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Vietnamese Peasants Detained by the US Army

The Shadow

S. Brian Willson January 16, 2008 S. Brian Willson

Vietnamese Prisoners
In early April 1969, I found myself in a surreal situation, after which I was never the same. I was in a small village (name unknown), accompanied by a South Vietnamese lieutenant named Bao. Educated in the United States, Bao spoke English fluently, and knew the area well. I was standing no more than 3 feet from the mangled body of a young Vietnamese woman who it appeared had been struggling to protect her children as the village came under fire. Both of her arms remained clutched around her three small children. The village had been bombed just minutes before our arrival by U.S.-trained and equipped South Vietnamese pilots.

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HIV in Uganda: The Challenges of Getting Pills to Patients

Richard Kavuma January 15, 2008 Richard Kavuma

Kampala, Uganda - A somber aura hangs over the compound at Teresa Ntamalengero's home in central Uganda. The men are chatting in hushed voices, the women are huddled up on a bench, and the children stand quietly holding the bicycle rims they use as toys. Inside her mud and wattle house measuring six-by-four meters, Teresa is helping her daughter Janet to sit up with the help of two neighbors. Teresa is 63. Her daughter, Janet Nakyanzi, is 28 but has lost so much weight she looks more like a child. They are both HIV-positive and they need antiretroviral drugs.

Iraq Freedom Congress Convention

Iraq’s Civil Resistance: The Secular Left Opposition Stands Up

Bill Weinberg January 10, 2008 Bill Weinberg

Iraq Freedom Congress Convention
July 4, 2007 saw the Fred Hampton-style execution of the leader of a popular citizen's self-defense force in Baghdad. According to the Iraq Freedom Congress, the group Abdelhussein Saddam was associated with, a unit of US Special Forces troops and Iraqi National Guards raided his home in Baghdad's Alattiba neighborhood at 3:00 AM, throwing grenades in before them-and opening fire without warning at him and his young daughter. The attackers took Saddam, leaving the girl bleeding on the floor. Two days later, his body was found in the morgue at Yarmouk Hospital.

Photo from www.president08.net

New Hampshire: A Report from the Streets and Campaign Offices on Primary Day

Benjamin Dangl January 9, 2008 Benjamin Dangl

On January 8, primary election day in Claremont, New Hampshire, hundreds of campaign signs flapped in the wind, toppling over in snow banks as the sun grew warmer. Competing canvassers zigzagged through neighborhoods while volunteers made countless phone calls from campaign offices. Early polls before primary day pointed to a landslide victory for Barack Obama, but Hillary Clinton ended up winning. What led to the surprise results among Democratic candidates in the New Hampshire primary? A few experiences and sentiments in the streets of Claremont point to some answers.

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Kenya’s Violence: Britain’s Legacy

David Zarembka January 7, 2008 David Zarembka

It's hard to fathom how a rigged election could produce such violence as burning women and children alive in a church. But that's what happened in the Kenya Assemblies of God Church in Kiambaa, just outside the town of Eldoret in western Kenya. Unfortunately, it didn't come as a surprise to me or others living in the region. Some brief historical background may help explain why Kenya has seemed to suddenly erupt into ethnic violence after President Mwai Kibaki was sworn into office following disputed elections.