Greetings, fellow Freedom Fighters™ and Defenders of Democracy™!

We have another jam-packed edition this week--so much injustice and outrage; so little time! Here are this week’s top stories:

Please be sure to check our “Sign here!” department for important actions ...

... ... Stack the Oreos to tell Congress how YOU want your tax money spent

... ... Tell American automakers to build us cars that reduce pollution and global warming (a sample letter from The Scallion's Editor in Chief is included to help inspire you)

... ... Recent media coverage of the mortgage vultures has focused on the poor, impoverished FINANCIAL INSITUTIONS, not the real victims: the poor, impoverished Americans who continue to be thrown out of their homes onto the street. Tell our media to get the story right by covering the many citizens who are being harmed by predatory lending!

... ... Help stop exorbitant CEO salaries and benefits!

... ... Stop the Wal-Mart tax! Yep, that's the tax YOU pay to cover the living expenses of Wal-Mart employees who are not paid subsistence wages!

From AlterNet:

... ... Suburbia: the new face of American poverty

... ... Medicare shuts out shut ins by denying power wheelchairs to the housebound

... ... The corporate media is toying with us in its “coverage” of Iran ... gee, ya think?

... ... Bush's Iraq “strategery”: divide and rule. Heck, it failed in Viet Nam, so why shouldn't it “work” in Iraq?

... ... Opponents of fair pay predict that capitalism will collapse if women's earnings ever reach those of their male counterparts. It's a Big Lie.

... ... McJobs crush spirits and upward mobility

... ... Our airwaves, the single most important method by which Americans get information about choosing the future president, are being held hostage by corporate broadcasters.

... ... A united Iraq—against the United States!

... ... Wow, an army of Pat Robertson acolytes was discovered planted throughout the Bush administration. What a surprise.

... ... Congress's election “reforms” OMIT the rights of citizens to sue!

... ... The CEOs who sit on the powerful Business Roundtable are working to stop Congress from moving ahead with executive pay reform. Whodathunkit?!

... ... Iraqi refugees in Syria speak of the frightening reality they escaped from in Iraq.

... ... Newsweek buries global warming deniers' BIG TIES to BIG OIL

... ... Vale, Kurt Vonnegut. We feel like we hardly knew ye ...

... ... In the U.S., over 2.13 million people are incarcerated. The highest percentage is, of course, Black men. America jails the largest number of people per capita on the globe.

... ... Brown shirt alert: Texas is amassing an unprecedented amount of information on its citizens.

... ... Women who ditch careers for homemaking are making the HUGE mistake of becoming financially dependent on the men who support them! Do we REALLY want to go back to the 1950s ... albeit with maybe half of the disposable income per household (and that's with TWO wage earners)? If women stop working en masse, how will those who continue to work ever be able to fight for equal wages?

... ... The role of the “religious” “right” in politics: still strong and growing!

... ... PR propaganda: the tobacco industry-hired Hill & Knowlton to develop many of the propaganda techniques against science used today to attack climate change and evolution.

... ... Through unfair tax cuts paid by the wealthy and the cost of Iraq, our national wealth is being drained and the American infrastructure allowed to fall apart.

From the Center for American Progress

... ... The Google is using its popular online mapping service to call attention to atrocities in the Darfur region of Sudan.

... ... White House cites 'experience from September 11th' to justify staying in Iraq.

... ... Wall Street Journal dishonestly criticizes media coverage of chlorine attacks in Iraq to justify war.

... ... Why it's unlikely San Diego U.S. Attorney Carol Lam was fired for lax immigration enforcement.

... ... Draped in Iraqi flags and chanting anti-American slogans, tens of thousands of Iraqis swept into the southern city of Najaf on the call of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to mark the fourth anniversary of the ouster of President Saddam Hussein, calling for U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraq.

... ... Washington lawmakers expand sex-ed curriculum to include contraception.

... ... Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS) signs legislation barring fundamentalists who claim military deaths "are God's punishment for homosexuality" from protesting at funerals.

... ... Roughly half of AK's National Guard is serving in Iraq, with more tours of duty ahead.

... ... White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino "defends" lost e-mail statements: I didn't lie, I just had no idea what I was talking about.

... ... Yes, the situation in Darfur IS genocide.

... ... Fox News gives the late Kurt Vonnegut a mean-spirited obituary.

... ... "Trace amounts of pharmaceutical drugs, including Prozac and birth-control hormones," are entering Michigan's drinking water supply. Eww!!!!!

... ... John McCain vs John McCain: timelines are a bad idea to impose on his lord and master George W. Bush, but they're a great idea to impose on anyone else, like the Iraqi government (you know the one—the one that is actively being hamstrung by OUR government!)

... ... More McCain vs McCain: we must cut and run ... we can't cut and run ... but we must cut and run ... but we can't cut and run ...!

From DN!

... ... Two Explosive Books Tell the Inside Story of the Forged Iraq-Niger Docs That Helped Build the Case for War: Carlo Bonini's book called “Collusion: International Espionage and the War on Terror” and Peter Eisner's book “The Italian Letter: How the Bush Administration Used a Fake Letter to Build the Case for War in Iraq.”

... ... The Rutgers Women's Basketball team: “Mr. Imus Has Stolen a Moment of Pure Grace For Us.”

... ... Bush can't get any takers to fill his “war czar” post. Guess the pubs are wising up and deciding not to be chimpie's scapegoat any more ...

... ... Five years later, Venezuela reflects on the failed U.S.-backed coup that attempted to overthrow democratically-elected President Hugo Chavez.

... ... The Red Cross warns that the Iraqi civilian humanitarian crisis is relentless and ever worsening.

... ... With OVER 40% of U.S. tax dollars going to support the military and the war in Iraq, taxpayers prepare to withhold taxes as an act of anti-war resistance.

... ... Is a Princeton professor and retired Marine on the U.S. no-fly list for political speech that criticizes the Bush White House?

... ... Prosecutors: Judge Violated Professor Sami Al-Arian's Plea Deal

... ... STEP IT UP: the largest ever rally to stop global climate change

... ... Who Killed the Electric Car? A new documentary looks at who pulled the plug on GM's EV-1, which was so popular that GM couldn't keep its supply up with the demand! Hint: the perpetrator's initials are BIG OIL.

From Media Savvy

... ... Advertisers are really the ones who pulled the plug on Don Imus's little hate-fest: supporting sponsors who refuse to support Imus and his idiocy is the best way we can put an end to society's acceptance of such stupidity masquerading as fun and frivolity. NBC and CBS dumped Imus only after the advertisers fled.

... ... You can't appreciate the raw racism of Don Imus' hateful characterization of the Rutgers women's basketball team until you know what they did to him.

... ... PBS, Ken Burns and Lynn Novick have decided to create additional content that focuses on stories of Latino and Native American veterans of the Second World War. Apparently, Ken Burns has a long history of excluding minority voices. Tsk, tsk. We used to think better of Mr. Burns than that.

... ... Take action: tell the media to cover the debt crisis!

... ... A new survey says the best informed TV viewers watch fake news and Jim Lehrer or Bill O'Reilly; the worst-informed watch Fox News and local newscasts.

From OilWatchdog:

... ... Dennis Kucinich is ahead on oil policy if not in the Democratic Presidential primaries

... ... Oil oozes into the Senate as Key Senate Dems Feinstein and Bingaman go soft on bill to close a $10 billion loophole in oil company royalty payments, possibly dooming the measure.

