Mood:  happy

SUSPECTS: Suspected Iraqi insurgents sit on a road after they were arrested in Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, September 3. The four men were detained near the scene of a roadside bomb attack targeting an Iraqi patrol. >>>>>

Iraq follows Al Qaeda coup with mass arrests

BAGHDAD -- Iraqi security forces killed 14 "terrorists" and arrested almost 200 suspects, the government said Monday, in a spectacular follow-up to their earlier capture of an alleged top-level Al Qaeda leader.

Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki's office announced that over the previous 24 hours a large force of Iraqi troops and police swept through suspected insurgent strongholds in the Euphrates valley south of Baghdad.

Taken with the arrest of Hamed Jumaa Al Saedi, an Iraqi alleged to be the Al Qaeda militant network's number two in the country, the arrests will be seen as a victory for Maliki's embattled government in its war with insurgents.

"Over the past 24 hours Baghdad and its outskirts witnessed a series of military operations carried out by security forces from the defense and interior ministries to achieve security and stability," Maliki's office said.

The raids took place Sunday in a region south of Baghdad that is mainly inhabited by members of the country's restive Sunni minority and has been a hotbed of the insurgency.

"The units in charge of the southern and middle Euphrates district, the 8th and 10th army divisions, killed 14 terrorists and arrested 98 of them along with 95 more suspects," the statement said.

Police in Hilla, south of Baghdad, said that US forces and aircraft assisted Iraqi troops in Monday's arrest operation near Jorf Al Sahkr, but there was no immediate confirmation of this from US headquarters in Iraq.

"An exchange of fire between gunmen and troops led to the death of an Iraqi soldier," an officer said, adding: "The clashes continued for four hours.

"Iraqi forces managed to confiscate large caches of weapons during the raid, while planes from the coalition forces bombed a number of areas."

A Sunni political party with MPs sitting in Iraq's fragile ruling coalition, the General Council of the People in Iraq, condemned the raid, which it blamed on the US-led coalition, and demanded that detainees be released.

"Occupation forces carried out brutal aids in Abid Wayis village in Jorf Al Sakhr and arrested more than 100 Sunnis, among them Sheikh Ahmed Kassar of Salaheddin Al Ayubi mosque and his brothers and relatives," it said.

Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh, in an interview with CNN, described Saedi's arrest as a "very important development."

"Deliberate intelligence work both by Iraqi forces as well as multinational forces has dealt a very severe blow to the Al Qaeda organization in Iraq," he said.

"And it is also significant because this man is believed to have been responsible for the attack on the shrines in Samarra, which led to the sectarian violence that we have seen."

In February extremists demolished the golden dome of a revered Shiite shrine, triggering a series of sectarian reprisals that have pushed Iraq to the brink of all-out civil war.

Alongside that conflict Sunni insurgents have continued to target US-led coalition forces.

Two US marines died Sunday after "enemy action" in the western province of Anbar, a bastion of the Sunni Arab insurgency, the military said.

The latest deaths brought the US military's losses in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion to 2,647, based on Pentagon figures.

Interior ministry spokesman Brigadier General Abdel Karim Khalaf said that three officers were critically wounded in a bombing in Wabhiq Square in the largely Shiite and Christian district of Karrada.

Sectarian fighting also raged on just north of the capital in Diyala province, which is in the grip of a vicious turf-war between rival Sunni and Shiite factions. At least one civilian was shot dead and five more wounded.

Middle East Times ~ Agence France-Presse - Dave Clark ** Iraq follows Al Qaeda coup with mass arrests

Related:
My Way News ~ Associated Press - Elena Becatoros ** No. 2 al-Qaida Leader in Iraq Arrested

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 6:49 PM EDT

Updated: Monday, 4 September 2006 6:55 PM EDT

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Mood:  party time!

Oil storage tanks at a refinery in Sydney are seen in this undated file photo. Oil fell more than a dollar to less than $68 a barrel on Monday, pulled lower by expectations that any sanctions against oil producer Iran were some way off and would not necessarily disrupt export flows. \/

Oil falls to below $68 as Iran tension ebbs

LONDON -- Oil fell more than a dollar to less than $68 a barrel on Monday, pulled lower by expectations that any sanctions against oil producer Iran were some way off and would not necessarily disrupt export flows.

U.S. light sweet crude was down $1.17 to $68.02 a barrel, just off a session low of $67.77.

