ARCHIVES (12/23/04) Contemporary Holiday Greetings from Texas

For some, religious texts reflect historical understand and provide insight to societies of the past. For others, religion and faith offer wisdom for how to live in the world today. In that spirit, we share "greetings" during the holidays.

Our holiday thoughts mirror our attitudes towards the world around us and provide remembrances of the people and places at the intersection of our lives. Mostly sincere, but often winsome and treacly, they generally touch only the surface and seldom reflect the actualities of the day.

At the end of 2004, we offer a "Hark" to you to consider greetings that are more contemporary and reflect present times. Here are just a few holiday cards that we would like to see (CLICK TO SEE THEM FULL SIZE)

AN INTERFAITH-FILLED WORLD

The holiday of Eid, following Ramadan, is over for the Muslims, and Hanukkah has just passed for

the jews. Perhaps one day we'll all send mutual greetings to each other, and embrace our religious diversity. For a millennium, Jews and Muslims have lived side-by-side with one another along with fellow Christians.

Buddhists, Hindus and other religions all combine today in mutli-faith comunities around the world creating a rich tapestry of beliefs, conduct, and social conscience. No longer practiced in isolation, these faiths prosper in the light of secular environments where respect to those with differing views, or no faith at all, is maintained and leave the cold dark places where those who seek absolute control reign.

SUFFER NOT BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Even while the prosperity of the world increases, many are left behind. Brothers and sisters in Africa, Central America, Asia, Eastern Europe and the poor of the developed world, are too often neglected by their contemporaries.

The tragedy in Darfur and the Sudan have received much attention this year. Natural disasters in Haiti and the Carribean, Central Asia,

and elsewhere tax the resources of humanitarian aid organizations. War, disaster, and disease are seldom the topics of holiday cards.

But, just as we send photos of our families to loved ones far away, so can images of people in other countries remind us of our connections to one another.

Whether it's the children of Guatemala who have no shoes or students in Haiti who lack basic educational supplies, such illustrations call attention to the many things that have been left undone during the year and spur us to greater action in the coming months.

These contemporary greetings also help to keep alive hope, both for those

who suffer and for ourselves, that a better world is possible. We know that with just a little more time, energy, and resources we could solve many of the problems that affect our friends and neighbors around the world.

In the mighty words of Martin Luther King, Jr. we hear, "And if we will only make the right choice, we will be able to transform this pending cosmic elegy into a creative psalm of peace. If we will make the right choice, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our world into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. If we will but make the right choice, we will be able to speed up the day, all over America and all over the world, when justice will roll down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."

ENDING THE WAR IN IRAQ

And, what about Iraq? Certainly it has been a primary topic throughout the year. Doubtfully you will see Hallmark cards dealing with the war there, so we share our own contemporary greeting cards.

Iraq is home to about 800.,000 Christians and their influence is felt throughout the country as trees and lights go up on buildings and in home, even of many Muslims. Despite recent bombings of

churches, stores in Baghdad have prominent displays of Santa, Christmas trees, and religious icons. Choirs continue to practice "O Holy Night" in both English and Arabic and little girls dress in the costumes of angels.

As they have for almost 2,000 years, Iraqis will attend mass in Baghdad, Mosul, Basra and even smaller towns.

Elsewhere in Iraq, refugees from fighting continue to fight cold and hunger as they wait to find out when they can return to their homes…or if they even still have homes. Much of Fallujah was destroyed during recent U.S. offensives and Najaf has only just begun rebuilding. As winter drops temperatures into the teens and fuel becomes short even in the cities, Iraqis suffer more and more the hardships of the war and occupation.

American troops stationed in Iraq are also in need of greetings, to know that they are remembered and to tell their families that they are still safe. In military camps scattered around the country, soldiers have improvised holiday festivities. Some pray quietly and remember those who have died, while others celebrate the end of the year and hopes that they will return home soon.

One soldier writes, "I went to the gym this morning for the first time in a long time. Just after I finished, the alarm went off and we had to take shelter under a building. Some of the Filipino staff from the gym , were in

there with me. One of the ladies opened a Christmas card that a soldier had given to her and was showing it to all her friends.

Walking back I saw some soldiers decorating a big wood and metal frame they had built in the shape of a tree. We have a giant inflatable Santa and a Christmas tree on our roof. This week we have received lots of boxes from friends and family as well as groups that want us to have something for the holidays. Its all very appreciated by us. I have gorged myself on cookies and chocolate today."

