The "War on Drugs" is Fake!

Check out this new article on GNN.com written by Newtopia Magazine Editor-in-Cheif, Chalres Shaw, who incidentally was arrested for the possession of marijuana. We've said on Chico Town before that the war on drugs is biased and it unfairly targets minorities and poor communities, well this article spells it out completely with the facts to prove it. Check out these quotes:

... the U.S. government demonizes Blacks, other minorities, drug users, and poor people, and uses the drug trade as a pretext to justify a domestic war against them. In the "“War on Drugs"”, we claim to be fighting crime and drug use, but while the budget for the "“War on Drugs"” increases every year and the number of prisons and prisoners increase every year, the amount of drugs consumed and the number of drug users also increases every year.

... more than 40% of the 1,000 state prisons now in operation opened within the last 25 years, coinciding with the full scale launch of the "“War on Drugs."”

But maybe the most frightening fact is that, according to the U.S. Dept. of Justice, a nation with only 4.6% of the total world population has a full one-third of the world'’s prisoners, an estimated six million people, three million currently incarcerated in federal and state penitentiaries and county jails, and another roughly 3 million under "correctional supervision"” on house arrest, probation, or parole.

Honestly we need to decriminalize or legalize drugs and spend those millions building rehab clinics instead of prisons! Why are we jailing our own people for the sake of profits? Modern day slavery my friends, and the CIA (aka the Crack Importing Agency) flooded our streets with Cocaine in the 80's so that the FEDs can start this fake ass "war". Read the full article for more on how the "war on drugs" is full of shit. They even make a strong argument for legalizing drugs using the examples set by the prohibition of alcohol (or you can take the Libertarian's word for it).

Lets take our communities back and keep our families out of unnecessary prison sentences.

(Prohibition pic courtesy of NORML)

We need Peace in Colombia

Today the House of Representatives is debating over the infamous "Plan Colombia". Several Democrats, including Reps. Jim McGovern (D-Massachusetts), Betty McCollum (D-Minnesota) and Dennis Moore (D-Kansas), have introduced an amendment that will cut some of the funding that is adding more fuel to the fire of that 40-year-old civil war that's cost thousands and thousands of lives in Colombia.

He's a little secret for the suits in Washington DC... after 40 years of civil war in Colombia, the PEOPLE WANT PEACE! 80% of the 3.2 Billion dollars provided for Plan Colombia have been exclusively for military aid. And ummmm... how's the drug trade doing? No, we haven't dented the production and importation of Cocaine into the US enough to justify those 3.2 Billion dollars? What? It's not working? Of course it's not because these bastards* don't understand the plight of the Colombia people. (*You rotten trigger-happy, shoot-em-up, military industrial complex-ass bastards!)

Here are quotes from a new article in the LA Times regarding the results of Plan Colombia:

"The [U.N.] numbers are devastating," said Adam Isacson of the Center for International Policy, which has argued that eradication campaigns must be accompanied by large-scale development efforts that offer peasants alternative livelihoods.

"The spraying, when it isn't accompanied by any alternative development, doesn't seem to discourage [coca farmers] from trying again, because there just aren't a lot of other good choices out there," Isacson said.

Peasants have responded by planting even more coca, hiding it under trees and among other crops, and turning to varieties that produce a higher yield, the U.N. report said.

Plan Colombia began under the Clinton administration primarily to fight drugs. But after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the Bush administration has emphasized counter-terrorism and regional security.

While some conservatives wish to cut funding for Colombia, many Democrats want to spend less on its military and more on rural economic development. Democratic critics also wonder whether the U.S. has an exit strategy for Colombia.

Why not spend those billions on more rural economic development programs to give farmers a profitable alternative to growing cocaine. Here in the US the federal government subsidizes farmers all of the time to keep the prices of milk and other produce fixed. Lets give the people a real choice so that the drug trade can be eradicated from the inside out and the farmers can provide an honest living for their families. Colombians want peace and with the right aid they will achieve peace. The key word is "peace", ya hear that, you Yosemite Sam, gun-totin', military state-ass Nazi bastards in Washington DC!

