>
> Subject: Interesting facts.....
>
> In a message dated 1/22/01 9:15:03 AM Pacific Standard Time,
> GWFussello writes:
>
> This is very interesting!
>
> Southern California Edison's CEO, Mr. John E. Bryson's salary for
> 1999 was $999,000.00. His bonus for 1999 was $1,260,000.00.
>
> Robert D. Glen, CEO of Pacific Gas & Electric earned well over
> $2,000,000.00 in salary and bonuses for 1999.
>
> The parent company of Southern California, Edison International,
> has $71,800,000.00 in assets. (Reference: L.A. Times 12/30/00)
>
> Edison and PG&E want an increase of 79% in electricity rates
> starting January 4, 2001.
>
>
> In California we are paying more than the national average for
> electricity.
>
> The California Public Utilities will likely grant PG&E and Edison
> the increase of 79 to 80 percent.
>
>
> Please forward this e-mail to everyone you know. Remember if you
> don't act, don't react when you get that new electric bill.
Governor, the voters of California know.
Despite your un-Christian support of the death penalty (what do you think Christ would think of the perpetuation of the same policy that put him on a cross? Do the words forgiveness and compassion have any meaning to you? And what part of "Thou shalt not kill" do you not understand?), I voted for you last November.
I am fortunate; I have resources to survive that many others lack. But tens of thousands who cannot afford a $400 to $500 utility bill are not as fortunate. Perhaps thousands of the working poor will find themselves with their utilities cut off.
If the will and welfare of the electorate is ignored, perhaps I will vote my conscience next time and, as I did for president, vote Green.
We know, and we are paying attention.
Respectfully yours,
Daniel Beck Zwickel-Wicks ben Avram
2150 Goff Avenue
Pittsburg, California
www.PacifistNation.net
- Subject: Dot.Commies of Havana
Date: Wed, 20 Dec 2000 08:36:40 -0000
from: M.W. Stowell
Friends,
As one apalled by our unreasoning snit over Castro and the devestation wreaked upon the Cuban people as a result, I cannont but help rooting for the commie bastards. And so I found this piece from the Christian Science Monitor (!) rather delightful. Wouldn't it be a laugh riot if Cuba turned into Valle Silicon del Carribeño! Enjoy.
–Daniel
Headline: Dotcommies take over Cuba
Byline: Timothy Ashby and Elizabeth Bourget
Date: 12/20/2000
(SAN MATEO, CALIF.) Another revolution is sweeping through Cuba.
Today, Fidel Castro seems as determined to create a world-class information- technology sector as he was to overthrow the Batista dictatorship in the 1950s. Anticipating an end to the United States trade embargo, Cuba is preparing to become the Caribbean's digital hub.
Largest of the Caribbean island states, with a land area of 43,000 square miles and 11 million people, Cuba has been economically and politically isolated from its giant neighbor 90 miles to the north for more than 40 years.
Despite what one may think about Fidel Castro, none of the profound economic changes taking place in Cuba today would be possible without his direct guidance. Mr. Castro and his still officially Communist government have undertaken Cuba's economic transformation by following a policy based on technology, markets, and new capital.
The aging revolutionaries who followed Moscow's model have been replaced by a new generation of well-educated, pragmatic officials. Among members of the Cuban National Assembly, the average age is 40; the foreign minister is 35, and the minister of foreign investment is a 49-year-old woman. They read The Wall Street Journal and George Gilder's "Telecosm," a US bestseller on the revolution in broadband, and shake their heads when foreign leftists spout Marxist dialectic at them.
In January 2000, the Cuban government established a Ministry of Information Technology (MINIT) with a mandate to make Cuba an "information society" and quickly develop an information-technology industry and e-business. MINIT has various subsidiaries operating as profitmaking businesses focusing on telecommunications, software, hardware, wireless, e-commerce, and training.
Eight Cuban universities offer degrees in information technology, and the Institute for Science operates 40 branches around the island providing adult education in computer science. Several Internet service providers are available, owned by government ministries but functioning like competing dotcoms.
