GreenFeed

Green Party News: Green leader praises arrested soldier's "heroic resistance" to Afghanistan war

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:19:31 +0000

Green Party leader Caroline Lucas has sent a personal message of support to Lance Corporal Joe Glenton, who was arrested yesterday on charges of desertion following his refusal to return to fight in Afghanistan - and for his appearance at an anti-war demonstration last month.

In her email to the soldier, she said: "I would like to express my admiration for your decision to take a courageous and principled stand against the war in Afghanistan. You have the support of the many people in the UK and abroad who passionately oppose this ongoing conflict, which increasingly appears unwinnable."

"The US-led invasion of Afghanistan has resulted in a tragic loss of life, an ever-more dangerous and unstable country, and the installation of a fundamentally corrupt political leadership. Those on both sides continue to lose their lives on a daily basis - while the idea of promoting peace feels very far away."

"At the very least, the brave men and women who sign up to be sent into conflict - to risk their lives on the front line - deserve to be told the truth about the war they are fighting in and what they are fighting for."

"L/Cpl Glenton, I hope your heroic resistance to the reckless and misguided foreign policy played out in Afghanistan will increase the pressure on the UK Government to accelerate an exit strategy and withdraw our troops."

In response to the arrest of L/Cpl Glenton, Stop The War Coalition has arranged an emergency protest to take place tomorrow (Thursday 12 November) outside the Ministry Of Defence in Whitehall at 5pm.

Notes to Editors:

- For more information, visit the STWC website - www.stopwar.org.uk

- Joseph Healy, Green parliamentary candidate for Vauxhall, will be attending the rally.

GREEN LEFT: The Working Class Movement Library marks the 25 anniversary of the Miners Strike 1984-1985

noreply@blogger.com (DODO MODERN POETS) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:00:32 +0000

Forwarded from Minersinfo by National Shop Stewards Network
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The Working Class Movement Library marks the 25 anniversary of the Miners
Strike 1984-1985

The Working Class Movement Library will be holding a meeting to mark the 25th anniversary of the Miners Strike 1984-1985.

On Saturday 21 November at 2.30pm speakers Granville Williams, editor of Shafted; the Media,the Miners' Strike and the Aftermath (2009) and Paul Kelly (Ex-Agecroft Miner) will look back at the personal, political and economic effects of the strike.

The strike was one of the largest and most significant industrial disputes of the 20th Century. The role of women in the strike enabled the strike to last longer than any national strike in British history.Throughout the country people decided what side they were on and diverse groups rallied to support the miners.

Shafted;the Media,the Miners'Strike and the Aftermath was edited by Granville Williams and published by the Campaign for the Press and Broadcasting Freedom earlier this year The contributors reflect on topics such as the press and TV coverage of the strike, documentaries about the strike, the role of the security services and the role of women during the strike,

Bernadette Hyland of the WCML said "We meet on the 21 November to remember how much we gained from the strike, not just how much we have lost in terms of our trade union and human rights. Please join us and bring with you your remembrances, both good and bad, of that traumatic year. We also hope that young people will come along to find out more about this historic event."

The meeting will take place in the Working Class Movement Library, 51 Crescent Salford M5 4WX, Tel :0161-736-3601. email; enquiries@wcml.org.
uk. www.wcml.org.uk

Press Contact

Bernadette Hyland : 01457-838885.
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07:38:00

Green Girls Global Blog: Dot-Eco

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:29:05 +0000

We currently have dot-com, dot-net, dot-gov, dot-org, and even dot-biz; next up is dot-eco. Two groups are currently going toe-to-toe in who is going to manage this new internet domain suffix One group is in B.C., Vancouver, called Big Room , the other is located in Los Angeles, called Dot Eco. Do we really need a dot-eco domain? Nonetheless this will not only serve as a marketing tool for companies who wish to show their “green” side, but hopefully act as a fundraising tool as well. Revenues generated from the sell of these domain names will go to environmental causes.

There is a small catch. Once this new domain is launched, they say in 2010, not just anyone will be able to register for it. In other words, there will be a set of eligibility standards applicants would have to meet. One idea is having applicants set up a profile outlining their sustainability initiatives. But this leaves the question, who will verify this?

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Both companies have strong supporters.

Green Ladywell: Application to turn former off-licence on Algernon Road into a hot food take away

noreply@blogger.com (Sue) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:53:58 +0000

We've just been notified of the following planning application for change of use from A1 retail to A5 (hot food take away).

DC/09/72751: 222 ALGERNON ROAD, LONDON, SE13 7AG
Proposal: The change of use of the ground floor unit at the front of 222 Algernon Road SE13, from retail (Class Use A1) to Hot food Takeaway (Use Class A5), together with the installation of an extract flue on the rear elevation.

This is the former off-licence, next to the tattoo parlour. You can view the application online here.
If you wish to comment on this application, you should do so in writing by 26th November. You can e-mail planning@lewisham.gov.uk, or write to them at Planning, 5th Floor Laurence House, 1 Catford Road, Catford, London, SE6 4RU.

Green Ladywell: Thames Water contractors go AWOL with job half-done on Ladywell Road

noreply@blogger.com (Sue) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:28:18 +0000

This was the scene on Ladywell Road today, thanks to Thames Water contractors, who on Sunday dug up the road (presumably to fix a leak), did a temporary fix of the pavement, blocked off the pedestrian crossing and, as far as I can tell, haven't been back since.

Meanwhile, pedestrians, including many school pupils from Gordonbrock and the two Prendergast schools are being forced to jump over railings or make a long detour to cross the road, which is surely an accident waiting to happen.

I have called Lewisham's Highways team to raise my concerns and asked them to chase Thames Water, and also logged a call directly with Thames Water, in the hope this will get fixed asap. I am also curious to see whether this complies with the recently-launched street works permits scheme.

I'll be pushing to make sure the pavement is made right as soon as possible, rather than left with yet another patchwork of tarmac for months on end. Of course, if highways had carried out the works we were promised back in the Spring, to remove some of the railings, things wouldn't be quite as bad as they are today!

It is infuriating when local residents go to such effort to spruce up the street, only for utilities companies come along and trash it again!

UPDATE, 4.30pm: Just got a call from Thames Water to say their contractors are en route to clear the site and reopen the crossing, so hopefully that will be sorted today. They will still need to come back to do a proper reinstatement of the paving at a later date.

Croydon Greens: Thornton Heath Library Redevelopment

shasha_khan@hotmail.com (Shasha Khan) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:07:56 +0000

Being part of the steering group to redevelop Thornton Heath library has been one of the more straightforward projects I have been involved in. Aileen Cahill and Chris Carey have been very competent project managers. Work is due to be completed in April 2010. Below is the latest update:

Programme Update.

The project seems to be on schedule, and there are visible signs of progress on the outside of the building. The stone work has been cleaned and looks as new, and openings have been created on the right hand side for the front glass pavilion to be attached. The side extensions, housing the lift & staircase, and the ICT suite and staff quarters respectively, are going up, and can be seen especially from the rear car park. Electrical work continues at pace.

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Tags croydon, greenparty

Rupert's Read: Check this out if you haven't seen it yet

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:50:12 +0000

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/11/10/filmmaker_philippe_diaz_on_the_end

Watch this!

http://www.theendofpoverty.com/

This is going to be an important film. The filmmaker overstates somewhat his point about poverty vis a vis global over-heat, because the latter will impoverish or eliminate all future generations, unless we stop it. But the general point he is making is nevertheless extremely powerful, and must provoke us to action.

Transition Culture: Why the last thing London needs is more Clouds

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:50:05 +0000

Gah. I feel a rant coming on. Here’s a crap idea for you. The BBC announced today the idea of ‘The Cloud’, a new hideous construction to grace the city’s skyline in time for the 2012 Olympics. It would take the form of a “giant cloud” that would “float” above the city skyline (well, at [...]

Wembley Matters: WELSH HARP ENVIRONMENTALCENTRE - A VALUABLE RESOURCE

noreply@blogger.com (MARTIN FRANCIS) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:24:40 +0000

The Welsh Harp Environmental Education Centre is adjacent to the proposed housing development on the Greenhouse Garden Centre site.

The Centre is used by children from the boroughs of Brent and Barnet and wider afield and is an excellent and valued local resource,

Click HERE to see a video about the Centre's work.

Charlie Bolton's Southville blog: The railway path and the local development framework

charles.bolton@bristol.gov.uk (Charlie Bolton) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:35:01 +0000

Another snippet from yesterdays meeting was about the Bristol-Bath railway path

When I started looking at the document, it occured to me that, under a vague section talking of cycle paths and walkways, that wouldn't it have been a good opportunity to mention the Bristol-bath railway path, and giving it some protection under the local development framework.

I toyed with doing an amendment (wouldn't have been popular with a document which has been years in the making), but contacted Jon Rogers to see if anything an be done. I also contacted an officer - who suggested the sites allocation document - would be a good place to do this.

Both Jon and Neil Harrison mentioned that the green infrastructure section (I think) of the document offers protection to the path (although a quick look saw no specific mention of it).

I'd like to get bit of clarity from them over what they mean't and how it helps. I'm not point scoring with this (well, not yet), but think it would be useful to know.

I'll send 'em an email (or hope they read this post and respond....)

Greenpeace UK Blogs: Voices for Change: Sydney

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:20:34 +0000

In Sydney, between drought and dust storms, the effects of climate change are becoming more visible than ever.

In this Voices for Change video Amanda McKenzie from the Australian Youth Climate Coalition explains how these changes are affecting life in a city increasingly vulnerable to storm surges and rising sea-levels.

Two Doctors: Rush Limbaugh: Patrick Harvie is a "militant environmentalist wacko".

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:20:10 +0000

We've arrived. Last night on Rush's radio show he had a go at us over golf balls (even if Patrick was described as "a US lawmaker"). I kid you not. You can listen to the craziness below - the golf item is from 11 minutes 45 seconds, with Patrick quoted from about 14 minutes 10 seconds.

Charlie Bolton's Southville blog: Yesterdays council meeting....

charles.bolton@bristol.gov.uk (Charlie Bolton) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:10:00 +0000

....well, it went on for hours. I hoped but didn't get to speak on the motion (from labour) about 4 yearly elections.

In the end, I voted against the LibDem spoiling amendment because the original motion - leaving aside the politicking - included a will to consult people outside of the council, an holidng a special meeting. The motion was actually enabling rather than anything else.

It was never going to work, because the LDs were never going to have it. Their amendment said stuff about 2 yearly elections (one councillor per ward) and having PR. As was pointed out, neither of these are on offer.

4 yearly elections probably wont work for smaller political parties. Greens would struggle to find 35 candidates (1 per ward) let alone 70 - which would deny people the opportunity to vote Green should they choose to do so.

However, there is no doubt that the current system of elections is confusing (2 years of elections in Southville, then none for two years) and there is an argument about running the council for a full 4 year term, rather than being on permanent election watch.

I was a bit irritated by Labour calling for a named vote on the final amended motion. They had scored their points by having a named vote on the amendment, and this seemed to serve no purpose, except to waste some time.

Bristling badger: fluidity of language, dilution of meaning

noreply@blogger.com (merrick) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:07:35 +0000

For any global climate deal to be meaningful, China has to be on board. This straining, gagging desire makes people praise anything that looks like them signing up. Even when it's meaningless.

The world inched closer to an elusive deal to combat climate change yesterday, when China, the world's biggest polluter, made its most substantial commitment yet to curb its carbon emissions and invest in clean energy.

It was not a commitment in the sense of having any measurable element. More importantly, nor was it about reducing carbon emissions.

It was actually

the promise of a "notable" decrease in the carbon intensity of China's economy

Not even any ballpark numbers there, just 'notable'. As slip-through-the-fingers as Gordon Brown's assurance that the EU will - sting me with your numbers, Captain Prudence - pay its 'fair share' of funds to poorer countries suffering on the climate front line.

But the real bad boy is not the lack of solid figures, it's the phrase 'carbon intensity'. Just as industry uses 'emissions reduction' to mean not 'reduction' but 'a smaller increase than we might otherwise have had', so China and India are shifting our language from 'carbon emissions' to 'carbon intensity'.

'Carbon emissions' is the amount of carbon emitted. 'Carbon intensity' is the amount emitted per item manufactured or unit of economic activity.

Producing 10% less CO2 per thneed manufactured is fine until you ramp up production. Make twice as many thneeds and, even though emissions per thneed might have come down, total emissions go up.

The climate isn't looking at emissions per unit of GDP, it only looks at total emissions, so that's the only number that counts.

But we so desperately want China to be on side that we're accepting this bollocksy redefinition. In the same way, we're accept the American shift of language, talking of an agreement that will be 'politically binding' instead of 'legally binding' (as if there had been any agreement on what 'legally binding' was going to mean anyway).

It's rather like the way George Monbiot unpicked India's announcement that it will rapidly build 20GW of solar power cpapcity, equivalent to about a quarter of the UK's electricity production. It got praised as India taking climate change seriously, but, Monbiot noted,

India is also in the middle of a programme to increase coal capacity by 79GW – equivalent to the entire UK power sector – by 2012. The new solar plant will supplement, not substitute, its other forms of power generation.

An economy based on growth will increase total consumption and so rapidly eat up any carbon savings from reducing 'carbon intensity'. Basing any agreements on carbon intensity is a guarantee that we will not reduce carbon emissions.

It means we're more likely to get a deal everyone can sign up to, but when it's effectively designed to fail, what's the point? Making our deals palatable to the people who wish to exacerbate the problem we're trying to rein in is utterly insane.

Bristling badger: simon mann: the toff gets off

noreply@blogger.com (merrick) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:22:08 +0000

Simon Mann - a person who'd fit any decent working definition of 'international terrorist' - has been pardoned and released from jail in Equatorial Guinea, 16 months into a 34 year sentence for his attempted coup in the oil-rich nation.

To recap,

Neo-colonialist mercenary leader Mann was caught with a planeload of weapons and ex-apartheid South African special forces on their way to stage a coup in Equatorial Guinea...

