Stop the Hogs!

by **Oscar** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 11:42 am

NUKE NEWS: November 25, 2010

1. GEORGE GALLOWAY - 2010 pan-Canadian speaking tour
2. Electricity bills to double by 2030 under new plan
3. No Nukes News - Nov. 23, 2010
4. Matoush Uranium Project Should be Rejected
5. LETTER: HUGHES, E.: Familiar cavalier attitude towards uranium
6. Hypothesis to Explain Childhood Cancer near Nuclear Power Plants
7. U.S. Urged To Reveal Locations Of Depleted Uranium In Iraq
8. DOBBIN: Citizen Psychopaths
9. The Kabul kids aren't alright
10. Afghanistan: the pipeline factor
11. LETTER: REMPEL: . . . .troops in Afghanistan must wait for a miracle
12. LETTER: HUGHES, V.: STOP ALL TRAINING, STOP WARRING WITH THOSE WHO FEED OFF OF TRAGEDY!
13. North Korea fires at South Korean island
14. Drafting Nature's Constitution
15. Our Most Loved Resource? Water
16. Council of Canadians Update - November 23 & 24, 2010
17. Watchdog probes whether federal leak sent Taseko stock into tailspin

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1. GEORGE GALLOWAY - 2010 pan-Canadian speaking tour

http://www.defendfreespeech.ca/home.htm

Free Palestine. Free Afghanistan. Free Speech.
Former British MP George Galloway will appear in ten cities on a pan-Canadian speaking tour from November 16 to 27, 2010. Organized by local peace coalitions and Palestine solidarity campaigns across Canada, the tour is called “Free Palestine, Free Afghanistan, Free Speech”. Mr. Galloway will speak about the Canadian government’s attempts to ban him as well as the political situation in the Middle East and Central Asia. Please join us!
SCHEDULE:
http://www.defendfreespeech.ca/schedule.htm
Please forward widely.
Details of each event are listed below and online: http://www.defendfreespeech.ca/

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2. Electricity bills to double by 2030 under new plan

http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/
895326--electricity-bills-to-double-by-2030-under-new-energy-plan

Rob Ferguson, John Spears and Robert Benzie Staff Reporters November 23, 2010
Homeowners can expect their electricity bills to double in the next 20 years under a new $87 billion long-term energy plan unveiled Tuesday.
The much-anticipated blueprint from Energy Minister Brad Duguid is almost 50 per cent more costly than a similar $60 billion plan sidelined three years ago.
The new effort predicts home energy bills will increase 3.5 per cent annually until 2030, taking into account a 10 per cent price break starting in January for five years.
Industrial power rates will rise 2.7 per cent a year until 2030 under the plan.
It envisions new nuclear plants and refurbished reactors to keep atomic power supplying half the province's electricity, while increasing conservation efforts substantially and increasing wind, solar and bioenergy to 13 per cent of supply within eight years, up from 3 per cent now.
The cost for that green power is estimated at $27 billion — almost one-third the cost of the entire effort, which will come with a mix of public and private investment.

MORE:
http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/
895326--electricity-bills-to-double-by-2030-under-new-energy-plan

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3. No Nukes News - Nov. 23, 2010

http://www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca/nnn-nov2310.php
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No sale of federal nuclear company has critics calling for halt to new Darlington reactors
Published reports last week indicated only two companies had submitted bids to buy the reactor side of AECL, but that the bids were far below what the federal government feels it is worth. Beyond that, the reports indicated the bidders would not accept responsibility for funding completion of AECL's newest reactor, the Advanced Candu (known as the ACR), the type touted for new build at Darlington.
Bidders' apparent unwillingness to take on completion of the ARC is proof Candu is "at a dead end," he contended. "So, if Candu is a dead end, the question becomes, will the McGuinty government adjust course and invest in non-nuclear technologies or just kept driving towards the dead end?" Mr. Stensil asked in an e-mail, noting the declining cost of other technologies.
"While Candu is stagnating, green energy technologies are innovating and bringing their costs down," he said. Replacing energy produced by recently-mothballed reactors at Pickering could be "completely feasible and cost effective ... with non-nuclear clean-tech options without the lights going out."
http://newsdurhamregion.com/business/article/165952
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'This government should be sued'
Activist warns Port Hope that radioactive waste will leak into water and air 'for the rest of time'
Port Hope's air, drinking water, fish, beach, soil - virtually everything in the town of 16,000 poses a health risk from radioactivity, anti-nuclear activist Dr. Helen Caldicott warned an overflow crowd Tuesday night.

http://www.thestar.com/article/
891709--sue-government-over-toxic-town-activist-tells-port-hope

Port Hope ponders legal action against local anti-nuke groups
After a week of provocative commentary from anti-nuclear activist Dr. Helen Caldicott, the Municipality of Port Hope may take legal action. Deputy Mayor Lees estimates that Port Hope has lost millions of dollars in retail sales, real estate transactions, as a result of the actions of both groups, and certain other individuals whom he would not name.
Following her visit, Dr. Caldicott maintained that Port Hope is dangerous. In fact, she said with Cameco's uranium conversion facility operating on Lake Ontario, there is no other place on earth more dangerous to human health.
http://www.northumberlandnews.com/articlePrint/166184
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America's Eggshell Nukes
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has made it clear that America's 104 licensed atomic power reactors are not accidents waiting to happen. They are accidents in progress.
And proposals to build a "new generation" of reactors are not mere scams. They comprise a predictable plan for permanent national bankruptcy.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/11/15-4
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The Code Killers
Why DNA and ionizing radiation are a dangerous mix; An expose of the nuclear industry
http://www.acehoffman.org/books/TheCodeKillers.pdf
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$1.7 Billion and Rising: Taxpayers' Gas Bill for Oil Sands
Extractors gobble natural gas, deducting the cost from their taxes. That already huge public subsidy, hidden from view, is due to balloon.
http://thetyee.ca/News/2010/11/09/GasBillForOilSands/
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Burning coal helps OPG raise profits
Output from OPG’s thermal plants, which mostly burn coal, rose by 250 per cent in the three months ended Sept. 30, raising OPG’s carbon dioxide emissions 45 per cent compared with last year.
http://www.thestar.com/business/article/
893670--burning-coal-helps-opg-raise-profits

Angela’s Note: Increasing OPG’s profits at the expense of the climate or our children’s health doesn’t make sense. [Finishing the coal phase out]
The good news is that Ontario’s coal-free generation capacity is now 17% greater than our peak day electricity demands. Therefore we can achieve a virtually complete coal phase-out today by simply putting our dirty coal plants on standby reserve, only operating them if they are absolutely needed to keep the lights on.

1 Minute Action: Please send an email to Energy Minister Duguid now and ask him to prevent up to 137,500 asthma attacks per year by putting all of our dirty coal boilers on standby reserve today.
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The Story of Coal
Coal still generates 50% of the electricity consumed in the United States and once people get the real picture of how dirty it is, they surely will think a bit harder about switching to a renewable source of power.
http://beforeitsnews.com/story/266/688/
Video:_The_Story_of_Coal.html
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Reducing Your Electrical Bill
By popular demand, we have gathered together our various energy conservation tips for reducing electrical power consumption. Recent hikes in electrical bills in Ontario have many consumers scrambling for ways to lower their electrical bill. Find out how to reduce them here:
http://www.econogics.com/en/poweroff.htm
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Pay now for power
There's no such thing as free hydro. The McGuinty government's decision to add $1 billion to the deficit to pay for lower electricity rates is cowardly, irresponsible and will ultimately end up costing the taxpayers of Ontario more.
Ultimately, the people of Ontario will have to pay for power, whether through taxes or on their bills. It's far preferable to pay now, and pay directly. It's more honest -- it allows Ontarians to see the relationship between the government's energy-policy decisions on the expenditure side and the cost on their bills. It's also more fair, because it allows those consumers who use less hydro to pay less. The shift to the tax base also reduces the financial incentive that might have convinced more people to find ways to save money, whether through timing their usage to coincide with lower rates at times of less demand, or by conserving altogether. Financial incentives are a great way to nudge people into new habits, habits that can reduce the overall burden on the energy grid. The market works.
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology ... story.html
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Our fiscally prudent strategy to lower electricity bills
Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan announced this afternoon a $1.1 billion per year taxpayer-financed subsidy for the consumption of dirty coal-fired and high-cost nuclear power. But merely reducing electricity prices masks the true costs of producing electricity. Here is our sustainable and fiscally prudent strategy to lower electricity bills.
Put the pedal to the metal on improving energy efficiency: Ontario’s demand for electricity has fallen by 7% since 2006, but our electricity consumption per person is still 35% higher than New York State’s. We can do a lot more to save consumers money by reducing electricity waste.
End blank cheques for nuclear projects: No green or clean power producer gets to pass capital cost overruns onto consumers like the nuclear industry does. It’s time to end blank cheque spending on wildly expensive nuclear projects. We must refuse to let Ontario Power Generation (OPG) max out our collective credit card to pay for the inevitable multi-billion dollar cost overruns on its proposed Darlington Re-Build project.
Import more hydro power from Quebec: Under federal rules, Quebec must offer Ontario electricity for the same price it gets from its American customers. Last year that was 6.5 cents per kWh, less than a third the price of power from a rebuilt Darlington Station. Current transmission capacity is sufficient to import enough electricity from Quebec to provide power equal to more than three-quarters of Darlington’s output – with no radioactive waste.
Instead of applying costly band-aids to electricity bills, we need to implement the following real solutions to controlling electricity costs.
Please email Finance Minister Dwight Duncan and urge him to:
a) invest massively in energy efficiency and conservation programs,
b) tell OPG that it will not be allowed to pass its Darlington Re-Build cost overruns onto consumers and taxpayers, and
c) import more hydro electricity from Quebec.
Thank you for your help to usher in lower cost green electricity.
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Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402, Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

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4. Matoush Uranium Project Should be Rejected

http://www.miningwatch.ca/en/
matoush-uranium-project-should-be-rejected-say-miningwatch-cree-nation-mistissini-and-others

MiningWatch, Cree Nation of Mistissini
Mistissini Cree Nation November 23, 2010
The message was clear -- reject Strateco Resources’ proposal for an advanced uranium exploration project at its Matoush site In the Otish Mountains.
The message came from Mistissini Chief Richard Shecapio, from MiningWatch Canada, from the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, from Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, and from individuals living in Mistissini and from southern Québec who traveled here for the first of two public hearings on the proposed project.
The first to present was Ramsey Hart of MiningWatch Canada. Mr. Hart highlighted a number of fundamental weaknesses in the proponents justification and impact assessment for the project giving examples of several assertions made by the company that were not backed up by evidence. Two of the most serious flaws, in Hart’s view, were the failure to address how the 2.4 km underground ramp would interact with groundwater and the failure to provide information about the mine Strateco hopes the advanced exploration project will lead to. He quoted information from an April 2010 document, not included in the environmental impact statement, that 2-million tones of tailings would be dumped into two nearby lakes. “These are the kinds of issues we should be discussing now” said Hart.
Gordon Edwards from the Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility reviewed aspects of the project documents for MiningWatch. He pointed to the companies failure to provide information on basic aspects of radiation and its hazards while identifying important errors in the calculation of the concentrations of radioactive materials in the rocks from the project site.
In his address, Chief Shecapio was critical of Strateco for their failure to provide adequate information, answer the community’s questions and to gain their trust. He expressed his community’s concern over the potential for lasting impacts to wildlife and about the proximity of the project to a newly formed national park. The lack of care taken in developing their impact statement made him question how careful the company would be in implementing the project. He also stated that the mining of uranium would go against fundamental values of the Cree.
Thomas Coon, a Cree elder made an eloquent and passionate speech comparing the feeling in the room to the feeling in the community when it was faced with the first massive hydro-electric developments in their territory. He described it as: “the feeling of fear, the feeling of threat, the feeling of uncertainty that something is going to happen to our land, the land that we love.”
Of the 10 presentations made to the panel tonight, none were supportive of the project. A second hearing is planned for the Town of Chibougamau on Thursday.
For Additional Information:
Ramsey Hart, Canada Program Coordinator,
MiningWatch Canada, ramsey@miningwatch.ca
613-614-9937
Ramsey Hart’s presentation to the panel:http://www.miningwatch.ca/en/Matoush+Nov+23
Gordon Edwards´presentation to the panelhttp://ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf
Canadian Environmental Assessment Matoush Project Website:http://www.ceaa.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=1ED9DF1A-1
(Archived audio and verbatim transcripts will be available on the same CEAA website soon.)

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5. LETTER: HUGHES, E.: Familiar cavalier attitude towards uranium
From: Elaine Hughes
To: letters@theaustralian.com.au
Sent: Monday, November 22, 2010 10:53 PM
Subject: Familiar cavalier attitude towards uranium
Dear Editor:
RE: Greens' uranium threat dismissed by Canadian miner
Kintyre's Environmental Manager Mr. Williamson's cavalier attitude towards the concerns Australians are voicing over the new uranium mine his company hopes to open to be so disgusting and reprehensible . . . but breathtakingly familiar!
It seems that Cameco and other Canadian uranium companies are afflicted with the same corporate psychopathic blindness and irresponsibility to the terrible harm this lethal substance, in all its forms, can cause!
And, all along, I thought it was in our Saskatchewan water! Now I see it's universal - must be the stench of all that lovely 'yellow' money!
Shamefully yours,
Elaine Hughes
Saskatchewan, CANADA
Saskatchewan! Premier Wall's 'Saudi Arabia' of uranium!
= = = = = = =
Greens' uranium threat dismissed by Canadian miner

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/
greens-uranium-threat-dismissed-by-canadian-miner/story-e6frg8zx-1225958817664

Andrew Burrell From: The Australian November 23, 2010 12:00AM
CANADIAN uranium giant Cameco has hit back at threats by the Greens.
The Greens threatened to use their newfound influence in Canberra to try to stop approval of its Kintyre mine in Western Australia.
Touring the east Pilbara project, Kintyre environmental manager Simon Williamson dismissed concerns about political risk and said the Gillard and Barnett governments fully backed it.
Greens senator Scott Ludlam said the party would use its alliance with the Gillard government, and its balance of power in the Senate from July, to try to block the Kintyre project, which is 70 per cent owned by Canadian interests and 30 per cent by Japan's Mitsubishi.
Kintyre is competing with several projects, including BHP Billiton's Yeelirrie, to be the first uranium mine in WA since the Barnett government lifted a ban on the nuclear fuel in late 2008.
The project will require approval from federal Environment Minister Tony Burke.
In 43 degree heat at the Kintyre site yesterday, Mr Williamson said the Greens' claims that the uranium industry was dangerous for workers and communities were "scaremongering and not factual".
Some people in communities along the transport route proposed for Kintyre were concerned about radioactive exposure, but local communities were being fed incorrect information, he said. He expected the Greens would keep trying to "muddy the water".
Cameco plans to truck yellowcake to a transport hub near Kalgoorlie, and then use rail or road to take it to Port Adelaide for export.
The uranium would be packed in steel drums and stowed in steel containers, and would present "no significant hazard", he said.
It is expected to be exported to North America and China.

MORE:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/
greens-uranium-threat-dismissed-by-canadian-miner/story-e6frg8zx-1225958817664

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6. Hypothesis to Explain Childhood Cancer near Nuclear Power Plants

http://pdfserve.informaworld.com/924553__914006026.pdf

Author: Ian Fairlie

Abstract

In early 2008, the very large Kinderkrebs in der Umgebung von Kernkraftwerken [Childhood Cancer near Nuclear Power Plants] (KiKK) study in Germany reported increases in leukaemias and solid cancers among children living near all German nuclear power plants (NPPs). This study, previously described in Medicine, Conflict and Survival, has triggered debates in many countries as to the cause or causes of these increased cancers. An accompanying article reports on the recent developments on the KiKK study including the responses by German radiation agencies, and the results of recent epidemiological studies near United Kingdom and French nuclear installations. This article outlines a possible explanation for the increased cancers. In essence, doses from environmental NPP emissions to embryos/foetuses in pregnant women near NPPs may be larger than suspected, and haematopoietic tissues may be considerably more radiosensitive in embryos/foetuses than in newborn babies. The article concludes with recommendations for further research.

Keywords: cancer; carbon-14; congenital malformations; discharges; embryo; emissions; foetus; leukaemia; nuclear power stations; pregnancy outcomes; radiation; radioactivity; radionuclides; relative risk; tritium

View Full Text Article:

Download PDF (~821 KB)

http://pdfserve.informaworld.com/32114__914006026.pdf

View Article Online (HTML)

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/
section?content=a914006026&fulltext=713240928

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7. U.S. Urged To Reveal Locations Of Depleted Uranium In Iraq

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=71968&s2=19

By Ljubica Vujadinovic November 18, 2010
Despite the reports on the soaring cancer in Iraq and ever rising concern it might have been caused by the contamination with depleted uranium (DU), the United States refuse to reveal the locations the DU containing weapons were used. During the two conflicts in 1991 and 2003 in Iraq, the US has used at least 400 tonnes of the DU, the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons (ICBUW) stated.
"Contaminated sites are quite difficult to identify in the field. Thus, it is important that location information is released so that civilians living nearby can be warned, soil water and air can be monitored and where necessary, sites can be decontaminated." the ICBUW Coordinator Doug Weir told Allvoices.
Last month, the US, along with France, Israel and the United Kingdom, were the only four states in the UN First Committee who opposed a resolution calling on users of DU weapons to release quantitative and geographical data to the governments of affected states. However, the UK has already released the information on where it had used the DU in invasion on Iraq in 2003. Why is Washington so reluctant doing the same?
"We think it is very unlikely that the US didn't keep records so the other explanation may be that they could find themselves liable for compensation or clean-up costs if they revealed where the weapons were used: it infers responsibility. The experience from the Balkans suggests that clean-up costs would be considerable."
In Serbia, the data from one of the most contaminated area during the NATO bombing in 1999 implies the DU is related with the increase of cancer rates and newborn with deformities. In case of Iraq, there are still no relevant statistics that would imply health hazards of the DU contamination.
"In large part it is because of a lack of transparency from the US - it's impossible to make links between exposure and health problems unless you know where the weapons have been used." Weir told Allvoices.

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8. DOBBIN: Citizen Psychopaths

http://murraydobbin.ca/2010/11/22/citizen-psychopaths/

Posted: 22 Nov 2010 09:54 AM PST

Boys’ Club…
You know they’re gonna kill us
It’s the Boys’ Club
- Parachute Club
National governments have been back in the news over the past two years because of the financial crisis and the havoc it wreaked on the global economy. Belying the ideology that nations were obsolete in the grand new order of transnational corporations, they are now front and centre trying to save the corporations that supposedly had replaced them. That is, saving them from themselves — from their greed, overreach, hubris and sheer incompetence.
Yet there is a disturbing silence about the role of corporations in the world as if these private institutions are somehow immutable — created by the heavens and something we have to live with, like the weather. We need to change our way of thinking because corporations are the Frankenstein monsters that will destroy the planet. No amount of so-called “good corporate citizenship” or investment in wind power or electric cars will change this fact — the most important fact that the planet will deal with (or not) in the next century. Imagine what you will regarding what “we” have to do to save the planet. Unless we dismantle this perverse institution and take away its power, the world will descend into another dark age.

MORE:
http://murraydobbin.ca/2010/11/22/citizen-psychopaths/

Related:

• In Search of the Humanitarian Corporation
http://thetyee.ca/Views/2005/01/10/Huma ... rporation/
Former exec Hugo Bonjean believes one can exist, if we change its charter.

• All About Psychopath, Inc.
http://thetyee.ca/Entertainment/2004/01 ... opath_Inc/
Makers of hot doc 'The Corporation' talk about soulless power, 'socially responsible' business, unions, and trying to know what's real anymore.

• What Happened on the BP Oil Rig?
http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2010/06/18/WhatHappenedBP/
The facts, now out, are detailed here. The moral reckoning has yet to begin.

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9. The Kabul kids aren't alright

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/asia/2010/11 ... nt-alright

By Sue Turton November 23rd, 2010.
It's the kids that break your heart in Kabul.
Picking through rubbish dumps for something that might have a worth or scavenging for firewood to keep their family warm. There are ragged youths at every roundabout here tapping on the car window begging for Afghanis or proffering tin cans of burning charcoal that promise to rid your car of evil spirits.|
The daily violence does not discriminate between old and young and the numbers of children ripped apart by IEDs and suicide bombers gets ever higher.
If you're born in Afghanistan the odds are stacked against you from the day of your birth.
Mortality rates during child birth have improved but they're still amongst the highest in the world. One in every five don't make it to their fifth birthday.
If the conflict doesn't get you, the pneumonia, hypothermia, diarrhoea or tuberculosis just might. And that's just the physical side. One-quarter of all Afghan children are thought to have mental problems related to the trauma of war.

MORE:
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/asia/2010/11 ... nt-alright

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10. Afghanistan: the pipeline factor

http://www.straightgoods.ca/2010/
ViewArticle.cfm?Ref=970&Cookies=yes

Multibillion dollar TAPI project would bring oil and gas from Turkmenistan.
Dateline: Tuesday, November 23, 2010
by John Foster, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA)
Of the many possible reasons for Canada to stay in Afghanistan — ending terrorism, liberating women, educating girls, spreading democracy, keeping NATO from failing — one dynamic is rarely discussed. The TAPI pipeline project has long been the elephant in the closet, quietly supported by Western powers. Countries expect to sign formal agreements in December, with construction to be completed by 2014 — a magic date for Ottawa too. The pipeline deserves attention, as it is likely to be a target for insurgents and a reason for ongoing military occupation.
The planned pipeline project
The long-planned pipeline, named TAPI after the initials of the four participating countries (Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India), is the same pipeline the US company Unocal wanted to build in the 1990s. The TAPI countries have held eleven high-level planning meetings during the past eight years, the most recent in September 2010. The 1,680km pipeline would follow the ancient trading route from Central to South Asia, extending from a gas field in Turkmenistan along the highway through Herat, Helmand and Kandahar in Afghanistan, to Quetta and Multan in Pakistan, and on to Fazilka in India.
MAP - on website
Support for the pipeline project
The US is pushing hard for that pipeline. It's part of their geopolitical strategy in Central Asia. The pipeline was discussed in high-level donor meetings in 2006 and 2010 and is included in Afghanistan's 2008 National Development Strategy.
Western countries are supportive, though they avoid mentioning the pipeline publicly. G8 Foreign Ministers endorsed the project this year at Gatineau, Quebec. What they approved was a new initiative to facilitate joint infrastructure projects identified by Afghanistan and Pakistan. One of these projects is the TAPI pipeline.

MORE:
http://www.straightgoods.ca/2010/
ViewArticle.cfm?Ref=970&Cookies=yes

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11. LETTER: REMPEL: . . . .troops in Afghanistan must wait for a miracle
From: Jacob Rempel
To: Bob Rae MP ; Paul Dewar ; Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe ; Michael Ignatieff ; Jack Layton MP ; John McCallum ; Don Davies ; Joyce Murray MP ; Gerard Kennedy MP ; Rob Oliphant ; Libby Davies ; Peter Julian
Sent: Wednesday, November 24, 2010 11:07 PM
Subject: --- troops in Afghanistan must wait for a miracle
References :-- See links below my comments.
Dear Members of Parliament :--
For the British Empire and Russia in India and Afghanistan, it was the Great Game, Brzezinski places the present US same game on The Grand Chessboard. (Click on link)
In 1997, Brzezinski wrote: "For America, the geopolitical prize is Eurasia.... an enormous reserve of natural gas and oil." Brzezinski now advises Pres Obama.

PNAC, the Project For The New American Century
Project For The New American Century
Rebuilding America's Defenses: Strategy, Forces and Resources For a New Century

http://www.newamericancentury.org/Rebui ... fenses.pdf

This is the US game plan, which defers to plans of no other country.
In this Grand Chess Game, the US, China, India and Russia are the Kings and Queens,. Canada, Netherlands, Britain, Germany, Poland, Spain are power pieces. The pawns, -- the disposable sacrificed pawns are millions of Afghans, Iraqis, Pakistanis, Yemenis, Somalis, Palestinians, et al. Surviving pawns will suffer for many generations.
If present Canadian policies and plans continue, then we Canadians will loyally serve the US regime with soldiers, diplomats, war machines, taxes, and corruption of Canadian values. Environmental deterioration will continue unabated.
Canada should separate from its alliance with the US regime.
Any good we can do for the suffering masses, we can do better as an independent nation working with like-minded nations in support of a re-oriented strengthened United Nations.
Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
- - - -
References :--
THE MYSTERIOUS AFGHANISTAN EXTENSION, by Gerald Caplan.

Bob Rae supports Harper sending troops to wait for miracle. http://www.straightgoods.ca/2010/ViewArticle.cfm?Ref=968

AFGHANISTAN: THE PIPELINE FACTOR, by John Foster.
Multibillion dollar TAPI project would bring oil and gas from Turkmenistan.
http://www.straightgoods.ca/2010/ViewAr ... fm?Ref=970
EXCERPTS :--
"...they avoid mentioning the pipeline publicly. G8 Foreign Ministers endorsed the project this year at Gatineau, Quebec. ... they approved a new initiative to facilitate joint projects identified by Afghanistan and Pakistan. One project is the TAPI pipeline.
Peter MacKay and NATO officials have indicated they would consider a request to protect pipelines, if asked. Pipelines last 50 years or more.---
Brzezinski dubbed such geopolitical jockeying The Grand Chessboard.
In 1997, he wrote: "For America, the chief geopolitical prize is Eurasia...An enormous concentration of natural gas and oil reserves is located in the region." Brzezinski is currently an adviser to President Obama.

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12. LETTER: HUGHES, V.: STOP ALL TRAINING, STOP WARRING WITH THOSE WHO FEED OFF OF TRAGEDY!

From: val hughes
To: pm@pm.gc.ca ; layton.j@parl.gc.ca ; ignatieff.m@parl.gc.ca ; cannol@parl.gc.ca ; duceppe.g@parl.gc.ca
Sent: Wednesday, November 24, 2010 10:15 PM
Subject: STOP ALL TRAINING , STOP WARRING WITH THOSE WHO FEED OFF OF TRAGEDY!
With Honourable mention:
The announcement to stop the war but continue training is ludicrous! All for major corporations win their millions, meanwhile the world goes deeper and deeper in debt. Where and what is the reasoning besides what is inevitably going to repeat itself as it has with world war one and world war two? NO to training, NO to world debt, NO TO THE CORPORATIONS lined up to make a profit while families watch their loved ones die or live disabled for the enrichment of Corporate Money Mongers with NO morals. We know..............
Listen to Canadians, stand by your people and fight against this ridiculous choice of training men to kill even more without heart!
Thank you for your consideration in this desperate cry to keep what is left of Canadian people, for mankind!
Sincerely,
Val Hughes
Box 1882, Beaverlodge, Alberta T0H 0C0

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13. North Korea fires at South Korean island

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6379&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 23 Nov 2010 09:47 PM PST
North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire on Tuesday. The exchange was begun by North Korea, which fired at a South Korean island near their western border. South Korea returned the fire, and South Korean officials are accusing North Korea of violating the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean War. The North Korean attack left [...]
= = = = = = =
North Korea's unending war rages on

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/
896502--walkom-north-korea-s-unending-war-rages-on

Published On Thu Nov 25 2010
By Thomas Walkom National Affairs Columnist
To the West, North Korea's shelling of a South Korean island is an incomprehensible action by a dangerous, rogue regime.
To South Koreans, it is a brutal reminder of the Communist North's earlier attempt, 57 years ago, to bring the entire peninsula under its control.
But to the North, Tuesday's shelling of Yeonpyeong island is just another reminder of how much unfinished business remains from a war that began in 1950 but that, technically, has never ended.
- - - - SNIP - - -
But to Pyongyang, Washington's consistent refusal to negotiate a final treaty is both an affront and an indication of North Korea's precarious position.
The Americans, it feels, broke their 1945 promise to permit a united Korea. And then the same Americans (this time in their role as head of the UN Command) reneged on promises to begin formal peace talks within three months of the 1953 armistice.
The armistice talked of withdrawing of all foreign troops from the peninsula. Yet U.S. forces are still there.
North Korea's response has been two-track. On the one hand it has tried to bully its way to a treaty (the regime once tried to assassinate an entire South Korean cabinet it deemed overly obstructionist).
On the other it has been diligently legalistic, refusing to accept anything not specifically agreed to in the 1953 armistice — including South Korea's unilateral extension of its maritime boundaries into areas the North claims.
It's worth noting that both this week's shelling and the sinking last March of a South Korean naval vessel took place near this disputed maritime boundary.
To the world outside Pyongyang, such events are worrisome in that they threaten another Korean war. To the North, however, they are the logical results of an earlier war that, to its mind, never really ended.
Columnist Thomas Walkom is a former Asia correspondent.

=========================

14. Drafting Nature's Constitution

http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power ... nstitution

Simply regulating pollution will never really stop it. Mari Margil of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund discusses why we need a fundamental change in the way we use law to protect nature. Mar 02, 2010
The environmental movement, with its army of professional advocates, lawyers, grassroots campaigners, and dedicated funders, has been around for decades. Yet nearly every biological indicator shows a planet in crisis—and poised to unravel faster as climate change disrupts already-shaky ecosystem functions.
Mari Margil, associate director of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) [ http://www.celdf.org/ ] believes it's time for different tactics. The nonprofit agency used to work within the body of existing environmental law—helping impacted residents file lawsuits or appeal corporate permits—to protect communities from environmental damage. But a series of blocked efforts, often made worse by the very agencies meant to protect the environment, convinced the group that more fundamental changes were necessary.
"Our system of environmental laws and regulations don't actually protect the environment," says CLEDF's Mari Margil. "At best, they merely slow the rate of its destruction ... We weren't helping anyone protect anything."
The organization has since changed its goals, working with citizens from all over North and South America to literally rewrite local laws in ways that allow people to speak up for their communities, watersheds, forests, and air.
According to Margil, anemic environmental laws spring from the fact that nature has no constitutional rights. CLEDF has taken a local approach to reversing this structural blind spot, drafting ordinances for townships from New England to Pennsylvania to Washington State that:
• Give communities legal authority to say "No" to unwanted corporate activities;
• Recognize the rights of nature;
• Strip corporations of their constitutional rights.
In one landmark victory, the town of Barnstead, New Hampshire, voted 135 to 1 to ban the privatization of their freshwater by encroaching corporate interests—the first community in the nation to do so. Other towns have followed, stripping corporations of the rights of personhood and recognizing the rights of communities to self-govern. In 2008, with legal advice from CELDF, Ecuador recognized the right of nature to exist and persist in its national constitution.
Part One - [comment: go to link above to see clips]
Part Two
Part Three - This video was produced by Bioneers, a nonprofit organization that provides a forum and hub for social and scientific innovators.
Interested?
Communities Take on Corporate Powerhttp://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/
stand-up-to-corporate-power/communities-take-power

People across the country are taking our founding documents at their word, declaring citizens' right and duty to protect nature and community.
YES! Magazine encourages you to make free use of this article by taking these easy steps.
http://www.yesmagazine.org/about/reprints

sgast. (2010, February 26). Drafting Nature\'s Constitution. Retrieved November 22, 2010, from YES! Magazine
http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power/
drafting-naturesconstitution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License

==================

15. Our Most Loved Resource? Water

http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2010/11/22/WaterLove/

British Columbians are keen to protect rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands, a new poll finds.
By Linda Nowlan, Today, TheTyee.ca
Water pricing is a hot issue in communities across the country. Yet it remains an
untapped option for conservation, and for preventing tragedies like Walkerton.
We love our water, so much that we want new rules to protect the elixir of life. Water is the most highly valued natural resource we have, according to a new poll from the McAllister polling group done for WWF Canada and the Vancouver Foundation, released today.
While it may be predictable that 98 per cent of British Columbians feel fresh water is crucial to the prosperity and quality of life in B.C., it's less obvious that 72 per cent say nature should be the priority for managing water use during times of water scarcity -- even if it slows economic growth. And 62 per cent of those polled said that current rules governing water use in B.C. were not strict enough to ensure the future sustainability of B.C.'s fresh water resources.
The citizens of the province are giving a strong go-ahead signal to the government to do
what it takes to protect and conserve our rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands.
So take note, beleaguered politicians from all parties: this is a good news story. Bold reforms to safeguard water laws are likely to attract public support. Just as the carbon tax turned out to be a popular move by the Liberals (and opposition to the tax was a disaster for the NDP), ensuring nature's needs for water are met promises to be popular.
Time to make four changes to Water Act

MORE:
http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2010/11/22/WaterLove/

Linda Nowlan is an environmental lawyer in Vancouver who served on the Canadian Council of Academies' Expert Panel on Groundwater, the BC Independent Drinking Water Review Panel, and is the author of numerous reports on water and environmental law, including

Practising Shared Water Governance in Canada: A Primer and Buried Treasure: Groundwater Permitting and Pricing in Canada (co-authored with Dr. Karen Bakker)
http://www.watergovernance.ca/publications/
#practising-shared-water-governance-in-ca

Buried Treasure: Groundwater Permitting and Pricing in Canada.
http://www.buriedtreasurecanada.org/Buried-Treasure.ppt

Related:

• The High Cost of Cheap Water
http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2010/05/18/CheapWater/

• Trickle Down
http://thetyee.ca/Books/2007/10/29/BarlowOnWater/
Maude Barlow on water as a right, free trade and Canada's 'shame.'

• The Myth of Canada's Water Abundance
http://thetyee.ca/Books/2007/11/22/NoWater/
And why Maude Barlow's 'solution' is really a dry hole.

====================

16. Council of Canadians Update - November 23 & 24, 2010

Council of Canadians Update: Nov. 24

NEWS: Climate change warming the world’s lakeshttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5444
The Associated Press reports that, “A first-of-its-kind NASA study is finding nice cool lakes are heating up — even faster than air. Two NASA scientists used satellite data to look at 104 large inland lakes around the world. They found that on average they have warmed 2 degrees since 1985. That’s about two-and-a-half times the increase in global temperatures in the same time period. The study was published Wednesday in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.”

NEWS: Constance Lake First Nation water crisishttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5442
The Canadian Press reports that, “A northern Ontario reserve where the water is unsafe to drink is pleading with Ottawa to maintain its bottled water shipments. The community learned last week that Ottawa was cutting the number of bottles shipped in from 4.5 litres per person, per day, to 1.5 litres, Constance Lake First Nations Chief Arthur Moore said.”

NEWS: BP, Imperial rent Canadian coast guard ship to make case for Arctic oil drilling
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5438
The CBC reports this evening that, “Questions are being raised over the use of a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker by two oil companies for research that could help them make a case for drilling in the Arctic. CBC News has learned that for a minimum of $50,000 a day, BP and Imperial Oil paid to use CCGS Amundsen — Canada’s most advanced research ship which is dedicated to the study of climate change — for a total of six weeks over the past two years. The oil companies want to study the environmental impact of their exploratory oil drilling plans in the Beaufort Sea.”

NEWS: Council of Canadians in Mexico for climate summithttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5446
Metro News reports that, “Council of Canadians spokespeople will participate in workshops and roundtables in Mexico beginning next week for the Cancun climate talks. Ottawa-based national chairperson of the Council of Canadians, Maude Barlow, will be speaking in Mexico to raise several of the themes she addressed in a recent speech on the environment she delivered in California. ‘The global water crisis is the greatest ecological and human threat humanity has ever faced,’ said Barlow in a recent speech. ‘Dirty water is the biggest killer of children; everyday, more children die of waterborne disease than HIV/AIDS, malaria and war together,’ she said.”

Fix Panama’s tax regime before signing FTA, trade committee hearshttp://www.canadians.org/tradeblog/?p=1204
Canada’s international trade committee is currently in Europe talking to politicians, business groups and others about the Canada-EU free trade negotiations. When the group returns to Ottawa next week, hearings will continue into the Canada-Panama free trade agreement. Last week, the committee heard from a U.S. trade expert about the threats a Panama FTA would pose to Canada’s prudential financial regime.

= = = = =

Council of Canadians Update – November 23, 2010

MEDIA ADVISORY:
Council of Canadians to demand climate justice at Cancun talks http://www.canadians.org/media/energy/2010/23-Nov-10-a.html

ACTION ALERT: Take Our Cities Out of CETAhttp://www.canadians.org/action/2010/CETA-BC-1010.html

NEWS: Carbon offsets a false solution to clean waterhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5434
Tina Rosenberg recently wrote in the New York Times that, “Nearly a billion people don’t have drinkable water. Lack of water - and the associated lack of toilets and proper hygiene - kills 3.3 million people a year, most of them children under five. Lack of access to clean water is one of the world’s biggest health problems. And it is one of the hardest to solve. Lots of different groups dig wells and lay pipes - but the biggest challenge comes after the hardware is in.”

NEWS: Canada, EU reach MOU on hormone-treated beefhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5431
Reuters reports that, “Canada has gained duty-free access to the European Union for a 20,000-tonne annual quota of beef, Canada’s agriculture and trade ministers said on Tuesday. The access is worth about C$10 million ($9.8 million) annually, the ministers said.”

NEWS: Paris court ruling on FLOW ‘a victory’http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5429
The Vancouver Sun reports today that: Canadian activist Maude Barlow is calling it a victory for those who believe clean water is a human right, but a French court’s recent decision to reject a defamation lawsuit against the movie Flow could also be regarded as a sign of changing times.

NEWS: US Secretary of State in Ottawa, Dec. 13http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5428
The Pembina Institute has learned that US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton will be visiting Ottawa on December 13.

International trade committee meets CETA skeptics in Londonhttp://www.canadians.org/tradeblog/?p=1197
The House of Commons international trade committee (CIIT) is in Europe (UK, Belgium, Italy, Hungary) this week meeting with various people and organizations working on, or with an interest in, the Canada-EU trade negotiations. Yesterday in London they met with an anti-poverty, human rights group critical of CETA for its potential to interfere with non-trade related public policy objectives, including public services and job creation. Those in Toronto earlier this year for the G20 and the Council’s Shout Out for Global Justice will remember John Hilary, executive director of War on Want, as one of the keynote speakers. He and War on Water trade campaigner Dave Tucker met with the Canadian trade committee delegation yesterday morning at the Canadian consulate to discuss the stresses that trade agreements put on public services, including health care, and the need to develop an alternative trade model to the one proposed by CETA.

================

17. Watchdog probes whether federal leak sent Taseko stock into tailspin

http://m.theglobeandmail.com/report-on- ... stry-news/
energy-and-resources/watchdog-probes-whether-federal-leak-sent-taseko-stock-into-tailspin/article1812738/?service=mobile

CBC cites unnamed government sources who say possible leak of information led to Taseko Mine Ltd.’s 40-per-cent drop
ADRIAN MORROWGlobe and Mail Update Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2010 10:01PM EST
Investigators are trying to determine whether a leak of sensitive information from within the federal government prompted a sharp drop in value of the shares of a British Columbia mining company, the CBC is reporting.
Citing unnamed government sources, the broadcaster said Wednesday night that the Investment Regulatory Organization of Canada is trying to determine why shares in Taseko Mines Ltd., fell nearly 40 per cent on Oct. 14, more than two weeks before the federal government announced that it was blocking the firm’s plans to develop the Prosperity Mine, a development 125 kilometres southwest of Prince George.
Federal officials fear that the steep drop in stock was caused by a leak of information that the development would be stopped, the broadcaster reported, adding that the decision was taken secretly, in hopes of preventing such stock market fluctuations.

MORE:
http://m.theglobeandmail.com/report-on- ... stry-news/
energy-and-resources/watchdog-probes-whether-federal-leak-sent-taseko-stock-into-tailspin/article1812738/?service=mobile

by **Oscar** » Sat Nov 27, 2010 5:56 pm

NUKE NEWS: November 27, 2010

1. Green Party of Saskatchewan Tour of Northeast SK on High-Level Radioactive Waste Imported to Sask – Nov. 27 - 28, 2010
2. EVENT: NIKIFORUK: Are Canada’s Energy Regulators Captive to Industry? – Regina/Saskatoon – Dec. 2
3. Earth Day Canada Launches Award and Recognition Programs
4. Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) Supports Mistissini's Position on the Matoush Project
5. Winning energy race - Aboriginal communities will be in demand as partners in new projects
6. Cameco inks China uranium deal
7. Cool response to hot topic
8. Higher rates of cancer found in area near dilapidated nuclear waste dump
9. Peace talks with Taliban imposter?
10. Raging Grannies protest in Ottawa
11. Timetable Abandoned: U.S. And NATO To Wage Endless War In Afghanistan
12. LETTERS: ERNST/LITTLE: Re: Don't Extend It. End It. House of Commons vote on Nov 30
13. LETTER: REMPEL: Supporting Harper's war policies in Afghanistan and beyond
14. LETTER: KURTENBACH: Muslim Terrorists
15. Is the Defence Department feeling the heat over F-35s?
16. Why the F-35 stealth fighter is wrong for Canada
17. LISTEN: CBC RADIO – The Current: F-35 Fighter Jets - Oct.12/10
18. LETTER: REMPEL: RE: “PR blitz aims to sell “skeptical public” on the need for F-35 fighter jets.
19. WikiLeaks strikes again (3 articles)
20. Council of Canadians Update - November 25 & 26, 2010
21. New Big Brother Laws Would Reshape Canada's Internet
22. 2011 EECOM Conference - Call for Participation

===============

1. Green Party of Saskatchewan Tour of Northeast SK on High-Level Radioactive Waste Imported to Sask – Nov. 27 - 28, 2010
Join us for a lively discussion of the plans to import high-level radioactive waste into Saskatchewan.
Members of the Green Party of Saskatchewan will start the discussion with a short explanation of what’s already happening.
* Nov 27th, 1:30 - 2:30 pm, Prince Albert - Cuelenaere Public Library,
Contact: Penny 723-4273
* Nov 27th, 4 - 5 pm, Smeaton - Recreation Centre Upstairs Lounge,
Contact: Bernice 426-2221
* Nov 27th, 7 - 8 pm, - Nipawin - Kingfisher Inn, 1203 - 8 St. W.,
Contact: Penny 723-4273
* Nov 28th, 10 - 11 am, Tisdale - Chicken Delight Meeting Room,
Contact: Penny 723-4273
* Nov 28th, 1 - 2 pm, Melfort - Kerry Vickar Centre, Melfort.
Contact: Penny 723-4273

================

2. EVENT: NIKIFORUK: Are Canada’s Energy Regulators Captive to Industry? – Regina/Saskatoon – Dec. 2

Presented by Andrew Nikiforuk, Author and Journalist
December 2, 2010 - 10:00 am to 11:30 am

Please note: This lecture will take place in Regina and will be video-conferenced to a Saskatoon audience.

Regina Location: JSGS Window Room, 2nd Floor, Gallery Building
University of Regina, College Avenue Campus

Saskatoon Location: Studio B (Lower Level), Education Building
University of Saskatchewan Campus

Registration:
Those interested in attending are encouraged to register online at www.schoolofpublicpolicy.sk.ca (please select News and Events, then Events Calendar and the appropriate calendar date). Please be advised that the JSGS Window Room is located on the second floor of the Gallery Building. Individuals with mobility difficulties should contact us at 306.585.5869 or js_outreach@uregina.ca at least one week prior to the event.
JSGS Lecture Series:
This event is part of a lecture series organized by the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy (JSGS). This lecture series features speakers addressing provincial, national and international issues. To view our upcoming events or to learn more about our outreach activities, visit our website at
www.schoolofpublicpolicy.sk.ca.

===============

3. Earth Day Canada Launches Award and Recognition Programs

http://www.earthday.ca/pub/

Earth Day Canada celebrates and supports environmental initiatives year-round through a suite of recognition programs and financial support, including scholarships, grants and cash awards programs.
Help celebrate and recognize these contributions by directly applying or promoting the programs to your volunteers, supporters and/or community network today.
Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program awards twenty $5000 scholarships to graduating Canadian high school students entering their first year of post-secondary studies.
Eligible students can apply now at
www.earthday.ca/scholarship.
The application deadline is January 31st, 2011.
Hometown Heroes Award Program rewards environmental leaders (individuals and groups) who have fostered meaningful, long–term community awareness and action in their communities with a $10 000 prize.
Nominate a hero today at
www.earthday.ca/hometown
The application deadline is February 28th, 2011.

===============

4. Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) Supports Mistissini's Position on the Matoush Project

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/cnw/
article.jsp?content=20101125_182502_1_cnw_cnw

For Immediate Release
Nemaska, Eeyou Istchee (November 25, 2010) -- The Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) wishes to acknowledge and provide full support to the Cree Nation of Mistissini's decision to reject a proposal for a uranium exploration mine within their territory.
Earlier today, Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come expressed his thoughts about Mistissini's rejection of the Matoush project.
"Being from Mistissini myself, I know the community's decision was not taken lightly. It took several years of fact finding and soul searching.
"Decisions of this nature are especially difficult for First Nations, particularly at a time when we are seeking out development proposals to address very real employment challenges.
"The Cree nation as a whole remains open to mining development opportunities that are compatible with the Cree way of life. However, as Mistissini indicated, the community felt that the potential impacts of this proposal far outweigh its benefits.
"With this in mind, the Grand Council of the Crees (of Eeyou Istchee) will respect and support Mistissini's decision."
The Grand Chief's comments are in stark contrast to previous reports in the media that incorrectly stated that the Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) had previously supported the Matoush project. - 30 -
For more information please contact
Bill Namagoose (613) 725 7024
Romeo Saganash (418) 564 1598 (French inquiries)

=======================

5. Winning energy race - Aboriginal communities will be in demand as partners in new projects

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/business/ ... ergy+race/
3881486/story.html

BY JIM MIDDLEMISS, THE FINANCIAL POST NOVEMBER 25, 2010
The renewable energy gold rush currently underway could be a boon to Canada's aboriginal community.
That's because alternative energy companies are looking to partner with First Nations to build run-of-river hydroelectric plants, wind farms and solar farms on lands covered by native claims.
"Our view is that, certainly in Canada, many of the remaining – if not all of the remaining -- attractive hydroelectric sites will need a degree of First Nations' participation of some type," said Ben Vaughan, executive vice-president and chief operating officer of Brookfield Renewable Power, which builds energy projects.
Last May, Brookfield and partners Peter Kiewit Sons Co., an engineering firm, and James Smith Cree Nation, Peter Chapman Cree Nation, the Chakastapaysin Band of the Cree, announced a deal with SaskPower to launch a $12-million feasibility study on locating a hydroelectric plant on the Saskatchewan River, known as the Pehonan Hydroelectric Project. If completed, it will generate 250 megawatts of clean energy.
Mr. Vaughan said Pehonan is one of four projects the firm currently has underway involving renewable energy and First Nations. The furthest along is the Kokish River Hydro Electric Project, involving Kwagis Power, a limited partnership between Brookfield and the 'Namgis First Nation. The run-of-river project proposed for northeastern Vancouver Island would generate up to 45 megawatts of electricity -- enough to power 15,000 homes.

MORE: http://www.thestarphoenix.com/business/ ... ergy+race/
3881486/story.html

==================

6. Cameco inks China uranium deal

http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/
Cameco+inks+China+uranium+deal/3881599/story.html

Times Colonist Reuters November 25, 2010
Cameco Corp., the world's second-largest uranium producer, agreed to supply the fuel to China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co. through 2025 to meet rising demand in the world's fastest-growing nuclear market.
Cameco plans to sell 29 million pounds of uranium concentrate to Guangdong Nuclear, subject to the approval of the Chinese government. That's equivalent to about 13,000 tonnes.
- - - SNIP - - - -
Chinese uranium demand may rise to 20,000 tons annually by 2020, more than a third of the 50,572 tons mined globally last year.
- - - - -
URANIUM SALE: Cameco inks long-term deal with China

http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/issues/
story.aspx?aid=1000394122

DAILY NEWS Nov 24, 2010 5:00 PM -
SASKATOON - Cameco has signed a deal with China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding o. to supply 29 million lb of uranium concentrate through 2025. Currently, uranium prices are approximately US$60 per lb. The contract is subject to Chinese government approval.

MORE:
http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/issues/
story.aspx?aid=1000394122

================

7. Cool response to hot topic

http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2851200

By Joyce Cassin, Northumberland Today, Nov 18th 2010
OSHAWA - Some people didn't get the answers they were looking for after travelling to Oshawa to hear antinuclear activist, Dr. Helen Caldicott speak Tuesday night.
While there were several Port Hope residents in attendance, the numbers were rather low compared to Cameco's community forums that are held a few times each year. The majority of the people in attendance appeared to have been from elsewhere.
The event received a great amount of national media coverage.
Sanford Haskill, chair of Families Against Radiation Exposure (FARE) which
brought Caldicott to the area, said her talk was too technical for him and other people, and that he did not come away with what he wanted to hear.
Earlier in the day, Haskill said that he had heard Caldicott's claims that Port Hope should be relocated, and was looking forward to her speech so he could get the "meat and guts" behind her comments.
But she began her presentation with how she was "aghast" when she heard about Port Hope during her visit to Peterborough General Hospital in 2009.
Caldicott generalized on how people were unaware of dangers of uranium and radiation back in the 1930s when the industry first came to Port Hope as Eldorado.
"We used to use it in medicine until we realized what it was," she said.
Ingredients of the first nuclear weapons was refined in Port Hope and supplied to the United States, she said.

MORE: http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2851200

====================

8. Higher rates of cancer found in area near dilapidated nuclear waste dump

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,6269113,00.html

Matt Zuvela, Holly Fox: Deutches Welle, Nov. 26, 2010
The Lower Saxony government has said those living near a dilapidated nuclear waste storage facility have higher rates of cancer. Men have twice the rate of leukemia and women have three times the rate of thyroid cancer.
Newly published figures from the Lower Saxony state cancer registry show that in the area around Asse, the site of a controversial nuclear waste dump near Wolffenbuettel, some cancer rates are higher than normal.
Between 2002 and 2009 there were 12 cases of leukemia in the greater Asse region. The area had twice the rate expected for men. While there was no significant increase in leukemia for women, their rate of thyroid cancer was three times as high as normal.
The government has not yet determined if the increase is related to the proximity to the nuclear waste site. A working group of representatives from Lower Saxony’s environment, social, and health ministries as well as the federal agency for radiation protection is set to meet over the next few weeks to take a closer look at the data.
Joerg Roehmann, the district administrator in Wolfenbuettel, said in an interview with German public television that the numbers needed to be analyzed and put into context
before any conclusions can be made.
"I'd like to appeal to anyone from this area who has been diagnosed with leukemia, for example, to come forward, along with doctors or anyone treating these patients to
help us make comparisons and create a context for this data," he said.
"We don't know anything about exact location, age, occupation, or family history in these cases."

MORE:
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/
0,,6269113,00.html

====================

9. Peace talks with Taliban imposter?

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6408&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 25 Nov 2010 11:29 AM PST
Reports surfaced this week in the New York Times and Washington Times indicating that one of the high-ranking Taliban officials said to be leading the Taliban side of the informal peace talks with the Afghan government and coalition forces, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, was instead a shopkeeper from the Pakistani city of Quetta (Dexter Filkins [...]

================

10. Raging Grannies protest in Ottawa

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6396&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 25 Nov 2010 10:59 AM PST
Photos from the Raging Grannies protest last weekend in front of the Prime Minister’s Office and in Ottawa’s Byward Market. The group was protesting the planned extension of Canada’s military mission in Afghanistan.

==================

11. Timetable Abandoned: U.S. And NATO To Wage Endless War In Afghanistan

http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/
timetable-abandoned-u-s-and-nato-to-wage-endless-war-in-afghanistan/

Rick Rozoff A Socialist Project e-bulletin .... No. 431 .... November 25, 2010
The mainstream news media and alternative sources alike have seized on a recent revelation – though it is hardly such – published by McClatchy Newspapers that “The Obama administration has decided to begin publicly walking away from what it once touted as key deadlines in the war in Afghanistan in an effort to remove emphasis from Barack Obama's pledge that he would begin withdrawing U.S. forces in July 2011.” An article in this series of over a month earlier, “U.S. And NATO To Wage War 15-Year War In Afghanistan And Pakistan,”
[ http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/2010/10 ... -year-war/ ] documented that much and more, and any attentive reader of news on the internet during the preceding weeks would not have been surprised by the McClatchy feature.
On October 25 Edmund Whiteside, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Council Secretary, spoke at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, and according to the local press said, “Expect the war in Afghanistan” the longest military engagement in both Canadian and American history “to continue for a 'very long' time.” In his exact words “Afghanistan will be a very long military venture.”
His position will be confirmed at the NATO summit in Lisbon, Portugal this month, as will a major commitment demanded by the U.S.-dominated military bloc's new Strategic Concept to be adopted at the meeting: the retention of nuclear arms in NATO's arsenal and the continued stationing of American nuclear bombs in Europe. Whiteside also argued: “Canada says that it doesn’t need ballistic missiles. But Canada is part of a nuclear policy alliance. There's no getting around that....”
On November 8, the day before the McClatchy article appeared, the spokesman for the 152,000-troop, 50-nation, NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, German Brigadier-General Josef Blotz, stated that “no timetable has been set for withdrawal of coalition troops from Afghanistan.” Blotz confirmed that “There has been no timetable yet.”
In regard to transferring security control to Afghan forces, he said, “We will not according to a fixed timetable, it will be carried out based on conditions to be achieved over the next couple of years.”

MORE:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/
timetable-abandoned-u-s-and-nato-to-wage-endless-war-in-afghanistan/

===================

12. LETTERS: ERNST/LITTLE: Re: Don't Extend It. End It. House of Commons vote on Nov 30

From: jessica ernst
To: Harper.S@parl.gc.ca
Cc: Phil Little ; CannoL@parl.gc.ca ; Duceppe.G@parl.gc.ca ; Ignatieff.M@parl.gc.ca ; Jack Layton ; Jean Crowder ; Charlie Angus ; Davies.L@parl.gc.ca ; Sorenson, Kevin - M.P. ; Duncan, Linda - M.P.
Sent: Thursday, November 25, 2010 7:18 PM
Subject: Re: Don't Extend It. End It. House of Commons vote on Nov 30
Jessica Ernst
Box 753 Rosebud AB T0J 2T0
1-403-677-2074
Mr. Harper,
I second every courageous, brilliant comment below by Mr. Phil Little.
I see your endless, anti-democratic attempts to keep Canada feeding America's Evil lust for money, oil, drugs, abuse and power, and killing far too many innocents and our troops to feed that Evil, as some of the most vile acts ever by a Canadian PM.
I call on you to clean up your loathsome anti-Canada behaviours and I too call on the Government of Canada to stand with the majority of Canadians and say no to extending the mission in Afghanistan.
Sincerely,
Jessica Ernst
- - - - - -
On 11/25/2010 5:59 PM, Phil Little wrote:

I oppose the extension of Canada's involvement in the Afghanistan quagmire until 2014. I would hope that on Nov 30, all Members of Parliament would vote against the extension of the presence of Canadian military personnel in Afghanistan.
The US-led combat mission in Afghanistan is now over nine years old, longer than World War Two. And sadly, there is now more instability and violence in Afghanistan than in 2001. The American surge has failed
to contain the expansion of the influence of the Taliban or to persuade Afghan people that the NATO led government of Karzai is a credible alternative.
NATO forces continue to back a government dominated by warlords and drug lords. Each year the death toll for Afghan civilians increases. At this time the Afghan regime continues to negotiate with the Taliban, accepting that eventually they will return to power and assume the military hardware left behind by the NATO forces. The NATO appointed regime of Karzai is so corrupt that Afghan's might welcome the Taliban as an
improvement to their current situation.
Stephen Harper’s government has been implicated in scandals involving the torture and abuse of Afghan detainees. Independent reports show that reconstruction has come to a virtual halt while hundreds of millions in aid money is unaccounted for.
Opium production in Afghanistan is at its highest levels ever, providing 93 per cent of the world market.
Violence against Afghan women is still widespread, while their security deteriorates on a daily basis. A foreign military presence is not going to undo hundreds of years of cultural and religious traditions that oppress women.
A clear majority of Canadians now oppose Canada’s mission in Afghanistan. Almost 80 per cent are against plans to extend the mission past 2011.
Canadian troops have suffered one of the highest casualty and death rates of all NATO forces and thousands of Afghan civilians have been killed. The Canadian government will not come clean on the number of Canadian service persons wounded, and the extent of their injuries. What we do know is that to express its gratitude to our veterans the government is trying to deny them longterm benefits to deal with their injuries and trauma.
I call on the Government of Canada to stand with the majority of Canadians and say no to extending the mission in Afghanistan.
Sincerely,
Phil Little
Ladysmith, B.C.

=====================

13. LETTER: REMPEL: Supporting Harper's war policies in Afghanistan and beyond

From: Jacob Rempel
To: Stephane Dion ; Borys Wrzesnewskyj ; Joe Volpe ; Paul Szabo ; Mario Silva ; Judy Sgro ; Lavanne Scott ; Francis Scarpaleggia ; Pablo Rodriguez ; Yasmin Ratansi ; Marcel Proulx ; Bernard Patry ; Anita Neville ; MinnaM@parl.gc.ca ; Dan McTeague ; David McGuinty ; John McCallum ; Dominic LeBlanc MP ; Keith Martin ; Marlene Jennings ; Mark Holland ; Hedy Fry ; Ken Dryden ; Ujjal Dosanjh ; Ruby Dhalla ; Denis Coderre ; Carolyn Bennett ; Mauril Belanger ; Navdeep Bains ; Mobina Jaffer, Senator ; Joyce Murray MP
Sent: Friday, November 26, 2010 1:43 AM
Subject: supporting Harper's war policies in Afghanistan and beyond

Dear Liberal Party Members of Parliament :--

The Bloc Quebecois is calling for a debate on the war this Thursday, and there will be a vote in the House of Commons on the extension on Tuesday, November 30th at 6 pm.
I received information that each of you on my list opposes the position of Bob Rae and Michael Ignatieff with respect to Aghanistan. There may be other Liberal Party Members of the House of Commons who agree with you about the war.
I hope so, and I encourage each of you to speak urgently to every caucus member about the serious, nay critical error it is to support the US regime in the continued assault against the people of Afghanistan.The original decision to join the assault was wrong, and to continue the error is worse.
When we read the today's EKOS poll, we will note that the Liberal Party war-making alliance with Harper Cons has failed to gain voters' approval. War will really be the main issue that preoccupies voters' anxieties, in parallel with the environment.
War policy issues will unquestionably be the deciding issue in the next election, including the proposed purchase of the massively expensive massively aggressive super size stealth attack fighter bombers, the F-35s, which Harper promises to promote with aggressive public relation as a "job creation" stimulus !!! True, it would enable his war-making corporation partners to create some jobs making more weapons of war .
(The same money would enable Bombardier to build a new fast train railway from Halifax to Vancouver. Now that would be real job creation green infrastructure, with real value for the Canadian domestic long term economy.)
I am aware that Liberal Party domestic policies are very significantly better than the Con's program that methodically dismantles Canadian social democracy, increasing poverty instead of ending poverty as resolve in Parliament in 1990.
In fact, in domestic and environmental policies the Liberal Party and NDP can now work well together in the H of C and coalition in the election. If you join in foreign policies with the NDP and the Bloc, you can defeat the Cons in the House of Commons and win the resulting election.

Jacob Rempel, Vancouver.