London Brent crude settled at $67.71, $1.44 a barrel below Friday's close. Its session low was $67.59, the lowest level since June 21.

Trading volumes were light as the New York Mercantile Exchange pit was closed on Monday to mark the Labor Day holiday. U.S. futures were only trading electronically and the ICE exchange, where Brent trades, closed early.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday stressed the need to avoid a confrontation with Iran.

He was speaking after a visit to the OPEC oil producer, during which he said Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had reaffirmed Iran's willingness to negotiate a solution to the nuclear dispute, although he said it would not suspend uranium enrichment.

Iran failed to meet an August 31 deadline to halt its enrichment program or run the risk of U.N. sanctions.

"All along the nuclear issue has been a lengthy play of many acts. Probably, we're coming up to another act, which is sanctions, but there are likely going to be negotiations of what these sanctions are," said Mike Wittner of Calyon bank.

The United States has led the call for sanctions, which analysts fear could lead Iran to disrupt oil flows in retaliation. The European Union has said it wants more talks.

CONTINUING SLIDE
Monday's selling followed a more than $3 slide last week. Since a record of $78.65 for Brent on August 8, oil prices have fallen steeply by more than $10 a barrel.

Analysts predicted the bearish trend would continue in the near term, although they said there were factors that could drive the price higher again, notably the U.S. hurricane season, which continues until the end of November.

Hurricanes last year devastated oil and gas infrastructure in the U.S. Gulf and pushed oil prices to then record highs.

So far, this season has been milder than expected and Colorado State University's hurricane research team on Friday cut its outlook for this year's Atlantic storm season to five hurricanes, four less than forecast in May.

The sixth tropical depression of the 2006 season formed on Sunday between Africa and the Lesser Antilles, and could reach hurricane status by Thursday as it headed north of the Caribbean islands, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Despite the fall from record levels, oil prices are still historically high.

As a result, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which meets in Vienna next Monday to reconsider its output policy, is expected to continue pumping at close to capacity.

(additional reporting by Jonathan Leff in Singapore)
Reuters ~ Barbara Lewis ** Oil falls to below $68 as Iran tension ebbs

Related: Gulf oil refiners expanding
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ~ Associated Press - Steve Quinn ** Gulf oil refiners stretching out

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 6:17 PM EDT

Updated: Monday, 4 September 2006 7:05 PM EDT

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Mood:  celebratory

No. 2 al-Qaida Leader in Iraq Arrested

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Iraqi and coalition forces have arrested the second most senior figure in al-Qaida in Iraq, Iraq's national security adviser announced on Sunday, saying the group now suffered from a "serious leadership crisis."

Hamed Jumaa Farid al-Saeedi, known as Abu Humam or Abu Rana, was captured north of Baghdad a few days ago "along with another group of his aides and followers," Mouwafak al-Rubaie said.

He was the second most important al-Qaida in Iraq leader after Abu Ayyub al-Masri, who took over the group after Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed by a U.S. air strike north of Baghdad on June 7, al-Rubaie said.

"We believe that al-Qaida in Iraq suffers from a serious leadership crisis. Our troops have dealt fatal and painful blows to this organization," the security adviser said.

Al-Saeedi was "directly responsible" for Haitham Sabah Shaker Mohammed al-Badri, the alleged mastermind of the February bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad, al-Rubaie added without elaborating.

The bombing inflamed tensions between Shiite and Sunni Muslims and triggered reprisal attacks that have killed hundreds of Iraqis and continue to this day. Al-Badri remains at large.

"Al-Saeedi carried out al-Qaida's policies in Iraq and the orders of the slain al-Zarqawi to incite sectarian violence in the country, through attempting to start a civil war between Shiites and Sunnis - but their wishes did not materialize," al-Rubaie added.

A senior coalition official told The Associated Press that coalition forces were involved in al-Saeedi's arrest, although the official would not characterize what role they played.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because announcements were being made by Iraqi authorities, said al-Saeedi had been arrested along with three other individuals southwest of Baqouba.

Al-Saeedi "claims to be responsible for more attacks than he can remember" and has been involved in the insurgency almost from its beginning three years ago, the official said.

The U.S.-led coalition has announced numerous arrests of terrorists following the death of al-Zarqawi that officials claim have thrown al-Qaida in Iraq into disarray.

But rampant sectarian violence and other attacks have continued. At least 16 Iraqis and two U.S. soldiers were killed Sunday in bomb attacks and shootings nationwide.

