SFGP WEEKLY For The Week of 9/15/05 - 9/22/05 Welcome to all our new subscribers from Power to the Peaceful! Special Hurricane Katrina Edition! Find out how you can help! See Events for more info. This Week: ********************************************************** News: 9/2: Notes from Inside New Orleans 9/5: Greens Send Aid to Stricken Areas, Urge FEMA Chief's Dismissal/ Radio Interview with New Orleans Green Party leader Malik Rahim 9/7: CA Greens Urge Quick Signature by Governor for Minimum Wage Legislation 9/7: Pot Use Down Where Medical Use OK 9/8: Schwarzenegger's Veto of Same-Sex Marriage Bill is an 'Outrage' 9/8: MUNI Fare Strike Update, Part 2 9/11: Truthout.org Articles Concerning Hurricane Katrina 9/12: Now Let's Rescue America: Nine Key Steps for the Left 9/12: Confronting Nancy Pelosi 9/14: Sierra Club Summit 9/15: Did Mayor Newsom make the same mistake as President Bush? ********************************************************** Events: Ongoing: List of Hurrican Katrina Relief Organizations 9/16- 9/18: Earthdance 2005 9/16: Ross Mirkarimi's Monthly Third Friday Art Opening 9/17- 9/18: "Back To School, Not War!" Green Gathering 9/19: Gun Ban Forum 9/20: Richard Heinberg Speaks on Peak Oil 9/21: San Francisco Green Party General Membership Meeting 9/22: Free Screening and Panel Discussion of The End of Suburbia ********************************************************** Announcements: Joke of the Week Register to Vote By Mail Become A Sustainer! ********************************************************** News ********************* ********************************************************** 9/2: Notes from Inside New Orleans By Jordan Flaherty t r u t h o u t | Perspective I just left New Orleans a couple of hours ago. I traveled from the apartment I was staying in - by boat - to a helicopter to a refugee camp. If anyone wants to examine the attitude of federal and state officials toward the victims of hurricane Katrina, I advise you to visit one of the refugee camps. In the refugee camp I just left, on the I-10 freeway near Causeway, thousands of people (at least 90% black and poor) stood and squatted in mud and trash behind metal barricades, under an unforgiving sun, with heavily armed soldiers standing guard over them. When a bus would come through, it would stop at a random spot, state police would open a gap in one of the barricades, and people would rush for the bus, with no information given about where the bus was going. Once inside, we were told, evacuees would be told where the bus was taking them - Baton Rouge, Houston, Arkansas, Dallas, or other locations. I was told that if you boarded a bus bound for Arkansas, for example, even people with family and a place to stay in Baton Rouge would not be allowed to get out of the bus as it passed through Baton Rouge. You had no choice but to go to the shelter in Arkansas. If you had people willing to come to New Orleans to pick you up, they could not come within 17 miles of the camp. I traveled throughout the camp and spoke to Red Cross workers, Salvation Army workers, National Guard, and state police, and although they were friendly, no one could give me any details on when buses would arrive, how many, where they would go to, or any other information. I spoke to the several teams of journalists nearby, and asked if any of them had been able to get any information from any federal or state officials on any of these questions, and all of them, from Australian TV to local Fox affiliates complained of an unorganized, non-communicative mess. One cameraman told me "as someone who's been here in this camp for two days, the only information I can give you is this: get out by nightfall. You don't want to be here at night." To read more, go to: www.truthout.org ********************************************************** 9/5: Greens Send Aid to Stricken Areas, Urge FEMA Chief's Dismissal/ Radio Interview with New Orleans Green Party leader Malik Rahim Source: GP.org Greens organize a campground shelter and send buses for victims; 2004 Green V.P. candidate LaMarche heads to Louisiana with the Red Cross; Greens warn that more destructive hurricanes are likely to strike the U.S. WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Green Party members intensified their efforts to help in the relief effort for victims of hurricane Katrina, and also called for the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to be fired. Greens urged an independent investigation into the federal government's mismanagement of relief and rescue and failure to heed numerous warnings of an impending hurricane disaster in the Gulf region. Greens across the U.S. have helped organize numerous efforts to get aid to people in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Andrea Garland and other Louisiana Greens have set up web pages to help provide shelter and other assistance and are heading to New Orleans with a trailer full of food, water, and supplies. Green Party of Florida co-chair Sarah "Echo" Steiner established a comfortable and safe haven for evacuees on a campground in Florida. The camp is also collecting water, food and supplies for immediate delivery to the New Orleans area. The Green-led Minnesota Coalition to Aid Hurricane Katrina Survivors' first bus left