interest in receiving the material for
research and educational purposes. This is in accordance with Title 17 U.
S. C. section 107. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

Articles are reprinted under Fair Use Doctrine of International Copyright
Law. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

All copyrights belong to original publisher.Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III
passed by the 105th U.S. Congress. This letter cannot be considered spam
as long as we include: Contact information & a Remove Link Reprinted under
the Fair Use Law: Doctrine of international copyright law.
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

To send news reports, subscribe or unsubscribe send email to:
nimchira@cox.net Specify Voices, the Peoples News, or Medical Community
News.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

13. Alchemical and Medicinal Properties of Food...letter G
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:56:08 +1300
From: CHOOK <tepaatu@gmail.com>

------ Forwarded Message

G -

Game fowl like geese, ducks, and pheasant were worshipped in most ancient
cultures. The Egyptians believed that the soul of the universe was a goose
whose egg hatched the sun. The soul of the pharaoh ascended to heaven in
the form of a goose, and geese were sacrificed and eaten at fall and
winter solstices in every part of the globe to guarantee the return of
summer. Because of their regular migration patterns, most wild birds were
considered part of the sacred cycle of nature and were often used in
divination rituals. The Chinese devoted considerable effort to perfecting
duck recipes and believed eating the fowl encouraged fidelity and
faithfulness. [Fire ++]

Game meat such as deer, elk, antelope, and boar was thought to carry
special powers by the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and Native Americans.
Brazilian natives and other indigenous peoples believe they acquire the
characteristics of the game they eat and are careful to eat only swift,
intelligent animals. The idea of eating cattle or sheep would seem
ludicrous to them. Game meat is a powerful reservoir of animal powers,
though the more domesticated, processed, and cooked the meat, the more
diluted the primal energy becomes. Some psychics believe that the danger
with eating any red meat without appropriate ritual is that the animal
forces are not properly assimilated and end up causing aggressive diseases
such as autoimmune disorders and cancer. [Fire +++]

Garlic was known and used at least as far back as 3000 BC. In early
antiquity, it was sacred to the goddess Hecate and left at crossroads as a
sacrifice to her. The pungent cloves were also used for protection against
evil and to break curses and hexes, and psychic cooks rub garlic into pots
and pans to remove negative influences that might contaminate food. When
eaten, garlic stimulates the immune system to protect the body, although
it is said to induce lustful behavior in some people. Garlic is a proven
antibiotic, cholesterol reducer, blood pressure reducer, and general heart
remedy. [Fire ++]

Ginger is the dried peeled rhizome of a plant native to tropical Asia.
Pacific islanders chew raw ginger and spit it towards oncoming storms to
turn them away or on diseased areas of the body to cure people. It is
frequently part of love spells and is used to add power to other rituals.
Ginger seems to release vital energies in the body and is used to cure
motion sickness, hangovers, headaches, and nausea of all types. Adding
cinnamon to ginger enhances its healing properties. [Fire +++]

Ginseng increases endurance by stimulating the Base Chakra and is
prescribed by herbalists to increase one's life force and sexual drive. In
the Orient, the root is considered magic and is carried to attract love
and money. Ginseng tea is taken to increase stamina and virility in all
areas of one's life. [Earth ++]

Golden Seal comes from the yellow root of an American weed of the crowfoot
family. Native Americans used it as a cure-all for a wide range of
diseases. The tea acts as a purgative cleansing agent that is known to
kill many of the bacteria responsible for stomach upset and diarrhea.
[Earth ++]

Gota Kola is taken as a tea to increase psychic sensitivity during
meditation. In Asia, Gota Kola incense is often burnt prior to meditation.
[Air ++]

Grapefruit is derived from a bitter citrus fruit known as the pomelo,
which was cross-pollinated with the orange to make it sweeter. However,
the grapefruit was not recognized as a distinct species of citrus fruit
until the nineteenth century. The tangy fruit increases metabolism, which
is why it is often eaten after breakfast and used for bodily
detoxification. [Fire ++]

Grapes carry spiritual energy and increase mental fertility, opening us to
meaningful dreams and visions. Eating grapes or raisons is said to
increase a woman's fertility. See Wine. [Air +++]

Gravy smoothes transitions by adding the mellowing or Water Element
characteristics of the food out of which it is made. In alchemical
cooking, gravy is used to control the aggressive qualities of meat dishes.
[Water +++]

Guava fruit encourages romantic fantasy. Eating the fruit is said to allow
people temporary relief from worldly concerns. [Air ++]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

14. NEW, FREE, and LEGAL Music Download Service ...ipods too
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 01:20:43 +1300
From: CHOOK <tepaatu@gmail.com>

------ Forwarded Message
Qtrax aims to offer iPod-friendly tracks
By ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writer
(C) 2008 The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES &#732; A revamped online file-sharing service aims to woo
legions of music fans by offering unlimited, free song downloads that are
compatible with iPods, and all with the blessing of major recording
companies.

Qtrax, which makes its debut Sunday, is the latest online music venture
counting on the lure of free music to draw in music fans and on
advertising to pay the bills, namely record company licensing fees.

The New York-based service was among several peer-to-peer file-sharing
applications that emerged following the shutdown of Napster, the pioneer
service that enabled millions to illegally copy songs stored in other
music fans' computers.

Qtrax shut down after a few months following its 2002 launch to avoid
potential legal trouble.

The latest version of Qtrax still lets users tap into file-sharing
networks to search for music, but downloads come with copy-protection
technology known as digital-rights management, or DRM, to prevent users
from burning copies to a CD and calculate how to divvy up advertising
sales with labels.

Qtrax downloads can be stored indefinitely on PCs and transferred onto
portable music players, however.

The service, which boasts a selection of up to 30 million tracks, also
promises that its music downloads will be playable on Apple Inc.'s iPods
and Macintosh computers as early as March.

That's unusual, as iPods only playback unrestricted MP3s files or tracks
with Apple's proprietary version of DRM, dubbed FairPlay.

"We've had a technical breakthrough which enables us to put songs on an
iPod without any interference from FairPlay," said Allan Klepfisz, Qtrax's
president and chief executive.

Klepfisz declined to give specifics on how Qtrax will make its audio files
compatible with Apple devices, but noted that "Apple has nothing to do
with it."

Apple has been resistant in the past to license FairPlay to other online
music retailers. That stance has effectively limited iPod users to loading
up their players with tracks purchased from Apple's iTunes Music Store, or
MP3s ripped from CDs or bought from vendors such as eMusic or Amazon.com.

A call to Apple was not immediately returned Saturday.

Rob Enderle, technology analyst at the San Jose-based Enderle Group, said
he expects Apple would take steps to block Qtrax files from working on
iPods.

Last fall, the company issued a software update for its iPhones that
created problems for units modified by owners so they would work with a
cellular carrier other than AT&T Inc. As a result, some modified phones
ceased to work after the software update.

The move prompted antitrust lawsuits on behalf of some consumers.

Qtrax users can also download music videos and comb through album reviews,
lyrics and other features. The service guarantees that users will never
download spyware, adware or bogus audio files often found on file-sharing
networks.

As long as the DRM on downloads and advertising in the Qtrax application
aren't too obtrusive, the music service may appeal to computer users now
trolling for tracks via LimeWire and other unlicensed services, Enderle
said.

"This is a way to get the stuff for free and not take the risk of having
the (recording industry) show up at your doorstep with a six-figure
lawsuit," he said.
____

On the Net: Qtrax: http://www.qtrax.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------

15. Trying to Stop the u.s. Titanic! - interesting and probably true
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 08:19:23 -0500
From: kahiwal@cs.com

> Traffic Jam on the HIGHWAY to HELL
> by Sheila Samples
> http://sheilastuff.blogspot.com/
> rsamples@wichitaonline.net
>
> Each new year ushers in a myriad of "Top Ten" lists -- 10 best things,
> 10 worst things, things we need to do, things we did but shouldn't have
> - - and this year, even a hilarious list of WTF? things popped up. I'll
> admit I'm not as well organized as those who progress in 10-step
> increments.
>
> My problem is narrowing the atrocities down to 10 - - and then narrowing
> those 10 down to a single year. I'm confident I could compile a really
> neat list if I could decide which in the tangle of loathsome assaults
> should be Number One.
>
>It can't be done.
> Everything that happened in 2007 is a direct result of events in 2006, a
> continuation of 2005 crimes, the bloody mess of 2004, the shock and awe
> of 2003 and the vicious, ruthless lies of 2001 that led us to where we
> are today.
>
> It's impossible to appraise the malignant nature of this admin. in any
> intelligible way.
>
> From the outset, it came at us - - at the world -- on all fours with
> fangs bared. Whether ripping the humanity from our Constitution or
> drowning the innocent in a sea of blood, its appetite is insatiable. It
> rises from each feast hungrier than before.
>
>I used to think Americans had been whipped by 9-11 terror confusion into
some sort of national stupor. That's not so. We're trapped in a massive
spiritual paralysis.
>
> Normal people are simply not equipped to deal with remorseless
> psychopaths.
>
> We were not prepared to come face to face with evil, nor to be
> manipulated by lies and controlled through stark fear. Our refusal to
> address the mounting list of Bush-Cheney war crimes could be because we
> cannot force ourselves to admit our "one nation under God" Spies upon
> its Citizens, Imprisons them without Due Process, Engages in grotesque
> acts of Torture and delights in mass murder.
>
> And so we stand here on the precipice of our own destruction, waiting
> for evil to run its course.
>
>No Mercy
>
>Evil never runs its course.
> With each success, it grows stronger, more ghastly and, like Dick
> Cheney, emerges a bit more from the shadows.
>
> Never doubt for a minute that these unfeeling creatures are not evil.
> They are incapable of compassion, of empathy, of mercy. Their eyes are
> on the prize of One World rule, and they will have it in spite of -- or
> as a result of - - all the chaos and carnage it takes to achieve it.
>
> There are no "Imps of the Perverse" among them who will be so overcome
> with guilt they will break from the pack and run through the populace
> shrieking,
>
> "We're guilty! We did it! We are murderers!"
>
>Cheney and his destructive little sidekick, George Bush, have brazenly
committed treasonous acts -- left piles of corpses in their wake since the
2000 election coup. If there is a God, they are bound straight for Hell.
But they are not alone. They're protected by a merciless axis of courts,
congressional conspirators and corporate media who cover up their crimes
by issuing a steady barrage of terror threats and a relentless fog of
twisted disinformation.
>
>Our government is nothing but a Good Ol' Boys and Girls club,
with judges, journalists, legislators and administration jesters whooping
it up while pillaging the Treasury, ignoring the cries of their victims,
turning a blind eye to millions of slaughtered and displaced innocents,
and sending thousands of their own citizens to their deaths.
>
> They have mauled, raped and obstructed Justice until that once noble
> Lady is no longer recognizable.
>
>Author Kurt Vonnegut, who died last April after a fall in his home,
warned that corruption in this government must be removed and the
perpetrators must pay for their crimes or our Republic is dead.
>
> In an October 2005 PBS interview, as his last book, "A Man Without a
> Country," soared to the top of best-seller lists, Vonnegut said, "...we
> have only a one-party government. It's the winners. And then everybody
> else is the losers. And the winners are divided into two parties. The
> Republicans and the Democrats...that's what a charade the combat between
> the Republicans and the Democrats is. It's rich kids. Winners on both
> sides. So the winners can't lose. And, of course, the losers have no
> representation in Congress..."
>
> Vonnegut said members of Congress, regardless of party, represent only
> those who bankroll their political campaigns; those making tons of money
> from Bush and Cheney's illegal war.
>
>Enough is Enough
>
>The 2006 elections, which gave the Democrats control of both houses of
Congress, was a clear imperative to govern according to the will of the
people.
>
> No Congress in history has ever been elected who knew better what that
> will was -- primarily to stop an immoral war, but also to hold
> accountable those responsible for the lies, torture, l oss of freedoms,
> spying on their own citizens, and the relentless slaughter of US
> military as well as innocent Iraqi and Afghanistani citizens.
>
>Nancy Pelosi, quivering at the thought of becoming the nation's first
female Speaker of the House, said on Nov 9, 2006, "This new Democratic
majority has heard the voices of the American people." She added, while
apparently attempting to stifle a burst of wild, maniacal laughter,
"Americans placed their trust in Democrats. We will honor that trust. We
will not disappoint."
>
>Pelosi's counterpart in the Senate, Harry Reid, bowed his head and
mumbled that "The days of the do-nothing Congress are over." He looked
around furtively before whispering that Americans spoke "clearly and
decisively in favor of Democrats leading this country in a new direction."
>
> Reid then scurried off to crouch behind Bush, who smirked good naturedly
> while giving him a "good thumpin.."
>
>They knew they were elected to stop the madness, to stem the onslaught of
tyranny and to protect and defend the Constitution, but chose instead to
fall on their knees before those who scorned them, threatened them, or
perhaps offered them a "piece of the action."
>
> By choosing to suspend, rather than defend, the Constitution, they are
> guilty of high crimes.
>
>We can no longer stand on the sidelines waiting for the evil to subside.
They must go -- all of them -- starting at the top with the impeachment of
the mad Cheney and Bush and continuing through both houses of Congress
where all 435 House seats and 35 Senate seats are up for election this
year.
>
>The majority of Americans are demanding that both Bush and Cheney be
impeached and removed from office, and those like David Swanson, Ohio Rep.
Dennis Kucinich, and now Fla Rep. Robert Wexler, are working tirelessly to
make that happen.
>
>We've had enough.

> We not only agree with Vonnegut, but with Lee Iacocca, who pulls no
punches in his April 2007 book, "Where Have All the Leaders Gone?" Iacocca
asks, "Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's
happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody
murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state
right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and
we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car.
>
> But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads
when the politicians say, 'Stay the course.' Stay the course? You've got
to be kidding. This is America, not the damned Titanic. I'll give you a
sound bite: Throw the bums out!"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

16. sovereignty update french-occupied polynesia -- also, federal min.
wage fallout in u.s. colonies
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 05:58:39 -1000
From: 'imiola young <imiola@hawaii.rr.com>

www.pireport.org. -- January 29, 2008
> EARLY RESULTS GIVE TONG SANG PARTY LEAD IN TAHITI
>
> WELLINGTON, New Zealand (Radio New Zealand International, Jan. 28, 2008)
> - Unofficial results from yesterday's first round of French Polynesia's
> early general election show the newly formed To Tatou Aia Party winning
> the biggest share of votes in the main electorates. Its relative success
> reflects a major setback for the rival pro-autonomy party, the Tahoeraa
> Huiraatira. In the Winward islands, which include Tahiti and Moorea, the
> To Tatou Aia party, led by a former president, Gaston Tong Sang, secured
> just under 35 percent of the votes. It narrowly defeated the Union For
> Democracy led by the pro-independence politician, Oscar Temaru, which
> won nearly 34 percent of the votes. In third place is the Tahoeraa
> Huiraatira of Gaston Flosse which won just under 22 percent of the
> votes, with its stronghold Pirae having giving more votes to To Tatou
> Aia. The list supporting Mr Tong Sang in the Marquesas islands was the
> only one to win an absolute majority and secured two of the assembly's
> 57 seats, with the electorate's third seat going to the Tahoeraa. A
> second round of voting will be held on February the 10th to determine
> the remaining 54 seats. Mr Tong Sang, who was a longtime ally of Mr
> Flosse, formed his party four months ago after prolonged infighting
> within the Tahoeraa ranks and after Mr Flosse had supported the
> opposition to oust Mr Tong Sang from the presidency."

> REPORT: HIGHER WAGES THREATEN PAGO PAGO CANNERIES
>
> PAGO PAGO, American Samoa (Samoa News, Jan. 28, 2008) - 58.8 percent of
> the American Samoa workforce is potentially subject to minimum wage
> provisions of a federal law passed last year. Raising the wages for
> these workers to reach the federal minimum wage level of $7.25 could
> result in an increased wage bill of $40 million per year across all
> American Samoa industry sectors. This would represent a 33 percent
> increase in wage costs. This was according to the U.S. Department of
> Labor's study into the economic impact of the federal minimum wage law
> on the territory, and the CNMI. The study, which was mandated under the
> federal law, was submitted to Congress last week. (The federal minimum
> wage law mandated an automatic increase, or escalator clause, of fifty
> cents per hour every year until 2014 for American Samoa, and 2015 for
> CNMI. The first increase went into effect on July 24, 2007 for American
> Samoa and next one is scheduled for May.) The report says that general
> economic experience suggests that it is not likely that such an increase
> in wages - of 33 percent - "could be absorbed through increased
> productivity, reduced profits, or higher prices passed along to
> consumers." Further, according to the McPhee and Associates analysis of
> input-output model cited by DOL, it predicts "that closure of the two
> canneries would eliminate in total 7,825 jobs from the American Samoa
> economy."
> **********************************************************************

17. war between chuukese warriors and samoan warriors in hawai'i?
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 06:12:24 -1000
From: 'imiola young <imiola@hawaii.rr.com>

does anyone know how this volatile situation is beinghandled in hawai'i?
-------

>> SAMOA: Seasonal workers in NZ warned against misbehaviour

Samoans who are in New Zealand as part of a seasonal work scheme have been
warned that if they step out of line, they're going home. It comes from
the Chief Executive Officer of Samoa's Ministry of the Prime Minister,
Poloma Komiti. The warning was prompted after three seasonal workers were
sent home last week for drunken behaviour. Samoan workers had been warned
they could be sent home, in the wake of a similar incident last year. The
seasonal work scheme involves people from several South Pacific nations
being able to work temporarily in New Zealand, mainly picking fruit. Mr
Komiti says the Samoan government has taken such a hard line because bad
behaviour by a few workers could spoil the scheme for everyone else.

http://www.abc.net.au/ra/pacbeat/stories/s2146858.htm
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

18. We need you tonight
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 07:41:35 -1000
From: Henry Curtis <henry.lifeoftheland@gmail.com>

[sorry, too late to do, but info... g]

For more information on the issue & other upcoming actions, click here:
http://www.lifeofthelandhawaii.org/MEM/Hawaii_Events.html

Aloha,

We need your help. Rising ocean levels will submerge many islands and
atolls in the Pacific, and lead to greater salt water intrusion into the
aquifers, while rising temperatures will damange ecosystems and lead to
greater invasions are harmful pathogens.