Al-Rubaie said al-Saeedi was arrested "along with another group of his aides and followers," and that after his arrest, he gave information that led to the capture or death of 11 other top al-Qaida in Iraq figures and nine lower-level members.

The security adviser said those arrested included non-Iraqi Arabs, but he would not give any further information for security reasons.

Al-Rubaie said that according to Iraqi authorities' information, al-Qaida in Iraq was being financed from both within the country and from abroad, "but the major finance is coming from outside Iraq."

Al-Saeedi was arrested as he was hiding in a residential building, the security adviser said, accusing the terror suspect of trying to use "children and women as human shields," al-Rubaie said, adding that no casualties occurred during the arrest.

After his arrest, al-Saeedi said al-Qaida in Iraq was cooperating with supporters of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein "in the fields of exchanging information and logistic support," the security adviser said.

After al-Zarqawi was killed, authorities obtained information indicating that al-Saeedi had been operating in northern Salahuddin province, then moved on to operate outside Baqouba, the same area where al-Zarqawi was killed, al-Rubaie said.

Al-Saeedi "supervised terrorist groups that kidnapped people for ransom, and killed policemen after they received their salaries in order to finance terrorist operations," the security adviser said. "He used to order terrorist operations using mortars and roadside bombs, which led to the killing of several troops and innocent civilians."

He said al-Saeedi also supervised the creation of death squads and ordered assassinations, bombings, kidnappings and attacks on Iraqi police and army checkpoints.

Al-Saeedi's capture "will affect al-Qaida in Iraq and its operations against our people, especially those aimed at inciting sectarian strife," al-Rubaie said.

Tensions, meanwhile, brewed in the north, after Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani on Friday ordered the Iraqi national flag to be replaced with the Kurdish one in his northern autonomous region.

The move has troubled Sunni Arabs, who fear Kurds are pushing for secession under the nation's new federal system.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's office issued said Sunday that the national flag "is the only one which must be hoisted on each bit of Iraq's land."

A spokesman for the Kurdistan government defended his government's decision.

"We consider that this flag represents the ideology of the Baath Party" of Saddam Hussein, Khalid Saleh said. "And this regime has collapsed."

In other developments, reported by police on Sunday:

- An overnight mortar attack east of the capital killed six people, including two children, and wounded 15.

- A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol in eastern Baghdad killed two policemen and a civilian and wounded three policemen.

- Gunmen killed two policemen in a civilian car and wounded a third in Baqouba.

- A car bomb also killed three people in Baqouba.

- A civilian was gunned down and killed in a drive-by shooting in Amarah, 200 miles southeast of Baghdad.

- A suicide car bomb struck a police patrol in the northern city of Mosul, killing two policemen and wounding five people.

Associated Press writers Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Rebecca Santana and Rawya Rageh in Baghdad contributed to this report.
My Way News ~ Associated Press - Elena Becatoros ** No. 2 al-Qaida Leader in Iraq Arrested

Related:
Middle East Times ~ Agence France-Presse - Dave Clark ** Iraq follows Al Qaeda coup with mass arrests

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 6:02 PM EDT

Updated: Monday, 4 September 2006 6:58 PM EDT

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Mood:  silly

Five-year-old girls worried about weight, obesity conference told

Girls as young as five are sensitive about their bodies in a "weight-hostile" environment that equates popularity and attractiveness with thinness, an international conference of experts has heard.

And the problems continue through to adult life, where overweight women are at increased risk of depression, the 10th International Congress on Obesity was told.

"Children are sensitive at an increasingly early age to their physical appearance," said Leeds University professor Andrew Hill.

"The impact of being overweight on girls' self-confidence has been detected in children as young as five years.

"Psychological factors such as perceptions of one's attractiveness, physical ability and self-esteem can be improved with even a modest weight loss," he told more than 2,000 delegates to the congress, which is held every four years.

Adult women were also affected psychologically by being overweight, said Deakin University researcher Kylie Ball.

New findings from a major study of women's health in Australia showed that physical inactivity and high body weight in adults were independent predictors of depressive symptoms three years later.

"In other words, the study showed that women who were overweight or obese -- regardless of how much activity they did -- were at increased risk of depressive symptoms three years on," Ball said.

"Women who were physically inactive also had an increased risk of depressive symptoms when surveyed three years later."

The Women's Health Australia project had also shown that obesity may have lasting effects on young women's life satisfaction.

Obese women were less likely to aspire to higher education and were more dissatisfied with work, relationships and social activities than women in a healthy weight range, the study of 7,800 women showed.