Minneapolis to transport evacuees from and provide vital supplies for survivors on Saturday evening. Pat LaMarche, the Green Party's vice presidential nominee in 2004 and co-chair of the Green Party of the United States, will travel to New Orleans as a journalist and a first aid worker with the Red Cross. Lethal Negligence, Ineptitude, and Racism Greens noted that in 2001, the same year in which FEMA called a major hurricane hitting New Orleans one of the three "likeliest, most catastrophic disasters facing this country," FEMA also announced that it would downsized and privatize its services and the Bush Administration and Congress began to scale back funding for FEMA and flood control projects in New Orleans. Read more at: http://www.sfgreenparty.org/news/newsitem-start.gem?idx=1375 Hear the radio interview with New Orleans Green Party leader Malik Rahim at: http://radio.indymedia.org/uploads/lotus-malik-katrina.mp3 ********************************************************** 9/7: CA Greens Urge Quick Signature by Governor for Minimum Wage Legislation Source: THE GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA Minimum wage legislation to provide aid for 'working poor' SACRAMENTO (September 7, 2005) - While noting it doesn't come close to a living wage, the Green Party of California applauded the Senate's passage of legislation raising the state's minimum wage - and urged the governor to sign it to give urgent relief to the state's "working poor." AB 48, authored by Assembly person Sally Lieber, D-Mt. View, goes to the governor after the Senate passed it today. It was approved by the Assembly 49-30 in late June. The measure raises the minimum wage to $7.75 over two years, and indexes it for inflation annually. There hasn't been an increase in the minimum wage for the state's lowest paid workers since 2002. "Nearly 80 percent of low-wage workers are people of color and the majority of minimum wage earners are women. While the cost of everything goes up, from housing to food to gasoline, these workers haven't had an increase in three years," said Susan King, a spokesperson for the GPCA. The Greens are also quick to point out that even with the modest increase called for in Lieber's measure, the wage paid California's lowest-paid workers is not even close to the minimum wage way back in 1968. To equal that, workers today would have to be paid somewhere around $9 an hour. "Minimum wage workers are our working poor, and they continue to be exploited. Today's workers need to be paid a living wage, and $7.75 an hour or even $9 an hour doesn't come close. Shame on lawmakers who don't support this legislation, and the governor if he chooses not to support it," said Pat Driscoll, a GPCA spokesperson and treasurer with Californians for Fair Wages (CFW). Contact: Sara Amir, spokesperson 310.270-7106 saraamir@earthlink.net Pat Driscoll 916.320-6430 pat@sonicfrog.com Susan King 415.823-5524 funking@mindspring.com Beth Moore Haines 530.277-0610 beth@ncws.com ********************************************************** 9/7: Pot Use Down Where Medical Use OK By: Eric Bailey, Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times Study shows a sharp decline in teens smoking marijuana in states, including California, where the drug is legal for medicinal purposes SACRAMENTO Bucking dire predictions by anti-drug warriors, the 10 states that approved medical marijuana laws over the last decade have experienced sharp declines in cannabis use among teenagers, according to a new study by a marijuana advocacy group. California has seen usage among ninth-graders drop 47% since 1996, the year the state became the nations first to legalize medical marijuana. Over the same period, the nation as a whole experienced a 43% decline among eighth-graders. The study, released today, is based on data from national and state surveys, which show a drop in marijuana use by teens. Although debate over medical marijuana is often shaded by concerns about increasing drug abuse among young people, the report suggested the opposite has been true. The studys authors were Mitch Earleywine, a State University of New York psychology professor, and Karen OKeefe, a legislative analyst with Marijuana Policy Project, the organization that commissioned the research based on state and federal data. That data strongly suggests that approval of medical marijuana has not increased recreational use of cannabis among adolescents, Earleywine and OKeefe concluded. And the decline in many of the states with medical marijuana laws is slightly more favorable than trends nationwide, they said. California, Washington and Colorado have all experienced greater drops in marijuana usage than have occurred nationwide. Only three states with medical marijuana laws Maine, Oregon and Nevada have lagged behind the national drop in teen marijuana use, the report said. If medical marijuana laws send the wrong message to children, the authors said, widespread attention to the debate would be expected to produce a nationwide increase in marijuana use, the largest increase in those states enacting medical marijuana laws. But just the opposite has occurred. Tom Riley, of the presidents Office of National Drug Control Policy, said the drop in teen drug use across the nation is attributable to the federal anti-drug advertising campaign in recent years, including $125 million spent during the federal fiscal year that ends Oct. 1. Medical marijuana has only clouded that pitch, he said. "Its foolish to give kids a message that marijuana can be helpful to them, Riley said, adding that all Americans should be glad that teen drug use is going down. If the drug legalizers are recognizing that, too, I think that says something. But the researchers sketched a different hypothesis: that medical marijuana shifted the perception among some teens about pot. Perhaps medical marijuana laws send a very different message, they wrote. Teens may increasingly consider pot a treatment for serious illness, not a toy, and requires cautious and careful handling. The most extensive available data was in California, where a survey of about 6,000 students every two years showed that pot use among teens was climbing before passage of the 1996 medical marijuana law. For all grades, marijuana use dropped significantly between early 1996 and 2004, with the biggest downward shift among ninth-graders. Between 1996 and 2004, the number of high school freshmen in the state who reported using pot in the last 30 days dropped 47%, while the number of freshmen who had tried cannabis at least once dropped 35%. Copyright 2005 Los Angeles Times ********************************************************** 9/8: Schwarzenegger's Veto of Same-Sex Marriage Bill is an 'Outrage' Source: LAVENDER GREENS CAUCUS Greens' Lavender Caucus 'outraged' at Governor's decision to veto same-sex marriage bill, promise they will 'be back' SACRAMENTO - Members of the Green Party of California, and the National Lavender Greens Caucus said Thursday they are "outraged" at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's decision to "terminate" equal marriage rights for same-sex couples by vetoing legislation to recognize same-sex marriages. The measure, AB 849, by Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, was approved Tuesday by the full legislature. It requires California to recognize marriages as gender neutral civil contracts. Massachusetts is the only state to currently recognize gay marriages, but did so only after an order from its Supreme Court. However, the governor - who has claimed he is a "social progressive" - now says he will veto the bill, disappointing the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community that celebrated the passage of "The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act." "California's Lavender Greens thank the California Legislature for finally acknowledging what the Green Party has said all along: we all deserve the right to marry the person of our choice, regardless of their gender," said Thomas Leavitt, a National Lavender Greens Caucus officer and Santa Cruz Green. "But, we are outraged by the Governator's decision to terminate marriage rights for same-sex couples, and have just one thing to say to him: 'We'll be back,'" added Thomas. "Now would have been the time for Governor Schwarzenegger to walk the walk as a socially progressive Republican by signing the Leno bill to show his commitment to full civil rights for all Californians," said Marc Salomon, a member of San Francisco Green Party County Council. "The governor had the opportunity to do the right thing. We're asking him to rethink this, and show us that his heart and mind are open and that he really does believe in equality for all," added Starlene Rankin, Green Party Lavender Caucus National Delegate. The Green Party of California platform supports the right of all persons to marry, with "without discrimination based on sex, gender or sexual orientation." (See www.cagreens.org/platform) The California Green Party gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community supported the lobbying effort of Equality California, the coalition responsible for the legislative success. Contact: Sara Amir, spokesperson 310.270-7106 saraamir@earthlink.net Pat Driscoll 916.320-6430 pat@sonicfrog.com Susan King 415.823-5524 funking@mindspring.com Beth Moore Haines 530.277-0610 beth@ncws.com GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA www.cagreens.org ********************************************************** 9/8: MUNI Fare Strike Update, Part 2 MUNI INCREASES CASH FARE, CASH REVENUE DROPS Thursday, September 8, 2005 8:30 AM According to figures released by Muni, cash revenue collected at the farebox has dropped since the cash fare was increased on September 1. This decrease has occurred despite the 20% increase in the adult cash fare, and the 40% increase in the youth, senior and disabled cash fare. If this decrease in revenue continues, it will mean a loss of millions of dollars per year for Muni, rather than the multi-million dollar increase projected by Muni managers as a result of the fare increase. Here are the figures: Muni collected an average of $169,011 per day on Monday, August 29 through Wednesday, August 31. Yet on Thursday, September 1, the day the fare increase was implemented, cash fare revenue declined to $150,529. This is an 11% decrease from the average of the first three days of that week. Cash fare revenue was up at the beginning of the week starting Monday, August 29, most likely as a result of the