PERSONAL:

MOLLY IS BACK IN HER FOXHOLE:

Well, in case my fans and enemies haven't gathered Corporal Molly is back in her foxhole at the front. Almost a week to be exact. It takes little time for a paranoid mind to get used to a city where cars don't stop for pedestrians, unlike out in Victoria. To be honest I could never get used to the idea that some son-of-a-bitch wasn't ready to gun it and run me down, just like here in my home territory. Here you look both ways before crossing the street, run like hell to the middle, catch your breath and repeat the process providing there is no traffic either way. I will also have to get used to the less than benign presence of "street demons" here, but that is easy as my pissed off button is very near the surface. Quite frankly I have always (I've been in Victoria before) had a hard time adjusting to the idea that threat is not the best way of dealing with street demons. In Victoria they have better manners than the average Winnipeger, non-demon Winnipeger that is.

Let's say slightly that I and what one wag has called "Mrs Molly" enjoyed our stay our there immensely. It's a great place, even though a bit "crowded" for my taste. We liked the bars. Hell. I even found 'Murphy's Stout' on tap, something you could never find here at the ends of the Earth. Winnipeg actually has a few "pubs", rather than sleazy bars, and we may even have our own (one) micro-brewery now. This puts us on the same level as Regina which should be a great matter of shame.

Molly drove up to Nanaimo to visit Comrade Larry and was properly impressed by the scenery along the way. Many photos were taken. I was even more impressed by the hospitality that I received from Larry and Rosie. I also found out that Nanaimo was a neat little city with a very vibrant anarchist community. Many thanks to L and R.

So here we arrived back in Winnipeg. Open the door. Cling, cling. cling comes loud from the basement. Appreciate that Molly's house was built in 1929, and the water heat furnace is from the original. Oh Fucking Jesus. At least the place hasn't burnt down. The problem is a water pump that is attached to the furnace, and a spring connector on it. Click, click,click. Check, check check. It's a few days later that I call Winnipeg Supply and have the pump fixed. This is because, to my utter amazement, despite the fact that the pump is fucked we still have heat and hot water. It gets shoved down the priority list.

Meanwhile the wife tries to start her car. Dead as a doornail. Now...I've always been happy to screw around with cars. Furnaces I won't touch with a ten foot pole., I pull up the hood on the wife's car. Jesus H. Christ !!! I have never seen such an accumulation of copper sulfate on a battery in my life. Now Molly is from from Saskatchewan, and I swear that there was enough bluestone to sterilize about 3 dugouts. Screwdriver and baking soda go to work. I get the mess cleaned up and boost the wife's battery. Vroom, vroom.

Piss and Jesus. MY car goes dead. Click, click,click. Fuck,fuck,fuck.. We do a back boost and the machine is working fine. With great circling the wife drives off to get her battery charged by driving. I take off elsewhere. Stop at the pharmacy to pick up my nicotine lozenges. Come out. Click, click, click. God knows what my blood pressure was then.

Up goes the hood. Bang, bang,bang, Twist,twist, twist. Vroom, vroom. vroom. I never knew before that you could screw up your battery connections just by giving somebody a boost. Live and learn. Oh God do I hate machinery.

Welcome back to Winnipeg. Actually I don't mind it as much as it may seem. It is far better than Saskatchewan, espcially Regina where I "served" 14 years. Back to decorating the yard for Halloween. Such is my more or less boring personal life. Mechanical disasters are great events. I gues it's better than noting bites from Rottweillers.

WEIRD STUFF:

ONE TENTH OF A MIND:

Molly has had her hands slapped before and done her proper mea culpas about her opinions about the state of the American mind. Now it is no doubt true that the majority of the American population is indeed part of the modern world with all that that implies. Still, I have yet to see anybody present any proof that the USA does not contain the majority of religious sects (yes I include every stump worshipping local cult in the far reaches of the Amazon in this estimate) existent in the world today.

In a field that I am much more familiar with I doubt that anyone could present proof that the USA doesn't contain the majority of the weird political sects that infest the modern world. In term of leftist bullshit it would be hard to find another country which could produce the Weathermen, one of whose "political" tenets was that one should sleep on the floor because "mattresses were white skin privilege". Similarly, and speaking of stump worshippers, it should be noted that the USA is the necrotic centre of the religious revival masquerading as politics known as "primitivism". For those unfamiliar with this cuteness it is a current of thought claiming the "anarchist" label (or claiming to be far superior to it) that says that "civilization" should be abolished and that this is actually some sort of realistic 'program". I'll leave the naive reader to their own devises in imagining what this means because it essentially means nothing except intestinal gas disguised as speech.

But then there is the other side which far outweighs leftist bullshit by several orders of magnitude. Outside of the Middle East and parts of Central Asia the USA is probably the only area of the world where obviously insane nonsense can easily become part of everyday "accepted" politics. Most of this nonsense could be styled "right wing bullshit" rather than the left wing variety of bovine feces. The examples are endless, but I've chosen to present one below. This is the political movement known as the "Tenthers".

