November 2005 - Page 3 of 7

Uncovering Muslim Identity

Kenji Yoshino November 23, 2005 Kenji Yoshino

On July 11, 2004, Rajinder Singh Khalsa, an Indian Sikh man, was accosted by a group of men as he stood in front of his brother's restaurant wearing a turban. "Give me that dirty curtain," one of the men said. "It's not a curtain," Khalsa said. "It's a turban." "Go back to your country," another man shot back. Khalsa said: "But we are American, where should we go?" The man suggested Iran. Khalsa said: "We are not Iranian. We are not Muslim. We are Sikhs from India." He said: "Then go back to India." The men began to attack his brother. "Don't do this, he's innocent," Khalsa said. The men then turned to him. They beat him on the nose, eyes, head, everywhere, not stopping until he was unconscious on the pavement. Before they left, they took off his turban and threw it away.

An Agreement to Live: From Zanón to FaSinPat

La Vaca, Translated by Mark Miller November 22, 2005 La Vaca, Translated by Mark Miller

Zanon Workers

It is one of the biggest "recuperated factories" in Argentina with exemplary worker management. It has created jobs, conquered the market, and managed to involve a whole community in its defense against repeated threats of eviction. After long legal maneuvering, a bankruptcy judge decided to hand the factory over to the Fasinpat cooperative in exchange for payment of 30,000 pesos (about $10,000) a month in taxes. It was a big step toward final expropriation and a recognition of the solid work of its 470 workers. Here is the story of this struggle, as told in La Vaca's book, "Sin Patrón" ("Without a Boss").

Teach Me if You Can: An Interview with David Graeber

Steven Durel November 21, 2005 Steven Durel

David Graeber is a professor of anthropology at Yale University. After becoming an activist for the anarchist cause, Graeber received disdain from a few colleagues and was soon informed that his teaching contract would not be renewed. On Nov. 2, I had lunch with Graeber at Yale.

Steven Durel: Professor, it's probable that Yale's leadership decided not to renew your contract because you are an acclaimed anarchist scholar and because you have been active with supposedly "subversive" groups on campus. How do you feel? Aren't you upset?

Eyes on US Troops in Paraguay as Bolivian Election Nears

Benjamin Dangl November 17, 2005 Benjamin Dangl

G.W. Bush and Evo Morales

The recent shift to the left among Latin American governments has been a cause for concern in the Bush administration. The White House has tried in vain to put this shift in check. Presidential elections in Bolivia on December 18th are likely to further challenge U.S. hegemony. Evo Morales, an indigenous, socialist congressman, is expected to win the election. How far will the U.S. go to prevent a leftist victory in Bolivia? Some Bolivians fear the worst. In the past year, U.S. military operations in neighboring Paraguay have complicated the already tumultuous political climate in the region. White House officials claim the operations are based on humanitarian aid efforts. However, political analysts in Bolivia and Paraguay say the activity is aimed at securing the region's gas and water reserves and intervening in Bolivia if Morales wins.

Chavez offers Caribbean cheap oil

Super User November 16, 2005 Super User

PUERTO LA CRUZ, Venezuela – Fresh from his confrontation with Pres. George Bush at the Summit of the Americas, Venezuelan Pres. Hugo Chavez is using his most powerful asset – oil – to challenge U.S. dominance in the Caribbean. His latest move, according to the BBC, is a regional oil initiative to provide fuel at cheaper prices to 15 Caribbean nations.

Venezuela, a leading oil supplier to the United States, is the world’s fifth largest oil exporter, producing 3.1 million barrels a day. Chavez is using that position to develop diversified energy ties with the Caribbean, Latin America, and Asia. He has named the new plan Petrocaribe, and describes it as “an energy alliance” that will offer highly preferential oil prices, with Venezuela picking up 40 percent of the cost if oil is selling at more than $50 a barrel. That could mean further price breaks for Cuba and other nations. read more

Secret prisons spark outrage – about leaks

Super User November 16, 2005 Super User

WASHINGTON – As Democrats press for an inquiry about cooked” pre-war intelligence on Iraq, the House Intelligence Committee, chaired by Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R- MI, has decided to probe into the recent leak of classified information about secret CIA prisons.

On Nov. 2, the Washington Post revealed the existence of so-called “ghost prisons” used to interrogate terrorist suspects in eight countries, including at least two in Eastern Europe. The revelation didn’t only disturb only the president’s allies – downcast by the news of torture and the indictments handed down as a result of the leak of a CIA agent’s name. Some liberals were also upset, since the Post agreed to a request by senior U.S. officials not to name the countries involved. read more