opening of San Francisco's public schools. Even comparing Muni's farebox revenue to the whole month of August, which included only three days during which public schools were in session, the $150,529 cash revenue collected on September 1 represented a decline from the $152,654 cash revenue average for August. On Friday, September 2, cash revenue declined again to $143,305. This was the day before the Labor Day weekend. The decline in cash revenue continued through the Labor Day weekend. Compared to last year's Labor Day weekend, cash fares declined by nearly 14% -- despite the increase in the cash fare this year. To read more, go to: http://www.MuniFareStrike.net ********************************************************** 9/11: Truthout.org Articles Concerning Hurricane Katrina Molly Ivins; Mercenaries Deploy in New Orleans; Pentagon's "Freedom Walk" Criticized and more... Browse our continually updating front page at http://www.truthout.org Mayday Mississippi Delta http://www.truthout.org/mayday.shtml TO begins round-the-clock information support for everyone impacted by Katrina. We will provide the best sources available for the most up-to-date and expansive coverage possible. Go directly to our coverage of Cindy Sheehan's courageous stand. http://truthout.org/cindy.shtml Join fellow bloggers at the t r u t h o u t Town Meeting. Get perspective on today's important issues from TO's editorial team and prominent guest bloggers. Join the debate! http://forum.truthout.org/blog t r u t h o u t | 09.10 Blackwater Mercenaries Deploy in New Orleans http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005A.shtml Heavily armed paramilitary mercenaries from the Blackwater private security firm, infamous for their work in Iraq, are openly patrolling the streets of New Orleans. Pentagon's "Freedom Walk" Criticized http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005B.shtml The Pentagon's "America Supports You Freedom Walk" is intended to honor both the U.S. military and the victims of the terrorist attacks, but critics say the administration is using the occasion to try to stiffen American resolve in Iraq and to counter a major war protest in Washington two weeks later. The New Ground Zero http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005C.shtml A noxious water still covers more than half of New Orleans, and through a 150-mile stretch of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama people are still struggling to come to terms with a disaster the like of which the US has not seen in more than a century. Molly Ivins | Blame Game, Race Card http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005D.shtml Molly Ivins argues that George W. Bush has come up with his worst idea since he decided to have the military investigate torture by the military at Abu Ghraib prison. He, George W. personally, plans to investigate to "find out what went right and what went wrong" in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Contractors 'Run Loose' in Iraq http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005E.shtml Recent shootings of Iraqi civilians, allegedly involving the legion of U.S., British and other foreign security contractors operating in the country, are drawing increasing concern from Iraqi officials and U.S. commanders who say they undermine relations between foreign military forces and Iraqi civilians. The Contenders to Replace Justice O'Connor http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005F.shtml Before Tuesday's cabinet meeting, President Bush told reporters that the short list of nominees to fill his second Supreme Court vacancy was wide open. With a smile toward the journalists present, he announced that he therefore welcomed wide media speculation, especially about Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. What a kidder. Bill Fletcher Jr. | The Titanic of Our Era http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005G.shtml The complete failure of the Bush administration-and to a lesser extent state and local authorities on the Gulf Coast- to respond to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina has raised questions about the motives at play. Republicans Still Plan to Cut Welfare Spending http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005H.shtml Republicans are going ahead with long-standing plans to trim Medicaid, food stamps and other benefits, even though party moderates are balking at cutting programs that aid the poor while hundreds of thousands are homeless from Hurricane Katrina. Stirling Newberry | Will FEBAR Bring Down the House? http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005X.shtml With Friday's news that Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director Michael Brown had been relieved of managing the storm clean-up, a bit of reality settled in to Washington. According to Stirling Newberry, Brown, you probably know, is a man who couldn't manage a horse breeder's association, and yet who was waved through hearings by an eager Joe Lieberman. It was an admission that New Orleans had been Federal Emergencied Beyond All Recognition. Roberts Refused to Defend FCC on Minority Ownership Policy http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005Y.shtml In 1990, the Federal Communications Commission asked the first Bush administration to defend a policy aimed at encouraging more minority ownership of broadcast stations. As the number two man in the solicitor general's office, John G. Roberts Jr. played a critical role in the government's decision to reject the request, according to documents that came to light yesterday. General: Guard Deployment in Iraq Hurt Katrina Response http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091005Z.shtml Lt. Gen. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau, said that "arguably" a day or so of response time was lost due to the absence of the Mississippi National Guard's 155th Brigade Combat Team and Louisiana's 256th Infantry Brigade, each with thousands of troops in Iraq. ********************************************************** 9/12: Now Let's Rescue America: Nine Key Steps for the Left By Van Jones President George W. Bush's disastrous mishandling of Hurricane Katrina exposes what is so desperately wrong with the right-wing ideology that now controls the U.S. government. We now have a rare opportunity to make a bold case for progressive approaches to the country's problems. Everyone can see now that we need a well-funded, functional government within U.S. borders not an emaciated, revenue-starved one. It is more clear than ever that over-funding the military and cutting services actually makes us LESS safe, not more safe, and it redeems those who have been concerned about racism, poverty, climate destabilization, petro-chemical toxics and the perils of over-reliance on oil. We can see that these are not just petty obsessions of the "politically correct" crowd. They are life-and-death issues for real people. Everyday Americans are already seeing this and saying it. Finally, after a long romance with those riverboat gamblers on the Right, the country is ready to hear something sensible from our side. If we articulate a bold action program, we can win support on a scale that we have not known for decades. FILL THE LEADERSHIP VACUUM: NINE KEY STEPS We were right. Bush was wrong. By stepping forward immediately, we can fill the huge, stunning leadership gap left by Team Bush. The following nine steps are critical. 1 Let's tell America that we want to fully fund FEMA by rolling back the Bush tax cuts to at least Clinton-era levels. The rich must help secure the country against the next disaster. Reckless revenue cuts that leave us vulnerable must be repealed. 2 Let's declare that the Katrina's flood-waters washed the GOP's proposal to repeal the "estate tax" off the table. There will be no tax breaks for the mega-rich while the nation is recovering from this historic blow and preparing itself for the next one. Any revenue cuts would both impair the rebuilding effort and risk lives down the road. Let's declare the repeal of the so-called "death tax" to be: D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival). 3 Let's publicly demand that George W. Bush either apologize to the people of the Gulf Coast for failing them or else resign. It is time stop fearing Bush Almighty, assuming that he and Karl Rove can keep trashing the country and never pay a price. The man just impaled himself on his own arrogance and contempt for life. Even conservative reporters were outraged by his team's indifference and dishonesty. Under Bush, America abandoned our poor, sick and disabled in a crisis and the whole world saw it on live TV. True patriots were appalled. To read more, please go to: www.HuffingtonPost.com ********************************************************** 9/12: Confronting Nancy Pelosi By Bill Simpich The purpose of this article is to give Counterpunch readers a glimpse into the backstory of the antiwar events planned for Monday, September 26 in San Francisco. Cindy Sheehan has both inspired us and made it plain - to end this war, we must put the heat on the people responsible for the war's continuation and say it in a way that connects with people on the most basic level. Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, that person is House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, congresswoman for most of the city. On September 26, those of us active in United for Peace and Justice are convinced that the peace movement can expose the terrible voting record of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and the gap between her words and her deeds. Although she describes the war as a "grotesque mistake", she has consistently voted to fund the war. To read more, please visit: www.counterpunch.org *********************************************************** 9/14: Sierra Club Summit The Sierra Club, the oldest environmental organization in the nation (founded in 1892), held its first annual summit at the Moscone Center this past weekend. There was a strong local Green presense in the audience and among the volunteers: Kevin Danaher, John Rizzo, Sue Vaughan Bruce Wolfe, and Daniele Erville, another local Green, was there as a volunteer.among others. Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb was one of the featured presenters. And there was even a strong "decline to state" voice on the podium -- that of Arianna Huffington who let the Democrats have it for CAFE standards and who lit into Bill Clinton for appearing behind the lectern with George H.W. Bush when George W. Bush was putting them in charge of private fundraising efforts on behalf of the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Private fundraising since the government, under the neo-liberal policies of George Bush the Far Lesser, is being deliberately underfunded and rendered unable to perform its function -- providing for the common good. She's gotta at least be decline to state, right? And shouldn't Bill Clinton have been down on the ground in New Orleans himself, wading with dispossessed in the Superdome and calling for the resignation of Bush? *********************************************************** 9/15: Did Mayor Newsom make the same mistake as President Bush? ...by naming an unqualified political appointee as our top disaster official? Many people think so. Check out this investigative report from ABC-7. http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=i_team&id=3443994 *********************************************************** *********************************** Events *********************************** *********************************************************** List of Hurrican Katrina Relief Organizations Ongoing 1. Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children How You Can Help: If you want to help FFLIC help our families survive the ineptitude and racism that has left thousands to die, here are some things you can do: 1) Donate: Send a check to the "FFLIC Hurricane Relief Fund" to 920 Platt Street, Sulphur, Louisiana, 70663. 2) Volunteer: Come and help us walk through the shelters, find people, help folks apply for FEMA assistance, figure out what needs they have, match folks up with other members willing to take people in. We especially need Black folks to help us as the racial divide between relief workers and evacuees is stark. Email us ASAP if you would like to help with this work. 3) Send supplies for the effort: We don't need tee-shirts and underwear. We need things like cars, computers, a copy machine, a fax machine. All of these items are going to what we need to have in place to better help our families. To find out exactly what we need, call us at the number below. 4) Organize others to send donations, supplies or come down here and help. 5) If you are of modest means and you can't volunteer your time, do what you believe gives us strength. Pray, write op-eds or letters to the editor, organize your block, write FEMA and tell them what you think, protest local racist media coverage. We can't promise you a 501(c) (3) letter to make your donation tax deductible. Contact Information: Kori Higgs Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children 1600 Orehta Castle Haley Blvd. New Orleans, LA 70115 504-522-5437 (phone) 504-522-5430 (fax) PLEASE email all 4 addresses: kdhiggs@hotmail.com, familiescantwait@yahoo.com, deenv_2000@yahoo.com, xochitl@mediajumpstart.org 2. Various Charities Reccomended by the Green Party of California http://www.charitynavigator.org/ Please give as you can, and forward widely: American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/ AmeriCares: http://www.americares.org/ Brother's Brother Foundation: http://www.brothersbrother.org/ Convoy Of Hope: http://www.convoyofhope.org/ Direct Relief International: http://www.directrelief.org/ Feed The Children: http://www.feedthechildren.org/ Food For The Poor: http://www.foodforthepoor.org/ Northwest Medical Teams International: http://www.nwmedicalteams.org/ Samaritan's Purse: http://www.samaritanspurse.org/ United Way of Miami-Dade: http://www.unitedwaymiami.org/ World Emergency Relief: http://www.wer-us.org/ 3. The Minnesota Coalition to Aid Hurricane Katrina Survivors http://www.mncahs.org The Minnesota Coalition to Aid Hurricane Katrina Survivors has formed to provide relief assistance to survivors of hurricane Katrina who are now residing in refugee shelters in Louisiana and surrounding states. We are in the process of collecting donations of desperately needed supplies and volunteer assistance, which we will personally deliver to the shelters. We are a coalition of community based, activist, faith, and political groups. Some of us have missing family in the hurricane ravaged state of Louisiana, some of us have friends there, and colleagues. We believe the best way to help is directly. We ask for your assistance. 3. Reccomendations from Green Activist Jonathan Lundell (Message to the Editor) Instead of American Red Cross or Pat Robertson's (I didn't know it was his!) Operation Blessing, folks might want to consider some additional options. Thanks to Kate Tanaka for forwarding the info on Red Cross and Operation Blessing, Nathan Newman has some thoughts on the subject. http://www.nathannewman.org/log/archives/003369.shtml ACORN looks like a good choice, and their national HQ is in NOLA. 4. Requests for People to Volunteer Space (From John-Marc Chandonia, SFGP CC) Since we organized temporary living space for people during the Gonzalez campaign, we may be able to hook people up with a place to stay for a month or two, while they get back on their feet. Anyone willing to offer temporary living space, or people who can collect/organize the list of spaces available and/or connect spaces with people, through relief