"These results have implications for the content of weight-loss programs," Ball said.

"There is a need to address the adverse psychological consequences of high weight gain and help people to be more accepting of their weight and themselves, while assisting them to achieve their goal weight."

The congress, which runs until Friday, is seeking practical methods of combatting what chairman Paul Zimmet called "this insidious, creeping pandemic of obesity now engulfing the entire world".

Obesity is the greatest single contributor to chronic disease and the world now has more fat people than hungry ones, according to World Health Organisation figures.

Breitbart.com ~ Agence France-Presse ** Five-year-old girls worried about weight, obesity conference told

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 5:19 PM EDT

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Mood:  don't ask

Convert or die

By Michelle Malkin -- Sept. 02, 2006 11:18 PM

R.S.V.P, infidels

Watch the new al Qaeda video to see what an "invitation to Islam" sounds like. I've transcribed a sample of American al Qaeda Adam Gadahn's rant:

"Islam is the only religion acceptable to God and came with the revealed book, the Koran, which abrogates all previous revelations, like the Torah and Evangel... God recognizes no separation between religion and state..."

"To Americans and the rest of Christendom we say, either repent (your) misguided ways and enter into the light of truth or keep your poison to yourself and suffer the consequences in this world and the next..."

"If the Zionist crusader missionaries of hate and counter-Islam consultants like Daniel Pipes, Robert Spencer, Michael Scheuer, Steven Emerson, and yes, even the crusader-in-chief George W. Bush were to abandon their unbelief and repent and enter into the light of Islam and turn their swords against the enemies of God, it would be accepted of them and they would be our brothers in Islam. And we send a special invitation to all of you fighting Bush's crusader pipe dream in Afghanistan, Iraq, and wherever else W. has sent you to die."

Reuters' brief report doesn't mention Gadahn's targeting of Pipes, Emerson, Scheuer, and Spencer. Gadahn also extended a special plea to one of al Qaeda's favorite journalists, Seymour Hersh.

More:

"Why not surrender to the truth? Escape from the unbelieving army and join the winning side. As for those who have expressed their respect and admiration for Islam, and acknowledged that it is the truth and demonstrated the support and sympathy for the Muslims and their causes like George Galloway, Robert Fisk, and countless others, I say to them, isn't it time you stopped sitting on the fence and came over to the side of truth? ...Abandon unbelief and accept the truth."

Or else.

Don't miss yet another jihadi propaganda video recently released of terrorists who love Michael Moore.

Oh, yes, it's real, not a spoof:

"The Code of Silence" was posted on the Internet by the Rashedeen Army, thought to be a relatively small Sunni group which has produced videos in the past of attacks it claims to have carried out.

At almost an hour in length, it is the longest and most professionally made of recent postings by mainly Sunni militant and insurgent groups fighting the U.S.-backed government.

The U.S. military said earlier this week that recent intelligence indicated al Qaeda in Iraq was refining its strategy by producing propaganda and adding a political base to its violent campaign of suicide bombings.

Lifting scenes from Michael Moore's anti-war film "Fahrenheit 9/11," Rashedeen's narrator taunts President Bush in softly spoken English over graphic images of Humvees being blown up by roadside bombs, and purportedly dead U.S. troops.

Who is Adam Gadahn? Watch here. FBI bulletin here. All about Adam Gadahn here.

Speaking of Muslim conversions, make sure to watch the Centanni/Wiig conversion video if you haven't yet. Re-watch it, then read Diana West:

The most shocking thing about the Centanni-Wiig "conversion" is the silence that has followed. First, there is silence from Islam. Shouldn't Muslim religious leaders, and particularly "beautiful and kind-hearted" Palestinian Muslim religious leaders, vehemently condemn the forced conversions? As Mr. [Andrew] Bostom put it, "Will such Muslim authorities at least recognize the acute predicament of Centanni and Wiig by issuing a fatwa stating that their 'conversion,' being under duress, was not bona fide, condemning in advance any Muslim who might now attack these journalists for 'apostasy' from Islam?"

Yes, of course, they should -- at least according to any Western understanding of compulsion and morality -- but don't hold your breath. Meanwhile, holding their breath is exactly what Western media are doing when it comes to covering (not covering) the story. Even Fox's Greta van Susteren, a tabloidesque host who never met a bodily fluid she couldn't elaborate on, went delicate on us the other night, failing, in a one-hour "exclusive" interview with the two men, to ask a single question about their religious ordeal -- presumably at their request.