For more check out PeaceInColombia.org.

It's not about killing the violent, it's about empowering the peaceful.

Energy Crisis: Oil and Water can't mix!

Oil hits $60 a barrel today!

The oil barons at the OPEC cartel are drooling over the new prices today. With US demand of oil remaining steady despite prices being 40% higher than last year, they are looking at raising them some more depending on our reaction. They'll just keep raising the price, wait for us to get used to them, then raise them some more with no end in sight!

With so many alternatives out there, this month's issue of Wired Magazine focuses on a HUGE Donkey Kong-sized alternative that will put the oil business on the ropes. In the article titled "The Mad Genius from the Bottom of the Sea" the sub heading reads "Unlimited energy. Fast-growing fruit. Free air-conditioning. John Pina Craven says we can have it all by tapping the icy waters of the deep."

You heard right, we're talking about tapping into the world's oceans. Inventor John Pina Craven explains "The oceans are the biggest solar collector on Earth, and there's enough energy in them to supply a thousand times the world's needs. If you want to depend on nature, the oceans are the only energy source big enough to tap."

That sounds good to us. Check out the full article in Wired Magazine. While you're at it check out BuyBlue.org for the best choice in gasoline stations to make sure you're not putting money in the hands of those price-jacking oil jerks. Remember to vote with your wallets!

Republican sez Iraq could be worse than Vietnam!

"We are destroying the finest military in the history of mankind, and the (National) Guard, too," he said. "We're stretching our Army to the breaking point."

Those are the fine words of Republican Senator Chuck Hagel from Nebraska while speaking to veterans in his home state. Thank God there are still Republicans willing to stand up to the Bush Crime Family and their bullshit!

Here is a summary of Senator Hagel's speech courtesy of DailyKos.com:

The Bush team sent in too few troops to fight the war leading to today's chaos and rising deaths of Americans and Iraqis. Terrorists are "pouring in" to Iraq.

Basic living standards are worse than a year ago in Iraq. Civil war is perilously close to erupting there. Allies aren't helping much. The American public is losing its trust in President Bush's handling of the conflict.

And Hagel's deep fear is that it will all plunge into another Vietnam debacle, prompting Congress to force another abrupt pullout as it did in 1975.

"What we don't want to happen is for this to end up another Vietnam," Hagel told the legionnaires, "because the consequences would be catastrophic."

It would be far worse than Vietnam, says Hagel, a twice-wounded veteran of that conflict, which killed 58,000 Americans.

1,700+ dead US soldiers in Iraq is not as bad as the 58,000 who died in Vietnam, when you read it on paper. But go ask the families of the dead soldiers if it's not as bad. War is war, and when lies get us into illegal wars it's disrespectful to the sacrifice of the soldiers in the battle field. These guys could have been in school, working and saving up, starting families, etc. Too bad Senator Hagel still believes Bush was right in going to war, but you got to start somewhere.

Give up your land, this is a stick up!

The Supreme Court just gave the government the right to snatch up your land (aka your house/property) and give it to another private entity for any purpose, preferably to make more money in taxes. So if you own a crib in the hood and the local government wants to put up some new hotels, office space, or a new mall in it's place they legally can. No questions asked... get your ass off your property buddy! Ain't that some shit?

Check out what Consumeraffairs.com had to say:

"The Court simply got the law wrong today, and our Constitution and country will suffer as a result,"” said Scott Bullock, senior attorney for the Institute for Justice. "With today’s ruling, the poor and middle class will be most vulnerable to eminent domain abuse by government and its corporate allies. The 5-4 split and the nearly equal division among state supreme courts shows just how divided the courts really are. This will not be the last word."”

Susette Kelo, one of the homeowners challenging eminent domain abuse, said, "“I was in this battle to save my home and, in the process, protect the rights of working class homeowners throughout the country. I am very disappointed that the Court sided with powerful government and business interests, but I will continue to fight to save my home and to preserve the Constitution."”

