the-peoples-patriot, a political Blog: 05/09/2004

Saturday, May 15, 2004

Been writing code,

Sorry

MY ADVICE endeavors at keen.com. The number is 1-800-275-5336 (800-ask-keen) + ext. 0329063 for tech stuff, 0329117 for running a small business, and 0329144 on investing. Want to CHAT, I use Yahoo's IM as the_web_ster. View me in the Friends & Family part of webcamnow.com, just click on "view cams", then in the Java window click on WebcamNow Communities drop down arrow & select Friends & Family. Under the live webcams look for & click on me "the_webster".

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Friday, May 14, 2004

Some inportant Tech News for users of Norton Anti-Virus

DO a FRIDAY UPDATE on your NORTON, Anti-Virus Software
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Computer security specialist Symantec(Norton AntiVirus) Thursday moved swiftly to patch for four very serious vulnerabilities in its popular Norton firewall product suite.

An alert from Cupertino, Calif.-based Symantec described the flaws as "high risk" and warned that a successful exploit could wipe out a user's computer. Attackers could also execute remote code with kernel-level privileges on the targeted system.

The vulnerabilities, first discovered by researchers at eEye Digital Security, affect both enterprise and consumer Norton users.

I just went for an update (12:30 PST)and sure as hell there was one there. And I just update Tus and Thursday. Hurry up! Go do it now and then come back and read...

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Spin Control at the Park Service

Despite budget crunches, poor air quality, maintenance backlogs and other problems, the public is not likely to hear any bad news from staff of the National Park Service (NPS). Park superintendents have received orders from the Bush Administration to follow a set of feel-good "talking points" during any interaction with the media, according to internal e-mails obtained by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) and released yesterday.

"This is an unusually aggressive effort to avoid further embarrassment on park-related issues during an election year," PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch.

The shackles are particularly constraining on the touchy topic of the NPS budget. While the fiscal year 2004 NPS budget was bumped up modestly from 2003, much of the funding has been diverted from standard park operations to security efforts and responses to disasters such as fires, meaning a significant shortage of park funds for the coming summer tourist season.

"Park superintendents have been growing more and more concerned that they have inadequate funds to hire the rangers and naturalists who handle the influx of tourists during the summer season," said Ruch. "They're anticipating fewer days of open parks, closed park entrances, and a growing backlog of repair and maintenance problems."

Superintendents are now required to refer to budget cuts as "service-level adjustments," and are advised to avoid the topic when possible. "[I]f you feel you must inform the public through a press release on this years [sic] hours or days of operation for example ... [do not] directly indicate that 'this is a cut' in comparison to last year's operation," ordered an internal memo last February.[1]

Budget issues are not the only area where commentary is being tightly controlled. All NPS superintendents received talking points on the subject of air quality in national parks on April 14, one day before eight of the nation's largest national parks were declared to be in violation of new standards for ozone pollution.

The Bush Administration's punishment for the crime of candor has already been made clear through the fate of Teresa Chambers, chief of the U.S. Park Police. She was put on paid administrative leave last December after she commented to The Washington Post that the diversion of staff to homeland-security duties had led to gaps in other areas of service, creating, by extension, possible public-safety problems in parks and on parkways.[2]

Chambers is forbidden to talk to the media without permission, on threat of losing her job. A protest against Chambers' suspension is gaining momentum through honestchief.com.

"Everybody knows these talking points are guidelines to avoid what's known as 'the Chambers treatment,'" said Bill Wade, director of the Coalition of Concerned National Park Retirees, a group of more than 220 retired park service officials. "If you tell the truth, you'll be quarantined and lose your job."

"It's killing employee morale," said Ruch. "We get regular emails along the lines of, 'Help, I'm in hell,' or 'Thank God I've only got a couple more years of this [before I can retire].'"

This story was jointly produced by BushGreenwatch and Grist Magazine. For more on this story, visit Grist Magazine.

SOURCES:
[1] NPS internal memo, Feb. 20, 2004.
[2] "Park Police Duties Exceed Staffing," Washington Post, Dec. 2, 2003.

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Thursday, May 13, 2004

Update: News & Nader Hires

This week Ralph received the endorsement of the Reform Party USA. Read more...