Mann certainly wasn't going there on any humanitarian mission. As with his previous campaigns, it was about clearing out one group so a grateful government - irrespective of its attitude to human rights - would bestow lucrative mineral rights upon him.

For a more detailed account of the activities of Mann and his friends around the world, check out my article Simon Mann: A Very English Killer.

During his trial in Equatorial Guinea, Mann sang like the proverbial canary and implicated 'Sir' Mark Thatcher (who pleaded guilty to involvement in a South African court) and plot-chief Ely Calil.

On his release, Mann said

I am very anxious that Calil, Thatcher and one or two of the others, should face justice.

I'm relishing the thought of it happening - oh please let plot-funder Jeffrey Archer have another spell in jail - but I cannot muster any faith that it'll come to pass. The establishment insulates its members well.

Indeed, this was shown in Mann's favour by Guernsey courts' refusal to allow the Equatorial Guinea government access to Mann's account records and safe deposit boxes, despite strong evidence that these contain hard and damning evidence of the plot.

Meanwhile, a vicious mercenary is now free to enjoy his millionaire's lifestyle and work on his book deal and film options.

= = = = = = = = =

UPDATE 11 NOV 09: Over at The Quiet Road, Jim's post on Simon Mann (and the comments) include specific discussion of my post here.

Derek Wall - Another Green World: Kerry Greens to debate going Green?

noreply@blogger.com (Derek Wall) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:02:29 +0000

Just had this, there are greens who do better and those who do worse but Ireland has been a car crash, hopefully something green will emerge like a big bright bird from the ashes...

BigTimGreen has left a new comment on your post "Skibbereen joins Letterkenny":

@ TheVirginiaAndrew

Re the Donegal Greens ... 91% of the Donegal Greens voted to leave the party. SOURCE (http://www.independent.ie/national-news/donegal-greens-decide--to-split-from-party-1930796.html) ... the article says "91pc vote in favour of leaving the party." I would consider that to be very damaging, and I'm not surprised you try to spin it positively.

The West Cork Greens are also holding breakaway talks. SOURCR (http://www.tribune.ie/news/home-news/article/2009/nov/08/greens-in-west-cork-to-hold-breakaway-talks/). ANOTHER SOURCE (http://westcorkgreens.blogspot.com/2009/11/future-of-green-politics-is-dead-and.html). You should read these two links. They give a very good idea of how some party members are feeling. Declan Waugh actually says, "I find all of my work in attempting to build a low carbon future is now in jeopardy as a consequence of my association with the Green Party." Its not just him ... there are some messages of support from other people agreeing with him.

Kerry Greens ... I can give a source for this sorry. My previous comment is based on a personal conversation and I will not break that confidence. But remember where you heard this first!

And then we have other prominent members such as Arthur Doohan etc. SOURCE (http://doohan.org/blog/). You should also read this. Strong stuff, and indicitive of what many GP members are feeling.

I'm not surprised you are trying to spin this positively. I can see how this is damaging the party.

Your spin on NAMA ... you say "On NAMA we have a) criminalised lobbying of NAMA b) agreed an 80% windfall tax on rezoning which is a major Green Party aim to combat land speculation c) agreed to replace the entire board of Directors of all the major banks and d) introduced limited risk sharing."

The reality on NAMA ... (a) The 80% windfall tax is next to irrelevant and will be for the next 20-30 years as there is at least that amount of zoned land and housing stock available (in fact some put this figure at 50 years). (b) The decision to replace the entire board of directors of all the major banks was already taken by Lenihan. Currently, the boards have not been replaced, and where people have been removed they have been replaced by insiders and bank "lifers" ... the very same people who got us into this mess in the first place. (c) The risk sharing element is what? Is it 5%? Not real risk sharing and very far from what was promised by Eamonn Ryan the week before the pfg.

As for the other areas I've listed (and "exaggerated", altho I'm sure if I had really exaggerated you would be more than happy to be more specific), they are fact. I have no problem with compromise or democratic mandate. But the Green Party have not compromised. You have totally capitulated to FF. You have achieved almost nothing while at the same time you have steadfastly supported the most corrupt and incompetent FF govt in the history of Ireland.

I realise I'm wasting my breath here. I know you will never see ther reality of how the Irish Green party have destroyed the Green agenda in Ireland for a long, long time. I know you dont accept that and will not see that. You dismiss Derek, Arthur, Patricia McKenna, Bronwen Maher, Waugh, etc, etc, etc. In a way I admire your blind faith and unquestioning belief in the Green leadership ... I liken it to a kind of religious fervor or fundamentalism ... the kind Ian Paisley had. Unfortunately its blinding you to the reality of what is really happening, and how the Greens have really sold out and betrayed every single person who voted for them. Just as they will surely betray every one who voted for the new pfg.

And if you dont believe me we'll see what happens to the Irish Green Party after the next Irish General election.

That might, just might, open your eyes to the reality ...

Jim Jay - The Daily (Maybe): Things in the news

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jay) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:59:42 +0000

No time to post properly but here are three striking articles in the news that made me sit up, which takes a lot as I'm a habitual sloucher.

Fire arms police officer suspended. What for though?

Brighton bin strike called off. Chances of a proper settlement look good, shows what one article in the Morning Star can do.

After the horrific murders in Fort Hood by a US Army Major it is revealed that "Ft. Hood has had 76 soldier suicides since 2003". That's around one a month.

Tower Hamlets Green Party: India’s environment Minister disputes climate change impact

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:56:18 +0000

The following report is extremely worrying.
If an Environment Minister can get it so wrong about the Himalayan glaciers, then somewhere somehow the message is not getting through.
Too much emphasis is being placed on conferences where leaders make the expected pitch.
This article gives us an insight into why climate change is not on the political agenda for so many poor countries.
It’s on the conference agenda for sure but politicians with short term horizons (and little
care about their people) are miming their lines like Britney Spears.

Farid Bakht

India minister under fire over glaciers
Source: Agence France-Presse . New Delhi and http://www.newagebd.com

“India’s environment minister came under fire Tuesday from scientists for denying climate change was causing Himalayan glaciers to melt and disputing the work of the UN’s top global warming body.
The environment minister, Jairam Ramesh, said Monday there was no ‘conclusive scientific evidence’ linking global warming to the melting of the glaciers and questioned work by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The IPCC, a UN body regarded as the world’s top authority on climate change, has warned Himalayan glaciers are receding faster than in any other part of the world and could ‘disappear altogether by 2035 if not sooner’.
Shresth Tayal, a glaciologist with The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi, rejected a new report from an Indian scientist presented by Ramesh that denied the link between rising temperatures and receding ice.

‘This report is incomplete. It has been written with a biased approach,’ said Tayal, who labelled the findings ‘self-contradictory.’
‘Do you think any scientist needs to prove that warming causes melting of ice? If there is heat, ice is bound to melt.’
Tayal criticised the Indian government for endorsing the report by geologist Vijay Kumar Raina, saying it should have analysed the results before making it public.
IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri also blasted the research by Raina, calling it ‘unsubstantiated’ and said Ramesh’s support of it was ‘arrogant.’

‘I cannot see what the minister’s motives are. We do need more extensive measurement of the Himalayan range but it is clear from satellite pictures what is happening,’ he told Britain’s Guardian newspaper.
Ramesh admitted some glaciers were receding but said the rate was not ‘historically alarming’ as projected by the IPCC, the Hindustan Times daily reported.
‘The health of the Himalayan glaciers is poor, but according to the (research) paper the doomsday prediction of the IPCC and Al Gore is also not correct,’ Ramesh said, referring to former US vice-president and climate campaigner Al Gore.
Raina, who authored the research, echoed Ramesh, saying ‘nothing abnormal is happening to Indian glaciers.’
‘There’s no evidence of climate change,’ said Raina, according to the Hindustan Times newspaper.
Pachauri likened the explanations to ‘climate change deniers and schoolboy science’.
India’s attitude to the IPCC and other international findings on Himalayan glaciers has been marked by nationalist sentiment, with Ramesh repeatedly stressing that most research on the subject is done by non-Indians.

Posted in Bangladesh, climate change

Green Bristol: Time Running Out for Hourbikes?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Hutt) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:50:04 +0000

A comment by Tim on the previous post dealing with Hourbikes drew attention to the declining number of bikes listed as available from the 4 'hubs' in central Bristol, according to Hourbike's own map. At the time of writing only 10 bikes are shown compared to 18 at the launch of Hourbikes in July. Numbers also appeared low at the 4 UWE/Parkway hubs with just 13 shown as available.

I've been keeping an eye on some of the Hourbike stands (yes CCTV people, that shifty looking character hanging around the hubs is me) and there's little evidence of any use. From time to time there's one more bike at one and one less bike at another, but I've never actually seen anybody using the system. Has anyone? Back in the summer we were told use would pick up when the students returned, which may or may not be true out at UWE but hasn't happened in central Bristol.

On the plus side I've been surprised at how little vandalism there's been. A couple of the wire baskets have been crushed but otherwise the bikes seem to have remained unscathed. Theft might explain the diminishing numbers of bikes, but I suspect they are being quietly withdrawn for use elsewhere. Ten bikes is still more than enough to cope with the minimal demand.

So is there any future for Hourbikes in Bristol? Certainly not on the basis of the current minimal coverage, as many people said at the outset. There doesn't seem to be any effort to secure more hubs either, even at Temple Meads station which is the most obvious location. And I can't see Cycling City throwing any more money at Hourbikes on the basis of current performance.

The failure of the Hourbike venture should be an object lesson for us all in the need for these things to be based on sound market economics and not just wishful thinking. The waste of resources on the Hourbike scheme has been as modest as the network coverage but there was, as possibly still is, pressure for a massive public subsidy which would have been at the expense of potentially much more productive infrastructure investment.

Greener Leith News: Join in the Leith Walk

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:47:19 +0000

Greener Leith is pleased to be supporting David, a local resident who has volunteered to help set-up a new walking group in Leith. He's set the dates for the next few walks. All of them leave from the 'big pointy thing' at the Foot of Leith Walk - and anyone is welcome.

Recently we've met a few, often older, people who say that they would walk more, but feel that some of the paths, like the one that runs up the Water of Leith path, seem too dangerous for them to use on their own.

So if you want a chance to explore your neighbourhood, and feel there's safety in numbers, or if you want to get into the habit of walking more for health reasons, or if you fancy it just for the simple pleasure of doing something together outdoors in a group - please do put these dates below in your diary. These walks are open to all.

Also, you can help to promote The Leith Walk, by downloading this flyer and putting it up somewhere - in your local shop, workplace, school or community centre. Click here to download it.

Derek Wall - Another Green World: Death squads for biodiesal in Dublin

noreply@blogger.com (Derek Wall) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:40:44 +0000

I am very concerned about the Irish Greens support of biofuels, the main source of biofuels in the European Union is of course Colombia where repressive measures are used to clear people off the land to gain palm oil.

"The paramilitaries are not subtle when it comes to taking land," said Dominic Nutt of Christian Aid, in an interview with The Times of London. "They simply visit a community and tell landowners, 'If you don't sell to us, we will negotiate with your widow.'"

Farmers Who Refuse to Sell to Biofuel Interests Pay with Their Lives
Some farmers who have refused to sell or surrender their land have been murdered. There are also stories of paramilitaries cutting off the arms of illiterate peasants and using fingerprints from the severed hands to create fraudulent documents that transfer land ownership.

Will the Irish Greens promote human rights or have a no comment policy on bloodstained biodiesal? I don't think unless we are talking waste fat, etc that biofuels are environmentally friendly. There is the argument that land in Ireland unsuitable for growing food crops can be used for biofuels, however 70% or more of the biofuels used in Ireland are likely to come from abroad.

The Irish Green Party are currently in government with the centre right Fianna Fail party, motorway building, spending cuts, bailing out the banks with NAMA are all highly unpopular policies but if the promotion of biodiesal leads to more people being killed in Colomobia or rainforests being destroyed in Indonesia then that really would be unforgiveable.

Of course if the Irish Greens have come out on the issue of bloodstained biodesel I would be happy to flag this up positively.

Hey you know my position when people do green I praise and when it is paint job for property developers I complain.

When misplaced environmental policies kill, well that is another matter.

Tower Hamlets Green Party: Keep our NHS public – meeting tonight Bethnal Green

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:36:45 +0000

What future for our NHS in East London?

Are the plans for 40% less hospital services, cuts and privatisation the answer?

Health Services: Condition critical!
NHS Care and Jobs are under attack from massive cuts and privatisation.
Stop money for our public services going to Government bank bailouts.

There will be a meeting tonight (11th November) starting at 6.15 at Oxford House, Derbyshire Street (off Bethnal Green Road). This is only five minutes walk from Bethnal Green station.
Admission: free

Posted in bethnal green & bow, economy, health, New Labour, Tower Hamlets

Earthenwitch (was Kitchen Witch): On reading, that most civilised of pursuits.

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:31:03 +0000

I’ve seen a new meme floating around the atmos in the last few days, one which focuses on what people are reading, and what their little ones are reading too. I’m not feeling collected enough to join in officially, but I did want to witter on about a couple of books, so this seems an apt time to do so.

The tiny daughter’s favourite thing is a book. She also likes her lighthouse (which, consisting of wooden rings of different colours, is one of my favourites too), and her wooden hedgehog (which is also wooden rings, one each of red, two shades of orange and yellow, but with the added bonus of varying numbers of holes drilled into them so that in order to fit on the hedgehog’s base, the alignment must also be sorted out the right way; this has kept her going back for more when I think other stacking toys might have become dull by now), but still, if she’s ever bored or fractious, a book is the first thing we go for. Recently, her ability to look you in the eye, attempting to keep the tell-tale grin off her face before she beetles off around the corner to run away and hide, has only added to the utter joy I feel when we sit down to read together.