Why? Who or what is served by shutting up? Only forces of coercion -- a word which, after all, implies the nullification of individual will. Which means this is one case where silence isn't golden and ignorance isn't bliss. They are dangerous and dumb.

By the way, the "Holy Jihad Brigades," kidnappers of Centanni and Wiig, announced Saturday that they'll be targeting more non-Muslims:

Palestinian militants who held two Fox News journalists hostage for nearly two weeks threatened in a statement posted online Saturday to abduct non-Muslims visiting the Palestinian territories and kill them unless their demands were met. The statement, posted in the name of the Holy Jihad Brigades on a website frequently used by militants, said the group would kill any hostages it takes unless they converted to Islam, paid a ransom or Muslim prisoners were exchanged for their release.

"Any infidel blood will have no sanctity," the group said in the statement.

Ho-hum.

Update: Robert Spencer responds to Gadahn...

Gadahn rails against "the Zionist Crusaders, missionaries of hate and counter Islam consultants like Daniel Pipes, Robert Spencer, Michael Scheuer, and Steve Emerson." I am honored to be in this company, of course, and pleased to see that Al-Qaeda has noticed my work and is unhappy with it.

Maybe Adam Gadahn is angry with me for describing him a couple of years ago as he appears in an old photo: as a "pudgy, long-haired American kid who appears to be locked in a desperate, losing struggle to grow a beard." Adam, I see from more recent photos that you have won that struggle, for which I congratulate you. In your larger struggles, however, you will not prevail.

Hear, hear!

The Counterterrorism Blog weighs in on Jihadism's second generation, tons of video analysis and hyperlinks, and more from Andrew Cochran.

Michelle Malkin.com ** Convert or die

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 3:41 AM EDT

Updated: Sunday, 3 September 2006 3:51 AM EDT

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Mood:  loud

The Bush administration on Friday asked a federal judge to delay enforcing her order for a halt to the government's warrantless communications surveillance program.

The Justice Department argued that ending the intelligence-gathering program threatens "the gravest of harms to the government and to the American public" and leaves the country "more vulnerable to terrorist attack."

"We respectfully submit that this court should not override the national security judgment of the president and the nation's senior intelligence officers regarding the harm that would result" from the program's suspension, the government lawyers argued in a motion filed with the court.

U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ruled last month in Detroit that the National Security Agency's warrantless surveillance program is unconstitutional and ordered that it be halted.

The Justice Department appealed Taylor's decision to the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which brought the suit along with 11 other parties, will oppose a stay, but agreed to delay enforcement of the injunction until Taylor hears arguments Sept. 7.

"Every time the NSA engages in warrantless wiretapping, they are violating the law and the United States Constitution," ACLU attorney Melissa Goodman said.

The controversial program allows the NSA to monitor communications into and out of the United States when links to al-Qaida are suspected. Breaking with historic norms, President Bush allowed the NSA to conduct the surveillance without first getting court approval.

In its latest filing, the Justice Department argued that Taylor's verdict is overly broad because it calls for an end to the program entirely, not just with respect to the ACLU and the suit's other plaintiffs.

The government lawyers also argued that the judge's decision is flawed because classified facts needed to evaluate the case are protected under the so-called "state secrets" privilege.

News Max.com ~ Associated Press ** Justice Dept.: NSA Program Makes U.S. More Secure

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 2:14 AM EDT

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Mood:  flirty

Nude Teens Raising Eyebrows in Vermont

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. -- Nudity isn't new here. Usually it bares itself in more subtle places than a downtown parking lot, though.

This summer, a group of teenagers has disrobed near restaurants, bookstores and galleries, igniting a debate about whether this bohemian southern Vermont town should ban a practice that has been tolerated until now.

"Brattleboro tends to be a laid-back town and pretty accepting of the unusual, but this is really pushing limits," said Police Chief John Martin.

"It's clearly to outrage people, it's clearly rebelliousness," he said.

By most accounts, the stripping started on a whim in early summer when a young woman sat naked on a park bench, Martin said. Then another woman started taking her shirt off downtown.

A music festival promoting nudity and rebelliousness set up in May in a downtown parking lot and attracted nude hula hoopers, Martin said.

Last month, a half dozen young people bared their bodies in the lot, encircled by the backs of bookstores, coffee shops and restaurants.

They say they're just exercising their rights.