The Nader Campaign is now hiring for the following paid positions:
Experienced National Field Coordinators, to be based out of D.C., travel required
Arizona Field Coordinator
Missouri Field Coordinator
California Field Coordinator - in the Bay Area
New Mexico, Nevada, Delaware & NYC field coordinators
Experienced researchers and writers, to be based out of D.C.
Fundraisers
Data entry & information managers part-time/full-time in the D.C. office
The Campaign is also seeking these Volunteers:
Pro bono election law lawyers and civil liberties lawyers to defend and prosecute First Amendment/ballot access cases.
Graphic artists;
Website volunteers;
Volunteer State Field Coordinators in Alabama, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wyoming
Petition signature gatherers in all ballot access states.
Please send your resume, cover letter, and three references to positions@votenader.org and please indicate the position for which you are applying or volunteering. Also specify whether you are submitting for a D.C. or state-based position.

Nader tours the Northeast
The campaign is putting the final touches on Ralph's schedule for a tour of the Northeast, from Maine to New Jersey, at the end of May.

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BUSH REFUSES TO CONDEMN PROPONENTS OF TORTURE

President Bush has publicly deplored the treatment
of Iraqi prisoners at Abu
Ghraib, having apologized for the fiasco. Yet, just
days after his apology,
the White House is refusing to condemn its
right-wing allies who are making
light of the situation and defending torture.

For instance, conservative radio host and White
House supporter Rush
Limbaugh this week called the torture "decent
punishment," said soldiers
were simply "having a good time, and also said "I
don't see the big deal
here" (1). White House spokesman Scott McClellan
refused to answer when
asked how the President felt about those comments
(2). Additionally, when
McClellan was asked whether Vice President Cheney
would continue appearing
on Limbaugh's show (as he did in March), McClellan
again refused to comment
(3).

Similarly, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), who President
Bush has repeatedly
praised as an ally, said that he was "more outraged
by the outrage" than by
the abuse (4). Inhofe also said that all the
prisoners are "murderers,
terrorists and insurgents" (5) despite the fact
that the Red Cross notes
that between 70% and 90% of the Iraqi detainees
were "arrested by mistake"
(6). The White House again has refused to rebut
these comments, in stark
contrast to other Republicans like Sen. Lindsey
Graham (R-SC) who said such
comments are "undercutting us in terms of our
international standing" (7).

NOTE: Make sure to see the new television ad by
Media Matters about Rush
Limbaugh's comments at www.mediamatters.org.

Sources:
1. Media Matters for America,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35246.
2. Press Briefing by Scott McClellan, 05/06/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35247.
3. Press Gaggle with Scott McClellan, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35248.
4. President Bush Calls on Congress to Act on Clear
Skies Legislation,
09/16/2003,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35249.
5. Senator 'Outraged at Outrage' in Iraq Prison
Case, Reuters, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35250.
6. Up to 90% of Iraqi detainees arrested by
mistake, Red Cross says, Chicago
Sun-Times, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35251.
7. Iraq prison debate takes partisan turn, Houston
Chronicle, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=35252.

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Federally Sanctioned Mining Abuses Even Worse Under Bush Rule Changes

The 1872 Mining Law, which reaches its 132nd anniversary this week, has allowed the federal government to essentially give away 9.3 million acres of public lands in the American West to mining corporations -- many of them foreign-owned -- who then exploit the land for profit and leave taxpayers to clean up the damage.[1]

Failure to change the law has left a black mark on many an administration -- a tribute to the lobbying power and campaign cash of the mining industry. Rather than push for long-overdue reform of this antiquated law, the Bush Administration has continued the process of giving away public lands for as little as $0.84 an acre.

To make matters even worse, the administration has actually weakened what few environmental protections were in the statute, by allowing for "unlimited use of public land for toxic mine waste disposal."[2]

Since the law went into effect 132 years ago, the federal government has sold 9.3 million acres of public land to mining companies and others at give-away prices, according to a report released this week by the Environmental Working Group (EWG).

Companies that exploit this law, many of them foreign-owned, then use the land for their own profit and do not have to pay the federal government one single penny for the minerals they extract. As if that weren't bad enough, the law then allows these companies to abandon the mines when they are through with them, and leave America's taxpayers to shoulder the cost of cleaning up the waste.