This is pure garbage! Blame Justice Stevens, Justice Souter, Justice Ginsberg, Justice Breyer and Justice Kennedy. The dissenters were O'Connor, Rehnquist, Scalia, and Thomas. Damn... even Scalia had our back!!

Cartoon of the Week: GOP Priorities

Bill Mitchell does it again! Check out this new cartoon calling out the irresponsibility of the House Republicans in Congress. With the war in Iraq going nowhere, the country going broke, Medicare in a crisis, they are busy going after friggin' Big Bird!

Yeah we're fighting hard to keep Sesame Street and PBS! This petition we posted earlier this week already surpassed 1 Million signatures! This is a hot topic, click here to sign the petition.

Click here to check out the cartoon.

Downing Street memo explained... again.

For those of you who haven't read the Downing Street Memo yet, the kind folks at Democarcy for America have come up with a quick animated flash movie that explains it for you.
This historic document is giving the Bush Crime Family sleep-less nights and we intend on milking it for everything it's got!

See the flash movie here, read the Downing Street Memo here, then click here to take action!

Free the Mixtape!

As reported on SOHH.com, the Record Industry Association of America ( aka the RIAA, aka the Evil Empire, aka Those Fucks who sued teenagers for file sharing aka The Corporate Lobby for the Record Label giants that push crappy music) is turning up the heat on record stores that profit from Mixtapes. The police had fun raiding a record store and making the owners sit in jail for the night because they were peddling mixtapes, many that are funded and sponsored by the major record labels themselves.

Check out a quote from the SOHH news item:

While the record association contends that these mixed CDs hurt the artists and companies, the labels and rappers often partner with deejays to release mixed CDs. Labels have encouraged mixtapes because they often create a buzz for the artists leading into official releases.
...
"I lost everything and not one artist stepped up and defended what we were doing," Berry [a store owner who got raided and jailed] recently told SOHH.com. "I have since opened another store and hope this time the 'P.Diddys' and 'Jay-Zs' of the Hip-Hop community will let the RIAA know that not only do they participate in the mix game, but they also profit from it. With P.Diddy and Jay-Z being the CEOs of record labels that fund the RIAA, they have the power to tell the RIAA what they should or should not go after. Free the mixtapes."

Remember what Mos Def said in his song "The Rapeover": "You get in the line of fire / we get the big ass checks". Yeah these record label jerks participate in the mixtape game but won't defend the DJs and record store owners when they get raided and jailed by the RIAA's police goons. Punk ass bitches!

Democrats grow a sack, Bush gets dicked!

Over 100 Representatives & Half a Million Citizens Unite against Bush!

You heard right, the Downing Street Memo we mentioned earlier that proved Bush lied about the reasons for war was the focus of this new congressional inquiry. The BCC in London reports:

More than 100 Democrats took part in the public forum, calling on the White House to explain the leaked UK memo.

Although the hearing in Washington was unofficial, a BBC correspondent says it coincides with waning public support for the war in Iraq.

President Bush denies he had made up his mind at the time to attack Iraq. (**cough** bullshit **cough**)

Sadly it also mentions that:

The affair has received scant coverage in the mainstream US media, although left-wing bloggers have had some success in bringing it to public attention.

Why is it that ChicoTown.com and other independent voices are covering this historic event while Fux Newz, CNN, NBC, CBS, and the other media whores are busy covering Michael Jackson, the Runaway Bride, and missing girls in Aruba? You decide...

Shout outs to Representative John Conyers Jr.(D-MI) for organizing the petition and the hearings that called out the Bush Crime Family's lies. Again go to www.impeachbush.org and join the massive impeachment movement that's building up!

Congress to Cut Big Bird!

File this one under "WTF???".

Congress wants to completely cut all funding for Sesame Street! They finally want to do away with this landmark in children's programming that featured one of the first mixed casts on television. Check out what Ifè Oshun had to say in her new editorial:

Most of the hip-hop generation was raised with Sesame Street, and many of us now have little ones of our own who sing along with Elmo. This show has featured guests ranging from Queen Latifah to Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan. It continues to be revolutionary, depicting a diverse world where people (and puppets) get along despite their "differences," and promoting tolerance, peace and harmony. Certain government employees whose salary is paid with our tax dollars see no value in this, but will gladly fork over billions for war.

