The Siege

SMC has a BIG PROBLEM

JUNE 6 UPDATE: Today, The Siege had a wonderful meeting with Dean Judith Penchansky (SMC Disciplinarian) and student Nehasi Lee in response to a false police report that described me as a “disruptive student” at the May 18 event detailed below.

The dean and I had a frank and honest exchange of ideas regarding my encounters with SMC’s police and her office’s duty to follow-up on any complaint lodged by any SMC staff against a student. She came across as reasonable, a good listener and ultimately acknowledged there was nothing for her office to take action over. Hopefully, as a responsible member of the SMC administration, she will relay to others in a position to care and take action, the concerns expressed about pervasive police misconduct at the college.

NEWS: Truly there are many officers of the law, everywhere, who operate day after day as heroes and defenders of the people, protecting our civil and constitutional rights and liberties. They deserve our continual thanks and appreciation for standing between us and the lawless chaos which would ensue without them. This author, on many occasions, has had reason to express appreciation for an officer’s help, especially those from the Los Angeles Police Department.

But there are others who, putting on a badge, believe themselves to be set apart to bully and abuse (click to witness SMC cops in action), at their pleasure, the very citizens they’ve sworn to protect. Usually this bullying happens to those who remain the most unempowered, either by economic class or by education. Students fit in here perfectly. It’s this small percentage of badge-wearers, committing crimes under the color of authority, who deserve our profound contempt and need to be held accountable under the law.

There’s so much deception, confusion and nonsense spewed forth in the popular media which undermines the notion that global warming is a reality, it’s little wonder that many people remain unconvinced of its immediate threat. Such intentionally-sown confusion allows George W. Bush and those he services (that’s not you and me, by the way) to postpone the critical actions our government so desperately needs to take.

Public relations hacks working for the U.S. auto industry, oil and coal interests; compromised scientists who’ve sold out and will forever lack any credibility amongst their peers; congressmen, senators and presidents who operate by accepting legalized bribes and then paying off those debts by violating the public trust; and certain large corporate interests at odds with life on this planet are just some of those you can thank for the muddying of waters about facts regarding the ecological catastrophe quickly coming our way.

On the other hand, over in the rarefied (and under-reported) world of truth, there is virtually universal agreement amongst credible scientists that global warming is indeed occurring, and to an extent and with rapidness absolutely guaranteeing much more extreme planetary consequences unless we take serious action NOW!

The Union of Concerned Scientists, in an article titled “Global Warming Facts” (which includes many links for the sceptic and the seeker wishing to investigate further), include the following list of the “20 Hottest Years on Record:”

Notice a trend? And 2005 – hottest year on record.

Still not convinced? You’re right, there’s so much more to it. And the rebuttals, you’ve heard ‘em – these things are cyclical, it’s happened before, it undermines the troops, there’s no proof, it’s just progaganda from environmental extremists, the whole thing’s overblown, it’s a ruse by the homosexuals to distract good Christians from the gay-marriage issue, not everyone agrees, If your so smart, how come it’s not in the Bible?, it’s nothing new, Dubya will protect us, blah, blah, blah.

Well, do yourself (and the rest of the planet) a favor and go see the recently released “An Inconvenient Truth,” a film that will blow your mind and bring you up to speed. This documentary, featuring Al Gore delivering an impassioned, funny, fact-filled, and sobering presentation which he has shared thousands of times with audiences across the globe, will fill in all the blanks and put to rest the myths that keep this issue from being tackled in the political arena.

Become informed and help pressure the politicians to exercise their political will to take the necessary actions. We need to come together on this growing peril, and fast!

There. Are you happy? That’s the new name for this site.

A certain minority of well-meaning, but seemingly non-confrontational types have volunteered some reservations about the name of this news magazine – The Siege. The rationale is that the current title is too in-your-face, too incendiary, too inclined to raise the hackles of those who believe that calm, diplomatic discourse is always the best way. If the name isn’t nice, then some people won’t play.

The Siege, by the way, didn’t ask for the advice. People with greater insight just offered it, to help.

Two of the most influential visionaries and leaders in the political blogosphere, Markos Moulitsas Zuniga (Daily Kos) and Jerome Armstrong (MyDD.com), co-authors of the unflinching “Crashing the Gate: Netroots, Grassroots, and the Rise of People-Powered Politics” - a powerful dissection of today’s political establishment - are coming to town.

On Friday evening, April 21, Zuniga and Armstrong will be at “Club 310″ (3321 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica) from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm, to be followed by an 8:00 pm appearance at “Book Soup” (8818 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles).

NEWS: In an explosive piece entitled "Rewriting the Science" which aired on CBS 60 Minute's Sunday night, the American public had, yet again, another opportunity to peer into the intentionally deceptive workings of the Bush administration, especially when they don't like the conclusions of world-renowned scientists.  "Check out the video."

Speaks for itself.

If you appreciate this, you can go to Project for the Old American Century and find much more in a similar vein decorating tee-shirts, sweatshirts, prints, and more.

UPDATE:“Another movement conservative turns against the Right,” as noted by Markos Moulitsas Zúniga, publisher of Daily Kos. This is an excellent political blog. You should check it out.