"What you see in this investigation is a taxpayer rip-off of epic proportions," said EWG Analyst Dusty Horwitt, in a press release detailing the report's findings. "The U.S. has given away millions of acres of its public lands, often for less than a dollar per acre. In return, mining interests have left polluted lands and rivers that cost taxpayers billions of dollars to clean up."[3]

The Bush Administration opened the door for mining companies to leave an even bigger mess behind when, in 2001, it abruptly codified (without public comment period) a decision by Interior Secretary Gale Norton that allowed for unlimited dumping of mining waste on public lands.

The administration further weakened protections by stripping language from federal regulations that would have prohibited approval of mines that could cause "substantial irreparable harm."

Even that was not enough. Interior Secretary Norton also wrote new rules that eliminated provisions protecting nearby water supplies from contamination from mining waste.[4]

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that mine waste contaminates 40 percent of western headwaters, and has cost taxpayers $35 billion in environmental clean-up fees.

The EWG report found that 94 foreign-owned corporations from 10 countries have gained control of metals beneath one of every five acres of claimed land in the U.S. -- an estimated 1.2 million acres of public land. Two of the top three claimants are foreign-owned: Placer Dome Inc., a Canadian company, has claimed 268,758 acres of U.S. public lands, and Rio Tinto Limited, an Australian company, has claimed 191, 928 acres.

Public lands claimed by companies under the 1872 Mining Law are not always used for mining. Under the statute, companies also lay claim to public lands in expensive resort areas and use the land instead to build luxury homes and condominiums.

Recently the Bush administration handed a multinational mining company 155 acres of federally owned, prime mountaintop real estate near a Colorado ski resort for just $5 an acre (a total of $875), in an area where 1/10 of an acre fetches as much as $100,000. [BushGreenwatch, May 5]

###

SOURCES:
[1] "Who Owns the West?," Environmental Working Group.
[2] Ibid.
[3] EWG press release, May 10, 2004.
[4] "Who Owns the West?" op. cit.

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Wednesday, May 12, 2004

Stop the gas rip off

IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED THAT IF EVERYONE IN THE
UNITED
STATES DID NOT PURCHASE A DROP OF GASOLINE FOR ONE
DAY AND
ALL AT THE SAME TIME, THE OIL COMPANIES WOULD CHOKE
ON THEIR
STOCKPILES.

AT THE SAME TIME IT WOULD HIT THE ENTIRE
INDUSTRY WITH A
NET LOSS OF OVER 4.6 BILLION DOLLARS WHICH AFFECTS
THE
BOTTOM LINES OF THE OIL COMPANIES.

THEREFORE MAY 19TH HAS BEEN FORMALLY DECLARED
"STICK IT
TO THEM" DAY AND THE PEOPLE OF THIS NATION SHOULD
NOT BUY A
SINGLE DROP OF GASOLINE THAT DAY.

THE ONLY WAY THIS CAN BE DONE IS IF YOU FORWARD
THIS
E-MAIL TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU CAN AND AS QUICKLY
AS YOU
CAN TO GET THE WORD OUT.

WAITING ON THIS ADMIINSTRATION TO STEP IN AND
CONTROL
THE PRICES IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. WHAT HAPPENED TO
THE
REDUCTION AND CONTROL IN PRICES THAT THE ARAB
NATIONS
PROMISED TWO WEEKS AGO?

REMEMBER ONE THING, NOT ONLY IS THE PRICE OF
GASOLINE
GOING UP BUT AT THE SAME TIME AIRLINES ARE FORCED
TO RAISE
THEIR PRICES, TRUCKING COMPANIES ARE FORCED TO
RAISE THEIR
PRICES WHICH EFFECTS PRICES ON EVERYTHING THAT IS
SHIPPED.
THINGS LIKE FOOD, CLOTHING, BUILDING MATERIALS,
MEDICAL
SUPPLIES ETC. WHO PAYS IN THE END? WE DO!

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. IF THEY DON'T GET THE
MESSAGE
AFTER ONE DAY, WE WILL DO IT AGAIN AND AGAIN.