Tonight the Governor is hosting a reception for Bush's non-climate change
summit. The international media will be here.

We will be meeting, protesting, marcing, sign waiving.

Meet at the state capitol from 5-7 pm.

Come part or all of the time, with or without signs, to speak to the media
or to help us with the number of people turning out.

Henry

On Jan 28, 2008 11:24 PM, Leota Souza <tuwahine@hawaii.rr.com> wrote:

Aloha kakou,

With all the dis/mis information within "for the people" government
programs I thought I'd share information that is detrimental to your
existence. Pray this affords you an insight on what you have come to
believe and that it is not your own doing. We have been programed to their
agenda without us knowing......
------
Henry Curtis, Executive Director, Life of the Land, 76 N. King Street,
Suite 203, Honolulu, HI 96817. phone: 808-533-3454. cell: 808-927-0709.
Web Site: http://www.lifeofthelandhawaii.org/
email:henry.lifeoftheland@gmail.com
-----

Action Alert from Life of the Land / Protest President Bus...
From: napua4u@yahoo.com
Date: Mon, Jan 28, 2008

Aloha kakou...

I apologize for duplicate copies.

Henry Curtis & Kat Brady from Life of the Land are asking for our support
to protest President Bush's "Bogus" Climate Change Summit being held here
on O'ahu. There will be several actions. The first action will take place
tomorrow, Tuesday January 29th at the Governor's Mansion from 5pm to 7pm.

Henry says, " This first community action will set the stage for the
summit. We need to highlight that the world must deal with climate change
and that voluntary standards outside of the international framework is
unacceptable. Coal, Oil, Nuclear and Agrofuels are not part of the
solution."

Please kokua ! W e need people to hold signs ! Read the Action Alert below
for details !
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

19. Stryker Brigade, Makua Key, Mixon Says....................... and
comment
From: HIAHAWAII@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 5:01 AM

Tuesday, January 29, 2008 Honolulu Advertiser
Stryker Brigade, Makua Key, Mixon says
By William Cole, Advertiser Military Writer

The next commander of the U.S. Army in the Pacific said it's strategically
important to have a Stryker brigade in Hawai'i, and that Makua Valley is
needed for company-size live-fire exercises.

Maj. Gen. Benjamin R. "Randy" Mixon will gain a third star in the move
Friday from commander of the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks
to head of U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter.

Both the Hawai'i-based Stryker brigade and training at Makua Military
Reservation have been challenged by lawsuits, and no live-fire practice
has been conducted in 4,190-acre Makua Valley since 2004.

"We do think it's strategically important to have a Stryker brigade combat
team here in Hawai'i, but we'll have to wait to see what the
(environmental impact statement) says," Mixon said.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the Army violated federal
environmental law by not adequately considering alternative locations for
the $1.5 billion Stryker brigade outside Hawai'i, and ordered the Army to
complete the study.

Lt. Gen. John M. Brown III, who is passing command to Mixon at Fort
Shafter, recently said the Stryker examination and a Makua environmental
impact statement are completed. Both are at Army headquarters for review
before being released.

The Stryker study will determine if 4,000 soldiers now deployed to Iraq
will return to Hawai'i or be repositioned to Colorado or Alaska. Most
believe the Army will conclude Hawai'i remains the best place for the
armored vehicle brigade.

TALK WITH ACTIVISTS?

Mixon said he's concerned about the training and readiness of soldiers in
Hawai'i.

"The problem ... is that as the Army tries to go down and do the things
that it's required to do by law, the environmentalists and other activists
are continually filing some kind of injunction, using some kind of
leverage, to stop the training," Mixon said.

Mixon said he intends to work with the groups that oppose training in
Makua and the Stryker brigade, "but my observation has been an
unwillingness to work with the military," Mixon said. "It's all or nothing
with most of these groups."

Not so, says William Aila Jr., a plaintiff in the suit against the Stryker
brigade.

"How does he know when he hasn't spoken with us?" Aila said. "None of his
guys have spoken with us, either."

Aila said the last Schofield commanding general to participate in
community discussions was then-Maj. Gen. James Dubik, who left Hawai'i in
2002.

The 25th Division subsequently started to be deployed to both Iraq and
Afghanistan, and Aila does note that when Mixon came in, "he had to get
ready to leave, so his priorities were getting ready for Iraq."

Mixon said he also will work with Hawai'i's congressional delegation "to
see how we can overcome these (training) issues ... I may have to ask for
some special assistance through legislation."

Mixon said the Army has spent millions for additional Mainland training
that couldn't be conducted in Hawai'i because of lawsuits.

"We can do a good deal of what (training) we need to do right here, and we
can do it safely, we can do it while we're protecting the environment,"
Mixon said.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.

ALOHA Kakou, Protecting the Enviroment, just like how the military
protected the enviroment of Kahoolawe!

o Pomaikaiokalani
-------

Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 01:29:19 -1000
From: Tane . <Tane_1@msn.com>
..........
....Mixon said he also will work with Hawai'i's congressional delegation
"to see how we can overcome these (training) issues ... I may have to ask
for some special assistance through legislation."

*** Typical! He wants to pull a Lingle, eh?

...Mixon said the Army has spent millions for additional Mainland
training that couldn't be conducted in Hawai'i because of lawsuits.

***It was reported that for the Stryker Brigade to get final
certification, the will have to do it at one of the mainland miltiary
base. So what is he talking about? Does he really know what he is saying?
These transits think they know all the answers and have all the
historical information of their past deeds.

"We can do a good deal of what (training) we need to do right here, and
we can do it safely, we can do it while we're protecting the
environment," Mixon said.

*** Now this is the biggest laugh of all. This rubber-stamped statement
of his is disgusting. We go back to ground zero each time a new one takes
over. We've heard it before; they think it's for the first time. Ladening
the 'aina with expended arsenal and duds; DU, toxins, while desecrating
our lands and cultural sites are not protecting the environment. One only
needs to see what they have done in the past to get the idea of what they
actually do. They need to clean up their mess and move out! De-occupy our
country for good.

Remember that sargeant that made the remark when he returned from Korea?

"...Two of the four stryker vehicles and about half of the roughly 50
soldiers who deployed on the training mission touched down at Hickam Air
Force base on Air Force C-17 transport planes. While in Korea, they put
the strykers to the test.

"We could put the pedal to the metal. We could shoot any kind of rounds
we really wanted to, as many rounds as we wanted to, so we got a lot
better training in a week, week and a half over there than I think in a
month, two months over here( Hawaii)," said Army Sgt. Jamie Norris."

That says it all, doesn't it?

So, probably the best place for the Stryker is in Korea. I still think
the Catalina Islands would be preferable or Bikini Island. Anywhere but
Hawaii!

Tane
________________________________________________________________________________

20. from Grist: Environmental News and Commentary
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 08:51:47 -1000
From: Lc <palolo@hawaii.rr.com>

http://www.grist.org/news/2008/01/16/meeting/?source=daily
WILL ANYONE GET LEI'D?
White House talks up its Hawaii climate-change meeting
Posted at 11:43 AM on 16 Jan 2008

The White House has released a statement regarding its very own
climate-change meeting for the world's biggest economies, to be held Jan.
30-31 in Hawaii. "The two-day meeting will further the shared objectives
of reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, increasing energy security and
efficiency, and sustaining economic growth, and will help to advance the
negotiations under the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change," the
White House Council on Environmental Quality announced, fooling no one.
Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, the European Union, France,
Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa,
South Korea and the United Nations are invited to send delegates. The
gathering will be a follow-up to a rendezvous held back in September, at
which nothing happened. The same is to be expected in Hawaii.

source: Agence France-Presse
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~---------------

21. First year report available - learn more about the Ombuds Office
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 11:02:32 -1000
From: UH Manoa Ombuds Office <announce@HAWAII.EDU>

The UHM Ombuds Office's First Annual Report is now available. It analyzes
the Ombuds Office's first year of cases and points out some trends and
issues that need attention.

The University of Hawaii at Manoa Office of the Ombuds is a place where
all students, faculty, and staff are welcome to come and talk in
confidence about any concerns. We support collaborative dispute
resolution that fosters civility and mutual respect.

To see the report, go to our web site http://manoa.hawaii.edu/ombuds and
click "2006 - 2007 ANNUAL REPORT."
-- --------------------------------------------------------------------

22. Paradise Lost: Military Training in Makua Valley
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 01:07:26 -0800 (PST)
From: Donald Wessels <dfw_jr@yahoo.com>

A High quality radio program. Check it out!

National Radio Project/Making Contact <makingcontact@radioproject.org>
wrote:
Date: Tue, 22 Jan 2008 22:10:50 -0800 (PST)
From: National Radio Project/Making Contact
<makingcontact@radioproject.org>

National Radio Project, producers of 'Making Contact' - producers
of Making Contact, an international radio program that links
people, vital ideas, and important information.
------

Makua Valley Marines The Marines train in Makua Valley.
Photo: Honolulu Star Bulletin

Please share this email with a friend.

MAKING CONTACT - a weekly international radio program
PARADISE LOST:
MILITARY TRAINING IN MAKUA VALLEY

January 23, 2008
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Makua Valley, on the island of Oahu, is where Native Hawaiians lived for
more than a thousand years. That is until the U.S. military evicted the
natives so they could use the area for training with live ammunition and
weapons. Native Hawaiian and Making Contact intern Samson Reiny reports on
what happens when the military takes over historically sacred land, and on
how people are fighting back to reclaim this once pristine area. On this
edition, we^Òre offered a glimpse into a paradise lost.

This program was produced as part of National Radio Project^Òs internship
program.

Featuring: Momi Kamahele, Makua Makahiki cultural advisor; David Henkin,
Earth Justice attorney; Kyle Kajihiro, Makua Makahiki member; Fred Dodge,
Malama Makua spokesman; Summer Nemeth, English teacher and
demilitarization activist.

Executive Producer/Host: Tena Rubio
Contributing Intern Producer: Samson Reiny Producer: Andrew Stelzer
Associate Producer: Puck Lo Interns: Samson Reiny and Elena Botkin-Levy

For more information: American Friends Service Committee 2426 Oahu Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96822 808-988-2184 kkajihiro@afsc.org www.afschawaii.org
DMZ-Hawaii/Aloha `Aina c/o AFSC Hawaii 2426 Oahu Avenue Honolulu, HI 96822
808-988-6266 info@dmzhawaii.org www.dmzhawaii.org Earth Justice Honolulu
Office 223 South King Street, Suite 400 Honolulu, HI 96813 808-988-6266
honoluluoffice@earthjustice.org www.earthjustice.org Malama Makua Fred
Dodge 808-696-4677 Music: Robi Kahakalau Israel Kamakawioole Fiji
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

23. Nanakuli Homeless Pack Up Soon - comment
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 23:13:35 -1000
From: Tane . <Tane_1@msn.com>

What is wrong with the DHHL is that they place restrictions on the
eligible Hawaiians. Just give them the arable lands and have them build
what they can afford. They shouldn't be paying land taxes either.

Tane
------

From: kekahunakeaweiwi@yahoo.com
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:12:52 -0800

....too bad OHA and DHHL no can build Homes for these
people....instead of wasting time and money on things that
not going better the peoples lives. They seem to only give
money to/take care of the people who already have a decent
life to begin with.

GIVE THE MONEY/HELP THOSE THAT NEED IT NOW!!!!!! THEY CAN START WITH THE
HAWAIIAN PEOPLE ON THE BEACHES!!!!!!! OR THE KUPUNA'S THAT HAVE TO SLEEP
IN BUS STOPS...GET PISSED ON BY ASS HOLES....AND STILL, WITH ONLY $350.00
A MONTH TO LIVE ON....THE KUPUNA HAS THE COURAGE AND ALOHA TO HELP OTHER
HOMELESS PEOPLE WITH CHILDREN!!!!

OHA...GET YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT!!! AND UNTIL THEN....STOP BS'ING THE
PEOPLE. YOU GUYS NO MO SHAME!!!!!!!!!!!

Foster Ampong
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

25. Power package: Governor pushes clean energy initiative and comments
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:53:29 -1000
From: Lc <palolo@hawaii.rr.com>

henry, what are 'renewable sources' that the governor cites in this
article? lc
------

Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:47:42 -1000
From: Henry Curtis <henry.lifeoftheland@gmail.com>

she didn't actually list any. nor are any listed in the US_Hawaii
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU clearly states that neither
side is committing anything, has any obligations, or anything else, and
can back out whenever. All of this fluff is to support a future
bureaucratic reorganization and streamlining, under the guise that
regulators are holding up renewables from being installed. In reality, it
is HECO and their allies.

Henry
------

Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:12:51 -1000
From: Leota Souza <tuwahine@hawaii.rr.com>

Aloha kakou, I think they called it diversification disguised as in behalf
of the people? We are spectators in a never ending circus. Regulations,
private or public, is crowd control. A must for a massive audience. pilipo

----- Original Message -----
From: "Maui Tomorrow List" <aina@maui-tomorrow.org>
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 10:38 AM

http://starbulletin.com/print/2005.php?fr=/2008/01/29/news/story04.html
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Power package
Governor pushes clean energy initiative
By B.J. Reyes
bjreyes@starbulletin.com

Federal officials joined Gov. Linda Lingle along with other leaders from
the state, county and private sectors yesterday to announce an
unprecedented and ambitious partnership that aims to position Hawaii as a
model for others to follow as economies shift from fossil fuels toward
cleaner-burning, renewable energy sources such as wind, wave, solar and
thermal power.

However, it still could be two to three years before the state starts to
see sizable investments from the U.S. government in such energy
technology.

Under the partnership, known as the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, the
state seeks to have at least 70 percent of its energy needs supplied by
renewable sources by 2030.

By government estimates, Hawaii relies on imported fossil fuels, such as
crude oil and coal, for more than 90 percent of its energy needs.

While technological advances in solar, wind and other power sources have
helped increase the amount of energy derived from renewables -- today
estimated at 8 percent -- Lingle said the partnership with the U.S. Energy
Department aims to bring about a holistic shift in legislation, planning
and regulatory policy.

"We simply can't continue on as a bunch of individual entities trying our
best," Lingle said. "We have to become integrated. This (partnership) is
going to give us that opportunity."

The initial phase of the program involves setting up working groups to
study the areas of energy efficiency, generation of power, delivery of the
product and transportation. Each group will study the barriers that exist
to developing renewable energy in that particular area and come up with
recommendations, she said.

Lingle announced the partnership at a news conference in her office,
joined by Alexander Karsner, the U.S. Energy Department's assistant
secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Karsner said the planning stage for a policy shift of this nature
typically takes two or three years, noting the Hawaii agreement has
specific benchmarks and milestones that need to be reached.

"The early collaboration will be methodically and systematically planning
and addressing the economics of how that kind of transformation comes
about," Karsner said.

Once the policies are in place to encourage development of renewable
energy resources, the money is expected to follow, officials said.

Karsner said President Bush has requested $38.5 billion in guaranteed
federal loans dedicated to any technology, product or manufacturing
facility project that aims to "commercialize any technology that avoids,
sequesters or reduces greenhouse gas emissions."

While not all of that money would be targeted in the islands, "That's the
technology pool we want to direct towards Hawaii," Karsner said.

"What are the right policies we need to allow connectivity for the
technology to flow and the capital to flow and for you to access the
federal funding available."

Majority Democrats in the Legislature, who have criticized Lingle in the
past for announcing ambitious plans without a means of achieving the goal,
are on board with the partnership and were invited to speak at the
governor's news conference.

"I believe it's going to take an active and meaningful partnership between
the federal, state and county governments for us to be able to achieve our
energy goals and objectives," said Senate Energy Chairman Ron Menor (D,
Mililani).

Jeff Mikulina, executive director of the Sierra Club Hawaii Chapter,
applauded policymakers for bringing attention to the issue but noted that
previous working groups have been formed to study energy security.

"I'm just curious what exactly this means," Mikulina said. "Are we really
talking an Apollo-like project where there's going to be billions of
dollars invested in really transitioning Hawaii, or is it just going to be
study groups and more of the same?"

Initiative Goals

A look at efforts that to be pursued under the Hawaii Clean Energy
Initiative, a partnership between the state and the U.S. Department of
Energy: » Design cost-effective approaches for 100 percent use of
renewable energy on smaller islands.

» Design systems to improve stability of electrical grids operating with
variable generating sources, such as wind power plants on the Big Island
and Maui.