"It's just an act of freedom," said 19-year-old Adhi Palar. "We're just doing so because we can." Palar and the others "do not consider nakedness to be innately sexual or rude and it shouldn't be confined to that," he said.

All the bare skin has raised eyebrows, even in a town that has seen clothing-optional swimming holes, streakers and an event known as "Breast Fest," which featured women parading topless.

To some, a bunch of teenagers going au naturel is just harmless rebellion.

"To most people, it's not a big deal," said Catherine Kauffman, 57, who calls Brattleboro "a don't-take-away-too-many-of-my-rights kind of town."

Rich Geidel, 50, co-owner of Everyone's Books, said the parking lot may not be the most appropriate place for nudity, but he said he's not concerned.

"We don't think it's bad for kids to hang out," he said. "As long as people are polite, don't block the entrance, we don't ask them to leave."

To others, it's disturbing. Some worry it could drive business away from downtown.

"It's a bad image for Brattleboro," said Ozzie Kocaoglu, 43, who owns Sundried Tomato restaurant at the far end of the parking lot, which has long been a teen hangout.

Vermont has no state laws against public nudity, but communities can pass their own rules banning it.

At least eight cities and towns have passed anti-nudity ordinances, according to the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.

So far, Brattleboro has chosen not to, but the teenagers' dress-down may change that. The town is researching what other communities have done to curb their nakedness.

The 50,000-member American Association for Nude Recreation espouses nude recreation in appropriate places, but doesn't use nudity "for social commentary, or rebelliousness or an act of civil disobedience," said Mary Jane Kolassa.

Baring it all as a form of social protest is growing.

This summer, nude bicyclists rode through Burlington to protest the country's reliance on oil, part of an event known as the World Naked Bike Ride. Elsewhere, nudity has been used to oppose the Iraq war and the treatment of animals.

In Vermont, voters in another town shot down a ban on nudity after two public votes.

Prompted by complaints about nudity and sexual activity at a swimming hole, the Wilmington select board passed an anti-nudity ordinance in 2002. But supporters of the freedom to skinny dip rejected the ban.

"There were some ugly moments in the debate with some name calling and lots of good healthy debate about reasonable rights and responsibility under those rights," said Town Clerk Susie Haughwout. Officials weren't sure how they would have enforced a ban and to what extent, she said.

For now Brattleboro is weighing its options. And waiting for summer to turn to fall.

"As soon as winter comes, there won't be a story anymore," said Town Clerk Annette Cappy.

On the Net:
American Association for Nude Recreation

World Naked Bike Ride

Access North Ga.com ~ Associated Press - Lisa Rathke ** Nude Teens Raising Eyebrows in Vermont

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 1:15 AM EDT

Updated: Sunday, 3 September 2006 1:38 AM EDT

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Mood:  d'oh

Democrats for Worker Exploitation

National Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee hires firm that pays subminimum wages to push for a higher minimum wage

A group that raises money for Democratic Congressional candidates uses a canvassing company that pays some workers submimium wage, in apparent violation of Wisconsin state law, to talk about the need to raise the federal minimum wage, Isthmus newspaper has learned. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), based in Washington, D.C., has hired Grassroots Campaigns, a Boston-based for-profit company with operations in 18 U.S. cities, to conduct canvassing on its behalf. The DCCC's "New Direction for American" agenda, which provides the talkiing points canvassers are taught to use to solicit contributions, includes a call to "Raise the minimum wage."

What follows is an article on this topic from Isthmus' Sept. 1, 2006 edition, and several suppporting documents. The handout labelled "Grassroots Voter Outreach" was provided by Miles Kristan, a Madison student who worked for Grassroots Campaigns, soliciting money for the DCCC. Emily Larsen, the regional director for Grassroots Campaigns (her region includes Madison as well as offices in Minnesota, Texas and Colorado) and Wes Jones, the company's national canvass director, both say that Grassroots Voter Outreach is distinct from Grassroots Campaigns. Jones describes it as a "sister" company that solicits money for nonpolitcal nonprofit groups. But the terms of employment appear similar, including the stipulation that "A canvasser who does not meet quota will not receive base pay and will instead be paid" a percentage of what he or she collects. The handout specifies that Grassroots Voter Outreach pays a 30% rate to those who do not make quota; Jones and former Madison employees of Grassroots Campaigns say they received a rate of 47%, which could and sometimes did amount to less than minmum wage.