... ... which Big Oil CEO's salary would get you 10 MILLION fill-ups?

From HuffPo:

... ... Nancy Pelosi shows George W. Bush how an ADULT behaves on a trip to Syria!

Keep the faith and keep fighting: together, we WILL win our nation back!

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Sign Here!

Here are important petitions and other actions we of The Scallion invite our Readers to participate in. Quit bitching—start a revolution!

From True Majority—tell Congress how YOU want YOUR tax money spent!

Tell Congress how you want your taxes spent.

Well, it's tax time again. You know, wrangling with our federal tax forms might feel a lot less frustrating if we knew Congress and the President were using our money to create stronger families and communities, and a more peaceful world.

This year, don't let Tax Day get you down. Instead, send Congress a message, and show them how you want your tax dollars spent.

http://truemajorityaction.org/oreos/ustack/

You've probably seen the Oreo Cartoon where our founder, Ben Cohen, shows how the federal budget stacks up cookie by cookie. Now you can build your own federal budget with stacks of virtual Oreos. THEN, e-mail YOUR sensible budget to your Senators and Congressperson and tell them how you want your money spent.

Onward,

Ben Kroetz
TrueMajorityACTION Field Director

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From Media Savvy (Mediachanel.org): tell the media to cover the Americans who continue to be victimized by predatory lending!

In recent weeks there was an unexpected market meltdown - reports of a mortgage crisis which threatens to throw as many as two million Americans out of their homes, bankruptcies by major lenders, top banks reporting billions in losses and suggestions of complicity in predatory lending by top banks and Wall Street firms.

The media focus has been on the financial institutions, not the people who are about to lose their homes and savings.

The press has been asleep at the switch in reporting on this story, often showing more compassion for wealthy businessmen than abused consumers.

MEDIA FOR DEMOCRACY appeals to its members to contact media outlets to investigate this story more thoroughly and explore remedies. MediaChannel's Danny Schechter, director of the film "In Debt We Trust" has outlined some initiatives our media can take to improve coverage on this financial crisis.

Click here to learn more and send an email to major media outlets.

Take Action!

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From Care2 and ThePetitionSite: Tell American auto makers to build us cars that REDUCE pollution and global warming!

Demand automakers support improved fuel efficiency!

I'm concerned about global warming and what that means for the future. And I've begun to do my part by turning down my thermostat, replacing the light bulbs in my apartment with energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs, and taking public transportation to work.

Now it is time for car companies to improve the efficiency of their fleet to help us stop global warming

Not everyone has the option to use public transportation like I do. In the United States cars and trucks emit 333 million tons of carbon dioxide each year - more than a fifth of our nation's global warming pollution. Yet, average fuel efficiency hasn't improved in more than ten years.

People across this country are doing what they can to reduce their carbon footprint, and it's time that car manufacturers do the same.

It is time for automobile makers to support efforts to cut America's global warming pollution by improving efficiency and supporting a mandatory, economy-wide, national cap on global warming pollution.

Demand car companies shift gears and support improved fuel efficiency http://go.care2.com/e/R8DE/hmyr/kT3B

Let's win this together!

Michael Lawley,
Care2 and ThePetitionSite team

Here is a sample letter from the Editor in Chief of The Scallion:

While the fascist Bush administration, all of whom should be impeached immediately, is the single greatest threat to our national security, global climate change is a strong second. I currently own a ’92 Ford Taurus that I have been very pleased with. I’d love to replace it, but with what? I refuse to give Toyota my money for a Prius because not only do Priuses not run cleanly, and nor do they get wonderful gas mileage, but Toyota was only too happy to sponsor the 90 MINUTE swift boat ANTI-KERRY ATTACK AD that SINCLAIR BROADCASTING (SBC) wanted to show in support of George W. Bush. Conversely, Ford has been a decent, upstanding corporate citizen by comparison to far too many American corporations. Thus, I’d love to replace my Taurus with another Ford. Sadly, Ford doesn’t offer anything with even the mediocre gas mileage of the Prius. I want my next car to get at LEAST 100 mpg (if using a gas-powered internal combustion engine); I want it to go at LEAST 400 miles before needing refueling; and I NEED to be able to carry 4 passengers plus gear. Personally, I believe that the Ford Motor Company is up to the job; PLEASE prove me right before my current Ford falls on road dead! Thanks!

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From Working Families: STOP exorbitant CEO salaries and benefits!

This year s Executive PayWatch website details the biggest executive pay scandal in decades the backdating of stock options. PayWatch also details the Golden Goodbyes large severance agreements received by CEOs despite poor performance.

You can do something about this corporate greed:

1) Tell your representative you support H.R. 1257, the Shareholder Vote on Executive Compensation Act, here.

2) Tell the SEC to allow proxy access to make company boards more accountable to shareholders here.

CEOs who already pull in enormous salaries and golden goodbye pay packages have once again stacked the deck in their favor by backdating their stock options. Here s how it works: the CEOs pick favorable dates when the company s stock traded at a lower price than the price at which the stock options were granted, resulting in an instant profit. Stock options are supposed to be an incentive for the CEO to work harder. Instead, corporate directors let CEOs manipulate their stock option grants in a way similar to placing a bet on a horse race after it is over, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Here s what you can do to fix the broken executive pay system:

1) Tell your representative you support H.R. 1257, the Shareholder Vote on Executive Compensation Act, here.

2) Tell the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to allow proxy access to make company boards more accountable to shareholders here.

These backdating CEOs have sparked one of the decade s biggest executive pay scandals, as they may have violated accounting rules, state corporate law, federal securities laws and tax laws.

According to the AFL-CIO s 2007 Executive PayWatch website released last week, 257 companies have announced internal reviews, SEC reviews or received subpoenas from the U.S. Department of Justice related to stock option grants.

This year, the PayWatch website features case studies of CEOs who backdated stock options to take what they want from their companies and their shareholders with impunity. The case studies highlight the need for reform to protect companies and their investors and the PayWatch site makes it easy for users to contact the SEC and members of Congress to help fix the CEO pay system.

Want to take on corporate greed?

1) Urge your representative to support H.R. 1257, the Shareholder Vote on Executive Compensation Act. Introduced by Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, the bill would require public companies to submit executive pay plans to a nonbinding shareholder vote, giving shareholders a say on pay. A shareholder voice in the executive compensation process will encourage boards of directors to consider shareholder interests before approving questionable compensation plans. Click here to urge your representative to support a say on pay.

2) Encourage the SEC to allow proxy access and allow long-term shareholders to nominate directors and require companies to include these nominees on the company s proxy ballot. Such a move would end the self-perpetuating system that permits incumbent boards to hand-pick director candidates, making boards truly accountable to shareholders. Click here to urge the SEC to allow proxy access.

In 2006, the average CEO of a Standard & Poor s 500 company made $14.78 million in total compensation, according to initial estimates. This year the PayWatch site includes some of the executive compensation data required under new rules issued by the SEC in 2006. The new disclosure rules go further than ever before in revealing just how much executives are paid, making transparent previously hard-to-find information such as pension totals.