Current favourites are Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper, No Matter What by Debi Gliori, and Keep Love in Your Heart, Little One by Giles Andreae and Clara Vulliamy. Of course, they’re partly my favourites, too - the illustrations for all three are just so scrumptious that I want to climb into the pages and set up house there. I mean, look at these, from Keep Love in Your Heart:*

Big is even wearing striped socks. What’s not to like?

As for reading material of a more adult nature, well, I’m struggling at the moment. I read Stef Penney’s The Tenderness of Wolves and really enjoyed it; in fact, I intended to do take part in A Clever and Intelligent Discussion of It in October, but somehow that fell by the wayside. Since then, I’ve read A Gathering Light by Jennifer Donnelly, and enjoyed that too, but now I’m back to re-reading H. Potter (currently, The Deathly Hallows), and I could do with some recommendations. Recent enjoyments have included (and I feel I should feel shame at this, yet I don’t, somehow) the Twilight saga (saga - !), but I could do with something a little meatier to get my teeth into, I think. Suggestions, anyone?

* Yes, I am aware of the slightly cloying nature of this title, and yes, there was a time in my life when I probably would have vomited at the very mention of such a phrase, but hey, such is life - I’m a hypocrite.

Greenpeace UK Blogs: Negotiating with biology

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:24:27 +0000

Excessive demand? Bluefin carcasses ready to be auctioned at a Tokyo fishmarket

As I write this, I'm sitting in the plenary room of the ICCAT meeting, whilst Charles Clover's film 'The End of The Line' is being screened. This in itself is a great coup.

In a memorable scene from the film, whilst attending a previous ICCAT meeting, Clover himself chastised the bureaucrats in that meeting for setting irresponsibly high quotas that ignored scientific advice. In his words they were '…negotiating with biology. And you just can't do that, and expect to see the biology survive'.

It's a stunningly simple thing. Fishing is harvesting wild animals, and that can only happen if there are healthy populations of those animals, which in turn means healthy ecosystems to support them. And you simply can't take out more fish than is being replenished. Fish, like any other animals, are only a renewable resource up to a point!

Organisations like ICCAT, which are Fisheries Management Organisations, theoretically exist to make sure that the countries involved are managing the fisheries, OUR fisheries, effectively. But there's a catch. To you and me this would mean setting sensible quotas and not trashing fish stocks. But many of the people involved in ICCAT and other such organisations, seem to think their job is to squeeze every last fish out of the oceans, and keep their fishing industries happy. So when it comes down to setting quotas, it doesn't quite make sense.

ICCAT gets its own scientists to give it information on the stocks for which it is responsible (tuna, swordfish, sailfish and sharks). It then uses those to decide on quotas, which is a game of political haggling until an agreement is reached. Note that I said it 'uses' those. It isn't bound by them, and sometimes it just ignores them altogether. In fact they routinely set quotas vastly higher than the upper limits of what the scientists suggest would be safe especially on lucrative species like bluefin.

This is utter madness.

This year with huge amounts of public pressure, bad press, and celebrity outrage at the state of bluefin, ICCAT members are all talking very sincerely about setting catch levels that 'follow the science'. Surely they should be bound by the scientific recommendations – otherwise, what's the point of having them? Surely it should not take campaigns and catastrophic stock collapses to make ICCAT see that?

The starting point for ICCAT, and other fisheries management organisations should be the science, and the quotas shouldn't exceed that. But that in itself isn't even enough, as the New York Times has ably pointed out this week. We are doing lots of things to our oceans, trashing other species as bycatch and altering ecosystems in ways we can't imagine. So we should be much more precautionary than the science suggests, especially when we factor in illegal fishing activity (which, as we know, is rampant for the profitable bluefin).

ICCAT has its work cut out. It has been dragged kicking and screaming to the realisation that it has mismanaged bluefin tuna. And that's just the tip of the fishy iceberg. Most of the species under ICCAT's control are large predatory species, and globally they have declined by 90% over the last few decades.

No wonder ICCAT is uncomfortable that the world is watching them this week. But it remains to be seen if they will be shamed into usefulness. I'll keep you posted.

Take action

Make a difference by pledging to boycott bluefin and those who sell it »

Caroline Lucas: Questions over Tory handling of bin strike

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:03:25 +0000

Given the mess that's built up around the city in the short time the bin strike has been happening, I'm sure most of Brighton and Hove will be as relieved as I am that the talks have today brought about a suspension of the strike - at least for now. Hopefully, during this suspension, an agreement can be reached that deals properly with the unfair pay cuts faced by some GMB members.

(http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/4730442.Brighton_binmen_strike_suspended/)

But the issue has raised some fundamental questions over the local Tory administration's grip on events. Mary Mears and her colleagues appear to have buried their heads in the sand throughout the dispute - where have they been? - leaving council officers to deal with the onslaught of calls. Greens have worked hard to enable conflict resolution - sadly the same can't be said of the Adminstration leadership. Frankly their approach has has shambolic and a major let down to the city as a whole - they've done themselves , and the wider Tory image, no favours.

Perhaps more crucially, however, the row has exposed a pretty unfair pay difference between the council's top earners and those on low incomes. The Tory-led council should now surely be working towards re-addressing the balance and to introduce fairness into the pay of all council staff in order to reduce the gap.

Green Ben's Kemptown Blog: Greens setting the agenda at Brighton Council

ben.duncan@brighton-hove.gov.uk (Ben Duncan) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:52:05 +0000

Yesterday I was invited to address members of Brighton Council's Environment and Community Safety Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Yes, quite a mouthful, I know.

I'm not a member of the committee, and therefore didn't have a vote or anything, but I was amazed really to find the meeting completely dominated by the Green Party's agenda - to see proof in action of how our 13-strong group is batting above its weight.

First there was the substantive stuff: the committee agreed to establish two separate scrutiny panels to investigate services for victims of rape and serious sexual assault (this was something I proposed myself, following conversations with victims, police officers and others, and discovering that rape victims in the city are taken to Crawley - as there are currently no round-the-clock support facilities available in the city), and one to look at whether following the lead of cities like Portsmouth and Bristol by establishing a blanket 20 mph speed limit would save lives and improve traffic flows - another Green Party campaign, this one led by Hove parliamentary candidate and St Peters and North Laine councillor Ian Davey (pictured).

And then there was the non-substantive stuff: a debate on roadworks (I've already blogged about this) sparked by Queen's Park Green councillor Paul Steedman. There was a discussion of the future of the London Road area which revolved around traffic congestion and the majority of residents' views that the last thing the area needs is a Tesco superstore. Although this was the clearly stated view of those living and working in the area - it tallies exactly with the Green Party's position on the issue, and a brief debate about the council's strategy for dealing with waste - and, perhaps bizarrely for such an urban authority, mineral extraction. There was wide acceptance of the view that we should do everything the law allows us to do to refuse to import waste from London, and that we need to boost recycling levels and find alternatives to landfill and incineration where we can. Again, exactly the Green party's position.

So it seems that the Greens' by-election win in Goldsmid is already making a huge difference. With 13 councillors, obviously we can't make any of the big, important decisions. But we can, and are, setting the agenda in which those decisions are being taken - that can only be good news for residents.

Joseph Healey for Vauxhall MP: Soldier arrested for speaking out against the war

noreply@blogger.com (Joseph) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:42:55 +0000

Attended Stop the War activists meeting last night. Corporal Joe Glenton, the soldier who spoke at the STWC Afghan war demo three weeks ago, has been arrested for speaking at the demo. There is a possibility of a demo outside the MOD in London on Thursday at 5pm about this. This has been called at obviously short notice. Demo is inside exclusion zone, so police permission supposed to be applied for. Many students and young people at the meeting and strong support for an action. Seems a lot of new activists against the war. Please monitor STWC website for further info.

http://stopwar.org.uk/content/view/1593/1/

Richard Lawson - Mabinogogiblog: Richard Littlejohn; if the cap fits...

noreply@blogger.com (DocRichard) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:07:43 +0000

I was going to fill in a Press Complaints Commission report, but then decided to try the Daily Mail first, before the tiger of the Press complaints commission goes and sits on their lap, purring and licking itself.

Littlejohn asserts: "There is a welter of countervailing evidence that, far from warming up to boiling point, the Earth is actually getting cooler and the ice caps thicker".

The statement about the ice caps getting thicker is false.
I asked him to give a reference for this assertion, (last comment in list) but he did not reply.

We may guess that Littlejohn is referring to reports that the central Antarcic ice is getting thicker, which is thought to be due to warmer water around the Antarctic continent generating more water vapour, therefore clouds, therefore precipitation.

It is therefore the case that part of the Antarctic ice is getting thicker, although the Antarctic ice cap is shrinking in area, as is the Arctic cap shrinking both in thickness and area.

This distinction between cap (singular) = true, and caps (plural) = false may seem pedantic, but in the mind of the reader it makes a big difference. People have an well-defined image of the earth with its ice caps. They would be reassured to have it suggested that the ice caps were getting thicker. To hear that one ice cap was getting thicker in one part would not create the same impression.

I would therefore ask the Commission that either a correction be published by the Mail, or that they commission another article to counterbalance the AGW denialist tone of not just this piece, but many of his pieces.

Just to anticipate the argument that this is suppression of Littlejohn's legitimate right to his opinion: it is not. I am not asking for him to be banned from writing AGW denial stories: I am only asking that they should be factually accurate, and that his readers should have access to both sides of the argument.

Richard Lawson - Mabinogogiblog: Tobin Tax: Will Hutton backs it, idiots disagree

noreply@blogger.com (DocRichard) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:02:30 +0000

The sheer natural justice of the Tobin tax makes it a no-brainer to all except the greedy banksters who stand to lose an infinitesimal percentage.

Advantages:

All should pay tax including bankers.
Tax from the very richest should go to the very poorest. Anglo-capitalism is inherently divergent. This corrects the divergence.
Some of the tax can go to insure against the next Credit Crunch.
Will Hutton agrees so it must be right.

This was the tail end of a piece where I collected the arguments against Tobin, but it seems to have got lost somewhere in the ether...

Green Girls Global Blog: Planting Seeds of Development

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:00:50 +0000

How the Women of Pampa Brava are Emerging from Poverty in a Sustainable Way

The Wichí women of the Formosa province in Northeast Argentina are truly an example of how fair trade has created sustainable livelihoods in even the most trying of circumstances. These indigenous women have found opportunity in the face of oppression and carved a path to progress by preserving traditional art forms.

There is a reason you do not hear much about the indigenous groups of Argentina. Few groups have been able to survive since Spanish conquerors first pushed them out in 1586. In the face of a degraded and isolated environment, the Wichí people have struggled to maintain their hunter-gatherer existence. Considering that over 85 percent of Wichí do not speak Spanish or have a formal education, opportunities to work and generate income are scarce.

Pampa Brava, a fair trade organization in Buenos Aires works with Wichí artisans that use traditional art forms to create sustainable livelihoods. The handmade goods are sold in the United States through the fair trade nonprofit organization Global Goods Partners, with all proceeds going towards community development, ensuring that the women and their families have access to clean water, health care and education.

The women weave elaborate pieces of jewelry and accessories out of the Chaguar plant, which is endemic to the Chaco region. The women chop off the leaves of the plant using machetes because of the numerous and dangerous thorns. They shred the inside of the leaves into very thin strips and allow the strips to dry naturally in the sun for several days.

The women coat their fingers in ashes and then roll and twist the shreds together into threads Large vats of organic dye are prepared using seasonally available roots, bark, fruit and leaves that are used to give the threads color.

The women then weave the colored thread together using a vertical loom weaving device and a small stick, which works much like a crochet needle. The woven patterns are inspired by traditional designs and depict images of nature such as the chest of the woodpecker and the ears of the armadillo.

In addition to the concrete ways in which the partnership between Pampa Brava and Global Goods Partners has improved the livelihoods of the Wichí women, their quality of life has been impacted in many positive aspects. The women of Pampa Brava have gained a sense of empowerment that comes with earning an income; they have an enhanced sense of community, which comes from working cooperatively for the collective benefit; and they have found a voice through artistic expression, when once they were socially ostracized.

To support the women of Pampa Brava, shop online at www.globalgoodspartners.org.

Article by Kelly N. Sandoval

Transition Culture: Vandana Shiva on how Transition initiatives in the North can best help the South

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:13:35 +0000

While Vandana Shiva was in Berlin recently promoting her book ‘Soil Not Oil’, Andreas Teuchert and Thomas Finger of Transition Berlin, who were filming the event, spontaneously asked her for her thoughts on what the Transition Towns movement could do that is of real use for people in the southern hemisphere. Here is her [...]

Transition Culture: Transition Taunton Town and their local Council produce a Transition Vision for 2026

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:02:46 +0000

Just realised I hadn’t blogged about this yet. It is an extraordinary story, one which we might regard as an example of best practice in terms of how Transition initiatives engage their local authorities. In effect, Transition Taunton Town got over 350 staff from the local Council to create a vision for the future of [...]

Low Carbon Lifestyle: Tuesday 10th November 09

johncossham@tiscali.co.uk (Compost John) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:17:01 +0000

A better, smoother start to the morning, and I was able to get to my 10am appointment with Ann up the road, who asked me last week if I was able to help her with a pile of partly cut down apple tree logs. So I took my electric chainsaw there and she took me to see her 91 year old Mother's garden, next door but one, where some wide-boys had partly taken down the tree, been paid, had problems with their chainsaw, and disappeared. Without finishing the job.

So, John to the rescue. I chopped up the big logs from this once splendid 100 year old + Bramley, which they had cut down as they couldn't use the apples and the fallen apples and autumn leaves were 'untidy'. I think that this is almost criminal, but it was done, there was little point bemoaning it's loss. The whole garden had been covered in gravel and it was so ugly.

The job was bigger than I thought and I spent two hours helping them, for no payment, just the logs, which should be about 10 cycle trailer loads full. Glad it's nearby.

Back for lunch and spent the rest of the afternoon wooding, chopping existing logs in the front garden, splitting them, and stacking some by the side of the house where I removed the stacks when the work was done last week. I didn't bring any more from up the road as I haven't space.