Out here in the civilized world this probably has about as much resonance as a dispute about how many Imams there there have been in the Muslim world. Yet, it seems to mean a lot in the country where "Birthers" has a meaning. Believers in this way of politics think that the last 70 years of US politics are illegitimate because the Tenth Amendment to the US Constitution says that "any powers not expressly designated to the federal government are the province of the states or the people". Sounds pretty "libertarian" ? Wrong ! The targets of those who believe in this legal fiction are pretty well exclusively those "powers" whereby a less prosperous segment of the population guards against the exploitation of the more prosperous people. NOTHING is said about the rights of communities (as opposed to states), and NOTHING is said about the legal protection (and how it shouldn't exist) for those who are higher in the class system as opposed to the efforts of those below them. Some "individuals" are more equal than others I guess, and States are more equal than communities.

Here is an item from the AFL-CIO Blog about the 'Tenthers'.

WSWSWSWSWS
‘Tenthers’ Would Abolish Wage and Child Labor Laws, Social Security, Medicare and More
by Mike Hall, Oct 21, 2010

Most cults are based in some sort of skewed spiritual vision or the worship of a charismatic leader, but there is a re-emerging cult that bows down at the feet of the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Many of them want to bring their cultish beliefs to the halls of Congress and are running for election this fall.

They’re called the “tenthers” and they say federal laws and rules like the minimum wage, Medicare, Social Security, unemployment insurance, the Department of Education, even child labor laws and a laundry list of other federal laws and programs are unconstitutional.

Their rationale—irrationale would be a better word—is that if a federal power is not specifically spelled out in the Constitution, well the government doesn’t have it, according to their view of the 10th amendment.

It’s a view that has long been discredited, but reappears from time to time, such as during FDR’s New Deal era and after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled school segregation unconstitutional in the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education.

Here’s Think Progress in today’s Progress Report:


…because the Constitution doesn’t actually use the word education—it instead gives Congress broad authority to spend money to advance the “common defense” and “general welfare”—Senate candidates like Ken Buck (R-Colo.) and Sharron Angle (R-Nev.) claim that the federal Department of Education is unconstitutional. That means no federal student loan assistance or Pell Grants for middle class students struggling to pay for college, and no education funds providing opportunities to students desperately trying to break into the middle class.

And that’s hardly the worst news tenthers have in store for young Americans. Alaska GOP Senate candidate Joe Miller wants to declare child labor laws unconstitutional—returning America to the day when ten-year-olds labored in coal mines.

Miller told Dermot Cole of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner that he didn’t believe the federal government had any right to establish child labor laws.

I asked him about whether he also believed that federal child labor laws should be done away with.

He said he is not against Social Security, unemployment benefits, the minimum wage or child labor laws.

But he doesn’t want the federal government mandating any of them.

Tenthers believe the states alone should–or more likely, should not–address these issues. Because states are in such financial straights these days, they can’t even pay for the programs, laws and policies already on their books. Hmmm? You don’t think tenthers are counting on that do you?

Click here to read The Progress Report’s in-depth look at the “tenthers” movement and here for more from Ian Millhiser at The American Prospect.

AMERICAN LABOUR:

TELL RITE AID TO DO RITE:

The following appeal for solidarity with warehouse workers at Rite-Aid Pharmacy in the USA comes from the United Students Against Sweatshops organization.

RARARARARA
Rite Aid Pharmacy wants its workers sick?‏

Tell Rite Aid: No more sweatshop conditions for California warehouse workers!
Support Rite Aid workers in their fight for a fair contract

Rite Aid wants to overcharge its workers by nearly 3,000% on their health insurance plan. Why would a company bringing in billions with the mission of keeping customers “healthy and safe” try to rip off its own employees with the health insurance they need to care for themselves and their families?

Tell Rite Aid CEO John Standley to stop cheating its workers on health care and to negotiate a fair first contract with its warehouse workers.

Rite Aid has been a bad actor for decades – exploiting our tax dollars, cheating the government, cutting and running from union plants, and punishing workers when they stand up against egregious conditions in Rite Aid warehouses. Two years ago, workers in their Lancaster warehouse refused to put up with Rite Aid's abuse, speaking out against daily harassment, disrespect, job insecurity, working mandatory overtime, and toiling in the sweltering heat. After voting in a union to protect themselves from Rite Aid’s abuses, the company retaliated with illegal layoffs and has refused to negotiate a reasonable first contract with these workers for more than two years. Now the company is proposing to overcharge them 28 times on health insurance while pushing higher drug prices on consumers.

Take action now and demand that Rite Aid stop this sweatshop behavior and negotiate a fair contract!

Rite Aid’s directors earn up to $100 million a year and pour money into busting unions, and yet they insist on ripping off workers by overcharging them on the health care that Rite Aid workers and their families need. Send a letter to Rite Aid CEO John Standley and tell him to stop cheating warehouse workers in healthcare costs and to negotiate a fair first contract in Lancaster.

RARARARARA

THE LETTER:

Please go to this link to send the following letter to the CEO of Rite-Aid.

RARARARARA

Dear Mr. Standley,

As a Rite Aid customer, I am troubled to hear that workers in your Lancaster, California distribution center who voted to form a union two and a half years ago do not have an agreement with Rite Aid to improve working conditions and give employees a voice at work.