» Integrate renewable energy, including solar, wind, energy storage and
advanced vehicle technologies, into existing systems to meet the islands'
energy needs.

» Minimize energy use while maximizing energy efficiency and renewable
energy technologies at new large military housing developments.

» Expand Hawaii's capability to use locally grown crops as byproducts for
producing fuel and electricity.

» Develop comprehensive energy regulatory and policy frameworks to promote
clean energy technology use.

Source: Office of the Governor
© 1996-2008 The Honolulu Star-Bulletin | www.starbulletin.com
____________________________________________________________________________

26. "Unprecedented Collapse" of Pasifik Salmon Fishery
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:20:58 -1000
From: mike reitz <mreitz@pacbell.net>

Calif. Salmon Population Declines
By TERENCE CHEA, Associated Press Writer
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
(01-29) 13:17 PST San Francisco (AP) --

The number of chinook salmon returning to California's Central Valley has
reached a near-record low, pointing to an "unprecedented collapse" that
could lead to severe restrictions on West Coast salmon fishing this year,
according to federal fishery regulators.

The sharp drop in chinook or "king" salmon returning from the Pacific
Ocean to spawn in the Sacramento River and its tributaries this past fall
is part of broader decline in wild salmon runs in rivers across the West.

The population dropped more than 88 percent from its all-time high five
years ago, according to an internal memo sent to members of the Pacific
Fishery Management Council and obtained by The Associated Press.

Regulators are still trying to understand the reasons for the shrinking
number of spawners; some scientists believe it could be related to changes
in the ocean linked to global warming.

Only about 90,000 returning adult salmon were counted in the Central
Valley in 2007, the second lowest number on record, the memo said. The
population was at 277,000 in 2006 and 804,000 five years ago.

In an e-mail to council members, Donald McIsaac, the agency's executive
director, said he wanted to give them "an early alert to what at this
point appears to be an unprecedented collapse in the abundance of adult
California Central Valley ... fall Chinook salmon stocks."

"The magnitude of the low abundance ... is such that the opening of all
marine and freshwater fisheries impacting this important salmon stock will
be questioned," he said.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~=-----------------

27. OHA Ceded Land Settlement Misleading & Manipulative
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:27:03 -1000
From: pilipo souza <pilipohale@hawaii.rr.com>

Aloha kakahiaka,

e kala mai, I am sorry to bother your morning. But this is a BOHICA alert.
Yes, Behind Over Here It Comes Again, BOHICA you. . This kind of crap is
going on all the time. Can you imagine what's going on in Washington D.
C.? May be you will recognize why Jack Bauer is missing from the Fox
network.

We got The Hanneman Group stuffing the fixed rail down our throats while
the most applicable Philelas System is not even considered to be existing.
Our quality of life being altered by applications of GMO's not even
disclosed to the public. We are getting "stucked" more than a voodoo doll.
Are there any elected officials that are not poisoned with greed? This
rational is like that of the sanity to extinguish a fire with kerosene
because it was the only liquid available.

There are Hawaiians who are willing to sell their Nation so that they can
get a grant for a celebration of a leader that gave them a waiting list
privilege to a 5,000 square foot homestead lot?

In my youth, a the circus would come to town every 10 years. I too was
deceived for the circus never left town. No, they just put the animals
away and the clowns got elected.

What ever happened to doing what is right for the people? Worst yet, did
doing what's right ever existed?

Please study in depth this (8) paragraph report for it summarizes (115)
years business venture of the Committee of Safety, again all in behalf of
the people. Americans, as well as Hawaiians, are the most advance students
of the emerging science called mass persuasion.

Yet, most just sit back and say, "my government would never do that to
me." Governments are no different than baking cakes, junk ingredients
makes junk cakes. Your, "my government" is another phase of science called
propaganda.

Aloha ke Akua,
pilipo

----- Original Message -----
From: linda gomes
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 8:50 AM

OHA Ceded Land Settlement Misleading & Manipulative

OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona and Administrator Clyde Namu'o fully
intended on excluding Native Hawaiian senators and beneficiaries in any
discussions or informational sessions pertaining to the Ceded Land
Settlement, prior to OHA's press conference on Friday, the 18th of
January. At 8:41 am on the morning of the press conference, Namu'o, via
his administrative assistant, sent an email to OHA staff that stated, "It
is regrettable that the information was leaked, as we had wanted, out of
respect and courtesy, to first inform you and a number of stakeholders in
the Hawaiian community."

If Apoliona and Namu'o had honestly intended to "first inform OHA staff
and a number of stakeholders," several open meetings and debriefings would
have occurred prior to OHA's Ceded Land Settlement press conference. Even
more appalling is Namu'o's clear intention to exclude the majority of
Hawaiian beneficiaries from being first informed about the Ceded Land
Settlement, clearly noted in his reference to "a number of stakeholders in
the Hawaiian community." Who are these particular "stakeholders," Namu'o
refers to in his exclusionary statement?

It was clearly not those beneficiaries who attempted to attend an OHA
Ceded Land Settlement debriefing on the 17th of January at the State
Capitol, because an estimated 20 to 30 Hawaiian beneficiaries were asked
to leave the meeting room that day. Eventually, OHA and state
representatives exited through a back door and held the meeting in an
undisclosed location. The group of Hawaiian beneficiaries discovered the
meeting was being held in the basement of the State Capitol, but only
after the meeting had ended. Namu'o added insult to injury on the 18th of
January by telling an audience of 20 to 30 Hawaiian beneficiaries (several
of those in attendance were Hawaiian elders) that their (oppositional)
voice could be heard at the Legislature at hearings for the bill. Namu'o
has obviously forgotten that he and OHA serve all Hawaiians and each
Hawaiian beneficiary is an equal stakeholder, including the two Native
Hawaiian senators that he intentionally neglected to inform.

It is also a known fact that Namu'o on several occasions has referred to
Senators English and Hee, as "no friend of OHA." One can speculate that
Namu'o refers to the senators as "no friend of OHA," because they
understand OHA's mandate to better the conditions of both native Hawaiians
and the Hawaiian community in general and will hold OHA accountable to
that mandate without being swayed by Namu'o and OHA's "smooth talk."

Beneficiaries and concerned public do not be further misled by OHA's
campaign to inform beneficiaries and the general public about the Ceded
Land Settlement, because OHA's true intent is to persuade you to support
the Ceded Land Settlement. If the informational campaign were not about
persuading you to support the Ceded Land Settlement, OHA would have
included beneficiaries and the general public in the process prior to the
Ceded Land Settlement press conference held on January 18, 2008. OHA would
have also required the State to submit an audit on all gross revenues
generated through the Ceded Lands and completed a needs assessment prior
to agreeing upon the proposed Ceded Land Settlement. A needs assessment
pertaining to Hawaiian beneficiaries would have prepared OHA with data
needed to negotiate a Ceded Land Settlement that would demonstrate a
direct and positive impact on the Hawaiian community and the State.

If OHA cannot persuade you to support the Ceded Land Settlement through
their "little to late" informational campaign and you are an individual or
organization deemed important, OHA can "buy" your support. It has been
recently revealed that the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, after a
presentation by Namu'o and Jonathan Scheuer (OHA Land Management
Director), is supporting the Ceded Land Settlement without the consent of
its membership. Not so surprising, days after the Association of Hawaiian
Civic Clubs agreed to support the Ceded Land Settlement, Wayne Kaho'onei
Panoke announced to several individuals that the Association of Hawaiian
Civic Clubs would be receiving a grant estimated between $40,000 to
$50,000 to support activities in celebration of Prince Kuhio. The deal was
brokered immediately after OHA received support from the leadership of the
Association of Hawaiian Civic, pertaining to the Ceded Land Settlement.

It is also quite ironic that OHA will be funding $40,000 to $50,000 in
grant funds; after they declined several fiscal year 2008 grant
applicants. Did the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs submit a 2008
grant application by the required deadline? If so, was their application
treated the same as all other fiscal year 2008 grant application, subject
to review by OHA and the community?

The only way beneficiaries and the community at-large can be assured that
OHA is not "buying" support for the Ceded Land Settlement and their 2008
Legislative Package is to call for a forensic audit of OHA, an OHA
oversight committee, and removal of OHA's current leadership. Until that
time, let's say "NO to OHA."

For more information visit: http://ohalies.blogspot.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------

28. [Disappeared News] New comment on A glimpse at Hawaii's new friends,
the Indonesian ....
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:27:21 -0800 (PST)
From: Anonymous <lgeller@igc.org>

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "A glimpse at Hawaii's new
friends, the Indonesian ...":

The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network would like to work with anyone
in Hawaii wanting to oppose this cooperation. Last April when the Hawaii
National Guard was in Indonesia for a military exercise, they worked with
an Indonesian General who was indicted for crimes against humanity in East
Timor. see Indicted Indonesian General Leads Joint Military Exercise with
U.S.More about the Indonesian military's brutality and crimes can be found
at our website websiteJohn for ETAN 718-596-7668

Posted by Anonymous to Disappeared News at 12:04 PM HST
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

29. Responding to Hawaii - Indonesia military cooperation and re-response
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:10:27 -0500 (EST)
From: keboi@aol.com

Aloha Larry [Geller]

Thanks for forwarding the inquiry from ETAN. We've been trying to get
more info on the State Partnership Program. I received some info through
FOIA, but was denied certain documents relating to the regional security
plans. I've appealed these. If you like, I can forward what I have
gotten so far.

I've been trying to monitor the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies
as well. It is another avenue for Indonesia-US military cooperation,
thanks to Senator Inouye's rider in the post-9/11 period. We always talk
about this when referring to the APCSS, Hawai'i's own "Little School of
the Assassins".

I've put out some feelers to find any students at UH from East Timor, West
Papua, Aceh and Maluku who might be interested in addressing this issue.

Are you aware of any others who are concerned about this linkage that
could provide some leadership or initiative?

We're a bit overloaded right now to take the lead on this, but will
certainly support.

Mahalo

Kyle
------

Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:37:53 -1000
From: Larry Geller <lgeller@igc.org>

Hi, Kyle.

I've been pounding a bit on Lingle's cooperation rather than the military
exercises. In a way, the military here is a whole other entity, not
beholden to the state and taking their marching orders, of course, from
Washington. I don't know if I could ever make a dent on that relationship.

Except that by highlighting the evilness of Hawaii (the state)'s
cooperation with the Indonesians, the idea of how bad they are may stick.

It's not much of a strategy, but I'm somewhat limited in time for much
else.

I hope to write something to bring the request for cooperation from ETAN
more forward. In the comments it's not too noticeable. And I'll think
about what else might be done.

Cheerz--Larry
**************----------------------------------------------------------

30. NEW SPECIAL! Healing From Within
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:26:21 -1000
From: Rainbow Healing Arts <info@rainbowhealingarts.com>

Healing from Within
A new special from Rainbow Healing Arts

Healing from Within is an opportunity to receive a series of sessions
tailored to empower your healing intentions. Our bodies are miraculous and
know how to heal from within. When we are dealing with any imbalance,
whether physical, emotional or spiritual, we must reach within to support
our healing process.

Our thoughts are so powerful that they can intensify a healing challenge
and also allow it to be liberated and healed. Healing from within is about
taking the time to clearly align ourselves with our intentions. As
resistance is released, it uncovers the joy which is our true nature. Not
only do symptoms disappear, but we feel wonderful!

We would like to support you on this journey of inner healing by providing
you with personalized treatments to gently move you into a healing space.
We encourage you to make the commitment to yourself and we will provide
guidance and a healing touch to sooth and nurture you as you manifest the
perfect health you desire!

Benefits of the work we offer include:

Improved alignment and comfort of the neuro-muscular-skeletal system

Healthier skin and tissue circulation

Detoxification & body weight balancing

Boosted immunity and energy levels

Energy balancing and emotional well-being

Increased spiritual connection

To read more about modalities we offer, please visit
www.rainbowhealingarts.com.

The SPECIAL:

Purchase 6 one hour sessions, and receive a 7th session as our gift!
Invest $360 and save 15% off regular prices (over 50% more savings than
our regular session packs). Schedule weekly appointments, and experience
the relief of coming home to your true Self. Special valid through March,
2008. Cost does not include state tax or a fee of $10 per Raindrop.

Rainbow Healing Arts
Medical Grade Essential Oils & Classes
Reiki Treatments & Classes
Craniosacral Therapy - Lymphatic Drainage
Swedish Massage - Stone Therapy - Lomi lomi
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(808) 262-3700
www.rainbowhealingarts.com
www.youngliving.com/hioils
------------------------------------------------------------------------

31. OHA Phone bank=Overtime!
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:25:11 -1000
From: Kealii Makekau <kealii8@lava.net>

http://ohalies.blogspot.com/2008/01/oha-to-use-government-property-trust.html
OHA to Use Government Property & Trust Funds to Lobby Public Support

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs Administrator Clyde Namu`o is currently
meeting with all OHA employees and requesting that OHA employees consider
working overtime to lobby the public to support the Ceded Land Settlement
and push OHA's agenda forward, according to OHA sources.

Namu`o began meeting with OHA staff on Monday, the 28th of January and has
scheduled meetings with the remaining OHA staff today, after Namu`o
completes his meeting with OHA managers this morning.

OHA sources revealed that Namu`o is requesting all OHA employees to work
overtime from 4:30 to 6:30 pm to support OHA's lobbying efforts,
pertaining to the Ceded Land Settlement. Namu`o is offering OHA employees
overtime pay, most likely from trust funds, and usage of OHA's facilities
and equipment, which undoubtedly is government property, to persuade the
public to support the Ceded Land Settlement and push OHA's agenda forward.

The Honolulu Advertiser article titled, Doubts raised about
Hawaiians-state deal, printed on Sunday, January 27th quoted Namu`o as
stating, "The campaign will begin this week with a phone bank of operators
calling beneficiaries to inform them about the settlement agreement and
answer any questions."

Namu`o obviously neglected to inform the Honolulu Advertiser that the
phone bank of operators would be OHA employees paid overtime who will
undeniably be in favor of the Ceded Land Settlement. He further neglected
to mention that OHA's facilities and equipment would be used by OHA
employees to campaign and lobby beneficiaries for their support of the
Ceded Land Settlement.

It is apparent that the phone bank is not an informational tool, as quoted
by Namu`o, but rather a tool being used by OHA to push OHA's agenda
forward without care or concern for the beneficiaries.

There is no doubt that the use of trust funds and government property to
lobby support for the Ceded Land Settlement is unethical. This is a clear
violation of beneficiary trust. OHA should not be utilizing trust funds
and government property to lobby for public support, particularly the
beneficiaries, pertaining to the Ceded Land Settlement and their 2008
Legislative Package. This is clear evidence that OHA is a Broken Trust.

Beneficiaries and concerned public do not be further misled by OHA's
campaign to inform beneficiaries and the general public about the Ceded
Land Settlement, because OHA's true intent is to persuade you to support
the Ceded Land Settlement and push their own agenda forward, not that of
the beneficiaries.

OHA is not advocating for the betterment of both native Hawaiians and the
Hawaiian community in general; rather OHA is behaving like the
paternalistic governmental agency that they are. The only way
beneficiaries and the community at-large can be assured that OHA is
stopped is to call for a forensic audit of OHA, an OHA oversight
committee, and removal of OHA's current leadership. OHA must be placed
under government receivership. OHA is a Broken Trust.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

32. OHA settlement=Alleged Grant support!
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:38:20 -1000
From: Kealii Makekau <kealii8@lava.net>

http://ohalies.blogspot.com/2008/01/oha-ceded-land-settlement-misleading.html

OHA Chairperson Haunani Apoliona and Administrator Clyde Namu`o fully
intended on excluding Native Hawaiian senators and beneficiaries in any
discussions or informational sessions pertaining to the Ceded Land
Settlement, prior to OHA's press conference on Friday, the 18th of
January. At 8:41 am on the morning of the press conference, Namu`o, via
his administrative assistant, sent an email to OHA staff that stated, "It
is regrettable that the information was leaked, as we had wanted, out of
respect and courtesy, to first inform you and a number of stakeholders in
the Hawaiian community."

If Apoliona and Namu`o had honestly intended to "first inform OHA staff
and a number of stakeholders," several open meetings and debriefings would
have occurred prior to OHA's Ceded Land Settlement press conference. Even
more appalling is Namu`o's clear intention to exclude the majority of
Hawaiian beneficiaries from being first informed about the Ceded Land
Settlement, clearly noted in his reference to "a number of stakeholders in
the Hawaiian community." Who are these particular "stakeholders," Namu`o
refers to in his exclusionary statement?

It was clearly not those beneficiaries who attempted to attend an OHA
Ceded Land Settlement debriefing on the 17th of January at the State
Capitol, because an estimated 20 to 30 Hawaiian beneficiaries were asked
to leave the meeting room that day. Eventually, OHA and state
representatives exited through a back door and held the meeting in an
undisclosed location. The group of Hawaiian beneficiaries discovered the
meeting was being held in the basement of the State Capitol, but only
after the meeting had ended. Namu`o added insult to injury on the 18th of
January by telling an audience of 20 to 30 Hawaiian beneficiaries (several
of those in attendance were Hawaiian elders) that their (oppositional)
voice could be heard at the Legislature at hearings for the bill. Namu`o
has obviously forgotten that he and OHA serve all Hawaiians and each
Hawaiian beneficiary is an equal stakeholder, including the two Native
Hawaiian senators that he intentionally neglected to infor m.