Later I popped down to Country Fresh to get potatoes, carrots, broccoli, mushrooms and onions. Came back with what I went for plus two sacks of 'resources'.

Gill was feeling poorly so I made tea... pasta and veg with tomato and onion sauce, really simple but both boys asked for more, so it was well received.

I spent some of the evening doing yet more of the huge pile of persimmons... I've only about 20 or 30 left now, but they dry quickly and are really nice when dried.

Late on I had a good conversation on facebook chat with Sabine in Germany. So a good day in many ways, despite my feelings of anger about such a big old productive tree being chopped down for no good reason that I could understand...

Kevin Blowe - Random Blowe: The Bride Wars Challenge Revisited

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:10:00 +0000

In September, I mentioned the pledge made by film critic Mark Kermode that, in the event that this year there are ten films released in 2009 that are worse than Bride Wars, he would give up film criticism.

Mark's original list of four suggestions – Transformers 2, Marley & Me, Dance Flick and Charles Dickens’ England –has been updated with a fifth, Miss March: Generation Penetration (a film I confess I have never even heard of). In addition, Mark offers another than may only be as bad, rather than genuinely worse, than Bride Wars - the lamentable Vince Vaughan/Jon Favreau flick Couples Retreat.

Here's an update:

Green Ben's Kemptown Blog: Preston Circus to 'turn Japanese'?

ben.duncan@brighton-hove.gov.uk (Ben Duncan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:57:33 +0000

Last week London's Oxford Circus 'turned Japenese'. Taking their cue from Shibuya in Tokyo, the capital's transport planners have re-timed the traffic lights at the junction so they all stop at once, allowing pedestrians to cross in all directions, including diagonanally. It seems to be working well.

Here's a video clip of the original inspiration in full effect.

But the real question for me isn't can we export a brilliant Japanese idea into London, but can we import it into Brighton? Well, the answer is maybe.

Today Green Party councillor Ian Davey suggested to members of the council's environment scrutiny committee that the same principle might work well at Preston Circus.

Traffic officers said they were looking at the idea - personally I'm not sure if there are enough pedestrians to make it work at Preston Circus but I don't think there's a Brighton junction in need of a more radical approach to tackle congestion, air quality and pedestrian delays.. remember, you heard it here first!

Shirley Ford - A Green in South Shields: Age of Stupid – part 2

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:42:27 +0000

So the crazy dash for nuclear continues. How can Ed Miliband be so stupid? When the science is saying we must reduce emissions NOW and drastically, how can he put all the eggs into the nuclear basket? Even with the dictatorial new planning law designed to steamroller the 9 new nuclear power stations into action by 2017, that will still be way too late – and there will be all the carbon emissions involved in building them anyway.

Then of course there’s the mythical clean coal, which again cannot solve the immediate problem of cutting emissions in the next 5 years – because it DOES NOT EXIST!

One bit of good news though – the proposed new coal fired power station at Cambois near Blyth in Northumberland, has been shelved. The campaign group Panic Stations- People Against New Coal Stations – has won an important victory, with RWE npower shelving their plans. Panic Stations are now campaigning for the site to be redesignated as a base for clean, green technology.

Our message from the regional Green Party is that we welcome the decision and back the campaigners call for the site to be used for something positive instead. Our bigger message is that the most effective way of reducing carbon is to reduce consumption…

If you haven’t seen the film Age of Stupid, it’s on at the Customs House in South Shields next Monday, at 1.30pm and 7pm. Go and see it and get active. We will be there with leaflets about our Transition Town.

GREEN LEFT: Welfare Reform Bill - URGENT - please take action by Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (DODO MODERN POETS) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:05:27 +0000

> From: Global Women's Strike <http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=womenstrike8m@server101.com>
> Date: 10 November 2009 22:28:40 GMT>
To: http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=romaynephoenix@mac.com> Subject: Welfare Reform Bill - URGENT - please take action by Wednesday>

Reply-To: http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=womenstrike8m@server101.com> >

Dear friends,> > URGENT -- please take action by the end of Wednesday>

> Welfare Reform Bill -- protection for children under five overturned by MPs> >

MPs supporting the government tonight brutally overturned the amendment won in the Lords, which protected single parents of children under five from losing benefit for not doing “work-related activity”. Single parent families could have their benefit cut by 40%. This is an outrageous attack on single mothers who are looking after children full-time. 236 MPs voted against the government, and some made clear that mothers’ caring work is a vital contribution to society. It should be recognised not penalised.> > Please write to the Lords who backed the amendment to urge them to keep this important protection for children, and let them know the strength of feeling in the community on this issue. Personal statements from mothers, fathers and carers are most convincing.> >

Lord Freud, the Conservative Lord who led on this amendment, will raise it again when the Bill goes back to the Lords on Thursday at 11.30am. We have another chance of defeating the government on their uncaring policy.> > Fax number for the Lords: 020 7219 5979 (mark for the attention of the Peer you are writing to.)> >

(As time is short, please send your letters direct, don’t rely on us to forward them, but do send us a copy at http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=womenstrike8m@server101.com Fax 020 7209 4761)> >

Please write to:> > Conservatives> > · Chris Scott http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=scottcg@parliament.uk >
Conservative Office, House of Lords – has undertaken to pass on emails received by end of Wednesday.> > ·
Lord Freud> http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=freudd@parliament.uk> Fax: 020 7219 5979 – mark attention Lord Freud> Tel: 020 7219 4907> > ·
Lord Taylor of Holbeach CBE> Tel: 020 7219 4051> http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=taylorjl@parliament.uk> > ·
Baroness Morris of Bolton OBE> Tel: 020 7219 5353> http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=whitbycollins@parliament.uk> > >
Liberal Democrats> > · Baroness Celia Thomas> Tel: 020 7219 3586 > http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=thomascm@parliament.uk> > ·

Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope> Fax: 020 7219 5979 – mark Attention Lord Kirkwood> (no email)> >
Crossbench> > · Lord Northbourne> Tel: 020 7219 3884 > Fax: 020 7219 5933> http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=northbournec@parliament.uk> > >

> Sent: 09 November 2009 12:59> Subject: Welfare Reform Bill: Urgent - today: contact your MP and Minister Yvette Cooper> > Welfare Reform Bill:> Mothers, carers, people with disabilities,> victims of domestic violence …> win important changes in the Lords.> But some may be overturned on Tuesday> when the Bill returns to the Commons.> Join us to press MPs to keep them.> > Many important concessions have been won. Testimonies from those affected, among a wealth of letters and evidence from organisations, including ours which campaigned for months and lobbied in person and in writing, were taken up by Peers and journalists, forcing the government to shift. The government has publicly agreed to some of the changes, but some remain under threat. > > The Bill is coming back to the Commons on Tuesday 10 November. > ACTION YOU CAN TAKE:> Phone and/or email your MP and Yvette Cooper, the Minister for Work and Pensions, to urge them to keep the changes below> and to condemn the worst measures in the Bill.> House of Commons tel: 020 7219 3000

Find your MP> Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP> Secretary of State for Work and Pensions> House of Commons London SW1A 0AA> http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=coopery@parliament.uk> Please copy your email to us at http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=womenstrike8m@server101.com> > > Most under threat:> > · Single parents of children under five are entitled to care for our children full-time without losing benefit for not doing “work-related activity”. We need to press MPs not to overturn this. No mother should be forced to go out to work if she feels her pre-school age children need her.> > > Changes likely to be approved:> > · Single mothers/parents of children aged three to six. Single parents on Income Support will be able to keep £50 earnings, up from £20. No “work-related activity” will be compulsory outside school hours, childcare or term-time. Mothers won’t have their benefit cut for missing “job seekers” appointments due to family responsibilities. The government reaffirmed that under current rules, parents with school-age children claiming Job Seekers Allowance can reject jobs that do not fit within school hours, they do not have to work full-time. > > · Parents. Jobcentre advisers and “back to work” staff must have regard for the welfare of the child in what they tell parents to do. > > · Carers. Single parents will be exempt from job seeking if their disabled child under 16 receives any rate of Disability Living Allowance for care. Previously, the government said the parent must work if a child is on the low rate for care.> > · Women fleeing domestic violence. A three-month exemption from job seeking. Though not enough for recovery and settling distressed children, it is an improvement over the previous discretionary decision by Jobcentre staff.> > · It is illegal for anyone to be pressured into medical treatment. Jobcentre or “back to work” staff will not be able to tell disabled people claiming Employment and Support Allowance (including people with mental health problems) that they have to take their prescription or undergo surgery. The government previously claimed that some people are “wilfully keeping themselves unfit for work”. People with drug and alcohol problems can be required to attend assessments and “motivation” sessions, but cannot lose benefit for refusing rehabilitation or treatment. > > Despite these changes, the Bill takes away many of our rights: > > It abolishes Income Support. This is the main benefit which acknowledges unwaged caring work by single mothers and other carers. > > It wipes out entitlement based on need and brings in US-style workfare. Couples with young children must both seek work. Almost all claimants of working age must look for a job or engage in a “work-related activity”. Those who cannot find a job will have to “work for their benefits”, i.e. for £1.60 an hour. Forcing more people to chase scarce jobs, while allowing employers to bypass the minimum wage, lowers everyone’s wages. Councils looking to cut costs are already preparing for workfare staff. Those of us who do not or cannot comply are threatened with destitution. Asylum seekers were the first to be made destitute, and this inhuman standard is being extended to others. > > It introduces compulsory joint birth registration even where the father is violent. If the mother has no official proof of his violence (a common situation) she will be forced to give his name. Mothers of newborns should not have to worry about going to court to stop the father abusing his parental rights to persecute her and the child.> > It expands charging for disability services. Some disability groups welcome “the right to control” budgets for services, in the Welfare Reform Bill. However, the new percentage charging system is discriminatory. People with more severe disabilities have greater needs and so are allocated a bigger budget. For them, the fixed percentage is a larger amount of money. Local authorities are allowed to set their own (higher) percentage. They will deduct charges at source before funds are paid out, leaving people to make up the missing cash. This is instead of charging separately, which allows older and disabled people not to pay charges they can’t afford, or to query when their income or disability expenses are wrongly calculated. > > We are determined to defend our entitlement to benefits and free high-quality services. Many people have signed up to a letter condemning the abolition of Income Support. Add your name. LINK> >
Contact us for more info:> > Single Mothers’ Self-Defence http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=centre@crossroadswomen.net> WinVisible (women with visible and invisible disabilities) http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=winvisible@allwomencount.net> Global Women’s Strike http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=womenstrike8m@server101.com> Legal Action for Women http://uk.mc250.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=law@allwomencount.net> > Tel: 020 7482 2496 www.allwomencount.net www.globalwomenstrike.net

Ruscombe Green: Stroudies to join The Wave on 5th December

philip.booth2@virgin.net (Philip Booth) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:05:20 +0000

Join the UK's biggest ever demonstration in support of action on climate change.On Saturday 5 December 2009, ahead of the crucial UN climate summit in Copenhagen, tens of thousands of people, all dressed in blue, will flow through the streets of London to demonstrate their support for a safe climate future for all......and Stroud is sending a coach to take part in the demonstration called 'The

Rupert's Read: Think you know what Copenhagen is about? Think again...:

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:15:48 +0000

THE COPENHAGEN CONFERENCE ON FOOD SECURITY

http://www.earthpolicy.org/index.php?/plan_b_updates/2009/update84

By Lester R. Brown

For the 193 national delegations gathering in Copenhagen for the U.N. Climate Change Conference in December, the reasons for concern about climate change vary widely. For delegations from low-lying island countries, the principal concern is rising sea level. For countries in southern Europe, climate change means less rainfall and more drought. For countries of East Asia and the Caribbean, more powerful storms and storm surges are a growing worry. This climate change conference is about all these things, and many more, but in a very fundamental sense, it is a conference about food security.

We need not go beyond ice melting to see that the world is in trouble on the food front. The melting of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets is raising sea level. If the Greenland ice sheet were to melt entirely, sea level would rise by 23 feet. Recent projections show that it could rise by up to 6 feet during this century.

The world rice harvest is particularly vulnerable to rising sea level. A World Bank map of Bangladesh shows that even a 3-foot rise in sea level would cover half of the riceland in this country of 160 million people. It would also inundate one third or more of the Mekong delta, which produces half of the rice in Viet Nam, the world's number two rice exporter. And it would submerge parts of the 20 or so other rice-growing river deltas in Asia.

The worldwide melting of mountain glaciers is of even greater concern. The World Glacier Monitoring Service in Switzerland has recently reported the eighteenth consecutive year of shrinking mountain glaciers. Glaciers are melting in the Andes, the Rocky Mountains, the Alps, and throughout the mountain ranges of Asia.

It is the disappearing glaciers in the Himalayas and on the Tibetan Plateau that are of most concern, because their ice melt sustains the flow of the major rivers of India and China––the Indus, Ganges, Yangtze, and Yellow rivers—during the dry season. This ice melt thus also sustains the irrigation systems that depend on these rivers.

Yao Tandong, one of China's leading glaciologists, who predicts that two thirds of China's glaciers could be gone by 2050, says "the full-scale glacier shrinkage in the plateau region will eventually lead to an ecological catastrophe."

It will also lead to a humanitarian catastrophe. China is the world's leading producer of wheat. India is number two. (The United States is third.) In contrast to the United States, most wheat grown in China and India is irrigated. With rice, these two countries totally dominate the world harvest. The projected melting of these mountain glaciers in Asia represents the most massive threat to food security the world has ever seen.

The prospects for the harvests of wheat and rice, in these two countries, each with over a billion people, are of concern everywhere. We live in an integrated world food economy, one where harvest shortfalls anywhere can drive up food prices everywhere.

Rising temperature also directly affects crop yields. In a study published by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, an international team of scientists confirmed the rule of thumb emerging among crop ecologists that for each 1 degree Celsius rise in temperature above the norm during the growing season, we can expect a 10-percent decline in wheat and rice yields. In a world with limited grain stocks—a world that is only one poor harvest away from chaos in grain markets—a crop-shrinking heat wave in a major grain-producing region could lead to politically destabilizing food shortages.

The delegates are gathering in Copenhagen against a backdrop of spreading hunger. For much of the late 20th century, the number of hungry people was declining, but it bottomed out in the late 1990s at 825 million. It then turned upward, reaching 870 million in 2005 and passing one billion in 2009. The combination of rising seas, melting glaciers, and crop-withering heat waves could push these numbers up even faster, forcing millions more families to try and survive on one meal a day.

We are in a race between political tipping points and natural tipping points. Can we cut carbon emissions fast enough to keep the melting of the Greenland ice sheet from becoming irreversible? Can we close coal-fired power plants fast enough to save at least the larger glaciers in the Himalayas and on the Tibetan plateau? Can we head off crop-withering heat waves of ever greater intensity? These are food security issues. This is what Copenhagen is about.

Derek Wall - Another Green World: Resistance in Honduras continues

noreply@blogger.com (Derek Wall) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:06:45 +0000

http://committeeagainsthondurascoup.blogspot.com/2009/11/honduras-communique-no-33-message-from.html

Message from the National Front of Resistance
Friday, Nov 6, 2009.

The National Front of Resistance Against the Coup wishes to inform the Honduran people and the international community of the following:

Whereas,

1. During the 131 days of continuous struggle, we have pushed for a peaceful solution to the political crisis in our country as a result of the coup d’état carried out by the Honduran oligarchy. In this period we have supported the efforts promoted by various national and international sectors, putting forward three key demands: (a) the return to constitutional order with the reinstatement of the legitimate president, Manuel Zelaya Rosales; (b) respect for the sovereign right to establish a National Constituent Assembly for the purpose of refounding our nation; and (c) punishment for those who have violated human rights.

2. The Tegucigalpa-San Jose agreement underscores the priority of returning to constitutional order and affirms, literally, the need to “return the holder of executive power to its pre-June 28 state through to January 27, 2010, which marks the end of the term of the current government.”

3. The National Congress, co-author of the break with the constitutional order on June 28, is using delaying tactics by refusing to convene the full assembly of the Congress to revoke the decree that set up the de-facto regime.

4. The OAS and the U.S. government, which we consider to be an accomplice in the military coup, do not show an interest in the definitive departure of the coup perpetrators from political power.

Therefore We Resolve That,

1. If by 12 midnight today, Thursday, November 5 — at the latest — President José Manuel Zelaya Rosales is not reinstated, the National Front of Resistance Against the Coup will refuse to recognize the electoral process and its results.

2. We warn all organizations of the national Resistance that if President Zelaya were not to be reinstated within this time frame, they should be ready to carry out the actions necessary to deny any legitimacy to the electoral farce.

3. We call upon the international community to maintain its position of refusing to legitimize the de-facto regime and the elections of November 29.

“We Are Resisting and We Shall Win!”
Tegucigalpa, M.D.C.
November 5, 200

Greener Leith News: @Greenerleith is nominated for a @Goldentwit Award

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:40:30 +0000

If you are amongst the many people who cannot see the wisdom in broadcasting a series of 140 character messages several times a day to people whom you've probably never met via Twitter then you can look away now.

Nevertheless, we've been using Twitter for some time now, and we've found it a fantastic way to get the word out about Greener Leith, and to stay up to date with news from other people and organisations. So, we're a bit surprised to see that we've made it onto the shortlist for the charity category of the Golden Twit awards.

The awards, organised by The Drum, aim to celebrate the best in twittering, and unlike other schemes, the winners are chosen by a jury made up of real people. You can help us win by voting for us on the Golden Twits website.

We're up against some huge organisations including The Woodland Trust, The Dogs Trust, Amnesty UK and Keep Britain Tidy. All of these organisations have vast marketing budgets compared to Greener Leith. Whilst they have undoubtedly out spent us, it remains to be seen whether we'll be out-tweeted by them!

In fact, the Greener Leith Twitter stream is a collaborative effort part produced by local Leithers. That's because we 'tweet' activity on a whole load of sites that Leithers use. These include local reports on FixMyStreet.com, new journey offers or requests on our We Love Leith Lift Share portal, and a weekly update on the latest activity on Leith's own social network. So, if you use any of these sites - well done, you're not just helping to make Leith Greener, you're also helping to put Leith on the social media map too.

The only question is, who's going to pay for us to go to London to the fancy awards do?

Gary Haq - A Human Ecologist's View: World’s Worst Polluted Places

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:26:11 +0000

A report by the New York-based Blacksmith Institute and Green Cross Switzerland highlights 12 successful approaches in use today to clean up some of the world’s worst polluted places. But is pollution clean-up too little too late to save lives of the poor and social marginalised?

The 2009 World’s Worst Polluted Places: 12 Cases of Cleanup and Success is the fourth on the state of pollution in some of the world’s worst polluted places published by the Blacksmith Institute. It was compiled from nominations received from around the world. The report includes success stories from Chile, China, Domincan Republic, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Russia and Tanzania.

The success stories come from a range of approaches: old-fashioned techniques (such as the removal and replacement of contaminated soil) and innovative ways to recapture mercury vapours. It also reviews technical methods such as chemical interventions, bioremediation and bioaccumulation, which can involve the use of cow dung, molasses and worms.

While pollution clean-up needs to be an essential part of an overall framework of environmental management, pollution prevention should be the main objective if the developing world is to deliver the policies for healthy citizens, sustainable development and poverty eradication. It is often the poor and socially marginalised who suffer disproportionately from the effects of deteriorating environmental quality. Therefore the focus should on prevention rather than cure.

There is a growing need in developing countries to determine not only the state of environmental quality but to identify cost-effective measures to protect human health and the environment. Details of success projects such as those highlighted in the report can assist developing countries in achieving better environmental quality. They provide concrete examples of key approaches and mechanisms which have been used to clean-up pollution. They can motivate decision-makers to follow a similar course of action or to adapt a particular approach to local context and circumstances.

However, the efforts to clean-up pollution remains a major problem in the developing world and continues to pose risks to human health. With large numbers of people being affected by traditional sources of pollution such as industrial emissions, poor sanitation, inadequate waste management, contaminated water supplies and exposures to indoor air pollution from biomass fuels. These are particularly severe in large urban areas which have to grapple with simultaneous rapid motorisation, urbanisation, industrialisation, increased population and weak institutional capacity and poor infrastructure.

Risks attributable to environmental pollution in the developing world have been estimated to be 15–35 times greater than in developed countries. The World Health Organization has attempted to assess the global burden of disease as a result of environmental pollution in terms of mortality or disability-adjusted life years (DALYs).

About 8–9% of the total disease burden may be attributed to pollution, but considerably more in developing countries. Unsafe water, poor sanitation and poor hygiene are seen to be the major sources of exposure, along with indoor air pollution.

Problems of unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene, for example, account for an estimated 6.6% of DALYs in Africa, and 4.7% in south-east Asia, compared with 0.5% in Europe. Indoor air pollution accounts for 4.4% of DALYs in Africa and 3.6% in south-east Asia, compared to 0.4% in Europe. In absolute terms the differences are even more stark.

The total number of DALYs per head of population attributable to these two risk factors in Africa are 29.1 per thousand for unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene and 19.3 per thousand for indoor air pollution; in south-east Asia they are 12.8 and 9.9 per thousand, respectively; in Europe they are 0.8 and 0.6 per thousand, respectively.

Economic development is often seen as the driving force to improve environmental quality in the developing world. However, a key factor in addressing environmental pollution is political will. While policies on paper may look sophisticated and comprehensive the reality is often different on the ground. That is why ensuring policies are enforced and monitored is paramount to preventing pollution in the first place and protecting the most vulnerable in society.

References
Briggs, D. (2003) Environmental pollution and the global burden of disease, British Medical Bulletin, 68:1-24

Tagged: Blacksmith Institute, DALYs, disability-adjusted life years, environmental quality, global burden of disease, Light pollution, WHO, worst polluted places

Derek Wall - Another Green World: Free Mumia news

noreply@blogger.com (Derek Wall) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:30:56 +0000

Hotline: 212 330-8029 • Web Site: www.freemumia.com

For Immediate Release: November 10, 2009
Contact: Suzanne Ross (917) 584-2135 • Pam Africa (215) 476-8812

International Representatives Join US Activists in Delivering to Attorney General Eric Holder Thousands of Letters Demanding a Civil Rights Investigation of the Case of Mumia
Abu-Jamal

PRESS CONFERENCE: MARCH TO JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
New York Avenue Presbyterian Church AND PRESENTATION OF LETTERS
1313 New York Avenue FOLLOWS, ARRIVING AT
Washington, DC, 11:30 A.M. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 1:30 PM

Supporters of Pennsylvania death row political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal will march to the US Department of Justice in Washington, DC, on November 12 to deliver thousands of petitions to Attorney General Eric Holder demanding that the department open an investigation into the multitude of violations of Abu-Jamal’s civil rights over the past 28 years. A press conference at 11:30 AM at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church will be followed by a march to the Department of Justice where the letters demanding such an investigation will be brought.
Among the speakers at the press conference will be Laura Moye, Director, Amnesty International’s Death Penalty Abolition Campaign; Steven Hawkins, Vice President, National NAACP; Marvin “Doc” Cheatham, Sr., President, Baltimore NAACP; Pam Africa, International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal; Fignolé Saint-Cyr, President of Autonomous Unions of Haiti; Berlin Coalition to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal; El-Hajj Mauri’ Saalakhan, Washington, DC, Director of Operations, Peace and Justice Foundation; Thomas Ruffin, attorney; Joseph “Jazz” Hayden, Riverside Church Prison Ministry; Panama Alba, National Congress of Puerto Rican Rights, Campaign to End the Death Penalty, and others.
Many Muslim organizations are supporting the call for a civil rights investigation of Abu-Jamal’s case. Representatives of these groups will be present both at the press conference and the subsequent rally at the Justice Department to express support for Mumia Abu-Jamal while pointing out similarities between the due process and human rights violations in his case and those that are perpetrated daily against the Muslim political prisoners and prisoners of war.
This past July the NAACP passed an emergency resolution at its 100th anniversary convention in New York, asking Mr. Holder to conduct a civil rights investigation. “We’re going to ask Attorney General Holder to look into this,” said NAACP Chairman Julian Bond, during a broadcast of Pacifica Radio’s “Democracy Now” on July 20. “As anyone who’s followed this case for a number of years knows, similar doubts have been raised about him as were raised about Troy Davis.” Later, Hilary Shelton, director of the NAACP'sWashington office, told The Final Call, “We had a meeting with the attorney general, and the subject of Mumia Abu Jamal did surface. The attorney general said he was aware of the case and would look into it and get back to us.”
Pam Africa, long-time Chair of International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, has announced that, “We are not coming to the Department of Justice looking for justice. We are bringing justice to the Department of Justice!” Dr. Suzanne Ross of the Free Mumia Abu-Jamal Coalition adds, “At this critical moment in Mumia’s case, a civil rights investigation could mean the difference between life and death for Mumia. It could also open the door for his release.”
The call for a civil rights investigation follows the April 2009 U.S. Supreme Court acceptance of the Third Circuit’s decision that closed all doors for a new trial or the consideration of Abu-Jamal’s innocence. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is still considering an appeal by the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office to immediately reinstate Abu-Jamal’s death sentence.
International legal bodies such as Amnesty International, the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, the European Parliament, and city councils and national governments around the world have argued for decades that Abu-Jamal was wrongfully convicted in a widely denounced trial and appeals process for the 1981 killing of a Philadelphiapolice officer. They point to suppressed evidence, witness intimidation and consequent witness perjury, a very specious confession, an admittedly biased judge and a long string of twisted appellate court rulings as evidence of a continuing conspiracy by the state of Pennsylvania to execute him. Additionally, and this is a critical basis for a civil rights investigation as occurred during the overturning of the conviction of Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, there is extensive evidence of consistent withholding of evidence from the defense that could have led to Mumia’s acquittal – photographs challenging the prosecution’s version of what happened on December 9, 1981, and evidence that another person other than Mumia, his brother, and Faulkner were at the crime scene at the time Office Faulkner was shot.
The march to the Justice Department will follow the press conference and is being co-sponsored by International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, National Lawyers Guild, (NYC Chapter), WESPAC, Riverside Justice Prison Ministry, Iglesia San Romero (UCC), Campaign to End the Death Penalty, International Action Center, Peace and Justice Foundation, Families United for Justice in America, Nat Turner Rebellion, Black August Planning Committee, National Jericho Movement, , and ANSWER, among others. The delivery of the petitions is expected to take place at 1:30 pm. The campaign has been endorsed by a broad range of individuals including Angela Davis, Ruby Dee, Charles Rangel, Cynthia McKinney, Noam Chomsky, Cornel West, and Tariq Ali.

In 1982 Mumia Abu-Jamal was convicted of murdering a Philadelphia police officer and sentenced to death. His case is one of the most contested in U.S. history. Prosecutors, the Fraternal Order of Police and their supporters, and even the judges involved, have always claimed to possess a watertight case justifying Abu-Jamal’s conviction and sentence. Yet Abu-Jamal's trial, conviction, and death sentence have prompted jurists and human rights organizations worldwide to denounce the trial and death sentence as a travesty of justice. They cite the open bias of the original judge, who was overheard to have said outside his courtroom, “I’m going to help them fry the n - - - - -“. Not only is this a strong indication of racial bias, a reality minimized by the judge who took over the case, but it clearly identified the absence of the requisite “judicial neutrality” expected of a judge. The racially skewed process of jury selection, furthermore, yielded a disproportionately white jury, the disappearance of key ballistics evidence, and police intimidation of witnesses leading to perjured statements. Amnesty International, in its 2000 report called “A Life in the Balance: The Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal” stated that, “numerous aspects of this case clearly failed to meet minimum international standards safeguarding the fairness of legal proceedings” and strongly recommended a new trial. Abu-Jamal's defense team identified 29 claims of violation of his constitutional rights, but Abu-Jamal has been repeatedly denied the opportunity to have evidence of his innocence and of police and prosecutorial efforts to frame and convict him seriously considered. Abu- Jamal has always asserted his innocence and his affidavit on this is included in the press packet. Clearly Mumia Abu-Jamal’s race and his political views, as well as his widely recognized enormous talent in communicating those views, have played a key role in his being the object of a 28 year conspiracy to forever silence his voice. .

GREEN LEFT: Allegations of ‘Islamophobia'

noreply@blogger.com (DODO MODERN POETS) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:02:24 +0000

Dear Andy,

I am writing to you on behalf of the Steering Committee of Green Left. We are very concerned about the allegations of ‘Islamophobia’ being thrown at us by Barry Kade and the fact that you have now given him a full thread to develop this further – this despite a request from Duncan Chapple of Socialist Resistance to stop attacking us. This is causing great offence to members of Green Left, many of whom have been battling hard against Islamophobia and in the anti-war movement. I myself am the Green Party’s delegate to Stop the War Coalition. Furthermore, many of us have worked hard to support the anti-war and anti-Fascism movements both inside and outside the Green Party. We have also played a central part in the effort to get an agreement in Birmingham re Salma and have suffered some attack from others in the party as a result.

To then be attacked on your website is doubly insulting. I cannot help but think that at a time when we are trying to work closely with Socialist Resistance and others in Respect, that this is a deliberate attempt to drive a wedge between us. Let me be clear about this, Green Left would like to focus on Left unity. We have no intention of diminishing in any way our criticisms of homophobia for the sake of some on the Left who regard LGBT rights as dispensible. We believe that all rights – and that includes those of Muslims – are bound together. The postings referred to were not in any way Islamophobic and merely raised some question s about the policy of the Respect Central Committee at the time. I do not think it appropriate here but we have not launched any criticisms or attacks on some in Respect on our website and have tried to build a progressive alliance. I consider your efforts and those of Barry Kade to be detrimental to this. I would hope that Barry Kade would issue a retraction of some of his allegations re Green Left and you would desist from publishing such attacks on Green Left.

Regards

Joseph Healy

Co-Convenor

Green Left

Wembley Matters: FIGHT TO KEEP OUR DIMINISHING NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

noreply@blogger.com (MARTIN FRANCIS) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:39:13 +0000

Concern over the possibility of housing development on the Greenhouse Centre site at the Welsh Harp has increased in both Brent and Barnet since the Wembley Observer followed up the story first carried on this blog.

The development will be discussed by the Welsh Harp Joint Consultative Committee at 7.30pm on Thursday 11th November in the Council Chamber at Brent Town Hall, Wembley. The JCC consists of councillors from Barnet and Brent, users of the Welsh Harp reservoir and open space, Natural England, London Wildlife Trust, Old St Andrews Residents' Associaiton, Woolmead Residents' Association and West Hendon Community Forum.

The decision on planning applications will be made by the Planning Committees in each borough but the viewof the JCC will be important. The public have a right to attend these meetings and it is important to hear what our representatives are saying about this threat to our dimishing local natural environment.

The JCC Agenda says that the consultation on the plans ends on November 11th. We have rung Brent Council to query this and have been told by the Planning Department that the Brent consultation actually ends on November 20th and the most likely date for Brent's Planning Committee to consider it is likely to be December 16th.

Meanwhile at least two petitions are circulating opposing the development of the site as housing and there is a possibility of a public meeting on the matter.

The JCC Agenda can be found here

Vowles The Green In Knowle: Environmental Justice Event Bristol - 11th Nov

grv4@tutor.open.ac.uk (Glenn Vowles) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:59:58 +0000

From Karen Bell, School Policy Studies (Karen.Bell@bristol.ac.uk )Environmental Justice Event Bristol - 11th Nov, University of Bristol, School for Policy Studies, Centre for the Study of Poverty and Social Justice

Environmental Justice: Achieving a Healthy Environment for All, Public Seminar

Wednesday, 11th November, 1.30 - 4.30 pm

Speakers:

Cristian Domínguez, National Secretary of Environment and Resources,
United Confederation of Bolivian Campesino Workers

Professor Malcolm Eames, Low Carbon Research Institute, Cardiff University

Judy Ling Wong, CBE. Director, Black Environment Network, UK

Maria Adebowale, Director, Capacity Global

'Environmental Justice' refers to the human right to a healthy and safe
environment, a fair share of natural resources and access to environmental
information and participation in environmental decision-making.

Social movement campaigns for environmental justice usually focus on the
inequitable environmental burdens borne by poor, black and other
disadvantaged groups.

This seminar looks at this issue at a local and
global level, from NGO, activist and academic perspectives and will be of
interest to all those working towards social justice.

This event is open to the public. FFl or to reserve a place, email: karen.bell@bristol.ac.uk.
Location: Room LT1, 3 - 5, Woodland Road, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 1TB

Backgounds:

Cristian Domínguez, has been at the forefront of environmental justice
campaigns in Bolivia, opposing water privatisation and working for the
nationalisation of natural resources. The organisation he represents, the
CSUTCB, is one of the main social movement organisations which brought
president Evo Morales to power.

Professor Eames has participated in and led research and consultancy
projects for a wide range of agencies including: DTI, DETR, UK Cabinet
Office, Environment Agency, Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the European
Commission. In 2004 he produced a report on environmental inequalities in
the UK which has underpinned the current UK Framework and Strategy for
Sustainable Development.

Judy Ling Wong has an international reputation as a pioneer in the field of
black and minority ethnic participation in the built and natural
environment. She works on urban design, identity, health, employment, and
access to the countryside and urban green spaces. The groundbreaking
methodology developed by BEN to engage urban-based ethnic minorities has
been very influential in many areas of mainstream policy.

Maria Adebowale, formerly a UK Sustainable Development Commissioner, is the
founder of Capacity Global, a social enterprise specialising in
environmental justice.

Derek Wall - Another Green World: Transition town party in Brockley

noreply@blogger.com (Derek Wall) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:48:33 +0000

Cheers Romayne for this....

Transition Brockley is excited to present a wild night :

FLUX at Brockley Social Club on sat 14th Nov
Short walk- 5 mins- from Brockley Station
240 Brockley Road, SE4 2SW
It's a night of music, magic and dance, the Brockley Social Club will be dressed up for a wild night........

with a freecycle twist - bring your old unwanted stuff and let our resident magician transform it into something new.. There'll be a Wheel of Fortune, live band, magic, DJs and more...

loads of room in this venue so even if you are not from'sarf' of the river......... come and have a drink / a chat / bring some tat to transform into treasure ?

Green Ladywell: New Schools Programme: could do better

noreply@blogger.com (Sue) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:44:51 +0000

The Sustainable Development committee, which I chair, has been carrying out a review of the extent to which the ongoing BSF (Building Schools for the Future) programme is sustainable. As well as the more obvious things like solar panels on roofs, we've been looking at things like community access to buildings out of hours, school travel plans and the procurement process.

Members of the committee visited 3 recently-built schools in the borough (Prendergast Ladywell Fields, Catford High and Sedgehill) and last week I presented our interim recommendations to the Mayor & Cabinet. Some of the recurring issues with these new schools are problems with ventilation (classrooms with windows that don't open and air conditioning that doesn't work), limited/no community use of buildings out of hours and ongoing issues with facilities management.

The article below from the South London Press has a bit more detail. Note to self: send a more flattering/photoshopped portrait photo to SLP for future use!

Richard Lawson - Mabinogogiblog: Goldman Sachs’s Brian Griffiths Says Inequality Helps All : Not

noreply@blogger.com (DocRichard) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:16:24 +0000

Goldman Sachs’s Griffiths Says Inequality Helps All (Update1) - Bloomberg.com: "Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- A Goldman Sachs International adviser defended compensation in the finance industry as his company plans a near-record year for pay, saying the spending will help boost the economy.

“We have to tolerate the inequality as a way to achieve greater prosperity and opportunity for all,” Brian Griffiths,"

No we do not. Brian is touting the discredited "trickle down" theory, which is demonstrably untrue. Neo-liberalism, especially in the Anglo world, causes divergence - the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, through a variety of means, initially from the way new money is made by creating loans at compound interest.

Redistributive taxation and benefits are a weak and ineffective way of correcting this divergent tendency.

I used to know Brian Griffths at the beginning of his career in Bristol. He was, and probably still is, an evangelical Christian. He may be in for a bit of a shock when he dies. (Matthew 25:41-6)

Kevin Blowe - Random Blowe: Big Bird Hunting Season

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:04:49 +0000

The popular TV programme 'Sesame Street' may be celebrating its 40th birthday, but is it really nothing more than a sinister Left-Wing plot to indoctinate America's children?

This looks like one of John 'The Tool' Rentoul's "questions for which the answer is no", but conservative wing nuts at the right-wing blog Big Hollywood disagree. Having dug up a two year old clip that appears to parody a well known conservative 'news' channel, they are claiming that Oscar the Grouch is "one more soldier to the Left’s war on Fox News."

Why? Because dear old Oscar, reporting for Grouch News Network (GNN), is told by a viewer: "from now on, I'm watching Pox News. Now there's a trashy news show!"

You see what they did there? Pox News? Fox News! At least one comment on the Big Hollywood site has the sense to say:

If we conservatives are to be successful in the media, we can't keep grabbing our skirts and shrieking every time we are parodied, especially when parodied on a equal level with left leaning counterparts. Man up.

But most other moonbats on the site seem unwilling to man up - they really do believe this is more evidence of communism taking control of the US. Could this be the most paranoid, unreasoning generation of Americans since the 1940s?

Here's the offending video:

Caroline Lucas: Web victory

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:54:59 +0000

I'm very pleased that our sustained campaigning around web users' rights has paid off with the European Parliament and EU Council this week agreeing on an important compromise text regarding the protection of internet users’ rights in cases of alleged copyright infringement involving online file-sharing.

The Greens have been working hard to fight off attempts by Lord Mandelson (amongst others) to disable people's internet connections if they are found to be downloading content illegally up to three times. The proposals can only be described as draconian and threaten fundamental freedom of expression rights on the internet.

This successful lobbying will benefit - even if many are unaware of it! - Brighton and Hove's army of digital and creative businesses. The agreement is also a massive victory for the thousands of citizens who have been campaigning to defend the rights of internet users through blogging and correspondence with their elected representatives. Access to the internet is a fundamental right and proper procedures must be followed when challenging internet users on alleged copyright infringement. It is now up to national governments to respect this.

(www.carolinelucasmep.org.uk/2009/11/05/greens-hail-victory-for-internet-users-in-euro-parliament-–-but-warn-online-rights-still-under-threat/)

Caroline Lucas: Tories out of touch over hunting

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:54:31 +0000

Another fox hunting season has begun - and this year the issue is making even greater headlines than usual, largely because of growing speculation that the Tories, should they achieve victory in next year's election, will seek to overturn the ban brought in under Labour.

Putting the cruelty aside, the Tories determination to focus on this issue when there's so many other things to concern themselves with shows just how out of touch with the general public they are: recent polls have shown a massive 75% of the public want to keep the hunting ban in place. (www.keepcrueltyhistory.com)

Here in Brighton I've yet to meet anybody who wants to see a return to traditional hunting . With the Tories clearly so out of touch on this highly controversial issue one has to wonder just how plugged in they are on other, more central, debates?

Chadwell Green: Talk Sport - Wilson request Action regarding antisocial sports.

noreply@blogger.com (Wilson Chowdhry) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:09:23 +0000

Wilson questioned the reticence of local crime prevention organisations with respect to tackling Antisocial sports. Listen to the response from Alan Johnson Home Secretary and PM Gordon Brown. Recorded live at the Rich Mix Centre with an invited audience of around 100 people.

Matt Sellwood - Anglo-Buddhist Combine: Carbon Trading - Bad, Bad Idea

noreply@blogger.com (Matt Sellwood) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:26:04 +0000

Friends of the Earth have come up with a new paper, showing, once again, that carbon trading is a bad plan. I await the Government's U-turn with baited breath.

Here is a video of my former UNITE comrade and current FOE Climate Campaigner, Sarah-Jayne Clifton, explaining more about the issue.

The Third Estate: Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There!

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:20:21 +0000

I went to a public meeting organised by the Campaign Against Climate Change (CCC) on Saturday. Oh aren’t I so virtuous? What is it about these public meetings about Climate Change that puts people off? It would be easy to blame the doom, the gloom and the knitwear but largely I suspect it’s the fact that most people just don’t like going to public lectures for fun. Shame.

For those of you who couldn’t make it for whatever reason, the atmosphere in the meeting was largely one of anger, resolve and frustration at the (constantly repeated) damning statistics. I often find myself wondering why I go to these things. I’m not one of those people who reads the Daily Mail to satisfy a need to make myself furious, I’m not someone who goes to a horror movie to scare myself stupid – I don’t enjoy being furious and frightened. So why do I go to a Climate Change meeting to feel both? I would say it was evidence of middle-class self flagellation but I would rather unscrew my own fingernails one by one than watch “An Inconvenient Truth” so I’m not totally irredeemable.

Obviously Climate Change is the biggest problem facing all of us, but it’s a problem that seems unreal – it’s almost like being told you owe a billion pounds to the bank – unless you’re Roman Abramovich this figure is so large you can’t even comprehend it. It’s of such magnitude it’s impossible to compare and contrast with your other problems. Much like owing a billion pounds to the bank, it’s all too easy to be lulled into thinking there’s no point even trying to tackle the problem because your efforts won’t even cover the interest (which will of course continue to get worse – much like Climate Change).

After such meetings I’m often left with greater understanding of statistics but also a greater sense of futility. To paraphrase the old Mort Saul joke about JFK: JFK says “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country”, the president’s car goes by and a man in the crowd yells “yeah but what do you want us to do?”. The president stops the car and says: “Do more”.

But more what?

It often seems the world is in a collective state of “Don’t just do something, sit there”. There is very little consensus on Climate Change. Some people believe in it and some don’t (as if it were a faith, something which as Catherine Bennett writes in The Guardian, will only damage the cause), those in the scientific community that do believe in it spend much of their time arguing about the extent of it. The rest of us, like teenagers with rowing parents, have locked ourselves in our rooms and put a record on.

It’s time we faced up to the fact that we are past the stage of information and are now entering the stage of action. Knowing all the facts about Climate Change doesn’t make me sleep better at night, knowing what I can do about it does. In the seeming absence of any powers of decision making among the political elite (not just in this country) it’s time we joined the environmental campaigners and presented the united front that Copenhagen won’t.

The CCC has come up with a mini-manifesto of changes to be achieved in the next year. Some of them I agree with and some of them I don’t but it’s a definite start. So as an addendum to the CCC’s list, I’ve started compiling some ideas. Feel free to chip in with your own and let’s see what we can come up with…

Volunteer when you can – campaign organisations like CCC, Climate Camp, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace etc rely on volunteers to do basic tasks. You don’t need to own large amounts of knitwear and if you’re unemployed take it from me it’s a lot better than watching The Wright Stuff.
Even better, if you have money give it to people who are coming up with solutions, or who are campaigning for those that are – buy your friends and family a scientist for Christmas. And don’t waste money on ‘offsetting’ that flight to Malaga. That is not a solution, it’s a penance.
45 per cent of carbon emissions come from buildings. We could execute all architects, or we could start supporting those in the construction industry that are making changes. Lobby your local MP and your local council if they use firms with a poor environmental record. Government buildings are almost always the worst offenders for carbon emissions.
If you’re doing something, bribe people into joining you in your action with chocolate brownies. Works every time (people will even come to public lectures with you as I discovered).
Go on the Climate Change march on 5th December, and tell people about it (see 4).

Chadwell Green: Wilson meets Gordon Brown again!

noreply@blogger.com (Wilson Chowdhry) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:17:56 +0000

Wilson just before meeting with the PM (check the guern)

PM Gordon Brown and Wilson

Wilson and Louise Casey Director General of the Crime and Justice Department
Prime minister Gordon Brown and winners of a Community Crime fighter Award

We have reported previously on Wilson's visit to both the Home Office and 10 Downing Street where he was presented with a certificate signed by the PM Gordon Brown, Home Secretary Alan Johnson, and Director General of the Crime and Justice Department Louise Casey. The 3 of them also arranged a splendid event at both the Home Office and 10 Downing Street and Wilson has stated that this was a very rewarding experience. He went on to say:

"It is nice to have my work acknowledged and I feel privileged to have been included at the event. It has inspired me to work even harder to achieve a better quality of life and security for the people of Redbridge."

Kevin Blowe - Random Blowe: Noam Chomsky Speaking At SOAS

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:10:36 +0000

A short clip of the event at SOAS where Noam Chomsky spoke - and that I was unable to attend, despite having a free ticket, because of illness. Not that I'm still grumpy about this, you understand...

Chadwell Green: Short term priorities!

noreply@blogger.com (Wilson Chowdhry) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:06:11 +0000

I have not had muchtime of late to place any stories on this blogsite. However, This is not to say, I am not working in our ward. The main issues I am tackling at the moment include:

An area 5 Application has been submitted by me as Chairperson for the RNWA seeking funding for secure fencing around Chadwell Allotments. These should prevent the antisocial behaviour and arson attacks within the allotment area. The Area 5 meeting is tonight and I will report back to you tomorrow.

We have been posting letters to residents in the vicinity of King George Hospital. This advises people of the demonstration we have organised for the 21st November from 12:00 - 14:00 in response to the plans to close A&E facility. Please join us.

We are also awaiting a consultation document for residents form the Highways team to enable people to contribute ideas of how to tackle the parking issue since King George started charging staff for parking. We will cascade this through to all homes in the vicinity of the Hospital.

If there are any other issues you would like us to tackle please advise me of your concern.

Green Ladywell: Coming up over the next few days

noreply@blogger.com (Sue) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:40:38 +0000

First up, tonight (Tuesday 10th November) we have Brockley Society AGM. 8pm, Brockley Social Club, 230 Brockley Road, SE4 2SU (cnr Foxberry Road, next to Esso Garage).

An illustrated talk by John Coulter, Lewisham Local Studies Librarian: "THE BUILDINGS AND HISTORY OF LEWISHAM WAY" followed by the AGM. Broc Soc has several vacancies on the committee and wants local residents' ideas for the year ahead. All are welcome!

Tomorrow: Armistice Remembrance Under Moonlight: Up The Line, Wednesday 11 November, 7.15pm until 8.30pm, Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries.

Arrive between 7.15pm and 8pm for the 20 minute walk, starting from either Brockley Road or the Ladywell Gate. Children's lantern procession at 7.30pm from the Brockley Road Gate.
Lanterns can be made at St Andrews Church from 4-6pm (£2 per child).

The event will take place regardless of weather conditions. Wear sturdy shoes, warm clothing and bring a torch.

Thursday (12th Nov): Action for Lewisham meeting, 7.30pm, the Tabernacle, Algernon Road. A meeting organised by local residents concerned at the impact of the Lewisham Gateway, Loampit Vale and other big Lewisham town centre developments will have on the area. Although the development has now been approved by Lewisham’s Strategic Planning Committee, the organisers of the meeting feel there are still avenues that can be followed in order to persuade the Council and developers to provide a plan more suited to the area, and more in keeping with future needs (eg low energy). They say they are not against high density developments per se, but want good quality housing to meet local needs.

Saturday (14th Nov) Transition Brockley is excited to present FLUX at Brockley Social Club on Saturday 14th November. It's a night of music, magic and dance, with a freecycle twist - bring your old unwanted stuff and let our resident magician transform it into something new.. There'll be a Wheel of Fortune, live band, magic, DJs and more. All ages welcome, come ready to play and have fun... and please let all your friends and neighbours know and help us make the night a success!
Saturday 14th November: Hedge whip planting session in the northern field, Ladywell Fields, from 1.30 p.m, organised by Ladywell Fields Users' Group.

Sunday 15th November: River clean-up in Ladywell Fields, Meet in the Park at the end of Malyons Road at 10am, organised by Thames21 in conjunction with Ladywell Fields Users' Group.

Jim Jay - The Daily (Maybe): Lewisham links

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jay) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:28:27 +0000

As you may know I'm cutting down the amount of linking I'm doing in the right hand column to make it all a bit more user friendly. Anyway, in order that I don't throw the baby out with the bath water I've decided to set up a Lewisham links post which I can link back to in order to make sure there's a way of supporting the local community.

If you have a site you'd like to promote please let me know in the comments box. Thanks.

Green		Bloggers
Cllr Dean Walton Green Ladywell Lewisham Green Drinks Lewisham Green Party Lewisham Greens' Twitter		853 Bob from Brockley Brockley Central Dizzy Thinks Transpontine
Resources		Community
Lewisham Council Lewisham Local History Society News shopper Wikipedia entry		Brockley Cross Action Group Brockley Jack Theatre Brockley Max Festival Brockley Society Croftton Park Community Link Crofton Park FC Jam Circus Rivoli Ballroom Telegraph Hill Society Voluntary Action Lewisham

Jim Jay - The Daily (Maybe): Guest Post: A citizen's income for all

noreply@blogger.com (Jim Jay) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:14:16 +0000

Continuing my short series of pieces on economic issues, Natalie Bennett discusses the 'basic income', a mechanism to ensure that every citizen should be free from poverty as a right.

When you think about it, most European societies, de facto, very nearly have a basic income that supports their most vulnerable members. With very few exceptions, most societies will not deliberately force a person within them onto the streets, or leave them to starve. (That some people fail to navigate the obstacles to get to that point, and end up “on the streets” most people, even right wing politicians, will usually accept is regrettable.)

The expectation is, at the end of the day, that every member of the society is entitled to a basic level of subsistence, of survival, simply by being part of that society. But to get to that point, every society currently forces members relying on such support to jump through a variety of hoops to “prove” they deserve the support – “readying for work” interviews for disability benefit, prying “who owns those shoes in your wardrobe?” questions for sole parent benefit. It’s a variation of the “deserving poor” formula that was developed in Protestant Tudor England to replace traditional Catholic general largesse.

Over recent decades, however, increasing numbers of scholars and politicians have had a revolutionary thought. What if, instead of setting up all those obstacles, employing all of those bureaucrats to ask prying, indelicate questions, you simply accepted a simple right: if you are a member of this society you have a right to a basic decent level of subsistence? A basic, or citizens’, income, which everyone is paid, as a right – no means test, no prying questions, no need for shame at being a “welfare recipient”.

Instantly you’d save a fortune in administration costs, you’d avoid all those barriers of literacy, of ability to fill in forms, of preparedness to accept “welfare” (which robs millions of British pensioners of basic comforts – while the banks have been very happy to accept their welfare payments without a murmur). You’d also be ending at a stroke the poverty traps that leave many unemployed/disabled/unpaid carers worse off if they return to work when and how they can. And you’d have made a huge definitive statement of principle.

How would it work?

So how would you do it? You’d decide on a level of payment – the current level of unemployment benefit is often chosen as a logical starting point for thinking about this – and pay everyone that sum of money in regular payments spread over the year. You’d pay more to pensioners, to cover the fact they can have higher living expenses and no real way of earning significant income, and possibly less to children, the levels rising with their age. And that would be it.

People could choose, if they wished, to live on that sum, and devote themselves to that novel they always wanted to write, or to developing that community vegetable garden at the end of the road, or to caring for a sick relative. Or some – yes – would probably sit on the sofa.

Most people wouldn’t do that. People work because they want more than basic subsistence, and they work because many jobs offer satisfaction, company, the chance to get out of the house.
Some jobs, the least satisfying, most frustrating ones, probably would be harder to fill – but then if banks and utility companies had to stop using soulless mechanical call centres and go back to local offices staffed by local people you could actually talk to as individuals, then we’d all be better off. And if garbage and sewage workers’ pay had to go up, and the salaries of social workers doing the enormously difficult job of child protection, then that would surely be no bad thing. There might be some jobs worth doing for little pay – maybe the users of the community garden could kick in what they could into the pot for a garden manager.

Taxation would kick in at some point probably not far above the basic income, but there would be no poverty trap, no loss of income. If a recipient worked five hours a week, they’d get the pay for that, and they wouldn’t lose the free bus pass that today could make that financially crippling. If they got some work this week, but not next, they wouldn’t find their benefits cut and no money to put food on the table.

How much would it cost?

So what would it cost? Broadly, about half the cost of the basic income would come from existing benefits and reduced administration costs. The rest would have to be found – taxation, mostly from the rich, but you could also expect a society in which more people had some work, and paid some tax. It’s tough to do the maths of this: it tends to leave quantitative economists tearing their hair out because it is so hard to model – there are no examples of which to base assumptions of how a society would react.

But broadly, it is possible to find a coherent model to make it work financially. And beyond that, it is an illustration, perhaps a perfect illustration, of the fact that lots of changes, really important, fundamental changes, can’t really be modelled, planned; they just have to be done, because they are the right thing to do.

Recently I’ve been increasingly coming to the view that we’ve been looking at economics, and economic models, the wrong way around. Traditionally, we start with where things are now, change one thing, then try to make the rest of the sums add up. And those models really haven’t worked out very well recently…

What if we started differently? We could start with what we regard as the basic essentials that a society should provide – basic income and essential public services – say “this is what we need and must have”, then work out how to fund it. Lots of things might have to go – consultants fees, aircraft carriers, new roads, infrastructure for globalization. Some new and faintly shocking things might have to come in – higher taxes on the rich, tougher controls on banks. But then you’d have done what has to be done to deliver a society that truly met the base needs of all its citizens.

Footnote

There’s no space here to fully explore the full beauties of a basic income. There’s further reading suggestions below. And this article has focused on developed societies, but the introduction of a basic income could be even more revolutionary in developing societies. If people already live on $US2, a payment of that sum could totally change their lives. On a small scale this has already been done, in Namibia , and the results have been stunning.

Further reading

A Citizens' Income, Clive Lord.
Redesigning Distribution: Basic Income and Stakeholder Grants as Cornerstones for an Egalitarian Capitalism, Ackerman, Alstott and van Parijs.
Basic Income on the Agenda, Loek Groot
A Basic Income Grant for South Africa, Guy Standing
The Right to Exploit: Parasitism, Scarcity, and Basic Income, Gijs Van Donselaar
Or see the Basic Income Network.

Green Ben's Kemptown Blog: Tories announce Brighton Pavilion shortlist

ben.duncan@brighton-hove.gov.uk (Ben Duncan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:47:18 +0000

According to The Argus, the local Tories have whittled the applicants to stand for parliament in Brighton Pavilion down to just six.

And it looks like, whoever is chosen, the party has already thrown in the towel.

Frankly I haven't heard of three of them at all - so I can't tell you anything about them.

But of the three I have come across, there's Andrew Wealls, who actually has some experience standing in an election locally and losing to a Green party candidate, Scott Seaman-Digby, a senior Tory national organiser, and Chelsea councillor Mary Weale.

Now it's up to the good folk of Brighton Pavilion to choose the final candidate, at an open 'primary' meeting next Wednesday. Anyone living in the constituency can vote, whether or not they are a member of the Tory party. Call 01273 411844 if you want to join the fun.

Of course it's all academic really: if this shortlist really contains the best candidates to Tories can muster it looks to me like they've already thrown in the towel.

Remember David Bull? His departure was clearly prescient - it seems the Tories just can't find a big hitter who wants to risk being the country's first Tory candidate to lose to a Green MP.