SO DO YOUR PART AND SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD
THIS EMAIL
TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW. MARK YOUR CALENDARS AND MAKE
MAY 19TH
A DAY THAT THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES SAY
"ENOUGH IS
ENOUGH"

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What to do on Memorial Day weekend for yourself and your family's wellbeing

On Memorial Day weekend, Hollywood is releasing a summer blockbuster movie that's making the Bush administration very nervous. In fact, they'd rather you didn't see it at all.

Why? Because it's a disaster movie about global warming.

While "The Day After Tomorrow" is more science fiction than science fact, everyone will be talking about it -- and asking "Could it really happen?" This is an unprecedented opportunity to talk to millions of Americans about the real dangers of global warming and expose President Bush's foot-dragging on the issue.

It's also a fun movie to see with friends over the holiday weekend.

So here's the plan: On Memorial Day weekend, grab a few friends and go see "The Day After Tomorrow" -- the movie the White House doesn't want you to see. At the theater, meet up with other MoveOn members to give out flyers that explain, in everyday language, what causes global warming, how Bush's environmental policies could lead us into a real-life climate crisis, and what we can do together to meet this challenge.

Please also sign our petition calling on Bush and Congress to prevent a climate crisis, at:

http://www.moveon.org/climatecrisis/

Maybe you've already seen the trailer for "The Day After Tomorrow": tornadoes whip through Los Angeles and Manhattan is frozen over as global warming triggers an Ice Age across North America.

Nearly 20 million Americans are expected to see this movie, with as many as 7 or 8 million over Memorial Day weekend alone. Because the movie capitalizes on our real-life concerns over climate change, audiences are likely to walk out of the theater asking themselves: "Could it really happen?" We'll be there to answer that question with our flyers.

The right wing has already cranked up its PR machine to discredit the movie as "fright flick" propaganda cooked up by climate change conspiracy theorists. Never mind that they're relying on stone-age science, or that they're light-years behind the curve on the public's acceptance of global warming as a real environmental threat.

The news media are already buzzing about our plans. Yesterday, we held a press conference to officially launch the campaign, and stories have already appeared in the Associated Press, the New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times.

We can't afford to wait until the day after tomorrow to address the climate crisis. We hope you'll be part of this fun summer campaign to elevate global warming from movie-house thrill-ride to White House priority.

P.S.: You can see the movie trailer at:

http://www.dayaftertomorrowmovie.com/

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BUSH DISTORTS EDUCATION RECORD IN 3-STATE TOUR

To kick off his three-day, three-state education tour,
President Bush yesterday claimed that he has seriously
increased funding for education, saying that "we're
doing our duty, we understand that people need extra
help, and the federal government is responding"
(1).
But a look at the numbers shows that the President
has
left a $72 billion gap between what he promised to
spend on education and what he has actually
proposed
-- leaving hundreds of thousands of children behind
(2).

Yesterday the President visited Arkansas, a state
that
was promised $176 million for disadvantaged
children
by the White House in the No Child Left Behind Act.
Instead, the Bush budget provides the state with
only
$117 million (3). That means more than 60,000
Arkansas
kids will be denied federal education assistance
(4).
All told, Bush is proposing to reduce funding for
almost one third of Arkansas school districts from
the
levels of one year ago (5). Of course, the
President
still insisted that his education budget met his
promises to Arkansas. But just last month the
University of Arkansas released a comprehensive
study
showing that the Bush budget gaps were damaging
education throughout the state (6).

The President will continue his education tour in
Maryland today and in West Virginia tomorrow - both
states with the same story. Bush promised $264
million to Maryland this year for educating
disadvantaged children (7), and yet he is only
proposing to give the state $171 million -- leaving
more than 60,000 kids behind (8). And in West
Virginia, Bush promised $163 million but is only
providing $106 million -- leaving more than 40,000
kids behind. Making matters worse, a new report
shows
that West Virginia is among the 8 states whose
budgets
have been hardest hit by other White House
policies,
with Bush policies draining away state money that
could be used to fill education budget shortfalls
(9).

Sources:
1. President Bush Visits Butterfield Junior High in
Van Buren, Arkansas, 05/11/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34906.
2. PASSING DOWN THE DEFICIT, Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities, 05/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34907.
3. Press Release, American Federation of Teachers,
01/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34908.
4. National Education Association,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34909.
5. Associated Press, 3/15/04.
6. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 4/30/04.
7. Press Release, American Federation of Teachers,
01/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34908.
8. National Education Association,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34909.
9. PASSING DOWN THE DEFICIT, Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities, 05/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34907.