Post Script :---

Alternatively, Canada will in fact be supporting the US regime and corporate drive for ever greater hegemony, including their old vision of manifest destiny to dominate Canada.
Reference PNAC ---

Project for the New American Century (PNAC)http://home.earthlink.net/~platter/neo-conservatism/
pnac.html

Project for the New American Century is a neo-conservative think-tank that promotes an ideology of total U.S. world domination through the ...
============================================

America's Failed War of Attrition in Afghanistan http://act.commondreams.org/go/
3240?akid=287.153550.3Xg6Vp&t=2

=================

14. LETTER: KURTENBACH: Muslim Terrorists

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/
viewtopic.php?p=1946#1946

November 26, 2010
To the Editor,
A friend recently mailed me a copy of an article published in a Spanish
newspaper in 2008. It contained a long list of violent acts by Muslims. This
was followed by a short list of Islamic notables who had received the Nobel Peace Prize, and a very long list of Jewish people who had also been awarded this prestigious Nobel Prize.
The article left me feeling that Jewish people were highly intelligent and
altruistic individuals while Muslims between the ages of 17 and 40 were a
bloody lot and a threat to world peace.
I then settled down and resorted to some somber second thought, as our
Senators are supposed to do, but recently were not allowed to do so.
Going back to the 1930's, I noted there were no Muslims involved in Spain's Civil war. At that time, Fransisco Franko's Fascist party seized power.
General Franko became and remained Spain's dictator for the next 40 years.
Apparently Muslims were not responsible for the Holocaust. It was Germany's Hitler and his Fascist hierarchy. There seems to be no record that Muslins created the conditions that led to World War1 or World War11. It was not Muslims that bombed Pearl Harbour; it was the Japanese military. It was not a Muslim that was responsible for the 9/11 military take-over of the democratically elected Salvador Allende in Chile in 1973. It was a Christian Chilean named Augusto Pinochet. He and his
henchmen caused the death or torture and confinement of thousands of Chilean men and women whom they branded as dangerous socialists!
There is more, but enough already. However, lest we forget, it seems that
nothing has been revealed from any of our media sources that Muslims were involved in the financial debacle on Wall Street which has caused serious economic instability for people in many countries.
The list of terrorist acts by Muslims in this Spanish newspaper is probably
factual. Many of us, [including myself] are not comfortable with their
culture, some of their religious practices, especially those where women and girls are not endowed with the same human rights as Islamic men or boys.
However, that does not justify the invasion by NATO forces in the Middle
East. Most of your readers will know that the primary reason that NATO
forces are in the Middle East is to assist the U.S. in establishing a
military and political dominance in that area.
Remember, "a terrorist is someone who has a bomb, but does not have an air force!"

Leo Kurtenbach,
Box 268 Cudworth, Sask., S0K 1B0
Phone (306) 256 3638.

To read more of Leo's letters, go to:http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=19

==================

15. Is the Defence Department feeling the heat over F-35s?

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6420&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 26 Nov 2010 10:46 PM PST
The Defence Department has commenced a public relations campaign to sell the Canadian public on the Harper government’s decision to buy the F-35 fighter (Steven Chase, “PR blitz aims to sell “skeptical public” on need for F-35 fighter jets“, Globe and Mail, 24 November 2010). Roundtables targeting opinion leaders in academia and industry are being held in [...]

=================

16. Why the F-35 stealth fighter is wrong for Canada

http://www.policyalternatives.ca/newsroom/updates/
why-f-35-stealth-fighter-wrong-canada

National Office | Update October 13, 2010
A new report by the CCPA and the Rideau Instittute says the planned purchase of 65 F-35 stealth fighter jets is the result of a ‘pilot error’ by the Canadian government.
Pilot Error: Why the F-35 stealth fighter is wrong for Canada carefully examines all of Canada’s current and future security requirements and addresses specific claimed benefits of the F-35. It finds that the F-35 Stealth Fighter has no real comparable advantage over less-costly fighter jets other than offering stealth technology and “shock and awe” capabilities.
It concludes that the government should not proceed with the planned procurement of the jets, and should redefine Canada’s fighter jet roles.

Full report.
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/public ... ilot-error

====================

17. LISTEN: CBC RADIO – The Current: F-35 Fighter Jets - Oct.12/10

http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/2010/10/12/
oct-1210---pt-1-f-35s/

Part One: CLICK ON ICON:

The purchase of 65 new F-35 fighter jets is the most expensive in history by the Canadian government and worth every penny according to its Proponents. But the Opponents call this new hybrid design a step backwards in aviation and the cost of maintaining it will dwarf the cost of buying it.
We started this segment with a clip from Jon Beesley ... Lockheed-Martin's Chief Pilot for the F-35 fighter jet... right after the plane's first test flight. But not everyone is talking about the F-35 in such glowing terms. The federal government is proposing an estimated $16 billion deal with Lockheed Martin to buy and maintain 65 of the jets. That already would be the most expensive government purchase in Canadian history. And critics worry problems such as production delays and software glitches could push the price tag even higher.
We aired a clip with Defence Minister Peter MacKay's comments on this from Question Period. And like Mr. MacKay, our next guest thinks the criticisms are being overblown. Retired Canadian Forces Lieutenant-General George MacDonald is the Honorary President of the Air Force Association of Canada. He is also a partner with CFN Consultants, a defence and security firm which counts Lockheed-Martin as one of its clients. George MacDonald was in Ottawa.
And Winslow Wheeler has kept close tabs on the F-35. For more than 30 years he worked on national security issues for various branches of the US government. He is the Director of the Straus Military Reform Project of the Center for Defense Information in Washington, DC. And today he was in Hagerstown, Maryland.
We requested an interview with Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the F-35 jets. The company would not participate in an interview, but spokesman John Kent did provide a statement, insisting the planes were both cost-effective and reliable.
In all F-35 production contracts signed to date, the aircraft's actual unit cost has been at or in most cases below government estimates. The F-35 price trend is continuing downward, and is on path to an average unit cost of about $60 million. The software glitch that resulted in the brief flight suspension was identified and corrected. In the more than 400 flights to date, the software issue never asserted itself, and there were never any problems with the jets in flight. The fix was implemented as a safety precaution. Software on the F-35 has been extremely stable and extremely reliable throughout the flight test program

=================

18. LETTER: REMPEL: RE: “PR blitz aims to sell “skeptical public” on the need for F-35 fighter jets.

From: Jacob Rempel
Sent: Saturday, November 27, 2010 11:46 AM
Subject: “PR blitz aims to sell “skeptical public” on the need for F-35 fighter jets.
Reference: (Steven Chase, “PR blitz aims to sell “skeptical public” on the need for F-35 fighter jets“, Globe and Mail, 24 Nov 2010

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/
pr-blitz-aims-to-sell-skeptical-public-on-need-for-f-35-fighter-jets/article1812733/ ).

Dear Canadian Friends:
Canada needs to restore trans-Canada industry, commerce, social travel and migration after 20 years of FTA and NAFTA ever deeper continental integration.
Sixteen billion dollars plus over budget war expenditures can build a network of fast trains on the Macdonald/Cartier railway right-of-ways left in place after all the railway abandonments in favour of roads and big trucks and north-south transportation across the US border.
Such a trans-Canada fast rail network can restore full employment and support a necessary new domestic sustainable green economy. As well, it will renew the Cartier Macdonald Tupper Laurier Diefenbaker Trudeau Stanfield Turner Chretien vision of a great unified nation of peace-loving people.
Shock and Awe Stealth Bombing F-35s are just an extension of the aggressive US corporate imperial war drive for more resources.
Jacob Rempel,
Vancouver

==================

19. WikiLeaks strikes again (3 articles)

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6432&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 26 Nov 2010 10:09 PM PST
After WikiLeaks’ controversial release in October of 400,000 Pentagon reports pertaining to the Iraq war, Washington is gearing up to respond to the release of another batch of secret files. Washington is also doing damage control in preparation for the release of internal documents that may contain reports of compromising “conversations with political dissidents and friendly politicians… [...]
= = = = =
UK Gov issues DA notices over WikiLeaks bomb

http://www.thinq.co.uk/2010/11/26/
uk-gov-issues-da-notices-over-wikileaks-bomb/

Editors asked to keep mum 26 November, 2010
The UK Government has issued Defence Advisory Notices to editors of UK news outlets in an attempt to hush up the latest bombshell from whistle-blowing web site WikiLeaks.
DA Notices, the last of which was issued in April 2009 after sensitive defence documents were photographed using a telephoto lens in the hand of Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick as he arrived at No 10 Downing Street for a briefing, are requests not to publish, and therefore not legally enforceable.
Which means there are no 'official' repercussions for ignoring the notices, but they are generally adhered to.

MORE:
http://www.thinq.co.uk/2010/11/26/
uk-gov-issues-da-notices-over-wikileaks-bomb/
= = = = =
U.S. warns Britain over new WikiLeaks revelations that will 'expose corruption between allies'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1333213/
WikiLeaks-revelations-expose-corruption-allies-U-S-warns-Britain.html

By Daily Mail Reporter Last updated at 11:14 AM on 27th November 2010
· 3 million documents set to go online
· Bombshell leak thought to include U.S. assessments of Gordon Brown
· Secret talks on return of Lockerbie bomber to Libya may also be leaked
· Allegations 'include U.S. backing of Kurdish terrorists'
· U.S. diplomats face being kicked out of countries in backlash
· Corrupt politicians expected to be named and shamed

David Cameron was warned last night by America that damaging secrets of the ‘special relationship’ are about to be laid bare.
The U.S. ambassador to London made an unprecedented personal visit to Downing Street to warn that whistleblower website WikiLeaks is about to publish secret assessments of what Washington really thinks of Britain.

MORE:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1333213/
WikiLeaks-revelations-expose-corruption-allies-U-S-warns-Britain.html

===================

20. Council of Canadians Update - November 25 & 26, 2010

Council of Canadians Update: November 25, 2010

NEWS: Prosperity mine supporters to meet Baird in Ottawahttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5467
The Williams Lake Tribune reports that, “Williams Lake Mayor Kerry Cook will be amongst a delegation of local politicians going to Ottawa in an attempt to get answers regarding the rejection of Taseko’s Prosperity mine.”

UPDATE: The Council looks forward to 2011http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5464
2011 is shaping up to be an exciting year for the Council of Canadians.

NEWS: Canada’s chief climate negotiator questions UN processhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5461
The Globe and Mail reports that, “Some, including Canada’s chief negotiator (Guy Saint-Jacques), have begun to question whether the (United Nations) is really the best forum for such complicated (climate) discussions. …In a recent interview, he said the Canadian government prefers to keep holding climate talks under the auspices of the United Nations. …But Mr. Saint-Jacques also gave voice to a growing weariness around the negotiating table.”

Enviropig and supersized salmon may be first GM animals allowed into food system
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5457
In a largely pro-biotechnology lead article today, the Globe and Mail reports that, “Under development for more than a decade, the University of Guelph’s 20 Enviropigs are close behind a Canadian-made supersized salmon in a race to become the first genetically modified animals allowed into the food system.”

Possible government leak of Fish Lake decision investigatedhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5452
CBC News reports this evening that, “Canadian securities investigators are probing a recent run on a B.C. gold mining stock and a possibility the sell-off was triggered by a leak of confidential information from inside the federal government, CBC News has learned.

UPDATE: ‘Inuit Knowledge and Climate Change’ screened near Parliament Hill
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5448
The Council of Canadians and the Indigenous Environmental Network have just shown the new film ‘Inuit Knowledge and Climate Change’ at the National Press Club near Parliament Hill in Ottawa this evening, just days before the climate negotiations begin in Cancun, Mexico.

Council of Canadians helps to bring Inuit Accounts of Climate Change in Arctic to the Hill
http://www.canadians.org/energyblog/?p=356
The Council of Canadians joined with the Indigenous Environmental Network, Isuma Productions and Linda Duncan’s office (NDP Environment Critic) brought the influential documentary Inuit Knowledge and Climate Change to a number of MPs and staff representing all political parties, Senators and guests on Parliament Hill last night.

NAFTA ministers to meet in Mexico, Canada this Decemberhttp://www.canadians.org/tradeblog/?p=1212
North American integration talks still appear on the back burner, if they haven’t been taken off the stove entirely.
- - - - -

Council of Canadians Update: November 26, 2010

MEDIA RELEASE:
‘In Memoriam’ for murdered Mexican anti-mining activist refused by Calgary Herald
http://www.canadians.org/media/other/20 ... ov-10.html
An ‘In Memoriam’ classified ad to be run on November 27th on behalf of the family of murdered anti-mining activist Mariano Abarca Roblero has been called "unsuitable" by the Calgary Herald, though several other Canadian newspapers, including the Globe and Mail and the Edmonton Journal, have agreed to print it.

NEWS: Giles with Penobsquis residents as they raise water concerns
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5473
Council of Canadians Atlantic organizer Angela Giles is in Moncton today at a pre-hearing meeting held by the New Brunswick Mining Commissioner to hear complaints from Penobsquis residents against the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan.

NEWS: New Brunswick introduces new review process for fracking projects
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5471
The Telegraph-Journal reports that, “A new environmental review process that will require government approval at nearly every stage of a project’s development will become the standard for oil and gas exploration ventures in New Brunswick. The approach, known as a phased environmental impact assessment, will mean companies looking for underground resources will trigger the environmental review process much sooner than they would have in the past.”

NEWS: RCMP may investigate possible Fish Lake decision leakhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5469
CBC reports that, “The federal Liberal Party’s public safety critic (Mark Holland) has written to the RCMP, asking the force to probe the recent run on B.C.’s Taseko Mines Ltd. stock and a possibility the sell-off was triggered by a government leak.”

================

21. New Big Brother Laws Would Reshape Canada's Internethttp://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2010/11/16/BigBrotherInternetLaws/
Three bills would mandate new spyware to scoop your info with no court oversight, and broaden police powers to snoop.
By Michael Geist, 16 November 2010, TheTyee.ca
The push for new Internet surveillance capabilities goes back to 1999, when government officials began crafting proposals to institute new surveillance technologies within Canadian networks along with additional legal powers to access surveillance and subscriber information. The so-called lawful access initiatives stalled in recent years, but earlier this month the government tabled its latest proposal with three bills that received only limited attention despite their potential to fundamentally reshape the Internet in Canada.
The bills contain a three-pronged approach focused on information disclosure, mandated surveillance technologies, and new police powers.

MORE:
http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2010/11/16/
BigBrotherInternetLaws/

=================

22. 2011 EECOM Conference - Call for Participation

http://www.eecom.org/

The 2011 EECOM Conference: Exploring the Socioecological in Education and Culture: Becoming Active Participants in Change will be held on June 8th - 11th, 2011 at the University of Regina.

The 2011 EECOM (Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication) conference will focus on exploring the issues of learning and being active in society AND our environment. Themes within the conference will include: socioecological pedagogies - Teaching/learning strategies with a focus on environmental, cultural, and/or social justice; place-based learning - Teaching/learning strategies with a focus on place and/or outdoor education; food/agriculture/sustainable living practices; activism and youth/community engagement; leadership development; diversity/species at risk.

The call for presentations, workshops, and participation can be downloaded on the EECOM web site at
http://www.eecom.org/.
Deadline is January 10th, 2011. Registration will open March 2011.
Please see the SOEEA website for more information
http://www.soeea.sk.ca.

by **Oscar** » Tue Nov 30, 2010 9:53 pm

NUKE NEWS: November 30, 2010

1. Why the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission should stop Bruce Power’s radioactive shipments through our Great Lakes
2. TELL PRESIDENT OBAMA: NUCLEAR ENERGY IS NOT CLEAN ENERGY - DON'T COMPROMISE OUR HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT
3. WATCH: Helen Caldicott on the Nuclear Power Conspiracy + Our Childrens’ Legacy
4. (SK) MINERAL INDUSTRY MARKS 41ST ANNUAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OPEN HOUSE
5. No Nukes News - Nov. 30, 2010
6. Pennsylvania Gas Drillers Dumping Radioactive Waste in New York
7. Organs of nuclear workers secretly harvested for 40 years, report finds
8. Nuclear dilemma: Israel vs. Iran
9. Iranian scientist killed in car bombing
10. Village mosque joins anti–nuclear campaign in Turkey
11. Fallout from a US treaty failure
12. NATO, The World's Gendarme, A Military Mafia
13. Is a War Looming on the Korean Peninsula?
14. MI6 paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to Taliban impostor: Report
15. Think tank: NATO failing in Afghanistan
16. Political attacks
17. Canada's handling of Afghan child detainees queried
18. Afghan intervention surpasses Soviet stay
19. Russia and NATO: Cooperation or Confrontation?
20. The Mysterious "Laptop Documents". Using Fake Intelligence to Justify a Pre-emptive Nuclear War on Iran
21. Ex-German Chancellor Says Bush is a Liar
22. US government: Nosey Parker of the planet - WikiLeaks cable dump alerts
23. Council of Canadians Update – November 30, 2010

==============

1. Why the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission should stop Bruce Power’s radioactive shipments through our Great Lakes

http://www.canadians.org/waterblog/?p=82

November 29, 2010
Bruce Power has applied for a licence at the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to ship 16 radioactive steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway to Sweden. City mayors, US Senators, environmental groups, First Nations communities and other civil society groups have raised many important concerns about this shipment. Nearly 80 groups provided written submissions and half of them intervened at a public hearing on Sept. 28-29, 2010. The CNSC extended the deadline to Nov. 22 for supplementary submissions and is now poised to make a decision by Dec. 22, 2010.
Bruce Power’s plan
As part of Bruce Power’s refurbishment project, 64 steam generators were transferred to the Western Waste Management Facility to make space for new steam generators. Bruce Power plans to recycle 90% of the 16 steam generators by contracting Swedish company Studsvik to ship, decontaminate, melt down and sell the metal on consumer markets. Studsvik will return 10% of the most radioactive parts to Bruce Power. Bruce Power currently has a contract with Studsvik to ship and recycle 32 steam generators.
The special licence from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission
Bruce Power has applied for a special licence because they are unable to meet the packaging requirements set out in the CNSC’s Packaging and Transport of Nuclear Substances Regulations. The total radioactive level also exceeds the legal limits set out in International Atomic Energy Agency’s Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material by 6 times.
Radioactivity levels in the steam generators are 90% plutoniumBased on Bruce Power’s estimates, the radioactivity levels in the steam generators are approximately 90% plutonium. In particular, the levels are approximately 64% plutonium-239. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, plutonium-239 has a half-life of 24,100 years. They have noted that “internal exposure to plutonium is an extremely serious health hazard. It generally stays in the body for decades, exposing organs and tissues to radiation, and increasing the risk of cancer. Plutonium is also a toxic metal, and may cause damage to the kidneys.”
Civil society concerns about the plan
The Great Lakes holds nearly 20% of the world’s freshwater and 95% of North America’s freshwater. They provide drinking water to 40 million people in surrounding areas. The Lakes are a public trust and a commons (a shared entity). There are several significant flaws with the plan that could impact our largest freshwater source:
– It could set a dangerous precedent for regularly shipping radioactive waste that exceeds legal limits through the Great Lakes. Since there are 64 steam generators, this shipment could give the green light for the shipment of all 64 steam generators.
– The International Institute of Concern for Public Health (IICPH) has noted that radionuclides found in the Great Lakes, including tritium, carbon-14, cesium and long-lived iodine-129, pose a serious health hazard even at low levels. An accident on the Great Lakes would further contribute to radioactivity and pollution in the Great Lakes.
– Some First Nation communities and municipalities were not adequately consulted.
– There has been inadequate public consultation on critical issues raised by this shipment.
– Bruce Power’s emergency response plans and the CNSC’s accident scenarios are inadequate. Bruce Power’s application did not include a response plan for a sinking ship. As noted by the IICPH, if all generators were damaged and “opened,” the radioactivity far exceeds even Health Canada’s Action drinking water level for intervention in a nuclear emergency.
– The radioactive metal will be recycled and sold back into consumer markets. The metal will be used to make consumer goods such as cutlery, toasters and dental braces.
The incomplete environmental assessment
In 2006, an environmental assessment (EA) was conducted on the Bruce A refurbishment project. Under this 2006 EA, Bruce Power had proposed to leave the steam generators on-site. In a presentation to the Saugeen Ojibway Nations, Bruce Power had even stated that “much of the waste, and particularly low and intermediate level waste containing radioactivity cannot be recycled for safety and environmental reasons.” Although Bruce Power has altered their plans, CNSC staff have “determined that this proposal does not change the environmental assessment that was conducted on the Bruce A refurbishment project.” Without providing a rationale, CNSC staff have also concluded that this shipment does not fall within the definition of a project under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.
The 2006 EA appears to be incomplete.
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency website states:
A follow-up program to verify the accuracy of the environmental assessment and/or determine the effectiveness of any measures taken to mitigate the adverse environmental effects is considered appropriate for this project. The estimated start and end dates of the follow-up program are October 2, 2006 and Dec. 31, 2010, respectively.
Although the 2006 environmental assessment is listed under completed assessments on the CNSC website, there is no completion date. The CNSC should not be making a decision until the follow-up program is completed. Since the original project has been altered, the 2006 EA is no longer accurate.
Why more public debate is needed
This shipment raises several significant issues that should be open to public debate including:
1. Do we want radioactive waste that exceeds legal limits or even radioactive waste in general to be shipped through national (and international) waters? Since water flows and does not respect national or provincial borders, polluted water outside of Canadian borders can return to Canadian rivers and lakes. As well, with growing water scarcity and water stress around the world, do we want to threaten dwindling water resources?
2. How much weight should be given to the positions of First Nations communities? Although the Saugeen Ojibway Nation has opposed trucking the steam generators through their traditional territory, Bruce Power and CNSC have disregarded their positions and are moving forward with the necessary steps to ship the generators to Sweden.
3. Although the scrap metal will remain in Sweden, it may return to Canadian markets as manufactured goods. Do we, as a nation, want to contribute to the circulation of scrap metal from radioactive sources given the health risks of long-term exposure?
4. Even if it does not return to Canadian markets, what legal and moral obligations do Canadians have in contributing to scrap metal that causes illnesses or health risks in other countries?
These are critical issues that need to be explored. The Great Lakes are a public trust and a commons (a shared entity). The CNSC should not allow this shipment to proceed without further consulting Canadians and First Nations on these critical issues affecting our Great Lakes.
The CNSC’s decision is expected by Dec. 22, 2010
Many facets of Bruce Power’s project threaten the environment and the Canadian public. CNSC’s mandate is to protect the health, safety and security of Canadians as well as the environment. City mayors, US Senators, environmental groups, First Nations communities and other civil society groups await to see whether the CNSC fulfills its mandate to the Canadian public or whether it will bow to corporate pressure. If they bow to corporate pressure, it will call into question the legitimacy of the CNSC and its ability to protect Canadians.

===================

2. TELL PRESIDENT OBAMA: NUCLEAR ENERGY IS NOT CLEAN ENERGY - DON'T COMPROMISE OUR HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENT

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5502/p/dia/action/
public/?action_KEY=4849

November 30, 2010
Dear Friends:
If the toxic radiation released routinely from nuclear reactors and every other stop along the nuclear fuel chain were the color and texture of oil, or smelled like natural gas, no one would ever again confuse nuclear power with clean energy.
But there is a growing danger that in the next Congress, President Obama will compromise and support including nuclear power (and coal!) in a new "Clean Energy Standard" that would set our energy policy in the wrong direction for decades.
Please tell President Obama that nuclear power is not clean energy, and there must be no compromise when it comes to protecting our health, safety and environment. Send a letter to the President here.
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/550 ... n_KEY=4849
And please support our Holiday fundraising drive. Your tax-deductible contributions are essential if we're to have the same kind of impact in the next Congress as we have had in the one soon ending. Please make your most generous contribution here. Or you can contribute after sending your letter to the President.
Read on for more background on this issue.

MORE:
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/550 ... on/public/
?action_KEY=4849

=====================

3. WATCH: Helen Caldicott on the Nuclear Power Conspiracy + Our Childrens’ Legacy

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/
helen-caldicott-on-the-nuclear-power-conspiracy-our-childrens-legacy/

Two short videos
Posted: 27 Nov 2010 12:20 PM PST
Noted anti-nuclear activist Dr. Helen Caldicott speaks about the effect of radiation on children, calling for a revival of anti-nuclear activism. Excerpted from a talk at The Sanctuary for Independent Media in Troy, NY on November 13, 2010. Helen Caldicott on the Nuclear Power Conspiracy *** Helen [...]

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4. (SK) MINERAL INDUSTRY MARKS 41ST ANNUAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OPEN HOUSE

http://www.gov.sk.ca/
news?newsId=b0d897fe-b061-485e-89d2-d887393d5710

News Release - November 29, 2010
Geoscience is the focus this week for the mineral industry as hundreds of geologists and exploration company officials gather today through Wednesday for the 41st Annual Saskatchewan Geological Survey Open House.
The event, which includes a trade show, conference and technical poster displays, is organized each year by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources. The Open House showcases results of the province's mineral geoscience program and gives industry a forum to provide updates on company mining and exploration activities.
Sessions include a special look at uranium in the Athabasca Basin, highlighting several recent discoveries that have been made there, as well as updates on rare earth elements, potash, coal, diamond and nickel exploration and development.
"The annual Open House is something industry looks forward to every year - a place to gather to talk geoscience and mineral investment opportunities," Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd said. "Every year there is increased interest - more delegates including international registrants and new companies represented at the trade show. The strength of this event shows that Saskatchewan is in the driver's seat when it comes to mineral exploration and production."
Dr. Lisa Morgan, research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey is the speaker for this year's free public lecture titled, "Volcanism, Tectonism, Uplift and Hydrothermal Activity on the Track of the Yellowstone Hot Spot: Past, Present and Future".
Mining is Saskatchewan's third largest industry. Value of mineral production in 2009 was approximately $4.6 billion. Mineral exploration expenditures in 2009 were almost $277 million and are forecast at more than $355 million for 2010. -30-
For more information, contact:
Linda Ungar, Energy and Resources, Regina
Phone: 306-787-1691
Email: linda.ungar@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-531-2422

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5. No Nukes News - Nov. 30, 2010
Pass this onto a friend! - a
“The McGuinty Liberals are sacrificing cost-efficient options such as conservation, emerging renewable technologies, and cogeneration for nuclear power,” said Tabuns. “The McGuinty government says its plan is about creating a clean and healthy future for families, but it is really about dumping a legacy of nuclear debt and radioactive waste on future generations.” – Peter Tabuns, NDP Energy Critic in reference to the McGuinty’s new energy plan
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30 second Action 1:
Do you support the Liberals's nuclear expansion plans? Vote in Now Magazine's poll.
http://now.uz/dONlQq

30 second Action 2:
Click here to send an email to Premier McGuinty.
Congratulate him on speeding up the coal phase-out, but please also tell him that you don’t want Ontario to spend $83 billion or more on risky nuclear. Tell him that we can keep our lights on at a lower cost with a combination of energy conservation and efficiency, water power from Quebec and small-scale, high-efficiency combined heat and power plants.
Thank you for helping shift Ontario’s energy policy.
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Nuclear heavy energy plan will double residential electricity bills – Ontario Clean Air Alliance
The McGuinty Government released their new 20-year electricity plan today. This plan is a big slice of “Back to the future” with a major emphasis on costly, risky and completely unnecessary nuclear projects.
Here are its key features:
Coal phase-out
The good news: The Government of Ontario is speeding up the coal phase-out.
- 2 of Nanticoke’s 6 remaining coal boilers will be shut down in 2011.
- The Atikokan coal plant will be converted to biomass by 2013.
- The Thunder Bay coal plant will be converted to run on natural gas and potentially also biomass.
- The Government will make a decision in 2012 on the conversion of some or all of the remaining coal units at Nanticoke and Lambton to natural gas.
These are important steps in the right direction given that Ontario has more than enough generation available to end coal use now.
Nuclear
- The Government plans to move forward with re-building the aging Darlington and Bruce Nuclear Stations and building two new nuclear reactors at Darlington.
- According to the Government, its nuclear plan will cost $33 billion. However, every nuclear project in Ontario’s history has gone massively over budget – on average by 2.5 times. Therefore the real cost of McGuinty’s nuclear plan will almost certainly be $83 billion or more. That means the total cost of McGuinty’s 20 year electricity plan will be $137 billion or more.
- According to McGuinty’s plan, in 2030 Ontario will obtain 55% of its electricity from costly nuclear power.
Conservation
Ontario’s demand for electricity has fallen by 7% since 2006, yet our electricity consumption per person is still 35% higher than New York State’s. But instead of ramping up conservation efforts to cut waste and improve efficiency, the McGuinty plan calls for a massive supply increase – Ontario’s total electricity generation capacity in 2030 (40,900 MW) will be 63% greater than our peak demand in 2010. Apparently, the Premier has little faith in his government’s ability to truly create “a culture of conservation.”
Green Energy
According to the McGuinty Plan, wind, solar and bio-energy will provide Ontario with 15% of its electricity supply in 2030, up from up from 3% today.
New Peaker Plant for Kitchener-Waterloo
The McGuinty Plan calls for the construction of a large new, inefficient gas-fired peaker plant in Kitchener-Waterloo despite the fact that the region’s electricity needs can be met at a much lower cost with an integrated combination of energy efficiency, demand response and combined heat and power. Will it be Oakville all over again?
Combined Heat and Power
The McGuinty Plan directs the Ontario Power Authority to establish a combined heat and power (CHP) standard offer program for projects of 20 MW or less. However, new CHP procurement is capped at approximately 500 MW despite the fact that its cost per kWh is less than one-third that of new nuclear and Ontario’s total CHP potential is greater than 11,000 MW. Why are we artificially capping cleaner, safer power sources?
Our Conclusion
The McGuinty Government’s plan will double residential hydro bills over the next 20 years to pay for high-cost new nuclear power. This doesn’t make sense. Ontario’s electricity needs can be met at a much lower cost with an integrated combination of energy conservation and efficiency, water power imports from Quebec, and small-scale, high-efficiency combined heat and power plants.
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The ON Ministry of Energy is seeking your input and response to their new energy plan
Review the gov’t’s proposal here, and then submit your comments by clicking on the “submit comment” button on the right. Deadline for comments is Jan 7, 2011. All comments will be considered as part of the decision-making process by the Ministry of Energy.
http://www.ebr.gov.on.ca/ERS-WEB-External/
displaynoticecontent.do?noticeId=MTExNDIz&statusId=MTY3MTY0&language=en
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Government underestimating hydro bill increase, critics say
The McGuinty government is low-balling the cost of modernizing Ontario’s fleet of nuclear reactors, critics say, calling into question its own projection that consumers’ hydro bills will double by 2030. The government pegs the cost of building two new reactors and refurbishing 10 existing units at $33-billion in its long-term energy plan released on Tuesday. But opposition members and industry observers said the figure is not realistic. For starters, they said, the government shelved a deal to build two reactors last year, citing the exorbitant price tag of $26-billion. As well, they said, the refit of two mothballed reactors at the Bruce Power nuclear station on Lake Huron is now likely to be $4.8-billion, $2-billion more than the original estimate.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/
ontario-underestimating-hydro-bill-increase-critics-say/article1810440/
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Billions for green energy
Jack Gibbons, chair of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, says that bio-mass and wind power are still likely to be less expensive than rebuilding nuclear facilities, although conservation and efficiency are the best ways to solve energy issues.
But he said in an interview that Quebec produces huge amounts of renewable power from its hydro-electric plants: “In terms of new renewable, water power imports from Quebec are lower cost than any of the made in Ontario options.” That would have to be negotiated with Quebec, but Gibbons says Ontario should take the initiative. “It’s low-cost, it’s very reliable, it’s a base load supply of power, it’s not intermittent,” he said.
http://www.thestar.com/business/cleanbreak/article/
896281--billions-for-green-energy
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Healthy wind blows away toxic coal
This week’s release of Ontario’s long-term electricity plan raises anew the debate about coal and renewables’ impact on health and the environment. But in the midst of this ruckus, there’s an often-missed and very important distinction to be made: Coal plants are inherently harmful while wind turbines are not.
A speedy end to coal would be Ontario’s gift to the world, the single largest GHG reduction project in North America and a powerful precedent capable of pushing other jurisdictions into action.
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editoria ... n/article/
897100--healthy-wind-blows-away-toxic-coal
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100th Anniversary of Ontario’s Electrical “Switch On”
For all his flaws, Adam Beck built an engineering marvel at Niagara which has produced pristine, 24/7 power since 1921. Some fought that project fiercely. Some predicted it would bankrupt the province. Rival politicians condemned it as a reckless descent into 'socialism'. Today, we can bless Beck's dynamic vision. It brought Ontario the cheapest, cleanest, most reliable power on the Planet.
By contrast, our generation's public utility will leave behind some 40,000 tonnes of OPG nuclear wastes that will remain latently lethal for centuries, and a related fiscal time-bomb for entombing retired reactors, for which we are likely to be cursed.
If it takes investing in 21st Century green power at an added cost of a few bucks more per household each month, and sucking up our own failure to pay for past mistakes, perhaps it’s time to start paying these debts forward.
I will leave you with a final question: What do you imagine our grandchildren might implore us to do if they could?
Read the full text of this FANTASTIC speech about Ontario’s electricity history given at the Community Power Conference by Paul McKay, author of Atomic Accomplice:
http://cpconference.ca/Page.asp?PageID= ... entID=2830
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Visiting doctors speak on the dangers of uranium
Impact on the environment, Inuit way of life and NTI policies discussed
http://nnsl.com/northern-news-services/stories/papers/
nov26_10ura-nun.html
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If the $30 Billion We Give Oil Sands Went to Green Energy
What could Canada achieve then? Here's the jaw-dropping answer.
$30 billion in public money spent burning natural gas in the oil sands this decade could instead incentivize more than 80,000 MW of new renewable generation capacity -- about 60 per cent of all electricity sources in the country combined.
http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2010/11/26/30BillionToGreen/
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South Korea considers return of US tactical nuclear weapons
South Korea's defence minister today raised the possibility that US nuclear weapons could be deployed in his country for the first time in nearly 20 years, after it was revealed that Pyongyang had built an advanced uranium enrichment plant.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/22/
south-korea-us-tactical-weapons-nuclear
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GREEN SCREENS presents: UP THE YANGTZE
Wednesday December 1 at 7pm, FREE
National Film Board, 150 John St (at Richmond St W), Toronto
A luxury cruise boat motors up the Yangtze — navigating the mythic waterway known in China simply as “The River.” The Yangtze is about to be transformed by the biggest hydroelectric dam in history. The Three Gorges Dam - contested symbol of the Chinese economic miracle - provides the epic backdrop for Up the Yangtze, a dramatic feature documentary on life inside the 21st century Chinese dream.
Watch the trailer:
http://films.nfb.ca/up-the-yangtze/
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Countdown to Zero
A 2010 documentary about the escalating nuclear arms race.
Thursday, December 2, 7 pm
Revue Cinema, 400 Roncesvalles Avenue (Dundas West subway station), Toronto
$10 adult or pay what you can/ $5 student or pwyc
Watch the trailer here:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1572769/
This screening is a fundraiser for a local group, Seriously, Time to Stop, which is raising awareness about nuclear weapons through presentations to high school students and video contests. For more information: 416 532 5697 contact@seriouslytimetostop.com
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Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402, Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

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6. Pennsylvania Gas Drillers Dumping Radioactive Waste in New York

http://www.alternet.org/story/148962/

By Peter Mantius, DC Bureau
Posted on November 24, 2010, Printed on November 30, 2010
ELMIRA, N.Y. -- Trucks hauling rock cuttings from drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale formation in Pennsylvania regularly cross the New York State border these days to dump in the Chemung County Landfill seven miles east of Elmira.
The Marcellus formation is characterized by unusually high readings of naturally occurring radioactive material, or NORM, so most of the cuttings are probably radioactive. The Chemung Landfill, a former gravel pit, has never been licensed to handle low-level radioactive waste.
So how can the landfill’s private operators get clearance from the county and state environmental regulators to become a regional dump for radioactive drilling wastes?
The short answer: Provide the revenue-hungry county a rich payout, exploit a legal loophole, and presto, it’s a done deal.
The longer answer: Regulations haven’t kept pace with the recent widespread use of an invasive new drilling technology used to tap the Marcellus.
“There are many aspects of this new industrial activity that outpace existing regs. Radiological regulation is just one of them,” said Anthony Ingraffea, a Cornell University geology professor who has tracked the evolution of natural gas drilling for decades.
The latest variation of hydraulic fracturing now commonly used in Marcellus shale mining in Pennsylvania has never been allowed in New York State, but it is expected to be approved soon. Ingraffea said the New York Department of Environmental Conservation will need broader legal authority and a much deeper staff to cope with its considerable side effects.
But the DEC isn’t there yet, so there are legal gray areas that provide opportunities, and Casella Waste Systems is mining them.

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/148962/

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7. Organs of nuclear workers secretly harvested for 40 years, report finds

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8138367/
Organs-of-nuclear-workers-secretly-harvested-for-40-years-report-finds.html

By Nigel Bunyan, The Telegraph, 16 Nov 2010
The families of scores of nuclear power station workers whose hearts, lungs and other organs were secretly stored and tested over a period of almost 40 years were let down by the authorities, a report said yesterday.
Relatives were seldom told that their loved ones’ organs were to be removed, and as a result families buried or cremated incomplete bodies.
In many cases the truth that their organs had been illegally removed and then destroyed in the testing process emerged only many years later.
The three-and-a-half year investigation conducted by Michael Redfern, QC, covered events spread over almost four decades.
Between 1960 and 1991 organs were taken from 76 people who had worked at nuclear sites around Britain.
Of these, 42 had been employed at Sellafield, the remainder at Springfields in Lancashire, Capenhurst in Cheshire, Dounreay in Scotland, and Aldermaston in Berkshire.
Mr Redfern, who led the inquiry into the retention of infant body parts at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool, 10 years ago, laid the blame for the latest scandal largely at the door of health and nuclear industry professionals.
They had worked together on an informal basis to garner an “extraordinary” range of organs.

MORE:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8138367/
Organs-of-nuclear-workers-secretly-harvested-for-40-years-report-finds.html

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8. Nuclear dilemma: Israel vs. Iran

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/11/
20101128782722551.html

To move towards a nuclear-free Middle East, the US must change its stance on Israel's nuclear weapons programme.
Robert Grenier Last Modified: 29 Nov 2010 12:13 GMT

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9. Iranian scientist killed in car bombing

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/11/2 ... illed.html

Last Updated: Monday, November 29, 2010 | 7:22 AM ET The Associated Press
One of Iran's top nuclear scientists was killed on Monday after assailants on motorcycles attached bombs to his car as he was driving to work in Tehran.
Assailants also attached a bomb to the car of a second nuclear scientist, who was wounded.
Iran's nuclear chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, said the man killed was involved in a major project at the country's chief nuclear agency, though he did not give specifics. Some Iranian media reported that the wounded scientist was a laser expert at Iran's Defence Ministry and one of the country's few top specialists in nuclear isotope separation.
State TV swiftly blamed Israel for the attacks.
At least two other Iranian nuclear scientists have been killed in recent years in what Iran has alleged is part of a covert attempt by the West to damage its controversial nuclear program. One of those two was killed in an attack similar to those on Monday.
Nuclear chief Salehi issued a stern warning as he rushed to hospital to see the surviving scientist, Fereidoun Abbasi.
Enemies to face 'consequences'
"Don't play with fire," the official news agency IRNA quoted Salehi as saying as he met Abbasi at his hospital bedside. "The patience of the Iranian nation has limits. If it runs out of patience, bad consequences will await enemies."
Salehi, one of Iran's vice-presidents, was apparently referring to Israel and the U.S., which Iran alleges are trying to damage its nuclear program.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/11/29/
iran-scientist-killed.html

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10. Village mosque joins anti–nuclear campaign in Turkey

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/
n.php?n=village-mosque-joins-the-anti-8211nuclear-campaign-2010-11-24&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DailyGoodNews+%28Ode+Magazine+-+And+now+for+the+good+news%29

Friday, November 26, 2010 AYTEN SERİN
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet - As part of a Greenpeace project against nuclear power plants, 'The sun rises from Akkuyu' group has installed solar energy in a mosque in a village in southern Turkey. The panels were originally planned for a school, but the group could not get permission from the state
Locals in a Mediterranean village who are scheduled to becomes neighbors to a nuclear power plant have converted their village mosque to run on solar power to demonstrate that renewable energy can work as a clean, healthy electricity option.
Local villagers are frustrated and fed up with the nuclear plant project that has been hanging over them like Damocles’ sword for 37 years at Büyükeceli in Akkuyu Bay near the eastern Mediterranean town of Mersin.
The 70-year-old village headman Kemal Budak, who has served Büyükeceli for 34 years, said they are definitely against a nuclear plant in the area. “Our youngsters left the village for Silifke, Antalya and Mersin in the belief that the nuclear power plant will be built.
“The state didn’t want to invest in farming or tourism here. We are in this struggle because we cannot be certain of our future. At least, our children will not someday tell us, ‘You left us a dumpsite.’”
Greenpeace, one of the most powerful opponents of nuclear energy, has decided to launch a pilot project in Büyükeceli. Activists of the organization, wearing t-shirts saying, “The sun rises from Akkuyu,” tried to show how easy it was to set up a solar panel after only 10 days of work.

MORE:
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/
n.php?n=village-mosque-joins-the-anti-8211nuclear-campaign-2010-11-24&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DailyGoodNews+%28Ode+Magazine+-+And+now+for+the+good+news%29

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11. Fallout from a US treaty failure

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/edito ... nion/oped/
articles/2010/11/29/fallout_from_a_us_treaty_failure/

By James Carroll November 29, 2010
LAST WEEK the Energy Department’s inspector general cited 16 incidents in which agents driving trucks carrying nuclear weapons were intoxicated. Two were arrested at a bar. The astounding revelation that convoys carrying the world’s most lethal material could be so carelessly handled came in the week that Senator Jon Kyl dug in his heels to prevent a Senate vote on the New Start Treaty between the United States and Russia. Kyl’s refusal makes real the prospect that the nuclear reduction accord will not be ratified. Only one Republican is on record as ready to vote yes.
The dread consequences of this treaty failure are described by the commentariat in relation to discrete problems with Russia (no inspections, no reset), Iran (an affronted Russia won’t help pressure Tehran), or Obama’s broader foreign policy (mortally wounded), but the true stakes are far higher — a final defeat of the hard-won international consensus that nuclear weapons are in a category apart, requiring a steady movement, however incremental, from limitation to reduction to an ultimate abolition. Once the recognition occurs that, as Ronald Reagan put it, a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought, the logic of nuclear elimination follows, even allowing for a long diplomatic process. That’s why the hawkish Reagan himself became abolition’s fiercest advocate.

MORE:
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/edito ... nion/oped/
articles/2010/11/29/fallout_from_a_us_treaty_failure/

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12. NATO, The World's Gendarme, A Military Mafia

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22074

By Fidel Castro Ruz Global Research, November 23, 2010 Granma International
Havana: Many people feel sickened on hearing the name of that organization.
On Friday, November 19, 2010 in Lisbon, Portugal, the 28 members of that bellicose institution engendered by the United States, decided to create what they cynically describe as "the new NATO."
The institution emerged after World War II as an instrument of the Cold War unleashed by imperialism on the Soviet Union, the country which paid for the victory over Nazism with tens of millions of lives and colossal destruction.
The United States mobilized against the USSR, together with a healthy part of the European population, the extreme right and the Nazi-fascist scum of Europe, full of hatred and prepared to squeeze every advantage out of the errors committed by the very leaders of the USSR after the death of Lenin.
The Soviet people, with great sacrifice, were able to maintain nuclear parity and support the national liberation struggles of many peoples against the efforts of European states to maintain the colonial system imposed by force throughout the centuries; states that were postwar allies of the yankee empire, which assumed command of the counterrevolution worldwide.
In just 10 days – less than two weeks – world opinion has received three great and unforgettable lessons: the G20, APEC and NATO meetings in Seoul, Yokohama and Lisbon, in such a way that all upstanding people who can read and write, and whose minds have not been mutilated by the conditioned reflexes of imperialism’s media apparatus, can have a real idea of the problems currently affecting humanity.
In Lisbon, not one word was uttered that could convey hope to the billions of people enduring poverty, underdevelopment, insufficient food, housing, health, education and employment.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22074

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13. Is a War Looming on the Korean Peninsula?

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22192

Global Research, November 30, 2010
Selected Articles
Dear Readers,
We bring to your attention a selection of Global Research articles on the ongoing crisis on the Korean Peninsula.
The US is seeking a pretext to intervene militarily in the Korean Peninsula. North Korea is said to constitute a threat to Global Security.
These articles provide a detailed understanding of the causes and consequences of the conflict.
ALSO CONSULT OUR NORTH KOREAN DOSSIERhttp://www.globalresearch.ca/
index.php?context=newsHighlights&newsId=22

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14. MI6 paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to Taliban impostor: Report

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/11/26/
world-afghanistan-taliban-impostor-britain.html

26 Nov 2010
A senior Afghan official has blamed the British secret service for bringing a Taliban impostor to sensitive, high-level peace talks with the Afghan government, newspapers reported Friday.
The reports emerged in the wake of the revelation that a man leading the Taliban side of peace talks with the Afghan government was impersonating former Taliban cabinet minister Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour.
The fake Taliban commander, said to actually be a Pakistani shopkeeper, received thousands of dollars in goodwill payments from the Afghan government, British newspapers reported, and was flown on NATO aircraft.
The Washington Post quoted Mohammad Omar Daudzai, President Hamid Karzai's chief of staff, as saying Thursday that British authorities brought the man to meet with Karzai in July or August. Karzai has denied meeting with Mansour.
Daudzai was quoted as saying that an Afghan who participated in one of the negotiating sessions knew Mansour and eventually outed the impostor — but not before he vanished with the money. Afghan intelligence later found that the impostor was a shopkeeper from the Pakistani city of Quetta, Daudzai said.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/11/26/
world-afghanistan-taliban-impostor-britain.html

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15. Think tank: NATO failing in Afghanistan

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/152934.html

28 Nov 2010
Nine years after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan, a leading international think tank says NATO's strategy to break the Taliban in the country is failing. The International Crisis Group (ICG) said on Sunday that there is little evidence that the US-led operations have disrupted Taliban's momentum. "The Taliban are more active than ever and they still enjoy sanctuary and support in Pakistan," said the ICG report.

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16. Political attacks

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6484&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 28 Nov 2010 06:11 PM PST
As I write this, we are under increased political attack from Stephen Harper and his fundamentalist party supporters.
They are angry for three simple reasons:
First, because we are opposing their wasteful plan that squanders 16 billion Canadian tax dollars on U.S.-built stealth fighters.
Second, because we are standing up for peace and for the values of the United Nations.
And third, we are successfully reaching millions of Canadians through the media with a pro-peace, pro-cooperation message.
They don’t like the fact that our small organization is challenging them at every turn. So we are a daily target for Harper’s attack machine.
We were savaged on CBC TV by Conservative MP Laurie Hawn, former fighter pilot and currently Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence.
Senior Department of National Defence officials are phoning reporters, and even pro-military reporters are calling other journalists, in a smear campaign to silence our voice.
Conservative Senator and former broadcaster Pamela Wallin sent letters to newspapers across the country criticizing reporters who quote us on military issues.

MORE: http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6484&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

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17. Canada's handling of Afghan child detainees queried

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/11/26/
afghan-child-detainees.html

By CBC News CBC News November 28, 2010
The Canadian Forces have for years arrested children suspected of working with the Taliban and have handed some of them over to an Afghan security unit accused of torture, CBC News has learned.
The Canadian Forces have for years arrested children suspected of working with the Taliban and handed them over to an Afghan security unit accused of torture, CBC News has learned.
Allegations that militants captured by Canada were transferred to Afghan forces and later tortured were hotly debated in Parliament last fall.
A document obtained by the CBC's investigative unit shows that Canadian soldiers captured children as well in the fight against the Taliban, and that many of them were transferred to the custody of Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security, or NDS.
Document
Read the briefing note
[http://www.cbc.ca/news/pdf/dnd-juvenile-detainees.pdf] to Defence Minister Peter MacKay.
The document, obtained under an Access to Information request and marked "secret," shows that Defence Minister Peter MacKay was briefed on the topic of juvenile detainees in Afghanistan March 30.
The "Canadian eyes only" note informs MacKay of how many children suspected of "participating in the insurgency" have been arrested by Canadian Forces and how many of them have been transferred into Afghan custody in the previous four years.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/11/26/
afghan-child-detainees.html

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18. Afghan intervention surpasses Soviet stay

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6456&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 27 Nov 2010 10:30 PM PST
The duration of the U.S. and allied intervention in Afghanistan now exceeds that of the Soviet intervention of 1979-1989. Sunday, 28 November 2010 marks the 3340th day since U.S. and allied forces entered Afghanistan in order to topple the Taliban government and capture Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, and it is now clear that [...]

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19. Russia and NATO: Cooperation or Confrontation?

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22091

By Eric Walberg Global Research, November 25, 2010
Medvedev’s presence in Lisbon was more a show of Russia’s importance than of subservience to the Euro-Atlantic alliance
The results of the NATO summit were as predictable as a Soviet Communist Party congress, with the word “peace” replaced by “war”. NATO’s embrace of the US agenda of missile defence, nuclear arms, and its new role as global policeman surprised no one. No word about the United Nations or peacekeeping. In deference to Russia, the only mention of eastern expansion was continued “partnerships” with former Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia. Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and Japan were also offered special status. The new Strategic Doctrine, replacing the more modest Euro-centric 1999 model, really just reaffirmed US control of the foreign policy of what Zbigniew Brzezinski called its “vassal states”.
There were a few ripples. France’s new defense minister, Alain Juppe, openly said the Afghan conflict was a “trap” for NATO and called for an exit strategy, unlike Head of the British Armed Forces Sir David Richards, who opined, “NATO now needs to plan for a 30 or 40 year role.” The Euro-spat continues over the continued presence of nuclear weapons in Europe, between France, which prides itself on its force de frappe, and Germany, which was denied any such private nuclear toys during the Cold War.
But they agreed to disagree and the summit was all smiles and photo ops, at least centre-stage. On the sidelines, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev told a warm United States President Obama Barack that he was ready to cooperate on missile defence but only in “a full-fledged strategic partnership between Russia and NATO”, and Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai told a frosty Obama that he should scale back military operations and night raids that inflict heavy civilian casualties.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22091

====================

20. The Mysterious "Laptop Documents".
Using Fake Intelligence to Justify a Pre-emptive Nuclear War on Iran

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22085

By Michel Chossudovsky Global Research, November 24, 2010
The UN Security Council on June 9 2010 adopted the imposition of a fourth round of sweeping sanctions against The Islamic Republic of Iran. UNSC Resolution 1929 includes an expanded arms embargo as well as "tougher financial controls":
“[Resolution 1929 (June 9, 2010)] Decides that all States shall prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer to Iran, from or through their territories or by their nationals or individuals subject to their jurisdiction, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, and whether or not originating in their territories, of any battle tanks, armoured combat vehicles, large calibre artillery systems, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, missiles or missile systems .... , decides further that all States shall prevent the provision to Iran by their nationals or from or through their territories of technical training, financial resources or services, advice, other services or assistance related to the supply, sale, transfer, provision, manufacture, maintenance or use of such arms and related materiel, and, in this context, calls upon all States to exercise vigilance and restraint over the supply, sale, transfer, provision, manufacture and use of all other arms and related materiel;" (Security Council Imposes Additional Sanctions on Iran, Voting 12 in Favour to 2 Against, with 1 Abstention, Includes complete text of UNSC Resolution 1929, UN News, June 9, 2010, emphasis added, )
Both the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China caved in to US pressures and voted in favor of UNSC Resolution 1929. In November, following a decree issed by president Dmitry Medvedev, Moscow announced the cancellation of its military cooperation agreement with Iran pertaining to the S300 air defense system.
Without Russian military aid, Iran is a "sitting duck". Its air defence system depends on continued Russian military cooperation.
These developments strike at the very heart of the structure of military alliances. They prevent Russia and China to sell both strategic and conventional weapons and military technology to their de facto ally: Iran. In fact, that was one of major objectives of Resolution 1929, which Washington is intent upon enforcing.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22085

==================

21. Ex-German Chancellor Says Bush is a Liar

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/368312/
ex-german_chancellor_says_bush_is_a_liar/

Decision Points! If the New Yorker's lengthy and incisive skewering of George W. Bush's new book wasn't pleasure enough, here's yet another stumble in the former president's attempt at scrubbing his resume. Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder tells the Telegraph that Bush lied about his stance on the US invading Iraq.
Bush wrote that Schroeder agreed to stand with him on the Iraq invasion, but then reneged on his position. "What is true of Afghanistan is true of Iraq," he quotes Schroeder as saying. "Nations that sponsor terror must face consequences. If you make it fast and make it decisive, I will be with you." He writes that when Schroeder changed his mind, he felt it was the ultimate betrayal.
Which is typical of Bush's binary line of thinking–only according to Schroeder, none of it happened.
In a statement, he confirmed that he had told Mr Bush he would "stand reliably on the side of the US" if it was confirmed that Iraq was sheltering those responsible for the September 11 terrorist attacks.
"But this link, as it became clear during 2002, was false and contrived. This goes for reasons [for the invasion] given by Bush and [then vice-president Dick] Cheney too.
"As we know today, the Bush administration's reasons for the Iraq war were based on lies."

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/368312/
exgerman_chancellor_says_bush_is_a_liar/

===================

22. US government: Nosey Parker of the planet - WikiLeaks cable dump alerts

http://www.legitgov.org/

Compiled by Lori Price, 29 Nov 2010
*This page will be updated!* Check for updates as WikiLeaks dumps the cables!
= = = = = = =
WikiLeaks: "Demystifying Diplomacy"

http://www.truth-out.org/wikileaks-demy ... omacy65494

by: Norman Solomon, t r u t h o u t | News Analysis Monday 29 November 2010
Compared to the kind of secret cables that WikiLeaks has just shared with the world, everyday public statements from government officials are exercises in make-believe.
In a democracy, people have a right to know what their government is actually doing. In a pseudo-democracy, a bunch of fairy tales from high places will do the trick.
Diplomatic facades routinely masquerade as realities. But sometimes the mask slips - for all the world to see - and that's what just happened with the humongous leak of State Department cables.
"Every government is run by liars," independent journalist I.F. Stone observed, "and nothing they say should be believed." The extent and gravity of the lying varies from one government to another, but no pronouncements from world capitals should be taken on faith.
By its own account, the US government has been at war for more than nine years now, and there’s no end in sight. Like the Pentagon, the State Department is serving the overall priorities of the warfare state. The nation's military and diplomacy are different moving parts of the same vast war machinery.
Such a contraption requires a muscular bodyguard of partial truths, deceptions and outright lies. With the U.S.'s ongoing war efforts at full throttle, the contradictions between public rationales and hidden goals - or between lofty rhetoric and grisly human consequences - cannot stand the light of day.
Details of Washington's transactional alliances with murderous dictators, corrupt tyrants, warlords and drug traffickers are among its most closely guarded quasi-secrets. Most media accounts can be blown off by officialdom, but smoking-gun diplomatic cables are harder to ignore.
With its massive and unending reliance on military force – resulting in more and more carnage that leaves behind immense grief and rage in Afghanistan, Pakistan and elsewhere - the US government has colossal gaps to bridge between its public-relations storylines and its war-making realities.
The same government that devotes tremendous resources to inflicting military violence abroad must tout its humane bona fides and laudable priorities to the folks back home. But that essential PR task becomes more difficult when official documents to the contrary keep leaking.

MORE:
http://www.truth-out.org/wikileaks-demy ... omacy65494

===================

23. Council of Canadians Update – November 30, 2010

MEDIA RELEASE:
Second Postmedia newspaper refuses ‘In Memoriam’ for killed Mexican opponent of Canadian minehttp://www.canadians.org/media/other/2010/30-Nov-10.html

Leaked documents reveal Alberta government’s private health plans
http://www.canadians.org/activistblog/?p=270
As the Alberta government continues to be embroiled in the soap-opera-like drama unfolding in Alberta Health Services (AHS) – including booting MLA RaJ Sherman from caucus, firing AHS CEO Stephen “Cookie Monster” Duckett, and dealing with the resignation of four (and counting) members of the AHS board of directors – a leaked 27-page internal document reveals that the Stelmach Conservatives have plans for Alberta’s health care system which include delisting health services, allowing doctors to move between public and private systems, and allowing new kinds of private insurance to operate in the province.

UPDATE: Barlow, Harden, Campero speak on the need for climate and water justice
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5526
This morning we are at a media conference in Mexico City organized by the Coalicion de Organizaciones Mexicanas Por El Derecho Al Agua (Coalition of Mexican Organizations for the Right to Water).

NEWS: People’s Assembly on Climate Justice in Peterborough, Dec. 5
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5524
The Peterborough Examiner reports that, “A group of local activists is hoping to raise the temperature on climate change discussion with a community forum on Sunday.”

NEWS: North American foreign ministers to meet in Wakefield, Dec. 13
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5520
A Canadian government media release announces that, “Canada will host the North American Foreign Ministers Meeting on December 13, 2010, in Wakefield, Quebec.”

NEWS: Peterborough chapter demands provincial support for affordable housing
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5518
The Peterborough Examiner reports that, “Affordable housing advocates hoping for more funding for rent-geared-to-income subsidies or promises to build more affordable housing units were left disappointed by the long-awaited release of a provincial affordable housing strategy Monday.”

UPDATE: On the climate caravan to Mexico Cityhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5514
We started today with about 300 kilometres to go in our climate caravan journey to Mexico City.

Why the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission should stop Bruce Power’s radioactive shipments through our Great Lakeshttp://www.canadians.org/waterblog/?m=201011
November 29, 2010
Bruce Power has applied for a licence at the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to ship 16 radioactive steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway to Sweden.

by **Oscar** » Mon Dec 06, 2010 12:31 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 6, 2010

NUCLEAR WASTE: STOP MAKING IT!!

1. HARDING: TEN BIG REASONS WHY SASKATCHEWAN SHOULD BAN NUCLEAR WASTES
2. NWMO: Request for Input: Dec. 10: Implementing Adaptive Phased Management 2011 to 2015 – DRAFT FOR REVIEW/Finley Letter
3. HARDING: A NUCLEAR WASTE BAN: CAN WE TAKE THE BULL BY THE HORNS?
4. Great Lakes Mayors Sound Alarm Over Radioactive Shipment – 2 articles
5. WATCH: Darlington Re-Build Could Cost $21 to $35 Billion
6. GE official assures crowd plant shelved enriched uranium plans
7. Port Hope low level radioactive waste site:
8. WATCH: Nuclear Issues Working Group Forum
9. UN's uranium bank backed by Buffett
10. J.R.R. TOLKIEN REFLECTIONS ON HIGH LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE
11. LATEST NUCLEAR WASTE TRANSPORT TO GORLEBEN (GERMANY) SPARKS ANGRY PROTESTS, NOVEMBER 9, 2010
12. Radioactive water overflows Fermi 2
13. LETTER: SHIELDS: Peace in Our Time?
14. Julia Gillard faces nuclear power push/VOTE ONLINE!
15. Nuclear power - Team France in disarray
16. India treats herself to two EPR for the 26th anniversary of Bhopal, in spite of a strong opposition from the local populations
17. (SK) Prince Albert chapter holds 3rd annual PeaceFest
18. “No one believes in Afghanistan any more”
19. Canada enlists in America's permanent war for peace
20. Council of Canadians Update – December 2, 2010
21. WikiLeaks Cables Reveal How US Manipulated Climate Accord Embassy dispatches show America used spying, threats and promises of aid to get support for Copenhagen accord
22. What WikiLeaks revealed - From soporific to sizzling
23. WikiLeaks: France went to bat for Omar Khadr
24. The "Hi Tech" Corporate Police State: "Reengineering" the Internet ... for Persistent Surveillance
25. The Beginning of the End of the American Empire

================

1. HARDING: TEN BIG REASONS WHY SASKATCHEWAN SHOULD BAN NUCLEAR WASTES

Background paper prepared by Dr. Jim Harding for Quill Plains Chapter of Council of Canadians meeting in Wynyard, SK on December 4, 2010

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/vie ... php?t=1027

The Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan, a politically non-partisan network of groups working across Saskatchewan for a sustainable future, supports a legislated ban on the importation, transportation and storage of nuclear wastes anywhere in Saskatchewan. Towards this end we will hold community-information sessions along all southern and northern routes that the nuclear industry is likely to target for transporting nuclear wastes to the north.
We support a legislated nuclear waste ban for the following main reasons:

1. SASKATCHEWAN IS NOT OBLIGED TO TAKE NUCLEAR WASTES FROM AFAR:
Saskatchewan is not obliged to take back nuclear wastes created from Saskatchewan uranium. If Saskatchewan was obliged to take back such wastes we would instantly become an international nuclear dump, for uranium has been sold to many countries, including the US, France, Japan, Germany, Sweden, Finland, India, etc. They must all be responsible for their own nuclear wastes.
We aren’t obliged to take high-level radioactive waste from the US weapons program, even though Canada exported uranium in secrecy from Uranium City (and Elliot Lake, Ontario) to the US for weapons purposes through the 1950s and 1960s. Nor are we obliged to take nuclear weapons wastes from France, even though Canada sold uranium to France prior to it signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Nor are we obliged to take nuclear power wastes from Ontario, Quebec or New Brunswick because Candu reactors there have used some uranium from Saskatchewan. Uranium was also used from the Elliot Lake area in northern Ontario; and that doesn’t mean that area should become a national-international nuclear dump. Northern Ontario and Northern Saskatchewan have already paid dearly for being the mining front-end of the military-industrial nuclear system, accumulating hundreds of thousands of tonnes of toxic uranium tailings that will be radioactive for thousands of years.
Jurisdictions that decided to “go nuclear” are responsible for their own waste management, and should have had a plan from the start or not proceeded. It is too bad that Ontario’s government didn’t listen to its own Porter Commission in 1978 calling for a moratorium on nuclear power because the province had no nuclear waste plan. But better late than never: a moratorium and phase-out of nuclear power is still required so that there is not a further build-up of nuclear wastes as a curse to future generations.

MORE:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/vie ... php?t=1027

==================

2. NWMO: Request for Input - Dec. 10: Implementing Adaptive Phased Management 2011 to 2015 – DRAFT FOR REVIEW/Finley Letter

http://www.nwmo.ca/%20implementationplan

(See important Links below...)

The document Implementing Adaptive Phased Management 2011 to 2015 – DRAFT FOR REVIEW is our annual five-year strategic plan for implementing Canada’s plan for the safe, long-term care of used nuclear fuel. The NWMO invites all interested individuals and organizations to engage in our work and to review our plans and activities as we move forward.
The Plan provides an overview of the NWMO and Adaptive Phased Management. The Plan presents highlights of our work program in seven key areas. Activities are proposed in each area to support continued progress on this important national initiative.
Based on the comments and ideas received, we will refine the Plan and publish the final document in the NWMO’s first Triennial Report, in March 2011. Our progress in 2011 against this Plan will be described in our Annual Report published in March 2012.
The Plan is a living document that is regularly assessed, strengthened and redirected in the face of new information, advances in technology and science, changes in societal values and evolving public policy.
We welcome your comments and ideas about how we are continuing to move forward. (Emphasis added.)
To guide your review, we have included some questions for your consideration.
We would welcome your comments, by mail or through our website (www.nwmo.ca), by December 10, 2010.
Kindly forward your comments to:
Nuclear Waste Management Organization
Attention: Dr. Anda Kalvins
22 St. Clair Avenue East, 6th Floor
Toronto, ON M4T 2S3, Canada
Email: akalvins@nwmo.ca
Fax: 647.259.3692

Share Your Thoughts on Implementing Adaptive Phased Management 2011 to 2015 - DRAFT FOR PUBLIC REVIEW

http://www.nwmo.ca/uploads_managed/MediaFiles/
1638_shareyourthoughtsonimplementin.pdf

Implementing Adaptive Phased Management 2011 to 2015 - DRAFT FOR PUBLIC REVIEW

http://www.nwmo.ca/uploads_managed/MediaFiles/
1639_implementationplan_2011to2015.pdf

Complete a Web Survey:
http://www.nwmo.ca/survey-manage

- - - - - -

Send Submissions on SK nuclear waste dump to NWMO by Dec. 10

http://www.nwmo.ca/ implementationplan

There is a link to their document & a place to give feedback, scroll down just a bit.
Send your input to akalvins@nwmo.ca by December 10th.
No question the NWMO is looking at Saskatchewan as a place to build a dump for all of the high level post reactor fuel waste of Canada, and they are targeting economically challenged First Nations & Métis communities.
The NWMO is trying to convince people that there is money to be made in hosting a waste dump, that is their mandate, and they have lots of money to help them with their message.
They have also presented at nuclear waste meetings in the USA, in case you think it is only Canadian reactor waste that they are looking to store.
Just the existing Canadian waste would take thousands of trucks on our roads carrying thousands of bundles of highly radioactive material to be stored in our province and every year nuclear power reactors are producing more waste. How will they protect our land, our water, our people, our whole ecosystem from this radioactive contamination?
Please give some thought as to what role you want to play in this scenario. Helping to inform people about the problems with these plans could go a long way to a solution.
most sincerely,
The Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan

- -- - - -

FINLEY: LETTER TO THE NWMO (with permission)
December 5, 2010
SENT TO: akalvins@nwmo.ca
Dear Anda Kalvins,
1. You are proposing to bury high-level radioactive waste from other jurisdictions in the Canadian Shield area of Saskatchewan. You are relying on the myth that the Canadian Shield is solid rock and dry, as the basis for your scheme. The public is not so ignorant. Experience with mining indicates that the Canadian Shield is most likely sitting upon vast tracts of underground water.
The uranium and other mines in the Shield are notorious for being unable to control inflowing water.
The High-level Radioactive Waste Act in Manitoba which prohibits other jurisdictions from shipping their radioactive waste to Manitoba for disposal was passed in 1987 - - specifically because it was found to be impossible to prevent water from entering underground holes in the Canadian Shield.
Your plan is to put underground water supplies at serious risk for contamination by high-level radioactive waste.
2. In consideration of the work of future generations, High-level radioactive waste should be stored above-ground for ease of transfer to new containers as old storage containers deteriorate (as they inevitably will). The waste should be stored at the sites where it is generated.
3. There is no good reason in the public interest to transport high-level radioactive waste. You put everyone along the transportation corridors at risk - - at substantial risk. Your own estimates are that it will take 30 years of trucking to move the accumulated radioactive waste. A couple of weekends ago there was yet another highway accident near the Saskatchewan-Manitoba border that killed 6 people this time. You think you are going to truck high-level radioactive waste for 30 years and not have accidents. Where has your common sense gone? Above-ground storage at the sites where the waste is produced is the sane approach.
4. As a citizen I will be expected to ante up the money to pay for the costs of upgrading the highway systems to accommodate the substantially-increased heavy traffic flow. What’s the phrase - - corporate welfare bums?
5. You (the industry) should come clean on the plans for high-level radioactive waste disposal. It is your intention to move high-level radioactive waste, not only from other parts of Canada, but also from the United States to Saskatchewan for disposal.
6. It will be interesting to see if you (the industry) can override the wishes of the people who live not only along the transportation routes, but who reside in the Province of Saskatchewan. The people of this province, through public meetings held in the summer of 2009 were unequivocal: we do not want a radioactive waste disposal site here. We will look after the substantial accumulated waste in this Province, and we expect other jurisdictions to do the same for the radioactive waste they have generated.
7. I bear responsibility for what happens in this democracy. I will therefore do all I can to ensure that more and more people in Saskatchewan are fully aware of the attempts to ship radioactive waste to Saskatchewan for disposal, also of your attempts to ship through the Great Lakes to Sweden and the resistance that has mobilized to stop your self-serving lunacy. People in Saskatchewan are very interested to hear about the 50,000 Germans who have mobilized over the radioactive waste issue, the people in the eastern U.S. who recently stopped the building of a reactor because eventually they would have the radioactive waste from it being shipped through their transportation corridors (right through their cities - - they said “no”.).
I suggest you re-consider your options.
Best wishes,
Sandra Finley
(contact information)

=========================

3. HARDING: A NUCLEAR WASTE BAN: CAN WE TAKE THE BULL BY THE HORNS?

BY Jim Harding - Published in the United Newspapers of Saskatchewan on December 3, 2010

The FSIN taking $1,000,000 from the industry-based Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) has put nuclear waste back in the news. And apparently the Métis Nation has also taken hundreds of thousands of NWMO money. What does it mean that both large Aboriginal organizations have gone this far? Do they seriously believe that an industry-funded “information” campaign can create informed consent about a nuclear dump in Saskatchewan?
Relying on industry is fraught with dangers to Aboriginal self-determination and to our larger democracy. So what are people who don’t want to see Saskatchewan become a nuclear dump to do? Are we to close our eyes to the realities facing Métis and First Nations communities in the north? Are we to sidestep the role that the lack of economic opportunities in the north is playing in the nuclear waste controversy? Are we to oppose a nuclear dump while ignoring the powerful influence and dangers of the uranium industry in the north?

MORE:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/vie ... =1950#1950

See other articles at:
http://jimharding.brinkster.net

=================

4. Great Lakes Mayors Sound Alarm Over Radioactive Shipment – 2 articles

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/dec2010 ... 2-02.html-

December 2, 2010
CHICAGO, Illinois, December 2, 2010 (ENS) - A binational coalition of over 70 mayors from Quebec, Ontario and the eight Great Lake States fear that the proposed maritime shipment of 16 giant radioactive steam generators from Ontario's Bruce Power to Sweden for recycling could release radioactivity into the water in the event of an accident during shipment.
The generators, each the size of school bus and weighing 100 metric tonnes, would be shipped from Owen Sound, through Georgian Bay, across three of the lakes, up the St. Lawrence Seaway and across the Atlantic Ocean to Sweden.
Organized as the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, the mayors have expressed concern over the
potential environmental impacts to the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence if a shipping accident occurs.

MORE:
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/dec2010 ... 2-02.html-
- - - - - - -
Read the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative submission

http://www.ccnr.org/GLCI_CNSC_Supplementary.pdf

Read the Canadian Coalition for nuclear Responsibility submission

http://www.ccnr.org/CCNR_CNSC_Supplementary.pdf

= = = = = =

Ship happens?

http://metrotimes.com/news/ship-happens-1.1070979

Plan to transport radioactive materials on Great Lakes creates ripples of protest
by Curt Guyette, Metro Times, Detroit, December 1, 2010
If you believe the folks at the Bruce nuclear power plant in Ontario, there's little to fear from the proposed shipment of 16 steam generators contaminated with radioactive waste.
Under a plan proposed by the company, the generators -- each the size of a school bus and weighing in at 100 tons -- would be shipped through three Great Lakes and the St.
Lawrence Seaway and across the Atlantic to Sweden, where the metal would be recycled and the remaining radioactive material returned to Canada. Both legs of the trip would
include Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River.
- - - SNIP - - -
"Bruce Power's CEO, Duncan Hawthorne, admitted at CNSC public hearings ... that there is no emergency plan for recovering the ship if it sinks in the Great Lakes, flippantly adding there would be plenty of time to figure out what to do," Kamps has said. "But CNSC staff admitted that the welds sealing the radioactivity within the steam generators are only dependable to a depth of 800 feet submerged underwater, the exact depth along portions of the Great Lakes shipment route. This means there is zero safety margin. ...
"Radioactive waste should be isolated from the human environment, not transported halfway around the world, and certainly not dispersed into consumer products."

=====================

5. WATCH: Darlington Re-Build Could Cost $21 to $35 Billion

http://www.cleanairalliance.org/

OPG is seeking permission from the Ontario Energy Board to raise its rates commencing March 2011 to start paying for the Darlington Re-Build project. According to OPG, its proposal to extend the operating life of Darlington by 30 years will cost $8.5 to $14 billion. However, as this OCAA report notes, every single nuclear project in Ontario’s history has gone over budget and the actual costs of Ontario’s nuclear projects have been 2.5 times greater than the original cost estimates.
Help stop a $35 billion nuclear handout
From: Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2010 10:43 AM
Subject: [cleanair-l] Help stop a $35 billion nuclear handout
Help stop a $35 billion nuclear handout
Now more than ever, we need to get the word out that Ontario can and must put clean and green power first! You can help!
As you know, instead of spending $83 billion on nuclear energy, we should be building on the enormous success of our world-leading coal phase-out and moving Ontario forward to a green future. With an integrated combination of energy conservation and efficiency, water power imports from Quebec and super-efficient combined heat and power plants, Ontario can move towards a 100% renewable electricity grid by 2027. Let's get to it!
For just a few dollars you can help us get the message out. For every $100 you donate, we can print 800 copies of our new pamphlet, Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout: No More Blank Cheques for Ontario Power Generation and its Darlington Nuclear Station.
We need to print and distribute hundreds of thousands of these pamphlets so that as many Ontarians as possible will send Premier McGuinty the message that we will not accept more nuclear boondoggles.
So please consider a donation of $100, $250, $500 or $1000 as your contribution towards creating a green electricity future for our children!
Thank you in advance for making a difference with a simple donation.
Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
402 - 625 Church St, Toronto M4Y 2G1
Phone: 416-926-1907 ext. 246
angela@cleanairalliance.org
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Ontario’s Green Future
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

=================

6. GE official assures crowd plant shelved enriched uranium plans

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2870120

December 1, 2010
A large, angry and boisterous crowd accused GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Tuesday night of misleading the public and keeping parents in the dark about its plans to produce fuel in Peterborough using low enriched uranium.
Company president and CEO Peter Mason was on the defence as about 120 people packed into the gymnasium at Prince of Wales Public School for a public information session on the Peterborough plant's nuclear licence renewal.
"Why would I want to sit and lie to you?" Mason told the combative crowd of parents and concerned residents as tensions rose during the 1 1/2 -hour meeting. "At the end of the day, we are members of this community, our children are in this community."
Mason said he organized the meeting amid mounting concerns about the company's licence renewal process.
GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada is in the final stages of renewing its operating licences for its nuclear fuel fabrication facilities in Peterborough and Toronto for another 10 years.
The second and final public hearing will be held Dec. 9 before the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission in Ottawa.

MORE:
http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2870120

=================

7. Port Hope low level radioactive waste site:

http://www.waterkeeper.ca/2009/09/01/
cnsc-hearing-reveals-cracks-in-radioactive-waste-%e2%80%9cplan%e2%80%9d/

One of the largest stockpilings of low level radioactive waste in the country is happening in Port Hope, Ontario. The “megadump” will sit beside Highway 401 and contain about 1.5-million cubic metres of radioactive waste. LOW intervened at the first licencing hearing in 2009 and is already preparing for Phase II of the licencing process.
= = = = =
CNSC hearing reveals cracks in radioactive waste “plan”

http://www.waterkeeper.ca/2009/09/01/
cnsc-hearing-reveals-cracks-in-radioactive-waste-“plan”/

Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, Waterkeeper.ca Weekly
September 1, 2009
Question: When is a plan not a plan?
Answer: When it is Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s “cleanup” proposal for the town of Port Hope, Ontario.
At a packed hearing last week, Canada’s nuclear regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, listened to presentations on the proposal from its staff, AECL, private citizens, and volunteer organizations — roughly 100 presentations in all, spanning 17 hours of hearing time.
AECL is asking for a licence for a low level radioactive waste site. The site will house approximately 1.5 million cubic metres of nuclear and industrial waste, collected from the community over the course of the next decade.
The proposal was approved in 2007, following a six-year environmental assessment. The ensuing licensing process should have been fairly straight forward — hash out a few technical details and get shovels in the ground.
Instead, last week’s hearing revealed that the Port Hope Area Initiative is a project nowhere close to being shovel-ready and that the country’s nuclear regulator is over its head when it comes to the technical details of landfill design.

==========================

8. WATCH: Nuclear Issues Working Group Forum

http://www.cen-rce.org/AGA/2010/saturday.html

Videos of presentations at the Canadian Environmental Network 2010 Conference in Montreal, Sept. 17-19
Members of this expert panel discussed recent developments regarding: uranium mining, nuclear reactors, high level nuclear waste, and the proposed Bruce Power radioactive steam generator shipment through the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence River. Agenda

View the slides and videos from this session:
(All Links are on website.)
Angela Bischoff, Ontario Clean Air Alliance: video
Stefania Fortugno, Inter-Church Uranium Committee: slides / video+slides
Brennain Lloyd, Northwatch: slides / video+slides: pt.1 - pt.2
Gordon Edwards: slides / video+slides: pt.1@5:20min - pt.2

=================

9. UN's uranium bank backed by Buffett

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
uranium+bank+backed+Buffett/3927227/story.html

REUTERS DECEMBER 4, 2010
Member states of the UN nuclear watchdog approved on Friday a U.S.-backed fuel supply plan aimed at preventing the spread of atom bombs as more countries seek nuclear power, despite misgivings among some developing states.
Its adoption was a priority for the Obama administration, which has set itself an ambitious nuclear disarmament agenda, and it comes at a time when the new START atomic arms reduction pact with Russia faces an uncertain future in the U.S. Senate.
Under the delayed scheme, partly financed by U.S. billionaire Warren Buffett, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would run a reserve of low-enriched uranium (LEU), which countries could turn to if their regular supplies were cut.
Proponents say it could help meet growing demand from dozens of countries, some in the conflict-prone Middle East, for technical help in launching nuclear energy programs without increasing the risk of weapons proliferation.
"It is a positive step (towards) achieving Obama's non-proliferation goals," one U.S. diplomat said, before the 35-nation governing IAEA board approved the plan with 28 votes for, six abstentions and one absentee.
The uranium needed to fuel nuclear reactors can also be enriched to high levels and provide material for bombs, making such fuel cycle technology especially sensitive.
Iran's disputed enrichment program, which the West fears is aimed at developing nuclear weapons, also has helped the idea up the agenda after decades on the political backburner. But some developing states are concerned it may limit their right to sovereign nuclear energy capabilities, even if Western diplomats say this would not be the case.

MORE:
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
uranium+bank+backed+Buffett/3927227/story.html

===================

10. J.R.R. TOLKIEN REFLECTIONS ON HIGH LEVEL NUCLEAR WASTE - Lord of the Rings, Book 2, Chapter 2
Excerpted from "The Council of Elrond"
"Two things only remain for us to attempt: to send it over the Sea, or to destroy it," said Glorfindel.
"But Gandalf has revealed to us that we cannot destroy it by any craft that we here possess," said Elrond.
"And they who dwell beyond the Sea would not receive it: for good or ill it belongs to us; it is for us who still dwell here to deal with it."
"Then," said Glorfindel, "let us cast it into the deeps. In the Sea it would be safe."
"Not safe for ever," said Gandalf. "There are many things in the deep waters; and seas and land may change. And it is not our part here to take thought only for a season, or for a few lives of Men, or for a passing age of the world. We should seek a final end to this menace."
"Then," said Erestor, "there are but two courses, as Glorfindel has already declared: to hide it for ever, or to unmake it. But both are beyond our power. Who will read this riddle for us?"
"None here can do so," said Elrond gravely. "At least none can foretell what will come to pass, if we take this road or that. But it seems to me now clear which is the road that we must take."

=================

11. LATEST NUCLEAR WASTE TRANSPORT TO GORLEBEN (GERMANY) SPARKS ANGRY PROTESTS, NOVEMBER 9, 2010

German media roundup: Split by the atom

http://www.thelocal.de/national/20101109-31059.html

Published: 9 Nov 10 16:10 CET
The latest nuclear waste transport to Lower Saxony’s Gorleben storage facility may have sparked angry protests, but the newspapers in The Local’s media roundup on Tuesday were split on the import of the anti-atomic movement.
Anti-nuclear demonstrations planned for Monday in 50 cities - National (4 Dec 10)
Germans have long been opposed to nuclear energy, which is why the country perhaps still doesn’t have a permanent storage site for radioactive waste.
The temporary site at Gorbelen in the northern state of Lower Saxony is considered unsafe by many, and there have been protests against depositing more nuclear waste there for years. After a centre-left coalition of Social Democrats and Greens decided ten years ago to phase out atomic power, the demonstrations against the so-called Castor transports from France died down.
But Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision last month to extend the use of Germany’s nuclear reactors for another 14 years stoked new life into the German anti-nuclear movement.
An estimated 20,000 to 50,000 people travelled to Lower Saxony at the weekend to hinder the 11 Castor containers holding 123 tonnes of radioactive waste as a special train laboured towards Gorleben for three days. The demonstrations turned nasty as protestors clashed with some 20,000 police officers trying to clear the way.

MORE:
http://www.thelocal.de/national/20101109-31059.html
= = = = = =
The Curse of Gorleben - Germany's Endless Search for a Nuclear Waste Dump

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/
0,1518,672147,00.html

01/15/2010 By SPIEGEL Staff
Germany has been looking for a permanent storage site for its nuclear waste for over 30 years. The history of the Gorleben salt dome, a potential nuclear repository, is one full of deception and political maneuvering. And if opponents to the plans have their way, the search might even have to start again from scratch.

MORE:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/
0,1518,672147,00.html

=====================

12. Radioactive water overflows Fermi 2

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/
article?AID=/20101204/NEWS16/101209877/0/SPORTS11

DTE Energy says there’s no danger

By TOM HENRY,BLADE STAFF WRITER
NEWPORT, Mich. — Hours before DTE Energy’s Fermi 2 nuclear plant resumed operation Friday morning, about 100,000 gallons of radioactive cooling water overflowed a holding tank and stood about an inch high in portions of the plant’s turbine building and its radioactive waste building, according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The mishap, discovered Wednesday afternoon, contaminated shoes and outer clothing of about a half-dozen workers.
“Low-level contamination was limited to some of the workers’ shoes and outer clothing during the event. The inspectors are reviewing the licensee’s follow-up surveys,” an NRC online report said.
Up to 100 gallons flowed through a bathroom drain into a Monroe County sewer line, causing some of the sewage near the plant to have trace amounts of radiation, DTE Energy spokesman Guy Cerullo said.
“We’ve determined a very small amount reached the Monroe County sewage system,” he said.
Sewage plants process millions of gallons of water each day.

MORE:
http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/
article?AID=/20101204/NEWS16/101209877/0/SPORTS11

==================

13. LETTER: SHIELDS: Peace in Our Time?
From: lagran
To: Prime Minister/Premier ministre ; Layton, Jack - M.P. ; iggy
Cc: Rae.B@parl.gc.ca ; goodale ; flaherty ; dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca ; Alberta Activism
Sent: Monday, December 06, 2010 9:10 AM
Subject: Peace In Our Time?
I find it troublesome that some western nations including Harper's Canada condemn Iran for practices that we ourselves take pride in doing. I actually hope if Israel will not surrender their atomic supplies, that Iran can balance their danger by also holding nuclear capabilities. Israel has shown more signs of disregard of U.N. directives, and using weapons illegal under international rules than Iran. I fear that Israel and Israel alone are the big push to stop Iran from power generation using nuclear power! I also think that Israel with their record in the Mid-East, have reason to worry about Persian or Arab countries gaining equal war power to that they have obtained.
There are two scenario's that could develop over Iran joining other world members as nuclear powers. The Israelis could change completely their desire to exterminate their Arab neighbours and surrender their weapons of mass destruction. Or Iran will ensure a counter balance effect to any further terrorists in the Mid-East that Israel has planned, and peace in that region would become desirable to Israel, something that has not been the case up to now! We cannot hold supplies of nuclear weapons to a balanced position with those we fear, and not allow others the same security!!
Stewart Shields
Lacombe, Alberta
= = = = = =
Iran mines uranium for nuclear fuel

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/05/
iran-mining-uranium.html

Last Updated: Sunday, December 5, 2010 | 9:26 AM ET CBC News
Iran says it has mined its own uranium for the first time, allowing it to bypass a United Nations ban on importing the material.
The uranium ore was collected from the Gachin mine in southern Iran and delivered to a processing plant in the central city of Isfahan, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Sunday.
Salehi said the development means the country has gained self-sufficiency over the entire nuclear fuel cycle — from extracting uranium ore to enriching it and producing nuclear fuel.
The announcement comes a day before Iranian officials were to meet in Geneva with delegates from six world powers to discuss Iran's nuclear program. The two days of talks will involve the European Union, the United States, China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany.
Salehi, who is also the vice-president of Iran, said the news that the country has domestically produced uranium concentrate powder, known as yellowcake, delivers a message to those meeting in Geneva on Monday and Tuesday that there is no stopping Iran's nuclear work.
Iran is under four sets of UN Security Council sanctions that forbid the supply of nuclear materials to Tehran.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/05/
iran-mining-uranium.html

====================

14. Julia Gillard faces nuclear power push/VOTE ONLINE!

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/
julia-gillard-faces-nuclear-power-push/story-e6frf7l6-1225963541387

Steve Lewis From: Herald Sun November 01, 2010 12:00AM
UPDATE 8.50am: PRIME Minister Julia Gillard says nuclear power isn't a priority for her government, despite calls from MPs to investigate the issue.
Ms Gillard is facing a damaging Labor Party split with federal MPs calling for Australia to embrace nuclear power.
The Prime Minister is under pressure to put the divisive issue on next year's ALP national conference agenda - with MPs saying voters care more about rising power bills than same-sex marriage.
But this morning on radio station 3AW Ms Gillard said the policy focus is on green energy, including solar and wind power, rather than nuclear power.
"I don't think it (nuclear power) stacks up here economically," she said.
But Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson last night said people advocating nuclear power had as much right to have it debated at the conference as people backing changes to same-sex marriage laws.

VOTE ONLINE: (Scroll down left-hand side)

MORE:
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/
julia-gillard-faces-nuclear-power-push/story-e6frf7l6-1225963541387

=======================

15. Nuclear power - Team France in disarray

http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/
displayStory.cfm?story_id=17627569&subjectID=821240&fsrc=nwl

Unhappy attempts to revive a national industry
Dec 2nd 2010 | PARIS | From The Economist print edition
WHAT solar panels are to Germany and wind turbines are to Denmark, nuclear reactors are to France: not just a power source but a pitch for global leadership in a field that is green and sexily high-tech. Electricité de France (EDF), a giant state utility, runs all 59 of the country’s nuclear plants and more than anyone else in the world. Together with Areva and Alstom, two firms involved in many aspects of nuclear-power production, EDF is trying to compete for business overseas. But Team France is ailing.

MORE: http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/
displayStory.cfm?story_id=17627569&subjectID=821240&fsrc=nwl

=====================

16. India treats herself to two EPR for the 26th anniversary of Bhopal, in spite of a strong opposition from the local populations

http://www.sacw.net/spip.php?page=impri ... ticle=1724

*Press Release
Lyon 3/12/2010 - On the 26th anniversary of the Bhopal industrial catastrophe [1], Nicolas Sarkozy and his Indian counterpart made public an agreement guaranteeing the purchase of two EPR reactors from the French contractor Areva. The reactors would be built next to the city of Jaitapur, in the Maharashtra state, an earthquake prone zone[2] – level 4/5- which would significantly increase the risk of a new major industrial catastrophe in the country.
The two EPR reactors that are currently being built in France and Finland already suffer from important delays and over-costs. The budget for Flamanville is thus already overspent by, at least, 1,7 billion euros. The Indian Government is taking the wrong path of nuclear power, by investing in a very expensive and dangerous source of energy. Renewables such as wind or solar power are, on the other hand, already available and for the same amount of money invested, enable the creation of 15 times more jobs than
nuclear power does[3].
*A strong opposition from local populations*

MORE:
http://www.sacw.net/spip.php?page=impri ... ticle=1724

Media contact:
Steven Mitchell : +33 (0)952 495 022
[1] The Bhopal catastrophe occurred happened during the night of the 3rd of December 1984, and is considered the biggest industrial catastrophe up to this date.

[2] http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/
India_earthquake_zone_map_en.svg

[3] Les Sept Vents du Cotentin, "Un courant alternatif pour le Grand Ouest –
Quelles alternatives au réacteur EPR ?", 2006.
[4] http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/
article857678.ece
[5] http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101129/full/
468613a.html
[6] BVA poll « Les Français et l’environnement », 2007.
[7] Rocky Moutain Institute, "The Nuclear Illusion""The Nuclear Illusion" ,
2008, p.19.
- - - -
Réseau "Sortir du nucléaire", alliance of 873 associations to protect the
environnement
http://www.sortirdunucleaire.org/

====================

17. (SK) Prince Albert chapter holds 3rd annual PeaceFest

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/News/Local/2010-12-04/
article-2017658/PA-gives-peace-a-chance/1

December 4, 2010
The Prince Albert Daily Herald reports that, "Songs about freedom, war, peace and love kept Prince Albertans warm on a cold Saturday this weekend at the third annual Peace Fest."
"Hosted at the Great Western Coffee Co. and organized by the Council of Canadians, Peace Rally: Songs of Peace, Protest and Hope aimed to raise awareness for the peace movement."
“'We try to let people let people know there’s another option to war. We’re not anti-troops, just antiwar. Actually, were just pro-peace,' said organizer and local Council of Canadian representative Rick Sawa."
“'Instead of putting money into wars, let’s put money into public transit, pharmaceutical care or a national day care,' he said fighting to be heard above Shayne Lazarowich's version of The Beatles’ 'Don’t Let Me Down,' dedicated to Canadian politicians (at the standing-room only event)."
“(Sawa adds), 'We want our country to move back towards peacekeeping,” he said. “Instead of leaving troops in Afghanistan, why not send over plumbers, electricians, masons and people to rebuild the country.'”
"The council is a volunteer run organization working to draw attention to issues such as water privatization, energy security, public health care and Canadian independence. Founded nationally 25 years ago, the group setup shop in Prince Albert 15 years ago and meet about once a month."

MORE:
http://www.paherald.sk.ca/News/Local/2010-12-04/
article-2017658/PA-gives-peace-a-chance/1.

=================

18. “No one believes in Afghanistan any more”

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6532&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 05 Dec 2010 02:04 PM PST
European Union President Herman Van Rompuy told the United States in 2009 that “no one [in the EU] believes in Afghanistan any more,” according to a U.S. account of the meeting leaked by WikiLeaks (“‘No one believes in Afghanistan any more:’ EU leader in WikiLeaks cable,” Globe and Mail, 5 December 2010): U.S. Ambassador to [...]

====================

19. Canada enlists in America's permanent war for peace

From: Gordon Edwards
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 3:12 PM
Subject: Canada enlists in America's permanent war for peace
A thought-provoking piece about institutionalized militarism. Is anyone out there worried about Canada's new appetite for glorifying the language and the heroic deeds of war? The Harper government has gone a long way towards shaping the views of Canadians along these lines. - Gordon Edwards.
========================

Canada enlists in America's permanent war for peace

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... d-reading/
gerald-caplan/canada-enlists-in-americas-permanent-war-for-peace/article1815518/

Gerald Caplan, Globe and Mail Update, Friday, Nov. 26, 2010
American and NATO troops, including Canadians, will pull out of Afghanistan in 2014 at the latest, unless they don't. It depends on something but no one knows what that something might be. In his new book Obama's Wars, Bob Woodward quotes General David Petraeus, the senior U.S. commander in Afghanistan: "I don't think you win this war. I think you keep fighting. This is the kind of fight we're in for the rest of our lives, and probably our kids' lives."
Dear me, how do I break this to our granddaughter?
Luckily for the general he's getting full co-operation from his peacenik President. Having campaigned
against the Iraq war and promised not to get mired in Afghanistan, Barack Obama recently sent Congress the largest defence budget since the Second World War: $708-billion for the fiscal year 2011, $82-billion more than for 2010. The total then grew by $33-billion for the 30,000 additional troops Mr. Obama dispatched to Afghanistan.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, China's 2009 military expenditures were $99-billion, Britan's $67-billion, Russia's $61-billion and Canada's $20-billion. As usual, the U.S. military budget is more or less equal to that of the entire rest of the world combined.
And thank the Good Lord for it. It costs a fortune to have a peaceful world and America is not prepared to skimp when it comes to world peace. In The American Way of War: How Bush's Wars became Obama's, Tom Englehardt writes that "war is now the American way." I'm afraid this is seriously misinformed. War has always been the American way. After all, the quest for peace is eternal.
The world should be more grateful. To fulfill this mission, the United States has fought more wars, invaded more countries, supported more tyrants, sponsored more coups, trained and funded more foreign armies, and enabled more massacres than any other country in history. Because peace demanded it, the United States also became the only country ever to use nuclear weapons.
Unlike Canada, the United States was founded in war and soon discovered it was addicted.

MORE:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/pol ... d-reading/
gerald-caplan/canada-enlists-in-americas-permanent-war-for-peace/article1815518/

==================

20. Council of Canadians Update – December 2, 2010

UPDATE: The UNFCCC or COP 16 is now in full swing in Cancunhttp://www.blueplanetproject.net/blog/?p=40
After the disaster in Copenhagen expectations are, unfortunately, very low. This negative feeling is being heightened by positions being taken by governments like Canada’s.

UPDATE: The story so far in Méxicohttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5549
What’s the story so far with the COP 16 climate summit?

UPDATE: Climate justice march in Mexico Cityhttp://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5529
The Council of Canadians joined a climate justice march this afternoon in Mexico City. The protest was organized by La Via Campesina and other groups. More than 4,500 people took part in the 7-kilometre march.

Climate justice activities in Mexico Cityhttp://www.canadians.org/waterblog/?p=86
This morning, Coalicion de Organizaciones Mexicanas Por El Derocho Al Agua (COMDA / Coalition of Mexican Organizations for the Right to Water) organized a press conference in Mexico city.

==================

21. WikiLeaks Cables Reveal How US Manipulated Climate Accord

Embassy dispatches show America used spying, threats and promises of aid to get support for Copenhagen accord

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/dec/03/
wikileaks-us-manipulated-climate-accord

by Damian Carrington Published on Saturday, December 4, 2010
Hidden behind the save-the-world rhetoric of the global climate change negotiations lies the mucky realpolitik: money and threats buy political support; spying and cyberwarfare are used to seek out leverage.
The US diplomatic cables reveal how the US seeks dirt on nations opposed to its approach to tackling global warming; how financial and other aid is used by countries to gain political backing; how distrust, broken promises and creative accounting dog negotiations; and how the US mounted a secret global diplomatic offensive to overwhelm opposition to the controversial
"Copenhagen accord", the unofficial document that emerged from the ruins of the Copenhagen climate change summit in 2009.
Negotiating a climate treaty is a high-stakes game, not just because of the danger warming poses to civilisation but also because re-engineering the global economy to a low-carbon model will see the flow of billions of dollars redirected.
Seeking negotiating chips, the US state department sent a secret cable on 31 July 2009 seeking human intelligence from UN diplomats across a range of issues, including climate change. The request originated with the CIA. As well as countries' negotiating positions for Copenhagen, diplomats were asked to provide evidence of UN environmental "treaty circumvention" and deals between nations. as this will persist."

MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/dec/03/
wikileaks-us-manipulated-climate-accord

==================

22. What WikiLeaks revealed - From soporific to sizzling

http://www.economist.com/node/17632855

Plenty of gossip, some titillation—and also a few surprises Dec 2nd 2010
[Excerpt]
“Another long-standing taboo is naming the European countries in which America keeps nuclear weapons. A cable reveals them: Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Turkey. That is unsurprising, but will sharpen the debate about the future of America’s nuclear presence in Europe. The difficulty of closing down the Guantánamo Bay prison is nicely exemplified by a choice posed to Slovenia: take one of its inmates, and your president will meet Barack Obama. ]”

For the entire article go to:
http://www.economist.com/node/17632855

====================

23. WikiLeaks: France went to bat for Omar Khadr

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6501&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 02 Dec 2010 08:38 PM PST
U.S. diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks on Wednesday reveal that France’s Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, asked the U.S. to consider releasing Omar Khadr from Guantanamo Bay. Kouchner, who played a founding role in the international humanitarian NGO Médecins sans frontières, personally asked U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to review Khadr’s case during a meeting in February [...]

=====================

24. The "Hi Tech" Corporate Police State: "Reengineering" the Internet ... for Persistent Surveillance

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22212

Ghost in the Machine: Secret State Teams Up with Ad Pimps to Throttle Privacy
By Tom Burghardt Global Research, December 2, 2010 Antifascist Calling...
The secret world of "cyber situational awareness" is a spymaster's wet dream, made all the more alluring by the advent of ultra high speed computing and the near infinite storage capacity afforded by massive server farms and the ubiquitous "cloud."
Within that dusky haze, obscured by claims of national security or proprietary business information, take your pick, would you bet your life that the wizards of misdirection and deception care a whit that you really are more than a disembodied data point?
Lost in the debate surrounding privacy invasion and data mining however, is the key role that internet service providers (ISPs) play as intermediaries and gatekeepers. From their perch, ISPs peer deeply into and collect and analyze the online communications of tens of millions of users simultaneously, in real-time.
Concerted efforts to eliminate online anonymity, in managed democracies and authoritarian regimes alike, are greatly enhanced by the deployment of deep packet inspection (DPI) sensors and software on virtually all networks.
As Canadian privacy watchdogs DeepPacketInspection.ca tell us, DPI offer ISPs "unparalleled levels of intelligence into subscribers' online activities."
"To unpack this a little" they aver, "all data traffic that courses across the 'net is contained in individual packets that have header (i.e. addressing) information and payload (i.e. content) information. We can think of this as the address on a postcard and the written and visual content of a postcard."
All of which is there for the taking, "criminal evidence, ready for use in a trial," Cryptohippie chillingly informs.
Still the illusion persists that communication technologies are somehow "neutral." Neither good nor bad but rather, much like a smart phone loaded with geolocation tracking chips or the surveillance-ready internet itself, simply there for all to use.
Reality as is its wont, bites with ever-sharper teeth.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22212

=======================

25. The Beginning of the End of the American Empire

Excerpt from "The Global Economic Crisis"
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22249
By Tanya Cariina Hsu Global Research, December 4, 2010

The following text is a preview from Global Research Publishers' recent book on the Global Economic Crisis.
Scroll down to read an excerpt from Tanya Cariina Hsu`s chapter.
The Global Economic Crisis

The following is a sneak peak of Tanya Cariina Hsu's chapter
in the new book from Global Research, "The Global Economic Crisis: The Great Depression of the XXI Century." Order now from Global Research.

"I sincerely believe... that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies."–U.S. President Thomas Jefferson;

Letter to John Taylor, May 1816
America is dying. It is self-destructing and bringing the rest of the world down with it.Often referred to as a sub-prime mortgage collapse, this obfuscates the real reason. By associating tangible useless failed mortgages, at least something ‘real’ can be blamed for the carnage. The banking industry renamed insurance betting guarantees as "credit default swaps" and risky gambling wagers were called "derivatives". Financial managers and banking executives were selling the ultimate con to the entire world, akin to the snake-oil salesmen from the 18th century but this time in suits and ties. And by October 2008, it was a quadrillion-dollar (that’s 1 000 trillion dollar) industry that few could understand.[1] Propped up by false hope, America is now falling like a house of cards

More:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22249

by **Oscar** » Fri Dec 10, 2010 8:56 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 10, 2010

1. WHAT THE ASSEMBLY OF FIRST NATIONS SAYS ABOUT NUCLEAR WASTES
2. Saskatchewan Uranium, Fallujah's Children
3. Hathor releases results on uranium site
4. Gordon Edwards' Critique of the Matoush Uranium Exploration Project
5. Bruce shipment put off
6. Rallying for peace in PA
7. New Art/Media Contest: Web-based Materials on War Tax Resistance
8. PEACEFUL VIGIL: MacKay’s office – F35s - Lockheed Martin propaganda campaign - Minister MacKay: Don't be a Grinch and Steal Our Future
9. Opponents speak out on GE plan
10. Canadian Parliament Resolution supports a Nuclear Weapons Convention
11. No Nukes News - Dec. 10, 2010
12. U.S. House approves additional $7 billion in new reactor loan guarantees
13. Oyster Creek nuclear plant to close down 10 years earlier than planned
14. Signs of the Apocalypse...nuclear-powered oil tankers
15. "US has lost control of key parts of the nuclear fuel chain"
16. Iraq, Kuwait dust may carry dangerous elements
17. LETTER: REMPEL: BILL C-469, THE CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS

===================

1. WHAT THE ASSEMBLY OF FIRST NATIONS SAYS ABOUT NUCLEAR WASTES

By Jim Harding
Published United Newspapers of Saskatchewan - UNOS on Dec. 10, 2010

There are many people across Saskatchewan that worry that a First Nations or Métis community will make a private deal with industry to create a nuclear dump in the province. This raises fundamental issues about protecting Aboriginal and Treaty Rights and Canada’s democracy. It’s therefore a good time to refresh our memories about what national Aboriginal groups have said about this matter. Here I will look at the Assembly of First Nations (AFN); however the Métis Council of Canada (MCC) has said similar things.
The AFN represents more than 630 First Nations across Canada, and 270 of them live in regions being considered for nuclear wastes. And the AFN has been engaged in the nuclear waste controversy from the start. It participated in the federal Seaborn Inquiry which in 1998 reported that Canadians did not support the Atomic Energy of Canada (AECL) proposal for deep geological burial of nuclear wastes. About its involvement in this review the AFN said, “First Nations expressed concern that: they had not had the time to study the proposals; the proposals did not incorporate traditional ecological knowledge; the proposals strongly conflicted with their deeply held beliefs; and they doubted they would derive any significant benefit from agreeing to accept a nuclear waste facility in their territory. These concerns have not abated with time.”
The AFN also participated in Parliamentary hearings leading to the Nuclear Fuel Waste Act, Bill C-27, in 2002. Then in 2004 the AFN initiated a First Nations-led dialogue to raise awareness and build capacity to address the matter of nuclear wastes. In Sept. 2005, after extensive cross-Canada consultations with First Nations, including across Saskatchewan, the AFN released its “Recommendations to the Nuclear Waste Management Organization”, or NWMO.

THE AFN ON THE NWMO

Right off the bat the AFN expressed concerns about the NWMO’s conflict of interest, saying “First Nations are not convinced that the NWMO is the most suitable organization to be conducting public dialogue or making recommendations to the Canadian government because they are comprised of nuclear energy producers.” The AFN was very concerned about the “industry’s apparent predilection for ‘remote areas’ for deep geological disposal”, saying that “Some First Nations expressed concern that their need for economic opportunities could be manipulated to facilitate an otherwise unwelcome decision.” This is the AFN’s words!
The AFN was also deeply concerned about the NWMO interfering in the relationship between First Nations and the Crown, saying “The NWMO is not an agent of the Crown and therefore cannot fulfill the Crown’s fiduciary obligations to First Nations”. The AFN was very clear that the dialogue conducted by NWMO “…has not fulfilled the federal government’s obligation to consult…”

THE NUCLEAR FUEL SYSTEM

The AFN reported that “First Nations are deeply concerned about the state of our environment. Our Elders advise us that we should think of the impact of our actions seven generations hence. Nowhere is this truer than with respect to the creation and disposal of nuclear waste. The production of energy from nuclear sources is fraught with peril. Disposal of the waste can have unforeseen and potentially dangerous impacts far into the future even if managed with the utmost care and caution.”
The AFN was not happy with the NWMO’s narrow approach, and said “First Nations are seeking a review of the entire nuclear industry chain, from mining uranium to nuclear energy development and the disposal of low, intermediate and high level waste.” The AFN was clear that “From a First Nations’ perspective the environment must be considered holistically, as opposed to segregating parts of it into dispensable units that are somehow unconnected to the rest of the environment. In this regard, First Nations were reluctant to confine their considerations to the issue of nuclear waste disposal, but wish to discuss all issues related to nuclear development, from mining, to energy policy, to nuclear armaments.” The AFN went on to call for “independent First Nations research on the effects of nuclear development…the entire nuclear energy chain, not just waste management.” A main recommendation was to examine “all aspects of the nuclear chain, including low and intermediate waste, and provide a clear understanding of the impacts the whole nuclear process has on First Nations quality of life.”

TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE

The AFN reported that “The Elders are concerned about the future based on their traditional knowledge, the youth are concerned with living with the legacy of nuclear waste disposal, and women are concerned about protecting the water for all people and the environment as this is their traditional role.” The AFN also took issue with the way the NWMO tried to appropriate traditional knowledge, saying “To cite with favor the seven generations teachings while at the same time promoting nuclear energy is inconsistent at best and at worst denigrates and belittles the value of Traditional Knowledge and the First Nations’ cultures, beliefs and spiritual understandings.”
The AFN had no qualms about stressing “the need for more renewable energy and intensive energy conservation”, and recommended “resources to assist First Nations to develop renewable sources of energy to serve their communities.” The AFN also reported that “First Nations have expressed a great deal of concern over the transportation of nuclear fuel waste.” The AFN continued, “First Nations are concerned that a decision made by their neighbouring communities to volunteer to host a waste management facility could have a detrimental impact on their Aboriginal and Treaty rights”. It continued, “Conversely, a decision by a First Nation to host a facility would have to consider the impacts on their non-Aboriginal neighbours.”

SUPPORTS NATIONAL BAN

The AFN was also concerned that the NWMO’s focus on what it called “remote areas”, where indigenous people live, could make Canada attractive as “an international repository for nuclear fuel waste”, and recommended that Canada “pass legislation specifically banning the importation of nuclear waste.” I have never seen this AFN call for a national ban mentioned in Saskatchewan’s mainstream media.
The AFN ended its report: “One of the most fundamental teachings of First Nations is the obligation to care for the earth. It is a firmly held belief by First Nations that they are entitled to be sustained and to prosper from the lands and resources given to them by the Creator, but that they also hold sacred responsibilities to care for the earth in a responsive manner. First Nations continually expressed concern about the impact of the nuclear industry on the land and all people. Our greatest concern is to ensure the long term sustainability of the land, as it is our deep and abiding connection to the land that holds our future.”
Could anything so fundamental have changed since the AFN issued this report five years ago? Be assured that there are many non-First Nations, settler people throughout Saskatchewan willing to work for the same ends. Getting a ban on nuclear wastes coming into Saskatchewan is a challenge for us all to work together to protect the future.

http://jimharding.brinkster.net

More letters at:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=692

==========================

2. Saskatchewan Uranium, Fallujah's Children

http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/3685

Report on birth defects and cancers in Iraq points to Canadian uranium
by Garson Hunter, The Dominion, 25 November 2010

PHOTO: Saskatchewan Yellowcake:
http://www.dominionpaper.ca/images/3732

REGINA - Radioactive armaments used by the US army in Iraq have been highlighted in a recent study as a probable cause for the region's increase in birth defects, infant deaths and cancer. Unavoidably, some of the uranium that made these weapons radioactive came from Saskatchewan.
"Cancer, Infant Mortality and Birth Sex-Ratio in Fallujah, Iraq 2005-2009," a report in the July 2010 issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, compared data gathered in Fallujah to data from the Middle East Cancer Registry. The infant death rate in Fallujah during the period of study (2005-2009) was found to be four times the rate in Egypt and Jordan and nine times the rate in Kuwait. Furthermore, the death rate in Fallujah has increased in recent years; and “the results for cancer show some alarming rates in the five-year period. Relative risk based on the Egypt and Jordan cancer rates are significantly higher for all malignancy, leukemia lymphoma, brain tumours and female breast cancer.”
The early appearance of cancer in Fallujah is mentioned in the report to be similar to an Italian Ministry of Defence report noting the early appearance of lymphoma in Italian peacekeepers from Bosnia and Kosovo who were exposed to depleted uranium (DU)
weapon contamination and the reported increase in cancer risks in Northern Sweden after the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster.
The authors of the report, though cautious in identifying the cause of the high rates of defects, deaths and cancers, concluded by drawing attention to the use of DU in armaments used by invading US forces. The report states their study does not identify the agent(s) causing the increased levels of illness, they wish to draw attention to presence of DU as one potentially relevant agent.
The largest single source of uranium for the US military is Saskatchewan, according to a 2008 article by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
In fact, Saskatchewan produces more uranium than any other region or country in the world. The Athabasca Basin region of Northern Saskatchewan (with a small area of Alberta) is the world's leading source of high grade uranium.

MORE:
http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/3685

===================

3. Hathor releases results on uranium site

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/news/
todays-paper/Hathor+releases+results+uranium+site/3949716/story.html

BY CASSANDRA KYLE, THE STAR PHOENIX DECEMBER 9, 2010
Hathor Exploration Ltd. says its Roughrider uranium deposit is estimated to contain 28 million pounds of U3O8 -- 24 million pounds of which is at a grade of 11.7 per cent.
An updated and upgraded mineral resource for the Athabasca Basin deposit also shows 99 per cent of the mineral resource is amenable to open pit extraction, the site has low arsenic levels and the average depth to the top of the deposit is about 215 metres.
- - - - -SNIP - - - -
The project is located about 8.5 kilometres from of the community of Points North. Terra Ventures Inc. owns a qualified 10 per cent interest in the property.

==================

4. Gordon Edwards' Critique of the Matoush Uranium Exploration Project

From: Gordon Edwards
Sent: Tuesday, December 07, 2010 12:20 PM
Subject: Gordon Edwards' Critique of the Matoush Uranium Exploration Project

Here is a link to my critique (still incomplete) of the Environmental Impact Statement of a uranium exploration project in Northern Quebec (in Cree Territory):

http://ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf

This document deals with some basic questions that will be of interest to anyone who is engaged in commenting on a uranium exploration or mining project anywhere in the world.
Unfortunately it is a very large file (about 5 megs) because of the size of a few pages. Sorry about that.
Gordon Edwards.
http://ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf

P.S. At the public hearing on November 23, 2010, where this paper was presented in summary form, the Chief of the Cree Nation of Mistissini declared that 93 percent of the population is opposed to the uranium exploration project and rejects that project as incompatible with fundamental values of the Cree way of life. Shortly thereafter, the Grand Council of the Crees issued a statement in which they expressed their full support for the position taken by the Cree Nation of Mistissini against the project.
The company involved, Strateco, has said that it will continue to explore with or without the approval of the Crees, and with or without approval from the Environmental Assessment Review Panels.
GE.
= = = =

Radioactivity is Invisible but do the facts have to be hidden as well?

http://www.ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf

A Critique of the Strateco EIS of October 2009 for the Underground Exploration Program of the Matoush Property
Presented by Gordon Edwards, Ph.D. in Mistissini Quebec November 23 2010
Abstract

Given the nature of the project, the impact statement must discuss, in a satisfactory manner, the environmental issues associated with uranium exploration and outline the impacts related to future phases of the project to bring a uranium mine into production. Directives.

The four volumes laying out the Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for the Underground Exploration Program of the Matoush Property, published by Strateco Resources in October 2009, do not meet the most fundamental requirements, as laid out in the Directives, for informing the concerned communities of the basic concepts about radioactivity and the resulting environmental issues. In addition, the rationale for the project is not discussed in an open and frank manner. The first part of this critique focuses on the proponent’s complete failure to communicate the basic facts about radioactive materials and exposures as required by the Directives. Although the data collected may be of use in further planning, the EIS as such is entirely unacceptable as it does not even attempt to satisfy the Directives when it comes to the treatment of radioactivity.

MORE:
http://www.ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf

Complete document:
http://www.ccnr.org/GE_Critique_EIS.pdf
= = = = = = = = =

Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) Supports Mistissini's Position on the Matoush Project

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/cnw/
article.jsp?content=20101125_182502_1_cnw_cnw

For Immediate Release
Nemaska, Eeyou Istchee (November 25, 2010) -- The Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) wishes to acknowledge and provide full support to the Cree Nation of Mistissini's decision to reject a proposal for a uranium exploration mine within their territory.
Earlier today, Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come expressed his thoughts about Mistissini's rejection of the Matoush project.
"Being from Mistissini myself, I know the community's decision was not taken lightly. It took several years of fact finding and soul searching. "Decisions of this nature are especially difficult for First Nations, particularly at a time when we are seeking out development proposals to address very real employment challenges. "The Cree nation as a whole remains open to mining development opportunities that are compatible with the Cree way of life. However, as Mistissini indicated, the community felt that the potential impacts of this proposal far outweigh its benefits. "With this in mind, the Grand Council of the Crees (of Eeyou Istchee) will respect and support Mistissini's decision."
The Grand Chief's comments are in stark contrast to previous reports in the media that incorrectly stated that the Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) had previously supported the Matoush project. - 30 -
For more information please contact
Bill Namagoose (613) 725 7024
Romeo Saganash (418) 564 1598 (French inquiries)

=======================

5. Bruce shipment put off

http://owensoundsuntimes.com/ArticleDis ... ?e=2880509

By PAUL JANKOWSKI , SUN TIMES STAFF December 8, 2010
Bruce Power will wait until spring to move 16 used steam generators, considered to be low-level nuclear waste, if it gets permission to ship them to Sweden, company spokesman John Peevers said Tuesday.
The company is awaiting a decision from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission on its application to transport the huge generators, which each weigh about 100 tonnes and contain an estimated four grams of radioactive material, from the nuclear power complex near Tiverton to Owen Sound, then by ship through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Atlantic and Sweden.
Bruce Power also requires approval from agencies in the United States and Sweden, Peevers said.
The CNSC held public hearings into Bruce Power's plans on Sept. 28 and 29 in Ottawa. After those hearings, the commission asked for a supplemental report from its staff and then gave the 79 groups or organizations that participated in the hearings until Nov. 22 to comment on it. The commission expects to make a final decision within 30 working days of that date, CNSC spokesman Aurele Gervais said Monday.
"Given the fact we've always taken safety as our Number 1 priority in everything we do and looking at the weather conditions, we have made a decision that regardless of what comes out from CNSC and when it comes, shipping this year is not going to happen," Peevers said.
"Assuming we get a decision from the CNSC granting our licence" the soonest the generators would be shipped would be the spring, he said.
The company also requires permission to ship the generators through the Great Lakes from a branch of the U.S. Department of Transportation and into Sweden from the Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate (SKI), which supervises all nuclear activities in that country, Peevers said.
- - - -SNIP - - - -
The company has said 90% of the steel from the generators can be safely recycled. The remaining 10% would be returned to the company as low-level waste and be stored at the western waste management facility near Tiverton.

======================

6. Rallying for peace in PA

http://www.panow.com/node/21205

Submitted on December 5, 2010 - 11:37am By Kellah Lavoie paNOW Staff
Songs of peace, protest and hope filled a local coffee shop yesterday.
It was the third annual Peace Rally.
Rick Sawa, from the Prince Albert chapter of the Council of Canadians, organized the event. He said the goal was to bring light to the topic of Canadian peace keeping
“We would like our country to move back to the peace keeping that we did at one time and move away from the war business,” he said.
The issue was addressed through songs from nine singers or musical groups who spread their message, to a full crowd at Great Western Coffee, through song.
“It just brings the issue to the forefront… it just lets people know that there is another opinion out there, that spending money on a war could be better spent on programs like health care and pharmacare and renewable energy, public transit,” Sawa said.
“We just feel there is better ways to spend money. It’s already cost $11 billion for this war and now it’s been extended three more years, and that’s going to be 750 million a year for three more years.”
For a third year the peace rally is trying to get the message across.
Sawa said, the timing of the event is important too. They tried to keep it far enough away from Remembrance Day as to not disrespect veterans.
“You know we are certainly not anti-troops. These people have been trained and are doing what they are told to do.
“So we do not want to be disrespectful in that regard we just want to say that we were well known at one time for out peace keeping, and now, from what I hear, we can fit our peacekeepers in that back of a van,” he said.
Not only were they spreading their message, but Sawa said they are doing it in a peaceful way.
“The federal government has money for wars and prisons and very little for people and we want to bring that to the forefront.”

klavoie@panow.com

=====================

7. New Art/Media Contest: Web-based Materials on War Tax Resistance

http://www.consciencecanada.ca/home.shtml

All web-based media are eligible, for example: visual art/poster, photographic slide show, video, music, written verse, or any combination of these. Conscience Canada is the organization that advocates for the right of Canadians to redirect the military portion of our federal income tax to peace-making. Conscience Canada will create a web-based gallery of creative arts materials/communications using those entries that express the need for a ‘peace tax’ as an alternative to the current military tax.
See the 'reason for our existence' at
www.consciencecanada.ca.
Prizes will be awarded for the most effective submissions, although all entries will be eligible for inclusion in the gallery.
Deadline for Submissions: January 31, 2011.

MORE:
http://saskatoonpeace.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/
conscience-canada-new-artmedia-contest/.

====================

8. PEACEFUL VIGIL: MacKay’s office – F35s - Lockheed Martin propaganda campaign -
Minister MacKay: Don't be a Grinch and Steal Our Future

Outside Minister Peter MacKay's Constituency Office
980 East River Road, New Glasgow
Thursday, December 16 12:00-1:00 pm

A peaceful vigil during this season of peace to bring these messages:
1. Cancel the stealth fighter, invest in child care and education
2. Don't extend the war in Afghanistan, bring the troops home
3. Cut oil subsidies, take action on climate change and the environment

All welcome to join us. Please bring your children. We will be delivering a letter to Minister MacKay, holding a banner outside his office, and singing the song "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch".
Organized by the Halifax Peace Coalition. Endorsed by the Voice of Women for Peace.
For more information, please visit
www.halifaxpeacecoalition.ca or
email: hfxpeace@chebucto.ca
= = = = =

Lockheed Martin propaganda campaign

From: "Tamara Lorincz" <tlorincz@dal.ca>
Date: Thu, December 9, 2010 10:57 pm
As you may know, the Canadian government wants to buy 65 Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighters for at least $16 billion, the largest military procurement in this country's history. Lockheed Martin is the second largest weapons manufacturer in the world.
In an unprecedented move, the Department of National Defence went across the country this fall trying to sell the Canadian public on the stealth fighters. They were NOT honest in their presentation, I attended and also got a copy of the presentation.

Recently, Lockheed Martin put up a web site "Canada's Next Generation Fighter":
http://f-35.ca/
though Canada has NOT signed any contract to purchase these fighters.

DND:
http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/pri/2/pro-pro/ngfc-eng.asp

using the same pictures, text etc... as the Lockheed Martin F35 web site.
*It has been revealed in the Wikileaks cables that the US Government and Lockheed Martin worked for a year in 2008 to manipulate the Norwegian public to support the Government of Norway in buying the F35s.
Here is part of the Wikileaks cable:

CLASSIFIED Cable from U.S. Embassy in Norway to the U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff

http://213.251.145.96/cable/2008/09/08OSLO522.html

NORWAY FIGHTER PURCHASE: HIGH-LEVEL ADVOCACY NEEDED NOW

Summary: "The GON (Government of Norway) decision making process on the purchase of new fighter aircraft has entered a critical phase. Public opinion has swung away from the F-35 due to negative coverage, and private contacts warn that the GON may decide to purchase the Saab Gripen or leave the decision to a future government. High-level Washington advocacy on this issue is needed to help reverse this trend. Norway's decision on this purchase will either end or sustain one of the strongest pillars of our bilateral relationship and could impact subsequent Danish and Dutch decisions on the F-35, affecting NATO joint operational capacity and the vulnerability of the Northern
Flank."
- - - - -
"Action needed to counter negative trends
3.(C) After extensive efforts by the Embassy and Lockheed Martin, the public debate over the summer consisted of largely balanced coverage."
There is much, much more that reveals the U.S. Government, U.S. Embassies and Lockheed Martin have worked very hard to try to "sell" the F-35.
Please see the other cables here:
http://213.251.145.96/origin/42_0.html
- - - - -
Request for Advocacy
6.(C) We request senior-level advocacy for the F-35, stressing the advanced fifth generation capabilities, countering the rampant negative myths on the F-35 and demonstrating that the USG is committed to Norway's ability to defend itself and NATO's northern flank. Septel contains a request for the Deputy Secretary of Defense to visit Oslo to make these points. Other advocacy efforts would contribute to helping the GON recognize the seriousness of their decision and resist the temptation of making a short-term expedient choice, but damaging long-term interests. WHITNEY
= = = = = = =
**These classified cables from the U.S Embassy in Oslo were filed by U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission at the time Kevin M. Johnson *He is now the U.S. Consul General in Toronto!

http://toronto.usconsulate.gov/content/
content.asp?section=about&document=bio

He is pushing the F-35 propaganda campaign here in Canada.
So, there is a HUGE push by the Department of National Defence, the U.S. Embassies, the U.S. Government, and Lockheed Martin to try to get our federal government to buy the stealth fighters and we need to stop it.
We don't need fighter jets - we need our precious tax dollars to be spent in education, health care, child care, the environment, and affordable housing etc...
*These stealth fighters will carry/burn 18,500 lbs of jet fuel (more carbon intensive and climate change causing) and will be more costly than $16 billion.
Please do what you can to stop the purchase of stealth fighters - email/call the PM, your MP, write a letter to the editor, make the links and spread the word.
If you know people in and around New Glasgow, NS:
***********
We really need to work together on this across Canada - federal spending affects us all. Please don't let the federal government waste OUR tax dollars on stealth fighters.
If you want to get more involved, you can join the no-stealth-fighter listserv through Steven Staples at the Rideau Institute:
sstaples@rideauinstitute.ca or find out more at
www.ceasefire.ca
Thank you very much for your support.
Tamara
Tamara Lorincz
BA, BComm, MBA, LLB
55 Willowbend Court
Halifax, NS CANADA B3M 3L3
Phone: (902) 443-2423
Cell: (902) 478-1379
tlorincz@dal.ca
ECJ: http://www.ecojustice.ca
GN: http://www.space4peace.org/
HPC: http://www.halifaxpeacecoalition.ca/
NSEN: http://www.nsen.ca
"A better world is possible"

==================

9. Opponents speak out on GE plan

http://thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
PrintArticle.aspx?e=2884610

December 10, 2010
General Electric-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada faced criticisms of its public consultation process and concerns about potential future operations at its Peterborough facility during a licence renewal hearing Thurs-day in Ottawa.
Several Peterborough residents spoke at the second of two hearings for the proposed 10-year operating licence for GE-Hitachi nuclear fuel fabrication facilities in Peterborough and Toronto.
Many of the concerns revolved around an amendment to the licence the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) granted in February to allow the Peterborough facility to assemble low-enriched uranium fuel bundles.
The facility currently assembles natural-state uranium fuel bundles.
GE-Hitachi Nuclear would have return to the commission in the future for permission before it could start producing low-enriched uranium fuel bundles, said Peter Elder, the director general of the Directorate of Nuclear Cycle and Facilities Regulation with the CNSC.
"There are conditions in the licence that have to be met before this can proceed," he said of the assembling of low-enriched uranium fuel bundles.
Peter Mason, the president and CEO of GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada, repeated a previous commitment he made that the company would go through a public consultation process if it ever decides to move ahead with assembling low-enriched uranium fuel bundles.