Cuba has an established electronics manufacturing industry. Semiconductors, radios, televisions, and Cuban-designed computers are assembled with foreign parts. There are 30 software-development companies; none existed three years ago. Total software exports for 2000 may seem paltry at $14 million, but they have grown 650 percent since 1999.
Computer youth clubs are springing up everywhere. A club in Havana has work stations with modern Pentium computers on the ground floor, used by young Web designers looking like dotcommies from a Silicon Valley start-up. The walls are emblazoned with slogans and posters - but not quite the ones expected in a club owned and operated by the Cuban Communist Party. The predominant slogan is "Creemos en el Futuro" ("We Believe in the Future"). Posters advertise courses in software programming, multimedia, computer repair, and e-commerce. Classes upstairs are packed with serious teenagers learning HTML and Microsoft Office.
Students swap copies of Giga, a slick Cuban computer magazine. Recent topics include Internet security and a review of new hotel-reservations software developed by the Cuban firm Softur. Despite the embargo, Giga carries ads for US brands such as Microsoft, IBM, Macintosh, and Oracle.
Cuba is ideally positioned to be a digital hub. The telephone system is being upgraded after a $1 billion investment by Mexican investors. Full digitalization of the telecommunications network is expected in 2004, and more than 2,000 post offices offer Internet access to the local population. Cuba has a cellular telephone system, satellite earth stations are being built, and a new fiber-optic cable connects the island to Florida.
Global information-technology companies plan to make Cuba a premier location for Internet data centers, providing Web-hosting services for businesses throughout the Western Hemisphere. As a likely future member of the North American Free Trade Area, Cuba will offer tax advantages to US firms investing in electronics manufacturing for export. The island has more college graduates per capita than any other Latin American country, and skilled workers earn the equivalent of $30 a month.
Cuba's government has extended an invitation to foreign businesses interested in helping to develop the information-technology industry. Although Cuba would prefer to obtain US expertise and products directly, other nations are currently providing American technology.
"Trading with the US is an American problem, not a Cuban one," says Daniel Fernandez Lopez, vice president of Grupo de la Electronica, a division of MINIT responsible for telecommunications. "We welcome American business, but we can't wait."
Americans who are frustrated by the embargo can begin rebuilding business bridges now by providing charitable IT training, used computer equipment, and exchanges between US and Cuban IT executives, a legal practice under the current embargo. By doing so, we can generate cultural goodwill while laying foundations for future business.
----------------------------
Timothy Ashby, CEO of the Sonrisa Foundation, is the former senior Latin American trade official with the Reagan and Bush administrations.
Elizabeth Bourget is president of A Way With Words, a Silicon Valley marketing and communications agency.
Copyright © 2000 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved.
- Subject: PRAYER FOR GLOBAL HEALING
Date: Sat, 6 Jan 2001 01:42:47 -0800
from: John Auer
". . . 1983 studies followed earlier experiments indicating that as little as one percent of a mass population practicing unified forms of peaceful prayer and meditation was enough to reduce crime rates, accidents and suicides. Studies conducted in 1972 showed that twenty-four U. S. cities, each with populations over ten thousand, experienced a statistically measurable reduction in crime when as few as one percent (one hundred people for every ten thousand) of the population participated in some form of meditative practice." (Gregg Braden, The Isaiah Effect, 236)
As we enter the new Millennium, many of us are searching for ways to enhance our lives, uplift communities and feel more connected with those around us. Perhaps the answer is closer to us than we realize.
"To determine how certain modes of meditation and prayer would influence the general population in the Israeli study, the quality of life was defined by a statistical index based on the number of fires, traffic accidents, occurrences of crime, fluctuations in the stock market and the general mood of the nation. At the peak of the experiments, 234 participants meditated and prayed in the study, a fraction of the population of greater Jerusalem. The results of the study showed a direct relationship between the number of participants and the decrease of activity in the various categories of quality of life. When the numbers of participants were high, the index of the various categories declined. Crime, fire, and accidents increased as the number of people praying was reduced." (ibid.)