Union contracts are our best assurance that Rite Aid is providing the good jobs our communities need.

I am also alarmed to hear that Rite Aid management has proposed overcharging employees by 28 times on their health insurance plan. This would constitute an enormous financial strain on workers and their families. For me, these abuses really are personal.

By making such an outrageous and unethical proposal, your company is making it impossible to move forward in finalizing a fair contract to end sweatshop conditions at the Lancaster distribution center.

I urge management to do everything possible to bring these negotiations to an expedited conclusion with a fair agreement for Rite Aid's hardworking employees. As a company that provides critical health care services to the public, it's hypocritical not to provide a health insurance plan that workers and their families can afford.

CANADIAN POLITICS:

PROTEST CETA IN OTTAWA:

CETA, the Canada -EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, is one of those things that has the habit of sneaking up on you gradually. Only at the last moment do you realize that you are in an inescapable trap. Canada has had ample experience of this in the past with NAFTA, and now the federal government wants to tie us to yet another democracy destroying contract.

The following item from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) echoes a call from the Council of Canadians for a demonstration in Ottawa on the 22nd against this agreement. As a public service union CUPE is, of course, most concerned with the way that this agreement will be used to further privatization of public services. As an organization with a nationalist agenda the C0C is most concerned with the loss of Canadian sovereignty that such deals represent. Most important, in my point of view, is the weakening of the potential for significant decentralization in Canada as our polity becomes hamstrung by international restrictions. In any case there are many reasons to oppose such a deal. Here is the notice from CUPE.

CETACETACETA

CETA: Treat or Trick?

Just in time for Halloween, Canadian and European Union trade negotiators are in Ottawa next week putting together a monster free trade pact. But this Harper-era trade deal is no treat. It's a trick that threatens workers, First Nations, municipal democracy, our public services and more.

People in both Canada and Europe want public services that are owned and operated by democratically elected governments and run on a not-for-profit basis. There is no place for trade deals that prohibit keeping our services and infrastructure public and keeping our tax dollars flowing back into our communities.

Don't let Harper create a trade monster. Help us chase CETA out of town!


What: rally against CETA organized by The Council of Canadians

Where: Old Ottawa City Hall, 111 Sussex Drive

When: Friday, October 22, 12 - 1 p.m.


For more information:


Tel: 613-233-2773
Email: inquiries@canadians.org

Read more about CETA on the CUPE Privatization Watch Webpage.

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR VIETNAM:

SUPPORT VIETNAMESE WORKER ACTIVISTS:

It's just another day in another workers' paradise, and three workers are due to go on trial for organizing a strike. The "proletarian justice" they may face can mean up to 15 years in prison. Here's the story and appeal from the online labour solidarity site Labour Start.

VWVWVWVWVW
Vietnam: Labour rights advocates face prison

Three Vietnamese labour rights advocates face 5-15 years imprisonment for helping organise a strike by 10,000 workers at the My Phong shoe factory in January 2010. Doan Huy Chuong, Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung, and Do Thi Minh Hanh, all in their 20's, have been detained virtually incommunicado since their arrests in February. The trial is expected in late October 2010.

The "crimes" alleged by prosecutors are that Doan Huy Chuong, Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung, and Do Thi Minh Hanh worked in an organised manner, distributed leaflets expressing discontent about working conditions and about the authorities, and helped workers to organise a strike. All of these activities ought to be legal, under Vietnam's own Constitution and in international instruments to which Vietnam is a signatory. The charges that they encouraged workers to destroy factory properties are without evidence and appear made-up.

VWVWVWVWVW

THE LETTER:

Please go to this link to send the following letter to the Vietnamese authorities.

VWVWVWVWVW

I call on the Vietnamese government to release jailed labour rights advocates Doan Huy Chuong, Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung, and Do Thi Minh Hanh.

AMERICAN LABOUR MINNEAPOLIS:
PRE-ELECTION PARTY FOR THE JIMMY JOHNS WORKERS:


The Labour Board elections for the Jimmy Johns outlets in the Twin Cities are coming up this Friday, and the IWW Jimmy John's Workers' Union is holding a sort of pre-victory celebration tomorrow night in anticipation. The IWW's organizing campaign with these workers is a great breakthrough for both the IWW and fast food workers in general. Here's the notice of the event.
IWWIWWIWWIWW


JIMMY JAMS! Pre-Election Party for the IWW Jimmy John's Workers Union
Time Tomorrow at 8:00pm - Friday at 12:00am

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Location The Paper Moose
945 Broadway NE
Minneapolis, MN

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Created By IWW Jimmy Johns Workers Union

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More Info
JIMMY JAMs
vol. 1: Pre-Election Party!

A concert featuring Jimmy John's workers bands!

-MENU-
PT -feat. Damien from Calhoun
False- feat. Niko from Calhoun
True Mutiny-feat. JJ from Block E
Oblivion- feat. Mike B. from Knollwood

and more!

This Thursday 8pm at the Paper Moose, 945 Broadway NE.

