From bright_crow at mindspring.com Wed Feb 1 12:47:16 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Wed, 1 Feb 2006 11:47:16 -0500 (GMT-05:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] SEYMpeace.org, Second Month Update Message-ID: <24670594.1138812436929.JavaMail.root@mswamui-bichon.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please visit the Southeastern Yearly Meeting's website for Peace & Social Concerns at http://seympeace.org/ Thank you, Michael From perryt at bellsouth.net Sat Feb 4 16:50:38 2006 From: perryt at bellsouth.net (Perry Treadwell) Date: Sat, 04 Feb 2006 15:50:38 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] War Tax Refusal Message-ID: <43E5139E.5030409@bellsouth.net> FYI The IRS is taking over $100 per month from my Social Security to pay off the debt that I have accrued in not paying for war. I got no response from Rep. Cynthia McKinney and refusal from the Georgia State Tax Lawyers to take my case. Perry Treadwell From errol at kitenet.net Sun Feb 5 12:09:02 2006 From: errol at kitenet.net (Errol Hess) Date: Sun, 05 Feb 2006 11:09:02 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] War Tax Refusal In-Reply-To: <43E5139E.5030409@bellsouth.net> References: <43E5139E.5030409@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <1139155742.4068.6.camel@localhost.localdomain> The IRS is taking over $120 per month of my social security for my war tax resistance. Oh, well, at least I'm not paying for war voluntarily. On Sat, 2006-02-04 at 15:50 -0500, Perry Treadwell wrote: > FYI The IRS is taking over $100 per month from my Social Security to pay > off the debt that I have accrued in not paying for war. I got no > response from Rep. Cynthia McKinney and refusal from the Georgia State > Tax Lawyers to take my case. Perry Treadwell > > > _______________________________________________ > Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting and Association list-server: > -- address to subscribe (get on the list-server) or unsubscribe (get off): http://kitenet.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sayma > -- address to send message to everyone on list: sayma at kitenet.net > From pennywright at earthlink.net Sun Feb 5 19:02:51 2006 From: pennywright at earthlink.net (Penelope Wright) Date: Sun, 5 Feb 2006 17:02:51 -0600 Subject: [saymaListserv] News of Hibbard Thatcher and Nelson Fuson Message-ID: <002b01c62aa8$5787aea0$ad431342@user2ih5nie4yp> Dear Friends, This is good news/sad news message of two of Nashville's and SAYMA's most loved Friends. Pasted below is the latest update from Hibbard's son - I would say a very cold snail's pace of progress. In sending out the updates about Hibbard, Marian Fuson had shared that Nelson had been in the nursing care facility of Kendal for some time and declining rapidly. We heard this morning that he died in the early morning of this First Day. I had a chance meeting of the Fuson's daughter-in-law who said she and Dan had talked of a memorial at a later date here in Nashville and hoped the meeting would be part of that. I felt safe in assuring her that we would be honored to do so. Marian's address is: 112 Kendal Dr., Kennett Square, PA 19348 mnfuson1 at aol.com Blessings and Light to all, Penelope Wright Alan Thatcher, writing from home in Chicago. Feb 4, 2006 I visited with Hibbard at St Thomas yesterday before leaving town. He had been steadily improving during the week, and was noticeably stronger than even the day before. He's still unable to speak due to the respirator and 'trach' tube, but the respiratory tech diverted a little air which allowed him to croak out a few words. He'll need speech therapy eventually to get his voice back (after two weeks of the respirator tube being down his throat) but prospects are good for restoring that resonant bass. As he is doing so well, I think short visits with Hibbard will be fine. In fact I think he will be glad to see people. And as neither Jonathan or I will be in Nashville for the next few days, it would be especially helpful. He is in room #220 in the 'special care' section of the hospital, second floor. It's possible to call the room directly...but obviously Hibbard can't answer it. Hibbard is going a good job of communicating by gesture and expression. That only goes so far, but you will find him much the same Hibbard, just quieter. He is eager for stimulation and exercise. He is doing regular physical therapy, and doing some exercises on his own. A St Thomas social worker has been in touch, and they are recommending a comprehensive rehab facility for Hibbard's next step from St Thomas. This would be a good bit more rigorous than the skilled nursing facility we were thinking of before. Hibbard is very familiar with Vanderbilt's Stallworth Rehab center, from Ruby's time there, so that is probably where he'll go. I expect he will tackle rehab with the energy he does any project. I would not expect this to happen in less than another ten days. As always, emails, calls, and cards to the house are very welcome. Mike Thatcher is staying with Ruby, but she would enjoy visits too. Thank you for holding Hibbard in the light! -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From hensign at mindspring.com Mon Feb 6 23:18:06 2006 From: hensign at mindspring.com (Helen Ensign) Date: Mon, 6 Feb 2006 22:18:06 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] workshops, anyone? Message-ID: <410-220062273186453@mindspring.com> Just a reminder to all interested F/friends. If you would like to offer a workshop for our yearly meeting this year, I need to get your proposal before the 15th of this month (that would be next Wednesday). Not too many folks have felt led to offer workshops yet, so our choices will be few this year. Those that have been offered up promise to be quite interesting, however! Helen E. (Beth) Ensign hensign at mindspring.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From bright_crow at mindspring.com Tue Feb 7 12:54:30 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Tue, 7 Feb 2006 11:54:30 -0500 (GMT-05:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] NY Review of Books: An Affair to Remember Message-ID: <32757187.1139331270764.JavaMail.root@mswamui-cedar.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please take a look at this review of Brokeback Mountain: http://www.nybooks.com/articles/18712 It directly addresses the issues which almost every other reviewer or publicizer has been unwilling to address: that this is a movie about the horror of homophobic violence, and how the reality of that violence kept two men apart for twenty years...and eventually killed one of them. Blessed Be, Michael From freepolazzo at comcast.net Wed Feb 8 10:39:30 2006 From: freepolazzo at comcast.net (free polazzo) Date: Wed, 08 Feb 2006 09:39:30 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] fwd: Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20060208082456.032cb190@comcast.net> Dear Friends, This is not a pleasant topic. I don't like having to raise it with you. My choice would be for this not to be an issue that is so close to home. Yet there is very little discussion in the media about this topic and if Friends don't take this up, then who? We have heard about the conference, organized by Friend John Calvi of Vermont, "Quaker Initiative to End Torture (QUIT) scheduled to meet in Greensboro, NC June 2-4 at Guilford College http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebAbout.html . It appears that it is needed even more than I had previously thought. There was a much heralded law recently passed by the US Congress and signed with much publicity which purported to outlaw torture by the American government and military. Senator John McCain's leadership was instrumental in getting it passed. Under closer scrutiny, the law as passed may have been a hollow victory. I learned by reading the following article by Tom Englehard (aka Tom Dispatch) how the new law may be just be smoke and mirrors which will not end the practice of torture by our government. There are too many loopholes and not enough accountability for those who order the horrific acts "to preserve our freedom". While our SAYMA Yearly Meeting won't meet in time to support QUIT, Memphis Monthly Meeting has a minute on the QUIT website that other monthly meetings in SAYMA could use to draw up their own. The QUIT website has more minutes, too. See http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebEndorse.html . Of course, SAYMA representative meeting does meet in Birmingham this spring and perhaps someone will see way open to present a minute at that meeting. Blessings, Free "No one is free until all are free." NOTE: Some of you may be on more than one list and I apologize for the multiple mailings one day, a tool will be developed to do away with "duplicates" that one receives from well meaning e mail senders). >Date: Wed, 8 Feb 2006 00:53:53 -0500 >From: "TomDispatch" >To: "free polazzo" > > > >a project of the Nation Institute > >To send this to a friend, or to read more >dispatches, go to tomdispatch.com > > >Tomdispatch: Alfred McCoy on How Not to Ban Torture in Congress > > > >Alfred McCoy, an expert