Beginning on Tuesday, January 9, 2001, 7:00 P.M.--7:15 P.M. (In your own time zone), and for each Tuesday thereafter, a group of people from many faiths, traditions, and locations around the world, will pause for a moment of collective prayer and meditation. We encourage you, your family, church, temple and community to join this powerful effort for global healing and unity.
The Heart Center for Healing & Reconciliation
4139 N. Kenmore Ave.
Chicago, IL 60613
- Subject: AFSC Youth and Militarism Online Magazine -- Dec.-Jan.
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 17:18:55 -0500
from: Youthmil@afsc.org
Carolyn writes:
I received this from a friend with Veterans for Peace. It sounds like a good resource for people working with youth or who have young people in their lives.
AFSC does good stuff and has a long history of nonviolence and antimilitarism work.
–Carolyn Scarr
----Original Message Follows----
The American Friends Service Committee's National Youth and Militarism Program announces the posting of its December 2000-January 2001 on-line magazine. This issue is a special double-issue.
More than 14,000 high schools give students a US military-sponsored test, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB).
What Students and Educators Should Know about Military Testing in our High Schools -- How the test is being used as a military recruitment tool.
Kansas Students Say NO to Forced Military Testing -- How some students have been forced to take the test.
JROTC: Sending the Wrong Message about Weapons and Violence Concern over weapons and violence in schools has led to "get tough" policies. JROTC, though, contradicts these policies and sends mixed messages to students.
UPDATE: New Federal Law Aids Military Recruiters A new law aids military recruiters in their quest to gain increased access to the nation's secondary schools. What the new law does and does not mean.
Review of Reading, Writing and Rising Up: Teaching About Social Justice and the Power of the Written Word, a new book by Linda Christensen.
Credits:
What Students and Educators Should Know about Military Testing - Harold Jordan
Kansas Students Say NO - Heidi Holliday
JROTC: Sending the Wrong Message about Weapons and Violence - Paul Socolar and Shannon McManimon
Reading, Writing, and Rising Up - Judith McDaniel
New Federal Law Aids Military Recruiters - Harold Jordan
Thanks to Mark Graham (layout/design) and to Terry Foss (posting).
We welcome your comments, feedback and suggestions.
National Youth and Militarism Program
American Friends Service Committee
1501 Cherry Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
phone: 215/241-7176
fax: 215/241-7177 E-mail
Website
- Subject: Fair Trade to free Lori Berenson
Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 15:00:42 -0800
from: Lindasusan Ulrich
Hi there -
As many of you know, I'm one of the Regional Coordinators for the Committee to Free Lori Berenson. Lori is an American human rights activist and freelance journalist unjustly imprisoned in Peru. (For more info, see www.freelori.org.)
The San Francisco group is presently raising funds by selling fair trade coffee. With the holidays approaching, fair trade coffee makes a great gift, as well as a wonderful drink to serve guests.
Why fair trade coffee? Because Lori herself is committed to the quest for social and economic justice for the poor and marginalized -- the same goals as the fair trade movement. (For more on fair trade, see www.transfairusa.org/why/index.html.)
You can order coffee via email or voicemail at 415/430-2169 x1547. (Details below.) Please be sure to include your name and phone number with your order.
And please place your order by NOVEMBER 30 -- the 5th anniversary of Lori's arrest.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Many thanks for supporting this important work!
Peace,
Lindasusan Ulrich
ORDERING FAIR TRADE COFFEE
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Please indicate how many pounds of each coffee type you'd like, as well as whether you prefer whole beans or ground. All coffees cost $12-13/lb.
___ Nicaraguan (organic, French roast)
__whole bean __ground
___ Sumatran (organic, dark roast)
__whole bean __ground
___ Guatemalan Decaf (organic, dark roast)
__whole bean __ground
___ Guatemalan Hazelnut
__whole bean __ground
___ Guatemalan French Vanilla
__whole bean __ground
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
________ Total lbs.
x $12-13 (donation per pound)
________ TOTAL
Thank you very much for supporting the Committee to Free Lori Berenson!
Sorry, once again. Missed the deadline on this one, but I include it just FYI as to what's been happening.