1. The Isthmus article by Bill Lueders
2. The handout for Grassroots Voter Outreach for "Madison, WI" canvassing
3. Pay stubs for Miles Kristan, for two-week periods, during which he says he typically pout in 50 hours per week
4. The Isthmus ad for Grassroots Campaigns
5. A link to the DCCC's "New Direction for America"
6. A link to the national website for Grassroots Campaigns

1. The Isthmus article from the 9/1/06 edition

Canvassers have had enough

Dem-hired outfit pays sub-minimum wages to push for higher minimum wage

Alex Scherer-Jones began working for Grassroots Campaigns to fight the Bush administration and elevate the fortunes of the Democratic Party. The 21-year-old MATC student left feeling exploited and sour: "I went in there being very idealistic and it kind of ruined my idealism."

The job involves going door to door asking people to give money to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, using talking points that include a call to raise the minimum wage. For this, Scherer-Jones says he was paid far less than the state minimum wage of $6.50 an hour.

"I worked 37 hours one week and got paid around $130 [after taxes]," recalls Scherer-Jones, who quit after two weeks.

John Dedering worked for Grassroots Campaigns for about a month last year and again this year. He says the company paid a satisfactory base wage in 2005, when he canvassed for Environmental Action, but this year switched to a new system, dropping his wages to less than minimum.

Juan Ruiz says he put in about 45 hours working at Grassroots Campaigns for five days this year, and was paid just $56. And Miles Kristan produces pay stubs for two two-week periods, during which he says he typically worked 50 hours per week. One is for $339.81, the other for $281.50. Before taxes. (For these and more, see Document Feed at The DailyPage.com.)

In ads that have appeared in Isthmus, Grassroots Campaigns claims to pay $1,200 to $2,000 a month; this squares with signs around town that mention a range of $300 to $500 per week. The ads picture George Bush below the words, "Corruption and Scandal / Had Enough?"

Grassroots Campaigns is a for-profit company based in Boston, with operations in 18 U.S. cities. It is currently canvassing for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), which raises money for targeted congressional races. None are in Wisconsin, but the Dem who wins the three-way primary in the state's 8th Congressional District could get some DCCC cash.

Emily Larson, Grassroots Campaigns' regional director (she also oversees operations in Minnesota, Texas and Colorado), defers all wage-related questions to Wes Jones, the company's national canvass director. Jones confirms that some Madison canvassers may be receiving sub-minimum wage, but insists there's nothing wrong with this.

"These kind of fundraising and sales positions are governed under different [rules]," asserts Jones in a phone interview from Seattle. He says canvassers get a base pay of $300 per week if they meet their "minimal fundraising standard" and can make more if they do especially well. But if they fail to meet quota - which changes based on the group average - they get a straight-up commission of 47% of whatever they collect.

Jones also confirms that Grassroots Campaigns does not pay for an initial "observation day" in which applicants are trained and then sent to canvass. The company considers this experience - which Scherer-Jones says is an all-day shift in which money is raised - to be "a second interview."

These practices likely violate state law. Rose Lynch, spokesperson for the state Department of Workforce Development, says there are no special rules for canvassing firms and "even individuals paid on a commission basis must receive at least minimum wage." She adds that workers should be paid for any mandatory training and get overtime for anything beyond 40 hours a week. Lynch urges anyone who feels these rights were violated to file complaints. (Forms are available off the DWD Web site or by calling 266-3345.)

DCCC spokesperson Bill Burton asserts that all of the money collected by Grassroots Campaigns - every last penny - goes to his group, which then pays Grassroots Campaign a fee for its role. But he refuses to divulge how this shakes out as a percentage of what's collected: "The terms of the contract are confidential." (Figure less than half, with Grassroots Campaigns' commissions, costs and profits.)

How does the DCCC feel about having workers making less than minimum wage soliciting contributions to help it force the evil Republicans to raise the minimum wage? Burton said he'd look into this, then failed to call back.

Twice last week, former Grassroots Campaigns workers staged protests in front of its Madison office, 222 N. Hamilton St., holding up a huge banner. Says Kristan, "We will continue to demonstrate until Grassroots Campaigns pays all of its employees minimum wage."

Jake Titus, canvass director for the group's Madison office, says staffing is "a little fluid right now," at less than 15 employees. But the outfit plans a "college-recruitment push" that he hopes will swell its ranks in advance of the fall elections: "I would like to have as many people as would like to come work for us."

