WHAT A WORLD

I just heard an interview with Amy Goodman of Democracy Now about her arrest at the Republican National Convention. Fortunately, there is a video of Amy's interaction with the storm troopers, oops, I mean the police. It is vital that all charges against Goodman and her crew be dropped. But besides that, it is very important that we confront the actions of the police in Minnesota and Denver about the treatment of opposition demonstrators. Charges do need to be filed, but against the police rather than demonstrators or observers.
I already said that the Republican convention reminded me of "Triumph of the Will" the Nazi propaganda film made by Leni Riefenstahl. And the beat goes on.....

And while I feel bad for Sarah Palin's teenage daughter and appreciate her need for privacy, I also find it interesting that Sarah Palin would deny the rights of any woman seeking an abortion, REGARDLESS OF THE REASON.

And, I was happy to read that community organizers across the country are outraged by Sarah Palin's insults to the vital work they do. Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were community organizers. Martin Luther King Jr was a community organizer. Shall I go on listing community organizers.

The European Union has announced that Italy's policy of fingerprinting Roma/Sinti does not violate European Union's criteria for human rights. What a surprise.....NOT.
Years ago the European Union said that one criteria for a country joining the Union was their treatment of Roma. They said that Roma should be treated with the same respect with which they are treated in original Union countries. The only trouble with this criteria is that Roma are treated terribly in ALL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES from England to Italy.
What is surprising is that the Vatican is supporting the rights of Sinti/Roma and still condemning the policies of the Berlusconi government.

In my final news of the day, we are making another effort to convince the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum to return Dina Babbitt's watercolor paintings of the Roma in Auschwitz. For more information on this case see previous entries on this blog or google Dina Babbitt.