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Taxpayers Losing Millions as Bush OK's Logging in Roadless Forests

The Tongass and Chugach National Forests contain some of the largest remaining stands of roadless ancient temperate rainforest in the U.S. They hug the coast of southeast Alaska, providing habitat for numerous wildlife species—river otters, grizzly bears, bald eagles, mountain goats, wolves, salmon, and more. Vital local industries, including commercial fishing and tourism, depend upon the health of the Tongass and Chugach. [1]

The Roadless Area Conservation Rule, enacted in January 2001, protects areas like these from commercial logging. It also protects against oil and gas drilling, as well as extensive off-road vehicle use. [2] In May 2001, Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman expressed support for the Roadless Rule, calling it "the right thing to do." [3]

But when the state of Alaska filed a lawsuit in 2001 the Bush administration chose not defend the rule. [4] Instead, last June it proposed exempting the Tongass from the Roadless Rule's protection.

During the 45-day public comment period, about a quarter of a million citizens sent in comments. Laurie Cooper, manager of the Alaska Rainforest Campaign, told BushGreenwatch that "99 percent of these were in favor of keeping protections on both the Tongass and the Chugach. The public is very much in support of protecting our last wild forests."

Nonetheless, last December the Bush Administration announced the exemption of the Tongass from the Roadless Rule. [5] According to Cooper, the indefinite, supposedly temporary, exemption of the Tongass opens up 9.3 million acres of ancient forest for road development and timber sales. If extended to the 5 million eligible acres of the Chugach, a quarter of the land originally covered by the Roadless Rule will be unprotected.

Cooper sees no economic justification for this level of logging. "Despite what the Forest Service or the Bush administration would like to portray, the decline of the timber industry is not due to the protection of these wild roadless areas," she says. "There was a series of pulp mill closures, as well as an increase in supply from other regions of the world that made it uneconomical to log in the Tongass."

Logging in the Tongass actually costs American taxpayers millions of dollars. According to the watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense, "A recent analysis by the Southeastern Alaska Conservation Council estimates that U.S. taxpayers spent $170,000 for every direct timber job created by logging in the Tongass National Forest in 2002--an amount equal to more than four times the average U.S. household income ($42,409) for the same year." The timber program could lose up to $30 million a year through non-competitive and under-valued timber sales. Plus, there is a $900 million backlog of deferred maintenance and capitol improvements to existing Tongass roads. [6]

"For 2001, spending on the planning process, as well as road construction, cost $36 million," says Cooper. "And in return, receipts were $1.2 million. It’s a federal subsidy to keep the timber industry operating in the Tongass."

The Bush administration wants to make the Tongass and Chugach exemptions permanent. It may use them to gut the Roadless Rule, which also protects some 44 million acres of forest in the lower 48 states. The administration is said to be preparing an extensive revision of the rule to give governors options to apply for exemptions in their states. [7]

As Cooper noted, Undersecretary of Agriculture Mark Rey was previously a top lobbyist for the timber industry.

###

TAKE ACTION
Tell Congress to protect the roadless areas of the Tongass National Forest , and end taxpayer-subsidized logging, with Alaska Rainforest Campaign’s free fax form.

###

SOURCES:
[1] "The Land and Its People," Alaska Rainforest Campaign.
[2] "The Rule of the Roadless," Grist Magazine, Jan. 5, 2001.
[3] "An Anniversary Marked By Controversy,", Alaska Rainforest Campaign.
[4] "Tongass National Forest Exempted from Roadless Rule By Bush Administration," The Wilderness Society.
[5] Ibid.
[6] "Tongass Roadless Exemption Threatens Taxpayers," Taxpayers for Common Sense.
[7] The Wilderness Society, op. cit.

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Tuesday, May 11, 2004

OK, so where have I been? Why no posts?

Hell did I need to just be another someone saying the same thing?

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BUSH ADMINISTRATION MISLEADING ON PRISONER ABUSE

In an attempt to quell growing international
controversy last week, President Bush expressed
outrage at the abuse of Iraqi prisoners. He told
Arab
television that he thinks "this is a serious
matter"
and that "we will fully investigate" (1). However,
the
President has yet to answer why no action was taken
to
deal with the problem in the last six months --when
the Administration was repeatedly warned of
"widespread" abuse (2).