PEACE AROUND THE WORLD AND AT HOME

More on the contemporary front, peace activists in every nation continue their work and to send greetings to one another. A Texan in Ireland writes that he and his wife have been actively helping organize rallies in that country and helping to provide support for Mary Kelly. Kelly, a 50-some year-old nurse was arrested after taking an axe to a US warplane in the Shannon Airport shortly before last year's invasion of Iraq (The
judge ended up giving her a 2 year suspended sentence, with a restriction that she stay over a mile away from Shannon Airport).

From Greece to Austin vigils, rallies, protests, and other actions against the war continue. Octogenarians to little children, families of every race and creed, have grown increasingly wary of the Administration's claims regarding

defense and aggression and claims by President Bush that the war in Iraq is, "a vital mission for peace." The real peacemakers of the world disagree.

Enjoy the holidays and take time to reflect, in your own way and tradition, of the hope that comes even during the dark days of winter. Contemporary holiday greetings to you as we end the old and begin a new year!

Peace,

Charlie Jackson

Corsicana still home to world famous fruitcakes

For more than 100 years, the little Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana has been making the most delicious fruitcakes in the world.

Their secret? Instead of the dry ingredients used in other place, the folks in Corsicana use millions of fresh Texas pecans. They still mail them out to hundreds of Texans around the world each year.

Another innocent Texan freed ... after 17 years in jail

Brandon Moon has been released after being jailed for 17 years for a rape that he didn't commit. Shown by DNA testing to have been wrongly convicted of rape, Mr. Moon was released from prison this week - the latest among 154 men and women in the United States exonerated by such tests.

Even though he had an alibi at the time, the rape victim picked El Paso native Moon from a lineup. On that evidence he was convicted in 1988. As Moon, 43, joined his parents, Frank and Shirley, for the drive to their home in Kansas City after his release on Tuesday from the El Paso County jail, he said he felt "numb".

Tyler college receives $2 million from Texas Church

Texas College in Tyler recieved a suprise Christmas present...a donation of $2 million.

The Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CMEC), a 130-year historic denomination, gave two million dollars to one of its affiliated schools in Texas as part of an effort to support educational institutions and its surrounding communities.

The CME Church was founded in 1870 in Jackson, Tennessee, and has since spread throughout the United States, Haiti, Jamaica, Ghana and Nigeria.

U.S. food donations cut

Despite growing hunger around the world, the Bush administration has reduced its contributions to global food aid programs. As a result, Save the Children, Catholic Relief Services, and other charities are having to suspend or eliminating programs to help the poor feed themselves.

Citing budget needs, adminsitration officials say that food aid budget for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 was at least $600 million less than what chairties need.

Subdued holidays for Texans with family in Iraq

Thousands of Texas families have relatives stationed in Iraq, causing holiday celebrations to be less cheerful than otherwise. The mood is somber in places like Killeen, home to the 1st Cavalry Division which has responsibility for Baghdad

Festivities quickly turn to fear with the news each day. The deadly attacks in Mosul this week drove many family members to tears. Among those with little to cheer about at the more than 900 children who have lost parents in the war in Iraq this year.

In other news, the White House is making plans for dozens of parties during inaugural week in January.

More Texans feel safe from crime

A recent survey by the Texas Crime Victim's Institute found that Texans generall feel safe from crime. About 20 percent of Texans surveyed were victims of a crime over a two-year period but most feel like they're safe from crime, according to the recent study. The study will be used during the upcoming legislative session.

ARCHIVES (12/16/04) Texas grit: Bill Moyers

Throughout his life, Bill Moyers has represented old-fashioned Texas values. Behind the soft Texas accent that became familiar to viewers of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), stood a Christian man of strong integrity, moral clarity, and "Texas grit".

Now, after almost five decades in a career in journalism and politics, Bill Moyers is retiring from broadcasting in what Newsday calls a "departure of grace."

"No other broadcaster has brought conscience and curiosity more effectively to bear on TV programming than the former divinity student, Peace Corps deputy director, presidential press secretary and Newsday publisher from Marshall, Texas, who began a prodigiously fruitful relationship with public television 33 years ago," says Newsday.

Whether discussing the issues of race or family, Moyers has steadfastly emphasized the progressive values that his parents taught him, and he has brought a conscience to news that is sadly lacking in journalism today.

In his most recent book, Moyers on America: A Journalist and His Times, Bill bears his heart and tackles current issues in calls for social justice and opposition to right-wing policies. "This convergence dominates the marketplace of political ideas today in a phenomenon unique in our history," Moyers argues with a voice of traditional liberal enlightenment that came from his rural upbringing.

Moyers was born in Oklahoma but raised on a farm in Marshall, Texas. But, by the age of 15 he was already writing stories for the local paper. During the 1950's he joined Lyndon B. Johnson's Senate campaign, majored in journalism at UT and worked for Johnson's Austin television station, KTBC. A Southern Baptist, Bill later attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and obtained a divinity degree as he tried to balance his desire for a faith-based life with the social justice opportunities afforded through politics.

President Kennedy appointed Bill Moyers as Deputy Director of the Peace Corps and when Johnson became President, Moyers became a presidential Chief of Staff. In 1965 Moyer's title changed to White House Press Secretary for President Johnson, however he found it increasingly difficult to defend the administration's war in Vietnam and left The Whitehouse in 1966 to become the publisher of Newsday.

In 1970 Moyers began a long career on television, hosting the show "This Week" PBS and later "Bill Moyers' Journal" on PBS.

In addition to the award-winning programs such as NOW that Bill has led during his 30 years in the media, he has also written several books and received many awards including more than 30 Emmys. In 1991, Moyers was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He engaged voices and brought ideas to television in the tradition of Edward R. Murrow. Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth (1988); The Secret Government (1988); A World of Ideas (1989); Healing and the Mind (1992); helped provide insight into the United States and for Americans and the world.

In recent years, Bill has increased his public speaking on the risks and perils of today's American democracy and the need to infuse pragmatic progressive values in political dialogue once again. In a speech at the 2003 Take Back America conference Bill reminded us, "Progressives exalted and extended the original American revolution. They spelled out new terms of partnership between the people and their rulers. And they kindled a flame that lit some of the most prosperous decades in modern history, not only here but in aspiring democracies everywhere…"

But along with his calls for a resurgence of progressivism, comes his prophecy of disaster if America continues down its current path. He warns us of the "rage of the counter-revolutionaries to dismantle every last brick of the social contract."

Bill Moyers is a man of deep spiritual resources and is willing to discuss faith in the public arena. "We need a faith that takes on the corruption of both parties. We need a faith that challenges complacency of all power," said Moyers

in a recent Sojourners article, Democracy in the Balance. He recognizes the righteous anger that Jesus had when he saw people being abused and neglected and says "Let's get Jesus back." "America is a broken promise, and we are called to do what we can to fix it - to get America back on the track. St. Augustine shows us how: "One loving soul sets another on fire." But to move beyond sentimentality, what begins in love must lead on to justice. We are called to the fight of our live," he concludes. Jesus is mad and Bill Moyers is preaching.

Moyers pulls few punches in his most recent article on Alternet: Battlefield Earth. In it Moyers takes on the pseudo-Christians and their millennialist environmental policy views. He asks, "what has happened to our moral imagination?" and questions ponders whether Americans will continue to steal from the future and betray the trust of generations to come.

On December 18, Bill and his co-executive wife Judith will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. They then plan to take several months off to catch their breaths and travel before the "next" phase in their lives. We wish them continued happiness together and expect to see them in Texas soon … continuing the progress that they've started.

Bill Moyers is expected to be very busy and fulfill the old adage of "I don't know how I had time to work" next year. Integrity, faith, and hard work…just some of the values of a man of with Texas grit, Bill Moyers.

Texas CO released from military

"HE'S COMING HOME!!!!" read the email.

After several months of hard work, with a mother dedicated to helping her son get out of the military, a Houston conscientious objector (CO) was finally given approval this week to get out of the military. Congrats to Chas Davis.

Much thanks needs to go to all of the indviduals who were involved in getting this young man out. "CONGRATULATIONS SON," ends the message.

TX war resister waits for hearing in Canada

Brandon Hughey of San Angelo is up in the cold of Canada where he fled to avoid being sent to Iraq. A 2003 high school graduate, Brandon is seeking asylum as a refugee. He is being assisted by the War Resisters Support Campaign of Toronto.

"If you were given an order to participate in an unlawful occupation that is resulting in the deaths of thousands of innocent people with no justifiable cause, would you be able to live with yourself if you carried out that order?" he wrote in an e-mail to the San Angelo Standard-Times. Brandon has a website and wants to hear from his fellow Texans, especially those in the peace community.

Bell-ringers banned from Target stores

Texans wil be saying "Humbug!" to Target stores. No more cheerful bell-ringers opening up the door. Target decided that it would no longer allow the Salvation army to collect donations at their stores. Target claims that it provides to the Salavation Army in other ways.

The Salvation Army has a long history of helping the needy throughout Texas and the world. Money raised through the kettles goes to provide food, toys for children, and help with utility bills.

Unemployment in Texas surges to 5.7%

For the second straight month, unemployment in the state has risen as more and more Texans continue to look for work. 5.7% of Texans are unemployed, according to the Texas Workforce Commission.

Rising unemployment figures bely the administration's assurances that they have an economic plan that is sound and one within which all Americans can benefit.

TxDOT goes to Madrid for highway construction

The Texas Department of Transportation has awarded a contract to a Spanish company for the construction of the massive Trans Texas Corridor highway that will run from Mexico to Oklahoma.

CINTRA says that it is pleased to begin the first phase of this $6 billion dollar Texas taxpayer project that Governor Rick Perry has so generously championed.

Honoring Pres. Bush in Texas

In Iraq, pictures of dictator Saddam Hussein could be found on signs throughout the country. Now, a member of the Texas Legislature wants to honor President George W. Bush similarly in this state.

State Rep. Ken Paxton (R-McKinney) has introduced H.B. 137, which requires that all "Welcome to Texas" signs erected along interstate, United States, or state highways include the message 'Proud to be the Home of President George W. Bush."

ARCHIVES (12/09/04) Lump of coal for Alamo City?

For more than a year, residents of San Antonio have watched with growing alarm as the local electric company has proceeded with plans to build another coal-fired power plant. Even though it already has a reserve capacity City Public Service (CPS), the municipal utility owned by the City of San Antonio, is requesting a permit from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for a new 750 MW "pulverized coal-fired power plant". At stake are billions of dollars, coal interests, and future of the quality of life in San Antonio.

On the surface, the issue appears to be one of a desire to make prudent plans for San Antonio's future. However, even though it is a city-owned utility, CPS runs much like any electrical corporations - even returning profits. Last year, CPS "surpluses" provided an additional $25 million to the City. There is a concern that CPS wants to make itself a more attractive takeover target in an open, deregulated Texas energy market. CPS is also heavily invested in coal production and would like to see a greater return by using this - dirty but cheap - fuel.

During the 1970's, CPS purchased and leased land in Bastrop and Lee Counties, intending to mine and burn poor-grade lignite. However, CPS found that it was cheaper to import high-grade coal from Wyoming than to burn the "dirty" coal in Texas. That's when the story of Alcoa's fight with Texas began.

Alcoa wanted to get to this coal to feed its nearby aluminum smelter and in 1998 signed contracts to lease the land for strip mining. In return, Alcoa and CPS began plans to provide water from the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer under the CPS land to the San Antonio Water System (SAWS). A firestorm erupted in those counties as plans for the strip mining got wider attention.

Alcoa operates some of the dirtiest power plants in Texas for their smelter, including three that are "grandfathered" and don't need to comply with modern environmental regulations. They were built before the 1971 Texas Clean Air Act, which mandated stricter air-quality controls. Cheap lignite in Texas helps make Pennsylvania-based Alcoa a more profitable aluminum company.

CPS operates three coal-fired electrical generating units at Calaveras Lake in southeastern Bexar County and for years has purchased low-sulfur coal from the Powder River Basin of northeastern Wyoming. About half of the fuel CPS uses to generate electricity for San Antonio comes from coal; 37 percent comes from the South Texas Nuclear Plant in Bay City, about 10 percent comes from natural gas and 3 percent is purchased wholesale from other power producers, according to CPS officials. Energy analysts predict higher costs for natural gas, however increased production of steel by the Chinese is pushing up coal prices around the world. More demand by San Antonio and others would be a boon to the coal producers.

But to San Antonio residents, it's not about the profits that might flow from coal or a new electrical power plant, but the effects on their health and community that are the greatest concern. San Antonio, like many major cities, already suffers from deteriorating air quality. The new pollution from this plant will only worsen San Antonio's air and water.

Estimates are that this new plant would product 680 pounds or mercury, which is known to harm unborn fetuses and cause neurological damage to children. Other effects of air pollution include asthma and lung disease, increased medical costs, and global warming.

A recent analysis of Texas power producers, by the by the Sustainable Energy & Economic Development (SEED) Coalition found that 5 of the top 10 worst producers of mercury in the US were right here in Texas. The report detailed the extent of mercury-laden fish consumption advisories and the need for clean up…not producing more. In "Fishing for Trouble - How Toxic Mercury Contaminate Fish in US Waterways", the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PRIG) found that "power plants are the largest source of mercury in the U.S., accounting for 41% of all manmade emissions (EPA analysis)."

Citizens groups as varied as Smart Growth San Antonio, the Jefferson Heights Neighborhood Association, and the Sierra Club, have called for CPS to investigate alternative and renewable energy, conservation, and other measures for the future of the city's electrical needs.

San Antonians need only look as fart as their neighbor to the north, Austin, to see how effective energy efficiency programs are. Average utility customers in Austin use 14% less energy than customers in San Antonio each month, according Public Citizen.

Austin's investment in residential energy efficiency has payed off and the State Legislature continues to pass legislation to encourage municipalities to improve their energy efficiency and improves Texas' overall air quality. San Antonio already has a larger percentage (4%) of its energy coming from wind power than any other utility in Texas, so it should be expected to continue in that direction, instead of spending $1 billion on a "quick fix" solution that will lock the city into coal.

Advocates for clean, renewable energy point out that while coal appears to be the least costly method of energy other methods may be more cost effective over the long term, especially when considering the impacts on health and the city's tourism industry. The city has already failed to meet air quality standard and will find it even more difficult to meet that standard with a new coal plant on line.

During 1996, 27% of San Antonio's NOx emissions were a result of industrial sources. Of that 27%, the CPS power plants produced two-thirds or 67% of all those emissions. These numbers show that coal -burning power plants produce more NOx emissions than all other industrial sources in the city. Adding another coal burning power plant to the area would dramatically increase those emissions.

A new coal plant in the area will threaten San Antonio's air quality and overall future. Will the citizens of San Antonio end up with a lump of coal or something brighter in their stocking?

Texas Observer celebrates 50th

The Texas Observer - long a bastion of Texas populism - celebrated its 50th year at a fete last weekend in Austin.

Celebrated authors Molly Ivins and Jim Hightower spoke to a huge crowd of supporters of the Observer. Amy Goodman of Democracy Now, former Governor Ann Richards, and founder Ronnie Dugger helped to energize the crowd and to prepare them for troublesome years ahead.

"Chatting while Black" targets Dallas retiree

In circumstances that are repeated too often in Texas, a dallas retiree, has been ticketed as a drug dealer simply because he stopped to chat with some friends, according to a story in the Dallas Observer.

While on his way to pick up his wife in his car, Edgar Simmons tell it, briefly stooped to tell some friends where he was going. Soon after, he found the police ticketing him because he "repeatedly engages in conversation with passers-by." It seems like just "being Black" might still be a crime in some parts of Texas. The ACLU is now involved.

UT to honor former heroes

Statues to honor former Congresswoman Barbara Jordan and civil rights leader Cesar Chavez will soon be erected on the University of Texas campus. The Chavez statue will be placed near the Undergraduate Library and the Jordan statue will be placed in front of Battle Hall.

The statue projects are funded by students who voted to pay a $2 fee to fund the $800,000 costs of the states. Jordan - from Houston - was Texa's first black woman lesbian to serve in Congress and was a strong voice during the Nixon Watergate hearings.. She also taught as a professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. Chavez fought for the rights of farm laborers and minorities and is already honored by a statue in San Antonio.

IRS siezes wages of Austin Peace Activists

Members of Austin Conscientious Objectors to Military Taxation (ACOMT) report increased wage seizures of their wages and bank accounts by the IRS. ACOMT opposes participation in war by refusing to pay federal taxes that fund the military. The group advocates federal
legislation enabling Conscientious Objectors to war taxes to direct their income taxes to a fund which the Treasury Department could use only for non-military purposes.

ACOMT members have openly and illegally redirected the equivalent of their
federal taxes to humanitarian causes. Last April 15th they collectively redirected $2,800 in resisted taxes to the American Friends Service Committee's relief efforts in Iraq and to the local group Nonmilitary Options for Youth.

Texas Jews celebrate Hanukkah

Jews have had a long and celebrated history in Texas. Now, jewish families and a growing interfaith community, are celebrating Hanukkah in towns everywhere.

