--------------------------------------------------
Newsletter of the Green Party of Ohio
Vol. IV, No. 2, Jan. 25, 2004
--------------------------------------------------
Contents
1. State Party News – Voting to End in 2004 Ohio Green Party Presidential
Primary, Current Delegate Slate, PAYPAL, Presidential Candidates Cobb
and Mesplay to attend Ohio’s 1/31 Convention, Iraq War Crime Tribunal
to be Considered at 1/31 Convention
2. National Party News – State of the Union Comments, Camejo Candidacy
Goes National, Citizens’ Debate Commission Formed
3. Special News Items of Interest – by Grant Lawrence
4. Opinion: Newsletter Editorial – Green Hope
1. State Green Party News
A. Voting to End in 2004 Ohio Green Party Presidential Primary
Voting in the Presidential Primary will continue until 1 PM at the 1/31
Convention. Online votes will be collected through January 30.
For details on voting go to www.ohiogreens.org
If you voted early, please note that you can change your vote. The last
vote is the one that counts.
B. Current Delegate Slate
These people have put forward their names to serve as Delegates from
the Green Party of Ohio to the National Green Party Convention in June:
Dave Berenson, Tyler Boone, Russ Buckbee, Rick Otten, Paul Dumouchelle,
Scott Nass, Gwen Marshall, Patti Fridrich, Logan Martinez, Tiki Kai Krismano,
Anita Rios, Priscilla R. Smith, Rob Smith
C. PAYPAL Donations Accepted at www.ohiogreens.org
You can make a donation to the Federal PAC for the Green Party of Ohio
via Paypal. All donations in January will go to the winner of the Green
Party of Ohio Presidential Primary.
D. Green Party Presidential Candidates at Ohio Convention January 31st.
Presidential candidates David Cobb and Kent Mesplay will speak at the
Green Party of Ohio annual convention on January 31, 2004 at 9:30 AM.
The results of the first Ohio Green Party Presidential Primary will be
announced at 4:00PM.
Green Party members will gather to hear from Green candidates for President
and select delegates to the National Green Party Convention. Candidates
for U.S. Congress, state, and local offices will also be present.
Bio's on the Green Party Presidential candidates and Ohio polling information
are available at the Ohio Web Page www.ohiogreens.org.
E. Iraq War Crime Tribunal to be Considered at 1/31 State Convention
The Green Party of Ohio Coordinating Committee has approved a resolution
for consideration by the State Convention on 1/31. The State Convention
will decide whether to forward the proposal to the National Convention.
The proposal is reproduced in part below; full copies will be available
at the State Convention.
Points A-E excluded for the sake of brevity:
. . .
“F. Whereas, the Bush Administration’s rationale for embarking
on the 2003 invasion of Iraq was that Iraq posed a threat to the United
States and Iraq was in violation of multiple Security Council disarmament
resolutions (none of which specifically authorized a military invasion);
and
G. Whereas, the rapid dissolution of large-scale Iraqi resistance to
the United States invasion with very light casualties among US forces
is extremely strong evidence that Iraq was incapable of threatening the
security of the United States; and,
H. Whereas, the United States failed to find substantial physical evidence
that Iraq was in violation of the Security Council disarmament resolutions,
despite a significant effort from April, 2003 to September, 2003 by US
Government Personnel inside Iraq, to find such proof; and,
I. Whereas, the Green Party of the United States National Conference
of July, 2003, called for the impeachment of President George W. Bush
for his actions regarding the March 2003 invasion of Iraq and the appropriate
authorities, including the leadership of the Democratic Party, have failed
to hold President Bush and others accountable for their actions in authorizing
an illegal war of aggression, and,
J. Whereas, the Green Party of the United States’ 2000 Platform
states “the support of democracy, human rights and respect for international
law should be the cornerstone of American foreign policy,” meaning
that that the security interests of the United States are best served
through effective and just implementation of international legal standards
(such as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia,
which has indicted and is trying Slobodan Milosevic, among others), and,
K. Whereas, the former leaders of Iraq (Saddam Hussein, among others)
should also be investigated for their roles in the invasion of Kuwait
in 1990 and possibly other crimes, and their fates resolved by an International
Court.
Therefore, be it resolved by the Green Party of the United States, meeting
in Convention in Milwaukee in June 2004, that:
1. The Green Party of the United States rejects any Defense Policy of
the United States advocating preemptive war.
2. The Green Party of the United States considers preemptive wars initiated
by the United States Government to be illegal wars of aggression and the
leaders who authorize such military action should be investigated for
possible trial as war criminals.
3. The Green Party of the United States considers the March 2003 invasion
of Iraq to be an illegal war of aggression and we believe sufficient evidence
exists to support a War Crimes trial for those who authorized this action.”
. . .
The proposal continues but is not included here due to space limit concerns.
2. National Party News
A. State of the Union Comments
GREENS BLAST BUSH'S 'STATE OF THE UNION' CLAIMS OF SUCCESS
Last year's State of the Union address was a list of lies to justify
the invasion of Iraq, say Greens in a review of the Bush Administration's
assaults on democracy, the environment, and human needs.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Green Party of the United States is urging Americans
to be skeptical of President Bush's list of proposals and claims of success
during the past year in his January 20 State of the Union address.
The real Bush victory, say Greens, has been a massive transfer of wealth
and power from the American people over to major corporations, especially
Halliburton, Bechtel, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, the Carlyle Group and other
defense contractors, oil companies, insurance firms and HMOs, and drug
manufacturers.
This goal is what every Bush policy and proposal has in common: Medicare
reform, cuts in public services (especially by defunding them, bypassing
the legislative process), huge tax cuts for the wealthy, the invasion
of Iraq, outer space missile defense, withdrawal from the Kyoto accords
on global warming, executive 'fast track' power to negotiate trade, support
for international trade authorities, trips to Mars. Greens have also criticized
the extent to which Democrats have endorsed White House policies and actions.
The complete press release is available at www.gp.org
B. Camejo Candidacy for President Goes National
January 15, 2004
To: Green Party of the United States
From: Peter Camejo
I would like to authorize you to place my name before nominating conventions
or primaries where possible as a candidate for president. I do so to allow
delegates to go to the convention with full freedom to vote according
to their best judgment.
The situation we face has become exceedingly complex with various alternatives
for us that go beyond the question of just choosing what candidate will
be best to represent the party. I would like to see an alternative on
our choices at the state level that precisely expresses the purpose of
my first entering the race in California.
My decision to enter the race in California was to offer an alternative
that did not commit us to any specific final decision until we are at
the convention. I will not bind any delegate who votes for me but will
make it clear at the convention that they should vote their conscious.
(Editor’s note – I believe Mr. Camejo intended to use “conscience”
as the last word of this paragraph)
I feel this could be useful in helping to maintain the unity of the party
and finding as near a consensus resolution as possible with respect for
all points of view within the party. I personally am very supportive of
Ralph Nader for all the reasons that we are all aware of. But I also have
a great deal of respect for the other candidates and view points of those
who are working hard to try to defend and build our party.
~ Peter Camejo
Go to: www.draftcamejo.org to sign the Draft Camejo for President petition
C. Citizens’ Debate Commission Formed
Washington -- National civic leaders from the left, right, and center
of the political spectrum have come together to form the Citizens' Debate
Commission. Operating with full transparency, the Citizens' Debate Commission
will sponsor debates that address pressing national issues, feature innovative
formats, and include the candidates the American people want to see.
"The Citizens' Debate Commission will sponsor presidential debates
that put voter education first," said former Congressman John B.
Anderson.
The nonpartisan Citizens' Debate Commission was formed because the bipartisan
Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), which has sponsored presidential
debates since 1988, fails to adequately serve voters' interests. The CPD,
which was created by the Republican and Democratic parties, secretly awards
control of the presidential debates to the Republican and Democratic candidates,
limiting voter choice and restricting subject matters of political discourse.
How Ohioans Can Support the Citizens' Debate Commission
The recently established Citizens' Debate Commission, which plans to
hold non-partisan, informational presidential candidate debates prior
to the national election this year, needs our help. Clearly, Green candidates
will benefit from having open, educational candidate debates supplant
the current Republocrat-only debates in which candidates, questions, and
issues are limited to those the major parties wish to include, at the
expense of voter education. The two-party lockout of non-Republocrat candidates
extends from the presidential race debates down to local forums, which
often also exclude Green, NLP, Reform, and other parties' candidates.
Educate yourself about the issue; information can be found at www.opendebates.org.
Greens can support the efforts of the CDC by:
- writing letters to the editor of your local papers. Point out the open,
non-partisan approach of the CDC debates, which will not exclude controversial
topics such as gun-control, free trade and globalization, and corporate
crime, topics which are not broached by the Commission on Presidential
Debates debates.
- generating debate in Cleveland, where one of this year's CPD debates
is scheduled to take place at Case Western Reserve University. Let the
Case Western community and the larger Cleveland area know about the exclusive,
non-democratic nature of the CPD format, and the alternative that exists
with the CDC.
- ask supporters (particularly campaign workers) of Republican and Democratic
candidates what the position of their candidate is on open debates. Kucinich
is the only major-party candidate so far who has stated his support for
open, democratic debates.
- working with other excluded parties on this issue.
Together we can prevail.
D. Selected Items from “GREENSWEEK”
http://www.gp.org/greensweek/index.html
Green Party of the United States: http://www.gp.org
The Green Party of the United States formally has announced its 2004
Nominating Convention, to take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from June
23 to 28, 2004. The convention sites will be the Midwest Center, Milwaukee
Theater, and the Milwaukee Hyatt Regency. The party has posted an online
registration page, with early registration encouraged, at https://secure.gpus.org/convention/
Co-chairs of the Annual National Meeting Committee are Lynne Serpe and
Ruth Weill. More: www.gp.org/convention/process.html
Some e-mail discussion lists have been established for Greens interested
in various political national political campaigns and candidates: David
Cobb for President groups.yahoo.com/group/Cobb4President (contact: Dave
Wilcox, <dwilcox@greens.org>) Lorna Salzman for President groups.yahoo.com/group/Lorna4President/
Redraft Nader groups.yahoo.com/group/RalphNader2004/
A Secular Greens Caucus is being organized for Greens committed to the
principle of separation of church and state. They have drafted a plank
proposal on church/state separation for the platform of the Green Party
of the United States. To join the Secular Greens Caucus, visit groups.yahoo.com/group/seculargreens/
or contact Mark Barnes at mbarn2002@yahoo.com or Tim Casebolt at adog2@earthlink.net
3. News Items of Interest
by Grant Lawrence - grantlaw@buckeye-express.com
Who are the Real Conspiracy Nuts?
In fact, it is the other way round. British and American foreign policy
is itself based on a series of highly improbable conspiracy theories,
the biggest of which is that an evil Saudi millionaire genius in a cave
in the Hindu Kush controls a secret worldwide network of ‘tens of
thousands of terrorists’ ‘in more than 60 countries’
(George Bush)..... It is also odd that opponents of conspiracy theories
often allow that conspiracies have occurred in the past, but refuse to
contemplate their existence in the present. For some reason, you are bordering
on the bonkers if you wonder about the truth behind events like 9/11,
when it is established as fact that in 1962 the chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, Lyman L. Lemnitzer, tried to convince President Kennedy
to authorise an attack on John Glenn’s rocket, or on a US navy vessel,
to provide a pretext for invading Cuba. Two years later, a similar strategy
was deployed in the faked Gulf of Tonkin incident, when US engagement
in Vietnam was justified in the light of the false allegation that the
North Vietnamese had launched an unprovoked attack on a US destroyer.
http://www.spectator.co.uk/article.php3?table=old§ion=current&issue
04-01-17&id=3943
Alzheimer's or Mad Cow?
Alzheimer's is now being called a disease of the young. 17,000 people
under the age of 65 have Alzheimer's in Britain, including many in their
30's. Doctors say that people are just more aware, but I say there is
likely something else going on especially since a study in the U.S. found
that nearly 15% of those diagnosed with Alzheimer's were found to have
CJD (a formerly extremely rare disease) in autopsies.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1016924.stm
Lying Liars and Then Some Truth
Slippery, I mean, Wesley Clark (after all, he is slick Willy's guy) claims
he had always been against the war in Iraq; but Clark praises Bush for
his courage in bringing death and destruction to the Iraqis in an op-ed
piece in the London Times.
http://drudgereport.com/mattwc.htm
War College Issues a Report Bashing War on Terrorism
A scathing new report published by the Army War College broadly criticizes
the Bush administration's handling of the war on terrorism, accusing it
of taking a detour into an "unnecessary" war in Iraq and pursuing
an "unrealistic" quest against terrorism that may lead to U.S.
wars with states that pose no serious threat.
Unfortunately, the plan is to lead the U.S. to wars with states that
pose no serious threat. The War College got the assessment right but failed
to realize that this is not being done by accident.
http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2004/01/11/build/nation/55-terrorreport.inc
An Alarming surge in debt has been reported by the Federal Reserve. Our
big money masters at the Reserve report that consumer debt has topped
2 trillion for the first time.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10011-2004Jan12.html
Meanwhile, the dollar has been falling like a rock.