MORE:
http://thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
PrintArticle.aspx?e=2884610

===================

10. CANADIAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION SUPPORTS A NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONVENTION

From: Gordon Edwards
Sent: Wednesday, December 08, 2010 3:11 PM
Subject: Canadian Parliament Resolution supports a Nuclear Weapons Convention
Spread the word far and wide.
This is a very significant development and should be heralded throughout the world before the Harper Government can find a way to undermine it.
Canadian Parliament adopts resolution supporting a Nuclear Weapons Convention Ottawa, December 7, 2010
The Canadian House of Commons gave unanimous consent this afternoon to a motion submitted by the Bill Siksay MP, Chair of the Canadian Section of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament (PNND), endorsing the United Nations Secretary-General’s Five-Point-Plan for nuclear disarmament and calling on the Government of Canada to engage in negotiations for a nuclear weapons convention as proposed by the UN Secretary-General.
The motion also endorsed a statement signed by over 500 members of the Order of Canada (the highest award in Canada) expressing an urgent need for action to abolish nuclear weapons, calling on all States to commence negotiations for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, and urging Canada to take leadership. Endorsers include filmmakers Atom Egoyan and Norman Jewison, authors Margaret Atwood, Charlotte Gray and Michael Ondaatje, entertainers like Bruce Cockburn, artists such as Alex Colville, environmentalist David Suzuki, ballerina Karen Kain, former external affairs minister Flora MacDonald and Senator Romeo Dallaire.
The House of Commons action resolution follows a similar motion submitted by Senator Hugh Segal (Conservative Party) to the Canadian Senate and adopted unanimously on 2 June 2010 (See Canadian Senate supports Nuclear Weapons Convention - unanimously
Last month the government of Canada abstained on a UN General Assembly resolution calling for negotiations leading to the conclusion of a nuclear weapons convention. Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, which organised the Order of Canada statement, believes that there is now a growing consensus expressed by world leaders on the urgent need for ridding the world of nuclear weapons, and that a Nuclear Weapons Convention is widely recognized as the best negotiating process yet devised to achieve this.
The fact that some Nuclear Weapon States do not yet agree to commence such negotiations should not be a barrier. As with the Landmines and Cluster Munitions campaigns, a group of like-minded countries could start the process and build political momentum for its success (SeeAn Ottawa process for Nuclear Weapons, The Embassy � Canada�s Foreign Policy Weekly, 10 Nov 2010).
The motions adopted in the Canadian Senate and House of Commons are part of a growing number of such resolutions in parliaments around the world
(See Resolutions adopted or pending in national and regional parliaments supporting the NWC and/or the UN Secretary-General�s five-point plan on nuclear disarmament).
-----------------------------------------------------------
Alyn Ware, Global Coordinator
Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament
United Nations Office:
866 UN Plaza, Suite 4050, New York, NY 10017, USA
Phone: +1 646 289-5170. Fax +1 646 289-5171.
Mobile: +1 646 752 8702
Head office:
PO Box 24-429, Manners St, Wellington, Aotearoa-New Zealand
Tel: +64 4 496-9629. Fax +64 4 496-9599. Mobile: 021 260 3727
www.pnnd.org
alyn@pnnd.org'
= = = = = = = = = =
Commons supports nuclear disarmament

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6554&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

The House of Commons gave its unanimous consent to a motion in support of nuclear disarmament on December 7th.
New Democrat MP Bill Siksay moved:
That the House of Commons:
(a) recognize the danger posed by the proliferation of nuclear materials and technology to peace and security;
(b) endorse the statement, signed by 500 members, officers and companions of the Order of Canada, underlining the importance of addressing the challenge of more intense nuclear proliferation and the progress of and opportunity for nuclear disarmament;
(c) endorse the 2008 five point plan for nuclear disarmament of Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations and encourage the Government of Canada to engage in negotiations for a nuclear weapons convention as proposed by the United Nations Secretary-General;
(d) support the initiatives for nuclear disarmament of President Obama of the United States of America;
(e) commend the decision of the Government of Canada to participate in the landmark Nuclear Security Summit and encourage the Government of Canada to deploy a major world-wide Canadian diplomatic initiative in support of preventing nuclear proliferation and increasing the rate of nuclear disarmament.
A slightly different version of the same motion was adopted by the Senate earlier this year, meaning that both houses of Parliament have now expressed their strong support for the elimination of nuclear weapons.
The motions are not binding on the government, so it remains to be seen what, if any, action the government will take in response to Parliament’s views.

==================

11. No Nukes News - Dec. 10, 2010

Pass this onto a friend! - a
“There’s no way around it: fossil fuels or not, keeping the rich supplied with the same amount of energy they use now implies resource takeovers with deep colonialist and anti-democratic implications.” - Larry Lohmann
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THE POLITICS OF POWER

The Grits’ green energy revolution unplugged
Faced with a public backlash over rising energy costs, and an attack on feed-in tariffs and renewables like wind and solar, the province is in recharge mode, releasing its green-print for a clean energy future last month. The good thing: they’re doing away with dirty coal. The bad thing: the plan calls for an expensive, long-term reliance on nukes.
As long as we continue to commit half the power grid to nuclear energy, green alternatives will remain marginal in the supply mix. The burning question: can Ontario meet its electricity needs without nukes? The answer is yes, absolutely, says Angela Bischoff, nuclear campaigner for the Ontario Clean Air Alliance. The first step is to reduce demand.
http://www.nowtoronto.com/news/story.cfm?content=178246
----------------------------------------------------------------

Canada wins a 6th Fossil of the Day at the 2010 UN Climate Negotiations in Cancun
The Canadian government has been awarded yet another Fossil of the Day award (its 6th of the conference) for its classification of one of the central elements of the UNFCCC – historic responsibility– as a ‘sidecar’ issue. Developed countries must take responsibility for their historically higher emissions and in turn act first and do more to reduce their greenhouse gas pollution.
http://www.climateactionnetwork.ca/e/

Find it all here: 2010 UN Climate Negotiations in Cancun Recommended links, blogs, media releases, videos etc.
http://www.manitobawildlands.org/cc_mee ... .htm#links
--------------------------------------------------------------
Wrong! Nuclear power is much more expensive than conservation, hydro, wind and biomass which together could replace all existing nuclear. Your electricity rates are going up because of nuclear investments going back decades, and now they want to throw away more tens-of-billions. Tell them NO!

To send an email to Premier McGuinty:
http://www.cleanairalliance.org/letter_to_dalton2

Congratulate him on speeding up the coal phase-out, but please also tell him that you don’t want Ontario to spend $83 billion or more on risky nuclear. Tell him that we can keep our lights on at a lower cost with a combination of energy conservation and efficiency, water power from Quebec and small-scale, high-efficiency combined heat and power plants.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Ship happens?
Plan to transport radioactive materials on Great Lakes creates ripples of protest
http://metrotimes.com/news/ship-happens-1.1070979

Great Lakes Mayors Sound Alarm Over Radioactive Shipment

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/dec2010 ... 2-02.html-

S.O.S: Nukes on our water
Bruce power’s plan to ship radioactive parts threatens to turn our great lakes into a poison passage

http://www.nowtoronto.com/news/story.cfm?content=178129

Bruce shipment put off
Bruce Power will wait until spring to move 16 used steam generators,
considered to be low-level nuclear waste, if it gets permission to ship
them to Sweden, company spokesman John Peevers said Tuesday.

http://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2880509

http://www.theobserver.ca/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2883649

WikiLeaks releases embassy cables showing nuclear build-up threat in Middle East
The latest major release of classified U.S. diplomatic cables by the whistleblower site, WikiLeaks underscores the argument we have been making; that the desire for nuclear power development in the Middle East is a covert strategy to develop – or to appear capable of developing – nuclear weapons.
http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/11/29/
wikileaks-releases-embassy-cables-showing-nuclear-build-up-t.html
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Saskatchewan Uranium, Fallujah's Children
Report on birth defects and cancers in Iraq points to Canadian uranium
The largest single source of uranium for the US military is Saskatchewan. In fact, Saskatchewan produces more uranium than any other region or country in the world.
Not only was the US using Saskatchewan uranium for DU munitions during its occupation of Iraq, but as late as 1990 Canada was itself processing DU which was then being sent to a US weapons manufacturer. A section of the 1970 Treaty in the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) prohibits the sale of Canadian uranium for use in weaponry.
http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/3685
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Valuing the greenhouse gas emissions from nuclear power: A critical survey
This article screens 103 lifecycle studies of greenhouse gas-equivalent emissions for nuclear power Plants. It concludes that the lifetime GHG emissions of a nuclear reactor is 66 g CO2e/kWh, due to reliance on existing fossil-fuel infrastructure for plant construction, decommissioning, and fuel processing along with the energy intensity of uranium mining and enrichment. Thus, nuclear energy is in no way ‘‘carbon free’’ or ‘‘emissions free,’’ even though it is much better (from
purely a carbon-equivalent emissions standpoint) than coal, oil, and natural gas electricity generators, but worse than renewable and small scale distributed generators
http://www.nirs.org/climate/background/ ... ar_ghg.pdf
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Canadian Parliament adopts resolution supporting a Nuclear Weapons Convention
The Canadian House of Commons gave unanimous consent this afternoon to a motion submitted by the Bill Siksay MP, Chair of the Canadian Section of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament (PNND), endorsing the United Nations Secretary-Generals Five-Point-Plan for nuclear disarmament and calling on the Government of Canada to engage in negotiations for a nuclear weapons convention as proposed by the UN Secretary-General.
http://www.billsiksay.ca/
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Offshore wind would boost Ontario economy
Ontario could create new industries, reinvigorate old ones, and generate thousands of new jobs over the next 15 years by building a vibrant offshore wind market around the Great Lakes, according to a report prepared by the Conference Board of Canada.
http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/
903344--offshore-wind-would-boost-ontario-economy-report
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PM allows unelected Senate to kill climate bill in unprecedented vote
http://www.climateactionnetwork.ca/e/news/2010/release/
index.php?WEBYEP_DI=65
Send a letter to MPs and the Prime Minister to respect democracy and heed the will of Canadians:
http://action.davidsuzuki.org/C-311

Send a protest email to members of the Senate here:

http://www.justearth.net/campaign-prote ... bill-c-311
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Opponents speak out on GE plan in Peterborough

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2884610

No Nuclear Production in Peterborough - Petition
This petition constitutes a request for more active community consultation regarding General Electric Peterborough's application to assemble low enriched uranium in fuel bundle fabrication.

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/nucl ... erborough/
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Investing in green energy will pay dividends, wind energy group says
While it’s true the price of electricity in Ontario is rising, the increase is the product of several factors; the application of the HST to electricity purchases and the need for investments in new electricity supply and infrastructure to ensure a reliable and environmentally sustainable electricity system in Ontario. The recent price hikes in Ontario have nothing to do with new wind energy generation under the Green Energy Act as none of these projects are scheduled for operation until next year.

http://www.citizen.on.ca/news/
2010-11-18/Mailbox/Investing_in_green_energy_will_pay_dividends.html
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Nukes got you down? Do something!
Join us at an OCAA Outreach meeting to learn more about our campaigns, and opportunities for you to plug in.
Thur. Dec. 16, 6 – 7:30 p.m.
519 Church St. Community Centre, Toronto
Meet our team – Christmas sweets provided!
Contact me for more info and to rsvp.
angela@cleanairalliance.org
----------------------------------------------------------------

Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402, Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

====================

12. U.S. House approves additional $7 billion in new reactor loan guarantees

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/9/
us-house-approves-additional-7-billion-in-new-reactor-loan-g.html

December 9, 2010
The U.S. House of Representatives, by the narrow margin of 212 to 206, today passed a 423 page long "Continuing Resolution" (CR) bill, H.R. 3082, including $7 billion in additional nuclear power loan guarantees for the building of new atomic reactors, as well as an additional $3 billion in loan guarantees for "fossil energy technologies." Retiring House Appropriations Committee Chairman Dave Obey, Democrat from Wisconsin, served as the primary sponsor for the legislation; his committee website has posted a summary of the bill, the bill's full text, as well as Rep. Obey's floor statement. Although there are numerous factors which undoubtedly determined each House Member's final decision on whether or not to vote for or against the CR, it is still valuable to thank those who voted against, while expressing disappointment to those who voted for, these $10 billion in dirty, dangerous, and expensive nuclear and fossil energy loan guarantees.

MORE:
http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/9/
us-house-approves-additional-7-billion-in-new-reactor-loan-g.html

======================

13. Oyster Creek nuclear plant to close down 10 years earlier than planned

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/12/
oyster_creek_nuclear_plant_to_1.html

Updated: Wednesday, December 08, 2010, Noah K. Murray/The Star-Ledger
LACEY — The nation's oldest nuclear power plant will close in 2019 — 10 years earlier than planned — but will not have to build costly cooling towers, according to two people with direct knowledge of the situation.
The people, who spoke to The Associated Press on today on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the plans ahead of an announcement expected Thursday, said the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station in the Forked River section of Lacey Township will close a decade earlier than called for under its current license.
In return, the aging plant will not be required to build one or more cooling towers to replace its current technology, which draws 1.4 billion gallons of water a day from Barnegat Bay, killing billions of aquatic creatures each year.
The agreement over the closing of the plant, located 60 miles east of Philadelphia and 75 miles south of New York City, is between Chicago-based owner Exelon Corp. and New Jersey officials, who will drop their demand that it build one or more cooling towers — a technology environmentalists have long wanted.

MORE:
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/12/
oyster_creek_nuclear_plant_to_1.html

====================

14. Signs of the Apocalypse...nuclear-powered oil tankers

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/8/
signs-of-the-apocalypsenuclear-powered-oil-tankers.html

December 8, 2010
The latest folly in a world already gone mad is the prospect of nuclear-powered oil tankers. The technology is under serious review as tankers seek to comply with emissions laws. But the prospect of an oceanic environmental double-catastrophe never appears to enter the discussion among the profiteers who bear the same mentality as those who want to plunder the now melting Arctic. In 2009, a nuclear-powered ice-breaker collided with an oil tanker (pictured). The tanker got a 9.5 meter long crack on the main deck from the impact but was fortunately only carrying ballast at the time.
- - - - - -
Could Oil Tankers Be New Reactor Market?

http://spectrum.ieee.org/energywise/energy/nuclear/
could-oil-tankers-be-new-reactor-market

POSTED BY: Bill Sweet / Mon, December 06, 2010
With rising fuel prices, pending international limits on sulfur emissions, and concerns about greenhouse gas emissions in mind, the British shipping consultancy Lloyd's Registry has launched a study of whether oil tankers should be nuclear-powered. At present, reactors have been used almost exclusively to power military ships, starting with the famous U.S.S. Nautilus submarine (above). In civilian shipping, with the exception of one Russian container boat, nuclear propulsion is used only for icebreakers. Vince Jenkins, global marine risk adviser at Lloyds, clients of the firm are showing interest in alternative propulsion technologies that would cut carbon emissions. "Nuclear power is the only technology that can replace carbon emissions entirely," Jenkins told the Financial Times.
TAGS: nuclear propulsion // oil // reactors // tankers // transportation

=====================

15. "US has lost control of key parts of the nuclear fuel chain"

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/8/
us-has-lost-control-of-key-parts-of-the-nuclear-fuel-chain.html

December 8, 2010
Boasts of a nuclear "renaissance" in the U.S. ring even more hollow when one recognizes that almost any new nuclear activities in the US are of foreign origin. Although the deal appears to have almost completely fallen apart, the new reactor frontrunners were French as is the threatened new uranium enrichment plant. Now comes news that proposed new uranium mines in Wyoming will be majority owned by Russia in a 51%-49% partnership with a Canadian firm. About 80% of all uranium used in the U.S. is imported. The mine deal - between Uranium One of Canada and ARMZ of Russia - was described by the Financial Times in a December 6, 2010 article as "the latest sign of how, after a three-decade hiatus in new reactor projects, the US has lost control of key parts of the nuclear fuel chain."

====================

16. Iraq, Kuwait dust may carry dangerous elements

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=72690&s2=10

By Kelly Kennedy December 9, 2010
Researchers studying dust in Iraq and Kuwait say tiny particles of potentially hazardous material could be causing a host of problems in humans, from respiratory ailments to heart disease to neurological conditions.
After taking samples, scientists found fungi, bacteria and heavy metals — including uranium — that could all cause long-term health effects.
"You can see the dust," said Dale Griffin, an environmental public health microbiologist with the U.S. Geologic Survey. "It’s what we can’t see that will get you."
Three recent reports detail the problems, and Griffin said there are more to come.
Capt. Mark Lyles, who chairs the medical sciences and biotechnology department at the Center for Naval Warfare Studies, part of the Naval War College, co-authored with Griffin a report that they presented last year at the International Seminars on Planetary Emergencies in Italy.
The paper summarized their analysis of sand samples taken in 2004 in Iraq and Kuwait, which revealed a "significant biodiversity of bacterial, fungi and viruses of which 25 percent are known pathogens."
Just as troubling, according to the paper, was the presence of 37 elements — including 15 bioactive metals, including uranium, known to cause serious, long-term health effects in humans.

MORE:
http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=72690&s2=10

=====================

17. LETTER: REMPEL: BILL C-469, THE CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS

From: Jacob Rempel
To: Committee Chair James Bezan M.P. ; Stephen Woodworth M.P. ; Mark Warawa M.P. ; Blaine Calkins M.P. ; Steven Blaney M.P. ; Scott M.P. ; Francis Scarpaleggia M.P. ; Joyce Murray M.P. ; Gerard Kennedy M.P. ; ouellc@parl.gc.ca ; bigrab@parl.gc.ca ; duncal0@parl.gc.ca ; desfog@parl.gc.ca
Cc: Jack Layton MP ; Michael Ignatieff ; Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe ; Stephane Dion ; Elaine Hughes ; Blake MacLeod ; Larry Kazdan ; LaVonne ; Katya Rempel ; Michael Greene ; Elsa Rempel ; Lavera ; runronrun@gmail.com ; Una ; Ben and Helen Rempel
Sent: Wednesday, December 08, 2010 1:00 PM

Subject: BILL C-469, THE CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS

To Every Member of the Parliament of Canada House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development :--

Nothing is more urgent for our children than to protect what is left of our environment, and to restore what we can of that which we have damaged.
Bill C-469, The Canadian Environmental Bill of Rights is a statement of principals which all Canadians can understand and work with in our public and private lives. We may have some differences in how to apply these principles, but we can certainly agree on good principles and goals.
I therefore encourage all of you to join in unanimous support of Bill C-469.
Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
- - - - - -
Principal Provisions of Bill C-469 :--

It requires the federal government to take action to protect Canadians' right to a healthy environment.
It ensures access to environmental information and the right to participate in decisions related to the environment.
It expands the right to request investigations of environmental offences and bring environmental issues to the courts.
It provides whistleblower protection for employees.
It ensures accountability by giving Canadians the right to bring the federal government to court when it fails to enforce environmental laws.
= = = = = = = =
URGENT - TELL THE ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE TO PASS BILL C-469, THE CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS

Wed, 1 Dec 2010
From: Linda Duncan, M.P., Edmonton Strathcona
Critic for the Environment - NDP/Porte Parole sur l'environnement -NPD

Subject: URGENT - TELL THE ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE TO PASS BILL C-469, THE CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL BILL OF RIGHTS

Bill C-469, the Canadian Environmental Bill of Rights. is currently before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development. Unfortunately, this important bill is being stalled in the Committee by some committee members.
Environmental rights are recognized in 170 countries around the world and are enshrined in legislation in the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Ontario and Quebec. Environmental rights should be extended to all Canadians equally.
If you support environmental rights for all Canadians, please take a few minutes to write to the members of the Committee and let them know that you support bill C-469, the Canadian Environmental Bill of Rights.

CHAIR: James Bezan M.P. bezanj@parl.gc.ca
Stephen Woodworth M.P. woodws@parl.gc.ca
Mark Warawa M.P. warawm@parl.gc.ca
Blaine Calkins M.P. calkib@parl.gc.ca
Steven Blaney M.P blanes@parl.gc.ca.
Armstrong, Scott M.P. armsts@parl.gc.ca
Francis Scarpaleggia M.P scarpf@parl.gc.ca
Joyce Murray M.P. murraj@parl.gc.ca
Gerard Kennedy M.P. kenneg@parl.gc.ca
Christian Ouellet Dput ouellc@parl.gc.ca
Bernard Bigras Dpu bigrab@parl.gc.ca
Linda Duncan, M.P. duncal0@parl.gc.ca

CLERK : Guyanne Desforgesdesfog@parl.gc.ca

If you would like a copy of the bill, please contact me at DuncaL0@parl.gc.ca or
click here:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/
Publication.aspxDocId=4330148&Language=e&Mode=1

About the Bill
ü The bill requires the federal government to take action to protect Canadians' right to a healthy environment.
ü It ensures access to environmental information and the right to participate in decisions related to the environment.
ü It expands the right to request investigations of environmental offences and bring environmental issues to the courts.
ü It provides whistleblower protection for employees.
ü It ensures accountability by giving Canadians the right to bring the federal government to court when it fails to enforce environmental laws.

Please help. Write to all members of the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development and tell them you want them to pass Bill C-469. You can also call my office to request copies of my petition, or download a copy here
http://www.lindaduncan.ndp.ca/node/251.

Thank you.
Linda Duncan, M.P., Edmonton Strathcona
Critic for the Environment - NDP/Porte Parole sur l'environnement –NPD
613-995-7326 cell : 613-608-8936 duncal0@parl.gc.ca

by **Oscar** » Sun Dec 12, 2010 5:29 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 12, 2010

1. CETA: Reject bad free trade negotiations with the EU ***Watch Parl. debate live Dec 14th
2. It’s Back! Son of SPP – The Sequel! . . . .Leaked!
3. Canadians “may underestimate security threat”
4. LETTER: KURTENBACH: A Christmas Message
5. WATCH: UPDATES from CANCUN - COP 16
6. Sir Nicholas Stern on Canada
7. Militarism as Cause and Consequence of Climate Change Expulsion of Organizer from COP16 Leads to Cancellation of Press Conference
8. The March to War: Was September 11 2001 the Start of World War III?
9. WATCH: Trailer: MYTHS FOR PROFIT (1.27 min.) PLUS MAP
10. WATCH: George Galloway: 2 videos: Toronto – Nov. 20, 2010 - (52 min.) & Winnipeg, Nov. 26 (10 min.)
11. BUDRUS: Varsity Theatre (Seattle, WA) – Dec. 17, 18, 19
12. Corrupt Afghan Government Sullying Canada’s Name, Committee Told
13. "Ottawa off course on jets"
14. President NAFTA Backs President SHAFTA
15. LISTEN: The Train Interview (Click on Icon)
16. What's Behind the War on WikiLeaks
17. Nuclear refit a huge task

===================

1. CETA: Reject bad free trade negotiations with the EU [Watch Parl. debate live Dec 14th]

From: "Janet M Eaton" <jmeaton@ns.sympatico.ca>
Sent: Saturday, December 11, 2010 8:25 AM
Subject: CETA: Reject bad free trade negotiations with the EU
[Watch Parl. debate live Dec 14th]
The Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is being negotiated as a "next-generation" free trade deal that goes beyond NAFTA and the WTO in shielding corporate activity from government controls.
http://tradejustice.ca/en/section/2

It is sometimes referred to by our networks as the Canada- EU Free Trade Agreement.
See the Trade Justice Network (TJN) website for the leaked CETA negotiating document, background information on nature of the agreement and its impacts on environment, sustainability, our food system, jobs and the economy, public services, government procuremnt, culture, communications etc.and much more.
http://tradejustice.ca/en/section/2
For a quick overview see the new TJN 4 page comic book which reviews all the issues and impacts in a nutshell.

http://fileserver.cfsadmin.org/file/tradejustice/
107062cf31075064c01a3e6cd712eb3d3f56f5a5.pdf

Janet M Eaton, SCC Rep, Trade Justice Network

Mark your calendars for Dec 14th for a live debate in Parliament on the CETA.
More information on the timing when available.

MORE ON CETA:

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/vie ... php?t=1029

= = = = = =

JULIAN: Reject bad free trade negotiations with the EU, Push for a Fair Trade agreement with the EU

From: <Julian.P@parl.gc.ca>
Date sent: Fri, 10 Dec 2010 18:22:55 -0500
Subject: Reject bad free trade negotiations with the EU, Push for a Fair Trade agreement with the EU
With the Harper government negotiating an agreement with the European Commission, a new trade monster looms on the horizon. Many of us were in favour in principle of these negotiations. The EU having much more progressive approaches on social and environmental policies which could have helped raise Canadian standards. Unfortunately, what is transpiring at the negotiation table is exactly the opposite of what ordinary Canadians and Europeans need-a progressive approach on trade. Instead of going to higher European standards, Canadian negotiators are pulling progressive European policies down to lower Canadian levels.
The NAFTA investor- state overrides which characterize NAFTA and have been so controversial in North America are being put on the table by the Stephen Harper government. Our municipalities and provinces´ right to ensure that taxpayers´ money is spent to create jobs in the municipalities/provinces on public procurement is also being put on the table.
Our supply management system which effectively protects our small family farm sector is being put on the table.
Environmental policy, our public health care, and a wide variety of other issues are on the table.
That´s why the NDP fought for and secured an initial debate in Parliament on the Canada-EU trade agreement (CETA).
It is set for next Tuesday December 14th 2010 at the House of Commons.
We´re seeking to work with the activist community to ensure that the Canadian public understands what is at stake in this agreement.
Watch live on Tuesday December 14th as we all take note of the serious problems and risks of yet another right wing trade agreement that seeks to undermine and roll back all that is good and progressive in Canada and in Europe.

Please take a moment to sign up and be a part of the movement to push for a Fair Trade deal with the European Union. Want to get involved?

Sign up for the campaign over email or Facebook to get all the updates and actions alerts and take part!

Join the Push for Fair Trade with EU group on facebook to spread the word

http://www.facebook.com/
event.php?eid=170662636307186&num_event_invites=0

Sign up for action updates by Email
http://peterjulian.ndp.ca/fair-trade-with-EU

Office of Peter Julian, MP
Burnaby-New Westminster
NDP International Trade Critic
Tel: (613) 992-4214 Fax: (613) 947-9500
TTY: (613) 992-4249
CEP 232/SCEP 232
www.peterjulian.ca
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Peter-Jul ... 7586973623

=====================

2. It’s Back! Son of SPP – The Sequel! . . . .Leaked!

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/
viewtopic.php?p=1959#1959

(SPP: Security and Prosperity Partnership)

Declaration on a North American Security perimeter which has been leaked to CBC

From: "Janet M Eaton" <jmeaton@ns.sympatico.ca>
Date sent: Sun, 12 Dec 2010 13:03:04 -0400
Send reply to: jmeaton@ns.sympatico.ca
Dear All:
There is a new Declaration on a North American Security perimeter which has been leaked to CBC, The National Post and the Globe and Mail. One of the documents suggests it is to be signed in January by President Obama and PM Harper.
It is being defined by some as the Son of the SPP and others as Fortress North America. Officially it is entitled "Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Competitiveness" "A Declaration by the President of the United States of America and the Prime Minister of Canada"
While I can't find any links to Council of Canadian Stuart Trew's excellent interview [Friday Dec 10] with CBC Power and Politics' Evan Soloman where he followed John Manley, CCCE ( Canadian Council of Chief Executives) head and former Liberal government's architect of the SPP - I can say Stuart did a great job explaining this border perimeter concept within the context of the SPP and arguing effectively - the futility of creating a Fortress America perimeter as a way to 'thin' the Canadian-US border to increase the flow of trade.

MORE:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/
viewtopic.php?p=1959#1959

=================

3. Canadians “may underestimate security threat”

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6561&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

December 10, 2010
The Harper government is worried about Canadian opposition to its plans to more closely integrate Canadian and U.S. border security efforts (Steven Chase, “Ottawa crafts plan to ward off criticism over U.S. border deal,” Globe and Mail, 10 December 2010).
As the Globe and Mail reports, the Department of Public Safety’s communications strategy for the plan states that “The Canadian public may underestimate the security threat to Canada”:
The strategy predicts that Canadians may fail to see the need for a perimeter security deal to help safeguard cross-border trade through efforts such as a joint cargo screening initiative. …
Former CSIS director Jim Judd made similar comments to a U.S. State Department official in 2008, according to diplomatic cables disclosed last week by WikiLeaks. The ex-spy chief complained about public naiveté about the extent of the terrorism threat this country faces.

Here’s a recent example of how a country that takes the terrorist threat seriously acts:
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_16752786

Here’s another one:
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2 ... st_em.html

And here’s another one:
http://www.slate.com/id/2274412/

Maybe panic, paranoia, and intelligence and security powers unfettered by the rule of law (such as the super-secret, imaginary police powers recently on display in Toronto) are what Canadians need to protect our society.
Or maybe the Canadian public is right not to be scared stupid by tiny robot figurines and the like.
Robot toys are not the whole story of course. There is a real possibility of real terrorist attacks in Canada, as anybody who cared to think about these issues knew long before 2001. Remember the Air India attack in 1985? The attacks on Turkish diplomats in Ottawa in 1982-1985? The FLQ bombings and murder of Pierre Laporte from 1963 to 1970?
But our history of dealing with terrorism, although it may demonstrate an occasional need for greater competence on the part of the security authorities, has not demonstrated a need for continuously expanding policing and security powers. If anything, it has demonstrated the danger of over-reacting to the threat of terrorist attacks.
The Harper government, for its part, has its own security blindspots. The government pays lip service to the threat posed to Canadians, and the entire global community, of climate change. But as the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development reported earlier this week, the government still has no strategy to deal with the increasing effects of climate change (Heather Scoffield, “Ottawa lacks info to combat climate change: watchdog,” Toronto Star, 7 December 2010).
And its strategy for preventing further climate change seems to be to do little or nothing for as long as possible. …And, of course, let NATO deal with the consequences when the world falls apart.
Maybe the Canadian public is the group with its security priorities straight.
Photo by RJ Sangosti, Denver Post

==================

4. LETTER: KURTENBACH: A Christmas Message

December 11, 2010

My better half, Helen, found a copy of a letter I had written in December, 2006. It was a Christmas message which she thought was very good and still appropriate for the Christmas season of 2010. She suggested that I send it again. So how could I say no to a lady [ whom I at least thought] possessed such good judgment?!
Here is that letter with a few minor deletions or additions.
War mongers: people or powers who make us fearful that there are terrorists everywhere, are planning a military force of robot soldiers, where no one needs to be killed. [Yeah right!] Of course, I understand that we first have to find an enemy. They are also planning drone fighter and bombing planes. No need to endanger the lives of real live pilots. Is this the new path to "Peace on Earth"?
It is proper that we acknowledge the supreme sacrifice made by Canadians in Afghanistan. However, we hear very little about those who have been fearfully physically or mentally wounded, and possibly maimed for life. Is it possible that those who are suffering through a difficult recovery, are at times wondering why they were not killed in action, so they, too, could be remembered as heroes? Is this how we maintain the myth about the glory of war?
Why do I allow realism to take over hope for a peaceful world? Is it the winter doldrums? Or is it because we know that the world is now spending the obscene sum of over one trillion dollars for military equipment. [Today, in 2010, the U.S.A. alone is spending about one trillion dollars on weapons and war annually. That is more than all the combined military spending of all the other countries on this planet.]
All this military spending is taking place while millions of our brothers and sisters and their children are suffering the misery of hunger, oppression and preventable diseases. At the same time, there are millions of people who yearn for and are praying for a more peaceful world, who sincerely believe that this is possible, if only we would follow the teaching of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.
We, in the industrialized world, like to believe, and have others believe, that we are the protectors of freedom and democracy. Then why do we feel the arrows of anxiety pierce the very core of our hearts? Is it because we know that some of the Christian nations of the world are the largest producers of the weapons of destruction, including uranium for the manufacture of nuclear bombs?
God has endowed us with a free will. Are we, as individuals, going to be the harbingers of Peace or are we going to maintain the myth of the glory of War?
A peaceful and joyous Christmas to all!
Leo Kurtenbach,
Box 268, Cudworth, Sask., S0K 1B0
Phone (306) 256 3638

For more of Leo's Letters:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=19

====================

5. WATCH: UPDATES from CANCUN - COP 16

Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada

http://greenparty.ca/cop16/elizabeth-video-updates

=================

6. Sir Nicholas Stern on Canada

http://greenparty.ca/blogs/7/2010-12-06 ... ern-canada

Home / Blogs / Elizabeth May's blog /
By Elizabeth May on 6 December 2010 - 1:50pm
After his talk, I asked Sir Nicholas what he made of the Canadian PM, who has a degree in economics but claims that meeting necessary GHG reduction targets will cost "millions of jobs." He replied, "if Canada stays dirty, you are going to have real problems down the road. Ask your PM if in his studies of economics, he studied the histories of economic revolutions. They create jobs and stimulate economic activity. To claim acting to reduce GHGs will lose jobs is to have it exactly backwards. Failing to act, losing out on the green race to new technology risks jobs, risks investments, risks access to markets. If you stay dirty, you run huge risks."
------------
Sir Nicholas Stern's presentation - The economic case for a low carbon path

http://greenparty.ca/blogs/7/2010-12-06/cop16-monday

COP16 - Monday
By Elizabeth May on 6 December 2010 - 11:58am
The economic case for a low carbon path was presented by Sir Nicholas Stern, former Senior Economist to the World Bank and author of the landmark Stern Review. Five years ago, he presented his economic analysis to the UK government -- forecasting that failing to act to avert the climate crisis would deal a crippling $7 trillion hit to the world economy.
This morning in Cancun he updated that report. On one hand he sees the pace of climate change is faster then anticipated. Ice sheet melt in particular has accelerated. His report had said stabilization could be at 450-550 ppm. He now believes 450 ppm is the upper limit.
On the other hand, he sees the private sector as having done much more than was expected. The last five years have been a fertile time for investments in a new industrial revolution. Nothing less than a full economic revolution is required. Tinkering around the edges will not be sufficient. He compared the last five industrial revolutions -- 18th century textile, late 19th century steam and rail, 20th century cars and mass production, 20th century information revolution. While all are very different, they share key characteristics. The revolution is preceded by a period of 3-4 decades of intense investments and activity.
In this context, there is a critical role for governments in coordinating. They need to correct for market failure. Greenhouse gas emissions are a large market failure.
He argues forcefully that improving energy efficiency is the top priority, as well as getting rid of subsidies to fossil fuels.
In Stern's view, sector by sector, we can meet the targets required to hit carbon neutrality, or even becoming carbon negative.
And have a positive economic impact at the same time.

==================

7. Militarism as Cause and Consequence of Climate Change Expulsion of Organizer from COP16 Leads to Cancellation of Press Conference

http://uk.oneworld.net/article/view/166545/1/246

PRESS RELEASE: Dec 10, 2010
from Climate SOS, Biofuel Watch, and Global Compliance Research Project

A 10-minute interview is now on the UNFCCC website:

http://www.climate-change.tv/maggie-zhou-december-2010

(Cancun, Dec 10, 2010): As climate negotiations in Cancun become increasingly chaotic and the outcomes uncertain, over 70 diverse environmental, peace and social justice organizations declare that on this 62nd International Human Rights Day, we must recognize that all efforts to address climate change or human rights will fail unless we contend with the “elephant in the living room”: militarism, and a logic of Might is Right. The group sent their statement
(available at www.climatesos.org)
to delegates at the COP16, and to president Obama. On the same website is a factsheet with detailed resources on this topic.
A press conference scheduled for today inside the COP16 had to be cancelled, because its main organizer, Dr. Maggie Zhou, a biologist with Climate SOS, was expelled from the UN climate conference, due to supposedly showing ‘disrespect’ to UN security by demanding an explanation when her badge was forcefully snatched away on Tuesday, following her very marginal participation in a peaceful, non-disruptive demonstration on the conference grounds. The majority of other participants had their badges returned. An interview with Zhou is still on the official UNFCCC website

(http://www.climate-change.tv/maggie-zhou-december-2010),

as of the time of this release.
According to Zhou’s article published in today’s Alter-ECO newsletter
(issue #4, see www.climate-justice-now.org),
USA alone spends well over $1 trillion/year on military related expenses, magnitudes higher than the climate ‘assistance’ of $10 billion/y for 2010-2012, or $100 billion/y by 2020, from all developed countries combined! Worse, these climate ‘aid’ pledges under the Copenhagen Accord will come mostly as loan guarantees, private investments for profit, and even recycled aid commitments. She added: “President Barack Obama received the Nobel Peace prize exactly one year ago, although it has done nothing to stop him from further increasing the U.S.’s military budget.”

MORE:
http://uk.oneworld.net/article/view/166545/1/246

=================

8. The March to War: Was September 11 2001 the Start of World War III?

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22364

By Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya Global Research, December 11, 2010
The tragic attacks of September 11, 2001 have resulted in almost ten years of perpetual war. September 11, 2001 was the first drum beats, or the opening salvos, of a much wider conflict. The deployment of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan has secured a bridgehead into the Eurasian Heartland, which is geographically positioned on or near the borders of Iran, China, India, Pakistan, Russia, and the former Soviet republics of Central Asia.
Was Afghanistan the starting battle of a global war? The invasion of Afghanistan can be compared to the landing of the Western Allies, specifically the Americans, in North Africa as a bridgehead into Italy and Europe. At the same time NATO has been pushing from Europe towards the Eurasian Heartland, like the landing of the invading forces of the Western Allies in France.
Was September 11th, 2001 the start of the Third World War?
Historically speaking, it should be noted that distinctions between times of war and peace are not always clear-cut and conflicts do not always correspond to the dates set and standardized by historians. War was not even declared in the cases of many past conflicts, such as in the early 1700s when Augustus II of Saxony-Poland invaded Livonia or when Frederick IV of Denmark invaded Holstein-Gottorp. Also, in the cases of many conflicts, attempts were always made to cloak or hide the nature of the conflict as being a war or an act of aggression. The Romans and other imperial powers regularly engaged in this type of conduct.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22364

==================

9. WATCH: Trailer: MYTHS FOR PROFIT (1.27 min.) PLUS MAP

http://wideopenexposure.com/myths-for-profit

Canada's Role in Industries of War and Peace
Canada the global good guy? Lets examine that claim. Essential intro to geopolitics and p rofits, from NATO to Afghanistan via Kosovo. 'Myths for Profit: Canada's Role In Industries of War and Peace' takes a different approach to peacekeeping, the military and development, raising all sorts of questions along the way. An entertaining, well argued documentary.
MYTH 1) 'Canada is a peacekeeping nation' examines the changes within the Canadian military policies and what has been the agenda of these actions. From the historical beginnings of peacekeeping, to the recent missions, the documentary takes a critical look to the motives behind these actions. Particular focus is given to the role Canada has taken in NATO, the current perpetual war in Afghanistan, and how Canada played a pivotal role in pushing the policy of ‘humanitarian bombing’ in Yugoslavia in 1999.
MYTH 2) 'Canada’s military purpose is defence' By investigating the magnitude of the Canadian military industrial complex, this section probes the intersecting relationships between various government agencies and corporations as well as public complicity in this vast industry.
MYTH 3) 'Canada's aid is helping people around the world' investigates how various government agencies and ministries have specific agendas they are implementing around the world. The active role taken on in regional development banks, to the policies pushed by Export Development Canada are designed and carried out to ensure a free market neo-liberal agenda in different countries, regardless of the negative effect they may have on the communities and environment they impact. This includes how Canada’s development agency’s (CIDA) tied and phantom aid function in post and present conflict zones.

TO BUY DVD (58 min.):
http://wideopenexposure.com/store
- - - - -
MAP: 'Making war in Canada' 24'' X 32'' map

http://wideopenexposure.com/product/mak ... canada-map

'Making War in Canada' companion map to documentary 'Myths for Profit' Canada's role in Industries of War and Peace'. Canada's military industrial complex is alive and growing yet many people are surprised to learn this. Beyond the military bases that train the troops, the think tanks, media outlets and government offices that provide diplomatic, political or financial support to the Department of Defence, Canada has hundreds of companies that produces arms and components for weapon systems that are used in wars all over the world. This map shows only a small fraction of the Canadian companies and other support systems that are profiting off of conflicts and war.

To purchase map:
http://wideopenexposure.com/store

=====================

10. WATCH: George Galloway: 2 videos: Toronto – Nov. 20, 2010 - (52 min.) & Winnipeg, Nov. 26 (10 min.)

Video # 1: George Galloway speech at Islamic Society of York Region, Toronto Canada – 20 Nov 2010 - English (52 min.)

http://www.shiatv.net/
view_video.php?viewkey=258d0c4ab6764476e20f&page=&viewtype=&category=

Video #2: On Nov. 26, 2010, George Galloway brought his "Free Afghanistan, Free Palestine, Free Speech" Canadian tour to Winnipeg, (10 min.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmcI6Izs8cE

where he spoke at the Broadway Disciples United Church to a packed house of more than 400 people.
The Winnipeg portion of the tour was organized by Peace Alliance Winnipeg and endorsed by:
- Independent Jewish Voices (Winnipeg)
- Canada Palestine Support Network (Winnipeg)
- Students Against Israeli Apartheid (University of Manitoba)
- Canadian Federation of Students (Manitoba)
- The Uniter
- The Institute for Women's and Gender Studies (University of Winnipeg)
- The Council of Canadians (Winnipeg)
- CKUW 95.9 FM
- Brandon NDP Women's Association
- Mondragon Bookstore and Coffee House
- Winnipeg Labour Council
- Brandon and District Labour Council
- Manitoba Peace Council
- War Resisters Support Campaign -- Winnipeg
- Keep Resisters in Canada Campaign (Alberta -- Saskatchewan - Manitoba)

More information: Peace Alliance Winnipeg:
www.peacealliancewinnipeg.ca

Video production: Paul S. Graham,
www.paulsgraham.ca

====================

11. BUDRUS: Varsity Theatre (Seattle, WA) – Dec. 17, 18, 19

http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Films/
films_frameset.asp?id=90121

Budrus: A Film That Gives Viewers Permission to Feel Something Unpopular
Nadav Greenberg, Outreach and Media Associate of the "Just Vision" filmmaking team will appear In Person for Q&As on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, December 17, 18 and 19 at the 7:15 pm shows.
Budrus is an award-winning documentary about an unlikely Palestinian community organizer, Ayed Morrar, who unites local Fatah and Hamas members along with Israeli supporters in an unarmed movement to save his village of Budrus from destruction by Israel's Separation Barrier. Success eludes them until his 15-year-old daughter, Iltezam, launches a women's contingent that quickly moves to the front lines. Struggling side by side, father and daughter unleash an inspiring movement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories that is still gaining ground today. In an action-filled documentary chronicling this movement from its infancy, Budrus shines a light on people who choose nonviolence to confront a threat yet remain virtually unknown to the world. Directed by Julia Bacha, a writer and editor of the acclaimed documentary Control Room. Winner of 8 international awards, including the Audience Award at the 2010 San Francisco International Film Festival and the Witness Award at the 2010 Silverdocs Film Festival. (Partially subtitled)

Official Web Site:
http://www.justvision.org/budrus/

OTHER SCREENINGS:
http://www.justvision.org/en/events/
table?eventtype%5b%5d=Budrus+Screening

=================

12. Corrupt Afghan Government Sullying Canada’s Name, Committee Told

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/46833/

By Matthew Little Epoch Times Staff Last Updated: December 4, 2010
PARLIAMENT HILL, Ottawa—Canada must demand more of the Afghan government or 152 Canadians will have died there in vain, MPs heard on Tuesday.
Parliamentary committees are usually dry affairs with only a handful of non-political observers. Tuesday was different.
No seat was left empty as Rev. Majed El Shafie blasted through graphic testimony about his June trip to Afghanistan and the horrors being suffered there by women and children under a corrupt government that looks to be getting worse.
He told MPs, on the human rights subcommittee, they should be worried because Canada’s failure to push for real rights for Afghan citizens is sullying our name there and could make the sacrifice of our troops there pointless.
New laws introduced under President Hamid Karzai’s government condone rape and legalize severe spousal abuse, said Shafie.
His trip included human rights personnel and Liberal MP Mario Silva. While there, he met with Afghan officials and underground sources that help his organization, One Free World International, collect the intelligence that guides their advocacy.
He says the abuse of women, including forced and underage marriage, is the number one issue in Afghanistan.
- - - - SNIP - - -
But while Canadian politicians have raised the plight of mistreated detainees, little has been done about the abuse the common Afghan faces from a government Canada is seen as supporting, says Shafie.
He says popular attitudes toward Canadian and allied forces were positive at the beginning of the war. There was an understanding this was not another Soviet invasion, but an effort to bring a better future for the Afghan people.
But after years of war and elections rife with fraud last September, attitudes have started to shift and Shafie says many Afghans now see Canada and others as supporting a corrupt government that takes no action on the abuse of women and children and won’t even listen to concerns about freedom of religion.
“We can’t just sacrifice lives and spend money in that place without asking what is your stance on human rights.”
Shafie thanked the committee for hearing his testimony and Silva for joining him on a dangerous trip to Afghanistan before calling on them to push hard for human rights in Afghanistan.
“We have an opportunity to do something. Don’t make this another committee, don’t make this just another hour, where you come and you listen and you leave, and you get busy in your normal life. Let’s do something to help these people,” said Shafie.
“I know that if we fail, we fail the Afghan people. I know if we fail, we fail 152 Canadian soldiers who spilled their blood on the ground of Afghanistan for their freedom.
“There is the time for the oppressed when dark becomes their only colour, silence becomes their language, and tears and crying from the pain and the persecution become their national anthem.
We can stop this circle.”

Related Articles (Links are on website)

Afghan Election Results In, Opposition Gains
Afghan Politicians Disqualified Over Election Fraud

If you wish to express your concerns to your Constituency's Member of Parliament:
http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/
MainMPsCompleteList.aspx?TimePeriod=Current&Language=E

==================

13. "Ottawa off course on jets"

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6583&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Tamara Lorincz and Steven Staples comment on the government’s plan to purchase F-35 stealth fighters
(Tamara Lorincz & Steven Staples, “Ottawa off course on jets,” Chronicle-Herald, 11 December 2010):
Representatives from the Department of National Defence were in Halifax recently to promote the controversial purchase of stealth fighter jets. Unfortunately, they did not give a full and frank assessment of the F-35 stealth fighter program, the largest military equipment procurement in Canadian history. Most significantly, they failed to disclose the serious risks, particularly financial, to Canadian taxpayers.
In July, Defence Minister Peter MacKay announced the government’s plan to buy 65 F-35s for an expected $9 billion, through a sole-source, non-competitive contract. The F-35 stealth fighter is marketed as a fifth-generation fighter-bomber by its maker, U.S. weapons giant Lockheed Martin. Mr. MacKay has not yet signed a contract spelling out exactly how much each plane is going to cost taxpayers.

MORE:
http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6583&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

==================

14. President NAFTA Backs President SHAFTA

http://www.truth-out.org/
president-nafta-backs-president-shafta65865

Jeff CohenAuthor and Media Critic
Posted: December 11, 2010 10:32 AM
It was a stunning spectacle yesterday afternoon when former President Clinton took the podium from President Obama in the White House briefing room to help shove the Obama-GOP tax deal down the throats of Democratic activists and Congress members.
It was a fitting spectacle too (carried live on CNN) -- since Bill Clinton paved the way in teaching how a Democratic president can win battles through the votes not of his own party but the Republicans.
Remember NAFTA, the trade deal loved by big business and Republicans -- and opposed by Democratic constituencies like unions, environmentalists and consumer advocates? Clinton passed NAFTA with the votes of nearly 80 percent of GOP senators and almost 70 percent of House Republicans. Meanwhile, House Democrats opposed NAFTA by more than 3 to 2.
More than a year ago, I warned ("Get Ready for the Obama/GOP Alliance") that Obama would follow Clinton's lead in winning some of his biggest fights by allying with the GOP against his own base.
Following a long period of White House lecturing and name-calling ("the professional left," "f**king retarded") aimed at the activists who put him in the Oval Office, Obama has again shafted his base and broken a promise, this time on tax breaks for the rich.
Look for another Obama/GOP alliance if Democrats in Congress find their voices over Obama's bloody, costly, unwinnable folly in Afghanistan.

MORE:
http://www.truth-out.org/
president-nafta-backs-president-shafta65865

===================

15. LISTEN: The Train Interview (Click on Icon)

http://trainradio.blogspot.com/2010/12/
chemtrails-geoengineering-and-climate.html

Chemtrails, geoengineering and climate change from Cancun and everywhere
Thursday, December 9, 2010
On December 9, 2010, The Train welcomed Ottawa organizer and social justice activist Sylvain Henry, US independent filmmaker and chemtrails activist Michael Murphy, and climate sanity champion Lord Christopher Monckton.
Rancourt challenged Murphy on the toxicity of nanoparticulate Al2O3 and on measurable environmental and human health impacts of chemtrails but all agreed to fight the undemocratic tyrants that run our lives and that global-scale geoengineering should be stopped.
Then Lord Monckton owned the last half like only he can. Twas a riot.

BACKGROUND LINKS:

WATCH: “What in the World are they Spraying?” Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te_FOsKL_5Q
Michael Murphy documentary on chemtrails

Gore Gored - by Christopher Monckton (not available)

POST-SHOW FALLOUT:

Several listeners called the CHUO 89.1 FM radio station to complain and to ask that Rancourt's statements that aluminum oxide is not a highly toxic substance be retracted on air. Thank you for your interest in the show. The host of The Train has a responsibility to question claims of significant risk to public health when he has reason to believe the information to be in doubt. Please feel free to send all criticisms and feedback directly to Denis Rancourt at chuotrain@gmail.com.
A selection of these statements will be read on air. In addition, more air time is planned for this topic.
FROM WIKIPEDIA:
Aluminium oxide is the family of inorganic compounds with the chemical formula Al2O3. It is an amphoteric oxide and is commonly referred to as alumina, corundum as well as many other names, reflecting its widespread occurrence in nature and industry. Its most significant use is in the production of aluminium metal, although it is also used as an abrasive due to its hardness and as a refractory material due to its high melting point.
Application--As a filler: Being fairly chemically inert, relatively non-toxic, and white, alumina is a favored filler for plastics. Alumina is a common ingredient in sunscreen.

===============

16. What's Behind the War on WikiLeaks

http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27033.htm

By Ray McGovern December 10, 2010 "Information Clearing House"
WikiLeaks has teased the genie of transparency out of a very opaque bottle, and powerful forces in America, who thrive on secrecy, are trying desperately to stuff the genie back in.
How far down the U.S. has slid can be seen, ironically enough, in a recent commentary in Pravda (that's right, Russia's Pravda):
"What WikiLeaks has done is make people understand why so many Americans are politically apathetic… After all, the evils committed by those in power can be suffocating, and the sense of powerlessness that erupts can be paralyzing, especially when … government evildoers almost always get away with their crimes. …
"So shame on Barack Obama, Eric Holder and all those who spew platitudes about integrity, justice and accountability while allowing war criminals and torturers to walk freely upon the earth. … The American people should be outraged that [their] government has transformed a nation with a reputation for freedom, justice, tolerance and respect for human rights into a backwater that revels in its criminality, cover-ups, injustices and hypocrisies."
Odd, isn't it, that it takes a Pravda commentator to drive home the point that the Obama administration is on the wrong side of history.
Some bloodthirsty U.S. politicians even are calling for the murder of WikiLeaks leader Julian Assange, while some in the U.S. news media favor only prosecuting him and his leakers, while insisting that "responsible" journalists should be protected.
In this view, severe punishment should be reserved for people with access to the government's dark secrets who out of conscience decide to share that information with the people, a prospect that some pundits find objectionable.
"The government has to get better at keeping secrets," wrote the Washington Post‘s Richard Cohen. "Muzzle the leakers – but not the press."
The corporate-and-government-dominated media appears apprehensive over the challenge that WikiLeaks presents. Perhaps deep down they know, as Dickens put it, "There is nothing so strong … as the simple truth."

MORE:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27033.htm

==================

17. Nuclear refit a huge task

http://www.newsdurhamregion.com/articlePrint/167766

OPG chief says industry learned from mistakes, vows overhaul will be safe, on time, on budget
John Spears, Toronto Star, Friday, December 10, 2010
The good name of Ontario's nuclear industry will be restored or tarnished by the task of refitting the province's nuclear power plants, says the chief executive of Ontario Power Generation.
Tom Mitchell acknowledged in a speech Thursday that Ontario's nuclear history includes massive cost overruns and long delays -- failures that eroded public trust.
But OPG has learned from its mistakes as it faces the daunting task of giving the Darlington nuclear facility a mid-life refit starting in 2015, Mitchell told the Ontario Energy Network.
"We'll do it in a way that delivers real value to Ontario taxpayers," Mitchell promised. "Safely. On time. And on a fact-based budget."
Mitchell acknowledged that OPG and its predecessor Ontario Hydro have dropped the ball before.
The disastrous refit of Unit 4 at the Pickering nuclear station cost the company's top executives and board of directors their jobs.
But OPG learned from its mistakes, and this round of refurbishments will be different, Mitchell vowed.

MORE:
http://www.newsdurhamregion.com/articlePrint/167766

by **Oscar** » Wed Dec 15, 2010 6:46 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 15, 2010

NUCLEAR WASTE: STOP MAKING IT!

http://www.nirs.org/radwaste/actionday/
nucleawastestopmakingit.pdf

1. Quill Plains Chapter hosts Dr. Jim Harding on Why Saskatchewan Needs a Ban on Nuclear Waste at Wynyard
2. STOP $35 Billion Nuclear Handout!
3. Bruce Power Alpha Radiation: Boilermakers laid off a day after resuming work – Dr. Gordon Edwards – December 14, 2010
4. The government isn’t telling us the true cost of nuclear waste disposal
5. Nuclear Waste Management Film: Into Eternity – review
6. Dangerous radiation levels endanger communities – expert
7. North Korea digging tunnel for spring nuclear test: report
8. Canadian media chastised for not reporting Richard Holbrooke's final words on Afghanistan
9. Pugliese on the F-35 fighter
10. Argentina recognizes Palestine statehood
11. How the Pentagon Turns Working-Class Men into the Deadliest Killers on the Planet
12. Another exceptional American takes aim at Iran
13. WATCH: DEMOCRACY NOW!: December 15, 2010 (59 mins.)
14. WIKILEAKS UPDATE: December 15, 2010

===================

[b]1. Quill Plains Chapter hosts Dr. Jim Harding on Why Saskatchewan Needs a Ban on Nuclear Waste at Wynyard

PRESS RELEASE December 14, 2010
“Nuclear Waste: Stop Making It” was the theme of a lecture delivered by Dr. Jim Harding to the members of the Quill Plains Chapter of the Council of Canadians in Wynyard, SK on December 4, 2010.
Dr. Harding began with a brief history of the uranium industry in Saskatchewan and Canada, including the secret export of uranium from Uranium City (and Elliot Lake, ON) to the US for weapons purposes through the 1950s and 1960s. He noted that Saskatchewan is under no obligation to take back nuclear wastes from these weapons or from any other user of uranium, including nuclear power plants.
He detailed how the threat of a nuclear waste storage site at Whiteshell Experimental Station at Lac du Bonnet east of Winnipeg brought the public together and resulted in a ban against nuclear waste storage in Manitoba. Dr. Harding went on to warn that the industry-run Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) now has plans to bring High Level Nuclear Waste from Ontario nuclear power plants into a ‘willing community’ for permanent storage in northern Saskatchewan.
Two possible areas currently under consideration as a storage site are the Metis community of Pinehouse or the FSIN community of Patuanak. He noted that on November 17, 2010, the NWMO announced it would be providing the FSIN with $1,000,000 over several years for ‘capacity-building and education’, and that the Saskatchewan Métis Nation has also taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from the NWMO.
In reminding the group that Cameco co-owns the privatized nuclear power plants operated in Ontario by Bruce Power, he pointed out that they are responsible for accumulating over 40 % of Canada’s total nuclear wastes. In 2005, the NWMO estimated that in Canada there were 1.8 million spent fuel bundles totalling 40,000 tonnes of nuclear wastes. He added, "Currently, there are nearly 2 million highly radioactive spent fuel bundles and the our next generation will have to deal with double that number if existing plants are allowed to operate for their projected life span." “Rather than bribing communities to host a nuclear dump, on-site storage should be maintained, upgraded and secured,” Dr. Harding said.
He then pointed out that transporting this highly radioactive nuclear waste from the nuclear plants – mostly in southern Ontario – down the new ‘Plutonium Parkway’ to northern Saskatchewan, would involve about 20,000 heavily armed truck or trainloads travelling in perpetuity past farms, towns and cities in northern Ontario, southern Manitoba, and southern and northern Saskatchewan. He also stated that the fossil fuel and carbon footprint resulting from this would make a mockery of the nuclear industry’s claim to be “clean energy”, adding that "at such a frequency, transportation accidents are almost certain."
"Over and above that, no matter which community ends up taking the waste, that one community will be allowed to do an end-run on democracy, forcing the rest of those along the transportation route to face the danger from a spill," he said.
Dr. Harding concluded his talk with the recommendation that immediate steps must be taken to stop the production of these deadly wastes and reduce the burden of managing the wastes for the necessary 100,000 years – many times humanity’s recorded history – and that a moratorium and phase-out of nuclear power is required in order to avoid a further build-up of nuclear wastes as a curse to future generations.
He said that member groups of the Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan will begin to hold public information meetings along the Yellowhead Highway, and into the north, including at communities targeted by the NWMO. The Coalition will also begin a campaign to win a legislated nuclear waste ban in Saskatchewan and positive, sustainable economic development options for the north. The group will provide "comprehensive, balanced information on nuclear wastes, and the alternative to producing more of these deadly wastes or creating a nuclear dump," he added.
In closing, he encouraged others to join the campaign, stating that, “our children’s children are counting on us!”
For more information, please visit:
http://jimharding.brinkster.net - 30 -
Contacts:
Elaine Hughes (306) 323-4938
Bill Curry (306) 554-2985

======================

2. STOP $35 Billion Nuclear Handout![/b]

http://www.cleanairalliance.org/files/active/0/
NuclearHandout_v5.pdf

Thanks to your financial support we have printed 80,000 copies of our new pamphlet:
Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout: No More Blank Cheques for Ontario Power Generation and its Darlington Nuclear Station.