It is also a known fact that Namu`o on several occasions has referred to
Senators English and Hee, as "no friend of OHA." One can speculate that
Namu`o refers to the senators as "no friend of OHA," because they
understand OHA's mandate to better the conditions of both native Hawaiians
and the Hawaiian community in general and will hold OHA accountable to
that mandate without being swayed by Namu`o and OHA's "smooth talk."

Beneficiaries and concerned public do not be further misled by OHA's
campaign to inform beneficiaries and the general public about the Ceded
Land Settlement, because OHA's true intent is to persuade you to support
the Ceded Land Settlement. If the informational campaign were not about
persuading you to support the Ceded Land Settlement, OHA would have
included beneficiaries and the general public in the process prior to the
Ceded Land Settlement press conference held on January 18, 2008. OHA would
have also required the State to submit an audit on all gross revenues
generated through the Ceded Lands and completed a needs assessment prior
to agreeing upon the proposed Ceded Land Settlement. A needs assessment
pertaining to Hawaiian beneficiaries would have prepared OHA with data
needed to negotiate a Ceded Land Settlement that would demonstrate a
direct and positive impact on the Hawaiian community and the State.

If OHA cannot persuade you to support the Ceded Land Settlement through
their "little to late" informational campaign and you are an individual or
organization deemed important, OHA can "buy" your support. It has been
recently revealed that the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, after a
presentation by Namu`o and Jonathan Scheuer (OHA Land Management
Director), is supporting the Ceded Land Settlement without the consent of
its membership. Not so surprising, days after the Association of Hawaiian
Civic Clubs agreed to support the Ceded Land Settlement, Wayne Kaho`onei
Panoke announced to several individuals that the Association of Hawaiian
Civic Clubs would be receiving a grant estimated between $40,000 to
$50,000 to support activities in celebration of Prince Kuhio. The deal was
brokered immediately after OHA received support from the leadership of the
Association of Hawaiian Civic, pertaining to the Ceded Land Settl ement.

It is also quite ironic that OHA will be funding $40,000 to $50,000 in
grant funds; after they declined several fiscal year 2008 grant
applicants. Did the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs submit a 2008
grant application by the required deadline? If so, was their application
treated the same as all other fiscal year 2008 grant application, subject
to review by OHA and the community?

The only way beneficiaries and the community at-large can be assured that
OHA is not "buying" support for the Ceded Land Settlement and their 2008
Legislative Package is to call for a forensic audit of OHA, an OHA
oversight committee, and removal of OHA's current leadership. Until that
time, let's say "NO to OHA."
------------------------------------------------------------------------

33. Pasifik Fisheries and Corruption
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:28:12 -1000
From: mike reitz <mreitz@pacbell.net>

Canberra Times (Australia)
January 29, 2008
Turf war hurting fisheries: report
Rosslyn Beeby; Science and Environment Reporter

Asian governments and fishing fleets are bankrolling escalating corruption
levels in Pacific Island fisheries, with activities ranging from
wharf-side bribes to blatant political interference, a new international
report says.

The World Conservation Union says corruption "is compounding the
devastating effects of over- fishing", robbing Pacific Island economies of
millions of dollars and economic development opportunities.

A section of the global report, prepared by Australian researchers at the
University of Wollongong, said a turf war between China and Taiwan in the
western and central Pacific Ocean had been blamed for increasing
corruption, "as neither side is playing by the normal rules of the aid
game in the Pacific".

A heavy reliance on foreign aid made Pacific nations "highly vulnerable to
manipulations by foreign powers", with a recent inquiry revealing Solomon
Islands lost more than $4.5million through government rorting of foreign
fisheries licences.

Overfishing of bigeye and yellowfin tuna in the region is a growing
concern, with foreign fishing fleets ignoring recommended catch quotas and
threatening the sustainability and economic viability of an industry worth
$800million to Pacific Island fisheries.

Wollongong University law professor Martin Tsamenyi and research fellow
Quentin Hanich said corruption within Pacific Island fisheries included
"low level corrupt activities where port inspectors might be offered a
large tuna in return for 'going easy' on a vessel and not verifying
logbooks or inspections".

Other examples included "private" government licensing of foreign vessels,
siphoning-off licence fees into private bank accounts and cash payments
for favourable licence conditions.

In their report to the World Conservation Union's fisheries law
enforcement program, Professor Tsamenyi and Mr Hanich recommend removing
government ministers from any role in fisheries licensing, and introducing
an audit system requiring "multiple reviews and checks", with all licence
details and agreements available on websites for public scrutiny.

LOAD-DATE: January 28, 2008
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~----------------

34. Voices Health/Environmental News
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:41:20 -0600
From: nimchira <tepaatu@gmail.com>

News from the Health and Environmental Communities.
Published since Nov, 2005
Jan. 29, 2008

Feel free to pass around
=========

In This Issue:

Recalls:

Dollar Tree Glue Guns
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2008/glue_guns.html

Warning About Contaminated Pre-Filled Syringes FDA has announced a
nationwide recall of all lots of heparin and saline pre-filled flush
syringes manufactured by AM2 PAT, Inc., of Angier, N.C. Consumers and
health care facilities with any of the recalled syringes should stop using
the product immediately
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/prefilledsyringes012908.html
======

China Fights Off Invading Moths and Weevils
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/46635/story.htm

Mozambique to Forcibly Evacuate 10,000 from Floods
http://www.planetark.org/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=46654

Global Warming Prompts Some Lifestyle Changes
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/46645/story.htm

Nuclear Plant Workers Show Higher Cancer Risks
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/46636/story.htm

GPs on alert for killer MRSA strain in nurseries, schools and the
gym-Family doctors are being put on high alert for cases of a flesh-eating
strain of MRSA that thrives in nurseries, classrooms and gyms.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=509416&in_page_id=1774

Scientific American Has Second Thoughts About Fluoride
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/1/22/scientific-american-has-second-thoughts-about-fluoride.aspx

Needy 'face social care struggle'-Elderly and disabled people in England
are increasingly being denied social services, a report says.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7214709.stm

Sedentary life 'speeds up ageing'-Leading a sedentary lifestyle may make
us genetically old before our time, research suggests.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/1/hi/health/7212698.stm

FDA Warns Proctor and Gamble about Unlawful Marketing Claims with Hand
Sanitizer for Kids http://www.naturalnews.com/022554.html

Study: FEMA ignored evidence in determining long-term effects of
formaldehyde in trailers.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8552/3057/10630/0/

Water dilemma reaches California valley.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8552/3057/10633/0/

More Bad News about Cough Medicine-CDC finds 7,000 children treated in ERs
for side effects.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2008/01/cough_medicine_cdc.html

Vital Facts About HIV Home Test Kits-Many HIV home tests are illegally
marketed online and in newspapers and magazines. Consumers should know
that there is only one FDA-approved home test system for HIV.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/hivtestkit012908.html

Children's Report Cards: McDonald's New Marketing Platform
http://www.naturalnews.com/022562.html

U.S. Ranks Last in Preventable Deaths Due to a Flawed Medical System
http://www.naturalnews.com/022561.html

Food Additives Found to Cause Hyperactivity in Children
http://www.naturalnews.com/022559.html

The Role of Hypnotherapy in Pediatric Cancer Patients
http://www.naturalnews.com/022557.html

Conservation Groups File Suit for Suppressed Polar Bear Documents-Bush
Administration Hiding Documents Detailing Impacts of Oil and Gas
Development Plans in Polar Bear Habitat
http://www.commondreams.org/news2008/0128-16.htm

French beekeepers abuzz with worry over dying bees. Less than a year after
France's decimated bee populations showed signs of recovery, beekeepers
here are once again in a panic as their income-generating worker drones
are disappearing by the tens of millions.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8552/3057/10641/0/

Getting to the bottom of biosolids. Whether it's called biosolids, sewage
sludge, hu-doo or humanure, waste from wastewater treatment plants from
across the province is being spread on agricultural lands and causing a
stink - in more ways than one.
http://newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/8552/3057/10644/0/
==========

Baxter Issues Urgent Nationwide Voluntary Recall of Heparin 1,000 Units/ml
10 and 30ml Multi-Dose Vials (Jan. 25) Baxter Healthcare Corporation has
announced the voluntary recall of nine lots of heparin sodium injection
1000 units/mL 10mL and 30mL multi-dose vials. The company began recalling
the lots on January 17, 2008 as a precautionary measure due to an increase
in the number of reports of adverse patient reactions that may be
associated with the product. Baxter is conducting a thorough investigation
of these reports to identify the cause of the increase in allergic-type
reactions. http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/baxter01_08.html
=========

The news that is reported is not necessarily the viewpoint of Voices
Health/Environmental News. Nothing within this message should be construed
as endorsing, promoting or abetting any illegal or unethical activity. The
articles in this newsletter are not necessarily the opinion of the editor.
Material appearing here is distributed without profit or monetary gain to
those who have expressed an interest in receiving the material for
research and educational purposes. This is in accordance with Title 17 U.
S. C. section 107. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

Articles are reprinted under Fair Use Doctrine of International Copyright
Law. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

All copyrights belong to original publisher.Under Bill s.1618 TITLE III
passed by the 105th U.S. Congress. This letter cannot be considered spam
as long as we include: Contact information & a Remove Link Reprinted under
the Fair Use Law: Doctrine of international copyright law.
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html

To send news reports, subscribe or unsubscribe send email to:
nimchira@cox.net Specify Voices, the Peoples News, or Voices
Health/Environmental News.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

35. What to do with/about white folks?
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:04:48 -0800 (PST)
From: Nani Rogers <kealiagirl2004@yahoo.com>

This is really good!

Nani

FORWARDED TEXT:

> What to do with/about white folks?
> by Robert Jensen

> [Remarks to the third "Last Sunday" community gathering in Austin, TX,
> January 28, 2007.]
>
> After the initial "Last Sunday" gathering in November, many people made
> the observation that it was a mostly white audience, and then asked the
> question, "How can we attract more people of color to the event?"
>
> The observation about the complexion of the group was important to
> acknowledge, but I think it was diversionary to move right away to that
> question. Instead of asking how to diversify the event, it's crucial
> that we white folks be able to ask: (1) "Why are there so few non-white
> people here?" and (2) "What is our motivation in wanting more non-white
> people here?" I think only after we have dealt with those questions can
> we start to work to transform Last Sunday -- and other predominantly
> white events, groups, and movements -- in ways that challenge white
> supremacy rather than reinforce white privilege.
>
> Put more bluntly: The goal shouldn't be just diversity but the end of
> white supremacy, a much more ambitious goal but one that can be the
> basis for real hope.
>
> These questions of language are not arcane; it's crucial that we pay
> attention to the terms we use to deal with the question of race. Do we
> speak of diversity and multiculturalism, or do we acknowledge that we
> live in a white-supremacist society and confront unearned white
> privilege? The difference is important. While most people -- even many
> conservatives -- accept that we live in a diverse multicultural society,
> fewer are willing to name the contemporary United States as a
> white-supremacist society and acknowledge that white people have
> unearned privilege.
>
> Naming the United States as white supremacist doesn't mean all white
> people run around in white sheets or join neo-Nazi militias. Instead, it
> marks the fact that racialized disparities in wealth and well-being
> endure -- and in some cases have deepened -- even 40 years after the
> major gains of the civil-rights movement. It marks the fact that many
> white people -- maybe the majority? a significant majority? -- still
> believe that what has come out of Europe is inherently superior. Maybe
> even many white liberals who celebrate diversity still secretly believe
> that the art, music, politics, and philosophy that come from white parts
> of the world are more sophisticated, more important, simply better. So,
> we live in a world where we (1) speak of our commitment to racial
> justice yet accept a white-supremacist distribution of resources and (2)
> speak of our commitment to valuing all traditions yet go to schools that
> reflect a white-supremacist ideology.
>
> And, just to drive home the point: Some white people go to churches that
> still have pictures of a white Jesus. Remember that Jesus was a Jew from
> Palestine. He wasn't European, wasn't white. But he's white in pictures
> that still hang on the walls of some churches, which means those
> churches and the culture in which they thrive are white-supremâË^Æâ^À^Ø
>
> So, acknowledging and celebrating that we are a multiracial and
> multiethnic society is a good thing. Multiculturalism is a value.
> Working to eliminate all-white spaces is a good thing. Diversity is
> important. But that's not enough.
>
> So, let's go back to the questions I think we should be asking.
>
> (1) "Why are there so few non-white people here?"
>
> One thing to ponder: Maybe non-white people don't like being around us
> white folks? Why might that be? Could it be because we haven't done
> enough to transcend the white-supremacist culture in which we live, and
> non-white people recognize that, and they have better things to do with
> their time than hang out with us? I don't know the answer to that, and
> there's certainly not one answer for all non-white people. But it's
> something worth considering.
>
> Another related thing to consider: Maybe non-white people don't trust us
> white people, especially when we gather in large groups. After all,
> large groups of white people traditionally have not been safe spaces for
> non-white people. Much violence against non-white people has come when
> lots of white people have gotten together.
>
> And one more thing worth thinking about: Last Sunday is an event
> specifically designed to create a sense of community for many of us who
> lack that in our everyday lives. What if people in non-white communities
> already have a sense of community, rooted in their common experience of
> dealing with white supremacy? If that's the case, what's the great
> attraction of this event to them?
>
> I am not claiming to know the answer to the question #1. But it seems
> like something we should ponder. But even harder to face is question is
> #2.
>
> (2) "What is our motivation in wanting more non-white people here?"
>
> One person offering suggestions about how to diversify Last Sunday
> wrote, "I do not believe that Austin is so segregated that progressive
> white people do not know progressive people of color." Certainly there
> are white people in Austin who know non-white people in Austin, either
> as friends or political allies or both. But does that comment reveal
> what we don't like to admit: We are not a truly integrated society. What
> if, in fact, Austin is that segregated? We may not want to believe it,
> but maybe it is. And if it is, is our quest for an integrated Last
> Sunday the desire to avoid that reality?
>
> A dozen years ago, a Chicana friend of mine at the University of Texas
> told me that her first question of white people was, "Do you have a real
> friend who isn't white?" She meant someone you trusted, that you could
> ask most anything of and vice versa. When she said that, I swallowed
> hard. She was my first real non-white friend. I was 36 years old. If any
> of us were to list our non-white friends today -- real friends, people
> whom I trust and who trust me -- how long would that list be?
>
> Most of us live in overwhelmingly segregated worlds, and that fact makes
> us many of us uncomfortable. But here's the hard question: Are we
> uncomfortable with it because we really wish we didn't live in
> segregated worlds, or are we uncomfortable with it because we don't like
> having to face that we live rather comfortably day-to-day in segregated
> worlds? In one of our ordinary days, how much are we really bothered by
> that segregation?
>
> So, the question: Do we want Last Sunday -- or any other event, group,
> or movement to which we white folks belong -- to be more multiracial so
> we don't have to face these facts? Again, I don't know, and I don't want
> to suggest there's one answer for all white people. But it's a question
> we should ask. That doesn't mean we shouldn't think about how this event
> might become a place where racial divides could potentially be bridged.
> Things have to start somewhere, and this is as good a place as any. I'm
> simply suggesting that we have to proceed on that project honestly. And,
> in my experience, we white folks aren't so good at being honest. There's
> a reason for that, I think. We're afraid.
>
> White fears
>
> Talking about the racial fears of white people in a white-supremacist
> society may seem silly. What do we white people really have to be afraid
> of? The easy answer is that we are afraid of ourselves.
>
> Yes, it's true that some of us still harbor certain fears of non-white
> people. For example, I was socialized to be reflexively afraid of black
> men in public, and I still sometimes struggle with that in certain
> situations. And some white people fear that when non-white people gain
> political and economic power they may take some of "our" goodies away
> and then we might have to become a more just society in the distribution
> of resources. That would mean that we have less.
>
> But I think the more troubling struggle for many of us white folks is
> the fear of being seen, and seen-through, by non-white people. If most
> of us white people carry some level of racism in our minds and hearts
> and bodies -- if we know that even when we've "worked on our racism"
> there are at least remnants of white supremacy in us -- we must know
> that it could come out at any time, maybe in ways we can't control,
> maybe in ways so subtle we can't even recognize it. And what if
> non-white people look at us and can see it? What if they can see through
> us? What if they can look past our carefully crafted anti-racist
> vocabulary and sense that we still don't really know how to treat them
> as equals? What if they know about us what we don't dare know about
> ourselves?
>
> Maybe it is self-indulgent to talk about white people's fears, given the
> real threats that non-white people face in a white-supremacist society.
> But we have to talk about it because that fear often keeps us white
> people from stepping out and stepping up. Because we are privileged, we
> can back away from difficult situations, avoiding the risk of being seen
> more honestly by someone else, someone who isn't white. I know that in
> my life I have sometimes held back out of that fear. I have a feeling
> I'm not alone in that.
>
> When we think we "get it"
>
> I don't think any of this means we should give up, that we white people
> can never make any progress on racism, that it's all hopeless. Instead,
> it's like all the other struggles for social justice that force us to
> contend with oppressions that are deeply embedded not only into the
> institutions and systems in which we live but also in our bodies: We
> struggle, we make progress, we feel good about that, and then -- if we
> are paying attention -- we realize we have further to go. Here's an
> example of that process, one in which I play the fool.
>
> Last year I was stopped by a police officer for running what he thought
> was a red light (I contended it was yellow, of course). It was late at
> night, I had been at work all day, and I was cranky. I was dressed in a
> ratty T-shirt and shorts. At the time I was driving a beat-up old
> Volkswagen Beetle. In other words, I looked like something less than one
> of Austin's leading citizens. When I saw the red lights flashing, I
> pulled off the busy street onto an unlit side street to get out of
> traffic. When the officer asked me for my registration and insurance, I
> opened the glove compartment and out popped a small knife, folded up,
> that I carry for emergencies. The officer, who was white, politely asked
> if I would mind if he held that knife while we talked. I handed it to
> him, he wrote me my ticket, returned the knife to me, and off I drove.
>
> During a lecture on racial justice a few months later, I told that story
> as an illustration of white privilege. I made the obvious point that if
> I had been black when that knife popped out, the officer might not have
> been so calm. Maybe I would have ended up outside the car, face down on
> the pavement. Maybe worse. There's no way to know, of course, but that's
> the point of the concept of "driving while black (or brown)" -- it's not
> that every time you are stopped you are going to experience police
> violence, but that you can never be sure.
>
> So, I'm telling this story, pointing out that when the knife popped out
> and the cop didn't treat me like a threat, didn't pull me out of the car
> with gun drawn, that I was benefiting from white privilege. A black man
> in the audience agreed with that, but then brought me up short. "You're
> right about all that, but what you don't understand is that your white
> privilege kicked in before the cop stopped you," he said. He went on to
> explain that he would have never pulled onto the unlit side street. "I
> would have pulled over to the side of the busy street, in plain view,"
> he said. "You didn't even think about that, did you?"
>
> No, I hadn't thought about that. I hadn't thought that if a cop wanted
> to mess with me it would be easier on an unlit street than on a busy
> street. I hadn't thought about it, because I didn't stop to think the
> cop might mess with me. I knew that the worse-case scenario would be
> that he would write me a ticket.
>
> That black man was kind enough to point out to me that I didn't know as
> much as I thought I knew. He was kind in his critique, but he didn't
> hold back. For that I was grateful. I learned something that night. It's
> a good thing to learn.
>
> The basis for real hope
>
> The unifying theme of Last Sunday is coming together to confront
> honestly the depth of the problems -- political, cultural, economic,
> ecological -- that we face. Earlier I made the claim that this kind of
> blunt talk is the basis of real hope, which may seem counterintuitive.
> Who wants to think things are this difficult? I certainly don't want to,
> but I see no other path.
>
> The reason I think we have to get beyond "diversity talk" is that it
> doesn't answer people's needs. Non-white people recognize that
> multiculturalism doesn't ask much of white people. When we are honest
> with ourselves, white people understand it doesn't ask enough of us.
>
> To echo remarks I've made at other Last Sundays, maybe this race thing
> has no solution. I don't mean that no white person can ever transcend
> white supremacy to have an authentic relationship with a non-white
> person. I don't mean that we must remain stuck in an overtly racist
> framework. But maybe 500 years of modern racism -- rooted in Europe's
> and the United States' brutal project of grabbing a disproportionate
> share of the world's resources, rationalized by a white-supremacist
> ideology -- simply can't be overcome in the time we have available to
> us. If that's the case, well, so be it. Let's go forward to make the
> best we can make of it.
>
> Let's heal where we can.
>
> Let's pass on less of this insanity to our children.
>
> Let's organize to support projects that can get us a bit closer to real
> justice.
>
> And let's tell as much of the truth as we can bear.
>
> Here's the truth that I see: So far, we -- those of us who make up white
> America, including me and others here tonight -- have largely failed at
> this project. It's a big project with many obstacles. Maybe we will
> continue to fail. Since we know a bit about our past failures, let's at
> least commit to failing in new ways. Maybe we'll be surprised by where
> that failure leads us.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

