We mentioned the IMF protests that were to occur this weekend, and we were curious as to what happened between the Greenwashing event and the parade. A few folks were concerned, as there seemed to be little to no news about the two events by 2am Sunday morning. This meant one of two things (especially after the violence at the RNC convention this year): Either nothing happened, or something awful happened.
Fortunately, it was the former problem. The International Herald Tribune reported that about 20 free-market protestors gathered on Friday, and the author of Another Dead Canary, the source of the photo above, reported that there were far more cops than protestors at the march on Saturday night/Sunday morning. He stated:
Cops outnumbered the few dozen protesters who showed up at Dupont Circle by at least four to one. This cop [in the photo above], who seemed to be in charge, warned those gathered several times that they could be arrested for walking in the street and not on the sidewalk.
We noted that the ‘cop in charge’ at least wasn’t in full riot gear (bless him for small favors). And, we duly note that many folks stated they weren’t going to the march after the violence at RNC and after the rhetoric that the McCain/Palin camp have been spewing this past week.
Now, isn’t that a note. It appears that fear and violence can lead to a willingness to avoid participation in free speech events. At the same time, sometimes one needs to save energy for the really important issues - such as campaigning for Obama.
Thanks to Another Dead Canary for the use of the photo!
Posted by ewoman at 3:13 PM PDT
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Tom Kuntz today threw out a few links involved in what he calls “The Goldman Sachs ‘Conspiracy’“. We were honored to be amongst company such as Huffington Post (which we quoted), Daily Beast and Blogging Stocks. Thank you, Mr. Kuntz.
Now, a question for you - how do you explain away Neel Kashkari?
Digg the Kashkari article here.
Posted by FA Editors at 12:24 PM PDT
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is comprised of a group of seven individuals who represent an international organization of 185 member countries. Developed in 1945, the IMF offers surveillance, financial assistance and technical assistance in their efforts to control the financial stabilities of those 185 member countries. They work with policymakers at the World Bank (WB) on projects, such as the recent work in Belarus.
However, not everyone is happy with how the IMF rocks and rolls, including at least one citizen in Tanzania, the UK Telegraph and the Middle East Times. The latter paper states, “Finance is global and the financial crisis is moving around the planet at warp speed, but the national governments and central banks are still thinking locally. And the place to which people naturally look for leadership - the White House - has lost its credibility.”
The Mobilization for Global Justice took umbrage with the IMF and WB in 2000. If you go to their site, you’ll learn more about their perspective. But, briefly, their demands were simple: 1) transparency; 2) the cancellation of debts owed by impoverished countries; 3) the end of policies that hinder people’s access to food, clean water, shelter, health care, education and the right to organize; and, 4) the end of all support for socially and environmentally destructive projects, such as oil, mining, gas activities and large dams.
If you agree with these demands, then you can take action this weekend with other groups and individuals who are meeting to peacefully protest the IMF and the WB in Washington, DC, where the IMF is meeting this week.
1. Street Theater with bankers actively greenwashing (painting coal and oil barrels green. This event will be held at Murrow Park, 18th and H St. NW (where H, 18th, and Pennsylvania meet) from 11am to 1pm on Friday 10 October. You can dress like a banker (they can supply suits) and wield a paintbrush. They need at least 20 committed bankers. Contact “samantha @ priceofoil.org” (remove spaces) if you’re interested in participating in this event. They intend to show that the WB, “the world’s largest lender of money for fossil fuel projects, is trying to reinvent itself as a world leader on climate solutions! The Bank has proposed new “Climate Investment Funds” to help “developing countries to address urgent climate change challenges.” But if you look behind the greenwash rhetoric of these funds, you’ll find continued funding of coal and gas projects that fuel greenhouse gas emissions and further increase climate chaos!” This event is co-sponsored by the Oil Change International and Friends of the Earth.
2. March on IMF/WB Delegates, 1am to 5am on Sunday, 12 October. March starts at Dupont Circle, and it will wind to hotels where delegates are staying. Bring noisemakers to wake up the “caretakers of global capitalism and tell them they’re not welcome in DC!” This march is endorsed by Baltimore Resistance to the Electoral Conventions and the Frederick Progressive Action Coalition.
If anyone is attending any one of these two events, we would love to see some photographs or video! You can contact us at “tips @ fanaticattack.com” (remove spaces).
Posted by ewoman at 12:03 PM PDT
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We’re sure we’re not the only two people who wrote to the Barack Obama campaign to ask them to explain the Keating Five to people who don’t know - or who don’t remember - what happened and about McCain’s implication in that affair. But, we took pride in what we saw this morning - the Obama Campaign had done more than we expected. Here is an entire Web site devoted to that savings and loan scandal that occurred in the late 80s and early 90s.
The full documentary about McCain’s involvement will be available beginning at noon today. But, in the meantime, you can read current news and information gathered from research (including downloads). This is nothing but facts, folks. We’re old enough to remember this debacle, as we both were in business when it happened.
This is why we don’t trust John McCain with the economics of this country. Nor do we trust his economic “adviser” Phil Gramm (the man who said that this was a nation of whiners this past spring and who helped to draft the Enron Loophole).
Please go to the site, read the information available, and then think about how McCain acted last week when he suspended his campaign to do nothing in Washington re: the bailout. No, we’re wrong - he actually muddled the situation by asking for further deregulation.
Posted by FA Editors at 7:57 AM PDT
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