November 4, 2007 No Talking Heads

Guest to include: Olivia Hart, TJ Johnson

(Don't forget to vote! Ballots must be in by Tuesday, November 6th!)

National
* Rep. Jones (R-NC) introduces bill to limit president's war powers, Sun Journal
* ABA: Freeze executions nationwide, CNN
* Tenn. Town Has Run Out of Water, AP
* The Dems' Mukasey Moment, Nov. 1, 2007, David Corn from Mother Jones

During his confirmation hearings, AG nominee Michael Mukasey came across as Alberto Gonzales-lite. When he comes up for a vote next week, will the Dems unite to block his nomination or will the party blow an opportunity?

* U.S. Official Is Faulted for Nuclear Weapons Claim; Experts Call 'Hair Trigger' Denial Misleading, Say Much of Arsenal Is Capable of Launch in Minutes, Washington Post via TJ
- will it take another incident, i.e, Bay of Pigs, that takes us the the brink of nuclear war to get people to work towards pressuring nations to de-commission their nuclear arsenal - or worse yet - will it take the use of a nuclear weapon?
- that our nuclear weapons are on hair-trigger alert and could be launched within minutes is a little hard to swallow considering how much time it took for operations to get underway to defend critical U.S. targets the morning of 9/11.

International
* Musharraf Imposes Emergency Rule; Suspends Pakistani Constitution, BBC via Common Dreams
* US Resisting Ban on Cluster Bombs, Inter Press Service via Common Dreams via TJ
* Rumsfeld Charged with Torture in French Court, One World via TJ via Common Dreams
* Indian ‘Slave’ Children Found Making Low-Cost Clothes Destined For Gap, The Guardian/UK via Common Dreams via TJ
- Merry Christmas!
* Ecuador wants military base in Miami, Reuters/UK
- TJ mentioned this one on last weeks show.
- Visit Josh Rushing's videos on youtube.com for a great series of investigatory pieces on the U.S. base in Ecuador - the videos are called "Shadow War"

October 28, 2007 No Talking Heads

Guests scheduled: TJ Johnson

Local

* Olympia School District Strategic Plan Committee - we talked about this during this show.

Ballot Review!
* Progressive Guide to Statewide Ballot Measures
* Olympian Endorsements, Olympian
* Seattle PI Endorsements, Seattle PI
* Tacoma News Tribune Endorsements, The News Tribune

Olympia Mayor Race
* Meta Hogan and Doug Mah Audio Chat, Olyblog.net
- nice effort but the audio of this piece SUCKS!

SHJR 4215 - Allow wider use of higher education funds in stock market.
* Legislature seeks stock option, Olympian

ESSJR 8206 - Constitutional Amendment for a 1% Rainy Day Fund.
* Washington Research Council Paper on ESSJR 8206

National
* Body Armor Execs Indicted For Fraud; CEO and COO of Supplier To Troops Allegedly Manipulated Records to Inflate Stock, Pocket $200M, CBS News
* White House ‘Eviscerated’ CDC Testimony Regarding Climate Change and Health, Associated Press
* Minot AFB Clandestine Nukes 'Oddities', Citizens for Legitimate Government

Aha! Linda called in about this story on our last show - I finally was able to uncover some of the details above. I haven't read each of the links to all the news stories but if some resourceful reader can take the time to do it and let me know what they discover, please post comments on this blog post!

California Fire Stories:
What does "California burning" have to do with climate change?
Is this another seminal event that is tipping us toward a mass consciousness of global climate change and not just consciousness but something that might push people to really start doing something?

* AFSC Activates Emergency Response for California Wild Fires; Crisis Funds Sought to Help Threatened Families, Especially Immigrant Workers, Common Dreams
* Another Way The Rich Are Different: ‘Concierge-Level’ Fire Protection, LA Times via Common Dreams

International
* Earth Is Reaching The Point of No Return, Says Major UN Environment Report, Times Online/UK via Common Dreams
* U.S. Discourages Turkey From Cross-Border Attack, Washington Post

How can the U.S. insist another country refrain from military action? They hold NO moral authority to do this! Do they seriously believe their efforts will be effective? Maybe we should have considered this when we decided to invade a sovereign nation, Iraq, back in 2003.

* Iraqi leaders may ask U.N. to restrict U.S. military, LA Times
* Uzbek journalist shot dead in Kyrgyzstan, Reuters

Iran
* New Steps by U.S. Against Iranians, NY Times - October 25, 2007
* The Secret History of the Impending War With Iran That the White House Doesn't Want You to Know, Esquire
* U.S. Plays Its ‘Unilateral’ Card on Iran Sanctions, NY Times - October 26, 2007
* The Iran Plans: Would President Bush go to war to stop Tehran from getting the bomb?, Seymour Hersh, New Yorker, April 17, 2006
* The Next Act: Is a damaged Administration less likely to attack Iran, or more?, Seymour Hersh, New Yorker, November 27, 2006
* The Redirection; Is the Administration’s new policy benefitting our enemies in the war on terrorism?, Seymour Hersh, New Yorker, March 5, 2007
* Shifting Targets; The Administration’s plan for Iran, Seymour Hersh, New Yorker, October 5, 2007

October 21, 2007 No Talking Heads

Guests on the show will be Olivia Hart and Geov Parrish

National
* An Assault on Media Diversity and Democracy, The Nation
     * Senators Seek to Delay FCC Vote; Chairman Wants to Change TV Ownership Rules by Year-End, AP via Washington Post
* 70 punished in accidental B-52 flight, AP via Olympian
* US demands air passengers ask its permission to fly, The Register, UK
* Retirement season hits GOP hard, LA Times

"So far in the GOP, five senators and 12 House members have announced they will retire. Among Democrats, no one in the Senate is retiring, and two have said they will leave the House -- to run for the Senate . . . Of the 12 seats opening, eight are ranked as potentially competitive by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report -- including five it identifies as tossups."

I personally think Republicans will go into private industry where they can make a killing on government contracts related to the war in Iraq.

* House Sustains President’s Veto on Child Health, NY Times

“It was an ambiguous victory,” said John J. Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College in California, “because Democrats may have lost on the legislation, but they won themselves a campaign issue.”

* Veteran stress cases up sharply; mental illness is now No. 2 injury, USA Today

"Mental health is the second-largest area of illness for which Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seek treatment at VA hospitals and clinics. It follows orthopedic problems and is increasing at a faster rate, the VA says . . . PTSD cases often surface long after troops leave combat. A VA study in 1988, 13 years after the last U.S. troops left Vietnam, showed that 31% of the 3.1 million male Vietnam veterans had PTSD at some point after their service."

* Senate and Bush Agree On Terms of Spying Bill; some Telecom Companies Would Receive Immunity, Washington Post

"The collapse marked the first time since Democrats took control of the chamber that a major bill was withdrawn from consideration before a scheduled vote. It was a victory for President Bush, whose aides lobbied heavily against the Democrats' bill, and an embarrassment for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who had pushed for the measure's passage. It will include full immunity for those companies that can demonstrate to a court that they acted pursuant to a legal directive in helping the government with surveillance in the United States. Such a demonstration, which the bill says could be made in secret, would wipe out a series of pending lawsuits alleging violations of privacy rights by telecommunications companies that provided telephone records, summaries of e-mail traffic and other information to the government after Sept. 11, 2001, without receiving court warrants. Bush had repeatedly threatened to veto any legislation that lacked this provision."

* Plan Would Ease Limits on Media Owners, NY Times

"But in recent days, Mr. Martin has proposed to expedite the rule-making and hold a final vote in December. In part, he has told commission officials, he was reacting to criticism by Mr. Copps about temporary waivers that have allowed companies to own newspapers and stations in the same market."

October 14, 2007 No Talking Heads

This show will be your last chance to pledge to KAOS during No Talking Heads! If you've enjoyed the show and would like to support community radio, please consider pledging during the show or online.

This week's show will feature a recording of Josh Rushing, captured Wednesday, September 26th at South Puget Sound Community College, right here in Olympia. Not only is Josh's story simply unbelievable, he's able to make the strong case for independent media - and the point is made that much stronger since he's a "Texas boy" who went into the military. Please listen this week.
- "Control Room" film Wiki entry.
- Mission Al Jazeera: Build a Bridge, Seek the Truth, Change the World by Josh Rushing

Also, here are some stories we're following:

* BHR workers state their case, Olympian
* Democrats Seem Ready to Extend Wiretap Powers, NY Times
* Iraqi Shooting Victim, Relatives Sue Blackwater, Washington Post

"Although a civil case such as this could take years to see a courtroom, it is the first attempt by family members of those killed in the attack to seek damages inside the United States. It mirrors a similar effort, underway since 2004, to sue contractors allegedly involved in abuse and torture at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, a case that could go forward in coming months. Judge Reggie B. Walton was assigned today to hear the Blackwater case."

* US Income Gap Widens, Richest Share Hits Record, Reuters

October 7, 2007 No Talking Heads

Guests will be TJ Johnson and Geov Parrish

From TJ:
* Report Says Firm Sought to Cover Up Iraq Shootings, NY Times
* Top Democrats propose war surtax, CNN
* Bush proclaims Child Health Day, vetoes Children's Health Insurance Program, Miami Herald
* Federal judge delays Watada trial; Lawyers call a 2nd court-martial double jeopardy, Seattle PI
* Van Schoorl target of complaint; conflict of interest by port candidate alleged, Olympian
* New-home development fee in Tumwater could become area's highest, Olympian
* $592 million U.S. embassy plagued with problems, McClatchy via Olympian

Local
* State court backs speech — true or not, Olympian via TJ
* Wildlife refuge cuts kids programs; Nisqually among those listed in 'at risk' report, Olympian via TJ

National
* U.S. Issues New Rules for Iraq Security Firms, NY Times
* techPresident - a new group blog that covers how the 2008 presidential candidates are using the web, and vice versa, how content generated by voters is affecting the campaign. Charts how many friends/contacts each candidate has in Facebook and Myspace and how they're trending. Thanks to Adam Wilson at the Olympian.
* Obama to propose abolishment of nuclear weapons, NY Times
* Bush Vetoes Child Health Bill Privately, NY Times