on the CIA and its >history of torture, has some actual news -- the >sort that's been sitting unnoticed right in >front of our collective, reportorial eyes. Last >year's clash between John McCain and the Bush >administration over the senator's successful >attempt to attach a ban on torture and other >abusive interrogation techniques to the Defense >Appropriations Bill was heavily reported. After >all, it was a heroic tale of a man -- himself >tortured pitilessly earlier in his life -- who >held off the powers-that-be, rejected their >attempts to amend his ban, and finally triumphed >by a handy margin in Congress. The ban, now in >place, is the law. End of story. Only one >problem, reality turns out to lurk in the fine >print -– and the McCain amendment has some >striking fine print that mainstream reporters >failed to attend to; in fact, McCoy tells us, it >has a loophole big enough to absolve torturers >of their acts and, in combination with an >amendment by Senator ! Lindsey Graham, drive >testimony obtained by torture directly into our >courts. I would call that news. > >While the torture debate is somewhat in abeyance >in the United States right now, it continues in >Europe. There, a major scandal brews over the >ways in which Eastern European countries were >used as CIA secret prison sites, European >citizens and others were kidnapped from European >soil, and CIA "extraordinary rendition" flights >used European air space and airports. All this, >by the way, seems to have happened with the >support of various European intelligence >services which, by the evidence, may work as >much for the Bush administration as for their own governments. > >The Council of Europe has deputized Swiss >prosecutor Dick Marty to conduct an extensive >investigation of both alleged CIA "black" sites >and Agency rendition flights. His preliminary >report to the Council on January 22 concluded, >albeit tentatively, that six Agency aircraft >had, since 2001, made 800 rendition flights -- a >level of covert activity far beyond anything >reported in the U.S. press. Marty is >under >significant pressure to get to the bottom of >this scandal, which may end up producing more >torture headlines on both sides of the Atlantic. >Moreover, various American media outlets >continue to investigate the torture story, >insuring occasional bombshells like ABC TV's >sensational November 18 story >detailing >CIA "waterboarding" techniques and its December >5 exposé >of >the locations of secret CIA prisons in Poland and Romania. > >Finally, it's well known that only those in the >lowest ranks of the military are being held in >any way accountable for torture practices >mandated from the top and overseen by top >civilian, military, and intelligence officials. >Even at the lowest levels, accountability has >proved, at best, a moving target, as is clear >from the most recent torture case tried in this >country. After Iraqi Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed >Mowhoush voluntarily surrendered in November >2003, he was tortured with rubber hoses by >"Iraqi >nationals, reportedly in the employ of the CIA," >while Chief Warrant Officer Lewis E. Welshofer >Jr., 43, of the U.S. Army looked on. Mowhoush >then suffered other mistreatment before he fell >into Welshofer's waiting hands. Welshofer has >since used the Nuremberg defense -- that he was >just following orders in coming up with >"creative interrogation techniques"! to make >Mowhoush talk –- to explain his subsequent >actions. He forced Mowhoush, face-first, into a >sleeping bag, wrapped him in electrical wire, >and sat on the 57-year old prisoner's chest. >After twenty minutes, Mowhoush was dead. > >Recently, Welshofer faced American military >justice for his crimes. While tried on murder >charges, he was convicted only of the lesser >counts of negligent homicide and dereliction of >duty. These still carried a maximum three-year >prison sentence and dismissal from the service >(which would have denied him his pension). In >the end, however, a military jury sentenced >Welshofer to no prison time and only a formal >reprimand. He was given 60 days restriction to >his home, office, and church; and a forfeiture >of $6,000 -- apparently the going rate for an >Iraqi life. No one in our self-professed >"no-torture" administration thought this worth a comment. > >The >American >Empire Project series I co-edit has just >published McCoy's newest book, >A >Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the >Cold War to the War on Terror. I can testify >that, while the book's focus is grim indeed -- a >half-century-plus history of CIA torture >research and how it was applied globally -- it >is also, simply put, riveting to read. It offers >a window into an almost unknown world that we >ignore at our peril. I could not recommend it to >all of you more strongly. To get a taste of its >early sections, check out McCoy's >previous >Tomdispatch piece (from which the book >developed) or read a >Buzzflash >review of the book. Tom > > > >Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work > > > >The Bush Legacy of Legalized Torture >By Alfred W. McCoy > >Click >here to read more of this dispatch. > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From freepolazzo at comcast.net Wed Feb 8 16:13:54 2006 From: freepolazzo at comcast.net (free polazzo) Date: Wed, 08 Feb 2006 15:13:54 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] Fwd: Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20060208151105.034b6820@comcast.net> > > >Dear Free and All, > >Thanks for your letter. Good to hear from you and receive your >support for the QUIT June conference. Not >only will the McCain law fail to end torture. Several other >domestic and international laws are simply being ignored. The end >to torture rests in the heartland, not Washington. Torture has >never been legal in the US. Jennifer Harbury, keynote speaker for >the QUIT conference, has detailed the legal aspects in her book, >"Truth, Torture, and the American Way". A brief history of American >torture can be read and downloaded for reprinting in pamphlet #3 >from Historians Against the War website- > >The Quaker Initiative to End Torture needs support- We need >financial donations for the June conference. We need broad >attendance from your Monthly, Quarterly, and Yearly Meetings. We >need minutes of support and news from our website to be widely >shared. Please help us to gather the energies needed for another >great historic Quaker work. >Thanks, John Calvi >Convenor, QUIT >Www.quit-torture-now.org > > >John Calvi >calvij at sover.net >802/387-4789 >PO Box 301 >Putney VT 05346 USA >www.johncalvi.com >www.quit-torture-now.org From Quakerkristi at aol.com Thu Feb 9 17:10:27 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Thu, 9 Feb 2006 16:10:27 EST Subject: [saymaListserv] Earth Charter announcements Message-ID: <1f2.1ab53b02.311d09c3@aol.com> Since we endorsed the Earth Charter, I recieve periodic updates from Costa Rica. I pass them along for your info.....Kristi VIEW THE FORMATTED NEWSFLASH HERE. 1. The Earth Charter +5 Report celebrates the past, looks to the future Costa Rica, January 2006. "EC+5" ? which gathered 400 people from around the world in Amsterdam in November 2005 ? will be remembered as a high point, and a turning point. It was there that we celebrated the great work being done around the world, inspired by the Earth Charter. It was there that we rededicated ourselves to making the message of the Earth Charter more and more visible and relevant to the growing movement for a sustainable world. This meeting of people from diverse cultures, generations, professions, religions, and countries was marked by enthusiasm and a vitality that ensures that the Earth Charter Initiative will continue to reach farther, and higher. This report, written by Wendy Harcourt (editor of the journal Development) and beautifully designed by Adriana Molina (staff designer at UPEACE), captures the entirety of the conference with summaries, quotes, and images. Download it online at www.earthcharter.org. 2. Kamla Chowdhry, Earth Charter Commissioner from India, is deceased - but her legacy lives on India, 4 January 2006. It is with great sadness that we report that Kamla Chowdhry passed away. She was a great human being, a friend to many, and a tireless Earth Charter Commissioner. In her advanced age, she traveled the world in support of the Earth Charter and its ideals; and it appears her last such international trip was to participate in EC+5, where she made important contributions to the discussions about the Transition and the future of the Initiative. We will certainly miss her. We are planning a web-based memorial site; please send remembrances of Kamla to info at earthcharter.org 3. The Transition begins, with a focus on planning, designing, reorganizing, and capacity building Sweden and Costa Rica, January 2006. On January 1, the Earth Charter Initiative began the process of implementing the decision taken by the Steering Committee to launch a "Transition to Phase 3" -- to expand and restructure the Earth Charter Initiative. Alan AtKisson began working as the International Transition Director out of his office in Stockholm, Sweden. He also spent several days in Costa Rica with the Staff of the new Earth Charter Center for Education for Sustainable Development at UPEACE ("The Earth Charter Center for ESD", for short). He and Center Director Mirian Vilela worked on organizational and strategic planning with the whole staff, supported also by Steering Committee member Rick Clugston. Many things are happening all at once, from building a new International Council to the development of new websites ... so we ask your patience! You can follow the progress of the Transition through a new "blog" (web log), http://earthcharter.blogs.com/transition. 