Chagrinnedly,
Daniel
*Come see the exciting documentary, "Making a Killing", exposing Phillip Morris' deadly tactics, both at home and abroad.
***It will be shown Wednesday, October 11, 7:30 pm, at La Pena, 3105 Shattuck, in Berkeley.
*Wayne Baker, interviewed in the film, will speak. See how you can help ***Stop the abuses of big tobacco. This Wednesday at La Pena!!
- Subject: One week to save Low Power FM! Act up!
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 16:07:10 -0800
From: Sonoma Co. Center for Peace & Justice
SORRY, FOLKS Once again I'm a tad late getting this up. I don't know whether or not there's still time, but here it is anyway. A call to your Senator can never hurt!
–Daniel
-----------------
WE HAVE ONE WEEK TO SAVE LOW POWER FM (LEGALIZED MICRO RADIO) FROM THE CHOPPING BLOCK.
Have you called your Senator yet? If not, pick up the phone right now! Want to do something more attention-grabbing? Send your Senator a broken radio!
Keep reading . . .
The National Association of Broadcasters (and unfortunately the national leadership of NPR) and their allies in Congress have succeeded in attaching a rider to a Senate Appropriations Bill that will in effect kill Low Power FM.
That's really bad news for LPFM supporters, but we still have one final trick up our sleeves: The power of the people! We need to mobilize ourselves and our grassroots folks RIGHT NOW to lobby the following key Senators. The more controversial they see this rider is, the more likely they will be to eliminate it from the final Appropriations Bill. We can still win this thing. Lobby these Senators now!
Dates for ZAP ACTION: Oct. 2 - Oct. 5 (The senate session may end Friday; keep going if it doesn't!) Senators should get phone calls, emails, and faxes (there is no time for snail mail)
What to do:
Call your Senators immediately. Phone numbers are below. Send radios to your Senators and tell them to tune in to their constituents! We need to get their attention!
What to say:
Senators should actively oppose S2068 and S3020. The FCC has spent more than two years studying the technical and communications issues in Low Power FM. LPFM can bring some balance to the airwaves and should go forward unimpeded. Congress should not slap in the face the hundreds of community groups, schools, churches, nonprofits, and cities which have already applied for LPFM licenses.
For more info: see www.mediademocracynow.org.
These are the critical Senators. They need to hear from people and organizations in their states THIS WEEK:
Judd Gregg (R-NH) 202-224-3324
Ted Stevens (R-AK) 202-224-3004
FAX 202-224-2354
Daniel Inouye (D-HI)
202-224-3934
FAX 202-224-6747
Pete Domenici (R-NM)
202-224-6621
Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) 202-224-4744
frank_lautenberg@lautenberg.senate.gov
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
202-224-2541
senator@mcconnell.senate.gov
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
202-224-4654
FAX 202-224-8858
Has never taken a position.
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX)
202-224-5922
FAX 202-224-0076
senator@hutchison.senate.gov
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
202-224-4242
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO)
202-224-5852
FAX 202-224-1933
No position yet.
Robert Byrd (D-WV)
202-224-3954
Diane Feinstein (D-CA)
202-224-3841
senator@feinstein.senate.gov
No position yet!
John McCain (R-AZ)
202-224-2235
FAX 202-228-2862
- Subject: Military Academy, meeting location changed
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2000 22:49:11 EDT
ALERT! ALERT!
Carolyn writes: "The Alameda County School Board Meeting has been moved to Oakland! That is Good! The Tuesday, September 26, meeting that we have been preparing for will be held at the Oakland School District Office, 1025 Second Avenue in Oakland. We have been there before. It is the same place where the Oakland School Board met on this issue. Please Come and bring friends. More of us ought to be able to come. Come early because I am sure the place will be packed. The meeting starts at 7:00 p.m."
The County staff report is one of "luke-warm" support. It is a recommendation FOR the charter with qualifications and the advocacy of a special memorandum of understanding. It is supposed to be put up on the Office of Education web site. It is not up there yet but it may be by Monday. Paper copies can only be had by running down to Hayward. Get it if you can. We are going to need to "take it a part" at the meeting. Our chances at the State Board level improve if we can get the County Board to state their opposition based on the wrongness of the staff report. We can do this. There are a long, long list of problems with this proposal.