But a last-minute change in the rules weakened requirements for disclosure of stock options. The new PayWatch site provides, in comparison with the SEC provided total, the total compensation an executive received that includes the total value of stock and option awards granted in 2006, giving a better representation of what the CEO was awarded in 2006.

Unlike the employees who work under them, CEOs often are allowed to resign with big pay packages even if they don t do their jobs well. For example, Home Depot CEO Robert Nardelli resigned in January, leaving with a $210 million exit package, even though the company s stock prices dropped during his tenure. Pfizer Inc. CEO Henry Hank McKinnell got a retirement package worth $6.5 million a year, even though Pfizer stock fell 40 percent while he was at the helm.

Through six case studies Home Depot, Pfizer, Apple, Caremark Rx, KB Home, UnitedHealth Group the site shows how executives benefited from large severance packages and stock option backdating at the expense of companies and their shareholders.

Working people are fed up with a system that showers CEOs with lavish rewards with little or no accountability, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka said recently. When the board is failing in their duty, investors should have the tools to bring about real reform.

Thank you for helping investors get the tools they need to reform the broken system of executive pay.

In solidarity,

Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO

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From WakeUpWalMart: please hand out flyers to stop the Wal-Mart tax!

On April 17, 2007, Tax Day, people all across America will wake up, head down to their local post office, and do what all honest citizens do - pay their taxes.

Sadly, most Americans may not know this, but they will also be paying another tax - the Wal-Mart Tax.

What's the Wal-Mart Tax?

The Wal-Mart Tax is the fact that everyday, because Wal-Mart fails to provide affordable health care, Wal-Mart workers and their families are forced onto taxpayer-funded public health care assistance. Nationally, Wal-Mart's health care crisis and irresponsibility costs taxpayers over $2.5 billion a year.

In addition, Wal-Mart has exploited a bunch of corporate state tax loopholes by setting up fake “shell”companies and pretending they don't own stores that they really do. Wal-Mart's tax scam has helped Wal-Mart avoid $3.39 billion in state taxes between 1999 and 2005.

The Wal-Mart Tax hurts Americans, is wrong, and must stop.

So, on Tax Day, join WakeUpWalMart.com supporters who will be passing out “Stop the Wal-Mart Tax” flyers at post offices all across America.

Please download the “Stop the Wal-Mart Tax” flyer and make copies to hand out to taxpayers.

http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/feature/taxday/

All across America we will be holding Tax Day actions (or tax day protests, if you will) at local post offices on Tuesday, April 17 with one goal - Stop the Wal-Mart Tax!

The truth is, if we are going to “Stop the Wal-Mart Tax” we need you to join with WakeUpWalMart.com supporters and hand this flyer out to as many taxpayers as you can.

Please download the flyer here:

http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/feature/taxday/

The real cost to American taxpayers of the Wal-Mart Tax are huge. For example, if Wal-Mart paid the taxes it owed in 2005 we could have provided 318,440 uninsured children with health care coverage, added 9,499 additional police officers to patrol our streets and keep our communities safe, or build new classrooms for 21,963 elementary school students.

When big profitable companies like Wal-Mart don't pay their taxes, we all lose.

So please come out and join us, because together we can stop the Wal-Mart tax and change Wal-Mart and America for the better.

Please download the flyer here:

http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/feature/taxday/

Together, we can make Wal-Mart pay its fair share for health care and we can stop the Wal-Mart Tax once and for all.

We look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday, April 17th, 2007.

Thanks for all that you do,

Paul Blank
WakeUpWalMart.com

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From the mailbag

Reader D.F. sent in this piece from AlterNet outlining Pat Robertson's influence in George W. Bush's administration:

http://www.alternet.org/rights/50408/

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Interesting things we found in our travels

Here is a great article on Don Imus that we found in CNN. Imus's comments—about the Rutgers women's basketball team and reaching into the distant past of his career—weren't just racist: they were deeply sexist, too. What a shame that so many privileged rich white men from Imus to O'Reilly to Coulter (yes, “she” has an adam's apple) to Limbaugh to Savage to Hannity to George W. Bush feel that the only way to empower themselves is to trash-talk and disempower women and ethnic minorities ...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/04/13/martin.imus/index.html

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From our information clearinghouse

These are items we receive from the countless mailing lists to which The Scallion collectively subscribes. They are worth the effort of at least a good skim.

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From AlterNet

Suburbia: America's Unseen Poverty
By Eyal Press, The Nation
America's suburbs evoke images of dream homes, plush lawns and neighborhood BBQs, not low-wage jobs and houses under foreclosure. Yet for the first time ever, more poor Americans live in the suburbs than in all our cities combined. Read more

Medicare Policy Keeps Door Shut on Disabled
By Prema Polit, AlterNet
In an attempt to cut costs, Medicare has been denying coverage of power wheelchairs to people with disabilities who can't leave home without them.

Campaign Journalism Is Back, More Evil Than '04
By Matt Taibbi, RollingStone.com
You'll hear a lot in the next 20 months about which candidate has bony hands, who looks good in a parka -- but you won't hear anything about who voted for the bankruptcy bill and who didn't.

Carbon Offsets: Buying Your Way Out of Responsibility
By Dara Colwell, AlterNet
More and more people are using carbon offsets to rationalize consumption. But will paying extra money to have trees planted in India really negate the pollution from your flight to Europe?

The Professional Suicide of a Recording Musician
By Bob Ostertag
An experienced musician explains why most musicians today would be much better off sharing music via the Internet than signing standard industry recording contracts.

Time to Step It Up This Weekend
By Bill McKibben, Grist Magazine
America is faced with a crucial choice about our future. We can choose positive action this weekend by joining the biggest rally to fight climate change.

Imus gets 2-Week suspension [VIDEO]
By Pam Spaulding
Sorry, not good enough...

Media obscures Iran's nuclear program with 'Fog Facts'
By Joshua Holland
The commercial media puts everything you need to know to make sense of the world around you on the record ... somewhere.

Divide and Rule: Bush's Doomed Plan for Baghdad
By Robert Fisk, The Independent
Revealed: a new counter-insurgency strategy to carve up the city into sealed areas. The tactic failed in Vietnam. So what chance does it have in Iraq? Read more

MSNBC Drops Simulcast of Don Imus Show
MSNBC.com
MSNBC announced it will no longer air "Imus in the Morning," but unless CBS cancels the radio version of the show, Imus will continue to have a forum for his racist comments.

Step It Up: An Invitation to the Year's "Hottest" Action
By Bill McKibben, In These Times
On April 14, in the largest-ever demonstration against climate change, people around the country will call for the United States to reduce carbon emissions by 80 percent. So invite your friends and join the party.

The U.S. "War on Drugs" Is an Assault on South America's Poorest
By Benjamin Dangl, AKPress
Cocaine may be considered a scourge in America's cities, but in the Andes, the plant from which it's derived is a way of life that provides food, shelter, healthcare and education.

Will Women Ever Get Paid What They Deserve?
By Martha Burk, TomPaine.com
Opponents of fair pay predict that capitalism will collapse if women's earnings ever reach those of their male counterparts. It's a Big Lie.

Spirit-Crushing 'McJobs' Are Putting an End to Upward Mobility
By Margy Waller, Shawn Fremstad, Philadelphia Daily News
If we want to save the middle class, it's time to focus on what's happening in the low-wage labor market.

Iraq: Now the South Erupts
By Ali Al-Fadhily, IPS News
The eruption of demonstrations in the south of Iraq this week could rob the occupation forces of what was considered a critical bastion of support.

Take Back the Airwaves
By Amy Goodman, King Features Syndicate
Our airwaves, the single most important method by which Americans get information about choosing the future president, are being held hostage by corporate broadcasters.

Iraqis Finally Unite -- Against the U.S.
By Robert Scheer, Truthdig
For the fourth anniversary of Saddam's overthrow, Iraqis held an anti-American protest and the White House's "latest news" featured their annual Easter egg hunt.

Colbert's racist Imus moment [VIDEO]
By Evan Derkacz
Daily Show: Imus dons "contrition shades and the stetson of regret."

Couric is "Horrified," and So Am I [VIDEO]
By Melissa McEwan
Fox is designed to be bad... what's CBS's excuse?

MoveOn's Iraq townhall delivers [VIDEO]
By Jan Frel
It's pretty clear which Dems are serious about Iraq, and which aren't.

A Former Fat-Camper's Life in a Teenage Waistland
By Abby Ellin, SMITH Magazine
An overweight teenager's year abroad is anything but an escape from the diet-obsessed social life she was hoping for. Read more

Media Finally Discovers Army of Pat Robertson Acolytes in Bush Administration
By Max Blumenthal, HuffingtonPost.com
When Monica Goodling's name erupted into the news last week in the attorney scandal, the mainstream press suddenly realized that Pat Robertson's Regent University exists -- and that it's got a big footprint in the Bush admin.

Pending Election Reform in Congress Doesn't Give Citizens Right to Sue
By Steven Rosenfeld, AlterNet
A law regulating voting machines making its way through Congress lacks a provision allowing voters to sue -- a right that was a cornerstone of the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act.

Fat Cat CEOs Strike Back at Congress
By Sarah Anderson, Sam Pizzigati, AlterNet
The CEOs who sit on the powerful Business Roundtable are working to stop Congress from moving ahead with executive pay reform. The reason? It's all personal.

Iraqi Refugees Speak of Escape from Hell
By Dahr Jamail, IPS News
Fleeing death threats and death squads, Iraqi refugees in Syria speak of the frightening reality they escaped from in Iraq.

Daily Show does Israel [VIDEO]
By Evan Derkacz
Why is John Oliver having Israel's ambassador read his screenplay?

Newsweek buries global warming denier's financial ties to Big Oil
By Joshua Holland
Tell them you're sick of Exxon's climate propaganda

Imus Is Snoop's Frankenstein Monster
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson, New America Media
Civil rights leaders should protest Snoop Dogg's forthcoming album. Imus demeaned a basketball team but Snoop has demeaned a generation of young blacks. Read more

How the Web Became a Sexist's Paradise
By Jessica Valenti, The Guardian
Everyone receives abuse online but the sheer hatred thrown at women bloggers has left some in fear for their lives.

Reflections on Kurt Vonnegut, a Man of Funny Fearlessness
By Reverend Billy, AlterNet
In memory of Kurt Vonnegut, the novelist, socialist and humanist whose friendship and late-in-life peace activism should inspire us all.

Democratic and Republican Parties, Realigned
By Lawrence Goodwyn, The Nation
Public anxiety over the economy could lead to a permanent restructuring of America's political parties.

Crime, Punishment, and Vengeance in the Age of Mass Imprisonment
By Prema Polit, AlterNet
In the U.S., over 2.13 million people are incarcerated. Sasha Abramsky's new book, American Furies, explores the bloated prison system and its tremendous financial and moral cost to our society.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry's Dangerous Database
By Jake Bernstein, Texas Observer
Texas is amassing an unprecedented amount of information on its citizens.

Ex-gay leader has tantrum on CNN [VIDEO]
By Pam Spaulding
I said effeminate, not artistic!

Why you can't get your iPhone
By Evan Derkacz
The next stage in the net neutrality fight.

Women Who Ditch Their Career for Homelife Could Be Making a Huge Mistake
By Leslie Bennetts, HuffingtonPost.com
Women who abandon their careers and become financially dependent on their husbands often look back on that decision as the biggest mistake of their lives -- even women in stable, enduring marriages. Read more

The Religious Right Has Had Its Day? Fat Chance
By Rob Boston, Church and State
A recent essay in Time magazine claimed "The religious right's era is over." Someone better tell that to the GOP presidential candidates praying for the fundamentalist movement's blessings.

U.S. Attorneys and Voting Rights: The New Watergate
By Marjorie Cohn, AlterNet
The attorney scandal is a cover-up revolving around efforts by the Bush administration to disenfranchise African-American voters in communities where the vote is close.

How a PR Firm Helped Establish America's Cigarette Century
By Allan M. Brandt, AlterNet
How the tobacco industry-hired Hill & Knowlton to develop many of the propaganda techniques against science used today to attack climate change and evolution.

Progressive Taxation: Some Hidden Truths
By George Lakoff, Bruce Budner, AlterNet
Through unfair tax cuts paid by the wealthy and the cost of Iraq, our national wealth is being drained and the American infrastructure allowed to fall apart.

Jon Stewart goes after gasbag cable host Nancy Grace
By Jan Frel
Trounced. Ouch!

'08 GOP hopeful channels 2nd worst president ever
By Barbara O'Brien
Barbara O'Brien: Calvin Coolidge's policies led to economic disaster. Why does Fred Thompson want to bring them back?

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From the Campaign to Defend the Constitution (DefCon)

Justice scandal exposes the incredible influence of the religious right. Click here to read more.

The recent scandal surrounding the Justice Department's firing of several US attorneys has inadvertently revealed the dangerous influence the religious right wields over the current administration. While the media is focused on the political firings of these attorneys, the connection between the administration and Pat Robertson's Regent University -- which has seen over 150 graduates hired by the Bush administration in recent years -- is a more worrisome reality.

In today's New York Times, Paul Krugman acknowledges the danger the religious right poses to our nation. Krugman exposes how these "extremists" have long sought to merge their ideology with government policy, a reality that we understand all too well. He also points out just how little attention this serious threat to democracy has received from mainstream media:

"The infiltration of the federal government by large numbers of people seeking to impose a religious agenda -- which is very different from simply being people of faith -- is one of the most important stories of the last six years. It's also a story that tends to go underreported, perhaps because journalists are afraid of sounding like conspiracy theorists. But this conspiracy is no theory".

DefCon was founded to fight this influence and restore our nation's commitment to freedom, science, and progress -- not theocracy. Revelations like those shown by this scandal not only reveal the seriousness of this threat but more importantly how critical our campaign remains.

Please take a moment to forward this news on to your friends and family, encouraging them to join our campaign for freedom, science, and equality. If you're not already a DefCon member, click here to sign up and receive news and updates.

Also, be sure to share your thoughts on this development on the DefCon blog .

Clark and the rest of the DefCon Team

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From the Center for American Progress

GOOD NEWS

"Google is using its popular online mapping service to call attention to atrocities in the Darfur region of Sudan."

STATE WATCH

ALABAMA: "A proposal that could raise the minimum wage in Alabama from $5.15 an hour to $7.25 an hour faces a key vote today."

WASHINGTON: Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) is expected to sign a recently passed domestic-partnership bill for gay and lesbian couples.

MARYLAND: State legislature votes to make Maryland a national leader in solar power.

BLOG WATCH

THINK PROGRESS: White House cites 'experience from September 11th' to justify staying in Iraq.

THE PLANK: Wall Street Journal dishonestly criticizes media coverage of chlorine attacks in Iraq to justify war.

TALKING POINTS MEMO: Why it's unlikely San Diego U.S. Attorney Carol Lam was fired for lax immigration enforcement.

THE DUCK OF MINERVA: Counter-terrorism vs. counter-proliferation, and where Bush administration priorities lie.

DAILY GRILL

A conservative blog cites "proof" that "Al Sadr and the mainstream media missed the mark on this one," by claiming that the "aerial shot from Najaf, Iraq yesterday shows a protest of 5,000-7,000 Al-Sadr devotees."
-- Gateway Pundit blog, 4/10/07, providing a photo of Baghdad, not Najaf

VERSUS

"Draped in Iraqi flags and chanting anti-American slogans, tens of thousands of Iraqis swept into the southern city of Najaf on the call of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to mark the fourth anniversary of the ouster of President Saddam Hussein, calling for U.S. forces to withdraw from Iraq."
-- Washington Post, 4/9/07

Interracial marriages are surging across the United States. More than "7 percent of America's 59 million married couples in 2005 were interracial, compared to less than 2 percent in 1970."

STATE WATCH

SOUTH CAROLINA: State Senate panel drops a provision requiring women to review an ultrasound image of the fetus before terminating a pregnancy.

WASHINGTON: "Lawmakers expand sex-ed curriculum to include contraception."

KANSAS: Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) signs legislation barring fundamentalists who claim military deaths "are God's punishment for homosexuality" from protesting at funerals.

ARKANSAS: Roughly half of the state's National Guard is serving in Iraq, with more tours of duty ahead.

BLOG WATCH

THINK PROGRESS: White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino "defends" e-mail statements: I didn't lie, I just had no idea what I was talking about.

TALK LEFT: "New details about civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan."

POTOMAC FLACKS: "Imus scandal reminder of how not to deal with PR crises."

MEDIA MATTERS: It's not just Don Imus -- other TV and radio talkers broadcast bigotry.

DAILY GRILL

MENENDEZ: Is the circumstances in Darfur today a continuing genocide? Yes or no?
NATSIOS: There is very little fighting between rebels and the government and very few civilian casualties going on in Darfur right now.
-- President Bush's Special Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan Andrew Natsios responding to a question from Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), 4/11/07

VERSUS

"It is nearly four years since the start of the Darfur crisis. Today the situation is as desperate as ever. ... [I]n the first two months of 2007, more than 80,000 more people fled the ongoing violence."
-- OxFam International report, 3/07

GOOD NEWS

Tens of thousands of people gathered for marches in all 50 states this weekend, calling on Congress to cut global warming pollution by 80 percent by 2050. See photos and more here.

STATE WATCH

NEW YORK: City will provide free electronic medical records software to doctors, specifically to benefit poorer patients.

ALASKA: Audit finds "that nearly every other payment to a Medicaid provider contained an error" in Alaska.

MICHIGAN: "Trace amounts of pharmaceutical drugs, including Prozac and birth-control hormones," are entering the state's drinking water supply.

BLOG WATCH

THINK PROGRESS: PBS's Gwen Ifill calls out NBC's Tim Russert and the New York Times's David Brooks for their silence on Don Imus.

AMERICA BLOG: 60 Minutes catches Don Imus using the N-word, which he had denied ever doing.

VOLOKH CONSPIRACY: Fox News gives the late Kurt Vonnegut a mean-spirited obituary.

MY DD: On democracy and social networks.

DAILY GRILL

"The day you set timelines and deadlines, you undo the ability to reconcile, you empower our enemy and give them a road map to defeat us."
-- Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), 4/15/07, on why setting a timeline is not an effective way to pressure the Iraqi government

VERSUS

"[Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)] said that he and Mr. Graham had warned Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki that the patience of the American public was running out. ... 'We re telling you, there s been votes in both houses of Congress which portend, unless the American people see measurable success, that we re going to be out of here,' Mr. McCain said, recalling the message he had delivered to the Iraqi leader."
-- New York Times, 4/15/07, on how Graham and McCain used the prospect of a timeline to pressure the Iraqi government

GOOD NEWS

Facing strong congressional opposition, the White House yesterday withdrew its nomination of William Wehrum to head the EPA's air pollution office. Wehrum was the "the behind-the-scenes architect" of some of the Bush administration's most controversial initiatives, including a plan to loosen emission caps on dangerous air toxins.

STATE WATCH

CALIFORNIA: An "overwhelming percentage of Californians believe global warming is a serious problem" and that the federal government is not doing enough to solve it.

SOUTH DAKOTA: Federal court reconsiders South Dakota's law requiring doctors to warn women seeking abortions.

COLORADO: "Nearly two in 10 soldiers who have returned to Fort Carson from Iraq in the past two years have suffered a traumatic brain injury."

BLOG WATCH

THINK PROGRESS: Senate launches first major effort to rein in use of national security letters.

THE CARPETBAGGER REPORT: "Pot [Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN)] calls kettle [Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA)] black" on oversight.

DESMOG BLOG: The political scrubbing of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change summary report.

THE NEXT HURRAH: The lobbying for U.S. Attorney jobs begins.

DAILY GRILL

"Let's put aside for a moment the small politics of the day. The judgment of history should be the approval we seek, not the temporary favor of the latest public opinion poll."
-- Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), 4/12/07, defending the unpopular escalation in Iraq

VERSUS

"And we cannot cut-and-run. And I'm glad that 58 percent of the American people believe that we should stay the course, as well."
-- McCain, 6/28/05

-----

From “Democracy Now!”

* EXCLUSIVE--Two Explosive Books Tell the Inside Story of the Forged
Iraq-Niger Docs That Helped Build the Case for War *

In his January 2003 State of the Union address, President Bush declared the
infamous sixteen words: “The British Government has learned that Saddam
Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.” The
claim was central to the administration's claims that Saddam Hussein was
seeking weapons of mass destruction and served as a basis for launching the
Iraq invasion less than two months later. Bush's declaration was based on an
intelligence document that provided evidence about Iraq's purchase of
uranium from the African country of Niger. But there was one problem: the
document was a fake. In a Democracy Now! broadcast exclusive, we speak with
the authors of two explosive new books. Carlo Bonini is the Italian reporter
who broke the Niger story. His new book is called “Collusion: International
Espionage and the War on Terror.” Peter Eisner is a veteran foreign
correspondent and is currently an editor at the Washington Post. His new
book is “The Italian Letter: How the Bush Administration Used a Fake Letter
to Build the Case for War in Iraq.”

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/10/1321236

* Headlines for April 10, 2007 *

- 15,000 U.S. Troops Face Extended Iraq Stay
- Rallies, Curfews Mark 4-Year Anniversary of Saddam Ouster
- Ex-Iraq Cabinet Member Criticizes U.S. Occupation
- Ethiopia Admits to Imprisoning Somali Captives
- Iran Announces Industrial-Scale Nuclear Fuel Production
- Bush Resumes Immigration Reform Call
- East Timor Holds First Presidential Vote
- Florida Tomato Pickers Win Campaign Against McDonalds
- Accused Cuban Airliner Bomber Granted Bail
- 8 Arrested in Protest Against CIA-Linked Aero Contractors
- CBS, MSNBC Suspend Imus for 2 Weeks

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/10/1321223

* "Mr. Imus Has Stolen a Moment of Pure Grace For Us" - Rutgers Women's
Basketball Team Condemn Don Imus's Remarks *

MSNBC and CBS Radio are coming under increasing pressure to fire Don Imus
over his recent remarks about the Rutgers women's basketball team calling
them "nappy-headed hos." Imus has suspended for two weeks beginning on
Monday but he remains on the air this week. On Tuesday members of the
Rutgers women's basketball team spoke out for the first time. We play
excerpts.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/11/1432228

* Five Years Later, Venezuelan Ambassador Reflects on US-Backed Coup, and
Discusses Venezuela's Oil Plans, Posada Carriles, and Chavez's Controversial
Decree Powers *

Five years ago this week, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was temporarily
ousted in a short-lived coup he says was backed by the United States. On the
fifth anniversary of the coup, we speak with Venezuela's ambassador to the
United States, Bernardo Alvarez Herrera. In a wide-ranging interview Amb.
Alvarez discusses the U.S. role in the coup, why the Bush administration has
refused to extradite Luis Posada Carriles, oil laws in Venezuela and more.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/11/1432233

* Egyptian Feminist, Playwright and Activist Nawal El Saadawi Defies Threats
to Speak Out for Women's Rights, Democracy in Egypt *

Renowned feminist, psychologist and writer, Nawal El Saadawi joins us in our
firehouse studio to discuss Egypt's recent constitutional amendments, the
Muslim Brotherhood and she is facing a political and religious campaign
mounted against her by the authorities at Al Azhar.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/11/1432237

* Headlines for April 11, 2007 *

- 55 Killed in Iraq Violence
- Red Cross: Iraqi Civilian Suffering Worsens
- Bush Rules Out Talks with Dems on Iraq Timetable
- Report: Admin Unable to Fill War “Czar” Post
- U.N.: Sudanese Militia Kill Up to 400 in Chad
- Abbas, Olmert to Hold Talks
- Castro Criticizes Posada Bail Ruling
- Gonzales Subpoenaed in Attorney Firings

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/11/1432218

* Novelist Kurt Vonnegut Dies at 84

The author Kurt Vonnegut has died. He was eighty-four years old. Vonnegut
authored at least nineteen novels including “Slaughterhouse-Five” and “Cat's
Cradle.” In recent years, Vonnegut was a fierce critic of the Bush
administration and a columnist for the magazine In These Times.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/12/1347259

* Red Cross Warns “Disastrous,” “Immense” Iraqi Humanitarian Crisis
"Ever-Worsening" *

The International Committee of the Red Cross is warning that the conflict in
Iraq is inflicting immense suffering on the entire population and is
steadily getting worse. The Red Cross says “civilians are bearing the brunt
of the relentless violence and the extremely poor security conditions that
are disrupting the lives and livelihoods of millions.” ICRC spokesperson
Nada Doumani joins us from Amman, Jordan.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/12/1348211

* War and Taxes: With 40% of IRS Revenue Going to Military, Resisters
Prepare to Withhold Taxes to Protest War *

Tax day is this Tuesday. The Internal Revenue Service is expected to take in
over $2 trillion dollars this year. Nearly 40 percent of that total will go
to military related expenses. Tax resisters across the country are planning
to withhold part or all of their taxes to protest the war. We speak with
Pamela Schwartz of the National Priorities Project and Runn Benn of the
National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/12/1348218

* Is Princeton Professor and Retired Marine on Government No-Fly List for
Criticizing the White House? *

Princeton professor and retired Marine Colonel Walter Murphy has been
described as one of the “the most distinguished constitutional scholars of
the 20th century.” Murphy recently learned his name appears on the
government's no-fly list -- perhaps because he has criticized the Bush
administration for abusing the constitution.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/12/1348223

* Headlines for April 12, 2007 *

- “Stretched” Military Extends Tour of Duty for U.S. Troops
- Iraq Parliament Building Hit With Explosion
- 10 Killed in Suicide Attack on Baghdad Bridge
- ACLU Releases Iraq, Afghan Compensation Claims
- 24 Killed in Algeria Bombing
- MSNBC Drops Imus Over Rutgers Remarks
- Admin Loses E-mails Sought in Attorney Probe
- Author Kurt Vonnegut Dead at 84

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/12/1347246

*Step It Up: Thousands Gather this Weekend for Largest Ever-Rally Against
Global Warming*

The group Step it Up is spearheading the National Day of Climate of Action
on Saturday. Tens of thousands of Americans are gathering across the country
in the largest-ever demonstration against global warming. Over thirteen
hundred rallies, demonstrations and actions are being held in all fifty
states to call on Congress to cut carbon emissions by 80 percent by the year
2050. We speak with Step it Up organizer Bill McKibben.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/13/1421235

*Who Killed the Electric Car? New Documentary Looks at the Mysterious
Disappearance of the EV-1*

General Motors has been at the center of one of the nation's largest
controversies over clean emissions-cars. In 1996 the company introduced the
EV-1 electric car in California and Arizona. Hundreds of the electric cars
were soon on the road. Then they all disappeared. The mystery behind their
disappearance is the subject of the documentary “Who Killed the Electric
Car?” We're joined by the film's director Chris Paine, and Chelsea Sexton, a
former GM employee who worked on the EV-1 electric car.

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/13/1421243

* Headlines for March 13, 2007 *

- Lawmaker: Iraq Crackdown “Dead” Following Parliament Bombing
- CBS Radio Cancels Don Imus over Racial Slurs
- Oxfam: Boycott on Palestinians Leading to “Devastating” Crisis
- Zimbabwe Opposition Leader: 600 Activists Detained, Tortured
- Turkish Military Chief Calls for Attack on Iraqi Kurds
- Australian PM: Ban Entry for HIV-Positive Immigrants, Refugees
- World Bank Staffers Call on Wolfowitz to Resign
- Prosecutors: Judge Violated Al-Arian's Plea Deal

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/13/1421220

-----

From Greg Palast

Rove Tries to Bury Sordid Secrets of a White House Gone Wild

The House Judiciary Committee just released two emails, dated February 5 and 7, from inside Karl Rove's office, in which the Rove-bots gloat that no US media have picked up the investigations of "that British reporter Greg Palast" found in my book Armed Madhouse. I couldn't make this up.

They will REALLY love to hear this: On April 24, I will be releasing a whole new expanded edition of Armed Madhouse with two new chapters, one just for Mr. Rove: "The Theft of 2008" -- and another, "Busted: the Untold Story of the Drowning of New Orleans."

I'm asking you to make Karl seriously unhappy by ordering a copy of the new edition TODAY, on-line, through Amazon, B&N or your local booksmith.

The new edition's in paperback, dirt cheap and still contains all the original stories that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. calls, "a masterpiece. The story is like a spy thriller."

The Chicago Tribune says of the book, "Palast's stories bite. They're so relevant they threaten to alter history." The New Yorker says, "Armed Madhouse is great fun." Hey, what's so funny? This is: an investigation of economic piggery and political skulduggery so nasty you just have to scream or cry -- or laugh.

In the new Armed Madhouse: From Baghdad to New Orleans -- Sordid Secrets and Strange Tales of a White House Gone Wild you'll find an America where Republicans sucking on Super-sized Slurpies hunt dark-skinned voters to eliminate their rights; where James Baker's fixer in alligator boots sets up the grab for Iraq's oil on her way to the rodeo; where educational testing profiteers terrorize our kiddies (in "No Childs' Behind Left"); plus, my chat with Hugo Chavez about his coming assassination. AND a killer recipe for fish curry. PLUS scores of illustrations of those intriguing documents marked, 'confidential' -- by the State Department, World Bank -- and Karl Rove.

If you want these stories to bite the White House press corps, then participate in this group purchase today to get their attention. Once you got the book send us a note, "I got it," to freebie(at)GregPalast.com and get a high-quality download of my film, "Bolivar's Heir" -- my talk with Chavez while he let's me play with Bolivar's sword.

-----

From Media Savvy

Buy Bigelow, Fight Bigotry
By Rory O'Connor
Supporting sponsors who refuse to support Imus and his idiocy is the best way we can put an end to society's acceptance of such stupidity masquerading as fun and frivolity.

Imus Flap A Matter Of Black, White And Green
By David Lieberman, Laura Petrecca and Gary Strauss, USA Today
Could his offensive remarks bring down a multimillion-dollar media business?

Advertisers Pull Out Of Imus Show
By Paul Farhi and Frank Ahrens, Washington Post
Three advertisers -- office supply chain Staples Inc., Bigelow Tea and Procter & Gamble -- said late yesterday that they would stop placing ads on the show out of dismay over Imus's comments.

Imus Is A Stone-Cold Racist - And Don't You Forget It!
By Elmer Smith, Philadelphia Daily News
You can't appreciate the raw racism of Don Imus' hateful characterization of the Rutgers women's basketball team until you know what they did to him.

Google Earth Focuses On Sudan Atrocities
Associated Press
Google is using its popular online mapping service to call attention to atrocities in the Darfur region of Sudan.

Katie Couric Essay Found Plagiarized; CBS Producer Fired
Associated Press
A CBS News producer was fired and the network apologized after a Katie Couric video essay on libraries was found to be plagiarized from the Wall Street Journal.

World Bank Appoints Legal Firm To Probe Media Leak
By Lesley Wroughton, Reuters
The World Bank has appointed a high-profile Washington law firm to investigate the disclosure of confidential documents and e-mails leaked to Fox News, which it said violated bank rules.

Rutgers' Press Conference Response to Imus
The Rutgers' women's basketball coach responds to Don Imus' remarks. Watch Here

Imus And Beyond
By Isaiah J. Poole, TomPaine.com
As far back as 2000, TomPaine.com was chronicling the sewage spewing from Imus' microphone in a series of articles by Philip Nobile and others that reached back into programs that aired years before.

MSNBC Drops Imus
By Verne Gay, Newsday
NBC has slam dunked the Imus radio program, announcing early Wednesday night that it will no longer simulcast the program.

DJ Fired After Urging Listeners To Make Imus Slur
By Michael Rubinkam, Associated Press
A radio station fired its longtime morning DJ yesterday for holding an on-air contest in which listeners were encouraged to say nappy-headed ho.

Ken Burns, PBS To Add Latino Voices
By Ken Burns, PBS
PBS, Ken Burns and Lynn Novick have decided to create additional content that focuses on stories of Latino and Native American veterans of the Second World War.

Defend The Honor's Letter To PBS
Defend The Honor
We are gratified that PBS has taken our concerns seriously and has made the decision to include, in a substantive manner, the Latino, as well as Native American, experiences in The War.

Lost In The (e-)Mail: White House Admits Mishandling Staff E-mails
By Ariane Devogue, ABC News
Outraged Capitol Hill Democrats say the White House mail mishandling episode raises serious legal and security issues. The Bush administration admits some e-mails from White House staffers have "potentially been lost."

EFF Sues Justice Department For Immediate Release Of NSL Abuse Records
By EFF
EFF wants a judge to issue an emergency order requiring the FBI to immediately release agency records about its abuse of National Security Letters to collect Americans' personal information.

Letter To Robert Gates On First Anniversary Of AP Photographer Bilal Hussein's Arrest
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders wrote today to US defence secretary Robert Gates condemning the detention of Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein at Camp Cropper, near Baghdad, for the past 12 months.

Take Back The Airwaves
By Amy Goodman
The Democracy Now! journalist says corporate broadcasters are holding the airwaves hostage.

Why Don Imus? There Are Racists All Over The Media
Neal Boortz, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter, and Michael Savage prove that racism, sexism and bigotry exist in our media on a daily basis. Why isn't there the outrage over their comments? Why aren't they fired? Why Imus? Watch Here

Take Action: Tell Media To Cover The Debt Crisis
Send an email to news networks demanding that they give more in depth coverage to the debt crisis in America.

Best-Informed Also View Fake News, Study Says
By Katharine Q. Seelye, NY Times
A new survey says the best informed TV viewers watch fake news and Jim Lehrer or Bill O'Reilly; the worst-informed watch Fox News and local newscasts.

Al Jazeera English Goes YouTube
By Robert Briel, Broadband TV News
Middle East news agency Al Jazeera English joins the YouTube generation.

Deep Concern About BBC Correspondent's Fate After Group Claims It Killed Him
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders said it was extremely concerned about the fate of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston after a hitherto unknown group calling itself the Monotheism and Jihad Brigades issued a statement today claiming it had executed him.

Furor Over Imus Puts Heat On Other Broadcasters
By Daniel Trotta, Reuters
Post-Imus, the focus turns to other controversial radio talkers.

Imus Is Done, But Does That Solve The Bigger Problem
By Pamela Leavey, The Democratic Daily
Now that Imus is gone, it's time to focus on real issues surrounding culture and the public discussion of race.

NBC And CBS Rolled Over Once The Advertisers Fled Imus
By Paul McLeary, CJR Daily
And you thought CBS and MSNBC axed the I-Man to stand up for morality and decency.

Imus Firing: Sign of Things To Come?
By Rory O'Connor
Will the downfall of the I-Man mark a turning point in the effort to restore civility and sanity to America's mainstream media? Watch Here

-----

From OilWatchdog: which Big Oil CEO's salary would buy you 10 MILLION fill-ups?

Are the "Oil-ticians" starting to turn back into elected officials?
I've been waiting... and waiting... for political leaders in Washington and Sacramento to turn some heat on oil companies as gasoline heads into $4 territory. This week, OilWatchdog finds Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, chair of the House Domestic Policy Subcommittee, taking a good, hard swing at California pump prices, the highest in the nation.

In other good news, my fellow OilWatchdog blogger John Simpson is at the head of the class on "Big Oil U," the attempt by BP, ConocoPhillips, Exxon and others to buy green credentials with university donations. BP's $500 million pledge to UC Berkeley appears to have many corporate and advertising strings attached, so John is sharpening OilWatchdog's scissors to get them cut.

Scroll on down: Doug Heller tells us which CEO's salary would buy you 10 million fill-ups, and Jamie Court slaps around the media for buying into Big Oil's excuses. Carmen puts a price tag on energy execs' luxurious European junket with state regulators.

While you're on OilWatchdog, we hope you'll sign up to post comments--offer tips, critique the blog, and let us generally know what you think. There's also an RSS feed that you can customize to get only the oil news you want on your laptop, desktop, or PDA.

Yours truly,

Judy Dugan

Here are the recent posts from OilWatchdog.org:

What Oil Analysts Really Mean

by dugan, 04-11-07

Oil companies say they're just at the mercy of mysterious "markets," But combine today's news about energy-price worries and analysts' predictions of more record profits for Big Oil, and a different story emerges. The stock market took alarm at...

Read More

TAGS: Influence | Price Gouging | Profits | Supply | The Industry | ...

Conoco Takes The Plunge

by Simpson, 04-11-07

ConocoPhillips finally took the plunge and became the first major oil company to call for regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. To the rest of Big Oil we say: Follow ConocoPhillips' lead and come on in; the water's fine.

Read More

TAGS: Big Oil U | BP | Chevron | ConocoPhillips | Environment | ...

Conoco Pumps Cash to Big Oil U

by Simpson, 04-10-07

ConocoPhillips is rushing to become a full-fledged sponsor of Big Oil U with a grant of $22.5 million to Iowa State University to develop biorenewable fuels. Will Academic integrity be maintained?

Read More

TAGS: Big Oil U | BP | ConocoPhillips | Environment | ExxonMobil | ...

The Giant Junket Loophole

by dugan, 04-10-07

OilWatchdog colleague Carmen tells us that this month's European junket throwing together energy execs with California regulators and legislators cost $8150 per person (including $800 in spending money!). And all on what amounts to an industry tab...

Read More

TAGS: BP | cash register politics | Chevron | Influence | The Industry | ...

Who's To Blame For Gas Prices?

by Court, 04-09-07

An inquiring media just cannot seem to put the blame where it is due: refiners manipulating gasoline supplies to drive up prices.

Read More

TAGS: Chevron | ExxonMobil | Greed | Media Critique | Misdeeds | ...

I could fill up 10 million times with Oxy CEO's salary

by Heller, 04-07-07

It was the mathematical symmetry of the number that got to me. It costs me about $46 to fill up my Honda at a California gas station these days ($3.28 for unleaded according to AAA). Liz Douglass, in today's LA Times,

Read More

TAGS: CEO compensation | Greed | Misdeeds | Profiteering | ...

Greenwashers' Update

by dugan, 04-06-07

Within the frame of a corporate-oriented publication, Business Week does a thorough rundown of the oil industry's new green advertising, with loads of skeptic quotes.

Read More

TAGS: BP | Global Warming | Greenwashing | Shell | The Industry | ...

Climate Change Deniers, Take This!

by dugan, 04-06-07

Goodbye, Colorado River, and Goodbye, Bangladesh Lowlands. The LA Times today predicts long-term drought and the UN releases its "near-apocalyptic" Policy Summary on climate change.

Read More

TAGS: Catastrophes | Global Warming | Misdeeds | The Industry | ...

Chevron's 'Jungle Law'

by dugan, 04-06-07

William Langewiesche, the lyricist of disaster, has the cover story of the May Vanity Fair with "Jungle Law," on Chevron's trial in Ecuador. It's a $6 billion tale of blood, oil and the persistence of Ecuadorean peasants.

Read More

TAGS: Catastrophes | Chevron | Environment | Greenwashing | ...

Exxon Tactic Shocking ... in Canada

by dugan, 04-06-07

A Vancouver , B.C. tabloid reporter, Sean Holman, nails ExxonMobil today, outing its offer of a public P.R. campaign to change public opinion on drilling in coastal waters.

Read More

TAGS: cash register politics | Chevron | Environment | ExxonMobil | ...

Oil Junket Criticism Grows

by Court, 04-06-07

Today the San Diego Union Tribune added to the chorus of media criticism about junkets for California politicians flying around the world on the dime of the world's largest oil companies with some new details.

Read More

TAGS: BP | cash register politics | Chevron | Environment | Global Warming | ...

Civil Action Karma

by Court, 04-06-07

Seven years ago, I flew back to Chicago to issue a report and the now results are driving a lawsuit I didn't even know about until last week.

Read More

TAGS: Greed | Misdeeds | Profiteering | Record prices | The Industry | ...

'Hot Fuel' Action Gets Hotter

by dugan, 04-05-07

An Oregon fiscal analyst files eighth state-level class action lawsuit against the major oil companies alleging that the sale of motor fuel above a certain temperature cheats motorists.

Read More

TAGS: BP | Chevron | ConocoPhillips | ExxonMobil | Hot Fuel | ...

Hooray for John Chiang, Part 2

by dugan, 04-05-07

California Controller John Chiang demands funding for the federal auditors of oil leases in in California, whose legwork hauls in unpaid royalty money that is split 50-50 with the state. Here's his no-holds-barred letter ...

Read More

TAGS: cash register politics | Chevron | Influence | The Industry | ...

Oil Seeps Into Senate

by dugan, 04-05-07

Key Senate Dems Feinstein and Bingaman go soft on bill to close a $10 billion loophole in oil company royalty payments, possibly dooming the measure.

Read More

TAGS: cash register politics | Influence | Profiteering | The Industry | ...

Gov't's Windfall From High Gas

by Court, 04-04-07

My friend Rose Ann Demoro, who heads the California Nurses Association, reminded me of another reason behind California politicians' deafening silence over sky-rocketing gasoline prices: the percentage-based sales tax.

Read More

TAGS: Price Gouging | Profiteering | Profits | Record prices | The Industry | ...

Pols' Spring Break With Execs

by Court, 04-04-07

Energy company executives are getting some "special time" with powerful California lawmakers on a junket to Japan.

Read More

TAGS: Chevron | ConocoPhillips | Environment | Influence | Price Gouging | ...

Faculty Gets Say In BP-Berkeley

by Court, 04-04-07

It's a step forward for members of the Berkeley faculty to have a say in the details of the largest ever deal between an oil company and university, but the taxpayers that own the university needs to be represented too.

Read More

TAGS: Big Oil U | BP | Greenwashing | Privatization | The Industry | ...

Greenwashing an LNG Terminal

by dugan, 04-03-07

The Coastal Protection Network finds a pollster playing a dirty trick (read full text below) regarding the giant liquefied natural gas terminal proposed off the Southern California coast. Got info? Post a comment or e-mail us: owd@consumerwatchdog.org.

Read More

-----

From HuffPo

Sen Kerry On Speaker Pelosi: "She Had A Right To Go. And She Was Right To Go"

news.yahoo.com

Excerpted from John Kerry's Blog:

We Democrats should've been unapologetic last week defending Speaker Pelosi because the truth was on our side: She had a right to go. And she was right to go. The coordinated attack on her trip to Syria was as inappropriate as it was irresponsible. And when that happens to one of our leaders, we should all damn well stand up and be counted in our support, or else we hand partisan operatives on the other side a dangerous victory.

The history on this is clear; Republicans use any opportunity, no matter how contrived, to attack any Democrat who is in a position of leadership. Believe me, I know. It's a concerted, ongoing effort to leave the Democratic Party without leadership on the issues, without voices unsullied by "controversy." They thrive on destroying our leaders - we can't let them. Especially when we've got the moral high ground...
Click here to read more.