Perhaps investors know that the bubble is about to burst. Americans are
amassing massive debt while underpaid, underemployed, or unemployed. How
long can this continue? Hell, it's only credit.
http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=1CE833F9-B80B-43EC-91F51D0439ACF1A3
Weapons of Mass Deception Bringing You Global Destruction
The President Exercises as The World Burns
The 400 member military team that was brought into find those WMDs in
Iraq have been quietly withdrawn.
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1073280874955&p=1012571727102
4. Opinion
Green Hope
Editorial – by Paul Dumouchelle, Editor, Green Party of Ohio Newsletter
In this Presidential Election year Ohio Greens should feel hopeful, for
both our Party and our future as human beings.
We should be hopeful for our Party because, by any objective measure,
we enter 2004 remarkably stronger than we entered 2000. In January, 2000,
the Green Party of Ohio was essentially dormant, not having held a single
meeting or run a single candidate in all of 1999. We kicked off the 2000
Presidential Campaign in a meeting at my house in Dublin with all of 11
people attending. At that time we decided to begin the effort to put Ralph
Nader on the ballot, with no other candidate even on the horizon. We eventually
sent four delegates to the National Convention in Denver, got Nader on
the ballot and he received over 100,000 votes in Ohio.
Today we have over 1,000 registered members of the Party, a State Coordinating
Committee that meets regularly, this newsletter, an active website and
we’ve run candidates in various races every year since 2000. In
2002 we held the first-ever State Convention and adopted a Platform. We
will hold our second convention on 1/31/04 and determine which candidate
will get the support of the Ohio Delegation at the June National Convention.
We will send many more than four delegates to that Convention, and possibly
even fill our allowable slate of up to 23 delegates.
We need to do much more, of course, but we should feel hopeful based
on our State Party’s past progress. One thing we need much more
of is money – please use the Paypal feature on the website to donate
anything you are in a position to give.
As Greens we must have hope for our future as human beings. I wish I
could say our hope in this aspect of life could also be based on the evidence
of obvious progress toward a better future. In 2004, however, I do not
think this can be the basis of our hope. Rather, when viewing the state
of humanity as a Green I think hope is the single essential attitude –
regardless of the reality we face in the wider world.
We must have hope because we have committed ourselves to pursue an activist
path to correct the ills of social injustice, ecological insanity, violence
and the abuse of power that currently afflict all of us. If we do this
without hope we are cynics or fools.
In fact, with hope we can never lose. For it is only through losing hope
and abandoning the effort that we provide our enemies the comfort of victory.
As long as we organize, as long as we contest elections, as long as we
pursue the Green path then we deny victory to the murderers posing as
executioners and soldiers. We deny victory to the thieves in the executive
suite at the thousands of Enrons still in operation. We deny victory to
the Republicans and Democrats hiding behind gerrymandered district boundaries
and undemocratic election laws. We deny victory to the operators of nuclear
and coal-fired power plants.
Hope is our strongest tool and our ultimate weapon. Hope is a human attitude
that is totally within our own control. It is up to each one of us as
individuals to nurture our hope and use it as an inspiration to action.
Publication Details
The Green Party of Ohio Newsletter is published by the Green Party of
Ohio. www.ohiogreens.org The Mission of the Newsletter is to aggressively
promote citizen involvement in making real the Green dream for Ohio and
America as stated in the GPOH Platform, the USGP Platform and those parties’
formal policy positions.
The Mission of the Green Party of Ohio is to focus the political power
of the people to:
1. preserve and restore viable ecosystems,
2. establish social justice and equity,
3. foster participatory democracy,
4. promote and practice nonviolence as a means of conflict resolution,
and
5. ensure the rights of a community-based economic system for all people.
Letters to the editor are accepted but please keep them brief and the
Editor reserves the right to publish or not publish any such letter and
edit them to fit the newsletter format. The Green Party of Ohio Newsletter
does not represent official GPOH policy unless specifically stated. The
Green Party of Ohio Newsletter operates under the guidance of the State
Coordinating Committee Media Committee, which can be contacted through
the State Party Website. Paid for by the Green Party of Ohio Political
Action Fund (OH1066) P.O. Box 112, Berkey, OH 43504
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_______________________________________________
OGP_Newsletter mailing list
OGP_Newsletter@ohiogreens.net
http://www.windfish.net/mailman/listinfo/ogp_newsletter
|