They contain postcards addressed to Premier McGuinty and the Leader of the Opposition Tim Hudak, asking them to tell OPG that it will not be allowed to pass its cost overruns for Darlington nuclear refurbishments on to consumers and taxpayers.
In 2009 we had a similar campaign to persuade the then Minister of Energy, George Smitherman, to not allow Atomic Energy of Canada (AECL) to pass its cost overruns for two new nuclear reactors on to the province’s consumers and taxpayers. Minister Smitherman received over 2,000 postcards in support of our request, and he gave us what we wanted – a bidding process that reflected the real cost of building new nuclear reactors. The resulting true-cost bid came in at 3.7 times higher than expected, and the purchase was shelved, for now.
Now we need your help to distribute our Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout leaflets across Ontario, to prevent another nuclear boondoggle before it’s too late.
Order FREE copies of the new pamphlet here. Give them to your friends, neighbours, local coffee shops, etc.
If you’re in Toronto, please join us at an OCAA Outreach meeting to learn more about our campaigns, and opportunities for you to plug in. Meet our team – Christmas sweets provided!
Date: Thursday, December 16th
Time: 6 – 7:30 p.m.
Location: 519 Church St. Community Centre, Toronto
Contact me for more info and to rsvp. And please order your free pamphlets now!
Thanks a billion!
P.S. Thanks for helping get the word out that there are lower cost and safer ways to meet all our electricity needs without investing tens of billions of $$ in nuclear energy. These postcards make it easy for people to have a say!
Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director.
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402 Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

===================

3. Bruce Power Alpha Radiation: Boilermakers laid off a day after resuming work – Dr. Gordon Edwards – December 14, 2010

Background:

Last year, for a period of two weeks or so, over 200 workers at Bruce Power were inhaling plutonium-contaminated dust without anybody's knowledge.
That plutonium has now lodged in their bodies and will be with them for the rest of their lives.
The workers were told by BP that they needed no special clothing or protective equipment because the levels of radiation were so low that there was nothing to worry about. Plutonium gives off a non-penetrating form of radiation called "alpha radiation" which is difficult to detect with regular radiation monitoring equipment. Monitors which respond easily to the much more penetrating gamma radiation hardly respond at all to alpha radiation.
Inside the body, however, alpha radiation is far more biologically damaging than gamma radiation. In fact the deadliest naturally occurring radioactive elements -- radium, radon, and polonium, as well as uranium and thorium -- are all alpha-emitting materials. Except for the atomic bomb explosions, more people have been killed by alpha-emitting radioactive materials than by any other type of radioactive material.
Moreover, when alpha-emitting material is incorporated into the body, a very large cumulative radiation dose can be received over a long period of time, because the contamination is carried with you wherever you go.
And it will take decades for any harmful effects to be seen, because there is a "latency period" of many years or even decades before radiation-induced cancer, leukemia, or other illnesses become apparent.

See http://ccnr.org/paulson_legacy.html

Over 90 percent of the radioactive material inside the 16 steam generators that Bruce Power wants to ship through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River en route to Sweden, is the same alpha-emitting material -- principally plutonium -- from the same nuclear reactors.
Like the workers in November 2009, the public in 2010 is being told by Bruce Power that there is nothing to worry about. Bruce Power describes the radiation levels in the steam generators as too low for anybody to be harmed.
They are not telling people the truth about the nature of this extremely dangerous material. Nor is the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Both BP and CNSC says nothing whatsoever about the radiotoxicity of these alpha-emitting materials.
For the nuclear authorities, it appears, ignorance is bliss.

See http://ccnr.org/SG_plutonium_CNSC.pdf

Gordon Edwards.
--------------------------------------------------

Boilermakers laid off a day after resuming work

http://www.kincardinenews.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2878353

By PAUL JANKOWSKI, QMI AGENCY
Kincardine News, December 7, 2010
About three dozen Boilermakers union members were laid off at Bruce Power a day after resuming the alpha decontamination work in Unit 1 that had been stalled because of workers' concerns about health and safety concerns.
The layoffs are a money-saving measure based on Atomic Energy of Canada Limited's decision "extend the window for this work," company spokesman John Peevers said last Thursday.
The decontamination work became necessary after Bruce Power late last year unexpectedly discovered alpha radiation in the Unit 1 vault during so-called J-prep work-- cutting and grinding down tubes that had carried coolant to the reactor. None had been found during similar work on Unit 2.
A number of people working in Unit 1 expressed concerns about the protective gear they were to wear during the decontamination work. The project was halted for several days last week while that issue was sorted out.
Some International Brotherhood of Boilermakers members, who did not wish to be named for fear of losing work, said the layoffs were done in a way to target workers who expressed safety concerns, a charge denied by Bruce Power and union leaders.
"I'd bet my house on it," one union member said.

MORE:
http://www.kincardinenews.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2878353

======================

4. The government isn’t telling us the true cost of nuclear waste disposal

http://www.theecologist.org/blogs_and_comments/
commentators/other_comments/691982/the_government_isnt_telling_us_the_true_cost_of_nuclear_waste_disposal.html

Dr Paul Dorfman, 13th December, 2010, The Ecologist
UK plans for ten new nuclear power plants will create £80 billion worth of radioactive waste that we still have no secure way of disposing
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and the nuclear industry have a plan for 10 new ‘Generation 3’ reactors, each one containing 2.5 times the radiological inventory of the UK’s biggest AGR reactor at Sizewell B. In a recent Ministerial statement, Chris Huhne, the Secretary of State for DECC made it clear that the
Coalition is not ruling out taking on unspecified nuclear ‘financial risks or liabilities’ to make this happen. Given the sheer weight of our current nuclear legacy, its' clear that this will also involve nuclear waste ‘financial risks or liabilities’.
The most recent estimates are that, once ‘packaged’, the UK already has around 1,420 cubic metres of hot high-level radioactive waste, 364,000 cubic metres of long lived intermediate-level radioactive waste, and 3,470,000 cubic metres of toxic low-level radioactive waste. The Government proposes to house the high and intermediate part of this vast inventory in a deep hole five times the size of the Albert Hall over millennia. Government officials estimate that the cost of managing this waste and decommissioning will be around £80 billion and rising – five years ago it was around £50 billion. There are no secure estimates for costing a deep disposal repository.

MORE:
http://www.theecologist.org/blogs_and_comments/
commentators/other_comments/691982/the_government_isnt_telling_us_the_true_cost_of_nuclear_waste_disposal.html

====================

5. Nuclear Waste Management Film: Into Eternity – review

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/nov/11/
into-eternity-film-review

Into Eternity - review

This jaw-dropping documentary tackles a subject almost beyond comprehension
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, Thursady, 11 November, 2010

TRAILER:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sioLKHyf108

In many ways, this unassuming, modestly proportioned documentary from Danish film-maker Michael Madsen (no relation to the Hollywood bad guy) is one of the most extraordinary factual films to be shown this year: my only quarrel is that it is perhaps too short, and could have done with more wide-ranging interviews to tackle its implications.
Madsen's film is about Onkalo, a colossal underground tomb being built in Finland, 500 metres below the earth – supposedly impervious to any event on the surface and far away from any possible earthquake danger: its purpose is to house thousands of tonnes of radioactive nuclear waste. Onkalo is the first storage site of its kind, and Madsen interviews the various technicians, scientists, legislators and commentators involved
in this awe-inspiring project.

Into Eternity
Production year: 2010
Countries: Denmark, Finland, Italy, Rest of the world, Sweden
Runtime: 75 mins
Directors: Michael Madsen

More on this film
The point is that, to be safe, this gigantic bunker has to last 100,000 years. Are we humans capable of even conceiving this, let alone actually guaranteeing it? Our own history spans a few paltry millennia. We have, of course, created nothing that has lasted anything like this length of time. And yet Onkalo has to do it – there is no question about this. Finland is building something that must outlast every institution humans have ever conceived.

MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/nov/11/
into-eternity-film-review

====================

6. Dangerous radiation levels endanger communities - expert

http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/C ... ?id=129192

Professor Chris Busby, a world expert in uranium has tested mine dumps around Krugersdorp and warns that radiation levels are 15 times higher than normal
LIVHUWANI MAMMBURU Published 2010/12/10 12:00 AM
Radiation levels at the Tudor Shaft Informal Settlement in Krugersdorp have reached dangerous levels and the community must be urgently relocated.
That’s the view of Professor Chris Busby, a world expert in uranium and epidemiology speaking to Business Day.
He has warned that radiation levels are 15 times higher than normal.
Tudor Informal Settlement in Krugersdorp is surrounded by land contaminated by mining activities and radioactive dumps.
Mariette Liefferink, from the Federation for a Sustainable Environment says the residents of the squatter camp are exposed to high concentrations of cobalt, zinc, arsenic, and cadmium, all known carcinogens, as well as high levels of radioactive uranium.
She says the informal settlement was built on toxic and radioactive waste mine dumps.
Busby who is a member of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology and European Committee of Radiation Risk (ECRR) visited the Tudor Shaft Informal Settlement in November this year says he visited various sites and made measurement of beta/gamma radiation levels.
According to (ECRR) "high radiation levels leads to external exposure but also health risks from internal irradiation. It will not only cause cancers but also non-cancer illnesses, lens destruction, neurological illnesses, diabetes, immunologies and several other radiogenic illnesses as well as a risk factor for heart disease. "
"In the shack where I visited in the Tudor Shaft informal village the dose rate was 1110nSv/h which translates to 9.72mGy or mSv per annum. I measured the radiation at ground level over linoleum so the predominant dose would have been from gamma radiation. The mean background I measured away from the mining area (in the grounds of the hotel) was 180-200nGy/h so the shack dose from the contamination was about 8mSv per year. This does not include exposure to the radon, to inhalation or ingestion but is purely external dose," Busby said.
"I recommend that the issue of radiation exposures to the public in this area is addressed properly and scientifically overseen by an independent committee of experts; it is quite clear from what I have seen in the area, that as a consequence of the existence of the contamination in the tailings and spoil heaps there is a serious level of radiation exposure involving uranium and its daughters which will have had and will have health implications," says Prof Busby.

MORE:

http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/C ... ?id=129192
- - -
WATCH:
VIDEO:Part 4 Lancaster dam declared a radiological hotspot

http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/C ... ?id=129192

VIDEO:Tudor Informal settlement surrounded by tailing dams

http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/C ... ?id=129192

=================

7. North Korea digging tunnel for spring nuclear test: report

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6BE0DT20101215

By Jack Kim SEOUL | Wed Dec 15, 2010 3:18am EST
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea appears to be readying for a possible third nuclear test as early as next March, a newspaper reported on Wednesday, as a U.S. politician travelled to Pyongyang with a message for the North to "calm down."
U.S. and South Korean intelligence have been watching the North's nuclear sites for any activity. Analysts say the North could use a test to try to gain leverage in international talks it is seeking and secure aid to prop up its destitute economy.
South Korea's Chosun Ilbo daily on Wednesday cited an intelligence official from Seoul as saying a tunnel was being dug at the country's nuclear test site that could be completed in March next year, possibly heralding a new nuclear test.
South Korea's foreign ministry said it was closely monitoring the site and said there was no concrete evidence to show the North Koreans were preparing for a third test.
The amount of earth removed from the site in Punggye township, in a northeastern region of North Korea, indicated the tunnel was about 500 meters (550 yards) deep, half the depth needed for a nuclear test, the Chosun Ilbo report said.
"North Korea is digging the ground pretty hard ... at its two major nuclear facilities," a South Korean intelligence official was quoted as saying.
"At this rate, (the Punggye tunnel) will reach (the) 1 km that is needed for a nuclear test by March to May," a separate intelligence source told the newspaper.
North Korea is also speeding up work on new construction at its main Yongbyon nuclear complex, where it revealed a previously unknown uranium enrichment facility last month, the newspaper quoted intelligence sources as saying.
South Korea's foreign ministry declined to confirm the details of the report, but said: "Nothing has been confirmed that would prove the North is preparing to conduct a nuclear test."

MORE:
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6BE0DT20101215

===================

8. Canadian media chastised for not reporting Richard Holbrooke's final words on Afghanistan

http://www.straight.com/article-364271/vancouver/
canadian-media-chastised-not-reporting-richard-holbrookes-final-words-afghanistan

By Charlie Smith, December 14, 2010
[ QUOTE: Meanwhile, State Department spokesperson P.J. Crowley told reporters today that Holbrooke's final words were a joke and weren't intended to be taken seriously.]
A Vancouver peace activist has questioned why major Canadian news reports have not mentioned U.S. diplomat Richard Holbrooke's last words to end the war in Afghanistan.
Holbrooke, the top U.S. envoy to Afghanistan, recently died after undergoing heart surgery for a ruptured aorta.
Family members reported that his final words were: "You've got to stop this war in Afghanistan."
Derrick O'Keefe, cochair of the Canadian Peace Alliance, told the Straight by phone that reports in the Globe and Mail and on CBC's national televised newscast neglected to mention Holbrooke's final statement, even though this was included in many U.S. broadcasts and print outlets, including the Washington Post's obituary.
O'Keefe noted that the Washington Post has traditionally been one of the more hawkish U.S. newspapers about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"The whole thing indicates that Holbrooke and the foreign-policy establishment—the elite in the U.S.—are very frustrated by how the war is going and are beginning to look for ways out," O'Keefe said. "That may have been his final assignment, although there is all kinds of fighting going on within the [Obama] administration and the Pentagon, including between Holbrooke and Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama."
O'Keefe added that the three of them were not necessarily on the same page.
"I think all of the chaos and confusion within the U.S. administration over Afghanistan and Pakistan is an indication of just how badly the war itself is going," he said.
The Canadian Peace Alliance described the failure of national Canadian media outlets to report Holbrooke's final words as an "unacceptable omission".

MORE:
http://www.straight.com/article-364271/vancouver/
canadian-media-chastised-not-reporting-richard-holbrookes-final-words-afghanistan

==================

9. Pugliese on the F-35 fighter

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6597&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 14 Dec 2010 12:09 PM PST
Recent coverage by reporter David Pugliese on the F-35 and Canada: “Can the F-35 win a charm offensive?” Ottawa Citizen, 13 December 2010 “Peter Mackay in F-35 Attack Mode,” Ottawa Citizen, 13 December 2010 “Selling Canada on the need for fighters,” Ottawa Citizen, 12 December 2010 “The untold story of Canada’s JSF deal,” Ottawa Citizen, [...]

==================

10. Argentina recognizes Palestine statehood

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/06/
argentina-palestinian-territories.html

Last Updated: Monday, December 6, 2010 | 6:46 PM ET The Associated Press
Argentina announced Monday it recognizes the Palestinian territories as a free and independent state within the 1967 borders, a step it said reflects frustration at the slow progress of peace talks with Israel.
President Cristina Fernandez informed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of the decision, which follows a similar move by Brazil, Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman said.
Argentina is "deeply frustrated" that the goals of the 1991 peace talks in Madrid and the Oslo Accords of 1993 still have not been reached, Timerman said.
"The time has come to recognize Palestine as a free and independent state," he said.
He stressed that Argentina also "ratifies its irrevocable position in favour of the right of Israel to be recognized by everyone and to live in peace and security within its borders."
Argentina has a deep interest in seeing Israelis and Palestinians agree to a deep and lasting peace in the Middle East, Timerman said.
"Argentina's decision to recognize the Palestine state is based in the desire of its authorities to favour the process of negotiation aimed at ending the conflict."
Following Brazil
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki rejoiced at Argentina's decision, which comes three days after Brazil's recognition. He told The Associated Press on Monday he expects Uruguay and Paraguay to recognize Palestinian statehood in the next few days, followed by Bolivia and Ecuador.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/06/
argentina-palestinian-territories.html

=================

11. How the Pentagon Turns Working-Class Men into the Deadliest Killers on the Planet

http://www.alternet.org/story/149165/
how_the_pentagon_turns_working-class_men_into_the_deadliest_killers_on_the_planet

An excerpt from antiwar activist Swanson's new book, War Is a Lie.
December 10, 2010 |
The following is an excerpt from David Swanson’s self-published new book War is a Lie (David Swanson, 2010).
Since the Vietnam War, the United States has dropped all pretense of a military draft equally applied to all. Instead we spend billions of dollars on recruitment, increase military pay, and offer signing bonuses until enough people "voluntarily" join by signing contracts that allow the military to change the terms at will. If more troops are needed, just extend the contracts of the ones you've got. Need more still? Federalize the National Guard and send kids off to war who signed up thinking they'd be helping hurricane victims. Still not enough? Hire contractors for transportation, cooking, cleaning, and construction. Let the soldiers be pure soldiers whose only job is to kill, just like the knights of old. Boom, you've instantly doubled the size of your force, and nobody's noticed except the profiteers.
Still need more killers? Hire mercenaries. Hire foreign mercenaries. Not enough? Spend trillions of dollars on technology to maximize the power of each person. Use unmanned aircraft so nobody gets hurt. Promise immigrants they'll be citizens if they join. Change the standards for enlistment: take 'em older, fatter, in worse health, with less education, with criminal records. Make high schools give recruiters aptitude test results and students' contact information, and promise students they can pursue their chosen field within the wonderful world of death, and that you'll send them to college if they live ? hey, just promising it costs you nothing. If they're resistant, you started too late. Put military video games in shopping malls. Send uniformed generals into kindergartens to warm the children up to the idea of truly and properly swearing allegiance to that flag. Spend 10 times the money on recruiting each new soldier as we spend educating each child. Do anything, anything, anything other than starting a draft

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149165/
how_the_pentagon_turns_working-class_men_into_the_deadliest_killers_on_the_planet

=================

12. Another exceptional American takes aim at Iran

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/americas/2010/12/13/
another-exceptional-american-takes-aim-iran

By Teymoor Nabili in Americas on December 13th, 2010.
The Washington Post's new, neocon op-ed contributor, Jennifer Rubin, is very happy to position herself firmly in far-right territory.
What do I believe in? For starters: American exceptionalism, limited government, free markets, a secure and thriving Jewish state, defense of freedom and human rights around the world, enforced borders with a generous legal immigration policy [...]
Not surprising, then that she wastes no time in jumping on one of the right's bandwagon's du jour - Iran.
There's no real point in commenting on the thin and by-the-numbers "analysis" of the Iran situation that comprises her debut column, save to highlight one breath-takingly glib and offensive comment:
“ we should continue and enhance espionage and sabotage of the Iranian nuclear program. Every nuclear scientist who has a "car accident" and every computer virus buys us time, setting back the timeline for Iran's nuclear capability, while exacting a price for those who cooperate with the nuclear program. Think of it as the ultimate targeted sanction. “
Perhaps not surprisingly, she doesn't bother to explain how the assassination of civilian scientists, or attacking peaceful sovereign nations, fits in with her declared belief in "human rights around the world", but I guess that wouldn't fit in with the flippant tone of her theory.

MORE:
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/americas/2010/12/13/
another-exceptional-american-takes-aim-iran

=================

13. WATCH: DEMOCRACY NOW!: December 15, 2010 (59 mins.)

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/12/15/
richard_holbrooke_dies_at_69_remembering

Attorney: Swedish Case is a "Holding Charge" to Get Julian Assange Extradited to U.S.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange remains in a London prison after Swedish authorities challenged the court’s decision to release him on bail with conditions. Assange’s attorney Mark Stephens joins us to discuss his possible extradition to Sweden for questioning on alleged sexual crimes amidst rumors the Obama administration has convened a grand jury to indict Assange in the United States. [includes rush transcript]

John Pilger: Global Support for WikiLeaks is "Rebellion" Against U.S. Militarism, Secrecy
The award-winning investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker John Pilger is one of many high-profile public supporters of Julian Assange and his organization WikiLeaks. Pilger has attended Assange’s court proceedings in London and has offered to contribute funds for his more than $300,000 bail. Pilger’s latest film, The War You Don’t See, includes interviews with Assange. Pilger says that WikiLeaks is revolutionizing journalism and galvanizing public opinion to stand up to global elites. [includes rush transcript]

Richard Holbrooke Dies at 69: Remembering Veteran Diplomat’s Overlooked Record in East Timor, Iraq and the Balkans
Since his death this week at the age of 69, veteran U.S. diplomat Richard Holbrooke has been remembered for a storied career that includes brokering the 1995 Dayton peace accords that ended the war in Bosnia. But little attention has been paid to his role in implementing and backing U.S. policies that killed thousands of civilians. Independent journalists Jeremy Scahill and John Pilger join us to discuss Holbrooke’s record in carrying out U.S. policy in Vietnam, East Timor, the Balkans, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Scahill says Holbrooke "represented the utter militarization of what is called 'U.S. diplomacy.'" [includes rush transcript]

================

14. WIKILEAKS UPDATE: December 15, 2010

WikiLeaks: Call of Duty

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/12/
2010129102245193184.html

Leaks have made it harder for Western governments to dupe their citizens into accepting potential future wars.
Mark LeVine Last Modified: 09 Dec 2010 15:40 GMT
For professional historians the publication of the vast trove of diplomatic cables is a bittersweet affair.
No one outside of the Washington establishment and the myriad foreign leaders shamed by revelations of their penchant for hatred, hubris and pedestrian peccadillos can seriously argue that the release of these classified documents has done anything but good for the cause of peace and political transparency.
Whether about Iraq, Afghanistan, or the minuate of American diplomacy, they have shed crucial light on some of the most important issues of the day and will make it much harder for Western or Middle Eastern governments to lie to their people about so many aspects of the various wars on/of terror in the future.
Indeed, if there's anyone who deserves the next Nobel Peace Prize more than the courageous American soldier, Bradley Manning, who is alleged to have given the documents to Wikileaks in the first place, I'd like to know.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/12/
2010129102245193184.html

= = = = = =

Julian Assange, Tariq Aziz, a Death Sentence and the United Nations Day of International Human Rights

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22356

By Felicity Arbuthnot Global Research, December 10, 2010

" ... the high praise of God in their mouth, and a two edged sword in their hand ..." (Psalms : 149.5)

The avalanche of proof provided by Wikileaks that the U.S., and U.K., governments have been indulging in what millions have been convinced of for a very long time: just about every kind of underhand, lying, cheating, murderous skulduggery, with quite an enlightening amount of sneering and back biting towards their "allies." Predictably, they are now moving heaven and earth to shoot the messenger.
If every government Minister who had allegedly indulged in a frolic with a couple of ladies had an international arrest warrant issued against him, as in the case of Julian Assange, there would be some pretty empty parliaments. In Canada, Professor Tom Flanagan, a former advisor to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, went further, proposing that assassination was appropriate. Speaking on CBC, he suggested that President "Nobel" Obama should: “put out a contract and maybe use a drone or something.” When the programme's anchor suggested this was :"... pretty harsh stuff", Flanagan responded that he was: "... feeling very manly today." Is there a doctor out there?

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22356

= = = = = = =

Don't shoot the messenger, award him the Nobel Peace Prize

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=24392

Michael Mullins December 06, 2010
[WATCH: VIDEO: TED Interview with Julian Assange - 19.34 min.]
WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange are being demonised by what appears to be a slanderous propaganda campaign being waged at the highest levels of governments around the world.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has branded the release of secret information as 'an attack on the international community', and Assange is wanted by Interpol on account of dubious sex crimes.
Assange's character flaws are being exaggerated in order to shift the burden of shame from governments on to Assange himself. There is a possibility that the messenger will be shot, literally.
Yet this year WikiLeaks has taught us valuable lessons about the suppression and manipulation of information, and how such activities pose a threat to the common good.
This is how it goes. We accept a particular version of events because it is presented to us by a public figure or organisation we trust. That is how it should be. But public officials need scrutiny to ensure they are acting in the public interest, and not their own or that of a third party.
It's our right to query the benefit in being kept in the dark, for example, on the secret moves of US and UK officials to undermine the ban on cluster bombs. One of the cables released by WikiLeaks shows that the British Foreign Office suggested a loophole to allow the US to keep cluster bombs on British soil should be kept from Parliament.
It's likely that the geopolitical interests of the US and the UK were being put ahead of the lives of innocent civilians in war zones. (….)
Michael Mullins is editor of Eureka Street. He also teaches media ethics in the University of Sydney's Department of Media and Communications.

= = = = = = =

Society and the world, after Julian Assange

http://english.pravda.ru//society/stories/11-12-2010/
116160-society_and_the_world_after_assange-0/?mode=print

11.12.2010 12:02
Mauro Santayana reminds us, "Rome was not that strong"
by Mauro Santayana
"All who can write and manipulate a computer are citizens, who are more than journalists."
President Lula and Prime Minister Putin made basically the same speech yesterday [9 / 12] in defense of Julian Assange, although with different arguments. Lula made this point: Assange is just using the old right of freedom of the press, of information. It is not proper to accuse him of causing damage to one of the greatest powers in history, since the authenticity of the released documents is not disputed. Everyone knows that the allegations of misconduct in consensual relationships with two women of Cuban origin in Sweden are just a pretext to detain him, so that other charges can be mounted, and he can be extradited to the United States.
What is required is to examine the political consequences from the disclosure of the secret Yankee diplomatic documents, some laughable, others very serious. Yesterday [9 / 12] in Brussels, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov commented on the revelations of WikiLeaks on the attitudes of NATO toward his country. While the organization, under the domination of Washington, called on Russia to join the alliance, it was updating their plans for military action against the Kremlin, in the presumed defense of Poland and the Baltic countries. Lavrov asked NATO what is your real position, since what is publicly assumed is the reverse of what they say in their secret documents. Moscow went further, proposing the name of Assange as a candidate the next Nobel Peace Prize.

MORE:
http://english.pravda.ru//society/stories/11-12-2010/
116160-society_and_the_world_after_assange-0/?mode=print

= = = = = = = =

WikiLeaks may make the powerful howl, but we are learning the truth

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/dec/11/
henry-porter-wikileaks-cables

WikiLeaks has offered us glimpses of how the world works. And in most cases nothing but good can come of it
Henry Porter guardian.co.uk, Saturday 11 December 2010 21.30 GMT
I have lost count of the politicians and opinion formers of an authoritarian bent warning of the dreadful damage done by the WikiLeaks dump of diplomatic cables, and in the very next breath dismissing the content as frivolous tittle-tattle. To seek simultaneous advantage from opposing arguments is not a new gambit, but to be wrong in both is quite an achievement.
Publication of the cables has caused no loss of life; troops are not being mobilised; and the only real diplomatic crisis is merely one of discomfort. The idea that the past two weeks have been a disaster is self-evidently preposterous. Yet the leaks are of unprecedented importance because, at a stroke, they have enlightened the masses about what is being done in their name and have shown the corruption, incompetence – and sometimes wisdom – of our politicians, corporations and diplomats. More significantly, we have been given a snapshot of the world as it is, rather than the edited account agreed upon by diverse elites, whose only common interest is the maintenance of their power and our ignorance.
The world has changed, not simply because governments find they are just as vulnerable to the acquisition, copying and distribution of huge amounts of data as the music, publishing and film businesses were, but because we are unlikely to return to the happy ignorance of the past. Knowing Saudi Arabia has urged the bombing of Iran, that Shell maintains an iron grip on the government of Nigeria, that Pfizer hired investigators to disrupt investigations into drugs trials on children, also in Nigeria, that the Pakistan intelligence service, the ISI, is swinging both ways on the Taliban, that China launched a cyber attack on Google, that North Korean has provided nuclear scientists to Burma, that Russia is a virtual mafia state in which security services and gangsters are joined at the hip – and knowing all this in some detail – means we are far more likely to treat the accounts of events we are given in the future with much greater scepticism.
Never mind the self-serving politicians who waffle on about the need for diplomatic confidentiality when they themselves order the bugging of diplomats and hacking of diplomatic communications. What is astonishing is the number of journalists out there who argue that it is better not to know these things, that the world is safer if the public is kept in ignorance.

MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/dec/11/
henry-porter-wikileaks-cables

= = = = = = =

Breakaway WikiLeaks staff form new service

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/
breakaway-wikileaks-staff-form-new-service/article1836343/

DOUG SAUNDERS LONDON— From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 7:35PM EST Last updated Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 7:52PM EST
Of all the legal, sexual and financial charges levelled against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in recent days, the most damaging – and surprising – may be that he is doing a disservice to whistleblowers.
Yet this is exactly how a group of the document-leaking website’s core staff, including the man who until a few weeks ago was its second-in-command, characterize the 39-year-old Australian as they have announced their break from his organization to create a new service, OpenLeaks, which they say will offer three things WikiLeaks has never managed: transparency, a direct link to the media and lack of celebrity.

MORE:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/
breakaway-wikileaks-staff-form-new-service/article1836343/

by **Oscar** » Tue Dec 21, 2010 9:46 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 21, 2010

1. ACTION ALERT! March Hearings for Darlington New Nuclear – Register by Jan 13th! Deadline for submissions: Feb. 14
2. Saskatchewan to become nuclear waste dumping site? (Distributed with Editor’s permission – Dec. 21.10) (2 articles)
3. Creighton looking at nuclear waste storage
4. Emergency call from nuclear waste vessel
5. Feds' plans to sell AECL melting down amid weak interest in Candu technology
6. Atomic Energy: Climate Fix… or Folly?
7. No Nukes News - Dec. 20, 2010
8. Greenpeace sound alarm of radioactive spill in the Niger
9. Nuclear Reaction Weblog - GREENPEACE International
10. REPORT: The Real Face of the IAEA's Multilateral Nuclear Approaches, the proliferation of nuclear weapon material & environmental contamination report (Sept. 2005)
11. NIKIFORUK: Idea #1: The Green Hawks Are Coming
12. Canada’s dwindling peacekeepers
13. No F-35 Stealth Fighters Campaign Update
14. John Pilger: The War You Don’t See (must-see)
15. Turkmen natural gas pipeline Tapi to cross Afghanistan
16. US spy agencies paint grim picture of Afghan war
17. The mystery of missile defence
18. Russian Armed Forces on High Alert Over North Korea
19. Risk of war rising in Korean peninsula: Adm. Mullen
20. Canada-EU trade talks put Canada’s water up for sale, says new report
21. Espionage Act: How the Government Can Engage in Serious Aggression Against the People of the United States
22. WATCH: WikiRebels - The Documentary (57.25 min.)
23. Beware the Psychopath, My Son

==================

1. ACTION ALERT! March Hearings for Darlington New Nuclear – Register by Jan 13th! Deadline for submissions: Feb. 14

The Ontario Government plans to build up to four new nuclear reactors at the site of the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station near Oshawa.
A joint panel appointed over a year ago to conduct an environmental review of the proposal announced on December 14th that the public hearing will begin March 21st, 2011
The panel has declared that anyone wanting to speak at the hearing or provide written comments (or both) must register their intention to do so by January 13th.
That's right! You must register by January 13th -- 67 days in advance of the March 21st hearing start!
You can register on-line and the Hearing Panel secretariat will then contact you with "details" such as the hearing location and exact schedule (the hearing will be held in Durham Region) - the link is

http://www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/commission/
joint_review_panel/darlington/jrp_form/index_darlington.cfm

Alternatively, you can contact the Secretariat at 1-866-582-1884 or by email at darlington.review@ceaa-acee.gc.ca and provide them with your contact information, an indication if you want to make an oral presentation to the panel or provide a written submission, and describe your area of interest in the proposal.
Don't delay! Do it today!
For more details about the hearing or information about the proposal to build up to four new nuclear reactors at Darlington please visit the following sites:
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission at http://www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/commission/joint_review_panel/
darlington/index.cfm

Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency at
http://www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca/050/details- ... tion=29525

Greenpeace at
http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/campaigns/
end-the-nuclear-threat/

Ontario Clean Air Alliance at
http://www.cleanairalliance.org/

= = = = = =
Darlington New Nuclear Power Plant Project Joint Review Panel Announces Public Hearing – Deadline to Register: January 13, 2010

http://www.waterkeeper.ca/2010/12/15/
darlington-new-nuclear-power-plant-project-joint-review-panel-announces-public-hearing/

December 15, 2010
Members of the public, Aboriginal groups, other interested parties and government organizations that wish to participate in the public hearing are required to register with the Panel Secretariat by January 13, 2011
The Joint Review Panel for the Darlington New Nuclear Power Plant project today announces that it has scheduled the public hearing for the project. The Panel has determined that the Environmental Impact Statement and the information in support of the application for a Licence to Prepare a Site, along with additional information supplied by Ontario Power Generation, has provided the Panel with enough information to proceed to a public hearing.
The public hearing sessions will begin on March 21, 2011 at a venue in or near the project area. More information on the location of the hearing, hearing session dates and a schedule will be available in advance of the hearing.
The public hearing will give any person with an interest in the project the opportunity to hear about the project and its potential environmental effects and to provide their views to the Joint Review Panel. The hearing will also allow the proponent to present an overview of the project and to offer clarifying information and additional technical information as required.
Any person may attend the public hearing as an observer or may view the written transcripts of the proceedings or the hearing submissions on the online registry.
Public Hearing Procedures that lead to an online Application Form, are being issued by the Panel today and are available on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry internet site, reference number 07-05-29525 and on the Web site of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission at
www.cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca
Members of the public, Aboriginal groups, other interested parties and government organizations that wish to participate in the public hearing are required to register with the Panel Secretariat by January 13, 2011 as detailed in the Public Hearing Procedures.
If you have any questions about the process or participating at the hearing, or to view important deadlines visit this website: Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry – Supporting Document.

NOTE: Deadline to receive written submissions from intervenors for the Darlington New Nuclear Power Plant Project Joint Review Panel Public Hearing is February 14, 2011.

=================

2. Saskatchewan to become nuclear waste dumping site? (Distributed with Editor’s permission – Dec. 21.10) (2 articles)

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/
viewtopic.php?p=1967#1967

By Salome van der Merwe Published in the Tisdale Recorder on December 8, 2010
Imagine a waste material so poisonous that if a human were to hold a handful at arm’s-length, he or she would be dead in less than five minutes.
So, if this is the fact, why would anyone even consider allowing our beloved province of Saskatchewan to become a dumping site for this highly radioactive and toxic waste material called nuclear waste?
Well, you might think this is crazy and the answer is clear-cut, but it sure is not and it has become our reality. Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), an organization seeking a location to store nuclear fuel waste, has given the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations $1 million to hold information sessions with two specific rural communities.
What makes this more frightening is the fact that both the English River First Nations as well as the Metis village of Pinehouse, the two prospective nuclear waste storage sites in Saskatchewan, have already shown interest in the project and have sat in on an initial meeting with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization.
In an attempt to raise awareness of the dangers and ultimately preventing the NWMO of importing high-level radioactive waste into Saskatchewan, the Green Party has been visiting communities in Saskatchewan and enabling discussions around this very concerning issue.
On Sunday, November 28th representatives of the Green Party of Saskatchewan visited the Town of Tisdale, hosting exactly such a discussion in the Chicken Delight boardroom.

MORE:
http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/vie ... =1967#1967
= = = = = = =
Nuclear waste a concern for the north

http://www.nipawinjournal.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2879620&auth=Melissa%20Mangelsen/Nipawin%20Journal

Local News By Melissa Mangelsen/Nipawin Journal December 8, 2010
Penny Swartz and Sandra Finley, of the Green Party of Saskatchewan, were in Nipawin, Nov. 27, to bring awareness to the issue regarding turning northern Saskatchewan into a nuclear waste disposal site.
Leader of the Green Party of Saskatchewan, Larissa Shasko, was supposed to attend as well, but something came up last minute and she was unable to be there.
Surprisingly, many people in the province are unaware that the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), which is a group created by Canada's nuclear electricity industry to find a new home for nuclear fuel waste, is looking for a place to bury high level nuclear waste in Canada and that Saskatchewan is in the crosshairs.
Two of the dumpsites they are targeting are at the Métis Village of Pinehouse and the English River First Nation.
Though Pinehouse and English River have shown interest in storing the nuclear waste, it's not something that the province has mad its mind up about yet.
The plan calls for used nuclear fuel to be put deep underground in stable rock formations. To be selected, a village or First Nation's council would have to pass a resolution saying it was interested. IT would also need a parcel of land for the site to be built on.
Finley said the threat from a nuclear dumpsite in Saskatchewan would be huge, and not just affect the communities that are habouring the waste. There is about 40,000 tons of nuclear waste that has accumulated in eastern Canada. This would require several truckloads over several decades to move the waste into Saskatchewan.
It would require about 20,000 truckloads of high-level wastes moving through our communities.
"Accidents happen, for us to believe that there will be no accidents involving these trucks that are shipping the nuclear waste is naive," said Finley.
The question remains – what would you do if there was an accident outside of your home, which began leaking nuclear waste?

MORE:
http://www.nipawinjournal.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2879620&auth=Melissa%20Mangelsen/Nipawin%20Journal

==================

3. Creighton looking at nuclear waste storage

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2010/12/16/
sk-creighton-nuclear-waste-1012.html

Last Updated: Thursday, December 16, 2010 | 1:16 PM CST CBC News
Another northern Saskatchewan town is showing interest in storing nuclear waste.
The town of Creighton, which is just west of the border with Manitoba, recently sent a delegation to meet with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization, which is looking for a site to store Canada's used nuclear fuel.
Mayor Bruce Fidler said it's just information-gathering right now, but the jobs would be welcome in the town, which has about 1,500 residents.
"For years, we've been trying to investigate and entice other industries to move up to the area," he said.
Meanwhile, the waste organization is checking on the suitability of two other Saskatchewan sites: Pinehouse and the English River First Nation.
NWMO is looking for a community to store used nuclear fuel, but a spokesman for the organization, Michael Krizanc, said it's in no hurry to select a site.
"There is no urgency to move the used nuclear fuel now, it has to be done safely, and if it's to be done safely, it has to be not only technically safe, but it has to be safe from the perspective of the community," he said.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2010/12/16/
sk-creighton-nuclear-waste-1012.html

================

4. Emergency call from nuclear waste vessel

http://barentsobserver.com/
emergency-call-from-nuclear-waste-vessel.4864069-16149.html

Thomas Nilsen, Barents Observer, December 20, 2010
Last week "Puma" delivered nuclear waste in Murmansk. On its return voyage around Norway's Finnmark coast, a leakage happened and the vessel had to seek emergency assistance.
The vessel is currently portside in Hammerfest in Northern Norway, reports the local newspaper Finnmark Dagblad.
Over the last two weeks, BarentsObserver has reported about the small cargo vessel "Puma" that sailed all round Europe from Slovenia to Murmansk with spent nuclear fuel from a Serbian research reactor.
"Puma" unloaded the highly radioactive waste in Murmansk last Thursday and then sailed back.
The nuclear waste vessel got much attention while sailing around the coast of Norway.
On the return on Saturday, the vessel got a leak and stared to take in water in its engine room. Luckily, the vessel did not have any nuclear waste onboard on its return voyage.
The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Northern Norway was alarmed and a rescue vessel sailed to assist "Puma" around 9 pm. Saturday night.
"Puma" then sailed in to sheltered wasters around Soroya near Hammerfest where it anchored up.
The Norwegian Coast Guard vessel "Farm" also assisted "Puma". The vessel sailed to the port in Hammerfest Sunday morning.
On its way to Murmansk "Puma" had containers with 8,6 kg highly enriched spent nuclear fuel and 45 kg of low enriched spent nuclear fuel.

Read also:
More European nuclear waste heading to Murmanskhttp://www.barentsobserver.com/
more-european-nuclear-waste-heading-to-murmansk.4847926-156838.html

====================

5. Feds' plans to sell AECL melting down amid weak interest in Candu technology

http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/
Feds+plans+sell+AECL+melting+down+amid+weak+interest+Candu+technology/3989860/story.html

By Andrew Mayeda, Postmedia News, December 16, 2010
OTTAWA — The Harper government's plans to sell the troubled Candu unit of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., appear at risk of unravelling, with one of the two official bidders said to be wavering in its commitment to take on the challenge of marketing new Candu reactors.
Montreal-based engineering and construction giant SNC-Lavalin insists it hasn't withdrawn its bid to acquire the Candu division of the Crown corporation. But multiple sources within the Canadian nuclear industry say, at the very least, SNC's interest is cooling because of the federal government's desire to divest itself of the entire Candu division, including the "new-build" group that develops and sells new reactors.

MORE:
http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/
Feds+plans+sell+AECL+melting+down+amid+weak+interest+Candu+technology/3989860/story.html

===================

6. Atomic Energy: Climate Fix… or Folly?

http://eii.org/journal/index.php/eij/ar ... x_or_folly

Earth Island Journal – Winter 2011
Nuclear vs. Renewables

Discussion: Nuclear Power is Safe, Sound …and Green - by Stewart Brand VERSUS Nuclear Nonsense - by Amory B. Lovins

In the 1970s and 80s, halting the expansion of nuclear power was a key priority for many environmental groups. But with global greenhouse gas levels continuing to rise, some greens say that carbon-free nuclear power plants deserve a second look. In an energy-hungry world, is splitting the atom smarter than burning fossil fuels? Stewart Brand thinks so, and says that concerns about nuclear waste are overwrought. Amory Lovins disagrees, arguing that cheaper, faster, more effective, more secure climate and energy solutions can deliver the services the world needs.

Discussion is at:
http://eii.org/journal/index.php/eij/ar ... x_or_folly

===================

7. No Nukes News - Dec. 20, 2010
Blessings of the season.
Here’s to a non-nuclear 2011! - a
-------------------
‘There is, as yet, no proven technical solution for the long-term management of radioactive wastes, and in the meantime we are storing up large quantities of high level spent fuel and intermediate-level radioactive waste in interim stores at each reactor site’. - Prof Andrew Blowers, a member of the first Government Committee on Radioactive Waste Management
----------------------------------------------------------------
Our new pamphlets have arrived: Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout:
No More Blank Cheques for Ontario Power Generation and its Darlington Nuclear Station. They contain postcards addressed to Premier McGuinty and the Leader of the Opposition Tim Hudak. Order FREE copies here. Give them to your friends, neighbours, local coffee shops, etc. Help get the word out that there are lower cost and safer ways to meet all our electricity needs without investing tens of billions of $$ in nuclear energy.
***See ACTION ALERT above re: Darlington Hearings
----------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear refit a huge task
OPG chief says industry learned from mistakes, vows overhaul will be safe, on time, on budget
http://www.newsdurhamregion.com/articlePrint/167766
----------------------------------------------------------------

Feds' plans to sell AECL melting down amid weak interest in Candu technology
The Harper government's plans to sell the troubled Candu unit of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., appear at risk of unravelling, with one of the two official bidders said to be wavering in its commitment to take on the challenge of marketing new Candu reactors.
One nuclear-industry expert said it's not surprising SNC would be getting cold feet, given the delays and massive cost overruns often associated with building new reactors.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/
Feds+plans+sell+AECL+melting+down+amid+weak+interest+Candu+technology/3989860/story.html
-------
An 11th-hour bid for Candu reactor unit
The offer put together by Canadian entrepreneur Andrew Day is the only bid thus far focused solely on building and marketing new Candu reactors. The other two bidders, SNC Lavalin and Bruce Power, are believed to be primarily interested in AECL's refurbishment and engineering-services lines of business, which generate a steady stream of revenue through contracts to offer technical support and extend the life of reactors across Canada. Whatever the case, the winning bid is unlikely to be very impressive in dollar terms, industry sources say. The government is more interested in getting the troubled Crown corporation off its books than generating a major windfall from the sale.
Since 2006-7, the federal government has plowed $1.74 billion in public funding into AECL. Last year, the Candu division lost $331 million, even after receiving $124 million in parliamentary appropriations.

http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescol ... /business/
story.html?id=95d0e584-1d8d-46cd-9fd6-71255142bd33
----------------------------------------------------------------

Have your say Ontarians
Ask Tim Hudak to tell Ontario Power Generation that a Hudak Government will not allow it to pass its cost overruns associated with its proposed Darlington Re-Build Project on to Ontario’s electricity consumers and taxpayers. Scroll down to the Environment section, and then scroll down to the Yourself section where you can expand with a few sentences. Thanks.
http://haveyoursayontario.ca/
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The government isn’t telling us the true cost of nuclear waste disposal
The Ecologist - UK plans for ten new nuclear power plants will create £80 billion worth of radioactive waste that we still have no secure way of disposing

http://www.theecologist.org/blogs_and_c ... mentators/
other_comments/691982/the_government_isnt_telling_us_the_true_cost_of_nuclear_waste_disposal.html

----------------------------------------------------------------
Nuclear power plant to be mothballed
Even though it will shut down in nine years, the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant — including its reactor and tons of radioactive waste — will remain part of the Lacey landscape for perhaps decades to come. Plants can take up to 60 years to decommission, he noted.
http://www.app.com/article/20101209/NEWS03/12090331/
Oyster-Creek-s-nucler-power-plant-to-be-mothballed
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Into Eternity
This jaw-dropping documentary tackles a subject almost beyond comprehension – radioactive nuclear waste
Madsen's film is about Onkalo, a colossal underground tomb being built in Finland, 500 metres below the earth – supposedly impervious to any event on the surface and far away from any possible earthquake danger: its purpose is to house thousands of tonnes of radioactive nuclear waste.
The point is that, to be safe, this gigantic bunker has to last 100,000 years. Are we humans capable of even conceiving this, let alone actually guaranteeing it? Our own history spans a few paltry millennia. We have, of course, created nothing that has lasted anything like this length of time. And yet Onkalo has to do it – there is no question about this. Finland is building something that must outlast every institution humans have ever conceived.
This is nothing less than post-human architecture we are talking about. Why isn't every government, every philosopher, every theologian, everywhere in the world discussing Onkalo and its implications? I don't know, but they should see this film.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/nov/11/
into-eternity-film-review

- - - - - - - -

Recklessness with Nuclear Waste
Hanford remains one of the most contaminated zones in the western Hemisphere.
http://www.ips-dc.org/blog/recklessness ... lear_waste
----------------------------------------------------------------

Stand up for Solar
Stand Up For Solar is a new advocacy effort to showcase public and industry support for solar energy in Ontario and Canada. Our website portal provides one location for interested individuals to show their support for solar energy and the need for continued government support that helps to make Ontario and Canada a positive environment for investment in solar energy production. Send an email to your MPP here, and learn more about solar energy.
http://www.standupforsolar.ca/
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ecoENERGY shutdown is killing Ontario jobs
“Home energy efficiency retrofits is a billion dollar industry in Ontario and we’re about to lose it,” warned Clifford Maynes, Executive Director of Green Communities Canada.
Government incentives for home energy efficiency investments are slated to end in March 2011, and so far neither Ottawa nor Queen’s Park have announced plans to keep the industry alive beyond the expiry of current programs. “Energy efficiency is the most effective way to create green jobs and business opportunities. Increasing energy productivity should be the cornerstone of Ontario’s green economy,” Maynes said.

http://www.huffstrategy.com/MediaManager/release/
Green-Communities-Canada/13-12-10/Interview-Opportunity---ecoENERGY-shutdown-is-killing-Ontario-job/2156.html
----------------------------------------------------------------

Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402
Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

====================

8. Greenpeace sound alarm of radioactive spill in the Niger

http://africasciencenews.org/asns/
index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2632&Itemid=2

Written by Mainasara Adeleke Saturday, 18 December 2010
Verifiable reports sent to Greenpeace indicate that more than 200,000 cubic litres of radioactive sludge from three cracked waste pools have been leaking into the environment at the SOMAIR uranium mine in Niger since December 11. The mine is operated by the French energy company AREVA.
Almoustapha Alhacen who carried out an inspection of the spill for NGO Aghir in'Man confirmed to Greenpeace that two hectares have been contaminated by the spill since December 11th.
“This new leakage shows that the bad practices at the AREVA uranium mines in Niger continue to threaten the health and safety of people and the environment”, said Rianne Teule, energy campaigner for Greenpeace Africa. “In contrast to AREVA’s statements claiming their operations comply with international health, safety and environmental standards, this new information shows that AREVA has not sufficiently acted to protect the Nigerien population”.
In May 2010, a Greenpeace report, “Left in the Dust” revealed dangerous contamination levels in the air, water and soil around the AREVA uranium mines in Niger.
The report detailed how the people of the mining towns Arlit and Akokan are surrounded by poisoned air, contaminated soil and polluted water.

MORE:
http://africasciencenews.org/asns/
index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2632&Itemid=2

==================

9. Nuclear Reaction Weblog - GREENPEACE International

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/
nuclear-reaction/?page=1

Blogging the meltdown of the nuclear industry. Sign up and login to join the conversation.

( All Links are on website above…)

Radioactive spill at AREVA Uranium mine in Niger
Blogpost by Justin - December 18, 2010 at 0:42
Johannesburg, December 17, 2010 – Greenpeace has today received and verified reports that since December 11th, more than 200,000 litres of radioactive sludge from three cracked waste pools has leaked into the environment at the SOMAIR uranium m... Read more >

Nuclear protesting works and we’re not going to stop
Blogpost by Justin - December 17, 2010 at 13:22
Here is a great victory for the anti-nuclear power campaign in Germany:
Germany has halted a controversial plan to transport highly radioactive reactor fuel rods to Russia for reprocessing and storage of nuclear waste following strong protests fro... Read more >

Nuclear News: Israel Shoots Down UFO Over Nuclear Power Plant
Blogpost by Justin - December 17, 2010 at 13:10

Associated Content: Israel Shoots Down UFO Over Nuclear Power Plant
‘A rather eye-catching piece of news was reported Thursday with regard to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the downing of what appears to be an actual UFO, an unidentified fl... Read more >

Nuclear News: New nuclear waste transport crosses into Germany
Blogpost by Justin - December 16, 2010 at 10:13

Deutsche Welle: New nuclear waste transport crosses into Germany
‘A new train carrying nuclear waste has crossed into Germany from France on its way to a storage facility in northern Germany. Police are being deployed to ensure that anti-nuclea... Read more >

Nuclear News: No change for nuclear in Cancún
Blogpost by Justin - December 15, 2010 at 10:06

Nuclear N-Former: No change for nuclear in Cancún
‘Climate talks in Cancún have put negotiations back on track, but meaningful decisions on the future of nuclear power in the Clean Development Mechanism remain for future discussion... Read more >

Message from Cancun: Nuclear power cannot save the planet
Blogpost by Justin - December 14, 2010 at 16:52
As you’ll know, another round of international climate change negotiations took place last week in Cancun, Mexico. You can read Greenpeace’s response to the outcome of the talks here. What of attempts to have nuclear power included in th... Read more >

Nuclear News: UK to launch its biggest, deadliest nuclear submarine
Blogpost by Justin - December 14, 2010 at 12:52
Sify News: UK to launch its biggest, deadliest nuclear submarine
‘A nuclear reactor which can power a small city and guided-missiles that can pulverise an enemy more than 1,000 miles away -- meet HMS Ambush, the Royal Navy's newest killer submar... Read more >

Nuclear News: Anti-nuclear protesters call Germany 'nuclear toilet'
Blogpost by Justin - December 13, 2010 at 18:03

Deutsche Welle: Anti-nuclear protesters call Germany'nuclear toilet'
‘Around 2,000 demonstrators gathered in the German town of Greifswald on Saturday ahead of next week's planned nuclear-waste transport to the nearby storage facility in Lubmin.... Read more >

=================

10. REPORT: The Real Face of the IAEA's Multilateral Nuclear

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/PageFiles/
24532/IAEAmultilateralnuclearapproachreport.pdf

Approaches, the proliferation of nuclear weapon material & environmental contamination report (Sept. 2005)

===================

11. NIKIFORUK: Idea #1: The Green Hawks Are Coming
http://goto.thetyee.ca/
t?ctl=167C7CA:6D244622054605D0452300F66BF4BDCD8F7D795DAFB9E650&

Who's super serious about renewable energy and repelling climate change? The US military, of all people.
By Andrew Nikiforuk Monday, December 20, 2010

====================

12. Canada’s dwindling peacekeepers

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6633&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 20 Dec 2010 07:50 PM PST
The Toronto Star reports on Canada’s dwindling contribution to U.N. peacekeeping (Brett Popplewell, “Last of a dying breed: The Canadian peacekeeper,” Toronto Star, 11 December 2010): The Canadian mission in Sudan began in 2005, at the close of a 22-year civil war that saw a rebel movement in the south of the country fight with [...]

==================

13. No F-35 Stealth Fighters Campaign Update

http://community.intellicontact.com/p/rideauinistitute/
newsletters/ceasefire/posts/no-f-35-stealth-fighters-campaign-update

December 20, 2010
The government and the defence lobby are spending millions of our dollars on a PR blitz to convince Canadians to support the $16 billion F-35 stealth fighter program.
But we have been mounting our own response with a media campaign, including this opinion article published in two major newspapers in the last week. It was co-authored by my good friend, Tamara Lorincz of Halifax. Please share it with friends and colleagues.
I also want to thank everyone for their generous financial support for the campaign. Our special appeal this month has raised more than $20,000 for the campaign - the best response we've ever had.
We are moving into high gear for January, and I look forward to sharing our plans with you in the new year.
Best wishes to you and your family for this holiday season,
Steven Staples, Ceasefire.ca
= = = = = = =
Jet fighters a costly mistake for taxpayers

http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/
fighters+costly+mistake+taxpayers/3956836/story.html

By Tamara Lorincz and Steven Staples
Representatives from the Department of National Defence have recently crossed the country to promote the controversial purchase of stealth fighter jets.
Unfortunately, the DND representatives have not given a full and frank assessment of the F-35 stealth fighter program, the largest military equipment procurement in Canadian history.
Most significantly, they failed to disclose the serious risks, particularly financial, to the Canadian taxpayers.
In July, Defence Minister Peter MacKay announced the government's plan to buy 65 F-35s for an anticipated $9 billion, through a sole-source, non-competitive contract.
The F-35 stealth fighter is marketed as a fifth-generation fighter-bomber by its maker, U.S. weapons giant Lockheed Martin.
Despite the fact that MacKay has announced the fighter purchase, the government has not signed a contract with Lockheed Martin spelling out exactly how much each plane is going to cost Canadian taxpayers.
Though Lockheed Martin might have given an estimate on the price, a final contact won't be signed for another two or three years. Even worse, the cost to the Canadian government for the support and maintenance of the high-tech stealth fighters is not known and would be negotiated at a later date.
This program has troubled auditor general Sheila Fraser, who warned of the high risk of cost overruns and delays for the F-35 stealth fighters based on her audit of the Cyclone and sole-sourced Chinook helicopter purchases.
Earlier this year, the United States Government Accounting Office also found escalating costs and continuing technical problems with the F-35s in its congressional report entitled Joint Strike Fighter: Additional Costs and Delays Risk Not Meeting Warfighter Requirements on Time.
And in testimony before the standing committee on national defence in October, Alan Williams, a former DND deputy minister and author of the book Reinventing Defence Procurement, condemned the sole-sourcing of the stealth fighters and urged a competitive bidding process.
"An open, fair, and transparent process is critical," Williams said. "Undertaking sole-source deals leaves the procurement process more vulnerable to fraud, bribery and behind-the-scenes deal-making and leaves the federal government more susceptible to such charges.
"There's a moral obligation on the part of the leaders of this country to treat our citizens with a lot more respect and provide us really truthful, rigorous, detailed and appropriate answers, not be glibly trying to defend things that are frankly, from my view, indefensible," he said.

MORE:
http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/
fighters+costly+mistake+taxpayers/3956836/story.html

=================

14. John Pilger: The War You Don’t See (must-see)

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/

www.johnpilger.com

Posted: 20 Dec 2010 03:01 AM PST
The new film is a powerful and timely investigation into the media’s role in war, tracing the history of ‘embedded’ and independent reporting from the carnage of World War One to the destruction of Hiroshima, and from the invasion of Vietnam to the current war in Afghanistan and disaster in Iraq. As weapons [...]

==================

15. Turkmen natural gas pipeline Tapi to cross Afghanistan

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11977744

11 December 2010 Last updated at 18:10 ET
A deal has been struck on building a 1,700km (1,050m) pipeline to carry
Turkmen natural gas across Afghanistan to Pakistan and India.
The Tapi project aims to feed energy-deprived South Asian markets and transit fees may benefit Afghanistan.
But details about security and funding were not addressed in the framework agreement reached by the four states.
The pipeline will have to cross Taliban-controlled regions and Pakistan's troubled border region.
Turkmenistan has previously costed the project at $3.3bn (£2.1bn, 2.5bn euros) although other estimates are as high as $10bn.
Tapi, a project which dates back to the mid-1990s, is backed by the Asian
Development Bank (ADB).
The US has also encouraged the project as an alternative to a proposed Iranian pipeline to India and Pakistan.
- - - - SNIP - - - - -
"This will not be an easy project to complete - it is mandatory that we guarantee the security of the pipeline and the quality of construction work," ADP chief Haruhiko Kuroda told reporters in Ashgabat.row'
BBC © MMX

===================

16. US spy agencies paint grim picture of Afghan war

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22427

By Bill Van Auken Global Research, December 16, 2010

World Socialist Web Site:
http://www.wsws.org/index.shtml
Two reports produced by US intelligence agencies sharply contradict the American military's claims of success in the nine-year-old war in Afghanistan.
The National Intelligence Estimates on Afghanistan and Pakistan were recently presented in secret to members of the Senate and House intelligence committees. They represent the consensus view of Washington's 16 separate intelligence agencies, led by the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the State Department and the various arms of military intelligence.
Coming on the eve of the formal presentation by the Obama White House of its review of the US policy in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the reports stand in sharp contradiction to the rosy estimates being peddled by the US military.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22427

=================

17. The mystery of missile defence

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2010/12/
20101217172028248218.html

After the latest failed missile defence tests, critics wonder why the US has spent $100bn on the system.
Chris Arsenault Last Modified: 17 Dec 2010 22:45 GMT
The cold war ended two decades ago, but dreams of an impenetrable missile shield from Ronald Reagan - who once called the Soviet Union an "evil empire" - are firmly back on the US national security agenda.
Late on Wednesday, the US tested its newest round of interceptors, spending $100m to blast a missile from the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean towards California.
The anti-ballistic missile system failed, as the kill vehicle designed to blow the projectile out of the sky missed its target, adding to a long-list of unsuccessful tests for the expensive weaponisation scheme.
Since the end of the cold war the US has spent "approximately $100bn" on missile defence systems, Richard Lehner, a spokesman for the Missile Defence Agency, told Al Jazeera.
Wednesday’s failed long-range test was important because it involved an attempt to intercept a dummy warhead, rather than the usual testing scheme of just maneuvering the missile to a particular point in space, said Ian Anthony, the research coordinator for the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, a think-tank in Sweden.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2010/12/
20101217172028248218.html

===================

18. Russian Armed Forces on High Alert Over North Korea

http://www.infowars.com/
russian-armed-forces-on-high-alert-over-north-korea/

14 Dec 2010

Russia announced Tuesday that its armed forces in the east are on high alert. This comes in light of what it calls an "inadequate situation" on the Korean peninsula as tensions have increased in recent weeks between the North and South. The head of Russia's military said they continue to follow what is happening and have taken measures to raise the forces' combat readiness.

==================

19. Risk of war rising in Korean peninsula: Adm. Mullen

http://www.newkerala.com/news/world/ful ... 04690.html

14 Dec 2010
Admiral Mike Mullen, the top US military officer, has warned that the danger of war or hostilities is rising in the Korean peninsula. The warning of Mullen, who is the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has come following North Korea's threat that cooperation between its southern neighbour and the United States could trigger a nuclear war. According to Fox News [sic], Mullen told troops in Baghdad that North Korea is preparing for a combat with South Korea amid preparations for Kim Jong Il to pass power to his son.