If you have not called the County Board of Education folk yet, NOW is the time. Focus on Jerome Wiggins [415-744-3115 B or 510-670-4140] and Feliz Elizalde [510-614-0180 B or 510-670-4140]. We believe that we still have three no votes : Enrique Palacios, Gail Jones, and Jerome Wiggins. Gay Cobb will not be at the meeting and will not vote on this issue. There are some indications that Felix Elizalde is on the fence. We believe that Ernest Avellar and Charles Deadrich support the charter.
Also call the Oakland School Board members who voted against the charter [Dan Siegal, Kenneth Rice, Bruce Kariya, Jean Quan, and Wilda White]. They should come to the County meeting and look their colleges in the eye. They should tell the County Board why their decision should not be over-ridden. You can leave messages for them at 510-879-8199.
This is it folks. Get the message out and I will see you at the meeting: Tuesday, September 26, 1025 Second Avenue, Oakland, at 7:00 p.m.
P.S. Thanks for all of your help on the FONOZE Haiti situation. Thursday afternoon Amos' death was confirmed. His body was found in the morgue, and it appears that he had been dead for some time. As you might imagine, this news is devastating for Amos' family and friends, and everyone at Fonkoze. He was very much loved and respected.
- Subject: Jerry's Military School
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000 23:20:44 EDT
THANK YOU ALL!!
We had a great victory last night. When this is all over we will truly have reason to celebrate. But congratulations! Last night the Alameda County Board of Education voted unanimously - 6 to 0 - to reject the Oakland Military Institute Charter school proposal. The statements by the Board members were very good. The Oakland Tribune article - for the first time - focused on the problems where the proposal does not meet the legal requirements for approval by District. Assemblywoman Audie Boch provided good information to me and to the Board and demonstrably demonstrated the lack of support that this proposal will receive in the Legislature the next time it come up. Good job, all around. We are going to be in pretty good shape for getting the State School Board to reject the proposal.
I am calling the State Department of Education now to get a handle on their process. This is the last hurdle, folks. If they consider the proposal as having been filed with them today, they have thirty days to hold a hearing. If those are calendar days and not workdays, then the hearing in Sacramento must be prior to October 26. The State Board's next scheduled meeting is October 11 - 13th. The Board meets at the Department of Education Office [used to be my father's office] 721 Capitol Mall, Room 166, Sacramento. Please, everyone who can, clear your calendars. This Board meets during the day not in the evenings. If we are talking about thirty workdays, that will take us until November 7, ELECTION DAY. That still will not be enough time until the next State Board regularly scheduled meeting, November 8 - 10. My guess is that the proponents may not be willing to extend the legal deadline this time - they will not want to give us more time to lobby. I GUESS that the hearing will be on one of those days OCTOBER 11 - 13. We will charter a bus to take folks up to Sacramento. Any help that you can give on this will be appreciated.
After the public hearing the State School Board still has another sixty days from the date of the receipt of the application to make a decision. That might mean another trip to Sacramento on December 6 - 8, the next regularly scheduled meeting. Clear your schedule for any of the three sets of days, please. I will be back in touch with you for any firm information that I have.
We can and should start lobbying the Board members right now! Check the State School Board web site. The Board members are as follows:
(1) Ms. Monica Lozano, Board President: She is President and Chief Operating Officer of "La Opinion" the country's leading Spanish language daily newspaper. She has a long family history working in journalism. She is a Trustee of the University of Southern California. She is Vice Chair of the LA County Annenberg Metropolitan Project $100 million dollar school reform initiative, etc., etc. She can be reached at the Board office 721 Capitol Mall, Room 532/Sacramento, CA 95814/(916) 657-5478.
(2) Ms. Susan Hammer, Board Vice President: She is the former Mayor of San Jose. The web site mentions many of her accomplishments as Mayor. She can be reached at (408) 244-9566/E-mail.