4. Earth Charter Initiative to collaborate with ICLEI World Congress Capetown, February 2006. The ICLEI World Congress happens once every three years, and is one of the world's pre-eminent events in the field of local and regional sustainability. ECI will be facilitating a session on educating and mobilizing local communities for sustainability, using the Earth Charter directly as well as other methods that are in harmony with the Charter. ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability has long been an important partner and Earth Charter Endorser; in fact, the Earth Charter has been written directly into ICLEI's constitution. Konrad Otto-Zimmerman (Secretary-General of ICLEI) ran the Local Communities session at EC+5, and Alan AtKisson (ECI International Transition Director) will lead the session in Capetown. We expect our working partnership with ICLEI to continue to grow. For information on the Congress, visit www.iclei.org. 5. Imperial College London to host Earth Charter seminar on "The Value of Values" London, March 2006. A special small-scale, invitational seminar will be held in London in March to address the role of global ethics in both sustainable development policy and in business. Participants will be leaders in government, business, and civil society in the UK; speakers will include Earth Charter Commissioners HRH Princess Basma Bint Talal and Ruud Lubbers, as well as Alexander Likhotal of Green Cross International, Herman Mulder of ABN AMRO Bank and UK-based sustainability expert John Elkington, The event will be filmed, and the results are expected to be made available in report and video form. And More ... 6. Portugal's Ministry of Education has adopted and translated the Earth Charter Guidebook for Teachers, and is disseminating it in the country. 7. The Earth Charter in Action book will soon be available on-line, for free download, as well as for sale. Watch for news at our website. 8. The staff of the Earth Charter Center in Costa Rica will travel to Stockholm, Sweden to attend (pro bono) an intensive training session on 12-15 February in Stockholm, offered by Alan AtKisson's consulting group. Afterward, staff will continue Transition planning in Stockholm. 9. Nordic Earth Charter organizers will meet in Oslo on 17 February, and Green Cross Sweden will focus its annual meeting on The Earth Charter in Action, on 25 March in the city of Åre (which has formally endorsed the Charter). Speaking at the event will be Oscar Motomura from the business sector (Brazil), and Oren Lyons, the indigenous leader of the Onandaga nation (located in North America), among others. 10. The French nonprofit Association Pour la Terre has produced three CDs with songs and music by major international artists dedicated to the Earth Charter Principles and the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. More information. See an article from the San Francisco Chronicle here. 11. Earth Charter Commissioner Wangari Maathai to visit Tampa on 23 March, sponsored by Earth Charter Communities USA (ECCUSA) and the University of South Florida Patel Center for Global Solutions. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: attf43ec.gif Type: image/gif Size: 4828 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: attf43ed.gif Type: image/gif Size: 9021 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: attf43fd.gif Type: image/gif Size: 10966 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: attf43fe.gif Type: image/gif Size: 8651 bytes Desc: not available URL: From a_lang at bellsouth.net Wed Feb 8 11:52:47 2006 From: a_lang at bellsouth.net (a_lang at bellsouth.net) Date: Wed, 8 Feb 2006 10:52:47 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work In-Reply-To: <7.0.1.0.2.20060208082456.032cb190@comcast.net> Message-ID: <20060208155257.FLSQ23047.ibm69aec.bellsouth.net@atlantazlfh0ie> Friends: I suppose I am the least political Friend I know among us here in Atlanta, but I wanted to thank Friend Free for passing this information on to us. I am forwarding this on to Gwinnett Friends, who just recently have been discussing and studying Friends’ testimonies. I simply wish to remind Friends that the treatment of all prisoners and conditions of prisons themselves was historically a very real and active Quaker concern. Some even gave their lives to visit prisons and decry the conditions. I don’t see that this is any different. I pray we now heavily weigh in the Light the fact Christ demands we treat and love others as we would like to be treated and loved ourselves (on this hang all the law and the prophets), and forget all political battles that could be offshoots of this concern, and unite in working to change hearts so that torture is condemned, no matter who is being tortured. Scott King Gwinnett Friends Preparative Meeting _____ From: free polazzo [mailto:freepolazzo at comcast.net] Sent: Wednesday, February 08, 2006 9:40 AM To: sayma at kitenet.net; Atlanta Friends Meeting; jewishfriends at googlegroups.com Cc: calvij at sover.net; Chuck Faeger Subject: fwd: Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work Dear Friends, This is not a pleasant topic. I don't like having to raise it with you. My choice would be for this not to be an issue that is so close to home. Yet there is very little discussion in the media about this topic and if Friends don't take this up, then who? We have heard about the conference, organized by Friend John Calvi of Vermont, "Quaker Initiative to End Torture (QUIT) scheduled to meet in Greensboro, NC June 2-4 at Guilford College http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebAbout.html . It appears that it is needed even more than I had previously thought. There was a much heralded law recently passed by the US Congress and signed with much publicity which purported to outlaw torture by the American government and military. Senator John McCain's leadership was instrumental in getting it passed. Under closer scrutiny, the law as passed may have been a hollow victory. I learned by reading the following article by Tom Englehard (aka Tom Dispatch) how the new law may be just be smoke and mirrors which will not end the practice of torture by our government. There are too many loopholes and not enough accountability for those who order the horrific acts "to preserve our freedom". While our SAYMA Yearly Meeting won't meet in time to support QUIT, Memphis Monthly Meeting has a minute on the QUIT website that other monthly meetings in SAYMA could use to draw up their own. The QUIT website has more minutes, too. See http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebEndorse.html . Of course, SAYMA representative meeting does meet in Birmingham this spring and perhaps someone will see way open to present a minute at that meeting. Blessings, Free "No one is free until all are free." NOTE: Some of you may be on more than one list and I apologize for the multiple mailings one day, a tool will be developed to do away with "duplicates" that one receives from well meaning e mail senders). Date: Wed, 8 Feb 2006 00:53:53 -0500 From: "TomDispatch" To: "free polazzo" a project of the Nation Institute To send this to a friend, or to read more dispatches, go to tomdispatch.com Tomdispatch: Alfred McCoy on How Not to Ban Torture in Congress Alfred McCoy, an expert on the CIA and its history of torture, has some actual news -- the sort that's been sitting unnoticed right in front of our collective, reportorial eyes. Last year's clash between John McCain and the Bush administration over the senator's successful attempt to attach a ban on torture and other abusive interrogation techniques to the Defense Appropriations Bill was heavily reported. After all, it was a heroic tale of a man -- himself tortured pitilessly earlier in his life -- who held off the powers-that-be, rejected their attempts to amend his ban, and finally triumphed by a handy margin in Congress. The ban, now in place, is the law. End of story. Only one problem, reality turns out to lurk in the fine print -– and the McCain amendment has some striking fine print that mainstream reporters failed to attend to; in fact, McCoy tells us, it has a loophole big enough to absolve torturers of their acts and, in combination with an amendment by Senator ! Lindsey Graham, drive testimony obtained by torture directly into our courts. I would call that news. While the torture debate is somewhat in abeyance in the United States right now, it continues in Europe. There, a major scandal brews over the ways in which