agencies or directly using sites on the internet set up for this, please contact info@sfgreens.org *********************************************************** Earthdance 2005 Friday, September 16th through Sunday, September 18th Laytonville, CA A 3-day Camp Out Celebration for World Peace and Unity, set amidst a beautiful old growth oak forest, featuring 5 Stages of Entertainment uniting Jamband, World, Conscious Lyricism, Electronica, Reggae and Folk. Also featuring Global Artisans Market, Late Night Cinema, Healing Village, Kidlandia, Speakers Forum, Activist Alley, Workshops, All Night Music Cafés and much more... Zap Mama Michael Franti & Spearhead Ozomatli Steve Kimock Sound Tribe Sector Nine Lyrics Born Karl Denson's Tiny Universe Electric Apricot New Monsoon Culture Prezident Brown Al Howard & the K23 Orchestra ...and more! For more information, please visit: http://www.earthdance.org/sf/ *********************************************************** Ross Mirkarimi's Monthly Third Friday Art Opening Friday, September 16th 5:00pm-8:00pm San Francisco City Hall, 1 Carlton B Goodlett Place, Room 282 On Friday, September 16th, 2005, Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi hosts the monthly Third Fridays Art Reception in his City Hall office, Room 282. This month's featured artist is Sara Thustra. Sara Thustra is a San Francisco-based artist who specializes in site-specific installations. He is a political artist and activist whose work reflects our personal struggles. His installation for Supervisor Mirkarimi's City Hall Office poses and tackles the question "What would you say to all of our city representatives in three sentences or less?" Sara gathered resident's responses by walking the streets of San Francisco, engaging strangers, and by talking with friends. This stunning display of paintings, words, and installations leaves us with a powerful and creative look at what are arguably two things most effecting our lives: our government and our personal struggles. For more information, contact Regina Dick-Endrizzi (415) 554-7630 *********************************************************** Saturday, September 17th through Sunday, September 18th (See schedule below for exact times) The Forum at Laney College, Oakland 900 Fallon Ave. (One block from the Lake Merritt BART station) The Oakland Greens and the Green Party of Alameda County are hosting the upcoming state party Green Gathering (entitled "Back to School Not War") at Laney College in Oakland on Sat. & Sun., Sept. 17 & 18. Already Peter Camejo, Wilson Riles, Aimee Allison, Elaine Brown, Clarence Thomas of the ILWU, Agha Saeed of the American Muslim Alliance, Miguel Araujo of Centro Azteca, Jessie Muldoon of the OEA, and many others are scheduled to give workshops or other presentations, including a Saturday evening rally!! The planned schedule is as follows: RALLY: Sat., 68:00pm ----------------------- Recruiters Out of Schools US Troops Out of Iraq Guest Speakers include: - Aimee Allison, Army Conscientious Objector, Green Party Candidate - Elaine Brown (by phone), Black Panther Party, Green Party Candidate - Peter Camejo, Green Party candidate for Governor - Ragina Johnson, College Not Combat Proposition - Maria Poblet, Deporten a la Migra (Deport the INS) - Wilson Riles Jr., Former Oakland City Council member - Dr. Agha Saeed, Chair, American Muslim Alliance - Clarence Thomas, Longshoreman's Union ILWU Local 10 - plus music and spoken word poetry ----------------------------------- WORKSHOPS: Sat., 8am4:30pm ----------------------------------- Come participate in workshops on: - American Muslims and the Patriot Act - College Not Combat: Military Out of Schools - End poverty wages: a Calif. Fair Wage Initiative - Immigrant Rights - Labor and Greens - Myths of Genetic Engineering - Religion/Spirituality and the Green Party - Resource Depletion, Peak Oil, and Water Scarcity - Saving Public Education - Strategies for Universal Health Care - Tips and Tricks to Get the News Media to Cover Your Issue ----------------------------------- SPECIAL SUN. EVENTS: Sun., 9am4:30pm ----------------------------------- - Symposium on Strategies for the 2006 Campaign, led by gubernatorial candidate Peter Camejo and former Santa Monica Mayor Mike Feinstein - Lunchtime Lecture by David Zirin, author of "What's My name, Fool?" on "Sports and Resistance" - Green Party of California Working Group and Committee Meetings PLUS MUCH MORE!! PRICE: $20 in advance, per day Includes light breakfast and lunch (Sliding scale at the door: $20 to $40 per day) For more info, please see our website at: www.BackToSchoolNotWar.org *********************************************************** Gun Ban Forum Monday, September 19th 6:30pm- 8:30pm (Location TBA, please contact organizers) The SF Green Party is producing an informational forum on the Gun Ban Initiative that will be on the SF November ballot. Both sides will be represented equally at this forum. Tentative location is the African American Art and Culture Complex or other Western Addition venue. Please contact event organizers Marc Salomon (marc@cybre.net), Susan King (funking@mindspring.com) or Charlene Smythe (info@sfgreens.org) with suggestions, comments or questions. *********************************************************** Richard