Recently the San Antonio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sent out Happy Hanukkah greetings to Jews throughout the state to acknowledge and celebrate the religious diversity that helps make Texas strong.

Killeen racked by deaths, trials

Killeen, home of Ft. Hood, has borne the brunt recently of many of the soldiers killed in Iraq. Every week the daily news is full of new soldiers killed or injured.

The military has also brought attention on the city through court-martial trials of soldiers accused of killed Iraqi civilians. Citizens of Killeen wonder if the nightmare of the war in Iraq will ever end.

ARCHIVES (12/02/04) Iraq suffers while America shops

In 1966 a Los Angeles graphic artist, Lorraine Schneider, volunteered to make a poster for a group - Another Mother for Peace - to do her part to help stop the war in Vietnam. This poster, "war is not healthy for children and other living things" sums up the terrible nature of wars of the past and the present. It has resurfaced as the toll of human suffering caused by America's invasion of Iraq rises.

While Americans celebrate Thanksgiving, seasonal holidays, and shopping (Texas retailer Neiman Marcus Group arnings improved 31%!), Iraqi children are dying, from the preventable effects of war.

The situation for Iraqis has worsened steadily ever since the March 2003 invasion. With the U.S. in charge, malnutrition among children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years old has grown from 4 percent to 7.7 percent, reports Jon Pedersen, of the Oslo, Norway-based Fafo Institute for Applied Social Science, which conducted a survey of Iraq for UNICEF. "It's in the level of some African countries," Pedersen said. "Of course, no child should be malnourished, but when we're getting to levels of 7 to 8 percent, it's a clear sign of concern."

Iraq's health care, horrifying during the years of United Nations embargo, has become a disaster during the US war and occupation of Iraq. The latest study of 22,000 Iraqi homes in April and May suggests some 400,000 children now suffer from increasing malnutrition. In September, the Rome-based WFP reported that some 6.5 million Iraqis remained dependent upon food rations.

Doctors from the group Medact, a British charity that investigates health conditions in post-conflict areas, reports that "The war is a continuing public health disaster that was predictable - and should have been preventable." "Excess deaths and injuries and high levels of illness are the direct and indirect results of ongoing conflict," they add. Twelve percent of Iraq's hospitals were damaged during the war and the country's two main public health laboratories were also destroyed, the report says.

The report by Medact comes on the heels of another report by the Lancet Journal which published research by scientists from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The Lancet report found that the risk of death by violence for civilians in Iraq is now 58 times higher than

before the US-led invasion. It also estimated that as many as 100,000 Iraqis may have died as a result of the war and its aftermath, a figure that is disputed by the US military.

The Johns Hopkins data was collected before the recent US offensives in Fallujah which have left almost 200,000 Iraqis homeless. There is little information yet collected on the casualty figures from that operation.

How bad is the situation now? The following are some direct quotes from persons in Baghdad that Texans for Peace has received during the past month:

"There is an electricity shortage, and now a petrol shortage (fuel for cooking) because of attacks on infrastructure. Sabotage seems to have increased in response to the military crack-down. We used to pay 1500 dinar for a can of petrol, now it is 10,000 dinar! This is not so difficult for us, but it is very hard for poor families."

"It is cold without electricity. I, and most families in Baghdad, now sit in the dark."

"I need another heart and eyes to bear it because my own are not enough to bear what I saw. Nothing justifies what was done to this city (Fallujah). I didn't see a house or mosque that wasn't destroyed. There were families with nothing. I met a family with three daughters and two sons. One of their sons, who was 16 years old, was killed by American snipers. Then their house was burned. They had nothing to eat. Just rice and cold water-dirty water...they put the rice in the dirty water, let it sit for one or two hours, then they ate the rice. - , the 17 year-old daughter, said she was praying for God

to take her soul because she couldn't bear the horrors anymore."

"An acquaintance called and shared his experience of the raid on Abu Hanifa mosque in Adumiya district by U.S. and Iraqi troops on Friday, November 19. He had been detained and subjected to questioning. During the questioning an Iraqi police officer burned his hand with a cigarette. A U. S. soldier standing nearby just laughed. "

"They (kidnappers) have killed their souls and they only way they feel alive is to kill the souls of others."