Eastern European countries were used as CIA secret prison sites, European citizens and others were kidnapped from European soil, and CIA "extraordinary rendition" flights used European air space and airports. All this, by the way, seems to have happened with the support of various European intelligence services which, by the evidence, may work as much for the Bush administration as for their own governments. The Council of Europe has deputized Swiss prosecutor Dick Marty to conduct an extensive investigation of both alleged CIA "black" sites and Agency rendition flights. His preliminary report to the Council on January 22 concluded, albeit tentatively, that six Agency aircraft had, since 2001, made 800 rendition flights -- a level of covert activity far beyond anything reported in the U.S. press. Marty is under significant pressure to get to the bottom of this scandal, which may end up producing more torture headlines on both sides of the Atlantic. Moreover, various American media outlets continue to investigate the torture story, insuring occasional bombshells like ABC TV's sensational November 18 story detailing CIA "waterboarding" techniques and its December 5 exposé of the locations of secret CIA prisons in Poland and Romania. Finally, it's well known that only those in the lowest ranks of the military are being held in any way accountable for torture practices mandated from the top and overseen by top civilian, military, and intelligence officials. Even at the lowest levels, accountability has proved, at best, a moving target, as is clear from the most recent torture case tried in this country. After Iraqi Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush voluntarily surrendered in November 2003, he was tortured with rubber hoses by "Iraqi nationals, reportedly in the employ of the CIA," while Chief Warrant Officer Lewis E. Welshofer Jr., 43, of the U.S. Army looked on. Mowhoush then suffered other mistreatment before he fell into Welshofer's waiting hands. Welshofer has since used the Nuremberg defense -- that he was just following orders in coming up with "creative interrogation techniques"! to make Mowhoush talk –- to explain his subsequent actions. He forced Mowhoush, face-first, into a sleeping bag, wrapped him in electrical wire, and sat on the 57-year old prisoner's chest. After twenty minutes, Mowhoush was dead. Recently, Welshofer faced American military justice for his crimes. While tried on murder charges, he was convicted only of the lesser counts of negligent homicide and dereliction of duty. These still carried a maximum three-year prison sentence and dismissal from the service (which would have denied him his pension). In the end, however, a military jury sentenced Welshofer to no prison time and only a formal reprimand. He was given 60 days restriction to his home, office, and church; and a forfeiture of $6,000 -- apparently the going rate for an Iraqi life. No one in our self-professed "no-torture" administration thought this worth a comment. The American Empire Project series I co-edit has just published McCoy's newest book, A Question of Torture: CIA Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror. I can testify that, while the book's focus is grim indeed -- a half-century-plus history of CIA torture research and how it was applied globally -- it is also, simply put, riveting to read. It offers a window into an almost unknown world that we ignore at our peril. I could not recommend it to all of you more strongly. To get a taste of its early sections, check out McCoy's previous Tomdispatch piece (from which the book developed) or read a Buzzflash review of the book. Tom Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work The Bush Legacy of Legalized Torture By Alfred W. McCoy Click here to read more of this dispatch. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From calvij at sover.net Wed Feb 8 12:05:47 2006 From: calvij at sover.net (John Calvi) Date: Wed, 08 Feb 2006 11:05:47 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work In-Reply-To: <7.0.1.0.2.20060208082456.032cb190@comcast.net> Message-ID: Dear Free and All, Thanks for your letter. Good to hear from you and receive your support for the QUIT June conference. Not only will the McCain law fail to end torture. Several other domestic and international laws are simply being ignored. The end to torture rests in the heartland, not Washington. Torture has never been legal in the US. Jennifer Harbury, keynote speaker for the QUIT conference, has detailed the legal aspects in her book, ³Truth, Torture, and the American Way². A brief history of American torture can be read and downloaded for reprinting in pamphlet #3 from Historians Against the War website- wrote: > Dear Friends, > > This is not a pleasant topic. I don't like having to raise it with you. > My choice would be for this not to be an issue that is so close to home. > Yet there is very little discussion in the media about this topic and if > Friends don't take this up, then who? > > We have heard about the conference, organized by Friend John Calvi of Vermont, > "Quaker Initiative to End Torture (QUIT) scheduled to meet in Greensboro, NC > June 2-4 at Guilford College > http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebAbout.html . It appears that it > is needed even more than I had previously thought. > > There was a much heralded law recently passed by the US Congress and signed > with much publicity which purported to outlaw torture by the American > government and military. Senator John McCain's leadership was instrumental > in getting it passed. Under closer scrutiny, the law as passed may have > been a hollow victory. > > I learned by reading the following article by Tom Englehard (aka Tom > Dispatch) how the new law may be just be smoke and mirrors which will not end > the practice of torture by our government. There are too many loopholes and > not enough accountability for those who order the horrific acts "to preserve > our freedom". > > While our SAYMA Yearly Meeting won't meet in time to support QUIT, Memphis > Monthly Meeting has a minute on the QUIT website that other monthly meetings > in SAYMA could use to draw up their own. The QUIT website has more minutes, > too. See http://www.quit-torture-now.org/Pages/QuitWebEndorse.html . Of > course, SAYMA representative meeting does meet in Birmingham this spring and > perhaps someone will see way open to present a minute at that meeting. > > Blessings, > > Free > > "No one is free until all are free." > > NOTE: Some of you may be on more than one list and I apologize for the > multiple mailings one day, a tool will be developed to do away with > "duplicates" that one receives from well meaning e mail senders). > > >> Date: Wed, 8 Feb 2006 00:53:53 -0500 >> From: "TomDispatch" >> To: "free polazzo" >> >> >> >> a project of the Nation Institute >> >> To send this to a friend, or to read more dispatches, go to tomdispatch.com >> >> >> Tomdispatch: Alfred McCoy on How Not to Ban Torture in Congress >> >> >> Alfred McCoy, an expert on the CIA and its history of torture, has some >> actual news -- the sort that's been sitting unnoticed right in front of our >> collective, reportorial eyes. Last year's clash between John McCain and the >> Bush administration over the senator's successful attempt to attach a ban on >> torture and other abusive interrogation techniques to the Defense >> Appropriations Bill was heavily reported. After all, it was a heroic tale of >> a man -- himself tortured pitilessly earlier in his life -- who held off the >> powers-that-be, rejected their attempts to amend his ban, and finally >> triumphed by a handy margin in Congress. The ban, now in place, is the law. >> End of story. Only one problem, reality turns out to lurk in the fine print >> -– and the McCain amendment has some striking fine print that mainstream >> reporters failed to attend to; in fact, McCoy tells us, it has a loophole big >> enough to absolve torturers of their acts and, in combination with an >> amendment by Senator ! Lindsey Graham, drive testimony obtained by torture >> directly into our courts. I would call that news. >> >> While the torture debate is somewhat in abeyance in the United States right >> now, it continues in Europe. There, a major scandal brews over the ways in >> which Eastern European countries were used as CIA secret prison sites, >> European citizens and others were kidnapped from European soil, and CIA >> "extraordinary rendition" flights used European air space and airports. All >> this, by the way, seems to have happened with the support of various European >> intelligence services which, by the evidence, may work as much for the Bush >> administration as for their own governments. >> >> The Council of Europe has deputized Swiss prosecutor Dick Marty to conduct an >> extensive investigation of both alleged CIA "black" sites and Agency >> rendition flights. His preliminary report to the Council on January 22 >> concluded, albeit tentatively, that six Agency aircraft had, since 2001, made >> 800 rendition flights -- a level of covert activity far beyond anything >> reported in the U.S. press. Marty is under significant pressure >> to get to the bottom >> of this scandal, which may end up producing more torture headlines on both >> sides of the Atlantic. Moreover, various American media outlets continue to >> investigate the torture story, insuring occasional bombshells like ABC TV's >> sensational November 18 story detailing CIA "waterboarding" >> techniques and >> its December 5 exposé of the locations >> of secret CIA >> prisons in Poland and Romania. >> >> Finally, it's well known that only those in the lowest ranks of the military >> are being held in any way accountable for torture practices mandated from the >> top and overseen by top civilian, military, and intelligence officials. Even >> at the lowest levels, accountability has proved, at best, a moving target, as >> is clear from the most recent torture case tried in this country. After Iraqi >> Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush voluntarily surrendered in November 2003, he >> was tortured with rubber hoses by "Iraqi nationals >> > 66865.story?coll=la-home-nation> , reportedly in the employ of the CIA," >> while Chief Warrant Officer Lewis E. Welshofer Jr., 43, of the U.S. Army >> looked on. Mowhoush then suffered other mistreatment before he fell into >> Welshofer's waiting hands. Welshofer has since used the Nuremberg defense -- >> that he was just following orders in coming up with "creative interrogation >> techniques"! to make Mowhoush talk –- to explain his subsequent actions. He >> forced Mowhoush, face-first, into a sleeping bag, wrapped him in electrical >> wire, and sat on the 57-year old prisoner's chest. After twenty minutes, >> Mowhoush was dead. >> >> Recently, Welshofer faced American military justice for his crimes. While >> tried on murder charges, he was convicted only of the lesser counts of >> negligent homicide and dereliction of duty. These still carried a maximum >> three-year prison sentence and dismissal from the service (which would have >> denied him his pension). In the end, however, a military jury sentenced >> Welshofer to no prison time and only a formal reprimand. He was given 60 days >> restriction to his home, office, and church; and a forfeiture of $6,000 -- >> apparently the going rate for an Iraqi life. No one in our self-professed >> "no-torture" administration thought this worth a comment. >> >> The American Empire Project series I >> co-edit has just published McCoy's newest book, A Question of Torture: CIA >> Interrogation, from the Cold War to the War on Terror >> . I can >> testify that, while the book's focus is grim indeed -- a half-century-plus >> history of CIA torture research and how it was applied globally -- it is >> also, simply put, riveting to read. It offers a window into an almost unknown >> world that we ignore at our peril. I could not recommend it to all of you >> more strongly. To get a taste of its early sections, check out McCoy's >> previous Tomdispatch piece >> (from which the >> book developed) or read a Buzzflash review >> of the book. Tom >> >> >> Why the McCain Torture Ban Won't Work >> >> > The Bush Legacy of Legalized Torture > By Alfred W. McCoy > > Click here to read more of this dispatch. > > > > John Calvi calvij at sover.net 802/387-4789 PO Box 301 Putney VT 05346 USA www.johncalvi.com www.quit-torture-now.org -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From moriah at preferred.com Thu Feb 9 23:29:52 2006 From: moriah at preferred.com (Mary Calhoun) Date: Thu, 9 Feb 2006 22:29:52 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] IMP^o^ 199 some useful e-addresses Message-ID: <02c201c62df2$4c390a60$0100007f@SAYMA> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IMP ^o^ Bulletin 199 Some useful e-mail addresses... ...for reaching SAYMA appointees... ------------------------------------------------ ...via www.sayma.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ from the Administrative Assistant please share with your meeting or worship group -- thanks! <|> Three SAYMA committees at present have -- indeed, rely on -- fairly regular communication with individual meetings. There's an easy way to reach the clerks of these committees by e-mail: a.. Faith & Practice Revision Committee, FaithAndPractice at sayma.org b.. Finance Committee, Finance at sayma.org c.. Ad Hoc Electronic Communications Committee, e-Communication at sayma.org <|> Meetings, worship groups, and individuals might also need to reach, from time to time: a.. Treasurer at sayma.org (...where to mail a check?) b.. Southern Appalachian Friend newsletter editors SAFeditor at sayma.org ("editor" singular) c.. Clerk at sayma.org d.. WebMaster at sayma.org <|> There are other addresses like these, forwarding messages through SAYMA's website. For more information contact AdminAssist at sayma.org. ~~~~~~ end ^o^ ~~~~~~ 1stpost 020906 ~~~~~~ _______________________________________ IMP ^o^ ... "Information Made Present" is a bulletin service of the SAYMA office to provide practical details to our geographically-challenged Yearly Meeting via our list-server: semi-official information, bulletins that you can print, post, announce, publish, or pass around. Please address questions, corrections and additions to AdminAsst at sayma.org, 276-628-5852 (machine; in-person Tu/Th 5-7:30p), or SAYMA Admin Asst, PO Box 2191, Abingdon, VA 24212-2191. Thank you! ^o^ ----------------------------------------------------- To receive IMP^o^ bulletins, subscribe to the list server, sayma at kitenet.net. You can subscribe on the web at http://kitenet.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sayma. ----------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From pennywright at earthlink.net Fri Feb 10 17:58:32 2006 From: pennywright at earthlink.net (Penelope Wright) Date: Fri, 10 Feb 2006 15:58:32 -0600 Subject: [saymaListserv] To be held in the Light- Elizabeth Watson Message-ID: <003e01c62e8d$2f4930b0$76461342@user2ih5nie4yp> Friends, I forward this with great sadness, except that Elizabeth would not take kindly to anything but our remembering her ith joy and gratitude for all the gifts she was given and shared with us. This news makes all the sweeter her presence at the first Elizabeth Watson lecture at the Gathering this past summer. Penelope Wright ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Calvi" To: "John Calvi" Sent: Friday, February 10, 2006 3:36 PM Subject: To be held in the Light- Elizabeth Watson > My Dear Friends, > > It is with great tenderness I write to ask your prayers for Elizabeth Watson > who seems to have begun her departure. I spoke with her daughter Carol > today. Not long after Elizabeth had her 92nd birthday January 7, she had a > slight fall. Since that time a decline in energy, awareness, and wellness > has brought nursing help into George and Elizabeth's home in Mpls. Carol > has permitted me to write and ask that Elizabeth & George and their family > be held in the Light for a smooth passing, likely in the next weeks. George > and Elizabeth have now been together 68.5 years. One can imagine that > leaving has no ease for anyone with so many years of love. This great > Quaker feminist theologian author shed a great deal of Light in her long > life. We hold her now in our hearts that her being will be washed of worry, > pain, and struggle. And that all the compassion she shared is surrounding > her now from our hearts to hers. > In the Light, > John Calvi > > John Calvi > calvij at sover.net > 802/387-4789 > PO Box 301 > Putney VT 05346 USA > www.johncalvi.com > www.quit-torture-now.org > > > From moriah at preferred.com Fri Feb 10 23:31:33 2006 From: moriah at preferred.com (Mary Calhoun) Date: Fri, 10 Feb 2006 22:31:33 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] viaYMaa>> '06 FGC Gathering Message-ID: <000201c62ed8$caa432d0$a5657642@SAYMA> Received in the SAYMA office from Friends General Conference (FGC)... ...more info available at 800# and website at bottom of message. ______________________________ Greetings from the Gathering Committee for the 2006 Friends General Conference Gathering of Friends! We feel privileged to be able to share with you this e-mail message about this historic 2006 Gathering. We have felt Spirit ever-present with us as we have prayed and planned to bring the Gathering week of worship, workshops, programs and community for the first time to the western part of the U.S. We will gather, God willing, July 1-7 at Pacific Lutheran University in Washington State near the Puget Sound. Our planning meetings in the breathtakingly beautiful Pacific Northwest have given us an understanding of the unique opportunities this location offers for Friends from both the eastern and western parts of the U.S. and Canada. For eastern U.S. and Canadian Friends, travel to this year?s Gathering makes such nearby destinations as Mount Rainier National Park also readily accessible. For western U.S. and Canadian Friends, Gathering participation won't require the cross-country travel that has often been necessary. Friends who come to the Gathering at PLU can expect an unusual blend of eastern and western Quakers! On March 1, Friends can see ?06 Gathering details in the Advance Program at www.fgcquaker.org. and can begin