Specifically, The International Committee of the
Red
Cross (ICRC) delivered a confidential report to the
White House earlier this year which "concluded that
abuse of prisoners in Iraq in custody of U.S.
military
intelligence was widespread and in some cases
'tantamount to torture" (3). It also charged
coalition forces with "serious violations" of the
Geneva Conventions governing treatment of prisoners
of
war violations that may have been encouraged by
Bush's "pre-war decision that the Geneva
Conventions
didn't apply" to detainees (4). The Red Cross said
it
had been aware of the situation in Abu Ghraib and
"repeatedly asked the U.S. authorities to take
corrective action," but were rebuffed (5).

Even top Administration officials were asking the
White House to address the situation earlier, but
were
ignored. The Washington Post reported that
"Secretary
of State Colin L. Powell urged action in several
White
House meetings that included Rumsfeld" (6).
Similarly,
Coalition Provisional Authority chief Paul Bremer
"repeatedly raised the issue of prison conditions
as
early as last fall - both in one-on-one meetings
with
Rumsfeld and other administration leaders, and in
group meetings with the President's inner circle on
national security" (7). But "the Pentagon
repeatedly
failed to act" (8). At the same time, the Red
Cross
was told by intelligence officials that the abuse
it
witnessed was just "part of the process" (9).

Sources:
1. President Bush Meets with Al Arabiya Television
on
Wednesday, 05/05/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34679.
2. "Red Cross Found Widespread Abuse Of Iraqi
Prisoners", Wall Street Journal, 05/07/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34680.
3. "Red Cross Found Widespread Abuse Of Iraqi
Prisoners", Wall Street Journal, 05/07/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34680.
4. "Pentagon intelligence chief appears before
Senate
panel", Fox News, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34681.
5. "Red Cross says it repeatedly warned about
jail",
Reuters, 05/06/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34682.
6. "Bush Privately Chides Rumsfeld", Washington
Post,
05/06/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34683.
7. "Bush Apologizes for Abuse of Prisoners",
Washington Post, 05/07/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34684.
8. "Bush Privately Chides Rumsfeld", Washington
Post,
05/06/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34683.
9. "Red Cross Was Told Iraq Abuse 'Part of the
Process", Reuters, 05/10/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=34685.

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U.S. Fish & Wildlife Biologist Charges Manipulation of Science on Florida Panther

A veteran biologist at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has filed a legal complaint against FWS, charging it with intentionally using flawed scientific data in decisions regarding the endangered Florida panther.

"The Fish and Wildlife Service is under severe pressure from its political superiors to commit scientific fraud to avoid inconveniencing campaign contributors," says Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), which joined FWS scientist Andrew Eller, Jr. on the May 4 complaint. [1]

Eller, a 17-year employee of the FWS, has worked on Florida panther recovery efforts for 10 years. His professional contributions have included participation in a multi-agency, habitat preservation working group in 1991, serving as Assistant Panther Coordinator from 1993 to 1998, and writing panther-related biological opinions required under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) from 1998 to 2003. [2]

Eller and PEER charge that "[p]anther literature considered 'best available science' by the USFWS contains unsupported assumptions, uses inappropriate analytical methods, and selectively uses data to support conclusions."

FWS has cited this literature to justify overestimates of the panther's breeding population, reproductive and survival rates, and underestimates of the panther's habitat needs—using the panther's less active daytime habits to estimate the range for the mostly-nocturnal species.

The errors have been exposed in published peer reviews, field reports, court declarations, and by a 2003 independent, joint review team of the FWS and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. FWS has 60 days in which to accept or contest the Eller/PEER complaint. [3]

"Ironically, the Service is using this bad science to justify allowing the same kinds of development in southwest Florida that has led to the need for Everglades restoration in southeast Florida," Jeff Ruch told BushGreenwatch.

The Florida panther was listed as endangered under the ESA in 1967. There are only an estimated 60-80 wild panthers left, numbers so few that the species is on the edge of genetic collapse. Cougars from Texas have been introduced into the Florida population to diversify the gene pool. [4]

FWS management recently acknowledged that staff morale was low due to questions about the agency's scientific credibility. On May 5, the Service held an all-staff "Town Hall" meeting.