Sign this petition now to help save public broadcasting from getting axed by these rat bastards. Is anything sacred?

(Oscar the Grouch pic c/0 the Wikipedia Sesame Street Page)

Racist Republicans silent on Lynching!

Here are the results, courtesy of DailyKos, of the formal Senate apology for not passing an anti-lynching law soon enough to prevent the lynchings of thousands of African-Americans in the last century.

Here are the 20 Senators who 1) REFUSED to co-sponsor the anti-lynching resolution passed yesterday, and 2) REFUSED a roll-call vote so they'd have to put their name on the resolution.

Lamar Alexander (R-TN)
Robert Bennett (R-UT)
Christopher Bond (R-MO)
Jim Bunning (R-KY)
Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)
Thad Cochran (R-MS)
Kent Conrad (D-ND)
John Cornyn (R-TX)
Michael Crapo (R-ID)
Michael Enzi (R-WY)
Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Judd Gregg (R-NH)
Orrin Hatch (R-UT)
Trent Lott (R-MS)
Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Richard Shelby (R-AL)
John Sununu (R-NH)
Craig Thomas (R-WY)
George Voinovich (R-OH)

19 Republicans and 1 Democrat, a real wall of shame.
(Posted on: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/6/14/12949/6428)

Did you guys noticed that BOTH of the Mississippi Senators were on that list? Someone call David Banner, tell him the milk's gone sour in his home state!

Bush-Shit Art Project

Want to do a service for your country? Well now you can plant a lil' flag in the next turd you see on the street to advise people to watch out! Except you'll also be participating in a world-wide art project courtesy of MadeYouThink.org, where responsible citizens just like you have submitted their own pictures.

The flags are FREE, you just send a self-addressed stamped envelope and in no time you'll be saving people from the stinky hell of stepping in a squishy Lincoln Log.

By the way, check out VoteToImpeach.org where they have drawn up articles of impeachment for the Bush Crime Family. What more can you ask for, the work is done we just need congress to step up.

Impeach Bush on Downing Street

Check out Guerilla News Network's new article titled "Impeachment Fever and Media Politics" that explores the chances of bringing articles of impeachment on George W. Bush. Lots of you who have been following the news and who actually care about humanity know that Dubya is probably the worse president since Nixon! Richard Nixon too was damn near impeached before he resigned.

Interestingly, this article highlights one of the best Hispanic Congressmen in the history of Hispanic Congressmen: Henry B. Gonzalez, a Mexican-American democrat from Texas (pictured above). This guy had the balls to introduce impeachment charges on both Ronald Regean and Pappy Bush. Today, we need more brave democrats like Henry B. Gonzalez who are willing to fight against fascists like George W. Bush!

Impeaching Bush just got easier thanks to the recently leaked Downing Street Memo. This top-secret memo that was sent to the British before the Iraq war proves without a doubt that invading Iraq was bullshit! They admit in the memo that they planned to lie about the intelligence. What other proof do you need? We got this impeachment in the bag, we just need some congress members with cojones to step up.

Read the Downing Street Memo here: www.downingstreetmemo.com

To take action based on the Downing Street Memo go here: www.afterdowningstreet.org

To read the full GNN article click here: Impeachment Fever and Media Politics

Support the Emcees: "4th25" Hip Hop in Iraq

Some clever emcees fighting in Iraq in the US military recorded an entire Hip Hop Album called "Live from Iraq". You got to give them props for the courage and the effort they had in actually being able to create art in the crazy war environment of Iraq. This is more proof of how our Hip Hop culture can bring people together even through the mess that Iraq turned out to be.

NewsMax.com reports:

First Cavalry Sergeant Neal Saunders had a keyboard, digital mixer, cable, microphones and headphones shipped to an overseas military address and then built a plywood shack, with cheap mattress pads for soundproofing.

He then invited other Task Force 112 members to join him in his studio; they call themselves 4th25 - pronounced fourth quarter, like the final do-or-die minutes of a game. The GI rappers are giving listeners back home an uncensored glimpse of life in Iraq, straight from the troops... troops like Johnny (Snap) Batista and Richard (Ten Gram) Bachellor, who patrol Baghdad with a unit of the Marine Antiterrorism Battalion.

In their off-duty hours they place a boombox on the pavement in the Green Zone and improvise rhymes about how it feels to be shot at or to lose a friend to an IED. One of their most popular numbers starts in a hushed tone, almost a whisper:

"There's a place in this world you've never seen before / A place called streets and a place called war /Most of you wanksters ain't never seen the fleet / You talk about war and you've only seen the street."

Based at Baghdad's airport last year, they were pounded by daily mortar and rocket attacks. Finally they put the whole mess into rhyme and set out to tape it as a music video on location at the airport. "Every time we'd go out to record our music, there'd be an attack and we'd have to stop," says Spc. Joseph Holmes, who laid down the music tracks for "Stay in Step."

It's about the cost of survival: "Soldiers are dying every day, that's why we ain't smiling. I'm the one you see on TV / Army infantry, one arm holding my sleeve from a previous injury / Bloody desert combat fatigues, dusty and ammoless M-16 with a shredded sling / ... Hit in the head and shoulder but still taking deep breaths /'Cause I'm in Kevlar and sappy plates in my flak vest."

Newsweek also reports:

The big labels and distributors don't seem to get it yet. "Live From Iraq" is available on the Web (4th25.com), but you won't find it in most record stores.
A gunnery sergeant in Baghdad has offered to help Snap and Ten Gram produce a CD, and they're hoping to burn four tracks soon. Corner Pocket is working on 23 songs, in the hope of finding a label that will pick them up. Hotline says he's excited by how well his privately produced CD is moving—"We had no idea this would catch on so fast"—but he's the one who's selling it: cranking up the volume at parties, hawking copies on the streets of Fayetteville, persuading local radio stations to give it air time.

Rap groups are popping up all over ranks of the US Military stationed in Iraq. Hopefully they keep spittin when they get complete their tours of duty... that's IF the Bush Crime Family doesn't keep extending the tours and forcing our soldiers to stay longer in an illegitimate war. Get that 4th25 "Live from Iraq" CD on sale now!

Also, check out the "Gunners Palace" DVD and soundtrack, they have some recorded freestyles and verses from Soldiers living in Iraq. These heads got talent!

Be a SNITCH or Go to Jail! Sez the government

"There's a war goin on outside, no man is safe from / You could run but you can't hide forever."

Prodigy's lines will ring in your ear when you read about the new Bill proposed in Congress called "H.R.1528" or "Defending America's Most Vulnerable: Safe Access to Drug Treatment and Child Protection Act of 2005" (read it here or go to thomas.loc.gov and search for "HR1528").

"Child Protection Act..."? Wow, the republicans came up with another cute name (like "Patriot Act" and "Clear Skie's Initiative") for a bill that actually focuses on something totally different: our privacy and personal rights!


Courtesy of DrugPolicy.org here are some of the worse features of HR1528:

--Creates a new offense for persons who witness or learn about certain drug offenses that fail to report the drug offender to the police within 24 hours or fail to provide full assistance to the police in tracking and prosecuting the offender. Offenses that would get someone a 2-year minimum sentence, including failing to report a neighbor that is storing or selling drugs when that neighbor has kids, failing to report anyone that gives a joint to someone under the age of 21, and failing to report a college student that is selling marijuana on a college campus.

--Mandates a 10-year minimum sentence for anyone 21 or older that gives marijuana or others drugs to someone under 18 (i.e. a 21 year old college students gives a joint to his 17-year old brother). A second offense would be life in prison.

--Expands what is considered to be a "drug-free" school zone to include almost any place in an urban area, and increases penalties for selling or distributing drugs in that area. (The result will be enhanced penalties for people in inner cities, while people in rural and suburban areas get less time for the same offense).

--Mandates a 5-year minimum sentence for any person that commits a drug trafficking offense near the presence of a person under 18 or in a place where such person resides for any period of time. The sentence is 10 years if they are parent. (I.e. a mother that sells her neighbor a joint will get a 10-year minimum sentence, even if her kids were at school at the time).

--Makes it a federal crime to provide "drug paraphernalia" to anyone. While the goal is to make it a crime - punishable by up to three years in prison - to give someone a bong as a birthday present, it would also make it a federal crime to provide someone with sterile syringes (except where it is explicitly authorized by local or state law). If enacted, it would essentially criminalize many needle exchange programs.

Okay, so they're saying that IF WE DON'T SNITCH on a friend who puffs a lil' weed then we can get 2 years in prison? If we give a bong to a friend we get jail time too? Does a Cypress Hill CD count as drug paraphernalia too? More jail, more prison, more arrests, more felonies, more, more, more.

When are the bitch ass Republicans (or the weak ass Democrats) in congress going to actually propose initiatives for more rehab, more education, more medical assistance to drug users, and a helping hand instead of more and more punishments for drug-related cases? Why more jail? Why do we have to become snitches? Why do we have to violate our family and friend's trust just to please the government?

Are you mad yet? Take action now and oppose this bill before it gets snuck through just like the National ID act did. Time to fight for our rights (click here)!!

Election reform starts at home, ask Miami-Dade County...

Here's another story of a local government making noise locally to oppose wide-spread issues, namely voter fraud.

For those of us who have a feeling that the Bush Crime Family stole the 2004 election with those unreliable paper-less voting machines we know that we must change this system. Call it a conspiracy, but isn't funny how Walden O'Dell the CEO of Diebold, the company that manufactures these paper-less voting machines, publicly promised the election to George Bush? Additionally, Diebold also manufactures ATM machines. Does this mean that Diebold has the technology to produce a paper trail for a $20 withdraw but NOT for a ballot in a presidential election?! That's bullshit! By the way, why is the actual vote counting process still privatized and done by corporations instead of the citizens?

After those voting machines caused another failed election this past March in Miami-Dade county the Elections Supervisor, Lester Sola, just demanded a change in the system. Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez requested a review of the new proposed system that involves paper ballots with optical scanners. This is the kind of example that every other county that currently has those paper-less voting machines should follow. If you live in Miami-Dade county, contact Mayor Carlos Alvarez and tell him you want the system overhauled and a paper trail for all elections. Just remember not to recommend the crappy Diebold optical-scan system that got hacked. Diebold machines are full of shit.

For everyone else, especially those in Ohio, contact your local government and the local Elections department and tell them that you want integrity and proper accountability restored in our elections.
For more info on how the Bush Crime Family rigged the 2004 election, click here!

Check out some more 2004 voter fraud links (click here). Also the same site that provided the Diebold Chimp Image above^^.

Damn, even ignorant republicans can't deny the overwhelming evidence!

Think Globally, Act Locally: Mayors unite for change!

With the Bush Crime Family and several of the world largest nations and corporations responsible for polluting our planet acting like Global Warming is just a fairy tale, city mayors from all over the world met Wednesday June 1st, 2005 to fight back!
They met in San Francisco, one of the most liberal and environmentally-friendly cities on earth, to discuss ways of reducing, reusing, recycling, and other methods of improving the environmental standards in their own cities.
Foxreno.com reports:

"We cannot afford to wait for the state or federal government to do the job. There are too many excuses going around, particularly in this country," said San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. "Increasingly, the world will look at mayors to become the stewards of the environment since the vast majority of the pollution comes from cities."

This is the quote "think globally, act locally" in the flesh. What can you do? Get on your Mayor's ass and your local city council to clean up the city, promote more public transportation, more access to recycling bins, get a new fleet of hybrid-electrical cars for the city, etc, etc. While you're at it, try to get your local city government to oppose the patriot act and pass a civil rights protection resolution.

This is how we change the world and it's not as hard as it seems. If your mayor gets stupid then do as Pacewon says: "This year I Declare war on the Mayor!"