(3) Mr. Robert J. Abernethy: He is president of Self-Storage Management Company/American Standard Development Company. He is a Trustee of Johns Hopkins University. He can be reached at the Self-Storage Company/P.O. Box 90855/Los Angeles, CA 90009-0855/(310) 642-0080.
(4) Mrs. Marian Bergeson: She is secretary of the Governor's Office of Child Development and Education. She is a former member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors and was a State Senator where she chaired the Senate Local Government Committee and was a State Assembly woman also. She was an elementary school teacher in Santa Monica in the 1950's. She served on the Newport Mesa Unified School Board in 1965 and was president of the California School Board's Association in 1975. She received an award from the B'nai B'rith and earned a bachelors degree from Brigham Young University in 1949. She can be reached at 1721 Tradewinds Lane/Newport Beach, CA 92660/(916) 657-5478/E-mail.
(5) Mrs. Kathryn Dronenburg: She is an kindergarten teacher. She is chair of the California State Advisory Commission on Special Education. She has received honors for work on behalf of people with disabilities. She can be reached at 5001 Ligia Place/El Cajon, CA 92020/(619) 442-4702/E-mail. (6) Reed Hastings: Is the 39 year-old CEO of NetFlix.com, Inc. He is a member of the Technology Network. From 1983 to 1986 he was a high school math teacher for the Peace Corps in Swaziland. He has a degree from Bowdoin College in Maine and a masters from Stanford University. He can be reached at NetFlix.com, Inc./750 University Avenue, Suite 100/Los Gatos, CA 95032/(408) 529-8087/E-mail.
(7) Mrs. Nancy Ichinaga: She is the Principal of Bennett-Kew School in Inglewood. It is a recognized high achieving school with the majority of students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. She previously worked at public schools in Oakland. She has a degree from the University of Hawaii and a masters from the University of California, LA. She can be reached at Bennett-Kew Elementary School/11710 S. Cherry Avenue/Inglewood, CA 90303/(310) 680-5401/E-mail.
(8) Mr. Carlton J. Jenkins: He is CEO of the web site OneNetNow.com. He is President of the National Bank of Los Angeles, the first African American owned National Bank. He is Trustee of Occidental College. He attended Dartmouth College. He can be reached at OneNetNow.com/10000 Santa Monica Blvd., 5th Floor/Los Angeles, CA 90067/(310) 226-2400.
(9) Mrs. Marion Joseph: She formerly served as executive assistant to State Superintendent of Schools Wilson Riles. Heavy on reading and phonics. Lots of heavy weight State education assignments. She degreed at the University of California, LA in 1947. She can be reached at 4 Politzer Drive/Menlo Park, CA 94025/(605) 323-3825.
(10) Vicki Reynolds: She is a council member of the city of Beverly Hills. She served on the Beverly Hills Unified School District Board and on the County of Los Angeles School Trustees Association. She got the highest honor the French government can bestow on a civilian. She degreed from the University of California, LA and from the University of Paris. She can be reached at the State Board Office/721 Capitol Mall, Room 532/Sacramento, CA 95814/(916) 657-5478.
(11) Nickolas C. Rodriquez, Student Member of the Board whose term has expired (I am not sure he is still serving): He is 18 and may no longer be a senior at Oak Park High School in Ventura County. He may still serve on the California Association of Student Councils and may no longer be the student member of the Oak Park Unified School District. (I do not know if the student member has a vote.) He may be reached at 5500 Liverpool Court/Oak Park, CA 91301/(818) 865-0055/E-mail.
If there is a student member of the Board and the student member of the Board votes, we will have to count to SIX. If there is no student member and if the student member does not vote, we will have to count to FIVE. Please, lets get those letters, emails, calls and faxes going! SPREAD THE WORD. These folks need to know as soon as possible that the Oakland/East Bay community does not want this Military Institute chartered. We can use many of the same arguments that we have been using + the fact that the one-time State funds have to be spent by June 30th, 2001, and can not be used for capital costs or facilities costs. They are only for paying for the National Guard personnel. Please let us know any intelligence, incites, you might find out about where these folks might stand on the issue.
Thanks again for every thing that you are doing.