============

20. Canada-EU trade talks put Canada’s water up for sale, says new report

http://www.canadians.org/media/trade/20 ... ec-10.html

RELEASE For Immediate Release December 16, 2010
Ottawa, ON -- Canada’s already challenged public water systems are under threat from a broad free trade agreement being negotiated by Canada and the European Union (EU). A new report released today, Public Water for Sale: How Canada will privatize our public water systems, warns that public water in Canada will be lost unless the provinces and territories take immediate steps to remove water from the scope of the proposed Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
The report from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) and the Council of Canadians exposes how CETA would open up public municipal water systems across Canada to privatization. At the request of Europe’s large private for-profit water corporations, provincial and territorial governments are considering including drinking water and wastewater services in their services commitments under CETA. They have been asked by the Harper government to make the final decision before a sixth round of CETA talks in Brussels this January.
“CETA is a water privatization deal,” says Maude Barlow, national chairperson of the Council of Canadians. “Our public water is being negotiated away behind closed doors. We need to act now or we will wake up one morning and our public water systems will be gone.”
CUPE and the Council of Canadians are calling on the provinces and territories to assert their jurisdiction and protect water from the Harper government’s reckless disregard for Canada’s public water. The report notes the CETA agreement would compound existing pressure in Canadian municipalities and First Nations reserves to privatize water systems due to a lack of proper public funding and federal programs designed to encourage privatization.
“Canadians hold a great deal of trust in publicly owned, operated and delivered water and sanitation systems,” says CUPE National President Paul Moist. “Water and other essential services – such as health care, public transit, postal services and energy – are vital to our communities. This deal will allow the world’s largest multinational corporations to profit from Canada’s water.” Moist is also calling on CUPE’s municipal locals to take action against this deal which is being negotiated without full public debate.
EU negotiators are also asking that Canada’s municipalities and their water utilities be included in a chapter on public procurement. If this happens, it would be the first time Canada has allowed our drinking water to be fully covered under a trade treaty. The goal is clearly to encourage the privatization of Canada’s public municipal water systems.
“Canada’s drinking and sewage systems are important community assets. Public drinking water and sanitation services are a human right and the lifeblood of well-functioning communities,” says Barlow. -30-

The report is available at
www.canadians.org and www.cupe.ca

For more information:
Greg Taylor, CUPE National Media Relations – (613) 237-1590 ext. 393
Matthew Ramsden, Communications Officer (Campaigns) – (613) 698-5113 (cell)

MORE CETA INFO: http://www.canadians.org/index.html

==================

21. Espionage Act: How the Government Can Engage in Serious Aggression Against the People of the United States

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/naomi-wolf/
post_1394_b_795001.html

Naomi Wolf Bestselling Author, The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot
Posted: December 10, 2010 12:28 PM
This week, Senators Joe Lieberman and Dianne Feinstein engaged in acts of serious aggression against their own constituents, and the American people in general. They both invoked the 1917 Espionage Act and urged its use in going after Julian Assange. For good measure, Lieberman extended his invocation of the Espionage Act to include a call to use it to investigate the New York Times, which published WikiLeaks' diplomatic cables. Reports yesterday suggest that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder may seek to invoke the Espionage Act against Assange.
These two Senators, and the rest of the Congressional and White House leadership who are coming forward in support of this appalling development, are cynically counting on Americans' ignorance of their own history -- an ignorance that is stoked and manipulated by those who wish to strip rights and freedoms from the American people. They are manipulatively counting on Americans to have no knowledge or memory of the dark history of the Espionage Act -- a history that should alert us all at once to the fact that this Act has only ever been used -- was designed deliberately to be used -- specifically and viciously to silence people like you and me.

MORE:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/naomi-wolf/
post_1394_b_795001.html

==================

22. WATCH: WikiRebels - The Documentary (57.25 min.)

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=72810&s2=13

December 12, 2010 - In less than a year Wikileaks has grown from a rather obscure website to a global political player, shaping world history and events, by revealing secret documents about warcrimes, corporate corruption and shady political backdoor dealings. Over several months a crew from Swedish Television has been following the secretive media network and its work behind the scenes. The result is a one hour feature documentary that tells the story behind the story

=====================

23. Beware the Psychopath, My Son

http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/05/bewar ... th-my-son/

by Clinton Callahan / May 12th, 2008
The following is largely extracted from two articles:
Twilight of the Psychopaths, by Dr. Kevin Barrett and The Trick of the Psychopath’s Trade by Silvia Cattori. Both articles are recommended. Both articles reference the book Political Ponerology: A science on the nature of evil adjusted for political purposes, by Andrzej Lobaczewski. Cattori’s article is longer and includes an interview with the book’s editors, Laura Knight-Jadczyk and Henry See.
I make the effort to share this information because it gives me, at last, a plausible answer to a long-unanswered question: Why, no matter how much intelligent goodwill exists in the world, is there so much war, suffering and injustice? It doesn’t seem to matter what creative plan, ideology, religion, or philosophy great minds come up with, nothing seems to improve our lot. Since the dawn of civilization, this pattern repeats itself over and over again.
The answer is that civilization, as we know it, is largely the creation of psychopaths. All civilizations, our own included, have been built on slavery and mass murder. Psychopaths have played a disproportionate role in the development of civilization, because they are hard-wired to lie, kill, cheat, steal, torture, manipulate, and generally inflict great suffering on other humans without feeling any remorse, in order to establish their own sense of security through domination. The inventor of civilization — the first tribal chieftain who successfully brainwashed an army of controlled mass murderers — was almost certainly a genetic psychopath. Since that momentous discovery, psychopaths have enjoyed a significant advantage over non-psychopaths in the struggle for power in civilizational hierarchies — especially military hierarchies.

MORE:
http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/05/bewar ... th-my-son/

by **Oscar** » Thu Dec 23, 2010 9:50 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 23, 2010

. . . . . PEACE ON EARTH!

1. WATCH: GREENFIELD: David Greenfield's Presentation to the "Future of Uranium Consultation"
2. WIN! GE can’t assemble low-enriched uranium fuel bundles in Peterborough
3. ACTION ALERT: "Just Say NO" to Importing 1000 Tons of Radioactive Waste from Germany
4. Meetings start on lifting Virginia's uranium-mining ban
5. Who Should Pay for the New 'Tomb' at Chernobyl?
6. Please Mr. President! Some Truth About Afghanistan
7. West Using Its Military Might To Control World Energy Resources: Pentagon's Global Mission To Secure Oil And Gas Supplies
8. Pentagon’s Christmas Present: Largest Military Budget Since World War II

=========================

1. WATCH: GREENFIELD: David Greenfield's Presentation to the "Future of Uranium Consultation"

http://vimeo.com/18065373

Saskatoon, SK June 2009
In the spring of 2009, I made a presentation to the Uranium Consultation hearing in Saskatoon. My presentation included my performance of "Keep Saskatchewan Safe and Sound", a song that was first written over thirty years ago by Jan Knolls, to which I have added a few verses to bring it up to date. Jim Penna made a video of my performance and has recently uploaded it to Vimeo.

==================

2. WIN! GE can’t assemble low-enriched uranium fuel bundles in Peterborough

http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5820

The Peterborough Examiner reported on December 10 that, “General Electric-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada faced criticisms of its public consultation process and concerns about potential future operations at its Peterborough facility during a license renewal hearing (on December 9) in Ottawa. Several Peterborough residents spoke at the second of two hearings for the proposed 10-year operating license for GE-Hitachi nuclear fuel fabrication facilities in Peterborough and Toronto. Many of the concerns revolved around an amendment to the license the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission granted in February to allow the Peterborough facility to assemble low-enriched uranium fuel bundles.”

MORE:
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5820
= = = = =

GE-Hitachi granted 10-year nuclear licence expansion

http://www.peterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2902165

Licence renewal does not authorize use of low-enriched uranium
By REG WATSON/Examiner Night Editor December 23, 2010
OTTAWA — The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission announced Wednesday it has approved renewal of the nuclear fuel facility operating licence for the General Electric-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. plant in Peterborough, along with a similar facility in Toronto, for a period of 10 years.
The licence does not allow the plant to use or possess low-enriched uranium, which has been a subject of concern for some neighbours and activists in the community.
The decision follows public hearings held Sept. 30 and Dec. 9 in Ottawa. Several opponents from Peterborough spoke out during those hearings.
The commission agreed to issue a single licence for both the Toronto and Peterborough facilities. The licence will be valid from Jan. 1, 2011 until Dec. 31, 2020.
Previously, the Peterborough facility has operated under five-year licences separate from the Toronto facility.
The possibility of the Peterborough plant using low-enriched uranium in the future was the subject of a heated public meeting Nov. 30 at the nearby Prince of Wales Public School.
Following the meeting, Peter Mason, the president and CEO of GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada, repeated a previous commitment he made that the company would go through a public consultation process if it ever decides to move ahead with assembling low-enriched uranium fuel bundles at the plant.
The regulatory commission considered submissions from the company and 48 intervenors in making the licence renewal decision.

MORE:
http://www.peterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2902165

====================

3. ACTION ALERT: "Just Say NO" to Importing 1000 Tons of Radioactive Waste from Germany

http://www.change.org/petitions/view/
just_say_no_to_importing_1000_tons_of_radioactive_waste_from_germany

Targeting: The President of the United States
Started by: Citizens to End Nuclear Dumping in TN
Energy Solutions of Oak Ridge, TN, has applied to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to import up to 1000 tons of radioactive waste from Eckert and Ziegler Nuclitec, a German company that specializes in the collection, processing, and disposal of these materials from hospitals, research, and technical facilities throughout Europe and beyond. Should the application be approved, Energy Solutions plans to incinerate dry material in its Bear Creek incinerator and return the remaining ash to Germany. The materials would be transported over a 5 year period beginning in 2011 by boat to Portsmouth or Norfolk, Virginia and by truck from there to Oak Ridge. The Tennessee Division of Radiological Health has already approved the plan. They believe it is good business for Tennessee.
This is a terrible plan that will benefit only Energy Solutions. When nuclear waste is incinerated, it is not destroyed. Only the bulk is diminished, while the radiation is condensed. And in the process of burning, some of the radiation is vented into the atmosphere, where people unknowingly breathe in radionuclides. These can cause cancer. Also, people are exposed to radiation during the transportation of nuclear waste. These trucks will be traveling across Virginia and Tennessee.
Furthermore, the NRC has scheduled deadlines for December 29, at the height of the Christmas holidays, when most people are very busy and few people are paying attention.

Written comments to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission can be sent by snail mail until December 29, 2010.

Mail to:
Office of the Secretary
U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555
Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications

================

4. Meetings start on lifting Virginia's uranium-mining ban

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/
virginia-news/2010/dec/14/TDMET02-meetings-start-on-lifting-virginias-uraniu-ar-713941/

By STEVE SZKOTAK Published: December 14, 2010
DANVILLE -- A National Academy of Sciences committee began meeting Monday on the statewide consequences of lifting a 1982 Virginia ban on uranium mining, and it heard from environmentalists who fear mining operations could harm the region's water supplies.
The committee members met in this textile and tobacco city of about 45,000 to begin a one-year analysis of the scientific, environmental and human health and safety aspects of mining uranium from 3,000-acre area about 25 miles north of Danville.
The General Assembly would have to end the moratorium for mining to begin, and the study is expected to be key to any deliberations on the issue. The panel, which meets in Danville through Wednesday, will not make a recommendation whether the ban should be lifted.
Virginia Uranium Inc., which proposes to mine the deposit, estimates the value of the Pittsylvania County uranium at $7 billion to $10 billion.
At a public meeting Monday night, dozens of people spoke out on the proposed uranium mine.
Joy Oates said her family goes back generations in the area and worries about the region's future if Virginia Uranium Inc. is allowed to mine the 119-million-pound deposit in Chatham.
Walter Anderson grew up in Chatham. He said the region could use the jobs to right what he called its "dire economic situation."
Earlier Monday, the Board on Earth Sciences and Resources heard from environmentalists and water-resource officials, who questioned whether uranium could safely be mined.
Representatives from the Dan River Basin Association and the Roanoke River Basin Association also spoke and expressed concerns about uranium mining on local water supplies.
"That's why we're very, very concerned," said Andrew Lester of the Roanoke River group.
The National Academy study is one of at least several looking at uranium mining. A legislative committee last week approved $200,000 for a socioeconomic study, and local studies are also planned or under way.

=================

5. Who Should Pay for the New 'Tomb' at Chernobyl?

http://www.spiegel.de/international/wor ... 26,00.html

12/22/2010 Soviet Legacies
The old concrete sarcophagus encasing the burned reactor at Chernobyl is crumbling. Although a European consortium has agreed to entomb the site in a metal vault, it is still unclear exactly where all the money will come from. Moscow, for its part, appears reluctant to pay up.
When Chernobyl's Reactor No. 4 exploded on April 26, 1986, Ukraine was politically still part of the Soviet Union. Now it's an independent country, and its ties to Moscow have been strained at times. The Chernobyl reactor, which was hastily sealed in concrete and lead after the meltdown, remains a point of contention.
Chernobyl went down in history as the worst accident of the nuclear age, and the ruins need a new protective shield because the old sarcophagus leaks radiation. The project is expected to cost around €2 billion ($2.6 billion). At the moment, €740 million has yet to be raised. Russia likes to see itself as a successor to the vast Soviet empire in certain other contexts, but so far it has donated little to guard against the mess in Ukraine.

MORE:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/wor ... 26,00.html

==================

6. Please Mr. President! Some Truth About Afghanistan

http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27110.htm

By Eric Margolis December 20, 2010 "Information Clearing House"
After nine years of war in Afghanistan, costing over $100 billion in taxpayer money and 700 American lives, the full truth about this murky conflict remains elusive.
The government and media have colluded to paint the picture of a noble, heroic, flag-waving American enterprise in Afghanistan that is, alas, very far from reality. As the cynic Ambrose Bierce pointedly observed of patriots -- "the dupe of statesmen; the tool of conquerors."
Three interesting reports about Afghanistan emerged in Washington last week.
First, a political whitewash issued by the Obama White House claiming the war was going well and some US troops might be withdrawn next year. This 'don't worry be happy' summary was trumpeted by the pro-war New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and other members of the government-friendly US media.
US generals spoke of "progress" in Afghanistan, whatever that means, as US forces were conducted a brutal campaign around Kandahar to crush resistance to the occupation and punish communities that supported Taliban.
Second, the Red Cross issued a grim report showing that Afghans were suffering widespread malnutrition and serious health problems after nearly a decade of Western occupation. So much for US-led nation-building.
Third, there were leaks about a new National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), the combined findings of all 16 US intelligence agencies. This key intelligence report is explosive and may not be fully revealed.
The NIE reportedly asserts that the Afghan War, now costing over $13 billion monthly, is at best stalemated; at worse, Western occupation forces are on the defensive and their vulnerable supply lines increasingly threatened. Taliban is expanding its sphere of control, particularly in northern Afghanistan.
Afghan president Hamid Karzai, who was installed into power by CIA, put it bluntly last year, saying the US-led war was "ineffective apart from causing civilian casualties."
The new NIE may also restate a 2007 report that found Iran had no nuclear weapons program. The pro-war party in Washington is desperately trying to prevent its release or get the report altered.

MORE:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27110.htm

====================

7. West Using Its Military Might To Control World Energy Resources:
Pentagon's Global Mission To Secure Oil And Gas Supplies

http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/2009/09/22/
west-using-its-military-might-to-control-world-energy-resources/

Rick Rozoff September 22, 2009
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's 2009 Year Book documented that international military expenditures for 2008 reached $1.464 trillion. The denomination in dollars is germane as the United States accounted for 41.5 percent of the world total.
Earlier this month the Congressional Research Service in the U.S. reported that American weapons sales abroad reached $37.8 billion, or 68.4 percent of all global arms transactions. The next largest weapons supplier was Italy at $3.7 billion, less than one-tenth the U.S. amount. Russia was third at $3.5 billion. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, however, asserted that Germany had superseded Britain and France and become the world's third largest weapons exporter.
Western nations in general and the U.S. overwhelmingly among them dominate the global arms market.
21st century weaponry is daily more technologically advanced, more linked with computer networks and satellite communications, and progressively approaching a blurring of conventional and strategic, terrestrial and space-based capabilities.
And in the U.S. and allied nations the notion of so-called preemptive warfare has advanced precariously to include cyber and satellite attacks that can cripple a targeted nation's communications, control and air defense centers, thus rendering it both helpless and toothless: Not able to fend off attacks and unable to retaliate against or even forestall them with a secure deterrent force.
The vast preponderance of American and other NATO states' arms are sold to nations neither in North America and Europe nor on their peripheries.
They are sold to nations like Saudi Arabia, India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Egypt, Taiwan, South Korea, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Kuwait, the Philippines, Morocco and other Western client states and military outposts far removed from the much-vaunted Euro-Atlantic space.
The weapons along with the military technicians, trainers and advisers that inevitably accompany them are spread throughout nations in geostrategically vital areas of the world, near large oil and natural gas reserves and astride key shipping lanes and choke points. In many instances Western-fueled arms buildups are accelerating in nations bordering Russia, China, Iran and Venezuela. Geopolitics in its most transparent, cynical and brutal manifestation.
The growing sales of Western arms in the Persian Gulf, the South Caucasus, South America (Chile and Colombia most pronouncedly), Africa, Far East Asia and the South Pacific (Australia in the first instance) are an integral element of American and general Western plans to gain access to and domination over world energy resources.

MORE:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/2009/09/22/
west-using-its-military-might-to-control-world-energy-resources/

===================

8. Pentagon’s Christmas Present: Largest Military Budget Since World War II

http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/

Rick Rozoff Stop NATO December 23, 2010
On December 22 both houses of the U.S. Congress unanimously passed a bill authorizing $725 billion for next year’s Defense Department budget.
The bill, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011, was approved by all 100 senators as required and by a voice vote in the House.

MORE:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/

===================

9. Remembering . . . 154 soldiers killed

http://www.therecord.com/news/world/article/
303200--canadian-soldier-is-154th-killed-in-afghanistan

The military says 154 Canadian Forces personnel have died as part of the mission to Afghanistan. Most occurred on combat operations in the country, but the official toll includes those who died elsewhere or from non-combat causes while serving on the mission. In addition, two civilians have died in connection with the mission.

Here is a list of the deaths:

http://www.therecord.com/news/world/article/
303200--canadian-soldier-is-154th-killed-in-afghanistan

by **Oscar** » Tue Dec 28, 2010 10:03 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 28, 2010

NUCLEAR WASTE: STOP MAKING IT!!!

1. Campaign to Establish a Canadian Department of Peace & Comment
2. Licence decision pleases opponents
3. Colorado: A Battle Over Uranium Bodes Ill for U.S. Debate
4. Things are, once again, worse than ever at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station...
5. Another Astonishing Holiday No New Nukes Victory
6. Africa Offers Easy Uranium
7. Iraq War DU dust birth defects compared to atomic bomb at Hiroshima ***CAUTION: Photos/Videos!
8. LETTER: SHIELDS: David Johnston's Profile
9. "Bethink Yourselves!": An Ancient Voice Raised Against Modern Evil
10. U.S. ratifies New START treaty
11. ASSANGE UPDATE
12. Kosovo: Europe's Mafia State. Hub of the EU-NATO Drug Trail
13. War Cover-up - Top U.S. General on Cover-up of Forces Behind War
14. LISTEN: Christmas in The Trenches - Song
15. LETTER: SHIELDS: Removal Of United States

===================

1. Campaign to Establish a Canadian Department of Peace & Comment

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/dep ... peace.html

To all supporters of the Canadian Department of Peace Initiative (CDPI):
In this season of "Peace and Goodwill" we are launching today the on-line Department of Peace petition. This is to promote awareness and to indicate support of the CDPI campaign for the federal government to establish a Canadian Department of Peace.

Click on the link below to show your support:
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/dep ... peace.html

The campaign runs until January 31st. We are making a push for this campaign during the Holiday Season, and then a reminder in the early New Year.
We look forward to your signing the petition and disseminating it widely to friends and colleagues who are on your email lists and social media networks (Facebook and Twitter).

The petition is posted on CDPI Facebook page also at:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/
Canadian-Department-of-Peace-Initiative/116559845067605)

Thanks to our youth media consultant Trizana Parillo who identified and designed the e-petition set up.
Regrets for any cross-posting.
May Peace Prevail on Earth!
Saul
Saul Arbess, Co-chair
Canadian Department of Peace Initiative(CDPI)
Facilitator, Global Alliance Interim Leadership Council (ILC)
saul.arbess@departmentofpeace.ca
www.departmentofpeace.ca
250-383-5878
"If there is going to be change in the world, real change, it will have to work its way from the bottom up, from the people themselves." Howard Zinn
= = = = = =
COMMENT: BIGLAND-PRITCHARD: PETITION TO ESTABLISH A CANADIAN DEPT. OF PEACE

From: Mark Bigland-Pritchard / Low Energy Design Ltd
Sent: Tuesday, December 28, 2010 6:05 PM
Saul -
I received notification of your petition from a friend this morning.

I like the idea. But I have reservations about the timing:

(1) This is the first I have heard of it, and others locally who have been deeply involved in peace work are equally unfamiliar with it. Hence I am wondering what preparatory "hearts and minds" work has been done. I can't see this approach having any real traction until such time as Canada has a strong culture of peace. At present I don't think it does. We have some excellent peace studies work going on in academic institutions, but their findings are not making their way out to the public. Meanwhile, we are increasingly being fed (by media, politicians, US culture and strong elements of our own history) with the imperial myth of redemptive violence and "peace" through dominance. So... to my mind, the more urgent task is to counter this propaganda by working throughout the nation with (for example) churches, trades unions, community-owned businesses, service clubs, etc to spread understanding of the effectiveness of nonviolent methods (as well as the devastating reality of the violent methods currently used).

(2) In other contexts (I work mostly on climate, energy and environmental issues), there is a general view among NGO workers that it is unwise to introduce legislation which is open to be amended into the opposite of its intention, at a time when parliamentary process is dominated by hostile tendencies. I don't know whether this applies to your proposed legislation but it is possible. (With the senate now packed with Harper clone voters, it is difficult to see how anything so enlightened could get through - either it would be summarily dismissed like Bill C311, or else mangled into a form unrecognisable to its authors.)

(3) In the happy but unlikely event that a Peace Ministry is established, what is to prevent it being used (either by the present government or by some future government) to sanitise the government's reputation while the real decisions go on elsewhere? Surely the only restraint on such behaviour is the active understanding and vigilance of the citizenry.
I wish you well, and I have signed the petition, but I admit to being somewhat bemused.
In peace
Mark Bigland-Pritchard
Borden SK

=====================

2. Licence decision pleases opponents

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2904627

December 24, 2010
A decision preventing GE-Hitachi Nuclear Canada from producing low-enriched uranium fuel is sitting well with concerned Prince of Wales Public School parents, neighbours of the Peterborough plant and local activists.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) announced Wednesday it has approved renewal of the nuclear fuel facility operating licence for the General Electric-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Canada Inc. plant in Peterborough, along with a similar facility in Toronto, for a period of 10 years.
But the licence does not allow the plant to use or possess low-enriched uranium, which has been a subject of concern for some neighbours and activists in the community.
"It makes me feel better," said concerned resident Trevor Middel, who was one of about 120 people who packed into the gymnasium at Prince of Wales on Nov. 30 to voice concerns about the company's public consultation practices.
"I think that was a good decision by the CNSC. There was a bit of an admonishment of GE for lack of public involvement and I think that was the right decision. It addresses most of our concerns."
Roy Brady, chairman of the Peterborough chapter of the Council of Canadians, said the parents and neighbours are happy with the ruling.
"The low enriched uranium decision is so important to the GE neighbourhood, parents and children attending Prince of Wales elementary school," Brady said. "The message to GE is clear. If you don't talk with the people, especially the parents of the school across the road, then perhaps you aren't going to get what you want."

MORE:
http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2904627

===================

3. Colorado: A Battle Over Uranium Bodes Ill for U.S. Debate

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/27/science/earth/
27uranium.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

QUOTE: "“They’re saying not in my backyard — now how big is their backyard?” said George Glasier, a local rancher and investor who founded EnergyFuels, the company proposing the mill, and is now a stockholder and consultant. Energy Fuels is a publicly traded company based in Canada; a United States subsidiary would operate the mill."
- - - - - -
A battle over uranium bodes ill for U.S. debate

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/27/science/earth/
27uranium.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

by Kirk Johnson, New York Times, December 28, 2010
NATURITA, Colo. — The future of nuclear power in America is back on the table, with all its vast implications, as global warming revives the search for energy sources that produce less greenhouse gas.
But in this depressed corner of western Colorado — one of the first places in the world that uranium, nuclear energy’s primary fuel, was ever dug from the ground in industrial scale — the debate is both simpler and more complicated. A proposal for a new mill to process uranium ore, which would lead to the opening of long-shuttered mines in Colorado and Utah, has brought global and local concerns into collision — jobs, health, class-consciousness and historical memory among them — in ways that suggest, if the pattern here holds, a bitter national debate to come.
Telluride, the rich ski town an hour away by car and a universe apart in terms of money and clout, has emerged as a main base of opposition to the proposed mill, called Piñon Ridge, which would be the first new uranium-processing facility in the United States in more than 25 years if it is approved by Colorado regulators next month.
To residents here like Michelle Mathews, the fact that many opponents of the mill hail from Telluride is a crucial strike against their arguments.
“People from Telluride don’t have any business around here,” said Ms. Mathews, 31, who works as a school janitor and ardently supports the idea of bringing back uranium jobs. “Not everyone wants to drive to Telluride to clean hotel rooms.”

MORE:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference ... /people/j/
kirk_johnson/index.html?inline=nyt-per

==================

4. Things are, once again, worse than ever at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station...

http://acehoffman.blogspot.com/2010/12/
things-are-once-again-worse-than-ever.html

by "Ace Hoffman" <rhoffman@animatedsoftware.com>
December 26th, 2010
Dear Readers,
It always breaks my heart when I hear nuclear workers say they wouldn't be doing it if they thought they were putting their children at risk. These same workers take their children to McDonald's. No risk there, huh? A disproportionate number of them smoke tobacco, and inevitably, their children become smokers more frequently, too. They likewise ignore the dangers from CT scans, x-rays, sunlight and tritium, and they, and their children, get cancer and die, just like the rest of us. Death leaves no voter behind. Even if they "wise up" as they whither and die, it does society no good. Their voting days are done. Today, they might be on the local school board, stopping opinions they don't agree with, and a long-time employee of the nuclear power plant. But tomorrow perhaps, they'll feel a sudden pain that won't stop, or they'll cough up blood, or -- like me -- they'll piss blood, and then their life changes.... but all too often, it's too late by then.
And they don't know if it was the cigarettes or the hamburgers or the x-rays or the CT scans or the sun or their job or something else, but it doesn't really matter, it's over. And if they DO survive, a lot of times, radiation is given in ample quantities before, during, and after treatment, and it's hard to complain about getting too much radiation when the doctor's telling you he thinks he sees a lump... Radiation to find the cancer. Radiation to cure it. Radiation to be sure it remains gone. Radiation to prevent its recurrence. Radiation to keep the hospital's liability down.
The main key to cancer survivability is early detection followed by timely and skilled medical care. No infections, no tools left inside the body, all the holes sewed up nicely. No matter how good it gets, it's not nearly as fun as not getting cancer in the first place.
Many, if not most, cancers are the result of a series of changes in the DNA structure. Although the final initiating event will likely be one random change to the DNA of one cell in the body, out of 10s of trillions of cells, frequently many cells are in the "pre-cancerous" stage by then, which makes "curing" cancer very difficult indeed.
On Tuesday, December 14th, 2010, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) held a Special Hearing on San Onofre's ongoing problems with worker honesty, integrity, and related morale issues. The dangers to children from environmental radiation were not discussed, although they should have been. Scores of San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station workers showed up at the hearing, wearing "SONGS" dress shirts, polo shirts, jackets, patches, name tags, and/or beepers. The CEO of Edison International (the parent company of Southern California Edison (SCE), which operates the facility (with a lot of sub-contractors such as Bechtel and The Shaw Group)), had flown in, and he sat in the front row along with several other Edison corporate celebrities and NRC mucky-mucks, as well as a couple of recently-retired, 25-year SONGS veterans who are now whistleblowers.
Facing the audience were four SCE executives at one table -- the top one yet another new guy -- and four NRC inspectors at another table. At its peak, there were about 150 people in the room.
During the "formal" part of the meeting, we were told that all the important "metrics" show improvement, and nothing unsafe is happening at the plant. The NRC feels that they are getting the proper feedback from the utility workers so that they can maintain a "Safety-Conscious Work Environment" ("SCWE") and proper regulatory control. We were told that all the workers now carry a "blue book" which tells them how to behave, and many members of the audience held up their "blue books" to show that they carry them all the time, along with their beepers.
However, when the public comment period began and the whistleblowers started speaking out, a completely different picture emerged. Things are, once again, worse than ever at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.

MORE:
http://acehoffman.blogspot.com/2010/12/
things-are-once-again-worse-than-ever.html

===============

5. Another Astonishing Holiday No New Nukes Victory

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/12/26-0

Published on Sunday, December 26, 2010 by CommonDreams.org
by Harvey Wasserman
The atomic energy industry has suffered another astonishing defeat. Because of it, 2010 again left the "nuclear renaissance" in the Dark Age that defines the technology.
But an Armageddon-style battle looms when Congress returns next year.
The push to build new nuclear plants depends now, as always, on federal subsidies. Fifty-three years after the first commercial reactor opened at Shippingport, Pennsylvania, no private funders will step forward to pay for a "new generation" of nukes.
So the industry remains mired in unsolved waste problems, disturbing vulnerability to terror and error, uninsured liability in case of a major catastrophe, and unapproved new design proposals.
Two new reactor construction projects in Europe---one in Finland and the other at Flamanville, France---are sinking in gargantuan cost overruns and multi-year delays. To financiers and energy experts worldwide, it's a clear indicator the "rebirth" of this failed technology is a hopeless quagmire.
Meanwhile the 104 reactors currently licensed in the US are leaking radiation and are under escalating grassroots attack. Vermont's new governor, Peter Shumlin, is committed to shutting the Yankee plant there, and public demands to close New York's Indian Point and Oyster Creek, New Jersey, among others, have reached fever pitch.
Most importantly, advances in green technologies are leaving atomic power in the dust. Numerous new studies now show it is significantly cheaper to build new generating capacity with photovoltaics, wind and other renewable Solartopian sources than to go nuclear. That gap will only grow in the coming years.

MORE:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/12/26-0

Harvey Wasserman's SOLARTOPIA! OUR GREEN-POWERED EARTH, A.D. 2030, is at
www.solartopia.org. He is senior advisor to Greenpeace USA and the Nuclear Information & Resource Service, and writes regularly for
www.freepress.org.

==================

6. Africa Offers Easy Uranium

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53962

By Julio Godoy, Inter-Press Service, December 26, 2010
PARIS, Dec 26, 2010 (IPS) - Wikileaks cables have revealed a disturbing development in the African uranium mining industry: abysmal safety and security standards in the mines, nuclear research centres, and border customs are enabling international companies to exploit the mines and smuggle dangerous radioactive material across continents.
The Wikileaks cables reveal that U.S. diplomats posted in a number of African countries - the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania, Niger, and Burundi, among others - have had direct knowledge of the poor safety and security standards in these countries' uranium and nuclear facilities.
The cables also highlight the involvement of European, Chinese, Indian, and South Korean companies in the illegal extraction and smuggling of uranium from Africa. Most European nuclear reactors use uranium imported from African countries.
In one classified document, dated Sep. 8, 2006, the U.S. embassy in the DRC capital Kinshasa reported that several U.S. diplomats and security service personnel toured the Kinshasa Nuclear Research Centre (CREN-K) on Jul. 27 that year in order to assess the facility’s security needs.
CREN-K houses the DRC’s two nuclear reactors. Neither reactor is currently functioning, but staff conduct nuclear-related research and teaching at the facility.
Although inactive, CREN-K stores significant amounts of uranium and nuclear waste. This radioactive material includes 138 nuclear fuel rods, at least 15 kg of enriched and non-enriched uranium, and some 23 kg of nuclear waste.
At CREN-K, "external and internal security is poor, leaving the facility vulnerable to theft," Roger A. Meece, U.S. ambassador to DRC, reported in the 2006 document.
Meece's detailed description of the security measures at CREN-K suggests that security is not just "poor," but non-existent.

MORE:
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53962

=================

7. Iraq War DU dust birth defects compared to atomic bomb at Hiroshima - ***CAUTION: Photos/Videos!

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=73282&s2=27

December 26, 2010 Special to The Canadian
It is apparent that the "War on Terrorism" is not about surgically stopping "terrorist cells" from spreading destruction. If that were the case, there would not be over 1 million Iraqi civilian casualties, and other huge death tolls among civilians in the Middle East.
The 9/11 truth movement has sought to critically discuss and explore the legitimacy of the "War on Terrorism". Its findings suggest that the destruction of the World Trade Center towers on September 11, 2001 was a 'contrived event’, similar to the Reichstag Fire which Adolf Hilter used to help trigger World War II.
Death tolls among Middle East population groups and soldiers from the U.S. and NATO countries have been substantively caused by the use of Depleted Uranium (DU). The only reason to use DU would be to cause mass civilian casualties far beyond the 'point of detonation’ supposedly intended for "terrorists".
The use of DU documented by many activists, injestivative journalists, researchers and scientists is tantamount to a "Crime Against Humanity". Is the official "War on Terrorism" actually another "Eugenics War" against whole population groups which eventually morphed into World War II?

MORE:
http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=73282&s2=27

===================

8. LETTER: SHIELDS: David Johnston's Profile

From: lagran
To: Prime Minister/Premier ministre ; Layton, Jack - M.P. ; iggy
Cc: Rae.B@parl.gc.ca ; goodale ; flaherty ; dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca ; Alberta Activism
Sent: Tuesday, December 28, 2010 2:13 PM

Subject: David Johnston's Profile

I find it hard to accept David Johnston with the same degree of respect as I was willing to afford Michaelle Jean! I recognize that David Johnston gained traction to become the GG by setting the "scope" of the Oliphant Commission's hearing into Mulroney's behavior that excluded going into the Airbus affair. This decision by Johnston prevented and obstructed the real truth of the Mulroney----Carl Heinz Schreiber affair from becoming part of our Canadian history.
I had been waiting for the reward Johnston would inherit from our Reform/Conservative Prime Minister for the naked political benefit Johnston provided his political masters in Ottawa. Never will I be able to view this Tory as a gracious and well-intended GG in the same thread as Michaelle Jean! I find it offensive that Harper will attempt to stock important positions with those who have helped his Reform/Conservative movement at the direct cost to Canada.
I would hope a new government would fire Johnston, day one, recognizing the damage he brought to Canada and the truthful recording of Canada's history during the Mulroney time as Canada's Prime Minister. History must now leave a definite question about the truthful conduct of a Canadian Prime Minister, with open questions of how a Prime Minister who sued his Country, could hold the "Order of Canada". Johnston's partial pardon of Mulroney has brought the "Order Of Canada" to a meaningless recognition and solely a monitory reward to the greedy and those with questionable legal problems!!
Stewart Shields
Lacombe, Alberta
= = = = = = = = =
GG praises Canada's effort in Afghanistan

http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/12/28/
governor-general-johnston-2011.html

Last Updated: Tuesday, December 28, 2010 | 11:51 AM ET CBC News
Gov. Gen. David Johnston praised the efforts of Canadians working in Afghanistan in a New Year's message released Tuesday.
In the message, Johnston recalled a trip he took to Kandahar, Afghanistan, in November.
"I saw a lot of despair," he said. "But I also saw Canadians helping and contributing their talents."
He spoke of a Canadian project in Kandahar province to rebuild 50 schools and train teachers, saying rebuilding schools and "ensuring the peace that will permit boys and girls to have an education are key to reconstructing family life in Afghanistan."
PROFILE: David Johnston: Lawyer, academic, Canada's new GG
MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/12/28/
governor-general-johnston-2011.html

=====================

9. "Bethink Yourselves!": An Ancient Voice Raised Against Modern Evil

http://www.uruknet.info/?p=73040

Chris Floyd Empire Burlesque, December 18, 2010

More than a century ago, an aging man, staring his own death in the face, spoke the truth of our times:

Again war. Again sufferings, necessary to nobody, utterly uncalled for. Again fraud, again the universal stupefaction and brutalization of men.
Men who are separated from each other by thousands of miles ... are seeking out one another, in order to kill, torture, and mutilate each other in the cruelest way possible. What can this be? Is it a dream or a reality? Something is taking place which should not, cannot be; one longs to believe that it is a dream and to wake from it.
But no, it is not a dream, it is a dreadful reality!
...How can so-called enlightened men preach war, support it, participate in it, and worst of all, without suffering the dangers of war themselves, incite others to it, sending their unfortunate defrauded brothers to fight? These so-called enlightened men cannot possibly ignore ... all that has and is being written about the cruelty, futility and senselessness of war. They are regarded as enlightened men precisely because they know all this. The majority of them have themselves written and spoken about it. ... No enlightened man can help knowing that the universal competition in the armament of states must inevitably lead them to endless wars or to a general bankruptcy, or else to both the one and the other. ...
Everyone knows and cannot help but knowing that, above all, war, calling forth the lowest animal passions, deprave and brutalize men. ... All so-called enlightened men know this. Then suddenly war begins and all this is instantly forgotten, and the same men who but yesterday were proving the cruelty, futility, the senselessness of wars, now think, speak and write only about killing as many men as possible, about ruining and destroying the greatest possible amounts of human labor, and about exciting as much as possible the passion of hatred in those peaceful, harmless, industrious men who by their labour feed, clothe, maintain these same pseudo-enlightened men who compel them to commit those dreadful deeds contrary to their conscience, welfare or faith.
Something is taking place incomprehensible and impossible in its cruelty, falsehood and stupidity .... Stupefied by prayers, sermons, exhortations, by processions, pictures and newspapers, the cannon-fodder -- hundreds of thousands of men, uniformly dressed, carrying divers deadly weapons, leaving their parents, wives, children, with hearts of agony but with artificial bravado -- go where they, risking their own lives, will commit the most dreadful act of killing men whom they do not know and who have done them no harm. And they are followed by doctors and nurses who somehow imagine that at home they cannot serve simple peaceful suffering people but can only serve those who are engaged in slaughtering each other. Those who remain at home are gladdened by news of the murder of men, and when they learn that many [enemies] have been killed, they thank someone whom they call God.
All this is not only regarded as the manifestation of elevated feeling, but those who refrain from such manifestations, if they endeavour to disabuse men, are deemed traitors and betrayers, and are in danger of being abused and beaten by a brutalized crowd, which in defense of its insanity and cruelty can possess no other weapon than brute force.
- - Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, 1904 (trans. by Evgeny Lampert, in Essays From Tula, Sheppard Press 1948)
- - - - - - -
See URL below....Tonight Bradley Manning is being tortured and destroyed in a prison cell because he has been accused of trying to tell the truth about war that all so-called enlightened people know: it is brutalizing, senseless, futile and cruel. He is also being tortured in the hope that he can be used as an instrument to stop Julian Assange from telling the truth about war and the corruptions of power that all so-called enlightened people claim to know.
Meanwhile, the man who last year received the world's most noted accolade the enlightened pursuit of peace is now expanding a senseless, brutal and futile war in one foreign land into another, where he has already killed hundreds of innocent people with cowardly bombs fired at defenseless villages from robot drones controlled by armchair warriors thousands of miles away. Another 54 people died from these assassinations just last night; it is claimed they were "militants," but no names were given, no evidence at all to back up these assertions -- and no real reason at all given as to why these assassinations and escalations must continue, on and on, for years, decades, perhaps generations, we are told.
http://uruknet.com/index.php/2009/11/12/2009/10/05/
Settler_Violence/?p=m73040&hd=&size=1&l=e

Again, Tolstoy:

Spontaneous feeling tells me that what they are doing should not be, but as the murderer who has begun to assassinate his victim cannot stop, so also ... people now imagine that the fact of the deadly work having been commenced is an unanswerable argument in favour of war. War has been started and therefore it should go on. Thus it seems to simple, benighted, unlearned men acting under the influence of the petty passions and stupefactions to which they have been subjected. In exactly the same way the most educated men of our time argue to prove that man does not possess free will, and that therefore even were he to understand that the work he has commenced is evil he can no longer cease to do it.
So dazed, brutalized men continue their dreadful work.

Do not help them. Do not support them. Do not spend your energy and passion and intellect on earnest analyses of the twists and turns of their political fates. They are doing evil. Do not be part of it. Support instead those who try to speak the truth. Stand with them. It is their fate -- not the fate of the petty, brutal power-seekers -- which will determine the meaning of our times and the future of our species.
*Click here for ways to help support Bradley Manning.*:
http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/858/1/

======================

10. U.S. ratifies New START treaty

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6637&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Thu, Dec 23, 2010
The U.S. Senate voted on Wednesday to accept the New START strategic nuclear disarmament treaty between Russia and the United States (Peter Baker, “Senate Passes Arms Control Treaty With Russia, 71-26,” New York Times, 22 December 2010).
U.S. ratification of the treaty, signed by presidents Obama and Medvedev on April 8th, clears the path to Russian ratification and the treaty’s entry into force.
Although it is modest in scope, the treaty received wide support in the United States, with former secretaries of Defense and State, military leaders, arms control experts, and even California Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar calling for its quick ratification.
Despite this broad, bipartisan support, however, the treaty squeaked through with just seven votes to spare (ratification requires 2/3 support of the Senate) due to the opposition of Republican senators, who appeared determined to deny President Obama any kind of foreign policy success regardless of the merits of the treaty itself.
The mere fact that the treaty survived, and thus other arms control efforts can now proceed (however slowly), can therefore be seen as something of a victory for supporters of arms control.
Further commentary on New START ratification:
Hans Kristensen, “Senate Approval of New START Moves Nuclear Arms Control Forward,” FAS Strategic Security Blog, 22 December 2010
Ernie Regehr, “‘New START’ an essential new start to nuclear arms control,” Disarming Conflict Blog, 22 December 2010

=====================

11. ASSANGE UPDATE

Supporters Call for End to Inhumane Treatment of Bradley Manning

http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/12/22-14

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 22, 2010 2:28 PM
CONTACT: Bradley Manning Support Network [1]
Mike Gogulski one: 202-640-4388
[2]Email: press@bradleymanning.org [2]
QUANTICO, VA - December 22 - After trying other avenues of recourse, the Bradley Manning Support Network is urging supporters to engage in direct protest in order to halt the punitive conditions of the soldier's detention. Bradley Manning, 23, has been held in solitary confinement in military jails since his arrest in late May on allegations that he passed classified material to WikiLeaks.
In the wake of an investigative report last week by Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com giving evidence that Manning was subject to "detention conditions likely to create long-term psychological injuries", Manning's attorney, David Coombs, published an article at his website on Saturday entitled "A Typical Day for PFC Bradley Manning". Coombs details the maximum custody conditions that Manning is subject to at the Quantico Confinement Facility and highlights an additional set of restrictions imposed upon him under a Prevention of Injury (POI) watch order.
Usually enforced only through a detainee's first week at a confinement facility, the standing POI order has severely limited Manning's access to exercise, daylight and human contact for the past five months, despite calls from military psychologists to lift the order and the extra restrictions imposed.
Despite not having been convicted of any crime or even yet formally indicted, the confinement regime Manning lives under includes pronounced social isolation and a complete lack of opportunities for meaningful exercise. Additionally, Manning's sleep is regularly interrupted. Coombs writes: "The guards are required to check on Manning every five minutes [...] At night, if the guards cannot see PFC Manning clearly, because he has a blanket over his head or is curled up towards the wall, they will wake him in order to ensure he is okay."
Denver Nicks writes in The Daily Beast that "[Manning's] attorney [...] says the extended isolation - now more than seven months of solitary confinement - is weighing on his client's psyche. [...] Both Coombs and Manning's psychologist, Coombs says, are sure Manning is mentally healthy, that there is no evidence he's a threat to himself, and shouldn't be held in such severe conditions under the artifice of his own protection."
In an article to be published at Firedoglake.com later today, David House, a friend of Manning's who visits him regularly at Quantico, says that Manning "has not been outside or into the brig yard for either recreation or exercise in four full weeks. He related that visits to the outdoors have been infrequent and sporadic for the past several months."
Bradley Manning Support Network founder Mike Gogulski stated that "the Marine Brig is using injury prevention as a vehicle to inflict extreme pre-trial punishment on Bradley Manning. These conditions are not unheard-of during an inmate's first week at a military jail, but when applied continuously for months and with no end in sight they amount to a form of torture."
The Bradley Manning Support Network calls upon Quantico base commander COL Daniel Choike and brig commanding officer CWO4 James Averhart to put an end to these inhumane, degrading conditions. Additionally, the Network encourages supporters to phone COL Choike at +1-703-784-2707 or write to him at 3250 Catlin Avenue, Quantico, VA 22134, and to fax CWO4 Averhart at +1-703-784-4242 or write to him at 3247 Elrod Avenue, Quantico, VA 22134, to demand that Bradley Manning's human rights be respected while he remains in custody.

References:

"The inhumane conditions of Bradley Manning's detention", Glenn Greenwald, 15 December 2010,

http://www.salon.com/news/wikileaks/
index.html?story=/opinion/greenwald/2010/12/14/manning [3]

"A Typical Day for PFC Bradley Manning", David E. Coombs, 18 December 2010,

http://www.armycourtmartialdefense.info/2010/12/
typical-day-for-pfc-bradley-manning.html [4]

"Bradley Manning's Life Behind Bars", Denver Nicks, 17 December 2010,

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and- ... 010-12-17/
bradley-manning-wikileaks-alleged-sources-life-in-prison/ [5]

Bradley Manning Support Network:

http://www.bradleymanning.org/ [6] ###
= = = = = =
As U.N. Probes Whether His Confinement is Torture, Bradley Manning Speaks

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/406504/
as_u.n._probes_whether_his_confinement_is_torture%2C_bradley_manning_speaks/

Firedoglake has an action page for concerned citizens.
By Sarah Seltzer | Sourced from AlterNet Posted at December 23, 2010, 9:07 am
He allegedly leaked a video of U.S. soldiers killing civilians overseas.
Now he's kept in a miserable solitary confinement due to an alleged "suicide watch"--despite passing psychological examinations.
As the U.N. "special rapporteur on torture" begins to probe whether the brutal solitary confinement of Bradley Manning constitutes torture, the imprisoned "leaker" spoke to David House, one of the few people allowed to visit him.
House, who has been very concerned about Manning's "deteriorating physical and mental well-being" wrote on Firedoglake about the conditions under which Manning has been placed, offering strong first-person evidence against the Pentagon's positive spin.
It's a long and detailed post that deserves to be read in full, but some of the key findings include Manning laughing at the idea that he gets ample time to watch the news and exercise, and revealing the drudgery and discomfort of his daily life. Here are House's words.
- - - -SNIP - - -
The momentum to get better conditions for Manning is growing, thanks to the efforts of Glenn Greenwald and other media outlets.
= = = = = = =
WATCH: Julian Assange interview - The WikiLeaks founder speaks to David Frost about secrets, leaks and why he will not go back to Sweden.

http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes ... rtheworld/
2010/12/201012228384924314.html

Frost over the World Last Modified: 22 Dec 2010 13:52 GMT
Julian Assange, the co-founder of the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks - which is currently releasing over 250,000 confidential American diplomatic cables - is in the UK fighting extradition to Sweden where he is wanted on charges for sexual assault.
He joins Sir David to talk about a host of issues, from his personal situation to the role of WikiLeaks as a bastion of transparency, championing the right to reveal government secrets, when it is in the publics' interest.
= = = = = = = =
Watch Assange Interview: "Europeans Are Starting to Wonder ... Does America Obey the Rule of Law?"

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/405959/
watch_assange_interview%3A_%22europeans_are_starting_to_wonder_..._does_america_obey_the_rule_of_law%22/

By Tana Ganeva | Sourced from AlterNet
Posted at December 22, 2010, 4:33 pm
This afternoon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange talked with Cenk Uyger on the Dylan Ratigan Show. The two discussed government efforts to shut down WikiLeaks and the plight of Pvt. Bradley Manning, currently held in solitary confinement.
= = = = = = =
Dear Government of Sweden ...

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mike-friends-blog/
dear-government-of-sweden

By Michael Moore December 16, 2010
Dear Swedish Government:
Hi there -- or as you all say, Hallå! You know, all of us here in the U.S. love your country. Your Volvos, your meatballs, your hard-to-put-together furniture -- we can't get enough!
There's just one thing that bothers me -- why has Amnesty International, in a special report (described in detail here by Naomi Wolf), declared that Sweden refuses to deal with the very real tragedy of rape? In fact, they say that all over Scandinavia, including in your country, rapists "enjoy impunity." And the United Nations, the EU and Swedish human rights groups have come to the same conclusion: Sweden just doesn't take sexual assault against women seriously. How else do you explain these statistics from Katrin Axelsson of Women Against Rape:
- - - - SNIP - - -
Last week Naomi Klein wrote: "Rape is being used in the Assange prosecution in the same way that 'women's freedom' was used to invade Afghanistan. Wake up!"
I agree.
Unless you have the evidence (and it seems if you did you would have issued an arrest warrant by now), drop the extradition attempt and get to work doing the job you've so far refused to do: Protecting the women of Sweden.
Yours,
Michael Moore
- - - - - - -
John Pilger: Global Support for WikiLeaks is "Rebellion" Against U.S. Militarism, Secrecy (13 min video)

http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27072.htm

Wikileaks Wars (based on Star Wars) (5 min.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_ZgHwo1olA

WATCH: Interview: 'The war you don't see'

http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/listeningpost/
2010/12/201012238411876437.html

Journalist John Pilger discusses his latest film, the media's role in conflict, and the WikiLeaks phenomenon.

===================

12. Kosovo: Europe's Mafia State. Hub of the EU-NATO Drug Trail
Kosovo's Prime Minister Accused of Running Human Organ, Drug Trafficking Cartel

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22486

By Tom Burghardt Global Research, December 22, 2010
Antifascist Calling...
In another grim milestone for the United States and NATO, the Council of Europe (COE) released an explosive report last week, "Inhuman treatment of people and illicit trafficking in human organs in Kosovo."
The report charged that former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) boss and current Prime Minister, Hashim Thaçi, "is the head of a 'mafia-like' Albanian group responsible for smuggling weapons, drugs and human organs through eastern Europe," The Guardian disclosed.
According to a draft resolution unanimously approved December 16 in Paris, the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights found compelling evidence of forced disappearances, organ trafficking, corruption and collusion between criminal gangs and "political circles" in Kosovo who just happen to be close regional allies of the United States.
The investigation was launched by Dick Marty, the Parliamentary Assembly for the Council of Europe (PACE) special rapporteur for human rights who had conducted an exhaustive 2007 probe into CIA "black fights" in Europe.
The PACE investigation gathered steam after allegations were published by former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Carla Del Ponte in her 2008 memoir.
After it's publication, Ms. Del Ponte was bundled off to Argentina by the Swiss government as her nation's ambassador. Once there, the former darling of the United States who specialized in doling out victor's "justice" to the losers of the Balkan wars, was conveniently silenced.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22486

===================

13. War Cover-up - Top U.S. General on Cover-up of Forces Behind War

http://www.wanttoknow.info/warcoverup
- - - - -
That war is a racket has been told us by many, but rarely by one of this stature. Though he wrote the landmark book War is a Racket in 1935, the highly decorated U.S. General Smedley Butler (two esteemed Medals of Honor) deserves to be heralded for this timeless message, which rings true today more than ever. Below is an engaging two-page summary.
- - - - -
WAR IS A RACKET – by General Smedley Butler
War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives. In the World War [World War I] a mere handful garnered the profits of the conflict. At least 21,000 new millionaires and billionaires were made in the United States during the World War. That many admitted huge gains in their income tax returns. How many other war millionaires falsified their tax returns no one knows. [Please note these are 1935 U.S. dollars. To adjust for inflation, multiply all figures X 10 or more]
WHO MAKES THE PROFITS?
The World War cost the United States some $52 billion. That means $400 [over $4,000 in today's dollars] to every American man, woman, and child. The normal yearly profits of a business concern in the U.S. are 6 to 12%. But war-time profits, that is another matter – 60, 100, 300, and even 1,800% – the sky is the limit. Uncle Sam has the money. Let's get it. Of course, it isn't put that crudely in war time. It is dressed into speeches about patriotism, love of country, and "we must all put our shoulders to the wheel," but the profits jump, leap, and skyrocket – and are safely pocketed.

MORE:
http://www.wanttoknow.info/warcoverup

====================

14. LISTEN: Christmas in The Trenches - Song

To listen to this inspirational Christmas story in song:

http://www.personalgrowthcourses.net/audio/
christmas_truce_in_the_trenches

Words & Music by John McCutcheon, c. 1984, John McCutcheon / Appalsong
This song is based on a true story from the front lines of World War I that I've heard many times. Ian Calhoun, a Scot, was the commanding officer of the British forces involved in the story. He was subsequently court-martialed for 'consorting with the enemy' and sentenced to death. Only George V spared him from that fate. -- John McCutcheon

==================

15. LETTER: SHIELDS: Removal Of United States

From: lagran
To: Prime Minister/Premier ministre ; Layton, Jack - M.P. ; iggy
Cc: Rae.B@parl.gc.ca ; goodale ; dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca ; Alberta Activism
Sent: Sunday, December 26, 2010 1:34 PM
Subject: Removal Of United States.
Just further proof that the United Nations must move into the West Bank area and replace the United State as the authority within the troubled Middle East. The U.N must insist {with force if necessary} that Israeli citizens retreat to within the area that defined Israel prior to the 1967 war. Next should come the removal of nuclear weapons within Israel, and assurances that Iran's nuclear ambitions remain equal to Israel's with respect to nuclear bomb manufacturing. Only after the above has been accomplished can we expect to hold meaningful peace arrangements to set in stone bounties to define a State of Israel and a State of Palestine. Once the Zionists have been prevented from running amuck in the Mid-East, backed by the United States, who have a desire to balance their oil trade imports with war machinery, is their the slightest chance of nuclear war in the region.
Iraq, and many other Mid-East countries have witnessed what Israel, and United States present as democracy, and have said NO-THANKS. United Nation personnel from other nations would have a far better chance in bringing stability to the area, than a terrorist Zionist group or a weapon peddler like the U.S. I was ashamed for the Obama government's offer of 20 U.S. F-35 war planes to Israel to coax them back to PEACE negotiations!! What in hell did Obama think these war-hawks would do with 20 new F-35's?? Is peace obtained by supplying one side of a conflict with the latest in war machinery? Get the phony United States out of the Mid-East mix altogether, to expose Israel to the need for peace, simply for survival purposes. It's time also to expose who indeed is a true member of United Nations, and who belong to simply sway things in their own best interest. Canada's Harper I'm sure would be exposed to the Canadian voter as one with a very slanted view of Mid-East affairs.
Stewart Shields
Lacombe, Alberta
= = = = = =
Israel kills Gaza militants amid cross-border violence

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12079970

Middle East 26 December 2010 Last updated at 08:02 E
Palestinians in Gaza have fired two rockets into Israel, its military says, hours after Israeli aircraft killed two militants in Gaza, amid rising tension.
The Israeli army said the militants were trying to plant explosives.
The violence comes a day before the second anniversary of Israel's 2008 conflict with Gaza's Hamas rulers.
Last week, an Israeli official warned another war was "only a question of time", while Hamas has threatened a "strong response" to any aggression.
Sunday's clashes began with an Israeli raid on militants from the Islamic Jihad group east of Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.
"Overnight, an IDF [Israeli army] force identified a number of suspects planting explosives along the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip," said an Israeli military statement.
"A combined force, consisting of IAF [Israeli Air Force] helicopters and an armoured force, fired at the suspects and confirmed direct hits."
Islamic Jihad confirmed that "fierce fighting" had taken place, and two of its members had been killed.
Later, the Israeli military said two mortars had landed in the Eshkol region in Israel's southern Negev desert.
The rockets are not thought have caused any injuries.

MORE:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12079970

Israel and the Palestinians
Going nowhere fast?
'Off the record' views from officials
Q&A: Resuming direct talks
Mid-East talks: Where they stand

by **Oscar** » Fri Dec 31, 2010 5:26 pm

NUKE NEWS: December 31, 2010

Happy NUKE-FREE New Year!

1. ACTION ALERT! PUBLIC HEARING: DARLINGTON - REGISTER by January 13
2. Nuclear Waste Across Canada: Yellowcake Trail Pt 4
3. Environmental Coalition Challenges “Radioactive Russian Roulette” of 20 Year License Extension at Davis-Besse
4. For a nuclear-free carbon-free 2011...
5. If Colorado yellowcake uranium mill gets state's OK, customers would likely be in Asia
6. Nuclear Energy Suffers Another Big Blow -- Will the Dying Industry Continue to Beg for More Government Subsidies?
7. City of Houston shuts two radioactive water wells
8. WATCH: War and peace in Quran and Bible
9. CEASEFIRE.CA - Take our annual survey!
10. WATCH: Allan Nairn: As U.S. Loses Its Global Economic Edge, Its "One Clear Comparative Advantage is in Killing, and It’s Using It"
11. Towards a New Iron Curtain: The US-NATO Missile Shield Encircles Eurasia & MAP
12. US-led soldier killed in Afghanistan
13. British soldier killed in Afghanistan
14. Unauthorized US strikes kill 46
15. Afghan war to escalate in 2011
16. Report: US allots billions for nuclear weapons
17. The Senate’s Next Task: Ratifying the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
18. LETTER: REMPEL: For peace, environment, and human well-being
19. China steps up anti-carrier missile tests: US commander
20. Myanmar 'building nuclear sites'
21. N Korea 'may conduct' nuclear test
22. WIKILEAKS UPDATE
23. 2011: A Special Message to our Readers: Best Wishes for a Peaceful New Year

==================

1. ACTION ALERT! PUBLIC HEARING: DARLINGTON - REGISTER by January 13

http://www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/commission/
joint_review_panel/darlington/jrp_form/index_darlington.cfm

The Ontario Government plans to build up to four new nuclear reactors at the site of the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station near Oshawa.
A joint panel appointed over a year ago to conduct an environmental review of the proposal announced on December 14th that the public hearing will begin March 21st, 2011
The panel has declared that anyone wanting to speak at the hearing or provide written comments (or both) must register their intention to do so by January 13th.
That's right! You must register by January 13th -- 67 days in advance of the March 21st hearing start!
You can register on-line and the Hearing Panel secretariat will then contact you with "details" such as the hearing location and exact schedule (the hearing will be held in Durham Region) - the link is

http://www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/commission/
joint_review_panel/darlington/jrp_form/index_darlington.cfm

Alternatively, you can contact the Secretariat at 1-866-582-1884 or by email at darlington.review@ceaa-acee.gc.ca and provide them with your contact information, an indication if you want to make an oral presentation to the panel or provide a written submission, and describe your area of interest in the proposal.

Don't delay! Do it today!

For more details about the hearing or information about the proposal to build up to four new nuclear reactors at Darlington please visit the following sites:

Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission at

http://www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/commission/
joint_review_panel/darlington/index.cfm

Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency at

http://www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca/050/
details-eng.cfm?evaluation=29525

Greenpeace at

http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/campaigns/
end-the-nuclear-threat/

Ontario Clean Air Alliance at

http://www.cleanairalliance.org/

================

2. Nuclear Waste Across Canada: Yellowcake Trail Pt 4

http://www.watershedsentinel.ca/content/
nuclear-waste-across-canada-yellowcake-trail-pt-4

by Anna Tilman March/April 2010 Issue of Water Sentinel - Page 28
Nuclear waste is the Achilles’ heel of the nuclear industry. The wastes created along the yellowcake trail, be it from mining, processing, refining, or use, are a legacy for hundreds of thousands of years. Every single nuclear facility in the world is a waste site, whether it is operating or not.
By the mid 1970s, the neglect of radioactive waste was no longer acceptable to the public. Two main issues were front and centre.
• Spent fuel: At the end of its useful life in a fission reactor, the “spent fuel” contains hundreds of different fission products, many of them not found in nature. It is so radioactive as to be lethal in seconds to anyone near to them.
• Port Hope, Ontario: Radioactive contamination dates back to the 1930s, from refining radium and uranium ores and discarding the waste anywhere and everywhere around town.
So governments established task forces and panels to study these issues and find a solution. But after more than thirty years, the solutions offered are no solutions.
Radioactive waste is an inescapable by-product of nuclear fission in the nuclear power industry. To recycle or re-process this waste leads to even more liquid radioactive waste, and gives access to plutonium, that could be used for nuclear weapons.
Radioactive waste has been dumped in sinks or flushed down toilets, left in dirt ditches or landfills, incorporated into construction materials, and trucked through almost every town or hamlet in the nuclearised world. It is deadly in minuscule quantities. There is no way to eliminate it, and no way to keep it completely contained for a million years.