FREE for Jimmy John's workers

Donations welcome from supporters.

AMATEUR ASTRONOMY:

STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT:

Well Molly has been back from vacation for a few days and is hard at it again. I'm almost over the agitating experience of coming back and having to make close to 70 phone calls. Let alone the usual set of mechanical disasters. It also means I'm back to my usual late nights. Good thing this evening as I was doing this, that and the other thing in the yard and at the car, and I had a chance to catch the pairing of the almost full Moon and the planet Jupiter when they were by my own crude estimate only 2 1/2 to 3 degrees apart. Quite striking.

As the diagram shows they will gradually separate over the next few days, but they still make a great sight. Jupiter is almost at the closest approach to Earth (it happened on September 20 last month) that it will have until 2022. The pairing with an almost full Moon (Hunters' Moon this Friday, October 22) makes for particularly good viewing. The best time today was in the early evening. By midnight clouds were already starting to obscure these strangers passing in the night.

The annual Orionid meteor shower is also due this week. The projected peak will be just before dawn on Thursday 21, but the almost full Moon will obscure all but the brightest meteors. The Orionids result when the Earth crosses through the debris of Halley's Comet.

This will probably be a disappointment, but do catch the couple now in the sky.

CANADIAN POLITICS MONTRÉAL:
MARCHE POUR LES VICTIMES DE BAVURES POLICIÈRES/MARCH FOR THE VICTIMS OF POLICE BRUTALITY:

À Samedi Octobre 22 à Montréal. On Saturday, October 22 in Montréal.
PBPBPBPBPB



MARCHE COMMÉMORATIVE: Justice pour les victimes de bavures policières!
Time Saturday, October 23 · 12:30pm - 2:30pm

-----------------------------
Location Guy & de Maisonneuve (métro Guy-Concordia)
Montreal, QC

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Created By No One Is Illegal Personne n'est illégal MONTRÉAL

---------------------------

More Info [English below]

Justice pour les victimes de bavures policières!

MARCHE COMMÉMORATIVE
...SAMEDI 23 octobre, 12h30
Rassemblement: Guy & de Maisonneuve
(métro Guy-Concordia, sortie Guy)

Nous commémorerons le souvenir de Anas Bennis, Claudio Castagnetta, Ben Matson, Quilem Registre, Gladys Tolley, Fredy Villanueva et de toutes les autres victimes.

JOIGNEZ-VOUS à nous pour la Journée nord-américaine demandant l’arrêt de la brutalité policière. Montrez votre soutien et votre solidarité avec toutes les victimes de bavures policières. Avec les familles des victimes et leurs alliés, demandons vérité, dignité et justice.

Évènements familiaux – Bienvenu à tous et toutes !
INFO: 514-848-7583 – 22oct.mtl@gmail.com -- http://www.22octobre.net
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Les familles de personnes tuées par la police, leurs amis et leurs alliés organisent une vigile et une marche à la mémoire des victimes. Ces familles, qui doivent se battre pour connaître la vérité et pour obtenir justice pour les êtres qui leurs étaient chers, ont besoin de notre soutien.

Le vendredi 22 octobre, une vigile aura lieu en compagnie de certaines des familles devant la Fraternité des policiers et des policières (480, rue Gilford, sortie St-Joseph du métro Laurier) entre 16 h et 18 h. À la fin de la vigile nous allumerons des bougies en mémoire des victimes de brutalité policière.

Le samedi 23 octobre, une marche contre l’impunité systématique dans les cas de bavures ou de violence policière aura lieu. La marche commencera à 12h30 au coin des rues Guy et de Maisonneuve, ce sera un évènement à caractère familial. Descendez nombreux dans la rue pour montrer votre soutien aux familles. Le nombre fait la force!

Ce que nous recherchons, c’est LA DIGNITÉ, LA JUSTICE ET LA VÉRITÉ.

Le but principal de la marche est de :
- COMMÉMORER les personnes victimes de bavures policières
- SOUTENIR leurs familles par tous les moyens

Nous soutenons les revendications des familles Bennis, Castagnetta, Matson, Registre, Tolley et Villanueva. Leurs revendications incluent:
- LA FIN de la brutalité policière
- LA FIN de l’impunité policière
- LA FIN du profilage racial, social et politique
- L’ACCÈS rapide à toute l’information
- DES ACCUSATIONS CRIMINELLES contre les policiers ayant tué une personne
- LA TENUE d’enquêtes indépendantes quand une personne est tuée par la police
- L’APPLICATION des recommandations du coroner
- LA FIN de l’utilisation du Taser

Cette initiative est née suite au Forum contre la Violence Policière et l’Impunité qui a eu lieu de janvier 2010 à Montréal, durant lequel des familles ont exprimé leur désir de se réunir pour commémorer leurs proches et renforcer leurs luttes pour la dignité, la justice et la vérité. La date symbolique du 22 octobre a ensuite été choisie pour organiser des événements familiaux pour commémorer les victimes de bavures policières car cette date est la Journée Nationale de Protestation aux États-Unis, organisée par la Coalition du 22 octobre pour arrêter la brutalité policière, la répression et la criminalisation d’une génération depuis 1996.

Nous demandons le soutien d’autres groupes. Pour endosser nos revendications et participer, communiquez avec nous au (514) 848-7583 ou écrivez à 22oct-mtl@gmail.com . Vous pouvez passer prendre des dépliants et des affiches au GRIP Concordia (1500, de Maisonneuve, 2e étage).

Évènements familiaux – Bienvenu à tous et toutes !
INFO: 514-848-7583 – 22oct.mtl@gmail.com -- www.22octobre.net


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:::::::::::::::::::::


Justice for Victims of Police Killings!

COMMEMORATIVE MARCH
SATURDAY, October 23, 12:30pm
Gathering at the corner of Guy & de Maisonneuve
(métro Guy-Concordia, Guy exit)
facebook event:

We remember: Anas Bennis, Claudio Castagnetta, Ben Matson, Quilem Registre, Gladys Tolley, Fredy Villanueva and all the other victims of police killings.

JOIN US on the North American Day to Stop Police Brutality & Repression to show your support and solidarity with all victims of police killings. Together with the families and supporters of police victims, we demand truth, justice and dignity.

Family friendly - Welcome to all!
INFO: 514-848-7583 – 22oct.mtl@gmail.com -- www.22octobre.net
----------

The families of people killed by the police, their friends and their allies are organizing a commemorative vigil and march to remember victims. These families, who face an uphill battle in uncovering the truth and obtaining justice for their loved ones, need our support.

Friday, October 22: There will be a family-led vigil in front of the Police Brotherhood (480 Gilford St., Laurier metro, St-Joseph exit) between 4 and 6 p.m. We will end the vigil by lighting candles in memory of the victims of police killings.

Saturday, October 23: There will be a family-led, family-friendly march against the systemic impunity in the face of police killings and police violence. The march will begin at 12:30 p.m. on the corner of Guy St. and de Maisonneuve. We strongly encourage as many supporters as possible to come out on the streets and show our support for the families. There is power in numbers!

What we are seeking is DIGNITY, JUSTICE and TRUTH.

The main purpose of the march is to:
- REMEMBER the victims who lost their lives to police violence and abuse and;
- SUPPORT their families in any way we can

We support the list of demands of the Bennis, Castagnetta, Matson, Registre, Tolley and Villanueva families. Their demands include:
- END police brutality
- END police impunity
- END racial, social and political profiling
- ACCESS all information in a prompt manner
- LAY criminal charges in police killings
- HOLD public independent inquiries in police killings
- APPLY the recommendations of the coroner
- STOP the use of tasers

This initiative came out of the Forum Against Police Violence and Impunity in January of 2010, during which the families expressed their desire to come together to remember their loved ones and strengthen their respective struggles for dignity, justice and the truth. The symbolic date of October 22 was subsequently chosen for a family-friendly march to commemorate the victims of police killings to coincide with the National Day of Protest in the United States organized by the October 22nd Coalition to Stop Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation, which has been mobilizing every year since 1996.

We ask for your group’s endorsement. To get involved contact us at (514) 848-7583 or at 22oct-mtl@gmail.com . You can pick up flyers and posters for the event at QPIRG Concordia (1500 de Maisonneuve St. W 2nd floor).

Family friendly - Welcome to all!
INFO: 514-848-7583 – 22oct.mtl@gmail.com -- www.22octobre.net

LOCAL EVENTS WINNIPEG:

FALL TIME AT POLLOCK'S HARDWARE CO-OP:

It's near the end of the time of fallen leaves. Halloween is on its way. So is the goddamn snow. But things are warm and cozy at Pollock's Hardware Co-op, Winnipeg's cooperative answer to the big box stores. Here's what's happening there this season.

PPPPPPPPPP
Just a quick update on events coming up at Pollock's:
Annual General Meeting on November 8th, 2010 at Luxton Community Centre, 210 St.Cross St.
Registration starts at 6:30pm, meeting starts at 7:00pm
The meeting will include:
– The annual report
– Board elections
– Appointment of auditor
– New business
– Door prizes and refreshments!!

Paderno Sale: Starts Wednesday, November 17th, 2010
We have tons of stuff coming in, it's the biggest sale we have had to date!

Benjamin Moore Paint: We are in the process of upgrading our paint equipment. Coming soon: Aura, Ecospec and others! Of course, we will continue to sell our previous lines.

New with your membership card:

10% off at The Tallest Poppy located at 631 Main St.
10% off parts at Minute Muffler located at 1011 Main St.

Membership Cards: We have several hundred membership cards waiting to be picked up. Next time you're at the store, just ask at the cashier!

Just a reminder, we always offer these services:
– Window and screen repair
– Lock re-keying
– Sharpening
– Tool rentals – We have a snow blower in stock!

Our store hours are :
Monday-Friday 8:00am-8:00pm
Saturday 8:00am-6:00pm
Sunday 12:00pm-5:00pm

Contact us at 582-5007, or by email at manager@phco-op.ca! You can now also visit us on Facebook!

AMERICAN LABOUR CALIFORNIA:

SETTING A BAD EXAMPLE:

Down in California the Lieutenant Governor Abel Maldonado is setting a rather bad public example in regards to worker safety at his own farm. Here's the story and appeal from the United Farm Workers.

FWFWFWFWFW
Take action against serious safety violations at California's Lt. Governor's strawberry farm

Los Angeles Times, October 15, 2010
Lieutenant governor's family farm has had many safety violations

A worker at Abel Maldonado's 6,000-acre Santa Maria operation was crushed by a tractor. The firm has had numerous other Cal/OSHA citations, plus tax liens. The Republican says some citations stemmed from overzealous regulation that harms California businesses.
Click for full story


Today's Los Angeles Times reported serious workplace violations and a farm worker death at Lt. Governor Maldonado's strawberry farm. Please read the below action alert and then immediately "take action" and send a e-mail to Lt. Governor Abel Maldonado.

With as many as 16 farm worker deaths due to heat illness alone during Governor Schwarzenegger's administration, the report of a farm worker death at Maldonado's farm is of deep concern.

According to the Los Angeles Times, "the run-in with regulators was part of a pattern for Agro-Jal Farming Enterprises, the farm in Santa Maria that pays Maldonado a six-figure salary to serve as controller. Maldonado, a telegenic former state senator, is running for the seat Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed him to earlier this year.

Agro-Jal has accumulated dozens of violations from Cal/OSHA since 1990, hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax liens, and multiple citations for exposing workers to toxic pesticides and skirting clean water regulations, government records show. Four of the violations were for running tractors across the fields with no driver at the wheel and no means of steering or stopping the machines.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the lieutenant governor said in an e-mail, "that many of the violations against the farm are the product of overzealous regulators 'who put businesses out of business and dissuade new businesses from coming to California.'"

Lt. Governor Maldonado frequently serves as acting Governor. We need confidence that Lt. Governor Maldonado will be enforcing the law and ensuring the safety of farm workers laboring in California's fields--including his own.

Please e-mail Lt. Governor Maldonado today and encourage him to meet with UFW President Arturo Rodriguez so they can discuss how Lt. Governor Maldonado can support labor protections for farm workers that have real teeth in them.



http://action.ufw.org/maldonado

FWFWFWFWFW

THE LETTER:

Please go to this link to end the following letter to Lieutenant Governor Maldonado of California.

FWFWFWFWFW

Dear Lt. Governor Maldonado:

I was concerned to read today's Los Angeles times story entitled, "Lieutenant governor's family farm has had many safety violations."

In this story, you are quoted as saying, “My family never forgets that we started out as field hands.” We are writing to ask that you have an opportunity to put that memory to productive use.

It has been good politics for the Governor to allow you to take executive action when he is out of the state. Irrespective of the outcome of the November 2 election, you will have that opportunity again in the upcoming months.

While the Times reported that you assign blame for your farm’s repeated safety violations to “overzealous regulators”, our experience has been much different.

More farm workers have died from abuse at work under Governor Schwarzenegger than under any other Governor in California’s history.

We fail to see the overzealous regulators you refer to. Rather, the record points to unrepentant agricultural employers.

That record of 16 dead farm workers killed by heat, no one in jail, and fines lower than those for reckless driving indicate to us that regulations don’t work because meaningful punishment is never the consequence.

Would your farm have had a heat-illness prevention plan in place if the fine were $9,300 instead of $930?

We ask that at your earliest convenience you meet with United Farm Worker President Arturo Rodriguez. In this meeting we hope you will discuss several steps you can take as acting-Governor to honor the memory of Raul Garcia Osorno who died on your farm.

Thank you.

INTERNATIONAL POLITICS CHINA:

FREE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER LIU XIAOBO:

Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo is this year's winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. At the present time he is serving an 11 years sentence for the "crime" or persistently advocating democracy and freedom in China. There isa petition directed to the Chinese authorities demanding his release. Here's the story.

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Free the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo


Signature goal: 100,000
Target: Chinese Government
Sponsored by: a Chinese citizen
Liu Xiaobo, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate for year 2010, was sentenced to 11 years of prison on December 25th 2009 under the name of 'inciting subversion' because of his initiation of 'Charter 08' which calls for democracy and protection of human rights in China.

The sentence is unacceptable and illegitimate, as it's completely against fundamental human rights and China's constitution.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 19 states that:"Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

According to Chinese Constitution Article 35, the freedoms of expression and publishing are protected as well:"The citizens of China enjoy freedom of expression, publishing, assembly, association, manifestation and demonstration."

Liu Xiaobo has been fighting for democracy and human rights for more than 20 years, and has been put into prison for many times. He is a beacon for those who are striving for the political progress in China, and those who are living in the dark.

Please join the petition, voice your support, to urge the Chinese government to release Liu Xiaobo immediately.

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THE PETITION:

Please go to this link to send the following letter to the Chinese authorities. The campaign's goal is 100,000 signatures. The last time Molly looked there were about 26,000 people signed up. Help out and sign up.

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We the undersigned, urge the Chinese government to release Liu Xiaobo immediately.

Liu Xiaobo, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate for year 2010, was sentenced to 11 years of prison on December 25th 2009 under the name of 'inciting subversion' because of his initiation of 'Charter 08' which calls for democracy and protection of human rights in China.

The sentence is unacceptable and illegitimate, as it's completely against fundamental human rights and China's constitution.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 19 states that:"Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."

According to Chinese Constitution Article 35, the freedoms of expression and publishing are protected as well:"The citizens of China enjoy freedom of expression, publishing, assembly, association, manifestation and demonstration."

Liu Xiaobo has been fighting for democracy and human rights for more than 20 years, and has been put into prison for many times. He is a beacon for those who are striving for the political progress in China, and those who are living in the dark.

We urge the Chinese government to respect fundamental human rights and its own constitution, and release Liu Xiaobo immediately

AMERICAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT MINNEAPOLIS:
RNC (FOUR) AGREE TO PLEA BARGAIN:


This the latest from the Defend the RNC 8 group. The four remaining defendants will likely enter a plea bargain next Tuesday. What this means the future will tell. Here's the story.

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Important Update on the RNC 8 Case:
New Hearing Tuesday 10/19 at 9am
Dear supporters near and far,

It is with strong and mixed emotions that we bring important news: there appears to be a major change in the cases of the four remaining RNC 8 defendants--Garrett, Max, Nathanael and Rob. The four have tentatively reached a plea agreement with prosecutors, likely avoiding trial. The agreement, if it goes according to plan, significantly reduces the charge, calls for favorable sentencing, and is non-cooperating.

We wish to thank you for being there for the 8 and for us all along. You raised funds, raised consciousness of the fight against criminalization of dissent, and raised the next generation of rebels and revolutionaries to keep the struggle going. You were there at the jail vigil and the very first hearings; you were there in the kitchen and the dining room at our community meals; you were there at our rallies and actions. You were there at meetings, you were there at fundraisers, and you were there in the courtroom, through thick and thin.

Now, please be there in the courtroom for what we expect to be one final time:

* When: Tuesday, October 19, at 9am
* Where: Ramsey County Courthouse, 15 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul

Check our updates or the monitors in room 131 for the courtroom number. Please stay afterwards for a press conference and address immediately upon conclusion of the hearing.

We understand this news may well be surprising. Many of us feel the same and much, much more, but above all, we personally support all the defendants in their difficult decision and will continue to support them through whatever hurdles remain. We will release more information, analysis and logistical updates to you all after details are confirmed on Tuesday. We ask that, until then, speculation or rumor be kept to a minimum.

Again, thank you for your continued support and struggle.

In solidarity,

the RNC 8 Defense Committee

ANARCHIST MUSIC:

PUNK ROCK MATINEE NOW ON:

As we speak it's on...the Punk Rock Matinee in Hamilton Ontario. Here's the info.

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Today! Hamilton Punk Rock Matinee!
Today, Sunday October 17th...Punk Rock Matinee at This Ain't Hollywood/345 James Street North. Hope to see you there!

With; BROADCAST ZERO, CAMBRIDGE, BRUTAL YOUTH, END PROGRAM and THE LUCKY ONES

3PM to 7PM
$7.00
All-Ages/Licensed

Hamilton Punk Rock Matinee Myspace:

http://www.facebook.com/l/33eb7bBs9JVltBQ6_adXzkGFBFA;www.myspace.com/punkrockmatineehamilton

If you are downtown early, be sure to drop by Hammer City Records at 228 James Street North, just a hop, skip and a jump from the Matinee..tons of punk rock vinyl and CDs...it's basically at the corner of James and Robert...look for the sign...

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hamilton-ON/Hammer-City-Records/144221478929997#!/pages/Hamilton-ON/Hammer-City-Records/144221478929997


Cheers!

LOCAL EVENTS WINNIPEG:

PROTEST HONORARY DEGREE TO VIC TOEWS:

As Molly has mentioned before tomorrow there will be a ceremony to present federal Justice Minister Vic Toews with a (dis ?)honorary degree at the University of Winnipeg. It's a strange case of "honour" as one can question the basis for it in terms of service to the community. Has VT saved even one medical patient from a deadly disease ? Has he given even one person hope via raising them from poverty ? Has he established even one innovative social program that has done any good whatsoever ? I don't mean building more prisons. Has he contributed anything whatsoever to the literary or artistic legacy of this country at least once ? Has he even been entertaining and told at least one original funny joke in his life ? In other words has he ever done anything whatsoever to make anyone's life better at any time in the past present or future ? Or has he been a good and crafty political timeserver and held enough offices for enough years to coast into a bizarre "port of honour". What on Earth does "honour" mean in this case ?

Some will be opposing the granting of this 'honorarily' degree. Here's the notice of the protest.

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Vic Toews Honorary Degree Protest
Time Sunday, October 17 · 12:00pm - 2:00pm

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Location University of Winnipeg, Bulman Centre basement
515 Portage Ave
Winnipeg, MB

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More Info

Join the Coalition for Integrity in Academic Accolades on Sunday, October 17th at 12:00 noon in the Riddell Hall Cafeteria (U of W) for a protest of the University of Winnipeg's decision to grant Vic Toews an Honorary Doctorate of Laws. We will be meeting in the cafeteria to coordinate before moving outdoors to the protest... location which will remain undisclosed until Sunday. All who attend the protest are asked to be respectful towards those attending the convocation ceremony.

The sins of Toews are too numerous to list, but here are a few lowlights:
-Vic Toews believes that a bill adding queer Canadians to a list of groups protected by hate propaganda legislation is "a dangerous bill that will toss fundamental Canadian freedoms out the window.”
-Vic Toews has suggested lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 10 and is not opposed to putting 10-year-olds in jail.
-Vic Toews spoke in favour of re-criminalizing abortions at the National Pro-Life Conference that was held in Winnipeg in 2004.
-Vic Toews has compared legalizing same-sex marriage to the “government celebrating a Black Mass.” ( Molly Note- In which case it should be right up the Harperite alley. The federal Conservatives seem pretty Satanic to me )

INTERNATIONAL ANARCHIST MOVEMENT:

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF ACTION AGAINST MCDONALDS:

Ah yes, the corporation we all love to hate...McDonalds. Tomorrow is an International Day of Action Against McDonalds, called by the network of Food Not Bombs. Molly's opinion, for what it is worth, is that the following misses an essential point, the long struggle to unionize McDonalds' employees. Yes, believe it or not there are countries in the world where these efforts have born fruit. Finland and Sweden are examples. Quite frankly most (all ?) of the things that people object to in places like McDonalds (it is hardly the only such enterprise) will never change by pressure "from the outside" from people who would never eat at McDonalds unless presented with no other alternative. Here's the call.

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International Day of Action Against McDonald's
Time Saturday, October 16 · 1:00pm - 3:30pm

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Location Public Sidewalks outside McDonald's

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More Info

Food Not Bombs global day of action to end hunger and protest corporate domination of our food.
Food Not Bombs will be sharing free vegan meals outside local McDonald's stores all over the globe on World Food Day, October 16, 2010. ( Also called The International Day of Action Against McDonald's ) Corporate domination of our food is increasing world hunger and malnutrition. One in six people do not get enough food to be healthy. ...Over a billion people go hungry every month. The United Nations reports that 25,000 people around the world die from hunger related causes every day. Food Not Bombs volunteers proposed this action during the gathering in Monterrey, Mexico in May 2010.

Corporate control and greed is at the root of the global crisis of hunger blocking popular efforts address climate change, promoting the production genetically engineered organisms for food and withholding access to food to drive up prices. Food Not Bombs started marking World Food Day by sharing free vegan burgers out side McDonald's in solidarity with the McLibel legal case when McDonald's took Helen Steel and Dave Morris to trial claiming their flyer "What's Wrong With McDonald's" was inaccurate. In 1985 they launched the The International Day of Action Against McDonald's , which has been held on October 16th ever since. Food Not Bombs groups joined their effort and have shared vegan food outside of hundreds of McDonald's shops around the world every year. The leaflet attacked almost all aspects of the corporation's business, accusing them of exploiting children with advertising, promoting an unhealthy diet, exploiting their staff and being responsible for environmental damage and ill treatment of animals. Food Not Bombs volunteers have been handing out the flyer at many of their meals since 1985. A copy can be down loaded from the Food Not Bombs website.

McDonald's is a symbol of what is wrong with corporate control of our food. The price of food is increasing. Food prices are set to rise as much as 40% over the coming decade amid growing demand from emerging markets and for biofuel production, according to a United Nations report published in June 2010 which warns of rising hunger and food insecurity. Wheat prices have jumped by more than 50 percent since June 2010. Rice prices are expected to stay at their current high level due to drought and flooding in India and the Philippines. The high price of rice has had a devastating effect on poorer parts of the world that rely on the grain for food.

'It is safe to say that the rice price is not going back to $300 per ton any time soon and is likely to remain around $600 in the near term,' Samarendu Mohanty, a senior economist at the International Rice Research Institute, said in a report to be published today, without citing a definite time frame.

Corporate domination of food and agriculture is causing hunger to increase. From the rapid increase in the cost of seeds 90 percent of which are controlled by Monsanto, DuPont, Dow Chemical, Syngenta, BASF and Bayer CropScience. more than 90 percent of soybeans and more than 80 percent of the corn grown in the United States are genetically engineered. Farmers must buy new higher priced seeds, activator chemicals, herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers every season. Millions of farmers are unable to pay these higher prices and are prosecuted in court for growing their own seeds and end up losing their land. The new processed foods not only cost more but they are free of adequate nutrition causing obesity and starvation often in the same person. Corporate resistance to the public's effort to address the causes of climate change is also contribution to global hunger resulting in droughts, floods and extreme temptures. Factory meat production is also contributing to climate change. Government subsidies for corporate agriculture make it difficult for organic farmers to compete reducing the growing of more nutritional food.

Finally new laws are being implemented to restrict local organic food cultivation. The United States government is set to pass the Food Safety Modernization Act or Senate Bill 510 which could force even more people to stop growing their own food making regulations and fees that could make small scale farming impossible in the United States.