registering for the Gathering on that date. We are encouraging Friends to use on-line registration. Real-time confirmation of your workshop choice will begin on March 1. Also, the Gathering may reach capacity before published deadlines are reached and registration will be closed when programs are full. Printed copies of the Advance Program are being sent to meetings in North America, scheduled to arrive in Friends? homes not later than March 15. We look forward to welcoming long-time and first-time FGC Gathering attenders from east, south, middle, north and west as together we create the familiar and well-loved Gathering community in this historic new setting. We especially look forward to greeting you! FRIENDS GENERAL CONFERENCE http://www.fgcquaker.org/ 1216 Arch St., Ste 2B, Philadelphia, PA 19107. Toll-free: 800-966-4556. __________________________________________________ mc\aa -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From moriah at preferred.com Fri Feb 10 23:17:42 2006 From: moriah at preferred.com (Mary Calhoun) Date: Fri, 10 Feb 2006 22:17:42 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] viaYMaa>> workcamps/Africa/Fr Peace Teams Message-ID: <000101c62ed8$ca36a3f0$a5657642@SAYMA> Received in the SAYMA office from Friends Peace Teams.... ....more info available at website and e-mail addresses below. Dear SAYMA, Below is an announcement about our summer workcamps in Africa. AGLI is a Quaker organization, however workcampers are not required to be members. and we welcome persons of all ages. We would be most grateful if you would share this information widely among SAYMA Friends. Please contact me with any questions. Flyers available on request. Working Peacefully, Dawn Dawn L. Rubbert, Program Manager African Great Lakes Initiative 8409 Winzenburg Drive St. Louis, MO 63117 314-647-1287 Dawn at aglionline.org http://www.aglionline.org No society that feeds its children on tales of successful violence can expect them not to believe that violence in the end is rewarded. -Margaret Mead, anthropologist (1901-1978) The African Great Lakes Initiative (AGLI) a project of Friends Peace Teams is sponsoring international workcamps in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. A two-day pre-service training begins on June 23 near Washington DC. Workcampers fly to Africa on June 24 and return to the US on July 29. Workcampers will assist with building or rebuilding homes, clinics and/or schools. Visit our website at http://www.aglionline.org or... Contact Dawn Rubbert, Program Coordinator ? dawn at aglionline.org. __________________________________________________ mc\aa -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: hpbanner.gif Type: image/gif Size: 25630 bytes Desc: not available URL: From nc_stereoman at charter.net Fri Feb 17 16:01:42 2006 From: nc_stereoman at charter.net (Steve Livingston) Date: Fri, 17 Feb 2006 15:01:42 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] a secret fund Message-ID: <43F62BA6.3030406@charter.net> Dear Friends, Our Meeting maintains a small fund for the purpose of supporting a Friend who might suddenly be in dire need of economic relief. We are currently considering how this fund would best be administered, in view of the likelihood that the utmost of discretion might be required, while at the same time being mindful of proper accounting procedures. I wonder if other Meetings have such a fund, and if you would be willing to share how you have resolved the tension between the needy Friend's right to privacy concerning the nature or specifics of their need, and the accounting requirements placed upon a Meeting because it is a non-profit corporation. Steve From kuenning-licia at voicenet.com Mon Feb 20 20:44:00 2006 From: kuenning-licia at voicenet.com (Licia Kuenning) Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2006 19:44 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] 2005 Minute Book wanted Message-ID: <20060221004017.11415.qmail@mail21.voicenet.com> Friends, I would like to obtain your most recently printed Minute Book for the y.m.--if there are copies available. How would I go about ordering a copy? Please drop me a note off-list or mail the book itself to me at 299 High St., Farmington, ME 04938-1732. Of course I will pay whatever is the usual charge for the book, plus postage. Thanks, Licia Kuenning klee at megalink.net licia at qhpress.org http://www.megalink.net/~klee http://www.qhpress.org From bonnipeg at charter.net Tue Feb 21 23:07:40 2006 From: bonnipeg at charter.net (Peggy Bonnington) Date: 22 Feb 2006 03:07:40 -0000 Subject: [saymaListserv] Your Contact Info Message-ID: <1140577660.8648.10868.sendUpdate@mx.plaxo.com> Greetings, SAYMA, We've just installed a new computer, and I'm trying to get my address book updated. I hope you'll take a moment to help me by sending your latest contact info. If you're not already using PLAXO, you might want to know how helpful they are at a time like this! Click the following link to correct or confirm your information: https://www.plaxo.com/edit_contact_info?r=25770240573-58704424-559860885 Name: SAYMA Job Title: Company: Work E-mail: sayma at kitenet.net Work Phone: Work Fax: Work Address Line 1: Work Address Line 2: Work City, State, Zip: Mobile Phone: Home E-mail: Home Phone: Home Fax: Home Address Line 1: Home Address Line 2: Home City, State, Zip: Birthday: P.S. I've included my current contact information below. I've also attached a copy as a vCard. +----------------- | Peggy Bonnington | bonnipeg at charter.net | President | | Downtown Artists Co-op | PO Box 754 | Clarksville, TN 37041-0754 OR: | 96 Franklin Street Clarksville TN 37040 | mobile: 931-216-0830 | web: http://www.clarksvilleartists.org | | Personal Information: | PegFolly Arts | 1451 Zinc Plant Road | Clarksville TN 37040 | home: 931-647-9284 | mobile: 931-216-0830 | web: http://www.picturetrail.com/pegfollyarts | e-mail: bonnipeg at charter.net +------------------------------------- ____________________________________________________________ This message was sent to you by bonnipeg at charter.net via Plaxo. To opt out: https://www.plaxo.com/opt_out?r=25770240573-58704424-559860885 Plaxo's Privacy Policy: http://www.plaxo.com/support/privacy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Peggy Bonnington.vcf Type: text/x-vcard Size: 729 bytes Desc: not available URL: From c.vmbra at verizon.net Wed Feb 22 09:58:03 2006 From: c.vmbra at verizon.net (Charles Schade) Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2006 08:58:03 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] An informative blog Message-ID: <000e01c637b8$00c49070$2f01a8c0@cpschade> This is an endorsement and referral to the Web presence of the West Virginia Economic Justice project. The web log can be found at: http://www.goatrope.blogspot.com/ The author is longtime AFSC staffer Rick Wilson, who speaks truth to power both with literary style and scriptural authority. I'm posting it for SAYMA friends because many of the concerns that affect West Virginia are common to the entire region. Rick is also an occasional op-ed columnist for the Charleston Gazette. His West Virginia Economic Justice Project annual reports are legendary. cps -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From jhminshall at comcast.net Wed Feb 22 17:24:35 2006 From: jhminshall at comcast.net (Janet Minshall) Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2006 16:24:35 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] An informative blog In-Reply-To: <001f01c637d7$1d926eb0$2f01a8c0@cpschade> References: <000e01c637b8$00c49070$2f01a8c0@cpschade> <7.0.1.0.2.20060222111019.022808d0@comcast.net> <001f01c637d7$1d926eb0$2f01a8c0@cpschade> Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20060222155347.022706e0@comcast.net> Dear SAYMA Friends, I have had an interchange with a member of SAYMA from West Virginia today which I thought might interest any of you who read his forward of a blog from Rick Wilson (AFSC) about work he is doing in West Virginia. As usual, anyone is welcome to comment. Janet Hi Again Charles Schade, I may be picky but it seems to me that if Rick Wilson knew about SS and Medicare benefits and did not say anything in his public utterances, that comes uncomfortably close to an untruth or a misrepresentation (whichever you prefer to call it). I really react strongly against "spokespersons" who tailor their messages to imply things that are not true -- i.e. that the widow now has no support, or even that she has less support than she had before the company pension benefits ran out. In truth she actually has more support and benefits after the SS and Medicare kick in even without the pension. I try not to engage in "Doublespeak" and am grateful to Orwell for the terminology. (If you wish to send this on to Rick Wilson and AFSC please feel free to do so.) Janet Minshall Janet wrote earlier today: > > > > Hi Again, Charles Schade, I read the first two issues of Goat Rope Walk > > and my opinion of AFSC's poor understanding of what is going on in > > the real world was reinforced. Rick Wilson apparently doesn't even > > know that the reason many pensions and disability benefits disappear > > as a person gets into their sixties is that federally funded Social > > Security kicks in automatically at that point ( a widow is > > automatically eligible to collect her husband's SS benefits ) and that is > > usually superior to private disabily and bereavement benefits. One > > also becomes automatically eligible for Medicare benefits, which, > > while under attack by the current Republican administration, is far > > superior to Medicaid benefits. The reason I know about these issues > > is that I went through the transition myself (I am 66 years old), and > > have much better coverage and income now than before. Anyone > > working in the community as a community organizer, which I did for > > nearly 35 years, would know this. Why is it that Rick Wilson does > > not know this? Best Regards, Janet Minshall > > > > > > > > > > At 08:58 AM 2/22/2006, Charles Schade wrote: > > >This is an endorsement and referral to the Web presence of the West > > >Virginia Economic Justice project. The web log can be found at: > > > > > >http://www.goatrope.blogspot.com/ > > > > > >The author is longtime AFSC staffer Rick Wilson, who speaks truth to > > >power both with literary style and scriptural authority. I'm > > >posting it for SAYMA friends because many of the concerns that > > >affect West Virginia are common to the entire region. Rick is also > > >an occasional op-ed columnist for the Charleston Gazette. His West > > >Virginia Economic Justice Project annual reports are legendary. > > > > > >cps > > >_______________________________________________ > > >Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting and Association list-server: > > >-- address to subscribe (get on the list-server) or unsubscribe (get > > >off): http://kitenet.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sayma > > >-- address to send message to everyone on list: sayma at kitenet.net > > At 12:40 PM 2/22/2006, Charles Schade wrote: >That's true, but the question was, what does West Virginia law say, and why >might it say it? > >West Virginia law awards comp benefits to a widow for life. I suspect one >reason it does so is that in the past underground coal miners made rather >poor wages and Social Security benefits might not have been much. That's my >opinion, but I was not here when the law was passed. On a more practical >note, as I think Rick points out, the alternative would be lawsuits from >widows. Given the not-too-sterling record of concern for employees on the >part of companies that create widows, the employers would likely come out a >whole lot worse in that instance. The workers' comp law actually protects >employers, but they seem to want it both ways. Full protection and minimal >payouts for worker deaths. Nice if you can get it. > >If you would like to engage Rick in discussion, there are numerous places to >post comments on the blog. > >cps From pennywright at earthlink.net Wed Feb 22 22:41:07 2006 From: pennywright at earthlink.net (Penelope Wright) Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2006 20:41:07 -0600 Subject: [saymaListserv] GOOD NEWS from Hibbard Thatcher Message-ID: <000e01c63822$a6e35e40$a2471342@user2ih5nie4yp> Dear Friends, Some really good news about Hibbard. He had a little set back last week, due to more sedation than was called for, but he has made a great recovery and now moved to rehab for more intensive physical therapy and respiratory therapy. Penelope Hibbard was moved this afternoon to Select Specialty Hospital, room 4515, which is on the fourth floor of Baptist Rehabilitation Hospital. While he still tires easily, he is much more able to speak, and his nurse said visitors are very welcome (but no flowers or plants in the facility). For those of you in the Nashville area, please drop in and visit Hibbard if you can. He would benefit from the stimulation of your visits! He will also be getting much more physical therapy than he did at St. Thomas. He is still completing the 6-8 week course of antibiotics to make sure the MRSA is completely eradicated, so you should use the gel hand wash on the wall outside his room before and after visiting with him, unless the nurse says it is unnecessary. Hibbard is still a little confused about time and place, which is extremely common for someone who has spent 5 weeks in intensive care. However, the longer you visit, the more alert and "with it" he becomes. How to get there from South Nashville: 1. take 21st Ave South through Vanderbilt area 2. RIGHT onto Division Street when 21st and Division split 3. first LEFT onto 20th Ave South 4. continue a couple of blocks on 20th Ave and cross over West End Avenue 5. first LEFT at stop sign after West End Avenue, onto Hayes Street 6. the red brick building on your right is Baptist Rehabilitation Hospital, but continue about half a block and take RIGHT directly into the "Plaza 1 and 2" Parking Garage, which is free but very tight. 7. take elevator to level 1, where you can walk across the open area to the entrance of Baptist Rehabilitation Hospital (red brick building), or if it's raining, you can use doors inside the parking garage to go around through the Plaza buildings. 8. once in Baptist Rehab, take elevator to 4th floor and follow corridor to room 4515. I have taped many cards and pictures on the wall of Hibbard's room, and there are several more here at the house that I will take in tomorrow. If you want to send a card or letter ONLY, the following address should work: Hibbard Thatcher c/o Select Specialty Hospital Room 4515 2021 Church Street Nashville, TN 37203-2016 Thanks again for your thoughts, prayers, and support. Please continue to hold Hibbard in the light. For the family, Jonathan Thatcher -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From pennywright at earthlink.net Thu Feb 23 11:01:33 2006 From: pennywright at earthlink.net (Penelope Wright) Date: Thu, 23 Feb 2006 09:01:33 -0600 Subject: [saymaListserv] Memorial for Nelson Fuson in Nashville Message-ID: <012f01c6388a$19824d50$8b7ed942@user2ih5nie4yp> Dear Friends, Under the care of Nashville Monthly Meeting, a meeting for worship in memory of Nelson Fuson will be held Saturday, March 18, 2006 at 1:00 PM at the meeting house. 530 26th Avenue North Nashville, TN 37209 www.nashvillefriendsmeeting.org Please contact Dan Fuson at 615-661-6634 or danmfuson at comcast.net if you plan to attend. We anticipate a large turn out and need to have a sense of how many might be attending in order to plan for food, parking and seating. On behalf of Nshville Monthly Meeting and the Fuson Family, Penelope Wright Below please find an obituary for Nelson. C. NELSON FUSON 1913 -- 2006 Nelson Fuson passed away peacefully, Sunday, February 5, 2006 at Kendal-at-Longwood, Kennett Square, PA, a Quaker retirement center. Nelson was born on September 4, 1913, in Guang-zhou, (Canton) China, to American Presbyterian missionaries, Chester and Phebe Fuson. Nelson learned to speak both English and Chinese (Cantonese) as a child. He spent most of his first 15 years in China, returning to Emporia, Kansas, U.S.A., with his family on furlough years at 3 and 9 years if age. He attended grade school in Canton and the first two years of high school in Shanghai before returning, at age 15, to Emporia to complete high school, and to graduate from the College of Emporia in 1934. Nelson earned an M.A. in physics and astronomy at Kansas University in 1935 and a Ph.D. in physics at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, 1938. His doctoral thesis was on the far infrared spectrum of "heavy water" vapor (D2O). He then completed 3 years as an instructor in physics at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ when, in 1941, the U.S. became involved in World War II. Nelson, who was a pacifist because of his experiences in China, was drafted as a conscientious objector (CO) to military service. He worked for 4 ½ years as a CO in Civilian Public Service (CPS) at camps at Patapsco, Maryland, Goshen, IN, Big Flats, NY, and Trenton, ND, as well as for a semester at Columbia University, NYC (preparing for relief administration), several months at Pendle Hill, Pennsylvania, directing a CPS China Relief unit (which was blocked by a congressional military appropriations bill rider), and a final year in CPS "detached service" (doing infrared research on penicillin at the University of Michigan). Nelson and Marian Darnell were married on June 23, 1945, at the Moorestown, NJ, Friends Meeting. Finding the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) much more compatible to his religious seeking than the Presbyterian Church, Nelson soon joined Friends. Nelson and Marian first lived in Ann Arbor, MI. In 1946, when Nelson was released from CPS, they moved to Baltimore, MD, where Nelson did research on Infrared Detectors at Johns Hopkins University for 2 ½ years, then taught physics at Howard University in Washington, DC, for a year. In 1949 the family moved to Nashville, TN. Nelson became Chairman of the Physics Department at Fisk University, an historically African-American university. He chaired the physics department and directed the Infrared Spectroscopy research laboratory. The Fisk physics graduate students