MORE:
http://www.watershedsentinel.ca/content/
nuclear-waste-across-canada-yellowcake-trail-pt-4

=================

3. Environmental Coalition Challenges “Radioactive Russian Roulette” of 20 Year License Extension at Davis-Besse

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/29/
environmental-coalition-challenges-radioactive-russian-roule.html

For Immediate Release: December 30, 2010
Contact: Kevin Kamps, Beyond Nuclear, (240) 462-3216;
Michael Keegan, Don’t Waste Michigan, (734) 770-1441;
Joe DeMare, Green Party of Ohio, (419) 973-5841.
Wind and Solar Can Replace Nuclear Power, Accident Costs Low-balled, Groups Allege
News from Beyond Nuclear *
* Citizens Environment Alliance of Southwestern Ontario *
* Don’t Waste Michigan * Green Party of Ohio *
Oak Harbor, Ohio—This week, an environmental coalition has officially intervened against the 20 year license extension sought by First Energy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC) for its Davis-Besse atomic reactor. The groups – Beyond Nuclear, Citizens Environment Alliance of Southwestern Ontario, Don’t Waste Michigan, and the Green Party of Ohio – allege that wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) power, and certainly a combination of the two renewable energies, can readily replace Davis-Besse’s electricity by the end of its 40 year operating license in 2017. The intervention petition and request for a hearing to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (posted at Beyond Nuclear’s homepage,
www.beyondnuclear.org ) also asserts that the potential casualties and costs that could be caused by a severe radioactivity release from Davis-Besse have been grossly underestimated.
Kevin Kamps of Beyond Nuclear, a party to the intervention, said “Granting Davis-Besse 20 additional years to operate would be playing radioactive Russian roulette on the Great Lakes shoreline.”

MORE:
http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2010/12/29/
environmental-coalition-challenges-radioactive-russian-roule.html

====================

4. For a nuclear-free carbon-free 2011...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NucNews/message/32383

December 29, 2010
Dear Friends,
Sometimes victories can be defined as things that didn't happen. And, looking back, 2010 was full of such victories. Think about it:
*Once again, the nuclear industry failed to obtain any new taxpayer loans for new nuclear reactor construction--despite, this year, gaining the support of the President of the United States.
*Once again, no new reactors were licensed, and no new reactor designs were certified. The nuclear "renaissance" continues to be a mere mirage in the minds of its backers.
*Once again, no states lifted their existing moratoria against new reactor construction, despite heavy industry lobbying.
Of course, a few things did happen, such as:
*The Vermont legislature voted to close the Vermont Yankee reactor when its license expires in 2012, and Vermont voters added an exclamation point to that when it elected the legislative leader of that fight, Peter Shumlin, to be the state's new Governor.
*The Oyster Creek reactor announced it will close by 2019 rather than build new cooling towers, and odds are it won't make it that long.
*Realizing that nuclear power cannot compete with the plentiful alternatives, Constellation Energy backed out of the proposed Calvert Cliffs-3 reactor and sold its entire share of UniStar Nuclear to Electricite de France. Although EdF is trying to resurrect the project, NIRS ongoing legal actions against its foreign ownership are likely to prevail.
Those are just a few of the highlights of the year--you can probably name more.

MORE:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NucNews/message/32383

===================

5. If Colorado yellowcake uranium mill gets state's OK, customers would likely be in Asia

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_16943 ... z19Z1VTDOo

by Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, December 26, 2010
If government environmental overseers grant a license to build the nation's first uranium mill since the Cold War in western Colorado, project leaders then would turn their attention to China, Korea and other Asian powers.
That's where Energy Fuels Inc. would seek financing for its proposed $140 million uranium-processing facility, officials said last week. And yellowcake uranium made in Colorado likely would be sent to fuel Asian power plants.
A lack of action by U.S. Congress and utilities to encourage nuclear energy alternatives "just about requires us to look overseas," said Gary Steele, Energy Fuels' vice president for investor relations. "You have to go where the market is. Just pick an Asian country. That's where all the action is now."

MORE:
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_16943 ... z19Z1VTDOo

===============

6. Nuclear Energy Suffers Another Big Blow -- Will the Dying Industry Continue to Beg for More Government Subsidies?

http://www.alternet.org/story/149358/

By Harvey Wasserman, AlterNet
Posted on December 29, 2010, Printed on December 31, 2010
The atomic energy industry has suffered another astonishing defeat. Because of it, 2010 again left the "nuclear renaissance" in the Dark Age that defines the technology. But an Armageddon-style battle looms when Congress returns next year.
The push to build new nuclear plants depends now, as always, on federal subsidies. Fifty-three years after the first commercial reactor opened at Shippingport, Pennsylvania, no private funders will step forward to pay for a "new generation" of nukes.
So the industry remains mired in unsolved waste problems, disturbing vulnerability to terror and error, uninsured liability in case of a major catastrophe, and unapproved new design proposals.
Two new reactor construction projects in Europe -- one in Finland and the other at Flamanville, France -- are sinking in gargantuan cost overruns and multi-year delays. To financiers and energy experts worldwide, it's a clear indicator the "rebirth" of this failed technology is a hopeless quagmire.

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149358/

================

7. City of Houston shuts two radioactive water wells

http://www.khou.com/news/investigative/
I-TEAM-City-of-Houston-shuts-down-two-radioactive-water-wells-112364389.html

23 Dec 2010
A radioactive water well that is controlled by the City of Houston, and that serves residents of Jersey Village, is no longer being used, according to the communications director for Houston Mayor Annise Parker. On Monday, a KHOU-TV investigation revealed Jersey Village water well #3 was one of 10 water wells identified by recent federal tests as having tested high for a particularly damaging form of radiation called alpha radiation……

===============

8. WATCH: War and peace in Quran and Bible

http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes ... n/2010/03/
201032584118951469.html

We examine what role the Bible and the Quran played in inciting violence through the ages.
Riz Khan Last Modified: 26 Mar 2010 14:33 GMT
One of the widest perceptions in the Western world, especially after the attacks of September 11, is that Islam's holy book, the Quran, promotes conflict, violence and bloodshed.
Muslims argue that many of the verses of the Quran – such as the one asking the Prophet Muhammad and his followers to "slay them [unbelievers] wherever ye find them, and drive them out of the places whence they drove you out" – are taken out of context.
Muslim scholars say that the scriptures have been intentionally misused by Muslims and non-Muslims alike to advance political agendas.
Critics say that the texts promote extremism, and that Islam has left a trail of blood across world history.
Recently, Philip Jenkins, one of the world's leading religion scholars, conducted a study comparing the texts of the Quran and the Bible, and found that "the Bible contains far more verses praising or urging bloodshed than does the Quran."
Riz speaks with Philip Jenkins and Shaker Elsayed, the imam of Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Centre in the US and former secretary general of the Muslim American Society.
This episode of Riz Khan aired from Wednesday, December 29, 2010.

================

9. CEASEFIRE.CA - Take our annual survey!

http://www.ceasefire.ca/?p=6649

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 11:46 AM PST
Help set out Ceasefire.ca's plans for 2011.

=======================

10. WATCH: Allan Nairn: As U.S. Loses Its Global Economic Edge, Its "One Clear Comparative Advantage is in Killing, and It’s Using It"

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/12/29/
allan_nairn_as_us_loses_its

Democracy Now! Daily News Digest December 29, 2010
As 2010 draws to a close, what is the role of the United States in the world today? From the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to the cuts to social programs here at home, where is there emerging hope for change around the world? We spend the hour with award-winning investigative journalist and activist Allan Nairn.

===================

11. Towards a New Iron Curtain: The US-NATO Missile Shield Encircles Eurasia & MAP

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22365

By Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya
Global Research, December 28, 2010
Western Europe through NATO and the E.U. forms the primary bridgehead of America into Eurasia.
According to Brzezinski: “[NATO and the E.U. constitute] America’s most important global relationship. It is the springboard for U.S. global involvement, enabling America to play the decisive role of arbiter in Eurasia — the world’s central arena of power — and it creates a coalition that is globally dominant in all key dimensions of power and influence.” [1]
The secondary bridgeheads of America into Eurasia are: (1) Japan and South Korea; (2) the Arabian Peninsula; and (3) the U.S. and NATO military forces in occupied Iraq and Afghanistan.
This is why the expansion of the U.S. missile shield from a U.S. project to a NATO project should come as no surprise. The globalization of NATO isd part of that process. The inclusion of the missile shield project under the helm of NATO was already in the pipeline in the 1990s. In fact, the statements that NATO just adopted the missile shield project in 2010 are bold faced lies.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22365

====================

12. US-led soldier killed in Afghanistan

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/158026.html

28 Dec 2010
A US-led soldier has been killed in a bomb blast in southern Afghanistan, bringing to 707 the number of foreign troops killed in the war-torn country so far this year. NATO said the soldier lost his life in a bomb attack, without revealing his nationality. "An International Security Assistance Force service member died following an improvised explosive device (IED) attack in southern Afghanistan today," ISAF confirmed in a Tuesday statement….

=================

13. British soldier killed in Afghanistan

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/157642.html

28 Dec 2010
A British soldier has been killed in Helmand province of Afghanistan, as the deadliest year of the war for foreign troops winds down. The soldier, who was from the 23 Pioneer Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps, was killed near Lashkar Gah on Tuesday by an improvised explosive device (IED), the Associated Press reported. He was a bomb disposal expert working for the Counter-IED Task Force and was killed as he was clearing a road…..

=================

14. Unauthorized US strikes kill 46

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/157527.html

28 Dec 2010
Non-UN-sanctioned US drone strikes in the troubled northwestern Pakistan have left at least 46 people dead and several others injured in the past two days. Two unmanned US planes fired four missiles at two houses located in Pakistan's North Waziristan on Tuesday, a Press TV correspondent reported……

================

15. Afghan war to escalate in 2011

http://www.hindustantimes.com/
Afghan-war-to-escalate-in-2011/Article1-643619.aspx

28 Dec 2010
A senior officer of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Monday that the war in Afghanistan would escalate in 2011 as the coalition pursues militants. "There is no end to the fighting season; we need to keep pressure on the Taliban all over the country," ISAF spokesman Brigadier General Joseph Blotz said. "We will see more violence in 2011." …….

==================

16. Report: US allots billions for nuclear weapons

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/157529.html

28 Dec 2010
The United States has allocated billions of dollars to its nuclear weapons complex, despite agreeing to the New START treaty which demands a reduction of nuclear warheads. According to Newsweek, US President Barack Obama's administration has earmarked 84.5 billion dollars for modernizing America's nuclear arsenal over the next decade. That is an increase of at least 20 percent compared to money spent on nuclear laboratories during Obama's predecessor George W. Bush's tenure…….

================

17. The Senate’s Next Task: Ratifying the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/29/opini ... achev.html

By MIKHAIL GORBACHEV, The New York Times, December 28, 2010
Moscow
JUST a few weeks ago, the fate of the New Start nuclear arms treaty seemed to hang by a thread. But since last week, when the United States Senate ratified the treaty, which reduces the size of the American and Russian nuclear stockpiles, we can speak of a serious step forward for both countries. I hope this will energize efforts to take the next step to a world free of nuclear weapons: a ban on all nuclear testing.
In the final stretch, President Obama put his credibility and political capital on the line to achieve ratification. That a sufficient number of Republican senators put the interests of their nation’s security, and the world’s, above party politics is encouraging.
The success was not without cost. In return for the treaty’s ratification, Mr. Obama promised to allocate tens of billions of dollars in the next few years for modernizing the American nuclear weapons arsenal, which is hardly compatible with a nuclear-free world.
Missile defense remains contentious. During the ratification debate, many senators objected to the treaty’s language about the relationship between offensive and defensive arms, which the new agreement takes from the first Start treaty, signed in 1991. Others tried to scuttle ratification by complaining that New Start did not limit tactical nuclear weapons.

NEW START TREATY:

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/
subjects/s/strategic_arms_reduction_treaty/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier

These attacks were fended off. Nevertheless, these problems clearly need to be discussed. There must be an agreement on missile defense. Tough negotiations are ahead on tactical nuclear weapons, and a realistic agreement is needed on the deployment of conventional forces in Europe. We shall see very soon whether all these issues were raised just for the sake of rhetoric, as a demagogical screen to maintain military superiority, or whether there is a real readiness to conclude agreements easing the military burden.
The priority now is to ratify the separate treaty banning nuclear testing. The stalemate on this agreement, the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, has lasted more than a decade. I recall how hard it was in the second half of the 1980s to start moving in this direction. At the time, the Soviet Union declared a unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. However, when the United States continued to test, we had to respond.
Even so, we insisted on our position of principle, calling for a total ban on nuclear testing under strict international control, including the use of seismic monitoring and on-site inspections.

MORE:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/29/opini ... achev.html

==================

18. LETTER: REMPEL: For peace, environment, and human well-being
From: Jacob Rempel
To: All MPs
Sent: Friday, December 31, 2010 2:23 PM
Subject: For peace, environment, and human well-being

Dear Members of Parliament,

I have heard no one of you speak publicly of Canada's deep involvement in this long term genocidal radiation attack on generations of men, women and children in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan? not to mention in Yugoslavia. Do we Canadians, as well as you in parliament, support our government in this? I don't think so. I know that we don't.

Do we as Canadians all really want to be silent partners in these wars, wars that are really just the old imperial outreach for the oil and mineral resources of smaller nations? In support of mega corporations' ambitions? In competition with China, Russia, et al? Will this war crime bring blessings to Canada? Or to any other nation or people?

Our close alliance with the USA regime will always undermine efforts for world peace and sustainable prosperity, and the pursuit of happiness. In Afghanistan, the US regime plan is to stay there for access to resources, and they will.

We need a Canadian Department of Peace working actively with the best United Nations initiatives. For peace, environment, and human well-being, we need alliances with nations not at war, and also with a reformed, strengthened United Nations for peace making initiatives that intervene in the competitive exploitation by all the Great Powers operating in small nations to exploit their resources
-------
1. to make peace, 2. to protect the environment, and 3. to end poverty

Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
jacob.rempel@gmail.com
______________________________________________

REFERENCES---

Research links rise in Falluja birth defects and cancers to US assault

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/30/
faulluja-birth-defects-iraq

• Defects in newborns 11 times higher than normal
• 'War contaminants' from 2004 attack could be cause
A study examining the causes of a dramatic spike in birth defects in the Iraqi city of Falluja has for the first time concluded that genetic damage could have been caused by weaponry used in US assaults that took place six years ago.
The research, which will be published next week, confirms earlier estimates revealed by the Guardian of a major, unexplained rise in cancers and chronic neural-tube, cardiac and skeletal defects in newborns. The authors found that malformations are close to 11 times higher than normal rates, and rose to unprecedented levels in the first half of this year – a period that had not been surveyed in earlier reports.

MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/30/
faulluja-birth-defects-iraq

= = = = = = = =

Huge rise in birth defects in Falluja

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/13/
falluja-cancer-children-birth-defects

Iraqi former battle zone sees abnormal clusters of infant tumours and deformities
Martin Chulov in Falluja guardian.co.uk, Friday 13 November 2009 19.24 GMT
Doctors in Iraq's war-ravaged enclave of Falluja are dealing with up to 15 times as many chronic deformities in infants, compared to a year ago, and a spike in early life cancers that may be linked to toxic materials left over from the fighting.
The extraordinary rise in birth defects has crystallised over recent months as specialists working in Falluja's over-stretched health system have started compiling detailed clinical records of all babies born.
Neurologists and obstetricians in the city interviewed by the Guardian say the rise in birth defects – which include a baby born with two heads, babies with multiple tumours, and others with nervous system problems - are unprecedented and at present unexplainable.
A group of Iraqi and British officials, including the former Iraqi minister for women's affairs, Dr Nawal Majeed a-Sammarai, and the British doctors David Halpin and Chris Burns-Cox, have petitioned the UN general assembly to ask that an independent committee fully investigate the defects and help clean up toxic materials left over decades of war – including the six years since Saddam Hussein was ousted.
"We are seeing a very significant increase in central nervous system anomalies," said Falluja general hospital's director and senior specialist, Dr Ayman Qais. "Before 2003 [the start of the war] I was seeing sporadic numbers of deformities in babies. Now the frequency of deformities has increased dramatically."

MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/30/
faulluja-birth-defects-iraq

Additional reporting: Enas Ibrahim.
• This article was amended on 26 November 2009, to make clear in the opening sentence over what period an increase of up to 15 times the number of deformaties was observed

= = = = = =

RELATED RESEARCH:

Iraq War DU dust birth defects compared to atomic bomb at Hiroshima

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=73282&s2=27

December 26, 2010 Special to The Canadian
It is apparent that the "War on Terrorism" is not about surgically stopping "terrorist cells" from spreading destruction. If that were the case, there would not be over 1 million Iraqi civilian casualties, and other huge death tolls among civilians in the Middle East.
===============================

Report on birth defects and cancers in Iraq points to Canadian uranium

http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/3685

by Garson Hunter, The Dominion, 25 November 2010
REGINA - Radioactive armaments used by the US army in Iraq have been highlighted in a recent study as a probable cause for the region's increase in birth defects, infant deaths and cancer. Unavoidably, some of the uranium that made these weapons radioactive came from Saskatchewan.
- - - - -
PHOTO: Saskatchewan Yellowcake: http://www.dominionpaper.ca/images/3732

= = = = = = =

Hathor releases results on uranium site

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/news/
todays-paper/Hathor+releases+results+uranium+site/3949716/story.html

BY CASSANDRA KYLE, THE STAR PHOENIX DECEMBER 9, 2010

= = = = = =

War in Iraq Propelling A Massive Migration

http://www.washingtonpost.com/
wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/03/AR2007020301604.html

Iraqis in growing numbers are fleeing the war at home, ... Iraq's neighbors worry the new refugees will carry in Iraq's sectarian strife. ...

= = = = = =

Refugees of Iraq - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugees_of_Iraq

Jump to Iraq War‎: 25% of war-affected refugees with suffer some kind of psychological disorder.</ ref> Risk, Suffering, and Competing Narratives in the ...

=================

19. China steps up anti-carrier missile tests: US commander

http://www.alternet.org/rss/breakingnews/414476/
china_steps_up_anti-carrier_missile_tests%3A_us_commander/

Agence France Presse
China is stepping up efforts to deploy a "carrier-killer" missile system, the commander of the US Pacific Command has said in an interview with a Japanese newspaper, published Tuesday.
"The anti-ship ballistic missile system in China has undergone extensive testing," Admiral Robert Willard told the Asahi Shimbun in Honolulu, according to a transcript of the interview on its website.
Willard said China appeared to have achieved "initial operational capability" but it would take "several more years" before fully deploying the system.
US military analysts have warned China is developing a new version of its Dongfeng 21 missile that could pierce the defences of even the most sturdy US naval vessels and has a range far beyond Chinese waters.
Washington has expressed rising concern over China's military intentions following a string of double-digit increases in Chinese military spending and the rapid modernisation of its armed forces.
In the interview, Willard also said China aims to become a global military power by extending its influence beyond its regional waters.
"They are focused presently on what they term their near seas -- the Bohai, Yellow Sea, South China Sea, East China Sea," Willard said.
"I think they have an interest in being able to influence beyond that point, and they have aspirations to eventually become a global military," he said. "In the capabilities that we're seeing develop, that is fairly obvious."
= = = = = = = =

A report from aboard a US warship on China's naval assertiveness that is prompting regional and US concerns.

http://english.aljazeera.net/video/americas/2010/12/
2010122991019540657.html

Power politics in the Pacific Last Modified: 29 Dec 2010 10:48 GMT
China's growing military assertiveness has alarmed its neighbours and prompted the US to keep a high profile on Asian waters. It has been pressing claims on disputed waters and seeking new weapons and warships. Liang Guanglie, the Chinese defence minister, said on Wednesday that the country's booming economy is driving its military might.
"In the next five years, our economy and society will develop faster, boosting comprehensive national power," Liang said. "We will take the opportunity and speed up modernisation of the military."
Liang said China's military would continue to advance its capability to fight and win high-tech wars, while also boosting its conventional arsenal.
He said the the 2.3-million-strong People's Liberation Army plans to do this all without foreign aid.
"We will stand on our own feet to solve the problem and develop our equipment," Liange said, "The modernisation of the Chinese military cannot depend on others, and cannot be bought."
China's increasing military spending has generated concern among its neighbours, but Chinese officials insist that they are only interested in peace and that its naval build-up is not a threat.
The US, however, sees Beijing as a potential threat to its once unrivalled dominance of the Pacific.
China ended military relations with Washington a year ago in protest against a multi-billion-dollar US arms package for rival Taiwan.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/video/americas/2010/12/
2010122991019540657.html

===============

20. Myanmar 'building nuclear sites'

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/
asia-pacific/2010/12/2010121053532341891.html

Leaked US diplomatic cables say suspicious construction took place in remote jungles, aided by North Korean workers.
Last Modified: 10 Dec 2010 07:29 GMT Myanmar may be building missile and nuclear sites in remote locations with support from North Korea, according to secret US diplomatic cables released by the whistleblowing website Wikileaks.
A cable from the US embassy in the former capital Yangon, which was among those released on Thursday, quoted an officer who said he had witnessed North Korean technicians helping to construct an underground bunker in a remote jungle.
The reports, which stretch over the past six years, also suggest dockworkers and foreign businessmen have seen evidence of alleged sites.
The leaked memos appear to support claims made by the Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), an opposition broadcaster, that Myanmar was trying to develop nuclear weapons, citing a senior army defector and years of "top secret material".
A DVB documentary, aired by Al Jazeera in June, gathered thousands of photos and defector testimony, some regarding a network of secret underground bunkers and tunnels, which were allegedly built with the help of North Korean expertise.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/
asia-pacific/2010/12/2010121053532341891.html

=================

21. N Korea 'may conduct' nuclear test

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/
asia-pacific/2010/12/201012244222650421.html

South Korean report claims North may test third nuclear device next year amid rising tensions on the peninsula. Last Modified: 24 Dec 2010 06:04 GMTNorth Korea may carry out a third nuclear test next year and the possibility for bilateral talks with South Korea are slim, according to a research report from the South's foreign ministry institute.
The report, published on Friday, comes a day after Pyongyang vowed a nuclear "sacred war" as the South held a major military drill near the border.
The North, which carried out nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, has yet to show it has a deliverable weapon as part of its plutonium-based arms programme, but a third test would raise tensions further on the Korean peninsula.
"There is a possibility for North Korea carrying out its third nuclear test to seek improvement in its nuclear weapons production capability, keep the military tension high and promote Kim Jong-un's status as the next leader," the report said, referring to Kim Jong-il's youngest son and the country's heir apparent.
"Tension between the two Koreas will remain high with chances of additional North Korean attacks on the South staying high.
Chances of a summit meeting between leaders of the two sides [also] look slim," the institute said, according to a summary of the report.
The preview for 2011 was written by the South Korean Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, which is run by the foreign ministry.
Analysts say the North's tactic of demonstrating what progress it has made towards developing a nuclear weapon is a ploy aimed at restarting talks between itself, the South, China, Japan, Russia and the United States, from which it hopes to wring concessions.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/
asia-pacific/2010/12/201012244222650421.html

==================

22. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

8 Smears and Misconceptions About WikiLeaks Spread By the Media

http://www.alternet.org/story/149369/
8_smears_and_misconceptions_about_wikileaks_spread_by_the_media

Shredding the corporate media's malicious attacks on WikiLeaks.
December 31, 2010 AlterNet / By Julianne Escobedo Shepherd and Tana Ganeva
The corporate media's tendency to blare misinformation and outright fabrications has been particularly egregious in coverage of WikiLeaks. As Glenn Greenwald has argued, mainstream news outlets are parroting smears and falsehoods about the whistleblower site and its founder Julian Assange, helping to perpetuate a number of "zombie lies" -- misconceptions that refuse to die no matter how much they conflict with known reality, basic logic and well-publicized information.
Here are the bogus narratives that keep appearing in newspapers and on the airwaves.

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149369/
8_smears_and_misconceptions_about_wikileaks_spread_by_the_media

= = = = = = =

Assange Scores Million-Dollar Book Deal to Fund WikiLeaks' Bills

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/412670/
assange_scores_million-dollar_book_deal_to_fund_wikileaks%27_bills/

By Sarah Seltzer | AlterNet
Posted on Monday, December 27, 2010 @ 08:50 AM
Julian Assange may be targeted by the world powers he's disturbed, but he's still a celebrity--and he's inked the requisite celebrity book deal.
According to The Guardian, the reluctant memoirist signed up to pay his legal bills:
He told the Sunday Times that he was forced to sign a deal worth more than £1m for his autobiography due to financial difficulties. "I don't want to write this book , but I have to," he said. "I have already spent £200,000 for legal costs and I need to defend myself and to keep WikiLeaks afloat." …….

= = = = = = = =

My Parents Were Executed Under the Unconstitutional Espionage Act -- Here's Why We Must Fight to Protect Julian Assange

http://www.alternet.org/story/149345/
my_parents_were_executed_under_the_unconstitutional_espionage_act_--_here%27s_why_we_must_fight_to_protect_julian_assange

Robert Meeropol / Rosenberg Fund for Children (See below.)
The Espionage Act is a huge danger to our open society; it's been used to send hundreds of dissenters to jail just for voicing their opinions, transforming dissent into treason.
December 29, 2010 |
Rumors are swirling that the United States is preparing to indict Wikileaks leader Julian Assange for conspiring to violate the Espionage Act of 1917. The modern version of that act states among many, many other things that: “Whoever, for the purpose of obtaining information respecting the national defense with intent or reason to believe that the information is to be used to the injury of the United States” causes the disclosure or publication of this material, could be subject to massive criminal penalties. It also states that: “If two or more persons conspire to violate any of the foregoing provisions … each of the parties to such conspiracy shall be subject to the punishment provided for the offense which is the object of such conspiracy.” (18 U.S. Code, Chapter 37, Section 793.)

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149345/
my_parents_were_executed_under_the_unconstitutional_espionage_act_--_here%27s_why_we_must_fight_to_protect_julian_assange
- - - - - - - - -
Activist, author, attorney, and public speaker, Robert Meeropol, is the younger son of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. In 1953, when he was six years old, the United States Government executed his parents for “conspiring to steal the secret of the atomic bomb." In 1990, Robert started the Rosenberg Fund for Children, a public foundation which he describes as his “constructive revenge.” The RFC provides for the educational and emotional needs children in the U.S. whose parents have been harassed, injured, jailed, lost jobs or died in the course of their progressive activities, and also helps activist youth in the U.S. who themselves have been targeted.

= = = = = = = =

WikiLeaks: How U.S. tried to stop Spain's torture probe

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/12/25/1988286/
wikileaks-how-us-tried-to-stop.html

25 Dec 2010
It was three months into Barack Obama's presidency, and the administration -- under pressure to do something about alleged abuses in Bush-era interrogation policies -- turned to a Florida senator to deliver a sensitive message to Spain: Don't indict former President [sic] George W. Bush's legal brain trust for alleged torture in the treatment of war on terror detainees, warned Mel Martinez on one of his frequent trips to Madrid. Doing so would chill U.S.-Spanish relations... The episode, revealed in a raft of WikiLeaks cables, was part of a secret concerted U.S. effort to stop a crusading Spanish judge from investigating a torture complaint against former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and five other senior Bush lawyers…….

===================

23. 2011: A Special Message to our Readers: Best Wishes for a Peaceful New Year

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php? ... &aid=22572

By The Global Research Team Global Research, December 31, 2010
Dear Readers,
As 2010 draws to a close, we take a moment to reflect on the past year and contemplate what may be ahead in the months to come.
Undeniably, this has been a year of crisis, characterized by the plight of war, economic dislocation and environmental degradation.
In a very direct way, the global economic and social crisis affects the livelihood of millions of people, as our authors have indicated through their research and news coverage, and our readers have observed through their own experiences.
The global financial picture remains bleak for many who are struggling to support their families and worry about what the future holds. The current administration of the world's superpower has put forth copious promises for change, but as proof of change is not received, disillusionment is setting in.
War continues to be waged across the globe at unprecedented rates, amassing immeasurable monetary, psychological and human costs which affect all citizens of the world. In turn, a large share of the nations' resources (particularly in the United States) is channeled towards the production of advanced weapons systems to the detriment of education, health and housing.
Every day, Global Research brings you articles that report, break down and analyze the pressing issues of our times. And with negative headlines often outweighing the optimistic, this can be a discouraging process indeed. However, we believe in the power of information and analysis to bring about far-reaching change: the more people become aware of the subversive, insidious processes attempting to manipulate the many to benefit the few, the less they can turn a blind eye to the injustice that surrounds us.
Truth in media is a powerful instrument. As long as we all keep probing, asking questions, looking through the disinformation to find real understanding, then we are in a better position to resist the negative and regain our sense of optimism for a better world in which truth and accountability trump greed and corruption.
To that end, we thank all our readers for supporting us, whether you have read, blogged and forwarded our articles for years, or have just recently discovered us when the failures of mainstream media prompted you to seek a deeper understanding of the world around you. We welcome your participation and urge you to keep reading, as much and as often as time will allow.
As a resolution for 2011, we encourage all readers to arm themselves - not with weapons, but with information. Make research a priority and spread the word to others; ask questions and do not settle for unsatisfactory answers; find out what you can and make your decisions based on what's proven instead of what's convenient. And, when possible, support non-profit organizations like Global Research through donations and memberships so that we can all continue to fight together against the flood of disinformation that threatens from larger, well-funded media and organizations.
If we have one wish for this coming 2011, it would be for peace. Until then, we encourage your continued participation and support, and wish you and your loved ones all the best in the year ahead.
With kind regards from the staff, writers and countless volunteers of The Centre for Research on Globalization
Montreal, December 31, 2010
Subscribe to the Global Research e-newsletter
Donate to Global Research
Please support Global Research
Global Research relies on the financial support of its readers.
Your endorsement is greatly appreciated

by **Oscar** » Thu Jan 06, 2011 11:05 am

NUKE NEWS: January 6, 2011

NUCLEAR WASTE: STOP MAKING IT!

1. Add your voice to the nuclear energy debate!
2. New environment minister will have his hands full
3. LETTER: REMPEL : Political Leadership Needed Most!
4. What happened to research on Chernobyl?
5. RESOLUTION: Global call to action for a ban on uranium mining
6. An "Overwhelming Problem" in the Navajo Nation
7. Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) and Western Mining Action Network (WMAN)Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-Grant Program
8. Commission Lets 36 States Dump Nuclear Waste In Texas
9. BOOK: Banning Weapons of Mass Destruction
10. Physicians for Global Survival (PGS) applauds the Government of Canada on Adopting Motion on Nuclear Disarmament
11. LETTER: REMPEL: What Purpose Unending Wars?
12. LETTER: REMPEL: All the wrong reasons: How Afghanistan Became a War for NATO
13. 'US to stay in Afghanistan forever'
14. Kabul opposes US permanent bases
15. Trainers will be mostly away from Kabul?
16. A gloomy observation on Afghan training
17. Hope in 2011: Peoples, Civil Society Stand Tall
18. Big Brother: America's Police State Mentality in the Electronic Age
19. Council of Canadians Update: January 5, 2011
20. Council of Canadians Campaign plans for 2011
21. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

===================

1. Add your voice to the nuclear energy debate!

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5654/p/dia/action/
public/?action_KEY=5028

Sierra Club Canada January 2, 2011
Let's launch 2011 with a spark! Be sure to tell your friends.
Do you want four more reactors leaking tritium into Lake Ontario? Do we need thousands more tonnes of radioactive waste? Ontario's plan to build more reactors at the Darlington site goes before an environmental assessment panel in the spring, but anyone wanting to make an oral or written comment must file by January 13, 2011.
This is an opportunity to be heard!
All it takes is an email
[ http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5654/p/dia/action/
public/?action_KEY=5028 ].

The pro-nuke lobby keeps telling the government not to worry, only a handful of zealots care. We can prove them wrong by sending hundreds of emails!
We have drafted a quick note for you to send right away in order to register. In a few weeks, we will prepare a sample submission for you to send.
Be sure to tell your friends.

Click here to register now:
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5654/p/dia/action/
public/?action_KEY=5028

Sincerely,
John Bennett
Sierra Club Canada
= = = = = = = =
Waterkeeper.ca Weekly: January 4th, 2011

www.waterkeeper.ca
Pivotal nuclear new-build hearing begins in March; register now to participate
It’s been thirty-four years since the government of Ontario last rolled out the cement trucks to build a new nuclear reactor. In about ten weeks’ time, a panel of decision-makers representing the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission will start reviewing if and how Ontario Power Generation will construct new reactors on the north shore of Lake Ontario at Darlington.
This pivotal hearing will set the tone for nuclear development in Canada in the coming decades as well as environmental decision-making procedures in the twenty-first century.
___________________________________________________________

Want to Participate in the Hearing on a New Nuclear Plant in Darlington Ontario?
January 13, 2011: Submit your registration to the Panel. You can register as either an Intervenor or a Presenter.
February 14, 2011: If you registered as an Intervenor, your written submission is due on Valentine’s Day.
March 21, 2011: Hearing begins. Location to be confirmed.
________________________________________________________

The Ontario government announced the Darlington New Build project in 2008. The government directed Ontario Power Generation to develop a plan for new nuclear reactors at its existing site in Durham Region. Ontario suspended its bid process in 2009 when the world’s reactor manufacturers (including the Canadian government-owned AECL) failed to submit an attractive offer. Even though no reactor technology has been chosen, the planning process, including the environmental assessment and licencing hearing, have continued.
Nuclear plants have always been controversial in Ontario. The most frequently reported concerns stem from costs (e.g., Darlington A cost $14.4-billion, six times the original estimate); timing (e.g., Darlington A was completed ten years late); radiation releases, especially in an emergency or accident; and waste management (both the environmental impacts and the expense of managing nuclear waste).
Other serious environmental concerns, unrelated to radiation and nuclear fuel, are discussed less often. Nuclear power plants use huge amounts of water. In the U.S., power plants like these account for about half of all the water withdrawn in the entire country. On the Great Lakes, the figure is even higher; 71% of all water withdrawn from the Great Lakes is consumed by power plants.
The cooling water systems used at Ontario nuclear power plants draw massive amounts of water from the lake, pulling in fish, eggs, and larvae at the same time. In 2004, it was estimated that Darlington Nuclear Power Plant entrained 15,631,833 eggs and 1,201,943 larvae; as many as 97% of these organisms did not survive.
Warm water released from the plants also influences water quality, contributing to algae growth and affecting water quality at swimming areas.
After two years of pre-hearing study, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission will review OPG’s environmental impact reports during a unique hearing process that begins March 21, 2011. The Commission’s expertise is in the nuclear issues, but it will review all environmental impacts of the project, including water quality, water withdrawals, air emissions, dust, traffic, and fish habitat.
This is a federal environmental assessment as well as a licencing hearing. The Commission will make the decision to approve the plant and impose terms and conditions on all aspects of its design. However, this is not a true hearing for a number of reasons:
Presenters will not make submissions under oath
There is no formal cross-examination (the public must submit questions via the panel Chair or ask permission to pose a question directly to another presenter)
Oral presentations cannot exceed 30 minutes
Intervenors cannot make traditional opening, closing, and reply arguments
The CNSC panel will make a recommendation to Canada’s Environment Minister (Hon. Peter Kent), who will make the final decision regarding the fate of the Darlington new build project.
As one of our experts has noted, the choices made this year about Darlington will determine the impacts of the project on Lake Ontario for the next sixty years. We probably face no single decision more consequential than if and how Ontario should put another nuclear power plant on Lake Ontario.
_______________________________________

Support Lake Ontario Waterkeeper’s work. Text “Drink” the number 45678 to donate $10 or donate online (Thank you to those who already gave!)
Join the hearing and make your own voice heard. Deadline is January 13, 2011. Details:
http://www.ceaa.gc.ca/050/document-eng. ... ment=46905
We are disappointed that the decision-making body does not represent a cross-section of government departments (Environment, Natural Resources, Fisheries, etc.). We are disappointed that the Ontario government has dragged its feet on the provincial environmental assessment process. We are disappointed that the rules for the hearing itself do not reflect a more traditional hearing. And we are disappointed that opportunities for members of the general public to participate less formally and outside of business hours have not been announced.
All that said, we have never been more positive about our community’s enthusiasm for a swimmable, drinkable, fishable Lake Ontario. It’s never too late to make the right choices.
Stay tuned: Next week, Lake Ontario Waterkeeper comments on the Ontario government’s new energy directive. Later this month, we will share our formal submission and evidence on the Darlington nuclear new build.

=============

2. New environment minister will have his hands full

http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/
Opinion+environment+minister+will+have+hands+full/4061028/story.html

Opinion: By Barbara Yaffe, Vancouver Sun January 5, 2011
Stephen Harper fine-tuned his cabinet team Tuesday with a minor shuffle that bolstered his Ontario contingent and catapulted former TV anchor Peter Kent into the politically tricky job of environment minister.
In a bid to prepare for a possible spring election, the prime minister promoted MPs with strong communications skills.
The elevation of Kent, former minister of state for foreign affairs, was unexpected. The MP for Thornhill on the outskirts of Toronto takes on a role that requires him to defend the Conservative government's woefully neglectful climate change record.
"Another puppet," huffed New Democratic Party deputy leader Thomas Mulcair.
Kent also will oversee a controversial application to build the Northern Gateway pipeline project from Fort McMurray, Alta., to Kitimat, a proposal that has West Coast aboriginal groups up in arms and inspired a movement to ban oil tankers off B.C.'s north coast.
The former Global TV broadcaster is the Harper government's fourth environment minister in five years, replacing John Baird who filled in after Jim Prentice left politics last November for a big Bay Street bank job.

MORE:
http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/
Opinion+environment+minister+will+have+hands+full/4061028/story.html

=================

3. LETTER: REMPEL : Political Leadership Needed Most!
From: Jacob Rempel
To: Members of House of Commons and Senate of Canada
Sent: Saturday, January 01, 2011 12:49 AM
Subject: Political Leadership Needed Most!

Dear Members of the House of Commons and the Senate of Canada:---

Below my long letter is a warning of the dangers of proceeding with more nuclear power development.
You must have noticed that we "protesters" object to almost every industrial big energy project like nuclear power plants, oil and coal burning power plants, tar sands oil extraction, all drilling for natural gas and oil on shore and off shore. Sometimes, just to conserve forests and fish and human habitat, we even oppose dams on rivers and run-of-the-river power generation which can deliver water powered clean energy generating projects, which in fact we protesters actually do want.
The truth is that if all these developments were stopped suddenly without alternatives, we comfortable modern protesters would quickly lose our own comfortable modern life styles. As well, people in poverty in less modern countries would be harmed by the sudden interruption of their electrical energy, reduced services from oil and gasoline powered cars, trucks, trains, agricultural machines, and also employment in manufacturing infrastructure, and the convenience of air travel. We understand this very well.
We also criticize much of the large-scale industrial agriculture which displaces small-scale farms and populations, driving millions of people into massive slums in already overgrown cities, and even drives them across our national borders where we complain about illegal immigration.
As well, we complain about modern agricultural science experimenting with genetic modification of agricultural plants and animals. We complain about massive industrial production of "fast food" which has already done much injury to health. We protest and complain because we know of some serious present damage, and we fear much greater damage to present and future life.
Much of our fear is justified by sound science, by information from competent independent scientific research. We protesters are not just frustrated partisan ne'er-do-well crowds of troublemakers. We are as well educated and just as well informed as are the elected and appointed members of parliament, the members of cabinet government and even the civil service experts who advise governments. Our numbers include scientists from the most highly respected scientific establishments.
Mostly, we are citizens who have no political aspirations, no hard and fast ideologies or partisan loyalties, and we have nothing to gain personally from political protest activity.
We severely criticize mega banks and stock market shenanigans, and the capitalist international mega corporations which supply us with all these modern goods and services that keep us protesters employed or pensioned, relatively prosperous and quite comfortable.
And we do know, we do understand the political difficulty and complexity of the changes we want in industry and politics. We protesters also are aware that the necessary changes will force changes in our own consumer choices and life styles. These are problems for politicians campaigning for election with short time constraints.
On the face of it, corporation CEOs and government politicians seem to be right to ignore our protests, because most voters are intimately dependent on all this modern technology. Politicians in every party rightly worry about popular negative voter reaction if these modern goods and services and employment opportunities were to go missing from our lives. Panic can ensue.
HOWEVER, we protesters are right to oppose all these harmful modern industrial projects. We are right because it is already well known that the goods and services they provide are causing serious harm now and for the long future of human habitat as well as environment for our fellow creatures.
Already knowing the complexity and difficulty of the changes we want in government and industry, we also know that with the right leadership, politicians and industrial leaders and voter can rise to this existential challenge.
How then can leaders in industry and government reconcile the conflicting expectations for modern goods and services, but also end the environmentally destructive use of oil and coal and nuclear power plants and weapons of war? (A long interrogative sentence to summarize the dilemma of our problem.)
The answer is that it's a culture and luxury lifestyle issue, hard to change and something too often thought to be outside the responsibility of government in a free and democratic nation like Canada.
However, in Canada and throughout the world, people can in fact be comfortable and enjoy a good life with much less of the modern goods and services and entertainment which we have conditioned ourselves to think of as essential for a good life, but which in fact are not really essential for health and happiness.
For all the people in Canada (and elsewhere) to more quickly change consumer and lifestyle culture will need great political leadership, but it can be done. Government regulations and public education already have radically changed smoking and drinking culture, motor vehicle usage, garbage disposal, harmful gas emissions, dangerous driving, etc. Much more can be done. Government can in fact apply education, guidance and/or regulation about what is known to be wasteful or harmful goods and services. The new and better warnings against smoking on cigarette packages by the Minister of Health are good precedents for many environmentally harmful goods and services.
Relevant appropriate cultural curriculum in better funded public schools and colleges can lead millions of children and youth into cultural recreation that requires much less consumption of environmentally harmful goods and services and transportation technology.
In the history of great cultures and civilizations, rich and powerful aristocrats and business leaders have always patronized and subsidized art, science, music, literature, and physical culture. Such recreation promotes satisfying lifestyles which demand much less wasteful and harmful production and consumption. Canada has long done some of this well, and we can increase it greatly to ensure that we develop a rich civilization of well-educated cultured happy people who will demand better environmentally safe goods and services from industry.
In our democratic economy, government instead of rich aristocrats can do this for the entire population with government subsidies for education and the best artistic cultural endeavours. This can significantly reduce demand for wasteful and harmful goods and services, and it can develop more paid employment for millions.
Governments now provide large subsidy advantages to many industries in the nuclear, oil and coal energy field, the military industrial economic sector, airplane and car manufacturing industry, industrial agriculture, and other economic enterprise related to consumption of goods and services which overload mother earth.
To end subsidy for such industry and to reduce our lifestyle demands for their harmful goods and services will help save the environment.
Instead, government industrial policies and plans can subsidize the clean energy development industry --- wind and water, solar, geological heat and tidal energy, plus various energy sources already known by scientists but needing more basic scientific research. All these can promote much new clean energy and industry.
As well, government policies can promote a "retreat" to smaller, organic farms that can produce much more nutritious food close to population centres. Such initiatives can also reduce the pressure of population growth in cities, reduce imports and the need for long distance transportation of raw and processed food.
All this requires political leadership which is available right now in the present House of Commons and Senate of Canada, certainly in all parties on the House of Commons opposition benches and in the Senate. I ask you all to get the vision and ambition to make this happen in Canada as a leader in world wisdom.
Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
jacob.rempel@gmail.com
=========================
Nuclear Waste Across Canada: Yellowcake Trail, Pt 4

http://www.watershedsentinel.ca/content/
nuclear-waste-across-canada-yellowcake-trail-pt-4

by Anna Tilman March/April 2010 Issue of Water Sentinel - Page 28
Nuclear waste is the Achilles’ heel of the nuclear industry. The wastes created along the yellowcake trail, be it from mining, processing, refining, or use, are a legacy for hundreds of thousands of years. Every single nuclear facility in the world is a waste site, whether it is operating or not.
By the mid 1970s, the neglect of radioactive waste was no longer acceptable to the public. Two main issues were front and centre.
Spent fuel: At the end of its useful life in a fission reactor, the “spent fuel” contains hundreds of different fission products, many of them not found in nature. It is so radioactive as to be lethal in seconds to anyone near to them.
Port Hope, Ontario: Radioactive contamination dates back to the 1930s, from refining radium and uranium ores and discarding the waste anywhere and everywhere around town.
So governments established task forces and panels to study these issues and find a solution. But after more than thirty years, the solutions offered are no solutions.
Radioactive waste is an inescapable by-product of nuclear fission in the nuclear power industry. To recycle or re-process this waste leads to even more liquid radioactive waste, and gives access to plutonium, that could be used for nuclear weapons.
Radioactive waste has been dumped in sinks or flushed down toilets, left in dirt ditches or landfills, incorporated into construction materials, and trucked through almost every town or hamlet in the nuclearised world. It is deadly in minuscule quantities. There is no way to eliminate it, and no way to keep it completely contained for a million years.

MORE:
http://www.watershedsentinel.ca/content/
nuclear-waste-across-canada-yellowcake-trail-pt-4

===============

4. What happened to research on Chernobyl?

http://pgs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/0 ... -email.pdf

Turning Point Vol XVI, No. 3 Fall 2010 – Page 6
The link between the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) and the WHO (World Health Organization)
In 1956, the WHO convened a study group that concluded: “…genetic heritage is the most precious property for human beings. It determines the lives of our progeny, healthy and harmonious development of future generations. As experts, we affirm that the health
of future generations is threatened by increasing development of the atomic industry and sources of radiation…. We also believe that new mutations that occur in humans are harmful to them and their offspring.” (WHO, Genetic effects of radiation in humans. Report of a study group convened by WHO, Geneva, 1957, p. 183.)
In 1958, another report was tabled: “The genetic heritage is the most precious property for human beings. It determines the lives of our progeny, healthy and harmonious development of future generations. As experts, we affirm that the health of future generations is threatened by increasing development of the atomic industry and sources of radiation.” (Technical report No. 151, p. 59, WHO, Geneva, 1958).
After 1959, the WHO made no more pronouncements about radiation and health. It had been silenced by an agreement with the IAEA wherein the WHO relinquished its authority on health effects of radiation to the IAEA.
The IAEA reports to the Security Council of the UN and hence is hierarchically dominant to the WHO which reports only to the Economic and Social Council.

MORE:
http://pgs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/0 ... -email.pdf

================

5. RESOLUTION: Global call to action for a ban on uranium mining

http://pgs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/
IPPNW-Resolution-Uranium-Ban-Engl1.pdf

INTERNATIONAL PHYSICIANS FOR THE PREVENTION OF NUCLEAR WAR
19th World Congress – Basel, Switzerland - March 25 – 30, 2010
RESOLUTION Adopted on August 29, 2010
Title of Resolution: Global call to action for a ban on uranium mining
Submitted By: Helmut Lohrer
Affiliates: IPPNW Germany and PSR/IPPNW Switzerland
Date Submitted: August 18, 2010
BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
Uranium ore mining and the production of uranium oxide (yellowcake) are irresponsible and represent a grave threat to health and to the environment. Both processes involve an elementary violation of human rights and their use lead to an incalculable risk for world peace and an obstacle to nuclear disarmament.
The International Council of IPPNW therefore resolves that:
IPPNW call for appropriate measures to ban uranium mining worldwide.
Reasons for Above:
Uranium mining contaminates groundwater and radioactivity remains in the heaps, tailings and evaporation ponds. Uranium and its radioactive decay elements are highly toxic. They attack inner organs and the respiratory system. Scientific studies have shown that the following diseases are caused by exposition to radon gas, uranium and uranium’s decay elements: Bronchial and lung cancer; cancer of the bone marrow, stomach, liver, intestine, gall bladder, kidneys and skin, leukemia, other blood diseases, psychological disorders and birth defects. Approximately three-quarters of the world’s uranium is mined on territory belonging to indigenous peoples. The inhabitants of affected regions are (for the most part) vulnerable to exposure from radioactive substances that threaten them with short- and long-term health risks and damaging genetic effects.
As well as the direct health effects from contamination of the water, the immense water consumption in mining regions is environmentally and economically damaging – and in turn detrimental for human health. The extraction of water leads to a reduction of the groundwater table and thereby to desertification; plants and animals die, the traditional subsistence of the inhabitants is eliminated, the existence of whole cultures are threatened. This is not all. Ending uranium mining also because of its relevance to the processing of uranium, its military use, the production of nuclear energy and the unresolved problem of how to permanently dispose of nuclear waste would represent a provision of preventive health care, as well as a policy of peace and reason.
Banning uranium mining would reduce the risk of proliferation. It would make uranium resources more scarce, thus accelerating the abandonment of the civil use of nuclear energy. The pressure on political decision-makers to find safe methods of permanently disposing of nuclear waste would increase. Banning uranium mining would thus promote the phasing-out of the irresponsible practice of using nuclear energy and increase pressure globally to force a change-over to renewable energies.
Describe how this resolution might be implemented and by whom:
In order to achieve the goal of an international ban, IPPNW will strengthen its public education on this issue and exert influence on both national and international political decision!makers.
Estimate for amount of staff time and resources required to implement this resolution:
Minimal staff time will be required, mainly for coordination of activities and communication between activists.
Estimated expenses and sources of funding:
Minimal cost for shipment of information material.

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6. An "Overwhelming Problem" in the Navajo Nation

http://www.scienceline.org/2010/12/
an-%E2%80%9Coverwhelming-problem%E2%80%9D-in-the-navajo-nation/

A look at one uranium mine shows how difficult it will be to clean up the reservation's hundreds of abandoned Cold War-era mines
By Francie Diep | Posted December 30, 2010 Posted in: Environment
Tags: native americans, pollution, uranium
There’s an old uranium mine on rancher Larry Gordy’s grazing land near Cameron, Arizona. Like hundreds of other abandoned mines in the Navajo Nation, the United States’ largest Indian reservation, it looks as if it might still be in use—tailings, or waste products of uranium processing, are still piled everywhere, and the land isn’t fenced off.“It looks like Mars,” said Marsha Monestersky, program director of Forgotten People, an advocacy organization for the western region of the vast Navajo Nation, which covers 27,000 square miles in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is currently embroiled in a massive effort to assess 520 open abandoned uranium mines all over the vast reservation. (Forgotten People says there are even more mines on Navajo land: about 1,300.) Earlier this month, the cleanup got a boost from a bankruptcy settlement with Oklahoma City-based chemical company Tronox Inc., which will give federal and Navajo Nation officials $14.5 million to address the reservation’s uranium contamination.
During the Cold War, private companies like Tronox’s parent company, Kerr-McGee Corp., operated uranium mines under U.S. government contracts, removing four million tons of ore that went into making nuclear weapons and fuel. When demand dried up with the end of the era, companies simply abandoned their mines as they were.
The remediation work started ten years ago, when the EPA mapped the mines by investigating company records and surveying the land with helicopters equipped with radiation detectors. They are now halfway through visiting mines to determine their radiation levels. “It’s an overwhelming problem,” said Clancy Tenley, EPA assistant director for the region.
The mines expose Navajo Nation residents to uranium through airborne dust and contaminated drinking water. Many residents’ homes were built using mud and rocks near mines, and some of that building material is radioactive. There are few published studies on the effects of uranium mines on nearby residents, but researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the University of New Mexico are working on health assessments, according to EPA officials. Researchers have known for decades that uranium exposure increases the risk of lung and bone cancers and kidney damage.

MORE:
http://www.scienceline.org/2010/12/
an-%E2%80%9Coverwhelming-problem%E2%80%9D-in-the-navajo-nation/

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7. Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) and Western Mining Action Network (WMAN)Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-Grant Program

http://www.ienearth.org/docs/
Grassroots-Communities-Mini-Grant-Description-and-Application.pdf

NEXT DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 1, 2011
The goal of the Mining Mini-grants Program is to support and enhance the capacity building efforts of mining-impacted communities in the U.S. and Canada to assure that mining projects do not adversely affect human, cultural, and the ecological health of communities.
The applicant must be a grassroots or indigenous community program with limited funds that have demonstrated the capacity to successfully carry out the project. Individual grants will not exceed $3,000 U.S. and cannot be used for general programmatic or operating expenses.
WMAN/IEN Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-grants program criteria:
Grassroots community-based organizations, and Tribes or Tribal programs in the U.S. and Canada with any budget level may apply. However, if there are more applicants than funds available, priority will be given to organizations with an organizational or mining-specific project budget under $75,000 U.S.
Requests must be project-specific for an immediate need such as legal assistance, organizing and outreach, development of campaign materials, media development, reports, travel, mailings, etc. to be fulfilled within the next four to six months on a specific mining campaign. Funds cannot be used for an organization’s general operating funds, staff salaries, rent or telephone bills.
Priority will be given to projects that build bridges and community across socio-economic and cultural lines.
Applicants who have received funds twice during the previous two grant cycles will be given lower priority than new organizations and programs. This will not apply to “emergency” grants.
Each grant issued will not exceed $3,000.
Funding recipients must submit a brief report detailing how funds were spent within 1 month of the project finishing. Recipients will not be eligible for additional funding until the project has been completed and a project report, or an extension request, is received and accepted by WMAN and IEN.

To download the information and application:

http://www.ienearth.org/docs/
Grassroots-Communities-Mini-Grant-Description-and-Application.pdf

Any questions? We are happy to help. Please contact either Simone Senogles, Indigenous Environmental Network, (218) 751-4967 ~
simone@ienearth.org or Sarah Keeney, WMAN Network Coordinator at (503) 327-8625 ~ sarahekeeney@comcast.net

=================

8. Commission Lets 36 States Dump Nuclear Waste In Texas

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/05/
commission-36-states-nuclear-waste-texas_n_804527.html

RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI | 01/ 4/11 07:48 PM |
HOUSTON — A Texas commission approved rules on Tuesday that pave the way for 36 states to export low-level radioactive waste to a remote landfill along the Texas-New Mexico border.
The 5-2 vote by the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Commission came after last-minute legal maneuvering on Monday failed to delay the meeting, environmentalists warned the dump would pollute groundwater and more than 5,000 people commented on the plan.

MORE:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/05/
commission-36-states-nuclear-waste-texas_n_804527.html

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9. BOOK: Banning Weapons of Mass Destruction

By Frederick N. Mattis
Physicians for Global Survival (PGS) Tipping Point Vol XVI, No. 3 Fall 2010 Page 9

http://pgs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/0 ... -email.pdf

Banning Weapons of Mass Destruction is quite legal and technical.
Mattis makes limited reference to the health, social or environmental effects of nuclear weapons. Instead, this is a comprehensive resource about treaties upon which to base effective educational and lobbying strategies. A bedtime book – read and ruminate.

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10. Physicians for Global Survival (PGS) applauds the Government of Canada on Adopting Motion on Nuclear Disarmament

http://pgs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/PM-on-NWC.pdf

December 10, 2010
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street, Ottawa K1A 0A2
Dear Mr. Harper,
We were delighted that the House of Commons gave unanimous consent to a motion to endorse the Five-Point-Plan for nuclear disarmament proposed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on December 7, 2010. This was one of the best Christmas presents that the Government of Canada could bestow on Canadians!
We know that you are a strong supporter of the dignity of human life from the cradle to the grave. Nuclear Weapons are the quintessential challenge to life on earth.
We look forward to hearing that Canada's position is presented in other fora, in particular the United Nations and NATO. As you know, Canada is famous around the world for the "Ottawa Process". We have the opportunity to engage in that process now!!
Please inform us of your participation in the next steps towards abolition of nuclear weapons.
Sincerely yours,
Dale Dewar, MD
Executive Director
Physicians for Glabal Survival
208 - 145 Spruce Street
OTTAWA, ON K1R 6P1
www.pgs.ca

================

11. LETTER: REMPEL: What Purpose Unending Wars?

From: Jacob Rempel
Sent: Sunday, January 02, 2011 10:46 PM
Subject: unending wars
Dear Members of Parliament---
QUESTION: To what purpose does the government of Canada support the unending wars engendered by the US regime ???
---Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
= = = = = =

US at War Since 1950: A New Year's Meditation

http://www.truth-out.org/
us-war-since-1950-a-new-years-meditation66358

Saturday 01 January 2011
by: Michael True, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed
"The same war continues," Denise Levertov wrote in her poem, "Life at War." Her lament is even more appropriate for 2011 than it was when she wrote the poem forty-five years ago.
Columnists and academics, including international relations professor Andrew Bacevich of Boston University, are finally acknowledging facts familiar to anyone "awake" regarding failed US policies, wasted lives and wasted resources during this period. Willfully ignoring such facts, as Bacevich wrote, "is to become complicit in the destruction of what most Americans profess to hold dear."

MORE:
http://www.truth-out.org/
us-war-since-1950-a-new-years-meditation66358

===============

12. LETTER: REMPEL: All the wrong reasons: How Afghanistan Became a War for NATO

From: Jacob Rempel
Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2011 12:02 PM
Subject: How Afghanistan Became a War for NATO --- all the wrong reasons.

Dear Members of Parliament ---
It's a NATO war promoted by the Pentagon to maintain NATO. Note that there is no reference to the real reasons for US regime reasons for being in Afghanistan -- namely to secure pipeline security across Afghanistan for UNICAL oil pipelines to carry oil to sell to Indian interests -- Interesting, eh, not even for US oil needs!! It's a war war to promote interests of a private corporation, not even for US domestic needs.
Where does Canada fit into these war aims?? Yes, now that the Afghan people are so desperately injured, we, as well as the US, owe them help to recover, but not as an ally with the US regime and NATO. Even the best public relations by the war office provides very fragmentary evidence of genuine substantial improvements in the lives of the people of Afghan people --- after almost 10 years of US/NATO war following about 20 years of other imperial wars. In 2011, we have no believable prediction of good outcomes.
It looks like illegal aggression. How can this correspond with the ideals Canada claims as a member of the United Nations? Canada is implicated in illegal aggression, and, in the end, will be historically humiliated along with the US regime. Every MP opposition member should seek to establish a reputation of opposition to the aggression in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and now Yemen.
It's time to shift to an improved, more effective United Nation for genuine peace and prosperity for all smaller nations with natural resources wanted by interests in the Great Powers like the US, Russia and China.
--- Jacob Rempel, Vancouver
= = = = = =

How Afghanistan Became a War for NATO

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/01/03-3

by Gareth Porter
Published on Monday, January 3, 2011 by Inter Press Service
WASHINGTON - The official line of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), the NATO command in Afghanistan, is that the war against Afghan insurgents is vital to the security of all the countries providing troops there.
In fact, however, NATO was given a central role in Afghanistan because of the influence of U.S. officials concerned with the alliance, according to a U.S. military officer who was in a position to observe the decision-making process.
"NATO's role in Afghanistan is more about NATO than it is about Afghanistan," the officer, who insisted on anonymity because of the political sensitivity of the subject, told IPS in an interview. The alliance would never have been given such a prominent role in Afghanistan but for the fact that the George W. Bush administration wanted no significant U.S. military role there that could interfere with their plans to take control of Iraq.
That reality gave U.S. officials working on NATO an opening.
Gen. James Jones, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) from 2003 to 2005, pushed aggressively for giving NATO the primary security role in Afghanistan, according to the officer.
"Jones sold [Defence Secretary Donald] Rumsfeld on turning Afghanistan over to NATO," said the officer, adding that he did so with the full support of Pentagon officials with responsibilities for NATO. "You have to understand that the NATO lobbyists are very prominent in the Pentagon - both in the Office of the Secretary of Defence and on the Joint Staff," said the officer.
Jones admitted in an October 2005 interview with American Forces Press Service that NATO had struggled to avoid becoming irrelevant after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact. "NATO was in limbo for a bit," he said.
But the 9/11 attacks had offered a new opportunity for NATO to demonstrate its relevance.

MORE:
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/01/03-3

= = = = = =

How NATO came to Afghanistan

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6674&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 08:33 PM PST
Historian and journalist Gareth Porter on the process that led to NATO being in Afghanistan (Gareth Porter, “How Afghanistan became a war for NATO,” Inter Press Service, 3 January 2011): The official line of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), the NATO command in Afghanistan, is that the war against Afghan insurgents is vital to [...]

