Visit our website: HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------------------------- Good piece on the Big Jingoes and the Big Chill setting in on the
Movement. Excerpt: America's Greens Rally to Flag, Hot
to present themselves as staunch flag-waggers, some of America's premier
environmental organizations have disgracefully ditched their principles. The
Sierra Club, America's oldest green group has abruptly turned off its campaign
against the anti-environmental program of the Bush administration. CounterPunch
has secured an internal memo in which the club's high command explains to its
staff why it suspending its campaigns. "In response to the attacks on
America," the memo goes, "we are shifting our communications strategy
for the immediate future. We have taken all of our ads off of the air; halted
our phone banks; removed any material from the web that people could perceive
as anti-Bush, and we are taking other steps to prevent the Sierra Club from
being perceived as controversial during this crisis. For now we are going to
stop aggressively pushing our agenda and will cease bashing President Bush " The
memo then instructs club staffers on how to respond to the press: "If you
are asked about what this terrorism does to the Sierra Club's agenda, please
respond simply by saying that right now the public needs to focus on comforting
each other and strengthening our national security to deal with the crisis at
hand." Imagine
if this craven posture spreads across the public interest movement. We could
expect First Amendment defenders to say that they were abandoning efforts to
protect the Bill of Rights. We could expect groups defending immigrants to say
that henceforth the INS should be given free rein. Fortunately First Amendment
defenders and defenders of immigrants have stronger spines and principles than
the supposed defenders of the environment at the Sierra Club. Are we now to
expect the Club to endorse drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve as
necessary "for national security"? Even
groups that we here at CounterPunch have admired are now in pellmell cowardly
retreat. The
Berkeley-based International Rivers Network, which has been the main bulwark
against the Three Gorges dam in China, now announces that it is suspending its
planned nationwide protest against Morgan Stanley, one of the dam's principle
financiers. Morgan Stanley had 50 floors of offices in the World Trade Center.
IRN has also announced that "out of respect for the victims of this
disaster, with understanding of the strategic difficulties in conveying to a
shocked media and public our messages regarding the World Bank and IMF, with
concern for the integrity of security systems in Washington DC, and for the
safety of all, we will refrain from participating in activities surrounding the
planned World Bank / IMF this month. We are also sharing our concerns with the
leading organizations responsible for planning and coordinating these
activities." The
Ruckus Society, the direct action training group involved in many
demonstrations at the World Trade Organization has simultaneously announced
that it is canceling its training camp, to be held in Middleburgh, Virginia,
scheduled as preparation for the next World Bank meeting. This camp was to be
cosponsored by the Institute for Policy Studies, Jobs with Justice and Global
Exchange. All these organizations have now backed out, saying that now is not
the time for such activity. The
Rainforest Action Network, based in San Francisco, describes itself as being in
a "wait-and-see mode." "Things are definitely on hold,"
said RAN's Patrick Reinsborough. Let's get this straight. If all resisters to the Bush
political program were to follow this shameful exhibition by these green
groups, we would see peace groups declining to protest against nuclear attacks
on Iraq and armed invasion of Afghanistan. We would see civil rights sitting on
their hands as racial and religious profiling is used to persecute people of
Middle Eastern descent. Defenders of Palestinian rights would say that for the
time being they wouldn't protest the use of US Apache helicopters against
civilians in West Bank towns and villages. What nonsense! Principles are never
more important than when it is inconvenient or dangerous to stand up for them. [my emphasis] http://www.counterpunch.org/aftershocks.html ------------------------------------------------- This Discussion List is the follow-up for the old stopnato @listbot.com that has been shut down ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9spWA Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: archive@jab.org T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================ |