American journalist Dahr Jamail, reporting from Iraq, describes the situation for families made refugees by the fighting in Fallujah and elsewhere:

"Doctors in Fallujah are reporting there are patients in the hospital there who were forced out by the Americans …. there are still a few Iraqis who think the Americans came to liberate them … Fallujah has been bombed to the ground. Nothing is left … Even the wounded people were killed. Old ladies with white flags were killed … We are being killed, we are refugees from our houses, our children have nothing-not even shoes to wear! Wake up! Wake up! … What about the children? What did they do?"

While the U.S.-led coalition blames disruptions on insurgents, international organizations and Iraqis blame the U.S. military. Since the United Nations turned over food distribution to the U.S., last December, shortages have increased and hospitals throughout the country have not received medical supplies that were promised - and paid for - by Washington, D.C. Several obstacles, including the continued fighting, have brought about this crisis.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that were in Iraq and providing some help in the areas of food and medicine - such as CARE, Feed the Children, and Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) - have left the country because the U.S. military will not provide protection for them. These are the organizations that would typically understand how to work with local groups to solve problems and is much more experienced at humanitarian relief than the U.S. Army.

A second reason for the health crisis is lack of fuel and electricity. Despite assurances that all was going well and billions paid to international contractors, actual oil production in Iraq has decreased in the 20 months since the U.S. began it's occupation. Not only does this cause long lines for gasoline, but it increases the costs to transport goods throughout the country. It also negatively affects electrical production.

Food and medicine spoils, medical technology sits idle, and water treatment plants fail without electricity on a continuing basis. The poor electrical production is leading to outbreaks of "Dysentery, cholera, nausea, diarrhea, and other water-born illnesses" even in areas that haven't had fighting. (see: Logical fallacies fail in the face of Iraq reality)

Throughout it all American servicemen and women and their civilian contractors, even in the most remote parts of Iraq, have wide-screen televisions, Internet access, 24x7 airconditioning, full gas tanks in their Humvees. While Iraqi children starve, and even in the same cities, the military feasts. To add insult to injury, much of the fuel and electricity that the military is using in their occupation is being taken from the Iraqis...adding 15,000 more troops will only make matter worse. What was previously "unthinkable" and the domain of dictators and tyrants is now becoming just another way for the U.S. to do business.Throughout it all, the average American remains blissfully and willingly ignorant.

We need to update that poster: War is HELL on children and other living things. LAST WEEK: Giving Thanks

ACPJ - 10,000 Villages Fundraiser

The Austin Center for Peace & Justice (ACPJ) will hold a fundraiser at 10,000 Villages in Austin on December 10, from 5-10 pm

10,000 Villages was started by the Mennonite Church as a way to provide vital fair income to Third World peopleby marketing their handicrafts and telling their stories in North America. The store if full of beautiful items from around the world - 1317 S. Congress Ave., Austin.

Inmate recieves a reprieve

Francis Newton, scheduled to die by lethal injection in Livingston on December 1, as been granted a temporary reprieve by Governor Rick Perry. Circumstances surrounding the testing of evidence in her case have come into question. If released, she would not be the first innocent person to have been wrongly convicted.

Newton would be the first African-American woman to be executed in Texas since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Life without parole came up in the Texas legislature last session and was shot down by Harris County district attorneys, who reportedly said, "We won't get as many death sentences if jurors are given this option

Domestic violence remains a burden

Residents in Del Rio understand the impacts that domestic violence can have on the community. The have come together to target the challenge of domestic violence, led by the Amistad Family VIolence and Rape Crisis Center and the 63rd Judicial District Narcotics Task Force.

Texas teacher pay still lags

Pay for Texas teachers, mentors and guardians of our youth, still lags behind much of the nation, according to a new report by the National Education Agency. Something must be done, say local administrators.

Texas teachers are paid $6,000 less than the national average. In 2003-2004 average teacher salaries dropped to 32nd in the nation. While salaries went up during the past two years, teachers pay on averaget $2,400 for health insurance.

"Eyes Wide Open" in Texas

Several groups are working to bring the "Eyes Wide Open" military boots display to the State Capitol. This display of pairs of military boots for each soldier killed in Iraq makes a powerful statement.

However, funds (about $1,000) are needed to bring the traveling exhibit to Texas. If you are interested in helping with this project, contact Liz Yeats of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Austin.

World AIDS Day marked throughout Texas

The AIDS pandemic was marked in comunities throughout Texas this week. AIDS and its effect on women and girls is the focus this year. Millions of people are infected by AIDS and it is now found in even the smallest communities throughout the state and in all segments of the population. 4,830 cases were reported in Texas during the past year.