This "rich discussion of scientific practices in the past, present and future" featured a call-in with FWS Director Steve Williams, a Bush administration appointee. Williams is developing a track record of decisions that ignore scientific recommendations and input from experienced FWS staff. All FWS employees have also been ordered to watch a video, "Science and the Service: A Tradition of Excellence." [5]

"During the call, an employee from Alaska asked Williams about the Florida panther complaint -- the charge from within that there was scientific fraud at Fish and Wildlife," PEER's Ruch told BushGreenwatch. "Williams replied that it was important to deal with internal frustrations constructively, told a long-winded story about Olaus Murie and the founding of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and then asked for the next question."

Dozens of the world's most esteemed scientists have criticized the Bush administration for manipulation of science and conflicts of interest in policymaking. Earlier this year, the Union of Concerned Scientists released a report detailing the administration’s misuse of data in setting policy on climate change, public health threats, endangered species, air pollution, forest management, and other issues. [6]

###

SOURCES:
[1] PEER press release, May. 4, 2004.
[2] Complaint on Data Quality Act violations, May 4, 2004.
[3] Ibid.
[4] National Wildlife Federation Florida Panther web pages.
[5] PEER Press Release, May 5, 2004.
[6] BushGreenwatch, Apr. 20, 2004.

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Monday, May 10, 2004

I'm keeping a eye out on your behalf

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Update on the Nader Campaign

Today, May 10th, Ralph Nader and three Texas voters seeking to be his presidential electors, filed suit against the State of Texas for preliminary and injunctive relief against the State’s ballot access law. The suit, Nader et al, v. Connor, filed in federal court in Austin, notes that the campaign has already collected in excess of 50,000 signatures and urges the Court to find the statute unconstitutional and discriminatory in three respects, including the earlier deadline and the greater number of signatures required for Independents. For more, please read the press release. We are continuing to collect signatures in Texas for the next two weeks until the deadline for third parties, May 24. Thanks to all the volunteers in Texas who collected signatures!

Please keep collecting!

Tomorrow, Tuesday, May 11, Ralph will appear on C-SPAN from 9:00 to 9:30 AM ET.
If you haven't already, check out the new videos on the VoteNader.org web site and stay tuned for our new Iraq page.

A look back -- last week with the Nader Campaign:
Last week Ralph appeared on CNN and FOX -- twice each -- he is being more and more clearly defined as the anti-war candidate since he is the only candidate calling for a responsible withdrawal.
Common Dreams published an article by Nader spokesperson, Kevin Zeese -- The Challenge and Opportunity of 2004: How to Build a Common Sense, Populist Political Movement and Remove President Bush from Office. If you want to convince someone why it is important to support the Nader campaign send them this article: http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0506-04.htm
‘Students for Nader’ chapters are multiplying across the country.
Chapters have tripled within a month’s time and are on the threshold of reaching 100 in total! Our students have been interviewed by their local papers and are working diligently to get Ralph’s message out. To find a campus near you, see http://www.votenader.org/sfn/get_involved/chapters.php.
Join thousands of others in signing the Impeachment Inquiry petition of Bush and Cheney, http://www.votenader.org/get_involved/impeach.php and read Ralph’s stance on the occupation of Iraq and his call for withdrawal.

Check out these interesting press releases: Nader Charges Limiting Ballot Access Undermines Democracy, Nader to Michael Moore: "Hey Dude, Where’s My Buddy!!??", Nader Submits for Federal Matching Funds, Nader Calls for Breast Cancer Prevention, and many more.

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Bush Giving Away Wilderness to Oil and Gas Industry

The White House's rush to lease pristine public lands across the Rocky Mountains to the oil and gas industry is showing signs of being little more than a land grab, designed to prevent protection of hundreds of thousands of acres under the Wilderness Act.

A recent study of oil and gas drilling activity by The Wilderness Society found that the gas industry is stockpiling leases and drilling permits on 34 million acres of public lands in the Rockies, but is only producing oil or gas on 32 percent of that land. Over the past 10 years, the industry has received permission from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to drill 25,000 new wells, but has only drilled 19,000. Based on the record pace of drilling over the last few years, it would take several years to finish drilling the wells that have already been approved by the BLM.