Natalie Bennett - Philobiblon: Why I’m becoming an almost-vegetarian

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:18:15 +0000

I’ve kind of known I would take this step for a while, but the recent spurt of publicity about the carbon impacts of the meat industry (and reading Prashant Vaze’s The Economical Environmentalist) has finally driven me to a decision: I’m going to become an almost-vegetarian. Using the Guardian’s carbon output ready reckoner, I calculated that my annual carbon output is now about 10 tonnes, around two-thirds of that of the average Briton, but still more than we all need to get to soon.

I don’t drive except in France (and then no great distances, and I’m looking to cut that down), don’t fly, use little gas and electricity, have been trying hard to cut down on my usage of disposable plastic containers, so it is hard to see where I can make further cuts, except in diet.

So almost-vegetarian it is.

I can see the eyebrows: “Almost?”

There are three reasons for that: 1. I can’t eat gluten, and given that the vegetarian option in restaurants is often pasta, I will be left with no alternative. There will be times when making a fuss and demanding to go off-menu just won’t be practical. 2. If the point of this is cutting carbon, then the occasional fried rice (favourite comfort food), containing a tiny smattering of pork, shrimp and chicken (or similar dish), is going to have minimal impact. (And I’m certainly not going to fuss about a Thai dish containing a dash of fish sauce.) 3. I want to allow myself room to slip up occasionally and not then feel that I’ve failed (and yes, I am going to declare oysters “almost-vegetarian”. I only eat them three or four times a year, and I LIKE them.)

Ah, but I hear the purists cry, shouldn’t I be becoming an almost-vegan? Well, yes, on carbon grounds, but sorry, I just can’t do it. I can go without meat without too much difficulty, I think, but cheese, yoghurt, butter, no!

Maybe one day, but not now…

On the other side of the sceptics’ fence, you might say that individual action is irrelevant, that major societal and government action is the only thing that can deliver real cuts in emissions. True – but you’ve got to start somewhere, and through my work for the Green Party I’m working on that too.

Croydon Greens: Andrew Pelling MP dominating letters page

shasha_khan@hotmail.com (Shasha Khan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:12:24 +0000

A selection of letters over the last few weeks

A couple of local residents have mentioned the dominance of Andrew Pelling related letters appearing in the local papers. A week doesn't seem to go by without one or two letters discussing the virtues of the MP for Croydon Central. There is little doubt he will stand as an independent in the next election even though he is still a Conservative Party member. The politics of his standing is intriguing:

His success is dependent on the independent brand, which is becoming increasingly attractive to the electorate. Roy Hattersley said the independents' rallying call is, "Vote for me for who I am", but what do they stand for??
He is a well known constituency MP with a band of dedicated supporters, mostly from within the Conservative party, who continue to write into the local papers. Surely, they are not planning to maintain this level of output right the way through to May 2010??
Labour are no doubt rejoicing that he is standing as he will split the Conservative vote and allow their candidate Gerry Ryan to sneak in. Croydon Labour must cheer every pro-Pelling letter that appears in the paper.
The Conservatives are in a tricky position because he is a Tory! What are they supposed to do? They can't criticise his voting record and they wouldn't dare discuss his arrest in 2007.
Many people will remember Andrew Pelling's last minute leaflet designed for the BNP areas of Fieldway and New Addington back in 2005. The then incumbent Labour MP Geraint Davies showed me the leaflet at the hustings at Croydon College. I remember seeing a picture of Andrew Pelling cuddling a pit bull! The whole leaflet was designed to attract the 'narrow minded' vote. Geraint was absolutely livid.
He has attended all the recent Greenpeace or Friends of the Earth demo's, yet at the launch of the Croydon Environmental Network he said he favoured airport expansion albeit not at Heathrow.

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Tags croydon, greenparty

Richard Lawson - Mabinogogiblog: Sidewiki: now the fun starts

noreply@blogger.com (DocRichard) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:55:47 +0000

Copied from :Rupert Read

See the MediaGuardian: 'Sidewiki changes everything'.

Now _we_ can start to take back the power from the PR people...
____________________________________________________

Read what Google has to say

And when you're done, and have set this up on your computer (it will take
you less than a minute - the privacy sacrifice is a relatively small price
to pay, in my view), go visit Nestle' and see what we've done
to Nestle's website...!

See also the sidewiki Ruper Read has started , up on The Sun homepage
...Let's 'get out there' and start having fun!

There are _plenty_ of webpages worth targetting... Suddenly, 'other
people's' websites are open to us as they have never been before... The web
becomes the interactive space it was supposed to be...

RL: I have put my first comment up on the trafigura website here.

Greenpeace UK Blogs: 16th October 1970 - what a night

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:26:52 +0000

Joni at the Pacific Coliseum - photo courtesy of Alan Katowitz

"They paved paradise, put up a parking lot" sang music icon Joni Mitchell presciently in one of her earliest hits, 1970's Big Yellow Taxi. And right from the start she showed a willingness to put her money where her mouth was in support of her environmental concerns.

So much so that later that year, when Canadian peace activist Irving Stowe announced plans for a benefit concert to raise funds to send a ship to oppose US nuclear testing in Alsaka, she was one of the first to sign up. On October 16, together with fellow rising star James Taylor and the legendary protest singer Phil Ochs, she put in an astonishing performance for an audience of 10,000 at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum, raising over $16,000 - enough to send a boat and crew to the Amchitka nuclear testing site.

The vessel, an old fishing boat called the Phylis Cormack, was renamed the Greenpeace for the duration of the trip, an inspiring name which would quickly be adopted by the fledgling organisation whose hopes it carried into the nuclear testing grounds. And so, in a very real sense, this was the night when Greenpeace began, when opposition to unthinking environmental destruction found both its voice and a way to turn that opposition into practical, positive action.

Now the magic of this unique occasion has been captured on a two-disc CD available from our office in Canada, complete with a 48-page booklet of never before seen, candid black and white photos of both the concert and the voyage to Amchitka which it funded.

So we'd like to take this opportunity to share a beautiful recording and a significant moment in our history with Greenpeace supporters and music lovers everywhere.

Order your CDs or make an electronic download today from www.amchitka-concert.com.

Croydon Greens: Veggie Fayre in Croydon

shasha_khan@hotmail.com (Shasha Khan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:54:19 +0000

The Environment Panel. I've just realised I've got a missed call from Caroline Allen

Croydon's number 1 food campaigner, Tony Bishop Weston, is 'Five a Day' man!

Barry, Shasha and Danni on the stall

Last Sunday's Veggie Fayre in Croydon, YES CROYDON, was a scrummy treat! Lots of food stalls including the Green Dragon who kindly shared their stall space with Croydon Green Party.

The Environment Panel consisted of:

Chantal Cooke - Director of Passion for the Planet,
Ruth Andrade - Press officer for Lush
Michael Howard - Friends of the Earth
Shasha Khan - Green Party.

The Q and A session that got us all thinking. It was probably the first question time type event where I was preaching to the converted. Thanks to Caroline Allen for coming down from Hackney to take part in the Animal Welfare panel.

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Tags croydon, greenparty

Morgan Phillips - Becoming Green: Alain de Botton's Six-Part Series on Philosophy: A Guide to Happiness

mail@becominggreen.co.uk (Morgan Phillips) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:47:10 +0000

Just wanted to create a link to an excellent Six Part series on Philosophy by Alain de Botton. each programme is about 20 mins long and looks at several big emotions like 'happiness', 'anger' and 'love'. Each programme filled me with ideas for workshops critiquing consumerism, materialism, affluenza and so on. My fave thing to do would be to create a 'Diogenes Happiness Wall' (see Epicurus on Happiness) I'm hopefully going to give it a go at a forthcoming LEEF event I'm planning!

Thanks to John Graham-Cumming for posting the links in one place: http://tinyurl.com/yj8wzxm

Two Doctors: The cost of power.

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:31:27 +0000

Suddenly, as impotence looms, Labour have gone nuclear in a major way. They aren't really making a decision, they're just clearing the way for the Tories to do so, and guaranteeing that Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition will sit idly by after the election.

Nuclear remains, of course, uneconomic, which is why no stations have been built here since the dog days of the last Tory administration. If Ministers want it, we'll have to pay. The Telegraph confirms that: an average household bill will go up by £227 if this goes ahead.

Meanwhile, over at the Times, they're telling us we'll also be soaked for the £9.5bn cost of carbon capture and storage, which currently doesn't work anywhere. That's just a starting estimate based on 15 years' worth of levy, but the final figure could be twice that over 30 years.

If we're going to pay out massive sums to support our future power needs, why on earth won't Labour, the Tories or even the Lib Dems push effective clean energy rather than these costly technological dead ends?

Green Ben's Kemptown Blog: Traffic nightmare coming to St James's Street

ben.duncan@brighton-hove.gov.uk (Ben Duncan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:30:29 +0000

Do you ever get the feeling our city is mired in a permanent traffic jam of roadworks?

Probably. Members of Brighton and Hove City Council's Environment Scrutiny Committee yesterday learned that roads in Brighton and Hove have been dug up on about 20,000 separate occasions in the last year.

The council itself carried out about 9,000 roadworks, and about 8,500 were done by the utility companies. Oh and then there's Southern Water's main replacement project - which has, additionally, seen roads closed and traffic brought to a standstill while the firm has upgraded miore than 50 km of pipes.

A traffic engineer told members they were doing everything they can to get the privately-owned utilities to work together - cutting costs, disruption to residents and traders, and delays to all road users.

He gave one example of how they were able to persuade two utility firms to co-operate on works at North Road, cutting the length of time the road was dug up by about nine months.

But usually, we were told, that doesn't happen. The companies involved don't like it much - and they're under no legal obligation to play ball with each other.

Well, personally, I don't think that's good enough. The law of the land allows the water, gas, electricity and cable companies to dig up the roads, essentially whenever they like.

I think it should also require them to plan their work and do it all at once: if they really can't get their acts together they should face heavy fines - used to compensate residents and road users - or compulsory nationalisation, to bring them into public ownership and control.

Meanwhile, the never-ending road works look set to continue.

And if you live, work, shop - or just hang out - anywhere near St James's Street it's about to get a whole lot worse.

Southern Gas Networks have announced plans to 'relay a section of the Gas main and associated services' in St James's Street (whatever that means exactly), next February.

The St James's Area LAT will discuss the plans with the Southern Gas manager responsible at its next meeting, which takes place tomorrow from 7pm at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church.

It'll be interesting to see how we all manage during any protracted closures of the street: I guess the buses will have to be diverted along the seafront and Edward Street, giving us an instant experiment (whether we like it or not) in giving pedestrians priority for a while.

Rupert's Read: Google SideWiki - now it's our turn...

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:29:15 +0000

See the MediaGuardian: http://bit.ly/3ZIj67 'Sidewiki changes everything'.
Now _we_ can start to take back the power from the PR people...
____________________________________________________

Read what Google has to say: http://tinyurl.com/lkbxbw

And when you're done, and have set this up on your computer (it will take
you less than a minute - the privacy sacrifice is a relatively small price
to pay, in my view), go visit http://www.nestle.com and see what we've done
to Nestle's website...! See also the sidewiki started I've up on The Sun
homepage, e.g.: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/

...Let's 'get out there' and start having fun!

There are _plenty_ of webpages worth targetting... Suddenly, 'other
people's' websites are open to us as they have never been before... The web
becomes the interactive space it was supposed to be...

Rob White - Bloggy Blanc: West Berks Brewery ends negotiations to reopen the Jolly Anglers

bobby.blanc@gmail.com (Rob White) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:04:01 +0000

It is a real shame that the positive negotiations to get the Jolly Anglers reopened involving West Berks Brewery have come to a premature end. I hope that this will put a stop to the irresponsible press releases from the likes of Rob Wilson!

Despite this setback, the campaign goes on and I think we need a get together to regroup and assess the situation.

Green St Albans: There's a toilet outside my house

noreply@blogger.com (Simon Grover) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:03:20 +0000

OK, it's green. I should be grateful for that. And there are those occasions when you just can't wait to get into your house to relieve yourself. But on balance I would rather there was NOT a toilet outside my house.

Bean Sprouts: Buy Nothing Day 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Melanie Rimmer) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:02:48 +0000

There's just over a fortnight to go until Buy Nothing Day 2009. What will you be doing on Saturday 28th November this year? You can keep it simple and just buy nothing all that day. Or you can print out and display a poster from the BND website, or join the Facebook group. There are videos to watch on the BND website too.

If you are feeling a bit more energetic you can join an event, or even organise your own. I like the idea of:

Credit card cut up
Volunteers stand in a shopping mall with a pair of scissors and a sign offering a simple service: to put an end to extortionate interest rates and mounting debt with one considerate cut. Be careful though: in some first-world countries, carrying scissors in public can get you arrested as a "terrorist".

Zombie Walk
The cheerful dead wander around malls, marveling at the blank, comatose expressions on the faces of shoppers. The zombies are happy to be among their own kind, but slightly contemptuous of those who have not yet begun to rot.

Whirl–mart
This activity has the advantage of being most likely to piss off security personnel. You and nine of your closest friends silently drive your shopping carts around in a long, inexplicable conga line without ever actually buying anything.

I love Buy Nothing Day because it makes me smile. We're bombarded with advertising telling us that the way to happiness is through buying stuff. So it is easy to characterise anti-consumerists as being cheerless killjoys (I'll let you in on a secret - some of them really are). But it shouldn't be like that. In truth, the pursuit of happiness through buying stuff is guaranteed to end in misery and dissatisfaction. If you ever actually bought the holy gizmo that made you feel fulfilled and happy you would stop buying stuff, and the businesses don't want you to do that. Wandering through a shopping mall dressed up as a zombie sounds way more fun to me than rushing through a shopping mall trying to find the perfect pair of bootcut low-rise stonewashed jeans in my size before the shops shut.

Rob White - Bloggy Blanc: Reading Young Greens Society launched

bobby.blanc@gmail.com (Rob White) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:25:38 +0000

We now have a Reading Young Greens Society at Reading University.

We are currently campaigning to make the campus safer and against tuition fees.