2. The handout for for Grassroots Voter Outreach -- CLICK HERE [.pdf]
3. Pay stubs for Miles Kristan, for two-week periods, during which he says he typically put in 50 hours per week -- CLICK HERE [.pdf]
4. The ad that appeared in Isthmus for Grassroots Campaigns -- CLICK HERE [.pdf]
5. A link to the DCCC's "New Direction for America"
6. A link to the national website for Grassroots Campaigns

Isthmus / Watchdog / The Daily Page.com ~ Bill Lueders ** Democrats for Worker Exploitation

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 12:01 AM EDT

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Mood:  silly

MSNBC Conservative: Carlson Didn't Vote For Bush, May Not Support 2008 GOP Candidate

By Mark Finkelstein

During the course of a conversation with former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Jed Babbin on this afternoon's show, Tucker Carlson described himself as "a real conservative."

But it was just a few minutes earlier, chatting with New Republic editor-at-large Peter Beinart, that Carlson mentioned in passing that he hadn't supported President Bush for president in 2004.

When Carlson stated that he had been wrong to support the war in Iraq [and now opposes it], Beinart retorted:

"You've just made a statement which almost guarantees that you're going to have to support the Democratic candidate in 2008 because there's virtually no chance we're going to have a Republican candidate who says they were wrong to support the war in Iraq. So I congratulate you on flipping over to the other side."

Replied Carlson: "Well I doubt I'm going to support the Democratic candidate. Whether I'll support the Republican candidate is a whole separate question. I didn't last time, I may not this time."

Carlson is also on record as condemning Israel's recent attack on Hezbollah.

It's obviously possible to be a conservative without supporting George W. Bush. Conservatives rightly hold Bush's profligate spending against him, for starters. But since Carlson has told us whom he didn't vote for in 2004, perhaps he'd be willing to reveal whom he did support.

In any case, Carlson is clearly the kind of conservative MSNBC could love - one who doesn't support the incumbent Republican president and opposes the cornerstone of his foreign policy. It's the same phenomenon that explains Pat Buchanan's ubiquity on MSNBC.

UPDATE: Damian G. of conservathink has been in touch to say that in an episode of The Situation, an earlier incarnation of Carlson's current show, he said that he didn't vote for anyone for president in 2004 because he was ' fed up.'

Mark Finkelstein lives in the liberal haven of Ithaca, NY, where he hosts the award-winning TV show 'Right Angle.' View show webcasts here. Email Mark at mark@gunhill.net
News Busters ~ Mark Finkelstein ** MSNBC Conservative: Carlson Didn't Vote For Bush, May Not Support 2008 GOP Candidate

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 11:54 PM EDT

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Mood:  party time!

Jobless Rate Dips in August

WASHINGTON -- Hiring perked up in August as employers added 128,000 jobs, pulling down the unemployment rate to 4.7 percent, sending a Labor Day message that the economic expansion still has staying power.

The latest snapshot, released by the Labor Department Friday, was a bit brighter than expected and should ease any fears that the expansion that began in late 2001 is not in danger of fizzling out.

The tally of new jobs last month was slightly stronger than the 125,000 that economists were forecasting. The nation's unemployment rate dropped down a notch from a five-month high of 4.8 percent in July. Job gains for June and July also turned out to be better than previously estimated. In June, employers boosted payrolls by 134,000 positions and in July they added another 121,000.

The report comes as the nation's work force gets ready to the Labor Day holiday and as the election season looms.

Economic conditions -- especially those where people live and work -- are likely to be on voters' minds when they go to the polls in November.

Workers' average hourly earnings edged up to $16.79 in August, a 0.1 percent increase from July. Economists were forecasting a bigger, 0.3 percent advance. While workers welcome strong wage growth, economists worry that a rapid and prolonged pickup in wages can ignite inflation fears.

Over the 12 months ending August, wages grew by a strong 3.9 percent. The last time this figure was higher was in June 2001.

The Federal Reserve on Aug. 8 decided to halt a more than two-year long rate raising campaign given the slowing economy and the cooldown in the housing market. The Fed's rate increases were aimed at keeping inflation in check. Fed policymakers expressed hoped that the slowing economy eventually would help lessen inflationary pressures.

Economists have mixed opinions about the Fed's next move on Sept. 20. Some believe the central bank will leave rates alone again, while others predict another rate increase wil be ordered to fend off inflation.

Breitbart.com ~ Associated Press ** Jobless Rate Dips in August

Posted by yaahoo_06iest at 11:38 PM EDT

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