While some industry representatives and Republican leaders accuse environmental groups of allegedly causing a slowdown in gas drilling activity, drilling is currently at its physical limit: there aren't enough drilling rigs in the Rockies to satisfy the abundant drilling prospects already made available to the gas industry. Further, some experts suspect that the gas industry is sitting on all that land in order to keep gas prices high -- many firms in the Rockies are posting record profits while families and businesses struggle to pay their energy bills.

"If sensitive areas on public lands were the only places left to drill, the BLM's actions might be explainable," the Denver Post said in a recent editorial. "But they're not. Energy companies have plenty of promising places to drill without invading proposed wildernesses or creating disturbances near parks and monuments."[1]

Meanwhile, the industry continues to push BLM to lease more land in even more remote areas -- many of which had already been nominated in Congress for wilderness protection.

One recent such proposal in Colorado drew the ire of U.S. Rep Diana DeGette, a Colorado Democrat who has legislation pending to protect nearly 19,000 acres of critical habitat and watersheds in her state's high country. Next month the BLM plans to offer all 19,000 acres for lease to the oil and gas industry.

"I realize that it is not a mistake that these particular areas are picked out for drilling, and all of us intend to protect them," DeGette told the Rocky Mountain News.[2] "(The) vast majority of federal land in Colorado already is open for drilling," she added. "Only a small amount is eligible for protection as wilderness, and the Bush administration should respect that."

The reasons behind Bush's push to give away public lands may be less obvious than they appear. The President's industrial backers and business partners are consistent opponents of federally-designated wilderness, because it precludes industrial activity like road building, timber cutting and oil and gas drilling.

But oil and gas industry executives, working from inside the administration, may have a more pressing reason to give away public lands to their once and future employers.

The energy industry, rocked by the Enron scandal and its own dubious business decisions, is saddled with massive amounts of debt. Large gas companies like El Paso have been forced to sell off major assets in order to keep Wall Street off their backs.

But questionable accounting practices common in the industry encourage gas firms to book potential future profits as a way to improve their earnings outlook. By stockpiling leases and drilling permits, the gas industry could be sacrificing America's wilderness heritage in order to pay off its junk debt.

###

SOURCES:
[1] "Public Lands Under Attack," Denver Post, Apr. 11, 2004.
[2] "Foes seek protection for land Bush plan targets for drilling," Rocky Mountain News, Apr. 30, 2004.

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Sunday, May 09, 2004

You Think You've Got High GAS Prices

Ok, the real info. is that Safeway was just opening a new store that day & I just happen to be there at the right time to see the sign being turned on. The price had not been set yet. The real price on 5-2-04 was 1.98 after the .03 cents is taken away. Although as of yesterday 5-5 oil prices jumped up to over $39.00 a barrel. A 13 yr. high. I wonder who we should thank for that?????
OH!!!! and by the way $8.88 is about what you pay for Water when you buy it by those little bottles in the stores. Get a fulter and fulter your own...

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the-peoples-patriot, a political Blog

Saturday, May 15, 2004

Been writing code,

Friday, May 14, 2004

Some inportant Tech News for users of Norton Anti-Virus

Spin Control at the Park Service

Thursday, May 13, 2004

Update: News & Nader Hires

BUSH REFUSES TO CONDEMN PROPONENTS OF TORTURE

Federally Sanctioned Mining Abuses Even Worse Under Bush Rule Changes

Wednesday, May 12, 2004

Stop the gas rip off

What to do on Memorial Day weekend for yourself and your family's wellbeing

BUSH DISTORTS EDUCATION RECORD IN 3-STATE TOUR

Taxpayers Losing Millions as Bush OK's Logging in Roadless Forests

Tuesday, May 11, 2004

OK, so where have I been? Why no posts?

BUSH ADMINISTRATION MISLEADING ON PRISONER ABUSE

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Biologist Charges Manipulation of Science on Florida Panther

Monday, May 10, 2004

I'm keeping a eye out on your behalf

Update on the Nader Campaign

Bush Giving Away Wilderness to Oil and Gas Industry

Sunday, May 09, 2004

You Think You've Got High GAS Prices

Agree or not, talking it over is better...

Saturday Night Live - Palin / Hillary Open

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