Heinberg Speaks on Peak Oil Tuesday, Spetember 20th 7:00pm New College Theater, 777 Valencia Street, (between 18th & 19th Streets), San Francisco $10 donation requested. No one turned away for lack of funds. Peak Oil Expert Richard Heinberg, author of The Partys Over and Powerdown, will give a power-point presentation and speak about Peak Oil and How to Avoid Oil Wars, Terrorism and Economic Collapse. Sponsered by: New College Center for Education and Social Action, Global Exchange and others. For more information, call Call 415-255-7296 ext. 253 *********************************************************** San Francisco Green Party General Membership Meeting Wednesday, Spetember 20th 7:30pm- 9:30pm 1028A Howard St. Agenda items include the last of our endorsement decisions, local propositions A (Community College Bond), B (Resurfacing Bond), G (Golden Gate Park street widening), and H (Handgun Ban). Other agenda items, TBA. Please contact the green party (info@greens.org) to request time on the agenda. *********************************************************** Free Screening and Panel Discussion of The End of Suburbia Thursday, September 22nd 6:30pm (doors open at 6:00pm) The Red Victorian Bed and Breakfast 1665 Haight St., San Francisco (at Belvedere One Block from the Movie Theater This groundbreaking documentary explores energy consumption and its effect on the American way of life. Its a study of peak of oil production on a global level and impact on the local level. The free screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring: Ross Mirkarimi, District Five supervisor and longtime advocate for public power in San Francisco Leah Shahum, Executive Director of SF Bike Coalition Dave Room, Director of North American Operations for The Post Carbon Institute Sponsered by the SFGP Transportation Working Group. For more information, contace Sue Vaughn at: susan_e_vaughan@juno.com *********************************************************** ************************* Announcements: ************************* *********************************************************** Joke of the Week Going Through A Tunnel Peter Camejo and George W. Bush were riding on a train. A gorgeous blonde and an old woman sat down across from them. The train went into a tunnel and a loud kissing sound, then a *SLAP* was heard. When the train came out of the tunnel there was a bright red mark on Bush's cheek. The old woman thought, "Peter Camejo must have tried to kiss the blonde and she slapped Bush by mistake." The blonde thought, "Why would Peter Camejo kiss the old woman instead of me? She must have slapped Bush by mistake." George W. Bush thought, "Peter Camejo must have kissed the blonde and she slapped me by mistake." Peter Camejo thought, "Every time we go through a tunnel I'm going to kiss the back of my hand and then slap that smirking chimp." *********************************************************** Register to Vote by Mail (Sponsered by EQCA) Register to Vote by Mail--Get Your Friends to Do the Same (click here ) When Republican Secretary of State Bruce McPherson sees tens of thousands of people registering to vote by mail from this action, it will send a strong message to the Governor about the amount of support marriage equality has with the voters of California. Tuesdays Special Election victory for pro-marriage equality candidate Ted Lieu in Assembly District 53 clearly shows how important it is that our supporters are registered to vote and participate in every election. Statistics prove that voters who are registered to vote by mail (absentee ballot) are much more likely to cast their vote in every election. Join the "Frequent Voter Club " and register to vote by mail today. *********************************************************** Become a Green Party Sustainer! As you may know, the SFGP is supported by our wonderful sustaining donors -- 175 and growing. In the next 12 months we hope to double that figure, and you can help us achieve our goal by signing up to make a regular contribution to the Green Party. Our sustainer program nearly pays all of our basic monthly operating expenses, including rent and utilities on the office, and drastically reduces the amount of work needed to raise money. Our sustainers free us up to do what we're really here for - to pursue Green values through the democratic system. Sustainers also ensure that we are able to keep our office, which has hosted numerous campaigns' headquarters including the successful Prop A, Instant Runoff Voting initiative. Becoming a Green Party sustainer is easy, fun, and secure! Online: http://www.sfgreenparty.org/makeadonation/makeadonation.html Phone: 415-701-7090 ************************************************************ For more info on our activities, please see our website, http://www.sfgreenparty.org. You can also email us questions at info@sfgreens.org. To send us news items (short blurb please, plain text only) for possible inclusion in the newsletter, email news@sfgreens.org. Please don't put these addresses on mailing lists; messages not specifically addressed to us won't go through. Submissions for Joke of the Week, or comments and questions on the content of the newsletter are welcomed by the editor at ladypest@hotmail.com