doing research in the infrared laboratory were very helpful in integrating the South-Eastern Section of the American Physical Society. Nelson, with his family lived in Bordeaux, France, 1956-59 while on sabbatical leave from Fisk University. During their first year there Nelson was doing research, the last two years teaching Infrared Spectroscopy (in French!) as a "Professeur Associe" on the Faculte des Sciences in Bordeaux. During these 3 years the family had a chance to see a good many countries in Europe. Nelson and Marian, Fisk students and other faculty families were very much involved in bringing about racial desegregation during the "sit-ins", "stand-ins", and "freedom-rides" in the South in the 1960s. Nelson directed the Fisk Infrared Institutes for over 28 years at Fisk University. This was a unique workshop that brought together scientists from all over the US and several foreign countries to study and learn about the about Infrared Spectroscopy and Gas Chromatography. In 1965, a Latin American Fisk Infrared Institute was held in San Paulo, Brazil. Nelson and Marian helped start a Friends Meeting in Nashville in 1963. Nelson served two years as Clerk of the newly formed Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting. He directed American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) International Student Seminars 5 summers, 4 in the US, and one in France. Nelson and Marian trained as facilitators for Couple Enrichment and led many such workshops at Friends General Conferences, or Friends Meetings during the 80's and 90's. They were the Resident Couple at Honolulu Friends Meeting, for two years, 1983-85, after retirement from Fisk. In 1998, Nelson and Marian left Nashville and Fisk University, and moved to Kendal-at-Longwood, Kennett Square, PA. Nelson did lots of volunteer work there the first three years, but in his later years his health problems limited his participation. Up to the very end he enjoyed singing in the Kendal Chorus and reading in Play Readers. He was predeceased by his older brother, Ben. He is survived by his younger brother, William (Richmond, IN). He is also survived by his wife, Marian (Kennett Square, PA), their older son, Allan, his wife, Sue and their daughter, Jessica (West Chester, OH), and their younger son Dan, his wife, Nancy, and their two sons, Matthew and Michael (Brentwood, TN). If you wish to make a gift in Nelson Fuson's name, these are his choices: . Fisk University . American Friends Service Committee . Kendal's Entry Fee Assistance Fund -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From Mmarjean at aol.com Sat Feb 25 12:36:42 2006 From: Mmarjean at aol.com (Mmarjean at aol.com) Date: Sat, 25 Feb 2006 11:36:42 EST Subject: [saymaListserv] Norman Kember by Ken Sehested Message-ID: <2b6.53ce75b.3131e19a@aol.com> Some of you (Memphis/Asheville) may know Ken Sehested who wrote this letter to his friend Norman Kember who is one of the captured CPT workers in Iraq. I keep running across folks who know Norman, through their work with Baptist Peace Fellowship. The letter is quite moving. Please continue to hold the team and their captors in the Light ...Kristi Estes Prisoners of Hope: A Letter to a Friend Norman Kember, member of a Christian Peacemaker Teams delegation to Iraq that was kidnapped 26 November. Their captors threatened to execute the group by 8 December, then extended the deadline to 10 December. That date passed without word of their fate. Norman is a retired medical physicist from London, England. Others in the group, which was investigating human rights violation in the country, are Canadians James Loney and Harmeet Sooden, along with Tom Fox from the U.S. The photo is from a video taken by their captors and aired on al-Jazeera television. For an overview of CPT?s work in Iraq: cpt.org/iraq/projectoverview.php. Download this letter as a PDF file. Prisoners of Hope Letter to a friend kidnapped in Iraq Ken Sehested I nearly gagged on my granola when I saw your name, about 10 paragraphs into a story summarizing the weekend?s violent episodes in Iraq. Having been among the references for your application to join the delegation, I knew, but had almost forgotten, you were there. The two-sentence account said that four ?humanitarian aid? workers in Iraq had been kidnapped, naming only you: Norman Kember. Earlier, during the phone interview with CPT staff checking your suitability for this trip to Iraq, I remember thinking: this will be a stretch for you. But then, being stretched is as integral to spiritual formation as the slower, more incremental kinds of growth. Besides, I have come to admire not only the courage of CPT but also their intelligence and street-smarts. I knew you would be in good hands. Even so, none of these thoughts?even knowing now that your three companions were seasoned travelers in conflict zones?could dispel the grief that washed over my breakfast table. It?s interesting what comes to mind in such stunned moments. Like my first night in your home, when I slept soundly through the history-making storm that came crashing through London in 1987. I referred to that story in the prayer vigil we did here for the four of you. For that occasion I created a poster with your enlarged photos. It was propped on the altar of the local Episcopal Cathedral and surrounded by votive candles, serving as the visual aid for our petitions. I mentioned that all of you would be embarrassed, maybe annoyed, that your faces are displayed rather than the millions whose lives have been taken or tattered by a quarter century of oppressive rule and violent conflict in Iraq. But your faces are not only yours. They are our intercessory portal into the larger world of which we know very little. I think that?s how intercession works: moving from the familiar to the slightly less familiar, on and on, until we find connection with the stark ? otherness? of creation?and thereby with God. When news of our friendship reached Britishmedia outlets, several called for interviews or wrote asking for background. ?Who is this person; and why is he doing this?? Odd how common it is to assume the soldierly commitment to face danger for the sake of national honor. But how outrageous?foolish! naïve!?the thought that Christians might do likewise, for the sake of the beloved community. ?What would happen,? as the CPT mission states, ?if Christians devoted the same discipline and self-sacrifice to nonviolent peacemaking that armies devote to war?? As you might imagine, cynics abound. Popular talkshow host Rush Limbaugh laced disbelief with gruesome glee in recent commentary on your kidnapping: ?I?m telling you, folks, there?s a part of me that likes this.? Our own Commander-in-Chief?s blustery appeal to patriotic vigor in defense of the war sounds like history unfolding in reverse. Just this past Sunday he assured us that ?we can win the war in Iraq?we are winning the war in Iraq,? now more than two years after having claimed ?Mission Accomplished.? I?m confident that what you and your captive companions were finding is what CPT has been steadily reporting (including the first news of torturous happenings at Abu Graib prison), first-hand, for a decade: the escalating loss of faith in the purported U.S. reconstruction, stunning absence of security, scandalous lack of basic services, and continued violent reprisals by every armed sector in the country. A quarter of a trillion dollars doesn?t buy what it used to. Ironically, despite our plummeting international reputation, your kidnapping has provoked a global outpouring of Muslim and Arab protest against your captors and on your behalf. Notoriously as contentious and sectarian as their Christian counterparts, a stunning array of Muslim leaders and organizations have united to call for your release. I can only hope that some of these developments have made their way to your ears. Norman, if I could steal into your cell and whisper in your ear, I would say: ?Fear not those who can only kill the body? (Matt. 10:28). Look what you?ve done, without even meaning to?which, more often than not, is typical divine protocol. I would also chide you for your self-depreciatory comment, before you left, about how ?cheap? your Christian witness has been heretofore. There?s nothing cheap about 74 years of persistent advocacy for those with no place at the table. The race, my friend, is not to the swift. In the end, though, I would draw from your memory the assurance spoken by that ancient Semite, Joseph, whose ancestral home is not far from where you are shackled: They have done this for evil, ?but God intends it for good? (Gen. 50:20). Whatever comes next, be confident of this: nothing is wasted. The heavy night of those who rule this dark solstice season shall end. For you, and all who crouch in the shadow of darkness, light is coming. The Advent word is rarely heard outside the context of threat. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope (Zech. 9:12). ?Ken Sehested, Advent 2005 Ken Sehested, founding Executive Director of BPFNA, is now at Circle of Mercy in Asheville, North Carolina. Posted by bpfna, 12/24/2005, 8:19 AM -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: