The Sept. 11 Records
A rich vein of city records from Sept. 11, including more than 12,000 pages of oral histories rendered in the voices of 503 firefighters, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians, were made public on Aug. 12.
The New York Times has published all of them.
The oral histories of dispatch transmissions are transcribed verbatim. They have not been edited to omit coarse language
It might be difficult for those whom don't belong to the New York Times Select to read these 'unedited' notes of interviews of the rescue workers but if a friend has a subscription to the NY Times it would be worth your time to read just a few of the journalists notes regarding interviews with these people. So far, I have read about ten of them. It paints a picture of that day that is really an untold story. It's unique. Only the New York Times, the home town paper there, could put together such a poignant record.
I can't imagine any other presentation on film that speaks to that day the way the unedited notes of the rescue workers did.
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Even tears are for sale at CNN
0959
Bigotry for the sake of politics by George H. W. Bush
Bush Sr. Condemns 'Ugly' Politics at King's Funeral, Defends Son
Posted on Feb. 10, 2006
Former President George H.W. Bush damns “political shots” taken at his son by former President Jimmy Carter and the Rev. Joseph Lowery during the Coretta Scott King funeral last week. Bush defends the administration’s domestic spying program, tritely invoking 9/11 as a blanket justification for trampling constitutional freedoms.
Story
Listen.
See our Uncovered file on MLK and John. W. Whitehead’s timely and important piece, "Spying on Martin Luther King." CBS
Former President George H.W. Bush has expressed dismay and anger at attacks on his son, President Bush, at the funeral for Coretta Scott King.
“In terms of the political shots at the president who was sitting there with his wife, I didn’t like it and I thought it was kind of ugly frankly,” the former president said in an exclusive radio interview with CBS News White House correspondent Peter Maer.
http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/20060210_bush_carter_king_funeral/
NOTHING IS MORE UGLY THAN A FORMER PRESIDENT THAT can't discern politics from the USA Constitution. He defends a son that has destroyed the Division of Civil rights, dismissed a 25 year employee and laughed the next day at the devastation and death in New Orleans. The Iron Triangle must be upheld above all else otherwise the Bush Dynasty will fall and so will the contracts with Carlyle to rule the world.
OH, yeah, Former Prez. About those nukes that China built and aimed at this country with American money channeled through Pakistan. How does Neil feel about that? Safer?
PLEASE !
CNN on 'Save the King Bush Mode' in the face of impeachment. The incredible realization it that pandering to the guilty is more Anti-American than any words they can utter.
So how many Christians dance on the head of a pin for Larry King Live to promote a president that needs impeachment?
Well, Michael W. Smith is crowned as savior by George H. W. Bush and Larry sells his soul for chance to televise it. And to think the souls of Flight 93 has to be brought back to life to save Son Georgie from Impeachment. Pulling out all the 'stops' for hope the people of the country can be deceived by 'good will' and 'trained Pavlov grieving and fear' that the Repuglicans still hold a corrupt majority in the House and Senate come November 2006.
You are all pathetic. You love your money and cronies more than you ever had loyalty to this country.
"The White House is not responding to Michael Brown stating they HAVE THEIR OWN report in the works." Jeanne Meserve, servant to the King. NO CLUE, Jeanne. Even tears are for sale at CNN. Those contracts must be an incredible tools for political fodder.
1009
Somehow walking around a home with mildew on the walls is a message that conveys something. I would think the better message would be a hammer in Anderson's hand rebuilding homes since people can't get into FEMA trailers. Or better yet, some real passion. A shovel over his shoulder after digging through the mud for still the unrecovered bodies of the dead.
Anderson 'revisits' every image possible to try to redefine the testimony by Brown and distract from the facts that Bush didn't care about the emergency.
1013
COMMERCIALS
1021
Vice President Cheney and The Fight Over "Inherent" Presidential Powers: His Attempt to Swing the Pendulum Back Began Long Before 9/11
By JOHN W. DEAN
Vice President Dick Cheney has stirred up an old fight in Washington. He sent a rookie, however, to make his case publicly. It did not work.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to offer what may have been the weakest legal argument for presidential power to conduct warrantless electronic surveillance since Nixon's Justice Department invoked the views of King George III.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060210.html
1022
Trent Lott suffered a loss. But not loss of life. Oh, insurance, of course.
Bigotry for the sake of politics by George H. W. Bush
Bush Sr. Condemns 'Ugly' Politics at King's Funeral, Defends Son
Posted on Feb. 10, 2006
Former President George H.W. Bush damns “political shots” taken at his son by former President Jimmy Carter and the Rev. Joseph Lowery during the Coretta Scott King funeral last week. Bush defends the administration’s domestic spying program, tritely invoking 9/11 as a blanket justification for trampling constitutional freedoms.
Story
Listen.
See our Uncovered file on MLK and John. W. Whitehead’s timely and important piece, "Spying on Martin Luther King." CBS
Former President George H.W. Bush has expressed dismay and anger at attacks on his son, President Bush, at the funeral for Coretta Scott King.
“In terms of the political shots at the president who was sitting there with his wife, I didn’t like it and I thought it was kind of ugly frankly,” the former president said in an exclusive radio interview with CBS News White House correspondent Peter Maer.
http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/20060210_bush_carter_king_funeral/
NOTHING IS MORE UGLY THAN A FORMER PRESIDENT THAT can't discern politics from the USA Constitution. He defends a son that has destroyed the Division of Civil rights, dismissed a 25 year employee and laughed the next day at the devastation and death in New Orleans. The Iron Triangle must be upheld above all else otherwise the Bush Dynasty will fall and so will the contracts with Carlyle to rule the world.
OH, yeah, Former Prez. About those nukes that China built and aimed at this country with American money channeled through Pakistan. How does Neil feel about that? Safer?
PLEASE !
CNN on 'Save the King Bush Mode' in the face of impeachment. The incredible realization it that pandering to the guilty is more Anti-American than any words they can utter.
So how many Christians dance on the head of a pin for Larry King Live to promote a president that needs impeachment?
Well, Michael W. Smith is crowned as savior by George H. W. Bush and Larry sells his soul for chance to televise it. And to think the souls of Flight 93 has to be brought back to life to save Son Georgie from Impeachment. Pulling out all the 'stops' for hope the people of the country can be deceived by 'good will' and 'trained Pavlov grieving and fear' that the Repuglicans still hold a corrupt majority in the House and Senate come November 2006.
You are all pathetic. You love your money and cronies more than you ever had loyalty to this country.
"The White House is not responding to Michael Brown stating they HAVE THEIR OWN report in the works." Jeanne Meserve, servant to the King. NO CLUE, Jeanne. Even tears are for sale at CNN. Those contracts must be an incredible tools for political fodder.
1009
Somehow walking around a home with mildew on the walls is a message that conveys something. I would think the better message would be a hammer in Anderson's hand rebuilding homes since people can't get into FEMA trailers. Or better yet, some real passion. A shovel over his shoulder after digging through the mud for still the unrecovered bodies of the dead.
Anderson 'revisits' every image possible to try to redefine the testimony by Brown and distract from the facts that Bush didn't care about the emergency.
1013
COMMERCIALS
1021
Vice President Cheney and The Fight Over "Inherent" Presidential Powers: His Attempt to Swing the Pendulum Back Began Long Before 9/11
By JOHN W. DEAN
Vice President Dick Cheney has stirred up an old fight in Washington. He sent a rookie, however, to make his case publicly. It did not work.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to offer what may have been the weakest legal argument for presidential power to conduct warrantless electronic surveillance since Nixon's Justice Department invoked the views of King George III.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060210.html
1022
Trent Lott suffered a loss. But not loss of life. Oh, insurance, of course.
1026
commercials
Bush lied over Katrina, sacked head of disaster agency says
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article344722.ece
Michael Brown, head of the federal disaster agency at the time of Hurricane Katrina, has reopened a painful wound for President George Bush, charging that the White House knew New Orleans' protective levees had broken far earlier than it had acknowledged.
Testifying to a Senate committee yesterday, Mr Brown said that by the evening of Monday 29 August, his Fema agency had reported to superiors that catastrophic floodwaters were pouring into the city, that fires were breaking out and large numbers of people were stranded.
...Further evidence that the administration had manipulated intelligence came in documents showing that Lewis Libby, Vice-President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, told prosecutors he had been "authorised by superiors" to leak classified intelligence to reporters in the early summer of 2003, as it became increasingly evident that contrary to White House claims, Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction.
1029
Bush ignored CIA advice on Iraq, says former spy Julian Borger in WashingtonSaturday
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1707520,00.html
February 11, 2006The Guardian
The CIA official in charge of intelligence on the Middle East until last year has accused the Bush administration of ignoring assessments that sanctions and weapons inspections were the best way to deal with Saddam Hussein, and that an invasion would have a "messy aftermath".
In an article in the next edition of the bimonthly journal, Foreign Affairs, Paul Pillar, has become the highest-ranking CIA official from the prewar period to accuse the White House of manipulating the intelligence on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
Ex-Abramoff client subpoenaed in Republican fundraising probeChannel One's parent donated to TRMPAC before education board's vote on resolution
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/3649210.html
By CLAY ROBISON and R.G. RATCLIFFE
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
AUSTIN - New subpoenas issued by Travis County prosecutors on Thursday cast light on a campaign contribution made by Primedia Inc. in 2002 just two days before the State Board of Education cast a vote that could have affected the company's profits in Texas.
Records: Abramoff Paid for GOP Aide's Trip
By ERICA WERNER Associated Press Writer © 2006 The Associated Press
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/politics/3647533.html
WASHINGTON — A former top aide to California Republican Rep. John Doolittle traveled to Puerto Rico on a trip paid for by Jack Abramoff's lobbying firm, records show.
1041
commercials
Hastert, Frist said to rig bill for drug firms Frist denies protection was added in secret
http://www.gallatinnewsexaminer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060209/NEWS02/602090405/1309/MTCN04
By BILL THEOBALDGannett News Service
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert engineered a backroom legislative maneuver to protect pharmaceutical companies from lawsuits, say witnesses to the pre-Christmas power play.
The language was tucked into a Defense Department appropriations bill at the last minute without the approval of members of a House-Senate conference committee, say several witnesses, including a top Republican staff member.
1044
Recovery needs take-hold leadership
http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/letters/2275171.html
Published: Feb 8, 2006
It has been sometime since Katrina and Rita devastated coastal Louisiana, and the bickering continues. Instead of taking 10 years to recover, it will probably take 20 if all of our responsible officials continue to take potshots at each other. The Congress of the United States along with the president can get no positive vibes out of a local constituency that thrives on controversy and a history of corruption.Not only that, but each “principal” in the ongoing saga has an agenda propped up by several competing committees or commissions all “making noise” — cacophonous noise not harmonic.Getting a handle on the “science” doesn’t make things any easier. The Army Corp of Engineers can’t proceed (ever so slowly as always) with a clear-cut mission of what needs to be done and in what sequence without a cohesive scientific concept of what needs doing.Surely this has been the most devastating blow to hit this country in recent history. In the early days of the disaster, in spite of the confusion, some real leadership rose to the top and helped contain the loss of life and limit the damages. There were some real heroes out there. Surely the recovery deserves the same kind of “take-hold” leadership if New Orleans, for example, is ever to become a city again — not to mention protection for the rest of lower Louisiana. Where is that leadership today?Dick Schneider, director of developmentLSU School of the Coast and EnvironmentBaton Rouge
1049
Gupta went on and on about a congenital disease. There are many in the world. But, not once does he or Cooper proport any 'answer' to these maladies except sympathy. Anyone look into what is being done with genetic research? Nah. That would be turning their backs on Bush but it's okay to turn their back on helpless children seeking cures.
Jerks !
1053
Developer Lays Out Plans For Ore Dock
http://www.wluctv6.com/Global/story.asp?S=4431962&nav=81AX
A former Marquette resident has been working on plans to develop Marquette's Lower Harbor ore dock for the past six years. Monday night he presented his plans to the City Commission.
Gary Kropp told commissioners his plans for the ore dock will preserve its historic nature, increase the city's tax base, and be worthy of national attention. He also said the development will not disrupt the ore dock's quiet, serene, setting. Kropp wants to build 30 to 40 condos inside the dock with public space around the perimeter, including an area for large events.
The commission did not make a decision. Kropp said moving forward will be a lengthy process. Even if he gets city approval, he must also get approval from the Army Corp of Engineers and the DEQ.
1054
Fashion Week. Now, there is a thought. Anderson should go back walking the runway for Halston. At least that way he only has to strut and not speak.
1056
Feds offer seized-property deals online
KENNETH HARNEYKenneth Harney is a syndicated columnist.February 10, 2006
Whether you're a first-time home buyer, an investor, vacation property buyer, historic preservation buff - or even looking for a boat to convert into a live-aboard residence - you are not shopping the market to the max unless you check out the federal government's best real estate resources: the combined property disposition program inventories of 10 agencies, all rolled into one online access point.Want to buy a cabin in the woods near Lake Huron?
USG Makes $3.95 Bln Asbestos Pact to Exit Bankruptcy (Update2)
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=aMfEV9GpYvmo&refer=top_world_news
Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- USG Corp., the No. 1 maker of gypsum wallboard, agreed to pay as much as $3.95 billion to settle asbestos liability claims and emerge from 4 1/2 years of bankruptcy.
USG's shares rose as much as 24 percent after it said the settlement would be financed by selling $1.8 billion in new shares, underwritten by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc., owner of 14.6 percent of Chicago-based USG. Berkshire Hathaway will buy whatever stock isn't purchased by current shareholders, who will be offered shares at $40 each, USG said.
The accord will enable USG to exit bankruptcy this year, the company said. Since 1982, at least 77 companies have cited asbestos liability in filing for bankruptcy. Compensating present and future asbestos plaintiffs may cost companies between $140 billion and $300 billion, according to private and public studies. Congress is weighing whether to establish a national asbestos trust to erase the related personal injury suits.
``We view it as another positive in the trend of resolving this longstanding problem'' of asbestos litigation, said Gene Pisasale, who helps manage $48 billion at Baltimore-based Mercantile Bankshares, which owns other company stocks beset with asbestos lawsuits including DuPont Co. ``I think you are going to see more stories like this.''
Publisher’s Note: The greatest sleazeballs of the 21st century
http://www.pulsetc.com/article.php?sid=2301
Wednesday 08 February @ 14:33:30
by Ed Felien
Dick Cheney is trying to push through the Senate a bill that would create a national trust fund for victims of asbestos poisoning. Sounds lovely, doesn’t it? It does until you realize he’s doing it to cover his and Bush’s butts.A little background:
1114
Welcome to the first web site in America dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the connection between hurricane Katrina and global warming.
Featured Link:LA Times: Mike Tidwell Commentary
It is clear that Hurricane Katrina was no ‘natural’ disaster. Though nature played a part, human action played a key role in exacerbating this disaster. This website is the first step in a bipartisan effort to raise awareness about the connection between hurricanes and global warming.
As we rebuild New Orleans and the entire Gulf Coast, we must simultaneously work to prevent the tragedy of Katrina from happening all across our shores; we must work to stop global warming. We invite you to learn how global warming is affecting our country and to get involved in the fight!
Chevron paid agents who destroyed villages
COMPANY DENIES RESPONSIBILITY FOR NIGERIAN DEATHS OR INJURIES, SAYING IT PAID ONLY FOR GENERAL SECURITY SERVICES
By Elise Ackerman
Mercury News
The bodies of the dead Nigerian villagers had not yet grown cold when the Nigerian navy captain presented Chevron with a bill: 15,000 naira, or $165 for responding to "attacks from Opia village against security agents.''
Within 24 hours Chevron paid up. It would be years before the San Ramon-based energy company would acknowledge the role it played in the destruction of Opia and another small village called Ikenyan in Nigeria's oil-rich delta in January 1999.
The receipt for the January 4 army raid, which left four villagers dead and nearly 70 missing and presumed dead, came to light only this summer as part of a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of the victims in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. It is being reported first on MercuryNews.com.
The receipt also is among documents obtained by the Mercury News.
Chevron has denied any responsibility for the death or injuries that occurred that day. Charles Stewart, a Chevron spokesman, said the payment to the captain reflected ``a longstanding industry practice of paying a small amount for each day'' to military personnel who protected ``the people and the property of the oil companies located in the Niger Delta.''
The appearance of the receipt comes at a delicate moment for Chevron. The second-largest U.S. oil company is trying to drum up support for its $17 billion bid to buy Unocal, an oil-and-gas exploration company headquartered in El Segundo. Unocal shareholders are scheduled to vote on Chevron's bid on Aug. 10.
Chevron's principal rival in the deal was China's government-controlled CNOOC, that nation's third-largest oil producer. One of the top arguments Chevron's lobbyists have used to persuade members of Congress to side with Chevron is China's human rights record.
CNOOC withdrew its $18.4 billion bid for Unocal Corp. today, ending a politically charged takeover battle that highlighted the United States' growing apprehension about the economic rise of the world's largest country.
CNOOC's retreat clears the way for Chevron, the second largest U.S. oil company, to complete its acquisition of Unocal next week, even though its cash-and-stock offer is currently worth nearly $1 billion less.
Still, Chevron's involvement in the events in Africa are crucial, human rights activists say.
``It's important to look at Chevron's own record, '' said Cindy Cohn, legal director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, one of several law firms representing the plaintiffs.
``It's important to look at the allegations of this lawsuit against the backdrop of violence and communal unrest in Nigeria,'' Stewart countered.
In a motion requesting dismissal of the lawsuit, Chevron initially cited press reports that Opia and Ikenyan had been destroyed by a rival tribe. But company documents later surfaced describing how the attacks had occurred a day after Opia youths had visited a nearby Chevron rig and demanded compensation.
Such demands have been common since the mid-1990s, as tribal communities around the Delta have sought a greater share of oil wealth and compensation for spoiled fishing areas and blighted farm land.
When oil exploration began in the 1950s, residents hoped for an economic bonanza. But the anticipated boom never materialized. Half a century later, the 20 million residents who live in the Niger River Delta continue to eke out a bleak existence while the oil fields surrounding their communities rank among the top producers of high-grade petroleum in the world.
By the late 1990s, demands for economic justice were being met with violence. In 1995 the military government executed Ken Saro-Wiwa, a prominent playwright and activist with the Ogoni tribe, along with eight sympathizers. In May 1998, Nigerian forces attacked about 100 members of the Ilaje tribe who were occupying an offshore oil platform belonging to Chevron's Nigerian subsidiary. Two protesters were killed and two were seriously injured. Later that year, Ijaw youth began holding oil company employees hostage.
In December, Ijaw activists issued ``The Kaiama Declaration,'' which called on all oil companies to stop ``exploration and exploitation'' activities in Ijaw areas of December 30. ``We are tired of gas flaring; oil spillages, blowouts and being labeled saboteurs and terrorists,'' the declaration stated. ``It is a case of preparing the noose for our own hanging.''
To oil company executives the declaration meant one thing: Get out by the end of December -- or else. Chevron began evacuating staff from Ijaw areas and preparing for mayhem.
That set the stage for the Opia violence, to which Chevron has been connected by court records.
It was at this time, when company leaders expected the worst, that youths from Opia, a community of thatched huts along Robin Creek, decided to press their grievances with a local Chevron representative. Months earlier, they had submitted a list of items, including fishing nets, traps, hooks and other materials that had been destroyed by Chevron's tug boats and floating barges.
Attorneys representing surviving villagers say their clients, who live without running water, electricity and newspapers, did not know about the Kaiama Declaration when they set out for the rig on January 3.
The returning residents found the rig deserted, except for guards who told the youths to leave. ``They rushed at them and they started beating them, you know, and they fell into the river,'' Anthony Lawuru, the chairman of the community, testified during a deposition in April 2005.
Back at the village, there was an urgent meeting.
``We'd been having a cordial relationship even with the security men,'' Lawuru said. A delegation that included women and elders decided to return with the youths to the rig the next day in order to demonstrate that the youths had community support.
The next day, the guards greeted the delegation with gunfire.
Shaken, the villagers returned to Opia. Not more than 15 minutes had passed before a blue-and-white helicopter dropped out of the sky. As it hovered above the center of the village, just below the level of the coconut trees, the helicopter door opened and gunfire sprayed out, according to sworn testimony,
``We were running into the bush, we heard the gun as it was going round,'' Lawuru said.
He estimated the fusillade continued 15 to 20 minutes. When villagers emerged from the bush nearly all the houses in the village were burning. Canoes, fishing materials, boats had been shot up and burned. Lawuru's brother lay dead.
There was panic as villagers rushed to pack their canoes and flee. In the confusion, Lawuru recalled, four boats known as ``sea trucks'' arrived, full of men in army uniforms. ``They did not land before they started shooting,'' Lawuru said. ``Then we started running again. Another round of running.''
The soldiers then moved downstream to Ikenyan.
There, the scene was replayed. In a declaration submitted in federal court in San Francisco, John Ikenyan, the son of the village chief, said a helicopter first appeared over the houses. ``I thought maybe that Chevron was coming to see my father again as they had before,'' Ikenyan said. Women and children waved.
A shot was fired from the helicopter and then another.
Villagers fled to the bush. Their homes were set on fire. The villagers returned and struggled to put out the flames. With no fire engine, no hoses and no pumps their efforts were hopeless. The sea trucks arrived. Once again, the villagers ran for the bush. Ikenyan said his father, the chief, stayed behind and was shot by the riverside.
``I later learned that many people had been killed or disappeared or were wounded at both Opia and Ikenyan on January 4,'' Ikenyan said.
According to Human Rights Watch, a total of four bodies were recovered from the two villages. Sixty-eight people were missing and believed dead.
Barbara Enloe Hadsell, an attorney for the villagers said that in addition to paying the security forces, Chevron loaned them the helicopter that was used in the attack. She said Chevron personnel not only accompanied the soldiers as they flew to Robin Creek but also directed the pilot to ``deviate from his course'' to pursue villagers who were ``getting away.''
``That's complete Chevron involvement,'' Hadsell said.
Stewart, the Chevron spokesman, admits that Chevron's Nigerian subsidiary helped transport the military reinforcements to the rig after gunfire was heard on the radio. Stewart also acknowledged that a Nigerian military officer onboard one of the helicopters ``discharged a gun during flight.''
But Stewart said Chevron did not authorize the weapons to be fired and that it occurred when no village was in sight. ``We are confident as the case progresses, Chevron will be vindicated,'' he said.
A jury trial on the villagers' claim is currently scheduled for the fall of 2006 in federal court in San Francisco.
Contact Elise Ackerman at eackerman@mercurynews.com or call (650) 688-7588.
COMPANY DENIES RESPONSIBILITY FOR NIGERIAN DEATHS OR INJURIES, SAYING IT PAID ONLY FOR GENERAL SECURITY SERVICES
By Elise Ackerman
Mercury News
The bodies of the dead Nigerian villagers had not yet grown cold when the Nigerian navy captain presented Chevron with a bill: 15,000 naira, or $165 for responding to "attacks from Opia village against security agents.''
Within 24 hours Chevron paid up. It would be years before the San Ramon-based energy company would acknowledge the role it played in the destruction of Opia and another small village called Ikenyan in Nigeria's oil-rich delta in January 1999.
The receipt for the January 4 army raid, which left four villagers dead and nearly 70 missing and presumed dead, came to light only this summer as part of a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of the victims in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. It is being reported first on MercuryNews.com.
The receipt also is among documents obtained by the Mercury News.
Chevron has denied any responsibility for the death or injuries that occurred that day. Charles Stewart, a Chevron spokesman, said the payment to the captain reflected ``a longstanding industry practice of paying a small amount for each day'' to military personnel who protected ``the people and the property of the oil companies located in the Niger Delta.''
The appearance of the receipt comes at a delicate moment for Chevron. The second-largest U.S. oil company is trying to drum up support for its $17 billion bid to buy Unocal, an oil-and-gas exploration company headquartered in El Segundo. Unocal shareholders are scheduled to vote on Chevron's bid on Aug. 10.
Chevron's principal rival in the deal was China's government-controlled CNOOC, that nation's third-largest oil producer. One of the top arguments Chevron's lobbyists have used to persuade members of Congress to side with Chevron is China's human rights record.
CNOOC withdrew its $18.4 billion bid for Unocal Corp. today, ending a politically charged takeover battle that highlighted the United States' growing apprehension about the economic rise of the world's largest country.
CNOOC's retreat clears the way for Chevron, the second largest U.S. oil company, to complete its acquisition of Unocal next week, even though its cash-and-stock offer is currently worth nearly $1 billion less.
Still, Chevron's involvement in the events in Africa are crucial, human rights activists say.
``It's important to look at Chevron's own record, '' said Cindy Cohn, legal director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, one of several law firms representing the plaintiffs.
``It's important to look at the allegations of this lawsuit against the backdrop of violence and communal unrest in Nigeria,'' Stewart countered.
In a motion requesting dismissal of the lawsuit, Chevron initially cited press reports that Opia and Ikenyan had been destroyed by a rival tribe. But company documents later surfaced describing how the attacks had occurred a day after Opia youths had visited a nearby Chevron rig and demanded compensation.
Such demands have been common since the mid-1990s, as tribal communities around the Delta have sought a greater share of oil wealth and compensation for spoiled fishing areas and blighted farm land.
When oil exploration began in the 1950s, residents hoped for an economic bonanza. But the anticipated boom never materialized. Half a century later, the 20 million residents who live in the Niger River Delta continue to eke out a bleak existence while the oil fields surrounding their communities rank among the top producers of high-grade petroleum in the world.
By the late 1990s, demands for economic justice were being met with violence. In 1995 the military government executed Ken Saro-Wiwa, a prominent playwright and activist with the Ogoni tribe, along with eight sympathizers. In May 1998, Nigerian forces attacked about 100 members of the Ilaje tribe who were occupying an offshore oil platform belonging to Chevron's Nigerian subsidiary. Two protesters were killed and two were seriously injured. Later that year, Ijaw youth began holding oil company employees hostage.
In December, Ijaw activists issued ``The Kaiama Declaration,'' which called on all oil companies to stop ``exploration and exploitation'' activities in Ijaw areas of December 30. ``We are tired of gas flaring; oil spillages, blowouts and being labeled saboteurs and terrorists,'' the declaration stated. ``It is a case of preparing the noose for our own hanging.''
To oil company executives the declaration meant one thing: Get out by the end of December -- or else. Chevron began evacuating staff from Ijaw areas and preparing for mayhem.
That set the stage for the Opia violence, to which Chevron has been connected by court records.
It was at this time, when company leaders expected the worst, that youths from Opia, a community of thatched huts along Robin Creek, decided to press their grievances with a local Chevron representative. Months earlier, they had submitted a list of items, including fishing nets, traps, hooks and other materials that had been destroyed by Chevron's tug boats and floating barges.
Attorneys representing surviving villagers say their clients, who live without running water, electricity and newspapers, did not know about the Kaiama Declaration when they set out for the rig on January 3.
The returning residents found the rig deserted, except for guards who told the youths to leave. ``They rushed at them and they started beating them, you know, and they fell into the river,'' Anthony Lawuru, the chairman of the community, testified during a deposition in April 2005.
Back at the village, there was an urgent meeting.
``We'd been having a cordial relationship even with the security men,'' Lawuru said. A delegation that included women and elders decided to return with the youths to the rig the next day in order to demonstrate that the youths had community support.
The next day, the guards greeted the delegation with gunfire.
Shaken, the villagers returned to Opia. Not more than 15 minutes had passed before a blue-and-white helicopter dropped out of the sky. As it hovered above the center of the village, just below the level of the coconut trees, the helicopter door opened and gunfire sprayed out, according to sworn testimony,
``We were running into the bush, we heard the gun as it was going round,'' Lawuru said.
He estimated the fusillade continued 15 to 20 minutes. When villagers emerged from the bush nearly all the houses in the village were burning. Canoes, fishing materials, boats had been shot up and burned. Lawuru's brother lay dead.
There was panic as villagers rushed to pack their canoes and flee. In the confusion, Lawuru recalled, four boats known as ``sea trucks'' arrived, full of men in army uniforms. ``They did not land before they started shooting,'' Lawuru said. ``Then we started running again. Another round of running.''
The soldiers then moved downstream to Ikenyan.
There, the scene was replayed. In a declaration submitted in federal court in San Francisco, John Ikenyan, the son of the village chief, said a helicopter first appeared over the houses. ``I thought maybe that Chevron was coming to see my father again as they had before,'' Ikenyan said. Women and children waved.
A shot was fired from the helicopter and then another.
Villagers fled to the bush. Their homes were set on fire. The villagers returned and struggled to put out the flames. With no fire engine, no hoses and no pumps their efforts were hopeless. The sea trucks arrived. Once again, the villagers ran for the bush. Ikenyan said his father, the chief, stayed behind and was shot by the riverside.
``I later learned that many people had been killed or disappeared or were wounded at both Opia and Ikenyan on January 4,'' Ikenyan said.
According to Human Rights Watch, a total of four bodies were recovered from the two villages. Sixty-eight people were missing and believed dead.
Barbara Enloe Hadsell, an attorney for the villagers said that in addition to paying the security forces, Chevron loaned them the helicopter that was used in the attack. She said Chevron personnel not only accompanied the soldiers as they flew to Robin Creek but also directed the pilot to ``deviate from his course'' to pursue villagers who were ``getting away.''
``That's complete Chevron involvement,'' Hadsell said.
Stewart, the Chevron spokesman, admits that Chevron's Nigerian subsidiary helped transport the military reinforcements to the rig after gunfire was heard on the radio. Stewart also acknowledged that a Nigerian military officer onboard one of the helicopters ``discharged a gun during flight.''
But Stewart said Chevron did not authorize the weapons to be fired and that it occurred when no village was in sight. ``We are confident as the case progresses, Chevron will be vindicated,'' he said.
A jury trial on the villagers' claim is currently scheduled for the fall of 2006 in federal court in San Francisco.
Contact Elise Ackerman at eackerman@mercurynews.com or call (650) 688-7588.
Group claims New Orleans election plans hurt blacks; lawsuit filed
http://www.kron4.com/Global/story.asp?S=4483096&nav=5D7l
NEW ORLEANS An advocacy group is trying to stop city elections in hurricane-ravaged New Orleans.The federal court suit argues that the process will keep blacks out of elected office.
The Advancement Project wants changes to the election plan, including polling stations outside the state.
Meanwhile, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People warned that it might organize protests and challenge the elections in court. It says displaced voters need to be given greater consideration in plans to hold elections April 22nd.
Among other races, voters will cast ballots for mayor. So far, the most striking aspect of that race is the number of prominent white business leaders and politicians who have jumped in.
Incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin remains the only black candidate.
Jailed pregnant reporter not accredited-Ethiopia
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L09406220.htm
09 Feb 2006 18:29:54 GMTSource: ReutersADDIS ABABA , Feb 9 (Reuters) - A pregnant reporter has been jailed in Ethiopia for more than two weeks, and Ethiopia's Information Ministry said on Thursday she had not been legally accredited.
Press freedom advocates have criticised the arrest without charge of online journalist Frezer Negash, who works for the U.S.-based Ethiopian Review website, which is critical of the government.
Fanthaun Assres, the head of journalist accreditation for Ethiopia's information ministry, said Frezer did not have the proper paperwork.
1128
Cheney Spearheaded Effort To Discredit Wilson
http://www.countercurrents.org/us-leopold100206.htm
On September 14, 2003, during an interview with Tim Russert of NBC's "Meet the Press," Cheney maintained that he didn't know Wilson or have any knowledge about his Niger trip or who was responsible for leaking his wife's name to the media.
"I don't know Joe Wilson," Cheney said, in response to Russert, who quoted Wilson as saying there was no truth to the Niger uranium claims. "I've never met Joe Wilson. And Joe Wilson - I don't who sent Joe Wilson. He never submitted a report that I ever saw when he came back .. I don't know Mr. Wilson. I probably shouldn't judge him. I have no idea who hired him."
This article first appeared on TruthOut
Frank and 45 lawmakers ask Rice to explain U.N. denial
http://www.gaypeopleschronicle.com/stories06/february/0210065.htm
by Eric Resnick
Washington, D.C.--Openly lesbian Rep. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and 44 other Democrats are demanding that Secretary of State Condolezza Rice explain and repudiate a January 23 United Nations vote against two international gay groups.
Their February 7 action followed Reps. Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Tom Lantos of California, who issued separate statements condemning the Bush administration’s United Nations vote to deny status to the two groups.
Ohio Reps. Sherrod Brown and Dennis Kucinich are among the signatories to Baldwin’s effort, as is Lantos.
“I had hopes for better from you,” wrote Frank to Condolezza Rice on February 2.
“I was deeply troubled to learn that the U.S. government, presumably at your direction, sided with some of the most undemocratic, anti-human rights regimes in the world in voting against consultative status for two international organizations, solely on the grounds that they represent gay and lesbian people,” Frank continued.
US waives export restrictions on Pakistan
http://www.kron4.com/Global/story.asp?S=4483096&nav=5D7l
NEW ORLEANS An advocacy group is trying to stop city elections in hurricane-ravaged New Orleans.The federal court suit argues that the process will keep blacks out of elected office.
The Advancement Project wants changes to the election plan, including polling stations outside the state.
Meanwhile, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People warned that it might organize protests and challenge the elections in court. It says displaced voters need to be given greater consideration in plans to hold elections April 22nd.
Among other races, voters will cast ballots for mayor. So far, the most striking aspect of that race is the number of prominent white business leaders and politicians who have jumped in.
Incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin remains the only black candidate.
Jailed pregnant reporter not accredited-Ethiopia
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L09406220.htm
09 Feb 2006 18:29:54 GMTSource: ReutersADDIS ABABA , Feb 9 (Reuters) - A pregnant reporter has been jailed in Ethiopia for more than two weeks, and Ethiopia's Information Ministry said on Thursday she had not been legally accredited.
Press freedom advocates have criticised the arrest without charge of online journalist Frezer Negash, who works for the U.S.-based Ethiopian Review website, which is critical of the government.
Fanthaun Assres, the head of journalist accreditation for Ethiopia's information ministry, said Frezer did not have the proper paperwork.
1128
Cheney Spearheaded Effort To Discredit Wilson
http://www.countercurrents.org/us-leopold100206.htm
On September 14, 2003, during an interview with Tim Russert of NBC's "Meet the Press," Cheney maintained that he didn't know Wilson or have any knowledge about his Niger trip or who was responsible for leaking his wife's name to the media.
"I don't know Joe Wilson," Cheney said, in response to Russert, who quoted Wilson as saying there was no truth to the Niger uranium claims. "I've never met Joe Wilson. And Joe Wilson - I don't who sent Joe Wilson. He never submitted a report that I ever saw when he came back .. I don't know Mr. Wilson. I probably shouldn't judge him. I have no idea who hired him."
This article first appeared on TruthOut
Frank and 45 lawmakers ask Rice to explain U.N. denial
http://www.gaypeopleschronicle.com/stories06/february/0210065.htm
by Eric Resnick
Washington, D.C.--Openly lesbian Rep. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and 44 other Democrats are demanding that Secretary of State Condolezza Rice explain and repudiate a January 23 United Nations vote against two international gay groups.
Their February 7 action followed Reps. Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Tom Lantos of California, who issued separate statements condemning the Bush administration’s United Nations vote to deny status to the two groups.
Ohio Reps. Sherrod Brown and Dennis Kucinich are among the signatories to Baldwin’s effort, as is Lantos.
“I had hopes for better from you,” wrote Frank to Condolezza Rice on February 2.
“I was deeply troubled to learn that the U.S. government, presumably at your direction, sided with some of the most undemocratic, anti-human rights regimes in the world in voting against consultative status for two international organizations, solely on the grounds that they represent gay and lesbian people,” Frank continued.
US waives export restrictions on Pakistan
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/003200602091001.htm
Washington, Feb. 9. (PTI): The United States has waived restrictions on exports to Pakistan noting that it would facilitate the transition to democratic process in the country.
US President George W Bush yesterday eased the prohibitions under the 'Foreign Operations, Export Financing and Relations Programmes Appropriations Act of 2006', which targets countries where a coup has overthrown a democratically formed government.
Asking Secretary of State Condolezza Rice to inform about the waiver to the Congress, Bush said that the easing of prohibitions under the Section 508 of the Act was "aimed at facilitating the transition to democratic rule" in Pakistan.
The waiver was also "important to the United States' efforts to respond to, deter or prevent acts of international terrorism," the memo to Rice said.
IN CONCLDING for the evening? George H. W. Bush should have raised a son that was WILLING to be first honest.
E. N. O. U. G. H.
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