36. The Masquerade
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 15:11:39 -1000
From: pilipo souza <pilipohale@hawaii.rr.com>

Aloha kakou, Recently, in www.informationclearinghouse.info I read an
article, A Culture of Greed and Corruption, that I would like to share
with you. I share this because I know you are persons who care about
others.

As we go through life, we develop many opinions and characteristics based
upon our experiences and exposures, some more than others. But most of
these traits are based upon the daily things about us, some times noted
and some not even recognized.

For me today, I see more but want less. Just visiting my neighborhood
grocery chain store I see far beyond the table that Leota and I will sit
down to consume. The prices in the stores reflect upon the status of my
family, my community, my nation and that of the world. Yet we have more
than any country in the world, and are thankful. But for me the question
is not why I don't have more. It has become a reality that if I have more
someone else has less.

In a land so blessed with plentiful, America destroys the very essence of
its creed. Could it be because the plenty was never theirs? I often ask
myself what has America become? I thought I had known what she was. If I
was asked to define what America is, I honestly would fail. For the
America I knew as a chilld and even a young man no longer is. America has
become cancerous with greed and corruption that is terminal to all
mankind.

Please go to www.infornmationclearinghouse.info/article and read, "A
Culture Of Greed And Corruption" by Joseph M. Cachia and you may see why.
Further sayeth not, for it says it all.

Aloha ke Iesu Kristo, pilipo
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 15:47:14 -1000 (HST)
37. Layers Of Feeling Coping With Passive Aggression
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:12:22 +1300
From: CHOOK <tepaatu@gmail.com>

------ Forwarded Message
From: "Artemis Goldberg" <panthertracker@myself.com>
Layers Of Feeling Coping With Passive Aggression

Many people are taught from a young age to suppress feelings commonly
regarded as negative, such as anger, resentment, fear, and sorrow. Those
who cannot or will not express these emotions tend to engage in
passive-aggressive behaviors that provide them with a means of redirecting
their feelings. Passive aggression can take many forms: People who feel
guilty saying "no" may continually break their promises because they
couldn't say no when they meant it. Others will substitute snide praise
for a slur to distance themselves from the intense emotions they feel.
More often than not, such behavior is a cry for help uttered by those in
need of compassion and gentle guidance.

When we recognize passive-aggressive patterns in the behavior of others,
we should never allow ourselves to be drawn into a struggle for power.
Passive aggression is most often wielded by those who feel powerless in
the face of what they perceive as negative emotions because they hope to
avoid confronting their true feelings. They feel they are in control
because they do not display overt emotion and often cannot understand how
they have alienated their peers. If someone close to us shows signs of
frustration or annoyance but claims nothing is amiss, we can point out
that their tone of voice or gestures are communicating a different message
and invite them to confide in us. When we feel slighted by a backhanded
compliment, it is important that we calmly explain how the jibe made us
feel and why. And when an individual continually breaks their promises, we
can help them understand that they are free to say no if they are
unwilling to be of service.

As you learn to detect passive aggression, you may be surprised to see a
hint of it in yourself. Coping with the natural human tendency to veil
intense emotions can be as simple as reminding yourself that expressing
your true feelings is healthy. The emotions typically regarded as negative
will frequently be those that inspire you to change yourself and your life
for the better, whereas passive-aggressive behavior is a means of avoiding
change. When you deal constructively with your feelings, you can put them
behind you and move forward unencumbered by unexplored emotion.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

38. Free Hawai`i TV - "Stop The OHA Land Sell Out!"
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:55:36 -0800
From: Free Hawai`i <freehawaii@earthlink.net>

FREEHAWAII.INFO PRESENTS
FREE HAWAI`I TV
THE FREE HAWAI`I BROADCASTING NETWORK
TODAY'S VIDEO COMMENTARY -

"STOP THE OHA LAND SELL OUT!

The Office Of Hawaiian Affairs Wants To Sell Hawaiian Lands For Pennies
On The Dollar & They Don't Care If You Like It Or Not!

Want To Stop Them?

Watch & Find Out How!

To View Visit http://FreeHawaiiTV.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------

39. Disappeared News - 5 new articles
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 05:17:21 -0500
From: FeedBlitz <feedblitz@mail.feedblitz.com>

"DISAPPEARED NEWS" - 5 NEW ARTICLES - www.disappearednews.com

1. Drug sniffing dogs fail to reduce usage at a Maui public high school
2.Danny Schechter's quotes of the day
3.A glimpse at Hawaii's new friends, the Indonesian military killers
4.Microsoft admits that Something went wrong...
5.Barf happens--now we can measure it
6.More Recent Articles
7.Search Disappeared News

Drug sniffing dogs fail to reduce usage at a Maui public high school

by Larry Geller Reading the Star-Bulletin report, I was wondering how
come it seems sometimes that our educators can't learn. At Board of
Education testimony yesterday, according to the article, Ron Okamura,
superintendent of the Hana-Lahaina-Lanai-Molokai complex, testified that
after the dogs left his campus, drug finds increased. He said that
students are not afraid to bring drugs to the....

Danny Schechter's quotes of the day

by Larry Geller Quotes worth passing on, I thought, from today's News
Dissector: "Why shouldn't truth be stranger than fiction? Fiction, after
all, has to make sense." -Mark TwainAN IRONY FROM A READER: "This year,
both Groundhog Day and the State of the Union Address fall on the same
day. It is an ironic juxtaposition: one involves a meaningless ritual in
which we look to a creature of little....

A glimpse at Hawaii's new friends, the Indonesian military killers

by Larry Geller If you would like to see the kind of atrocity that the
Indonesian military is capable of, check out the Democracy Now! program
that aired this evening. It's still on the web here. You can get video,
audio or read the transcript. This is the very same Indonesian military
that Gov. Linda Lingle is cozying up to and providing assistance to. An
excerpt from Amy Goodman and Allan....

Microsoft admits that Something went wrong...

by Larry Geller Honest, I got this error message today while checking
websites for readability index. I had just plugged in poinography.com
when Internet Explorer popped up this dialogue box: Well, duhh, can't
Bill Gates with all his billions and the entire crew of Microsoft tell me
something more specific? For those who are interested in these things, a
better set of readability tests can be....

Barf happens--now we can measure it

by Larry Geller Heyâ^À^Ôif you're planning to go hiking or camping, you'd
check the weather, right? No sense going out on the trail if it's going
to be mud. Surfers have their surf reports. Those who live in cold places
can check the ski forecast. Temperature, wind, clouds and precipitation
are routinely translated for us into conditions on the slope. The idea is
to know before you go. Shouldn't we....

More Recent Articles

* Superferry cancels three days in a row...
* Working folks are gonna miss Kucinich
* Don't get burned by alternative energy schemes
* Honolulu Advertiser dumbs down its comics in overnight coup
* At last-a tax refund to stimulate the economy
________________________________________________________________________________

40. Racist Ontology of "Cow Inoa" by Tony Castanha
From: HIAHAWAII@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 11:23 PM

Racist Ontology of 'Cow Inoa'
By Tony Castanha, 1/29/2008 10:26:09 AM

I am not a fan of the state Office of Hawaiian Affairs, but your recent
"Cow Inoa" cartoon message and subsequent commentary go way beyond some
sort of "settlement" or sovereignty roll. Since it's your policy to print
all editorials submitted, whether inflammatory, racist, bigoted,
culturally insensitive and inept, or just plain vicious, you should have
no issue printing mine, clearly word for word.

Despite your open editorial policy, you ought to realize you are ethically
responsible for the message and meaning portrayed because you ultimately
have a choice as to what appears in print. But you and "your" cartoonist
apparently fail to see what is behind this type of flippantly gross humor.
It's just a benign joke to you, and if you can't take a joke, then "get
out of the kitchen." Truly marvelous.

Well, what you are portraying in this cartoon is neither new nor
surprising. It reveals a deep seated racial prejudice that goes back to
the Greeks. In this case, it's called cultural or institutional racism in
using the power of the media to demean a specific group of people. It's
just a little more subtle today, "politically correct" you'd probably say,
akin to a Trent Lott resurrecting the confederacy but naive in doing so
because it is so imbedded in the psyche that you are completely blinded in
the process.

When you depict an individual or group as animals, despite "your"
cartoonist's feeble attempt in lumping "all races" as cows to justify the
assault, you dehumanize them viewing them as less than human. You really
don't need to be a rocket scientist to understand this. Indigenous peoples
have often been portrayed this way for centuries.

When Columbus sailed the ocean blue he brought along with him the
mentality of Herodotus and certain papal decrees that designated
non-Christians as "barbarous," i.e., "uncivilized" or subhuman, and
therefore expendable. This mindset marked the dawn of the modern era,
civilization as we still know it today. The black man under your phony
constitution was designated "three fifths" a person, and Katrina, Jena,
and his filling the prisons now are just aberrations as you'd likely see
it. You play your victimization game on a people who are in fact at the
bottom of the socio-economic ladder and lick your chops in doing so.

Using the notion of racial purity in defining or imagining a people
("there are only a handful of purebred native cows left") cuts right to
the heart of Darwinian descent in terms of species extinction. Shielded by
the possibility or idea of indigenous CULTURAL adaptation and survival,
the biological factor and argument have been main ways to justify the
"extinction" of native groups. So let's be honest here -- this would
really seem to do you fancy.

Tony Castanha, a resident of Honolulu, can be reached at
mailto:castanha@hawaii.edu
________________________________________________________________________________

41. Put your students in touch with Iraqi students/refugees!
From: tcmack
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 7:49 AM

--- In NYCoREUpdates@yahoogroups.com, "daveatumich" <david.enders@...>
wrote:

Hello- I am writing to offer the opportunity to any teachers who would be
interested in putting their students in touch, via webcam, with Iraqi
students their age. I have seen this done at the college level with
students in New Jersey and Lebanon with excellent results, and I am also
currently working with HS students in St. Louis to chat via webcam with
Iraqis in Syria. Please email me if you would be interested in this
opportunity for your students to understand the reality of the war. Best
David Enders david.enders@...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

42. Help Celebrate RecycleMania on Friday
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 09:34:01 -1000
From: UHM Communications office <announce@HAWAII.EDU>

Help UH Manoa to be the best recyclers we can be! Bring your recyclables -
cans, bottles, paper, cardboard - to the Hawai'i Hall lawn and help create
a recyclable mountain!

What: RecycleMania08 Launch and Sustainable Saunders 1st Birthday Bash
When: Friday, February 1, 10am-2pm
Where: Hawaii Hall Lawn
Why: Mountain of recyclables (bring your cans/bottles/paper/cardboard!),

Come celebrate with us! The event will include KTUH DJs, BBQ with separate
vegetarian grill, Birthday Cake, barefoot soccer, and more!

What is RecycleMania?

A nationwide recycling competition among 375 colleges and universities
(www.recyclemania.org). This year's competition runs January 27 - April
5, with results announced on Earth Day.

What is Sustainable Saunders?

A passionate team called the HUB (Help Us Bridge) devoted to evolving
Saunders Hall into a model of sustainability for the campus and beyond! In
our first year we've connected the community through dozens of projects
and gatherings including Earth Day. Help us celebrate and launch our
weekly soccer game and monthly BBQ!

Co-sponsored by:

The UH Geology Club
Sustainable Saunders
Office of Facilities and Grounds
Campus Center
KTUH
Committee on Sustainability Kuleana Program School of Ocean and Earth
Science and Technology

For more info contact: Erin Miller (UH Geology Club), eemiller@hawaii.edu,
956-8489 Shanah Trevenna (Sustainable Saunders), trevenna@hawaii.edu,
772-1874
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

43. kumulipo's trip to molokai in jan 08...
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:34:31 -0700
From: monets001@hawaii.rr.com

Kumulipo went to Molokai to give some computers to deserving local kids
who over the last couple of years have spent their time volunteering with
Noelani Lee, cleaning up two ancient Hawaiian fish ponds. Their efforts
will be very important in a world and economy facing the devestating
effects of global warming that will be apon us sooner than some of us may
think. These kids are in the vangard of Hawaiian thought.

The attached pdf file tells the story. [please write to kumulipo for the
pdf. g]

All donations to the Kumulipo Molokai program will be used there.

Kumulipo
www.kumulipo.hawaiiresourcelibrary.com

Kamuela Kuali'i Lindsey
Executive Director
1741 Ala Moana Blvd. #98
Honolulu, Hi. 96815
Ph./cell (808) 258-1611
MONETS001@hawaii.rr.com

Kumulipo is dedicated to supporting traditional Hawaiian activities like
sailing, surfing, swimming, spear fishing and canoe paddling; Hawaiian
music, hula, renewable energy and bio fuels; as well as affordable
housing, prison rehabilitation and reform.

"Halihali mai 'oe i na po'e lahui Hawai'i. Ka ala nui Ea like me ke
ka'awila. Imua a i hope. Ma lela no hana like kakou, a'ole hakaka, a'ole
hukihuki, ALU LIKE". ...Fannie Lindsey and Aunty Harriet Purdy...1990

People of Hawai'i lets get together. The road to Sovereignty is like the
Spokes of a Wheel. Go forward or back. The way to work is together. Don't
fight or argue, COME TOGETHER.

All the spokes must be of equal size, strength and length, then they must
be tuned in order for the wheel to roll straight and true. A wheel can
move heavy loads uphill with very little effort.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

44. ARTICLE LINK: Chile hunger strike puts focus on Indians' plight
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 13:57:26 -1000 (HST)
From: M. Alohalani Boido <boido@hawaii.edu>

Tony, could you pls. forward this around? Thanks, Alohalani

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Chile hunger strike puts focus on Indians' plight
--------------------

Jailed activist Patricia Troncoso has had no solid food for 100-plus days,
and is seeking release of Mapuche prisoners and return of ancestral lands.
By Patrick J. McDonnell
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
January 28 2008

CHILLAN, CHILE &mdash; The case of a jailed indigenous-rights activist who
has been on a hunger strike for more than 100 days has galvanized support
for restive Mapuche Indians seeking the release of prisoners and recovery
of ancestral lands in central Chile.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mapuche28jan28,0,7155289.story

Visit latimes.com at http://www.latimes.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

45. Hawaii 2050 Update
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:53:34 -0500 (EST)
From: "info@hawaii2050.org" <info@hawaii2050.org>

Hawaii 2050 Logo Hawaii 2050 Bill On behalf of the Hawaii 2050
Sustainability Task Force, mahalo for your participation and interest in
creating the Hawaii 2050 Sustainability Plan. The final Hawaii 2050
Report to the Legislature was submitted on December 28, 2007;and we
anticipate launching the plan in the media and to the general public
within the next two weeks.

The House and Senate bills that adopt the recommendations of the Hawaii
2050 Task Force have been introduced and numbered. They are House Bill
2590 (HB2590) and Senate Bill 2833 (SB2833). These bills adopt the Hawaii
2050 Sustainability Plan; establish a Sustainability Council to
coordinate, implement, measure, and evaluate the progress of the Hawaii
2050 Sustainability Plan and activities; and appropriate funds to the
Sustainability Council. Details of these measure can be viewed in the
following links:
* HB2590
* SB2833
HB2590 is up for hearing before Joint House Energy and Environmental
Protection/Water, Land, Ocean Resources and Hawaiian Affairs Committees on
Thursday, January 31, 2008, 10:00 am, Conference room 312 at the State
Capitol (415 S. Beretania Street).

There are thee ways to provide testimony 1) send an e-mail to
EEPtestimony@capitol.hawaii.gov; 2) in person or 3) submit five copies
(including an original) to Room 405 at the State Capitol.

Please provide your input about HB2590 to lawmakers. Let your voices about
Hawaii's future be heard.

Aloha,

Hawaii 2050 Sustainability Task Force
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

46. Civil Rights in America Forum
From: "UH Institute for Peace" <uhip@hawaii.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 4:35 PM

> Dear Friends and Faculty,
>
> The Spark Matsunaga Institute for Peace will be cosponsoring a forum,
> "The Long History of Civil Rights in America," with the William S.
> Richardson School of Law on Wednesday, February 20, 2008 from 12:30 to
> 1:30 pm. This forum will feature Drs. James and Lois Horton at the
> William S. Richardson School of Law Classroom 5, 2515 Dole Street at the
> University of Hawaii Manoa. More information follows:
>
> The Hortons will speak on the historical background of the Modern Civil
> Rights Movement in America, including the civil rights struggles of free
> blacks in the North before the Civil War, through the post-war period,
> and as the system of Jim Crow was established in the late 19th and early
> 20th centuries. They will also discuss the rise of the mid-20th century
> Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s. The Hortons will speak
> for approximately 45 minutes and then answer questions from the
> audience.
>
> Attached is also an informational flyer.
>
> For more information, please contact the Matsunaga Institute for Peace
> at 956-4237.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

47. The People Are One Not Three or Four by Rafael Cancel Miranda /
Special for Cla
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 20:41:36 -0800
From: Deborah Berman Santana <santana@mills.edu>

Rafael Cancel Miranda served 26 years in prison for participating in the
attack on the US Congress in 1954, led by Lolita Lebrón. His words are an
inspiring call for unity.

The People Are One Not Three or Four
by Rafael Cancel Miranda / Special for Claridad January 17 to 23, 2008
Translated by Pro-Libertad

I have recently participated in two marches against colonialism and the
abuses of the yankee Gestapo (FBI). On December 22, I marched with
independentists and commonwealth supporters. In the second march, on
January 10, we independentists of various stripes, marched united, without
ceasing to be who we are. For the same reasons, I would march with the
pro-statehooders, which I did when we were defending the Lajas valley. I
know that on that occasion, the pro-statehooders were protesting, because
they were the owners of the farms which would have been contaminated if
the yankee Navy had located its proposed radar on those lands. I know that
the pro-statehooders marched for their own interests, which they put ahead
of the interests of the U.S. Navy. I marched so that our land would not be
contaminated. Although for different interests, we coincided to confront
the yankee navy.

I have participated in marches for Vieques and for the imprisoned
patriots, together with supporters of commonwealth and statehood, and, of
course, independentists. We must learn to march as a single people on
those issues on which we coincide, and not fall prey to imperialism's
games by becoming each others enemies

As for the January 10 march in support of the three young Puerto Ricans
subpoenaed to appear before a so-called U.S. Grand Jury, the FBI says it
is because they are investigating The Macheteros. I ask these individuals
if, when they bombed us from the high seas on May 12, 1898, there were
Macheteros; or when they invaded us on July 25 of that same year, they
looked for The Macheteros; if when they massacred us in Rio Piedras, Ponce
and Utuado, there were Macheteros; if when the FBI first arrived in Puerto
Rico in 1936 to fabricate a case against don Pedro Albizu Campos, there
were Macheteros, if during the 55 military interventions they have carried
out against our peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean, they were
looking for Macheteros

Going a little further back, were these same anglo saxons looking for
Macheteros in Rhodesia, New Zealand, South Africa, Aus-tralia, India or
indigenous territory now known as the United States? Perhaps they were
looking to drug Macheteros when they introduced opium to China? Were they
looking for Macheteros in the territories they stole from Mexico? We can
continue with the African and Arab and Asian countries whose territories
they invaded, whose lands they robbed, whose natural resources they
looted. As for me, I wish that there existed so many Macheteros. The
history of humanity would be different.

I think these FBI henchmen who are nothing more than instruments of the
invaders either think we are idiots, or they are idiots, as that excuse
for their persecution falls on its own weight.

As for the January 10 march, I am proud to have seen that, in spite of all
the persecutions and all the pressures to which we have been subjected as
a people, they have not been able to destroy us, although we know there
are prostitutes disposed to serve what-ever power invades their homeland.
They have existed in every colony of the world, including those 13
colonies. We know that George Washington sent them to the firing squad.
The Fraticellis of the world should know the history of their lords and
masters. Then they would know what terrorism is.

The mere fact that they are persecuting young Puerto Ricans in U.S.
territory demonstrates that they know that we are one nation, that
regardless of where we are, we are Puerto Ricans. It would be worthwhile
to analyze why at the same time they persecute Mexicans, they are also
persecuting Puerto Ricans, valuing, of course, the laws they themselves
impose. They are 'legal' actions to try to legalize the illegal. Isn't
this persecution due to the fact that just as they invaded Mexican
territory, they invaded Puerto Rican territory, and robbed us both of our
lands, and that as a result, they fear us?

There was a time when the FBI chief some personn named Webster said that
Puerto Rico was the Achilles Heel of the United States. So long as we are
a colony, we will continue to be the Achilles Heel, and we know that they
will continue to send the Fraticellis after us. But we also know that our
people will continue to give birth to the Albizus, the Blanca Canales, the
Filibertos, Lolitas, Corretjers, and Puerto Rican women and men such as
those who were there protesting on January 10 in front of the yan-kee
federal pig sty

I congratulate the organizers of the two demonstrations of Puerto Rican
dignity. We independentists must unite if we want to unite the people,
because this is a struggle of the entire country. When they attacked us on
May 12, 1898 from the high seas, they attacked all of us, and all of us
suffer from the evils of colonialism. One of the main tricks the empire
uses to dominate us is to divide and conquer, to set people against each
other, so as to advance their imperialist interests. Lets not be fooled by
the tricks of the empire!
---------------------------------------------------------------------

48. Australia to apologize to Aborigines
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 01:42:43 -0500
From: KahiwaL@cs.com

>Australia to apologize to Aborigines
>
> Australia will issue its first formal apology to the country's
> indigenous people on Feb. 13, a senior minister said Wednesday, a step
> that could ease tensions with a minority once subjected to policies that
> included removal of mixed-blood children from families on the premise
> that their race was doomed.
>
> The apology toward the so-called "stolen generation" of Aborigines
> would be the first item of business for the new Parliament.
>
> "The apology will be made on behalf of the Australian government and
> does not attribute guilt to the current generation of Australian
> people," Macklin said in a statement.
>
> Macklin and Rudd have previously ruled out financial compensation for
> the impoverished minority, and Macklin did not mention that subject
> Wednesday. But said she had sought broad input on the wording of the
> apology, which she hoped would signal the beginning of a new
> relationship between Australia and its Aboriginal minority.
>
> "Once we establish this respect, the government can work with
> indigenous communities to improve services aimed at closing the 17-year
> life expectancy gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians,"
> she said.
>
> Australia's original inhabitants, Aborigines number about 450,000 among
> a population of 21 million. Aborigines are the poorest ethnic group in
> Australia and are most likely to be jailed, unemployed and illiterate.
>
> An apology would mark a significant milestone in a decade-long debate
> about how best to acknowledge Aborigines who were affected by a string
> of 20th century policies that separated mixed-blood Aboriginal children
> from their families ^× the cohort frequently referred to as Australia's
> stolen generation.
>
> From 1910 until the 1970s, around 100,000 mostly mixed-blood Aboriginal
> children were taken from their parents under state and federal laws
> based on a premise that Aborigines were a doomed race and saving the
> children was a humane alternative.
>
> A national inquiry in 1997 found that many children taken from their
> families suffered long-term psychological effects stemming from the loss
> of family and culture.
>
> The inquiry recommended that state and federal authorities apologize
> and compensate those removed from their families. But then-Prime
> Minister John Howard steadfastly refused to do either, saying his
> government should not be held responsible for the policies of former
> officials.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

49. imperial maine -- somebody pls read this and do a book review!!
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 20:53:23 -1000
From: 'imiola young <imiola@hawaii.rr.com>

http://www.une.edu/ur/news/burlinbook.asp

Historian Paul Burlin explores American imperialism through Maine figures
who fostered the Americanization of Polynesian culture

Imperial Maine. Sounds like an oxymoron. Add Hawaii and the juxtaposition
of words seems even more absurd. How, in any sense, could the state of
Maine be "imperial"? And what does Hawaii - more than 5,000 miles away -
have to do with anything related to Maine, [IMAGE]Paul Burlin, Ph.D.
imperial or otherwise?

But that is the topic of Paul Burlin's new scholarly but highly readable
book titled Imperial Maine and Hawai'i, Interpretative Essays in the
History of Nineteenth-Century American Expansion (Lexington Books, Rowman
& Littlefield Publishers). On the surface, the book chronicles a number of
fascinating people either native to or associated with Maine who played
major roles in the religious, cultural, political and economic absorption
of a Polynesian culture into an Americanized, western culture. They were
missionaries, sugar barons, diplomats, presidents and lesser public
officials. For better or worse, many were visionaries.

Burlin, professor of history, says "the book is not really about Maine or
Hawaii, but about what they and their connections might suggest about the
United States as an imperial power."

[IMAGE]Imperial Maine and Hawai'i Maine People The book is filled with
Maine people, however, some famous and some obscure.

Harold Marsh Sewell of Bath and Sanford Ballard Dole, whose family roots
lay in the Kennebec River towns of Hallowell, Gardiner and Skowhegan are
leading characters. They appear in the book's cover photograph taken at
the 'Iolani Palace (the former palace of the deposed Hawaiian monarchy) on
August 12, 1898 at the annexation ceremony of Hawaii by the United States
of America. Sewall was the American minister to the "conquered"
archipelago and Dole was Hawaii's first and only president. Dole^Òs
parents had originally come to the Hawaiian islands as missionaries nearly
60 years before.

Other Maine characters who played key roles include Elisha Hunt Allen of
Bangor (state legislator, U.S. Congressman), Elias Bond of Hallowell
(missionary), James G. Blaine of Augusta (U.S. Congressman and Senator,
Secretary of State and presidential candidate) and John L. Stevens of Mt.
Vernon and Augusta (Minister to the Kingdom of Hawaii). "True believers,"
"pious merchants" "True believers" and "pious merchants," who believed
they could be good capitalists and good Christians, teamed up to bring the
glory of God hand-in-hand with all the "superior" accoutrements of modern,
Western culture and civilization. In the end, Burlin believes, everyone
lost.

He says the impetus for the book was his experience in the Peace Corps,
when he spent two years on the island of Yap in Micronesia. "I went into
the Peace Corps with the best intentions," he relates, "and unwittingly
participated in the undermining of a culture."

The epiphany that set him to writing occurred when he was doing research
in Hawaii. It was a lovely Sunday morning, and Burlin walked up the Manoa
Valley on Oahu to get a cup of coffee at Starbucks, right next to a
Congregationalist Church.

"I looked in the church," Burlin remembers, "and it was barely full. Of
course, Starbucks was packed! A Hawaiian politician was going through the
place shaking hands and I suddenly realized that both peoples lost here.
The native Hawaiians lost almost everything. But the missionaries had lost
too, because the modern world is nothing they envisioned or hoped for. And
in some ways it's morally diminished world. That's kind of the big,
background issue in the book."

Paradise lost, then recreated, barely recognizable to its native
inhabitants, by an alien, imposing culture.

While American imperialism in the 19th century, as illuminated by a host
of fascinating Maine characters, is the book's complex subject matter,
Burlin's personal motive for writing the book was simple: "I was trying to
make sense of my own experience," he says. Paul Burlin Professor Burlin^Òs
specialty is 19th-century American diplomatic history. In addition to
Imperial Maine and Hawai'i, he has published a number of articles in this
field. He also has an interest in the perceptions and insights
^Óforeigners^Ô have about U.S. history, culture and society, particularly
Brazilian observations about the United States. In addition, he has an
interest in questions dealing with contemporary American culture. He
received an A.B. in philosophy from Heidelberg College and his Ph.D. in
American history from Rutgers University.

(Press release issued June 12, 2006)
----------------------------------------------------------------------

50. Look what i found.....Hummm
From: Pono Kealoha Jr.
Sent: Tuesday, January 29, 2008 8:54 PM

wow Never know what u find online :)

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b83/ponosize/Bannerz/Sucker2.jpg

alwayz aloha ,
Pono
________________________________________________________________________________

51. annexation that never was -- check out great website!
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:35:51 -1000
From: 'imiola young <imiola@hawaii.rr.com>

The Annexation That Never Was
Transcript from the video We Are Who We Were
produced by the Hawaiian Patriotic League and Na Maka o ka ^ÑAina, 1998
excerpted in television broadcast Aloha Quest
produced by Aloha First and Na Maka o ka ^ÑAina, 1999

Immediately following a treasonous attempt to overthrow Queen
Lili^Òuokalani in January of 1893, enemies of the Kingdom, now calling
themselves the Provisional Government, departed for Washington, D.C. to
sign a treaty of annexation with the United States. Their sole intention
was to achieve annexation at any cost.

However, before the United States senate could ratify the proposed treaty,
newly elected President Grover Cleveland, confronted with the facts of the
overthrow, withdrew the treaty from further consideration and vowed never
to allow the treaty of annexation to be resubmitted.

Having failed at this first attempt to obtain a treaty of annexation with
the United States, the Provisional Government on July 4, 1894, declared
itself to be the Republic of Hawai^Òi, and maintained its opposition to
the restoration of the Hawaiian Kingdom government as called for by
President Cleveland.

On June 16, 1897, with Grover Cleveland now out of office, a second effort
to annex the Hawaiian Islands to the United States was attempted. A treaty
was signed in Washington, D.C. between representatives of the
self-proclaimed Republic of Hawai^Òi and the newly elected president of
the United States, William McKinley.

The following day in Washington, Her Majesty Queen Lili^Òuokalani
submitted a formal letter of protest to President McKinley, asserting that
this proposed treaty of annexation violated the existing Treaty of 1850
between the Hawaiian Kingdom and the United States.

Because said treaty ignores^Åall professions of perpetual
amity and good faith made by the United States in former
treaties^Åit is thereby in violation of international
law^ÅTherefore, I, Lili^Òuokalani of Hawai^Òi, do hereby call
upon the President^Åto withdraw said treaty^Åfrom further
consideration. I ask the honorable Senate of the United
States to decline to ratify said treaty.

Queen Lili^Òuokalani to President William McKinley
June 17, 1897

Word of what had transpired in Washington soon reached the islands.
Anticipating that the US Senate would reconvene in December to consider
this second attempt at annexation, an aggressive campaign was initiated,
intending to fortify the Queen's second letter of protest.

On September 6, 1897, James Kaulia, President of the Hui Aloha ^ÑAina (the
Hawaiian Patriotic League), gave a stirring speech before thousands at
Palace Square in Honolulu. He said agreeing to annexation was like
agreeing to being buried alive. He asserted that a mass refusal by the
people could prevent annexation.

Let us take up the honorable struggle. Do not be afraid. Be
steadfast in aloha for your land and be united in thought.
Protest forever the annexation of Hawai^Ñi until the very
last patriot lives.

James Kaulia
Hui Aloha ^ÑAina

A petition to the President, Congress and People of the United States,
otherwise known as the monster petition, was read and approved at this
rally, asking that no further steps be taken toward the ratification of
the treaty.

The men and women of the Hui Aloha ^ÑAina, through the efforts of many
loyal and dedicated Hawaiian subjects, launched a full scale petition
drive that lasted approximately two months. They went from island to
island, from shore to shore, leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to
document opposition to the proposed treaty. The petition was printed in
both English and Hawaiian.

We, the undersigned, native Hawaiian subjects and residents
who are members of the Hawaiian Patriotic League of the
Hawaiian Islands, and other citizens who are in sympathy with
the league, earnestly protest against the annexation of the
Hawaiian Islands to the United States of America in any form
or shape.

Ku^Òe: The Hui Aloha ^ÑAina Anti-Annexation Petitions,
1897-1898

But expansionists in the United States Congress, led by Senator Morgan,
would not let the dream of annexation die. Within days, they devised a
plan to bypass the requirements of their own constitution in an effort to
annex Hawai'i.

The Hawai^Ñi annexation treaty lags in the Senate. The number
of votes needed will not come forth. The advocates of the
scheme are now preparing to resort to a joint resolution,
which may be put through by a simple majority in each house
of Congress.

^ÓAnnexing Hawaii by Joint Resolution^Ô
Harper's Weekly
Feb. 26, 1898

In other words, if congress should strictly obey the
constitution, annexation could not take place.

^ÓSeizure by Resolution^Ô
Harper's Weekly
July 2, 1898

In March of 1898 they introduced Joint Resolution no. 55 to provide for
annexing the Hawaiian Islands to the United States. The Joint Resolution,
otherwise known as the Newlands Resolution, was then passed by a simple
majority in each house of Congress and signed by President McKinley on
July 7, 1898.

Read a legal analysis by the U.S. Department of Justice regarding the
purported annexation of Hawai^Òi.

This was the document presented by US Minister Harold Sewall to Sanford
Dole at the annexation ceremony in August of 1898. Dole responded, "I now
yield up to you, representing the government of the United States, the
sovereignty and the public property of the Hawaiian islands."

David Keanu Sai, Chairman, Council of Regency, Hawaiian Kingdom: Now the
problem here is, a joint resolution is not a treaty. A joint resolution is
a congressional act. A congressional act of the United States can only
affect American territory.

All we have is an assumption that we were annexed. And now we're finding
out that never occurred. We thought we were American. We thought this was
America. But nothing has changed. We're still a Kingdom whether we like it
or not. All we have today, between 1898 up until the present, is American
laws purporting to affect a foreign country. The Hawaiian Kingdom never
ceased to exist.

Today nothing has legally changed since January 17, 1893. The laws that
existed at that time, the treaties that existed at that time, the
relationships with other countries that existed at that time, it's still
here today.

And what you have today between the United States and Hawai^Ñi is not an
issue of native rights. It is an issue of international rights and
international law and violation of treaty. Those are the issues that are
going to be determined, not the internal or domestic affairs of our
country. That is our responsibility, not the United States.

^ÑIolani Palace
August 12, 1998
raising the Hawaiian Kingdom flag

Ali^Òi ^ÑAimoku Ali^Òi Sir Paul Neves, Royal Order of Kamehameha: And this
is where Sanford Dole turned over our Hawai^Ñi, our nation, to the United
States, through the exchange of treasonous documents with the United
States minister, Harold Sewall.

When Dole handed his document to the minister, he proclaimed that a treaty
had been made. But we know now that no treaty of annexation was made
between Hawai^Ñi and the United States of America, in large part because
of the massive opposition of the Hawaiian people through the
anti-annexation petitions, the treaty of annexation failed to pass the
United States Senate.

But Mr. Dole and his friends tried to make the exchange look legitimate.
Minister Sewall handed Dole a copy of a Joint Resolution of the United
States Congress. Under the laws of the United States of America in its own
constitution, a joint resolution is not a legal way to annex another
country.

Earlier that week, the Hawaiian people, the Kanaka Maoli, through their
political organizations, the Hui Aloha ^ÑAina and the Hui Kalai^ÒAina, had
sent a formal protest to both Dole and United States Minister Sewall. That
protest said in part:

Ua ho^Òike maopopo a^Òe ke Kuahaua o ke Ku^Òoko^Òa Amelika....

The Declaration of American independence expresses that governments derive
their just powers from the consent of the governed. Therefore, be it
resolved that, as the representatives of a large and influential body of
native Hawaiians,

Ke ku^Òe aku nei makou...

we solemnly protest against annexation in the manner proposed which fails
to obtain the consent of the people of the Hawaiian islands.

...o ka lahui kanaka o ko Hawai^Ñi pae ^Òaina nei.

Protest filed with U.S. Minister Harold Sewall on August 6, 1898, by the
Hawaiian Patriotic League (Hui Aloha ^ÑAina) and the Hawaiian Political
Association (Hui Kalai^Òaina) against the Joint Resolution purporting to
annex the Hawaiian Islands

Ali^Òi ^ÑAimoku Ali^Òi Sir Paul Neves, Royal Order of Kamehameha: The men
on the platform here one hundred years ago today ignored the voice of the
people which Queen Lili^Òuokalani believed was the voice of God.

The Hawaiian patriotic leagues organized a formal boycott of these
ceremonies August 12, 1898. Queen Lili^Òuokalani remained at Washington
Place surrounded by family and friends.

When at noon, ka hae aloha, our beloved national flag was lowered and the
United States flag raised, Hawaiian members of the government band put
down their instruments and walked away. They refused to play Hawai^Òi
Pono^Ñi on such a treasonous occasion.

Today, ka hae Hawai^Òi, our beloved national flag, will be raised to its
position of honor a hundred years ago by a group of united hands from our
community.

Please join symbolically in the raising of the national flag of the
Hawaiian Kingdom. My brothers and sisters, may our hearts, our strength
and our unity rise with our Hawaiian flag. God save the nation.
: : :

See also:
websites

^Õ The 1897 Petitions Protesting Annexation by Noenoe K.
Silva
^Õ Hawaiian Kingdom
^Õ Hawaiian Kingdom Presentation to the Permanent Court of
Arbitration ^Ö The Hague
^Õ Hawaiian Society of Law and Politics
^Õ Hawai^Òi Nation
^Õ Hawaiian Independence Blog
^Õ Perspectives on Hawaiian Sovereignty
^Õ ^ÑIlio^Òulaokalani
^Õ Sovereign Stories ^Ö online resources
^Õ People and Places connected with the Annexation of
Hawai^Òi

books

^Õ bibliography, University of Hawai^Òi library, Hawai^Òi
Pacific Section
^Õ Hawai^Òi^Òs Story by Hawai^Òi^Òs Queen
^Õ Aloha Betrayed ^Ö Native Hawaiian Resistance to American
Colonialism by Noenoe Silva

videos/DVDs

^Õ Nation Within: The Story of America's Annexation of the
Nation of Hawai'i by Tom Coffman (video and book)
^Õ Then There Were None by Dr. Elizabeth Kapu'uwailani
Lindsey
^Õ We Are Who We Were
^Õ Act of War ^Ö The Overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation
^Õ Aloha Quest ^Ö Part 1
^Õ Scenes from the Centennial
^Õ The Tribunal
^Õ July 4th at the Palace

| P.O. Box 29 Na'alehu Hawai'i 96772-0029 | Ph: (808) 929-9659 | Fax:
(808) 929-9659 (call first) | | Website: Still Point Press
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

52. i ka 'olelo no ke ola -- 9 pages
Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:41:02 -1000
From: 'imiola young <imiola@hawaii.rr.com>

http://www.ed.psu.edu/ICIK/2004Proceedings/section4-silva-basham.pdf

(9
pages)

I Ka ^ÑOlelo No Ke Ola: Understanding Indigenous Hawaiian
History and Politics Through Hawaiian Language Sources
Noenoe K. Silva and J. Leilani Basham
Department of Political Science and Department of Hawaiian Language
Manoa
Honolulu, HI 96822
E-mail noenoe@hawaii.edu and jbasham@hawaii.edu

Ua lehulehu a manomano ka ^Ñikena a ka Hawai^?i.
The knowledge of the Hawaiians is myriad and great.
(traditional saying)

United States colonialism in Hawai^Òi resulted in several generations of
Native Hawaiians being schooled in English, unable to speak the mother
tongue of their ancestors. It has also meant that the study of the
history, politics, and anthropology (among others) of Hawai^Òi has been
conducted almost exclusively in English, ignoring the wealth of source
material available in Hawaiian. More than seventy-five newspapers in the
Hawaiian language are preserved on microfilm, ranging in date from 1834 to
1948. In these papers, Hawaiians wrote their own histories, literature,
political opinions and analyses, as well as poetry and religious thought.
The language revitalization movement of the past twenty-five years has
created a new generation of scholars now able to read the writing of their
ancestors. In this paper, we will present examples of how Hawaiian history
looks from indigenous Hawaiian points of view. These include how the myth
of Hawaiian non-resistance to colonialism was exploded by the recovery of
the history of the organized political resistance of the 1890s and a new
understanding of the role of political songs in the same resistance
movement. Many more examples abound, and in our individual and
collaborative work we continue to research and publish these.1 The
importance of such indigenous views of the past to students of every age
and level would be difficult to overestimate, as they finally are able to
see their ancestors (and, thus, themselves) in history. This paper should
be of interest and value to other indigenous scholars engaged in
recovering their own histories.

[write imiola for Part 2, PDF ]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

53. NY TIMES: Beyond the Stimulus Package - from Suddenly Senior
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 07:36:57 -1000
From: pilipo souza <pilipohale@hawaii.rr.com>

Aloha kakou,

Economics 101 : Manuela Boy
Manuela Boy, my dear boy, you no more hilahila,
No mo five cents, you no mo house, you go Aala Park hiamoe.

Papa work in the taro patch, momma mix the poi,
Sista go with the haole boy, she come home any ole time.

Another application of voodoo economics and we are the doll. Some squeal
oooh!, and some ooch!
Making sugar out of shit!
BOHICA you! Hold still !

pilipo

----- Original Message ----- From: Frank Kaiser
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 6:19 AM

January 27, 2008
EDITORIAL
NY TIMES
Beyond the Stimulus Package

All the talk in Washington in the last few days about the $150 billion
economic stimulus plan agreed to by the White House and the House obscures
a vitally important and very worrisome fact.

The current slowdown is layered on top of deep-rooted economic problems
that are not addressed by a stimulus package. If the nation's leaders do
not start showing the political will to do more than dole out popular tax
breaks during an election year, short-term fixes could actually make the
long-term problems worse.

In the plan agreed to Thursday, the administration's worst ideas,
including a push to deny tax rebates to lower-income Americans, were
ditched. Money will reach many of the cash-strapped people most likely to
spend it.

Unfortunately, bolstered spending for unemployment benefits and food
stamps was also omitted from the plan, in favor of granting businesses
outsized tax writeoffs for new investments. That is a blunder because
direct relief spending is a more powerful stimulus than business tax
breaks, and is better aimed at the neediest. Worse, short-shrifting the
jobless and the poor now virtually guarantees that if the economy
continues to deteriorate, policy makers will be forced to provide more
relief later, driving up the total cost of the stimulus.

Therein lies the bigger problem. Coming to the rescue -- whether handing
out money or extending jobless benefits -- is the easiest thing for any
politician to do. The real art and skill of fiscal stimulus is to boost
the economy as much as possible in the near term without weakening its
long-term prospects.

A package that creates the potential need for continued relief down the
line sets the stage for long-term budget problems, not for a healthy
recovery.

Stimulus is necessary. But the flip side of fiscal stimulus is fiscal
tightening. The economic crises of the moment are built on seven years of
Bush-era tax-cut-and-spend policies, which made for worsening budget
prospects even before the current slowdown.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, if the nation keeps on the
path it is on, federal debt will exceed the size of the economy in the
lifetimes of many people reading this editorial, and certainly within
their children's lifetimes. Approaching a debt load that large would slam
the brakes on economic activity, making today's slowdown look benign. How
lawmakers -- and candidates -- act and communicate now will send a signal
of their ability to see us not only through the current turmoil but to a
more stable future. So far, the signals are about how much they want to
dole out.

To be effective leaders, politicians also need to explain that stimulus --
which promotes spending -- is the opposite of what is needed long term.
Going forward, the nation must increase savings, not consumption. That
will be painful.

Higher private savings requires delayed gratification by individuals.
Higher government savings requires higher taxes or reduced government
benefits, or a combination of both. Yet, savings, which have been
neglected as a policy imperative throughout the Bush years, are the only
means of ultimately digging out of the hole the nation is in already, even
before the extent of the slowdown is known.

Our immediate problem -- how to best use stimulus to buoy spending -- is
the easy part.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

54. Hana Fresh
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 08:55:59 -1000
From: mike reitz <mreitz@pacbell.net>

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Cheryl Vasconcellos prepares Hana Fresh produce for sale at the
Kapiolani Community College Farmers Market. The company offers
subscription boxes for pick up on the first Saturday of each month,
allowing customers access to its organic produce.

Hana Fresh off the farm
A hardworking crew gets produce from the Maui nonprofit to Honolulu in
pristine condition

STORY SUMMARY >>
By Joleen Oshiro
joshiro@starbulletin.com

Everything looks picture perfect at the Hana Fresh organic produce booth
at Kapiolani Community Colleges Saturday Farmers Market: Several workers,
in forest-green Ts bearing the Hana Fresh logo, wear bright smiles as they
chat with customers perusing pristine fruits and veggies.

When a customer cant decide among three varieties of cucumbers, a staffer
cuts her slices of each and talks about the distinct qualities of the
varieties, even suggesting recipes. Another customer arrives to pick up
his monthly preordered "subscription box" of produce, which features about
a dozen varieties of restaurant-quality fruits, vegetables and herbs.

In the meantime, the crowd has grown three rows deep in the small booth,
but the Hana Fresh folks seem unruffled. As they package bunches of kale
and hand them to customers -- with a friendly goodbye -- one cant help but
notice that even the twist ties bundling the greens bear the Hana Fresh
name.

All that coordination and neighborliness make the operation look easy.

Looks, however, are deceptive.

To open at KCC by 7:30 a.m. Saturday, Hana Fresh began picking and packing
its produce 24 hours prior -- late enough to ensure maximum freshness, yet
early enough to allow for thorough inspection, cleaning, bunching and
packing.

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
A variety of citrus and solo papayas are for sale.

The operation is a small one. Twelve hired hands farm 6 acres of land,
plus theres the brainpower -- and sweat -- of lead staff like Cheryl
Vasconcellos, executive director of the nonprofit operation, and its
precursor, Hana Health, which runs a community health center.

Vasconcellos worked from sun up to way past sun down, alongside the
farmers, harvesting and then picking through the crops for the best of the
best pieces for the trip to Honolulu.

Saturday morning, before sunrise, there was more picking and packing
before Vasconcellos and several others boarded the Superferry, boxes of
produce and a refrigerated van in tow.

The long, but not atypical, day is representative of the rigorous,
ambitious journey Vasconcellos and her staff took to address the health
needs of an isolated community and, through the farm, to support the
economy and lifestyle.

"We have a huge agenda, and we stay very focused," Vasconcellos says. "We
put our whole soul into this."

Organic boxes
Produce subscription boxes are available from:

>> Hana Fresh: Monthly boxes are $25 for medium (seasonal veggies and
three herbs) and $35 for large (seasonal fruit, veggies and three
herbs), with a commitment of three months. Sign up and pick up boxes at
the Kapiolani Community College Farmers Market on the first Saturday of
the month. Visit www.hanahealth.org.

>> Just Add Water: Weekly boxes ($20) include fruits and vegetables,
vegetables only, fruit only, gourmet produce, salad boxes ($15),
family-sized boxes ($30) and eggs ($4 to $7). First box includes an
additional $5 processing fee. Boxes dropped off at various locations
islandwide. Call Kim, 259-5635.
>> Mao Organic Farms: Plans to offer boxes in four months. Call
696-5569.
>> Also: Order produce from conventional and organic farms through Fresh
From the Farm, an online service, farmfreshhawaii.org.

FULL STORY >>

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Cheryl Vasconcellos loads boxes of Hana Fresh produce to be sold at the
Kapiolani Community College Farmers Market.

By Joleen Oshiro
joshiro@starbulletin.com

While hapa-haole tunes may have romanticized Hana as "a place thats
heavenly," theres been more to the remote Maui town, and it hasnt all been
idyllic.

In 1997, when the Hana Community Health Center was transformed into Hana
Health, a community-based nonprofit organization, Hanas medical center was
on the verge of closure. It was a dark time for a community that bore some
of the worst socio-economic health issues in the state.

While more Native Hawaiians reside in Hana than in any other place in the
state besides Niihau, the isolated area has been federally designated as
underserved in medical, mental health and dental services.

In response, Hana Health began a holistic approach, offering standard care
along with acupuncture and lomilomi, house calls and kupuna care programs
with services like housekeeping, meal delivery and transportation.

Hana Health also developed nutrition programs based on the traditional
Hawaiian diet -- "viewing food as a source of wellness," says Cheryl
Vasconcellos, executive director. While that hardly seems a big deal, it
surely was one in Hana, where access to fruits and vegetables was limited
by its remote location. Hana Health staffers solved the supply problem
directly: They began growing their own food.

A garden provided fresh organic produce for open markets, several healthy
lunches and dinners weekly for kupuna and a salad bar once a week at Hana
Intermediate and High School.

From that point, the staff and board of directors decided to take their
gardening to the next level, and a new chapter for the community began.

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Some of the harvest for sale includes Pink Eureka lemons ...

HANA HEALTH sits on 12 acres of land, most of which was lava rock and
"totally wooded, overgrown forest" four years ago.

"We had the land assessed for farming, and it was one of the worst levels
it could be," says Vasconcellos with a laugh. "But then we thought,
Hawaiians used to farm here, and we can do it, too."

Since 2004, six acres -- all the usable land -- have been cleared,
cultivated and transformed into Hana Fresh, an operation that grows
organic gourmet produce, from heirloom lettuce, baby bok choi and herbs,
to Tahitian lime, orange lilikoi and starfruit. Beyond supplying the
immediate community, Hana Fresh sells at retail outlets statewide, the
Kapiolani Community College Farmers Market, and to individuals in
preordered monthly subscription boxes. It also supplies many fine
restaurants around the state.

The farm also serves as employer to 12 Hana residents, whom Vasconcellos
both works alongside and manages.

"Farming is hard work," she says flatly. "There are no slackers here,
thats for sure."

The farmers are another manifestation of the large-scale mission: to
create employment.

"To improve health, youve got to improve the economic status of people,"
Vasconcellos says. "A number of our employees are recovering substance
abusers. After (undergoing) a treatment program, they need to make
lifestyle changes, and being on the farm makes a big difference. Some have
been clean three and four years."

Hana Fresh was launched with a three-year federal grant that covered
training and market research, clearing the land, buying equipment, trucks
and a refrigerated van, and supplying operating expenses.

All the while, the farming team has struggled for success amid the
challenges of their learning curve and the unpredictability of Mother
Nature.

"Were always tweaking," says Vasconcellos. "Were shooting to triple
production next year, and a real problem, for instance, is that one crop
we want is tomatoes. Theres a big demand for good tomatoes in this state.
Weve been practicing for a year, but we still dont have a good crop. Rain,
fruit flies and mildew (have been a problem), so we got a greenhouse. But
theres still mildew and poor growth. Because we want organic tomatoes, its
really a challenge. ...

"We can project our crops, but one big storm could wipe us out," she
continues. "The best-laid plans depend on Mother Nature."

Then theres the financial challenge of distribution, a universal woe among
neighbor island farmers.

Juanita Kawamoto of Fresh From the Farm, a "virtual reality farmers
market," says bringing produce to Honolulu accounts for 30 percent of most
farmers prices.

"Most of Hawaiis farms are located on neighbor islands," says Kawamoto.
"We produce enough locally to feed the state, but we cant get the stuff
over here, where the population is, at a reasonable rate."

An additional hurdle is competition from abroad: Imported produce from
countries such as Mexico, Chile and Thailand benefit from international
treaties that allow them to send produce to Hawaii at less cost than
neighbor island farmers contend with interisland.

CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
... and a variety of baby carrots.

DESPITE the grim outlook, Hana Fresh has joined a growing industry. The
Hawaii Organic Farmers Association says organic farms are increasing by 20
percent a year.

"The market is HUGE," Vasconcellos says. "Were not coming close to even
meeting demand."

Subscription boxes are a way Hana Fresh meets demand while holding down
costs, she says. "With gas prices, it costs $75 just to get from Hana to
Kahului. To get to Honolulu, it can be as much as $500."

Delivering boxes that have been pre-ordered means Vasconcellos doesnt have
to guess how much to bring to Honolulu each month.

Deborah Ward at the Organic Farmers Association says subscription boxes
are a niche that organic farmers can fill.

"Most organic farms are small farms, so the subscription boxes are a good
way to approach the market," Ward says.

AT Hana Fresh, the two-year projection is to become a self-sustaining
business that will secure the employment of its dozen farmers.

The goal may seem optimistic, but Vasconcellos and staff have the track
record to back their expectations. Remember: In 11 years, theyve taken a
health center in shambles and turned it into a place thats successfully
addressing the health, economic and lifestyle needs of an underserved
community.

Hana Health and Hana Fresh seem invigorating operations, if only for their
audacious ambitions -- "to improve the health, welfare and economic
development of our community so people in Hana can continue to live here
and care for their families and earn a good living without changing our
rural lifestyle," Vasconcellos says.

"Were doing what other communities are just talking about."
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~----------------

55. Object to HB 2863
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:29:39 -0800 (PST)
From: Kekahuna Keaweiwi <kekahunakeaweiwi@yahoo.com>

January 30, 2008
To: HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008 STATE OF HAWAII

From: Foster Ampong
Island of Maui
Email: kekahunakeaweiwi@yahoo.com
Phone Contact: (808) 281-3894

Subject: House Bill No. 2863
RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY.

Re: Objection to House Bill No.2863

Aloha Ka Kou,

As a supporter and proponent of ^ÓSustainable Living^Ô I must bring to
your attention discrepancies within the language of House Bill 2863 which
if passed into law, shall not have the practical components necessary ^Óto
protect public health, safety and promote the general welfare^Ô of our
island communities.

With all due respect and aloha to HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, TWENTY-FOURTH
LEGISLATURE, 2008 STATE OF HAWAII I demand House Bill 2863, relating to
RENEWABLE ENERGY be rejected on the basis of the following analysis and
facts;

1. HB 2863
(http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2008/Bills/HB2863_.pdf), Page 10,
Line 1-21, Page 11, Line 1-16 as follows

Page 10 H.B. NO. 2863
(c) Within forty-five days of receipt of the
2 recommendation from the coordinator, each relevant county agency
3 may approve the county permit under its jurisdiction with the
4 terms and conditions recommended by the coordinator or amended
5 by the county agency. The county agency may charge the
6 applicant a fee for reviewing and acting on the permit.
7 ( d) If, within forty-five days of receipt of a
8 recommendation from the coordinator, a county agency does not
9 approve the permit, either because of rejection or inaction, the
10 permit with the terms and conditions recommended by the
11 coordinator shall be deemed approved on the forty-sixth day
12 without necessity of further action by the county agency or
13 coordinator.
14 (e) If, within the forty-five-day period, the county
15 agency approves the permit, but with amendments to any of the
16 terms and conditions recommended by the coordinator, the county
17 agency shall notify the coordinator within three days of the
18 approval. If the notification is not provided to the
19 coordinator within the three-day period, the county agency shall
20 be deemed to have not approved the permit within the forty-five-
21 day period, and the permit shall be deemed approved with the
HB LRB 08-0527-2.doc
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
111111111111111111111111111
11)
Page 11 H.B. NO. 2863
1 recommended terms and conditions in accordance with subsection
2 (d) .
3 The coordinator shall have ten days after receipt of the
4 notification from the county agency to determine whether to
5 accept or reject the amended terms and conditions of the county
6 permit. If the coordinator accepts all amended terms and
7 conditions, the coordinator shall approve the county permit with
8 the amended terms and conditions. If the coordinator rejects
9 all or some of the amended terms and conditions, the coordinator
10 shall approve the county permit with terms and conditions that
11 exclude the rejected amendments. The coordinator shall issue
12 the decision in writing. If the coordinator does not issue a
13 written decision within the ten-day period, the county permit
14 with terms and conditions as amended by the county agency shall
15 be deemed approved on the eleventh day without necessity of
16 further action by the county agency or coordinator.

^Ålacks independent oversight and accountability. It grants an ^Óautomatic
approval^Ô of the ^ÓAPPLICANTS PERMIT^Ô

For the sake of clarity, I shall summarize the facts and point of my
objection of HB 2863;

2. The forty-five day period allowed to the County Agencies upon receipt
of the permit from the ^ÓCoordinator, whereupon if there is no decision
and/or inaction on the part of the County Agencies (i.e. Count Council) at
the end of this period, the permit is ^Óautomatically^Ò approved .

This strongly appears to be not only a conflict of principle in terms of
any such ^ÓSustainable^Ô Living and/or Concept, such as Ahupua`a seen
presently in Marketing Plans, Recommendations and Drafts (Hawaii
Sustainability 2050 Task Force, Kahului Harbor 2030 Master Plan/Expansion,
Maui General Planning Advisory Committee, etc.) currently being
promoted/proposed by Corporate Business and County/State Government, it
circumvents public confidents and independent oversight; there is no
substance or integrity to ^Óprotect public health, safety and promote the
general welfare^Ô of our island communities.

It makes no practical or ethical sense to have the permits ^Ôautomatically
approved ^Ó because of ^Óinaction^Ô; or be subject to the sole decision of
the ^ÓCoordinator^Ô without some type of ^Ócheck & balance^Ò within the
entire process, especially at the end of the forty-five day period.

If there is ^Óinaction^Ò on the part of any Sate and/or County Agency, and
the forty-five day period has expired, than the Applicants Permit should
be disapproved/denied.

It seems only logical and reasonable the burden should be on the Applicant
and not on the People throughout our island community. The ^Óautomatic
approval^Ô at the end of the forty-five day period is in essence and with
the language of this bill burdensome to the People

CAVEAT: Point of Fact. The recent, Hawaii Super Ferry Fiasco, which all
of you are familiar with is evidence enough to substantiate and rightfully
justify any objection to HB 2863.

The bottom line should be HB 2863 should not be passed in its present
form. The language gives Corporate Business and Government ^Óapproval^Ô
guarantees, while The People and Communities are only given promises, and
no guarantees.

Please, stop all this madness.

Living Being in the HuMan function with the attached name
Foster Robin Ampong
________________________________________________________________________________

56. Island Food Security News: Let 'em Eat Dirt
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:03:41 -1000
From: mike reitz <mreitz@pacbell.net>

Rising costs force Haiti's poor to resort to eating dirt

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - It was lunchtime in one of Haiti's worst
slums, and Charlene Dumas was eating mud.

With food prices rising, Haiti's poorest can't afford even a daily plate
of rice, and some take desperate measures to fill their bellies.

Charlene, 16 with a 1-month-old son, has come to rely on a traditional
Haitian remedy for hunger pangs: cookies made of dried yellow dirt from
the country's central plateau.

The mud has long been prized by pregnant women and children here as an
antacid and source of calcium. But in places like Cite Soleil, the
oceanside slum where Charlene shares a two-room house with her baby, five
siblings and two unemployed parents, cookies made of dirt, salt and
vegetable shortening have become a regular meal.

"When my mother does not cook anything, I have to eat them three times a
day," Charlene said. Her baby, named Woodson, lay still across her lap,
looking even thinner than the slim 6 pounds 3 ounces he weighed at birth.

Though she likes their buttery, salty taste, Charlene said the cookies
also give her stomach pains. "When I nurse, the baby sometimes seems
colicky too," she said.

Food prices around the world have spiked because of higher oil prices,
needed for fertilizer, irrigation and transportation. Prices for basic
ingredients such as corn and wheat are also up sharply, and the increasing
global demand for biofuels is pressuring food markets as well.

The problem is particularly dire in the Caribbean, where island nations
depend on imports and food prices are up 40 percent in places.

The global price hikes, together with floods and crop damage from the 2007
hurricane season, prompted the U.N. Food and Agriculture Agency to declare
states of emergency in Haiti and several other Caribbean countries.
Caribbean leaders held an emergency summit in December to discuss cutting
food taxes and creating large regional farms to reduce dependence on
imports.

At the market in the La Saline slum, two cups of rice now sell for 60
cents, up 10 cents from December and 50 percent from a year ago. Beans,
condensed milk and fruit have gone up at a similar rate, and even the
price of the edible clay has risen over the past year by almost $1.50.
Dirt to make 100 cookies now costs $5, the cookie makers say.

Still, at about 5 cents apiece, the cookies are a bargain compared to food
staples. About 80 percent of people in Haiti live on less than $2 a day
and a tiny elite controls the economy.

Merchants truck the dirt from the central town of Hinche to the La Saline
market, a maze of tables of vegetables and meat swarming with flies. Women
buy the dirt, then process it into mud cookies in places such as Fort
Dimanche, a nearby shanty town.

Carrying buckets of dirt and water up ladders to the roof of the former
prison for which the slum is named, they strain out rocks and clumps on a
sheet, and stir in shortening and salt. Then they pat the mixture into mud
cookies and leave them to dry under the scorching sun.

The finished cookies are carried in buckets to markets or sold on the
streets.

A reporter sampling a cookie found that it had a smooth consistency and
sucked all the moisture out of the mouth as soon as it touched the tongue.
For hours, an unpleasant taste of dirt lingered.

Assessments of the health effects are mixed. Dirt can contain deadly
parasites or toxins, but can also strengthen the immunity of fetuses in
the womb to certain diseases, said Gerald N. Callahan, an immunology
professor at Colorado State University who has studied geophagy, the
scientific name for dirt-eating.

Haitian doctors say depending on the cookies for sustenance risks
malnutrition.

"Trust me, if I see someone eating those cookies, I will discourage it,"
said Dr. Gabriel Thimothee, executive director of Haiti's health ministry.

Marie Noel, 40, sells the cookies in a market to provide for her seven
children. Her family also eats them.

"I'm hoping one day I'll have enough food to eat, so I can stop eating
these," she said. "I know it's not good for me."

(C) Associated Press reserves all rights.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~-----------------

57. excerpt from a review
Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:31:55 -1000
From: Lc <palolo@hawaii.rr.com>

more on the book: Reimagining the American Pacific: from South Pacific to
Bamboo Ridge

----- Original Message ----- From: Laurel Douglass
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 5:35 AM

book reviews
Reimagining the American Pacific: from South Pacific to Bamboo Ridge and.
beyond. By R. Wilson. Durham: Duke University Press. 2000. 295 pp.
US$18.95 paper. ... sagepub.com

This assertion of alliance with the local is one that has caused the most
consternation among some fellow island-dwelling-mainland-haoles that have
read Wilson^Òs book. Recently, when I was talking to a colleague^Òs
creative writing class, she told me the class had just finished reading
Reimagining the American Pacific and asked me what I thought of Wilson^Òs
claim that he was a local writer (a claim which I admit I do not really
see him making that explicitly). I said I could see both arguments. I
could see an argument that a haole should never suggest (even in a
question) that one could become local in an occupied land. And yet I also
saw a usefulness in the claim (provided it was a claim that was at the
same time anti-colonial - which Wilson^Òs is) as it suggests that the more
recent residents of Hawai^Òi have responsibilities to and are part of
Hawai^Òi^Òs bad history. At that moment I realized that I was willing in
this instance to read Wilson^Òs question positively. If there is any place
in the United States that the discourse of celebratory hybridity appears
most false, it is in Hawai^Òi where one can never forget that one lives in
stolen land and that the hybridity of Hawai^Òi has not necessarily been an
equal choice for everyone. (It is not that the rest of the U.S. is not
stolen; just that there aren^Òt as many reminders.)
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~-------------------

58. IIIIIt's Snowtime!
From: mike reitz
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 7:29 AM

COURTESY OF MARIA ISOTOV-CHANG
Snow was seen yesterday atop Haleakala.
Flocked isle mountains to get more snow
By Rod Thompson
rthompson@starbulletin.com

KAILUA-KONA » Hail rattled parts of Kona and a new blanket of snow covered
the summits of Hawaii's three tallest mountains yesterday, and soon the
first dusting began to melt off.

The Mauna Kea Weather Center forecast snow flurries and possibly heavy
snow today and into tomorrow night on the 13,796-foot mountain.

"It's ugly up there," said Gemini Observatory spokesman Peter Michaud in
Hilo after receiving a report from the mountain.

Caroline Maxwell, an interpretive guide at the Visitor Information Station
at Hale Pohaku, said hail and snow were falling at the 9,000-foot site
about 4 p.m. and she couldn't see the road from the building.

During the morning, near sea level in Kona, a brief but severe
thunderstorm moved southward, dropping hail up to the size of a penny on
the Kona Palisades subdivision just north of Kailua-Kona.

Palisades resident John Ellis had to run out into it to save his car from
damage by smaller pellets of ice ranging from pea-sized to the size of a
dime.

"It didn't feel so good when it bopped me on the head," he said.

The day started with a lot more beauty, partially clear skies revealing
extensive fields of snow down the sides of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, and
Haleakala on Maui.

COURTESY PHOTO
Snow dusted the summit of Haleakala National Park, seen here on Monday.

Haleakala National Park officials said snow reached much lower elevations
than normal, down to the 7,000-foot level in the general area where the
park headquarters is located.

The beauty proved to be only skin-deep. By late afternoon, park
Superintendent Marilyn Parris reported, "Most of the snow is gone."

But the park kept the road to the summit closed, because the same weather
pattern was expected today, Parris said.

On the Big Island, Ron Koehler, who is in charge of Mauna Kea Support
Services, said just a light dusting of snow will give the impression of
deeper coverage when seen from the lowlands. The snow at the summit was
only about an inch thick, the National Weather Service said.

The Mauna Kea summit road was closed in the morning, but reopened at noon.
Then a new wave of weather rolled in during the afternoon.

Mayor Harry Kim, back at his old job serving as acting head of county
Civil Defense, warned about danger. Hiker Brian Murphy, 67, of Michigan,
has been missing since being caught in a storm on the mountain Dec. 5.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~----------------

Gabrielle Welford, Ph.D.
freelance writer, editor, teacher
welford@hawaii.edu

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