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13. 'US to stay in Afghanistan forever'

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/158355.html

02 Jan 2011
A senior Republican senator has suggested that the US should devise a plan to permanently keep American troops in war-ravaged Afghanistan. Lindsey Graham, the [deranged] Republican senator from South Carolina, told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday that Republicans would push for indefinite US stay in Afghanistan in the years ahead. "We have had air bases all over the world and a couple of air bases in Afghanistan would allow the Afghan security forces an edge against the Taliban in perpetuity. It would be a signal to Pakistan that the Taliban are never going to come back. In Afghanistan they could change their behavior." (…..)

=========

14. Kabul opposes US permanent bases

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/158511.html

03 Jan 2011 Afghan President Hamid Karzai's government has strongly rejected the notion of establishing permanent US military bases in Afghanistan. Chief presidential spokesman Waheed Omar said during a press conference in Kabul on Monday that the issue has never been discussed in meetings between officials of the two countries. "We have announced earlier that we are in touch with United States on the issue of long-term strategic partnership but not on the possible establishment of a permanent US base in Afghanistan," he said. (…..)

==================

15. Trainers will be mostly away from Kabul?

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6666&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 01 Jan 2011 06:28 PM PST
CTV News reports that the trainers that the Harper government has promised to keep in Afghanistan following the end of Canada’s combat mission are not likely to be mainly in Kabul, despite the government’s earlier promises (“Canadian trainers likely to be sent across Afghanistan,” CTV News, 31 December 2010): The Canadian Forces is rushing to [...]

====================

16. A gloomy observation on Afghan training

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/asia-pacific/
a-gloomy-observation-on-afghan-training/article1854883/

SUSAN SACHS KABUL— From Saturday's Globe and Mail
Published Friday, Dec. 31, 2010 6:56PM EST
Last updated Saturday, Jan. 01, 2011 1:44PM EST
In the nine months he worked as senior adviser to the chief of the Border Police, John Brewer relied on a local translator to navigate Afghan culture. Yet the Canadian Mountie spent as much time trying to interpret the actions of foreign forces to equally puzzled Afghans.
Why, they asked him, did Germany provide their training base with drug-sniffing police dogs but not dog food or kennels? Why would the Americans build a brand new border police headquarters on land with no water? And what should be done with the thousands of donated European radios that do not operate on the same frequency as the Afghan ones?
His polite response was to suggest that Afghans speak up for themselves and that NATO officers listen to them more. Still, the plain-spoken Superintendent Brewer will admit to some frustration with the waste of time and money through miscommunication. “A lesser man,” he says, “would say it’s pissing in the wind.”
Canada is pulling out combat troops from Afghanistan by July of this year, but announced in November that it would provide 750 trainers and 200 support staff who would stay in Afghanistan to assist the NATO mission. Mr. Brewer's experience poses the question of whether the effort will accomplish its goal of creating a self-sustaining and effective Afghan security force.
More related to this story
NATO fails to deliver half of trainers promised for Afghanistan
Canadian soldier’s death comes amid fresh NATO push
Pacifying Afghanistan ‘a very difficult endeavour,’ Obama says

MORE:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/asia-pacific/
a-gloomy-observation-on-afghan-training/article1854883/

=================

17. Hope in 2011: Peoples, Civil Society Stand Tall

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22571

By Ramzy Baroud Global Research, December 30, 2010
When the Iraqi army fell before invading US and British troops in 2003, the latter’s mission seemed to be accomplished. But nearly eight years after the start of a war intended to shock and awe a whole population into submission, the Iraqi people continue to stand tall. They have confronted and rejected foreign occupations, held their own against sectarianism, and challenged random militancy and senseless acts of terrorism.
For most of us, the Iraqi people’s resolve cannot be witnessed, but rather deduced. Eight years of military strikes, raids, imprisonments, torture, humiliation and unimaginable suffering were still not enough to force the Iraqis into accepting injustice as a status quo.
In August 2010, the United States declared the end of its combat mission in Iraq, promising complete withdrawal by the end of 2011. However, US military action has continued, only under different designations. The occupation of Iraq carries on, despite the tactical shifts of commands and the rebranding effort.
However, were it not for the tenacity of the Iraqi people, who manage to cross-sectarian, political and ideological divides, there would be no talk of withdrawals or deadlines. There would be nothing but cheap oil, which could have ushered in a new golden age of imperialism - not in Iraq, but throughout the so-called Third World. The Iraqi people have managed to stop what could have become a dangerous trend.
2010 was another year where Iraqis held strong, and civil societies throughout the world stood with them in solidarity, a solidarity that will continue until full sovereignty is attained.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22571

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18. Big Brother: America's Police State Mentality in the Electronic Age

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22596

By Prof. Rodrigue Tremblay Global Research, January 1, 2011

TheNewAmericanEmpire.comhttp://www.thenewamericanempire.com/tremblay=1132

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. - ”Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790), American inventor, journalist, printer, diplomat, and statesman (1775)

“Americans used to roar like lions for liberty; now we bleat like sheep for security.- ”Norman Vincent Peale (1898 –1993), American Christian preacher and author

"A Party member lives from birth to death under the eye of the Thought Police. Even when he is alone he can never be sure that he is alone. ...At the apex of the pyramid comes Big Brother. Big Brother is infallible and all-powerful. Every success, every achievement, every victory, every scientific discovery, all knowledge, all wisdom, all happiness, all virtue, are held to issue directly from his leadership and inspiration." - George Orwell (1903-1950) (Eric Arthur Blair), (book: 1984)

“Since information gives power, access to personal files can lead to unreasonable pressures, even blackmail, especially against those with the least resources, people who depend upon public programs, for example. Big Brother isn't a camera. Big Brother is a computer.” - C.J. Howard, political novel “Cybercash”

In 2049, when the 100th anniversary of the publication of George Orwell political novel “1984” will be celebrated, it will be recalled that the immediate post September 11, 2001 period marked the beginning of a gradual decline in personal liberty and freedom, especially in the United States but also elsewhere, and the emergence of a great information-obsessed Leviathan. Freedom rarely disappears in one fell swoop. Its disappearance is rather the end result of a thousand encroachments.
Pushed to the extreme and without clear democratic oversight, it becomes the mark of a totalitarian state, when authorities feel that they never have enough information on the people. It is because information is power and state bureaucrats and politicians naturally like to be in control; on the one hand, releasing as little information about their own actions through an imposed secrecy, and on the other, accumulating as much information as possible about the citizens.
And today, modern governments have all the tools to transform their country into a creeping police state, more so now then ever before, in this electronic age. They have access to information technology that previous full-fledged “police state” governments could only have dreamed about.
Nowadays, with super computers and revolutionary new models to gather information and build databases, governments, i.e. bureaucrats and politicians, are in a position as never before to accumulate and correlate tremendous amounts of personal information on their citizens, from public (federal, state and local) as well as from a plethora of private sources. Government intelligence on each and every citizen is thus rendered much easier and, I would add, much more frightening. Indeed, the potential for abuse is enormous.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22596

=================

19. Council of Canadians Update: January 5, 2011

NEWS: Winnipeg-Veolia water utility contract in limbo
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5862
The Winnipeg Free Press reports that, “The future of Winnipeg’s new water and waste utility remains murkier than ever, though the city is still negotiating with environmental giant Veolia Canada about a waste water consulting contract.”

NEWS: Coalition calls for new assessment of Highway 5 extension
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5849
The Ottawa Citizen reports that, “A community coalition wants the Quebec government to order a new environmental assessment of the proposed extension of Highway 5 to Wakefield. The group, SOS Wakefield, has joined forces with the University of Ottawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic, the Council of Canadians and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society in a bid to protect a local water source which they believe will be affected by the expansion of the highway. The group says they believe that the highway extension is based on an out-of-date assessment that dates back to 1986.”

NEWS: How will Harper respond to new US EPA emission regulations?
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5847
The Globe and Mail reports that, “The Obama administration has announced plans to impose new greenhouse-gas emission rules on power plants and refineries, a move that will increase pressure on the Harper government to introduce its own national emissions regulations in 2011.”

NEWS: Harper cabinet shuffle today at 2 pm ET
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5845
CBC reports that, “Prime Minister Stephen Harper will begin the new year with a minor shuffle of his cabinet. The shuffle will occur at 2 p.m. ET at Rideau Hall and will be small, involving six or fewer ministers.”

NEWS: Alberta would oppose EU ‘discrimination’ against tar sands
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5842
The Platts news service reports that, “Alberta will oppose any move by the European Union to ban imports of crude oil from the western Canadian province because of environmental concerns, a senior government official said Tuesday (December 28).”

NEWS: Interview with CETA negotiator Steve Verheul
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5840
CTV.ca recently interviewed Steve Verheul, Canada’s chief negotiator on the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. Here’s an excerpt of that interview:

UPDATE: Campaign plans for 2011
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5851
Happy new year and welcome to 2011!

VIEW: ‘Security perimeter will bring more of the same’, says Yaffe
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5836
Vancouver Sun columnist Barbara Yaffe writes that, “News of a possible Canada-U.S. security perimeter will strike fear in some hearts.”

NEWS: Canadian cities grapple with water rate increases
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5834
At least two Canadian cities have been in the news recently because they are considering increases to water rates simply to maintain or build needed infrastructure.

NEWS: Town’s water license challenged in Alberta
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5832
The Rocky View Weekly reports today that, “Westridge Utilities Inc. filed an appeal with the Environmental Appeals Board (on) November 26 against Rocky View County’s water licence for (a new) treatment plant. …Alberta Environment granted the water licence, which authorized the County to divert up to 277,533 cubic metres of water annually from the Elbow River (on) October 29. The authorization allowed council’s approval of the $3.6- million treatment plant, which is being equally funded by the Province, the Federal Government and the County, to solve the decades-old water quality issue in Bragg Creek.”

NEWS: Harper confirms security perimeter talks underway
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5830
The National Post reports that, “Prime Minister Stephen Harper has confirmed Canada is holding ‘discussions’ with the United States on a (security perimeter) deal… However, he said no agreement has yet been reached and the talks are continuing.”

NEWS: Obstacles delay CETA offers by three-months
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5828
Postmedia News reports today on a “three-month delay in the presentation of formal offers by each side” in the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) talks. “Both sides had planned throughout 2009 to table formal offers on the most sensitive issues — including services, intellectual property, investment, culture and the opening of lucrative government procurement contracts to foreign bidders — prior to the sixth round of talks scheduled for mid-January. The exchange-of-offers process has been moved to round seven, to take place in Ottawa in April.”

NEWS: Canada to negotiate new ‘Buy American’ deal starting in February
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5824
Postmedia News reports that, “Canada will enter negotiations with the United States early next year in the hopes of reaching a broader, long-term agreement based on the Buy American compromise the two sides reached earlier this year, says Trade Minister Peter Van Loan.”

==================

20. Council of Canadians Campaign plans for 2011

http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5851

From: Brent Patterson
Sent: Saturday, January 01, 2011 8:18 AM
Happy New Year and welcome to 2011!
This year the Council of Canadians will be launching three new campaigns.
This month we will be posting to hire a health care campaigner and re-dedicating ourselves to defending and expanding public health care in Canada.
We will also be seeking to declare the Great Lakes a commons, public trust and protected bio-region – and ensure that the plan to ship radioactive waste on the lakes is stopped. This work will include a new report and multi-city speaking tour by Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow.
And we will be launching a national campaign calling for federal and provincial action to stop fracking, a dangerous shale gas extraction method that destroys water.
In addition to this work, we will be ramping up our campaign to defeat the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. While the Harper government seeks to complete the deal by the end of 2011, we will deliver the message in Canada (with a speaking tour) and in Europe that CETA equals water privatization and unfettered tar sands expansion.
Protection of the Arctic will also be a key priority as we seek to stop oil offshore and gas drilling in the Arctic so that the North doesn’t see a repeat of the Gulf of Mexico disaster.
With the nickel processing plant and the destruction of Sandy Pond scheduled to begin in 2013, we will counter this by increasing our support for a legal challenge against the federal government on the Schedule 2 provision that allows this and by continuing other efforts to hold accountable one of the world’s biggest and most harmful mining companies, Vale.
At the United Nations we will build on the right to water and sanitation resolution by advocating for a universal declaration recognizing the rights of nature with the publication of a new book in the spring, as well as by working in solidarity with Indigenous communities to have the right to water recognized in Canada.
We will also be working hard over the coming year, given the outcomes of the Cancun climate conference, to ensure that a climate agreement reflecting the imperative of climate justice is reached at the next climate summit in South Africa.
And given the news of the last several weeks, the Council of Canadians will undoubtedly be tackling the Harper government's proposed security perimeter with the United States that threatens to undermine civil liberties in the name of trade promotion. It is anticipated that a declaration will be signed by Harper and US President Barack Obama in January and that a binational working group will present an operational plan based on that declaration in March or April.
As always, there will be so much more. We will continue to call on the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan to divest from private water utilities in Chile (and send Ontario teachers there to see the problem first-hand), we will work with farmers, small municipalities and concerned citizens to stop water markets in Alberta, and we will be part of an international movement building to derail the plans of the big water transnational corporations at their World Water Forum in Marseilles in early-2012. And as speculation about a post-budget spring-time federal election begins, we expect that an election - and the challenging of deep spending cuts by the federal government - could be part of our work this year as well.
2011 promises to be an exciting year of fast-paced political campaigns, popular pressure, and wins.
In closing, as we say goodbye to 2010, this is a good opportunity to look back at our collective wins in 2010 –
see http://www.canadians.org/join/wins.html
- and to remind ourselves of what we can accomplish together.
As Maude Barlow is fond to close with in her speeches, quoting Arundhati Roy, “Remember this: We be many and they be few. They need us more than we need them. Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.”

21. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

WikiLeaks' Most Terrifying Revelation: Just How Much Our Government Lies to Us

http://www.alternet.org/story/149393/
By Fred Branfman, AlterNet Posted on January 3, 2011, Printed on January 4, 2011

"Try as I may I can not escape the sound of suffering. Perhaps as an old man I will accept suffering with insouciance. But not now; men in their prime, if they have convictions are tasked to act on them." -- Julian Assange, 2007 blog entry

Do you believe that it is in Americans' interest to allow a small group of U.S. leaders to unilaterally murder, maim, imprison and/or torture anyone they choose anywhere in the world, without the knowledge let alone oversight of their citizens or the international community? And, despite their proven record of failure to protect America -- from Indochina to Iran to Iraq -- do you believe they should be permitted to clandestinely expand their war-making without informed public debate? If so, you are betraying the principles upon which America was founded, endangering your nation, and displaying a distinctly "unamerican" subservience to unaccountable authority. But if you oppose autocratic
power, you are called to support Wikileaks and others trying to limit U.S. Executive Branch mass murder abroad and failure to protect Americans at home.
These two issues became officially linked for the first time when former U.S. Afghan commander General Stanley McChrystal explicitly stated that the murder of civilians increases rather than decreases the numbers of those committed to killing Americans, and actually implemented policies -- since reversed by General Petraeus -- to reduce U.S. murder of civilians. McChrystal said that "for every innocent person you kill, you create 10 new enemies." By so doing he made it clear that killing civilians is not only a moral and war crimes issue, but -- in today's interdependent world -- also threatens U.S. national security.
As important as is the issue of free speech, it is the question of whether the U.S. Executive is in fact protecting the American people through its mass murder abroad that really lies at the heart of the Wikileaks controversy. Executive Branch officials justify persecuting and threatening to murder Assange on the grounds that he has damaged U.S. "national security." If McChrystal is right, however, it is the past decade of U.S. Executive mass murder in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, now revealed beyond any doubt by Wikileaks, that is the real threat to U.S. national security.
The chilling fact is this: whether you believe that September 11, 2001 was due to incomprehensible fanaticism or genuine grievances, it seems likely that U.S. leaders' murder of countless Muslims since 2001 will cause the next 9/11 should, God forbid, it occur, The recent suicide-bomber in Sweden who came perilously close to succeeding taped a message saying "so will your children, daughters, brothers, and sisters die, like our brothers, sisters, and children die." Similar sentiments were voiced by the Times Square bomber, and it is likely that those responsible for future American deaths will also be motivated by revenge for the hundreds of thousands of Muslims for whose deaths U.S. leaders are responsible since 2001.

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149393/

= = = = = = =

The Anti-Empire Report - Wikileaks, the United States, Sweden, and Devil's Island

http://killinghope.org/bblum6/aer89.html

January 1st, 2011 by William Blum www.killinghope.org
December 16 ... I'm standing in the snow in front of the White House ... Standing with Veterans for Peace ... I'm only a veteran of standing in front of the White House; the first time was February 1965, handing out flyers against the war in Vietnam. I was working for the State Department at the time and my biggest fear was that someone from that noble institution would pass by and recognize me.
Five years later I was still protesting Vietnam, although long gone from the State Department. Then came Cambodia. And Laos. Soon, Nicaragua and El Salvador. Then Panama was the new great threat to America, to freedom and democracy and all things holy and decent, so it had to be bombed without mercy. Followed by the first war against the people of Iraq, and the 78-day bombing of Yugoslavia. Then the land of Afghanistan had rained down upon it depleted uranium, napalm, phosphorous bombs, and other witches' brews and weapons of the chemical dust; then Iraq again. And I've skipped a few. I think I hold the record for most times picketing the White House by a right-handed batter.
And through it all, the good, hard-working, righteous people of America have believed mightily that their country always means well; some even believe to this day that we never started a war, certainly nothing deserving of the appellation "war of aggression".
On that same snowy day last month Julian Assange of Wikileaks was freed from prison in London and told reporters that he was more concerned that the United States might try to extradite him than he was about being extradited to Sweden, where he presumably faces "sexual" charges. 1

MORE:
http://killinghope.org/bblum6/aer89.html

= = = = = = =

'Dancing Boy' Scandal Taints Both Americans and Afghans

http://www.alternet.org/investigations/149352/
'dancing_boy'_scandal_taints_both_americans_and_afghans/

To win over Afghan locals, American contractor DynCorp bankrolled 'bacha bazi' parties -- the culturally accepted practice of pedophilia by men against boys.
December 28, 2010 |

= = = = = = = =

WikiLeaks: Locking Up Whistleblower Bradley Manning in Solitary Confinement Puts America's Depravity on Full Display

http://www.alternet.org/story/149410/
wikileaks%3A_locking_up_whistlebl

by **Oscar** » Sun Jan 16, 2011 10:37 pm

NUKE NEWS: January 16, 2011

1. COXWORTH: Presentation (2008): NUCLEAR POWER? WHY? WHY NOT?
2. Welcome to the Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan's website.
3. Uranium Company Donates to PA Food Bank
4. UPDATE: Uranium Shipment to China
5. Million Dollar Exploration of Athabasca Basin
6. UPDATE: Darlington Reactor Hearings will be held in March 2011
7. Ontario pitches nuclear power future
8. Surplus power costly for Ontario
9. AECL bidder backs out
10. Point Lepreau refurbishment progressing
11. Uranium foes: Where's the benefit?
12. Africa Offers Easy Uranium
13. Photovoltaic Goal of $1 per Watt
14. RECENT CEASEFIRE POSTINGS
15. LETTER: SHIELDS: Harper Plays With International Thugs and Terrorists!!
16. What's Happening On The Korean Peninsula?
17. Kosovo "Freedom Fighters" Financed by Organised Crime
18. 'US, UK, Israel killing Iran scientists'
19. BOOK: Extreme Prejudice / Clear Evidence Of 9/11 Cover Up
20. Canada ranks last in freedom of information: study
21. Perimeter security deal faces delay
22. Canada’s best-paid CEOs ‘recession-proof’: study
23. Past year Canada's warmest ever: report
24. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

================

1. COXWORTH: Presentation (2008): NUCLEAR POWER? WHY? WHY NOT?

http://www.emtfsask.ca/presentations/saskatoon/
08-04-00-NuclearPower-AnneCoxworth.pdf

by Ann Coxworth, Saskatchewan Environmental Society
For the Energy Management Task March 5, 2008

==================

2. Welcome to the Coalition for a Clean Green Saskatchewan's website.

http://www.cleangreensask.ca/

As citizens we face a momentous public decision regarding our province's future.
Use this website to become more informed about the nuclear issue and renewable energy alternatives in Saskatchewan.
The "Learn More" section has detailed information and links on the key issues we are facing.
Click on the links in the sidebar to your left to find pages on upcoming events, local communities, downloadable materials, and contact information.
Take Action! has suggestions for what you can do.
For regular updates, subscribe to our email information list. Send us an email or visit us on Facebook.
Read more about us!

======================

3. Uranium Company Donates to PA Food Bank

http://www.mbcradio.com/news/news/
news_item2.asp?NewsID=9454

Monday, December 20, 2010 at 15:07
The Prince Albert Food Bank is getting a helping hand.
Cameco has announced it is giving the organization $10,000.
- - - SNIP - - -
Lyons adds the centre is located in a city where many Cameco workers reside.

====================

4. UPDATE: Uranium Shipment to China

http://www.cameco.com/media/news_releases/
2011/?id=543

January 14, 2011
A cargo ship carrying Cameco's uranium concentrate (U3O8) left Vancouver on December 23, 2010 and encountered severe weather conditions en route to China. The ship continued to operate normally through the storm and there were no injuries to the crew.
On January 3, 2011 Cameco was notified that sea containers, loaded with drums filled with uranium concentrate, had shifted and two opened drums were outside of their sea container. All the uranium is safely sealed off in one of the ship's cargo holds, the crew is safe and the environment is protected. At the time, the ship was between Hawaii and Midway Islands.
On Cameco's recommendation, the ship is returning to British Columbia where a team from Cameco is positioned to assess, secure and remediate the cargo.
Uranium concentrate is generally handled the same as other heavy metals such as lead. Information on uranium concentrate is available here.
[ http://www.cameco.com/media/uranium_concentrate/ ]
The procedure for cleaning up uranium concentrate is similar to other routine industrial chemicals. The radiation and chemical risks are reduced by limiting the time of direct exposure and avoiding inhalation and ingestion. Radiation from uranium concentrate is quite low and is well below natural background levels four to five metres from a drum.
For more information contact Rob Gereghty at (306) 956-6190.

=====================

5. Million Dollar Exploration of Athabasca Basin

http://www.mbcradio.com/news/news/
news_item2.asp?NewsID=9465

Wednesday, December 22, 2010 at 11:56
A Saskatchewan-based company has announced plans to conduct $1 million worth of exploration in the Athabasca basin.
JNR Resources will carry out the work at Moore Lake and Bell Lake.
Ken Wasyliuk is the chief geo-chemist for JNR.
He explains that at Bell Lake they'll be linecutting and looking for anomalies in the ground that might contain uranium.

MORE:
http://www.mbcradio.com/news/news/
news_item2.asp?NewsID=9465

=================

6. UPDATE: Darlington Reactor Hearings will be held in March 2011

http://stopdarlington.org/

This website is supported by organizations working to stop Darlington and build a greener energy system in Ontario.
Registration for making a submission to these hearings is now closed but you can check back for updates at the website above.
At the Public Hearings in March, the federal (Canadian) panel will be assessing the environmental effects of the McGuinty (Ontario) government’s proposal to build new reactors at the Darlington site east of Toronto.
Spending $26 billion on new reactors at Darlington will limit the long-term growth of cleaner, safer and more sustainable and more affordable energy options.
Ontario’s Dalton McGuinty government exempted its nuclear electricity plan from an environmental assessment so there has been no review of the impacts and costs of building reactors at Darlington against green energy options.
A recent study shows that by the Pembina Institute, Greenpeace and the Canadian Environmental Law Association shows that green energy would be cheaper than building new reactors at Darlington.
You can find the study here:
http://stopdarlington.org/publications/ ... -plan-2-0/
Join us and invite your friends to the Stop Darlington page on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Stop-Darlington/
154293134613131

Get updates on Darlington on twitter at:
http://twitter.com/#!/StopDarlington

===============

7. Ontario pitches nuclear power future

http://www.northumberlandview.ca/index. ... y&sid=5991

Waterkeeper.ca Weekly: January 10th, 2011
www.waterkeeper.ca

Ontario’s new long-term energy plan may look like it is all about green power (it is called “Building Our Clean Energy Future”, after all). It isn’t. First and foremost, Ontario’s energy plan commits Ontarians to building more nuclear power stations – no matter what the economic or environmental costs may be. The fierce commitment to nuclear power spelled out in the Minister of Energy’s instructions to Ontario’s power planning authority limits the ability of every other planner and regulator in the country to finish crafting what we really need: the best energy plan possible.
Read our submission here.

[ http://www.waterkeeper.ca/2011/01/07/
waterkeeper-comments-objects-to-ontarios-energy-supply-mix-plan/ ]

The Ontario government wants you to believe that its new energy plan – “Building Our Clean Energy Future” – is clean and forward-thinking. It isn’t.
Despite its title, Ontario’s energy plan is a nuclear power-focused, central-planning proposal that resembles the ideas of 1961 more closely than the ideas of 2011. There is very little clean or futuristic about Ontario’s new energy plan.
On Friday, another stage in the energy planning process ended. The Minister of Energy’s draft instructions to the Ontario Power Authority had been available for public comment. These instructions (the “Supply Mix Directive”) will be polished by Cabinet and then sent to the Agency. The Agency will then create a more detailed power system plan and head to the Ontario Energy Board for approval.
The Ontario Power Authority is limited by the instructions it receives from the Minister of Energy. In this case, the Authority is supposed to create an energy plan that must (absolutely must, without a doubt must) assume nuclear power accounts for about half of Ontario’s electricity generation. If there is a better (cheaper, cleaner, faster, less risky) way of meeting energy needs, the OPA cannnot pursue it. That’s the plan.
Here at Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, we don’t object to nuclear power on ideological grounds. Our problem is with fish kills, habitat destruction, thermal plumes, radioactive waste, hazardous waste, air pollution, wastewater pollution, threats to our drinking water supply, and enormous water takings. Every one of those environmental impacts comes with a nuclear power plant (the way we build them in Ontario, at any rate).
Direct environmental impacts are Waterkeeper’s primary focus. Our experience working on energy issues has also taught us that nuclear power poses a major policy problem: it takes over the energy grid. Nuclear power plants cannot be scaled up or down on an hourly or daily basis to respond to actual electricity demand. They are on, or they are off … for decades at a time. By investing $33-billion in nuclear power, Ontario’s plan is akin to buying a whole bunch of hulking mainframe computers from the 1970s (think: big, clumsy, expensive, inflexible). A truly modern future could be flexible, decentralized, innovative, and iterative (think: micro-generation, co-generation, innovation, conservation).
Given the environmental impacts and the cost of nuclear power, it is wise to at least consider other ways to meet our energy needs.
Here are the concerns Waterkeeper filed with the Ontario government on Friday:

MORE:
http://www.northumberlandview.ca/
index.php?module=news&func=display&sid=5991

=======================

8. Surplus power costly for Ontario

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/
Surplus+power+costly+Ontario/4089148/story.html

Ratepayers paid $52.8M in December to subsidize sales to Quebec, U.S.
Byline: Don Butler, Ottawa Citizen, Tue Jan 11 2011
Ontario producers sold a record amount of electricity to neighbouring jurisdictions in December. But if you think that's good news, think again.
What it really means is that Ontario has so much surplus power, it has to unload it at whatever price it can get. And lately, market prices have been well below what Ontario residents pay for the same electricity.
- - - -SNIP - - -
As a result, the province had substantially more "baseload power" than it needed most days last month. That's a problem, because too much supply can be as risky to the power grid as a shortage.
So when supply exceeds demand, operators have no choice but to unload the surplus power, even if it means paying someone to take it.
"It's cheaper for a nuclear generator to do that than shut down that unit," Campbell said, because it takes several days to get a nuclear unit back online.
The current surplus won't last. Ontario is to close its remaining 4,500 megawatts of coal-fired power by 2014. At the Pickering B nuclear plant, another 2,000 megawatts are nearing the end. And units at the Darlington and Bruce nuclear plants will undergo lengthy refurbishments.
"It's quite clear that Ontario will have to invest in new power generation in the foreseeable future," said Adams, who predicts supply will get tight again by 2014. However, "we do have a couple of years to stop and think."
Instead, between September 2010 and February 2012, 3,400 megawatts of new generation is to come on line, according to the IESO. Most of the new capacity will be gas, wind or solar, technologies that -- unlike nuclear and hydroelectric power -- have relatively short lead times. "There's no justification, especially with these short-lead-time resources," Adams said. "We're not taking advantage of the one beneficial feature that these various options have. It's lunacy."
dbutler@ottawacitizen.com

========================

9. AECL bidder backs out

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2011/01/14/
can-aecl-sale-bruce.html

By Greg Weston, CBC News, Friday, January 14, 2011
The Conservative government’s efforts to sell off Canada’s nuclear power agency secretly collapsed this week after the most likely buyer walked away from the negotiating table.
The government has spent almost two years trying to sell the commercial divisions of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL) that build and maintain nuclear power reactors.
But the agency hasn’t made a reactor sale in more than a decade and the breakdown of talks to sell off AECL leaves taxpayers on the hook for the Crown corporation that last year ran up more than $800 million in red ink.
The government’s failure to reach a deal not only puts the future of AECL in doubt, but also leaves the Canadian nuclear industry and up to 30,000 jobs in limbo.
Sources close to the negotiations tell CBC News that one of the key shareholders of Bruce Power Corp., the only company officially left in the running as of Jan. 1, was opposed to buying AECL.
The board of Bruce Power made its decision on the proposed deal at a meeting this week.
According to a Canadian Press report, Bruce Power's CEO told staff Friday that the firm had dropped out of the bidding process.
A spokesman for Natural Resources Minister Christian Paradis, who is responsible for Atomic Energy and its sale, refused to comment on the collapse of talks, saying, "the process is still underway."
If so, it is not clear who is still involved in that process.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2011/01/14/
can-aecl-sale-bruce.html

= = = = = =

Potential buyers have walked away from AECL, union says

http://www.thestar.com/business/article/
922286--buyers-haved-walked-away-from-aecl-union-says

John Spears, Toronto Star, Friday Jan 14 2011
The original bidders for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. have both dropped their offers for the federal nuclear agency, says the union representing scientists and engineers at the company.
“As you may have heard, rumours have been swirling this week that negotiations between the remaining bidder, Bruce Power, and the government have broken down,” says the bulletin.
“We have heard those same rumours from multiple credible sources and consequently we believe them likely true.”
Michael Ivanco, vice-president of the Society of Professionals and Engineers at Atomic Energy of Canada, said he also believes SNC-Lavalin has walked away.
“People around the workplace say they haven’t seen anyone from SNC Lavalin for months,” Ivanco said.
If Bruce Power and SNC-Lavalin have both walked away, only one bid would be left on the table, a proposal being assembled by Toronto businessman Andrew Day.
The federal government said in its budget last year that it intends to sell AECL, and hired N.M. Rothschild & Sons to oversee the process.
The proposed sale prompted concern from the Ontario government, which wants to strike a deal with AECL to build a new nuclear generating plant at Darlington. The nuclear industry and its 30,000 jobs are also centred in Ontario.
A spokesman for Michel Paradis, federal minister of natural resources, said he could not comment “as the process is still going on at this time.”
SNC-Lavalin and Bruce Power also declined comment.

MORE:
http://www.thestar.com/business/article/
922286--buyers-haved-walked-away-from-aecl-union-says

===================

10. Point Lepreau refurbishment progressing

http://www.news889.com/news/local/article/
169424--point-lepreau-refurbishment-progressing

Plant on track to return to service in the fall of 2012
News Staff Jan 14, 2011 06:52:08 AM
SAINT JOHN, NB - N-B Power says refurbishment of the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant is on track for completion by the fall of 2012.
- - - - SNIP - - - -
The project to extend the life of the reactor by another 25 to 30 years is running three years behind schedule and one billion dollars over budget.
It costs New Brunswick about one million dollars every day for replacement power when Lepreau is out of service.

= = = = =

AECL reactor work to be probed by N.B.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/
2010/11/02/nb-point-lepreau-craig-leonard-523.html

CBC News, Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Energy Minister Craig Leonard says he will investigate why Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. continued to install calandria tubes into the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station even though problems were discovered early. (CBC)
New Brunswick Energy Minister Craig Leonard will investigate why Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. continued to install hundreds of calandria tubes in the Point Lepreau nuclear reactor after problems were discovered.
The $1.4-billion refurbishment project at the nuclear generating station is three years behind schedule and hundreds of millions of dollars over budget.
AECL admitted further delays in October, saying it had to pull out the 380 calandria tubes it had installed because many of them failed air-tightness tests.
Atlantic Canada's only nuclear reactor was supposed to be returned to service in September 2009, but it is now delayed until fall 2012.
Leonard said he's not sure why most of the 380 calandria tubes were installed long after leaks were known, but added that he intends to find out.
"We will definitely be looking at it in terms of negotiating a settlement with the [federal] government," he said in an interview on Monday. "We will have to look at it. I haven't
yet,"

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/
2010/11/02/nb-point-lepreau-craig-leonard-523.html

====================

11. Uranium foes: Where's the benefit?

http://azdailysun.com/news/
local/article_ef465d09-6bc7-5279-9529-947bcfa13696.html

CYNDY COLE Sun Staff Reporter | Posted: Saturday, January 8, 2011 5:00 am
A Canadian mining company is proposing to open three more mines in northern Arizona -- two southwest of Fredonia in Mohave County and one 6 miles southeast of Tusayan that formerly generated deep tribal opposition.
This comes after Denison Mines reopened the area's first uranium mine on the Arizona Strip in December 2009, removing ore to process at the company's mill in southeastern Utah.
Environmentalists, local residents and tribal members told the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality not to issue the permits to allow the mines to open during a Thursday night hearing at Sinagua Middle School.
Although they don't control the mining decisions on these federal public lands, the Coconino County Board of Supervisors and the Flagstaff City Council have each passed resolutions opposing renewed uranium mining.
The Colorado Plateau has some of the more concentrated uranium deposits found in North America.
The Interior Department is considering a request by some to put federal lands on both sides of the Grand Canyon off-limits to mining, but mining claims that pre-date that decision can still open.
Nearly 100 people attended Thursday's forums, some coming from as far away as Havasupai.
Physician and medical anthropologist Allison Clough, of Northern Arizona University, read a list of common health problems associated with uranium mining, including increased rates of leukemia.
"Uranium mining will not lastingly or meaningfully enrich the peoples of the Colorado Plateau," she told ADEQ. Some cried at the microphone, and others were incensed.
"Uranium has already seriously harmed our communities, and you're considering allowing three more mines to open," said Klee Benally.
If approved, the three mines would operate with some environmental permits approved in the mid-1980s; the Sierra Club and Center for Biological Diversity are contending those permits are too old.

MORE:
http://azdailysun.com/news/local/
article_ef465d09-6bc7-5279-9529-947bcfa13696.html

Cyndy Cole can be reached at ccole@azdailysun.com or 913-8607.

There's more to the story.
See the Sunday, Jan. 16, Arizona Daily Sun for more on the proposed mines.
--
Klee Benally
indigenousaction@gmail.com |

www.myspace.com/eelk
<http://www.myspace.com/eelk> |

www.twitter.com/eelk
<http://www.twitter.com/eelk>

Skype: indigenousaction
= = = = = = =
TAKE ACTION TODAY TO STOP URANIUM MINING NEAR GRAND CANYON!

http://www.indigenousaction.org/
take-action-today-to-stop-uranium-mining-near-grand-canyon/

= = = = = = = = =

(***Sorry for late distribution**** Ed.)

TAKE ACTION NOW!
Deadline for public comments is January 14th at 5pm
Send your comments to Arizona Department Of Environmental Quality
Email: tb4@adeq.gov
For more info call toll free: 1-800-234-5677
= = = = = = =
www.indigenousaction.org
<http://www.indigenousaction.org>

Denison Mines Corp., a Canadian corporation has submitted water and air quality permit applications to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) in an attempt to operate uranium mines near the Grand Canyon.
Not only do these mines directly threaten the Ecoregion of the Grand Canyon, they further corporate attacks on community health, environment and sacred places.
These mines include the currently operating Arizona 1 Mine and the proposed Pinenut and EZ mines north of the Grand Canyon and the proposed Canyon Mine on the south rim near Red Butte, a site held holy by the Havasupai Nation.
The legacy of uranium mining in the region has been so harmful that the Dine' (Navajo), Hualapai, and Havasupai Nations have all banned uranium mining and activity on their lands.
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has documented well water as undrinkable in at least 22 communities on the Dine¹ Nation. The EPA states that, ³Approximately 30 percent of the Navajo population does not have access to a public drinking water system and may be using unregulated water sources with uranium contamination."
The Colorado river which, flows through the Grand Canyon, supplies water for drinking and agricultural use for up to 27 million people.
If all the permits are allowed, up to 12 trucks per day would haul uranium ore from each of the mines to a processing mill in Blanding, Utah.
The haul routes would take uranium ore from the various mines through the communities of Fredonia, Kanab, Williams, Flagstaff, Cameron, Tuba City, and Kayenta.
The ADEQ air quality permits and Department of Transportation regulations would merely require Denison to "cover the haul truck loads with a tarp and maintain the truck beds to ensure that ore does not fall out." (ADEQ Denison Mines Permitting and Uranium Mining Facts, Questions & Answers November 2010)
Although environmental groups have successfully lobbied the US Secretary of Interior to suspend new uranium claims in a 5 mile buffer zone near the Grand Canyon, the suspension does not include pre-existing claims such as Denison's.
Today there estimated to be more than 8,000 applications for uranium mining operations in the Grand Canyon region.

Printed materials including draft permits:

http://www.azdeq.gov/environ/air/permits/
denison.html

Additional information and action:

Center for Biological Diversity's info and online comment letter:

http://action.biologicaldiversity.org/p/dia/action/
public/?action_KEY=5430

Sierra Club's info and online comment form:
https://secure2.convio.net/sierra/site/
Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=5411

https://secure2.convio.net/sierra/site/
Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=5411

http://www.indigenousaction.org/
uranium-mining-begins-near-grand-canyon/

Info from the Grand Canyon Trust:
http://www.grandcanyontrust.org/news/2010/12/
publci-comment-sought-on-uranium-mining-plans-near-grand-canyon/

http://www.azdailysun.com/news/local/
article_ef465d09-6bc7-5279-9529-947bcfa13696.html

===================

12. Africa Offers Easy Uranium

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53962

By Julio Godoy, Inter-Press Service, December 26, 2010
PARIS, Dec 26, 2010 (IPS) - Wikileaks cables have revealed a disturbing development in the African uranium mining industry: abysmal safety and security standards in the mines, nuclear research centres, and border customs are enabling international companies to exploit the mines and smuggle dangerous radioactive material across continents.
The Wikileaks cables reveal that U.S. diplomats posted in a number of African countries - the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania, Niger, and Burundi, among others - have had direct knowledge of the poor safety and security standards in these countries' uranium and nuclear facilities.
The cables also highlight the involvement of European, Chinese, Indian, and South Korean companies in the illegal extraction and smuggling of uranium from Africa. Most European nuclear reactors use uranium imported from African countries.

MORE:
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53962

======================

13. Photovoltaic Goal of $1 per Watt

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/solar/dollar_per_watt.html

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that a $1 per watt installed photovoltaic (PV) solar energy system — equivalent to 5 - 6¢/kilowatt hour (kWh) — would make solar without additional subsidies competitive with the wholesale rate of electricity, early
everywhere in the United States.
A solar energy system priced at $1/W would unlock the potential of the sun to provide low-cost, clean limitless electricity to the U.S. and the rest of the world, at the same cost of coal-based generation. At this price, solar generated electricity combined with affordable storage technologies could then meet all conventional electricity energy needs, providing solar energy potentially 24 hours a day. Meeting this challenge would result in a revolution in the world's generation and use of energy.
On August 11–12, 2010, DOE held a workshop in Washington, D.C., aimed at identifying approaches to reduce the cost of installed solar PV systems to $1/W by 2017.
The workshop brought together experts in PV technology, along with experts in parallel and orthogonal fields to brainstorm highly novel technology approaches to break through techno-economic barriers to achieving $1/W PV. The workshop attendees included a combination of representatives from the U.S. government, as well as academia and industry.

Resources and Presentations - Links are on website

Below are publications and presentations from the workshop.
Is it Time for a "Sun Shot"?

Secretary Steven Chu, U.S. Department of Energy
$1/W Photovoltaic Systems White Paper

Prospect for $1/Watt Electricity from Solar

John Lushetsky, DOE Solar Energy Technologies Program
$1/W Photovoltaic Systems Workshop Summary

=======

14. RECENT CEASEFIRE POSTINGS
http://www.ceasefire.ca/

Eisenhower’s farewell address and F-35s

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6825&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 14 Jan 2011 02:07 PM PST
On Monday January 17th, 2011 Steven Staples's Hill Times article will commemorate Eisenhower's iconic farewell speech and offer some thoughts on today's military industrial complex.

Creating jobs in Canada: F-35s not the best option

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6799&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 13 Jan 2011 09:20 PM PST
Analysts, activists, and politicians have denounced Canada’s controversial F-35 fighter jet purchase from day one, pointing out that the whopping $16-billion investment is not in accordance with the country’s military or domestic needs. In response, the Canadian government has marketed the purchase as an effective way of creating jobs in Canada. Edmund Pries, a professor [...]

Taliban numbers intact despite surge in Allied forces

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6770&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 11 Jan 2011 08:08 PM PST
A recent Washington Post article suggests that the Taliban has endured the recent offensive by NATO and U.S. forces with its numerical strength intact (Slobodan Lekic, “Taliban Strength Unaffected by Allied Surge,” Washington Post, 6 January 2010). “A NATO official said this week that the alliance estimates current number of insurgent fighters at up to [...]

Our annual 2011 Ceasefire.ca member survey results are in!

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6728&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 10 Jan 2011 09:27 AM PST
Continued satisfaction and support among Ceasefire.ca members! A new year and members remain fond of e-mail communications involving articles, and petitions. We are extremely pleased that nearly 83% of members stated that the frequency of the correspondence is “just right.” More than half of members remain satisfied with receiving special offers for books and magazines, [...]

Coach’s Corner faces heat for using platform to promote military stance

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6747&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 07 Jan 2011 08:07 PM PST
Hockey Fans for Peace, a newly created Vancouver-based group, plans on challenging Don Cherry’s provocative pro-war comments on Coach’s Corner, stating that his program is not the place to promote Cherry’s military beliefs (Jack Keating, “Hockey Fan group challenge Cherry’s ‘pro war’ stance,” Postmedia News, 5 January 2011): Hockey Fans for Peace plans to rally [...]

Canada on the international stage: Looking back at 2010

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6704&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 06 Jan 2011 07:43 PM PST
In this CTV News article, Steven Staples and other foreign policy analysts look back on an eventful 2010, identifying two major Canadian foreign policy failures and blaming poor diplomacy and a lack of Canadian leadership on international issues (Josh Visser, “Did Canada punch above its weight on the world stage?” CTV.ca news, 25 December 2010): [...]

Canada’s dwindling peacekeepers

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6633&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 20 Dec 2010 07:50 PM PST
The Toronto Star reports on Canada’s dwindling contribution to U.N. peacekeeping (Brett Popplewell, “Last of a dying breed: The Canadian peacekeeper,” Toronto Star, 11 December 2010): The Canadian mission in Sudan began in 2005, at the close of a 22-year civil war that saw a rebel movement in the south of the country fight with [...]

Canadians split on Afghan extension

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6619&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 16 Dec 2010 10:00 PM PST
Canadians are split on the Harper government’s plan to extend Canada’s military mission in Afghanistan reports an Angus Reid Poll released on Monday (Jill Mahoney, “Canadians divided on Afghan training mission: poll,” Globe and Mail, 13 December 2010). According to the poll, 48% of Canadians support the extension of the mission, while 44% oppose the [...]

=======================

15. LETTER: SHIELDS: Harper Plays With International Thugs and Terrorists!!

From: lagran
To: Prime Minister/Premier ministre ; Layton, Jack - M.P. ; iggy
Cc: Rae.B@parl.gc.ca ; goodale ; flaherty ; dnd_mdn@forces.gc.ca ; Alberta Activism
Sent: Saturday, January 15, 2011 6:16 PM
Subject: Harper Plays With International Thugs and Terrorists!!
Harper has proven to care less about Canadian trade, not handled through a Free-Trade-Agreement, that allows little or no heavy lifting for his government. We have seen his very stupid handling of Chinese relations shrink Canada's future even though we are a "Pacific-Rim" country. Canada has shrunk more under this Harper government, than any other time in our history!
The horrid company Harper keeps with the likes of George W Bush, and Israel's Netanyahu, has had its effect on Canadian trade and relations with other countries including the UAE. Appeasing the UAE while Harper offers Netanyahu protection in Canada while his forces attack, capture, jail, and torture Canadians in Israel is noticed more abroad than at home. There was no Canadian outcry in Canada like other nations when Israeli forces attacked and killed U.N. forces including a Canadian, Harper remained mute and the opposition followed his silence. Other nations noticed and have had an eye on Canada's leader ever since.
This Harper government will never again balance Canada's budget!! Like Mulroney before him, he will turn money over to big corporations until skidded from office. Our trade continues to shrink while Harper cuts corporate taxes with borrowed money. His great friend Bush has brought United States to its knees doing exactly the same thing! Canadians fail to realize how former international friends view Canada under Harper with his closeness to international thugs and international terrorists.
Stewart Shields
Lacombe, AB
= = = = = =
Envoy could repair U.A.E. ties: former ambassador

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2011/01/15/
uae-hutton-envoy.html

Last Updated: Saturday, January 15, 2011 | 1:46 PM ET CBC News
The former Canadian ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, David Hutton, says Canada should name a special envoy to help salvage its relationship with the United Arab Emirates.
"I think what is needed is to find a method of communication," Hutton said in an interview with CBC Radio's The House on Saturday.
Hutton said the envoy could be Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon or the Emirates' ambassador, Mohammad Abdullah Al Ghafli.
Either of these officials "would be well received," said Hutton, who is also former director-general to the Canada-Arab Business Council. He added that, as an alternative, the envoy "could be a more neutral party."
Diplomatic relations between the two countries soured last fall after Canada denied expanded landing rights for two state-run airlines from the U.A.E.
In what was seen as retaliation, the U.A.E. barred Canada's access to Camp Mirage, a military base Canada had been using to stage operations in Afghanistan.
The U.A.E. also imposed new visa fees, ranging from $250 to $1,000, on Canadian travellers.
"I think we need time out," the former ambassador said, adding something needs to be done to repair what he called a "strategic" relationship.

MORE:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2011/01/15/
uae-hutton-envoy.html

==================

16. What's Happening On The Korean Peninsula?

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22628

By Prof. Martin Hart-Landsberg Global Research, January 4, 2011
Socialist Project

http://www.socialistproject.ca/

What's happening on the Korean peninsula? If you read the press or listen to the talking heads, your best guess would be that an insane North Korean regime is willing to risk war to manage its own internal political tensions. This conclusion would be hard to avoid because the media rarely provide any historical context or alternative explanations for North Korean actions. For example, much has been said about the March 2010 (alleged) North Korean torpedo attack on the Cheonan (a South Korean naval vessel) near Baengnyeong Island, and the November 2010 North Korean artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island (which houses a South Korean military base). The conventional wisdom is that both attacks were motivated by North Korean elite efforts to smooth the leadership transition underway in their country. The take away: North Korea is an out-of-control country, definitely not to be trusted or engaged in negotiations.
But is that an adequate explanation for these events? Before examining the facts surrounding them, let's introduce a bit of history. Take a look at the map below, which includes both Baengnyeong and Yeonpyeong Islands.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22628

===================

17. Kosovo "Freedom Fighters" Financed by Organised Crime

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22619

By Michel ChossudovskyGlobal Research, January 4, 2011 Covert Action Quarterly - 1999-04-10

Author's note

This article was published almost 12 years ago, at the height of the NATO bombings of Yugoslavia.
Deafening silence of the Western corporate media. The links of the KLA to organized crime, which are now being revealed by the European Parliament's investigation were known and documented by Interpol and the US Congress prior to the onslaught of the 1999 war on Yugoslavia.
The KLA insurgency was an initiative of NATO. The KLA killings were directed against Albanian, Serbian and Roma civilians.
These killings were ordered by NATO. Blamed on the Serbian police and armed forces, the killings of civilians were used as a pretext and justification to wage a "humanitarian war" on Yugoslavia.
The ties of the KLA to organized crime were not only known, they were actively fostered by the US and NATO. The result was the formation of what is best described as a "Mafia State".
The leader of the KLA, Hashim Thaci, "The Snake", who subsequently became Prime Minister was a protégé of Madeleine Albright.
Supported by the United Nations, NATO`s project was to spearhead a terrorist organization linked to Albanian and Italian crime syndicates, into the realm of civilian politics. The KLA was chosen by NATO to form a government integrated by known criminals. The Kosovo Democratic Party headed by former KLA Commander Hashim Thaci is essentially an outgrowth of the former Kosovo Liberation Army.
The Kosovo Democratic Party (KDP) retained its links to organised crime. All three Kosovo Prime Ministers, in recent history, Ramush Haradinaj, Agim Ceku and Hashim Thaci are known criminals.
In the year preceding the 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia, the KLA was quite openly supported by the Clinton administration:

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22619

===================

18. 'US, UK, Israel killing Iran scientists'

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/159133.html

08 Jan 2011
Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has accused the United States, Britain, and Israel of organizing the "butchery" of Iranian scientists to undermine Tehran's nuclear program. In an article published on Friday entitled "What Would Einstein Say?", the 84-year-old Castro cited reports in the international media, particularly one article in the US magazine The Atlantic, describing efforts by the intelligence agencies of the three countries to subvert Tehran's nuclear program and torpedo international negotiations on it through sabotage, which sometimes includes the "coordinated disappearance" of Iranian scientists, AFP reported. (….)

=====================

19. BOOK: Extreme Prejudice / Clear Evidence Of 9/11 Cover Up

http://www.opednews.com/articles/
Extreme-Prejudice--Clear-by-Allen-L-Roland-110105-991.html

January 5, 2011
Falsely imprisoned by the Bush administration, without a hearing or trial, Ex-CIA asset and 9/11 whistleblower Susan Lindauer finally confirms the great lie to sell a disastrous war and America's still ongoing freedom negating anti-terrorism policy.
Besides launching an illegal war and ongoing occupation of Iraq, the Bush/Cheney administration did everything in its power to cover up their illegal and treasonous tracks ~ which began with the 9/11 cover up itself. The alternative press has been aware of this for years but has lacked the confirming voice of a credible CIA insider such as Susan Lindauer.
Lindauer is living evidence of the Bush/Cheney blatant conspiracy to silence the truth ~ beginning with 9/11 itself. Wikileaks has already shown that our government and military form a 'vast lying machine' that perpetrates mass murder in our name throughout the world ~ which the mainstream media still ignores. Fred Branfman reports on this revelation in detail in ICH ~

http://www.informationclearinghouse.inf ... e27191.htm

Arthur Schopenhauer once wrote ~ " The truth always passes through three stages; First, it is ridiculed, Second, it is violently opposed and finally, it is accepted as self-evident. "
We are rapidly approaching the third stage regarding the 9/11 cover up and Lindauer's book could well set the stage for fully opening this Pandora's box regarding America's ultimate act of treason ~ and all accomplished while flying the badly frayed flag of patriotism. Former CIA Asset Susan Lindauer provides an extraordinary first-hand account from behind the intelligence curtain that shatters the government's lies about 9/11 and Iraq, and casts a harsh spotlight on the workings of the Patriot Act ~ being used as the ideal weapon to bludgeon whistle blowers and dissidents.

MORE:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/
Extreme-Prejudice--Clear-by-Allen-L-Roland-110105-991.html

Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind: George Orwell

Allen L Roland
http://allenlrolandsweblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/
extreme-prejudice-clear-evidence-of-911.html

===================

20. Canada ranks last in freedom of information: study

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/
canada-ranks-last-in-freedom-of-information-study/article1863083/print/

Dean Beeby Ottawa— The Canadian Press
Published Sunday, Jan. 09, 2011 11:19AM EST
Last updated Sunday, Jan. 09, 2011 5:50PM EST
A new study ranks Canada dead last in an international comparison of freedom-of-information laws — a hard fall after many years being judged a global model in openness.
The study by a pair of British academics looked at the effectiveness of freedom-of-information laws in five parliamentary democracies: Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Canada.
New Zealand placed first and Canada last.
“Above all, an effective FOI regime requires strong government commitment and political will. Officials cannot do it on their own,” says the paper, published in the journal Government Information Quarterly.

MORE:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/
canada-ranks-last-in-freedom-of-information-study/article1863083/print/

===================

21. Perimeter security deal faces delay

http://mobile.metronews.ca/edmonton/world/article/
738464--perimeter-security-deal-faces-delay

January 09, 2011 Jim Bronskill and Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press
OTTAWA - A highly touted meeting between Stephen Harper and Barack Obama on a perimeter security pact has been pushed back as Canada and the United States wrestle with the difficulties of making the complex arrangement a reality.
Insiders say the signing summit is now expected no earlier than February and possibly as late as spring.
They say increased information sharing — a prospect that raises privacy concerns in Canada — will be key to the effort to secure the outer boundaries of North America.
The idea is to control who enters and leaves the continent in a consistent manner, allowing officials to ease security at the Canada-U.S. border, paving the way for a return to more free-flowing passage of vehicles and cargo.
Canadian business leaders have complained since the 9-11 attacks on the United States that increasingly stringent border controls have hamstrung commerce and tourism.
The driving force behind the change in the U.S. mindset has been Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, said Fen Hampson, director of the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa.
- - - SNIP - - - -
The Council of Canadians, which has consistently opposed all integration initiatives with the U.S., also expressed concern.
Group chairwoman Maude Barlow said any Canadian move towards "harmonization, collaboration and information-sharing with the Department of Homeland Security" to promote trade would raise sovereignty and privacy concerns.
Beatty remains confident a deal can be reached.
"We needn't have complete harmonization," he said. "Where we differ from Europe is we're not looking at dismantling the border between Canada and the U.S. and having the mobility that there is in Europe, but rather having a border that's more efficient and more transparent to legitimate travellers and cargo."

==================

22. Canada’s best-paid CEOs ‘recession-proof’: study

http://www.policyalternatives.ca/newsroom/
news-releases/canada%E2%80%99s-best-paid-ceos-%E2%80%98recession-proof%E2%80%99-study

National Office | News Release
Issue(s): Corporations and corporate power, Inequality and poverty
Projects & Initiatives: Growing Gap
January 3, 2011
TORONTO – Canada’s best-paid 100 CEOs breezed through the worst of the recession with earnings 155 times higher than the average Canadian income earner, says a new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
The study, Recession-Proof, looks at 2009 compensation levels for Canada’s best paid 100 CEOs and finds they pocketed an average of $6.6 million during the darkest period of the recession – a stark contrast from the total average Canadian income of $42,988.
“At this rate of reward, this handful of elite CEOs pocket the equivalent of the average Canadian wage by 2:30 pm on January 3 – the first working day of the year,” says the study’s author and CCPA Research Associate Hugh Mackenzie.
The study shows executive compensation in Canada wasn’t always this rich. In 1998, the best paid 100 CEOs pocketed an average of 104 times more than the average Canadian wage earner, compared to 155 times more in 2009.
“Even that extraordinary number understates the real story,” says Mackenzie. “Thanks to a change in corporate reporting introduced in 2008, we only have a conservative statistical estimate of the stock options that make up about one third of CEOs’ 2009 pay. The public will never know how much most of these CEOs actually got paid in 2009.
“And that’s only half the story. These CEOs are sitting on $1.3 billion of stock options they haven’t yet cashed in. That’s about $2 in future income for every $1 they declared in 2009.”
When the CEOs decide to exercise those stock options, the study reveals Canadians will subsidize that bonus with an estimated average of $360 million in foregone taxes, since stock options are taxed at a lower rate, as if they are capital gains. Among Mackenzie’s recommendations: getting rid of that expensive and unfair loophole.
The study highlights the role that soaring executive compensation plays in the dramatic growth in income inequality in Canada identified in a recent CCPA study by Senior Economist Armine Yalnizyan. Yalnizyan found that fully one third of all income growth in Canada in the past 20 years went to the richest 1% of Canadians. –30–
For more information please contact:
Trish Hennessy at (416) 551-2059 or Kerri-Anne Finn at (613) 563-1341 x306.

Canada’s best-paid CEOs ‘recession-proof’: study

http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/
recession-proof

====================

23. Past year Canada's warmest ever: report

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
Past+year+Canada+warmest+ever+report/4089450/story.html

By Margaret Munro, Postmedia News January 11, 2011
Environment Canada has quietly released its climate report for 2010, confirming that it was the hottest year on Canadian record books.

<http://www.ec.gc.ca/meteo-weather/
default.asp?lang=En&n=254A5B18-1>

National temperatures exceeded average values by a whopping 3 C, the warmest since record-keeping began in 1948, says the report, posted on the department's website Monday.
"All of the country was above normal, with most of Nunavut and northern Quebec at least 4 C above normal," says the report, that highlights 2010's northern heat wave on its map in red.
"An area over southern Alberta and Saskatchewan was the only part of Canada with close to normal temperatures this past year," it adds.
He also notes that 3 C above normal is remarkable.
"These are rather large numbers," Weaver said, noting temperatures were significantly higher than normal in 2010 despite "prognostications" from climate change skeptics who have been predicting the planet will cool because of changes in solar activity.
Environment Canada's media office did not issue a release with the report Monday. Spokesperson Mark Johnson described it as "old news."
In December, the department noted in its top 10 weather stories of 2010 that "Canada's a hottie" and had been breaking temperature records 2010.

MORE:
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
Past+year+Canada+warmest+ever+report/4089450/story.html

====================

24. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

Icelandic politician out to push boundaries

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/
920928--icelandic-politician-out-to-push-boundaries

January 12, 2011 Olivia Ward
With her steady blue gaze, and quiet, reasoned tone, Birgitta Jonsdottir seems an unlikely gadfly.
But the Icelandic member of Parliament, poet, activist and former WikiLeaks collaborator is at the centre of a diplomatic buzz that is growing louder as the United States presses for personal data that could implicate the website and its founder Julian Assange.
“I’m a threat to the established power,” she says over a coffee in Toronto, a day after a lecture on Iceland’s new freedom of information law. “I’m dedicated to being the annoying fly in the tent.”
Last week Jonsdottir, Dutch Internet activist Rop Gonggrijp and WikiLeaks volunteer Jacob Appelbaum were notified by Twitter that the U.S. Justice Department had obtained a court order for information including their credit card and bank account numbers in an apparent bid to link them with Assange and U.S. Army Pte. Bradley Manning, who is accused of leaking classified information.
Jonsdottir was not told if she was a criminal suspect along with Assange, who may be under investigation for breaking the U.S. Espionage Act by releasing sensitive data. But she tweeted, “if the message . . . was to scare me, it has failed.”

MORE:
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/
920928--icelandic-politician-out-to-push-boundaries

= = = = = = =

Support grows for accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower Bradley Manning; Protests mount over inhumane conditions of confinement

http://universallyaware.ning.com/profiles/blogs/
courage-to-resist-support

Over 6,000 sign "Stand with Brad" statement; supporters to rally outside Quantico on Monday to focus on inhumane conditions which amount to a form of torture; Bradley details actual day to day existance; WikiLeaks fulfills pledge of support; Legal team posts updates

= = = = = = = =

U.S. Rep Wants Assange Declared 'Banned Person,' Recalling South Africa's Internal Security Act --Banning Orders Should be Banned

http://www.legitgov.org/
US-Rep-Wants-Assange-Declared-Banned-Person-Recalling-South-Africas-Internal-Security-Act

By Lori Price, www.legitgov.org 15 Jan 2011 U.S. Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., the chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, wants WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange, to be added to the Treasury Department's 'Specially Designated National and Blocked Persons List,' also known as the SDN List. Rep. King's request evokes the story of another banned journalist, Donald James Woods. Woods was the editor of the South Africa's 'Daily Dispatch' from 1965 to 1977, befriending Steve Biko, the leader of the anti-apartheid Black Consciousness Movement. Woods was declared a 'banned person' under South Africa's Internal Security Act by the Afrikaner National Party government in October 1977.

by **Oscar** » Fri Jan 21, 2011 2:12 pm

NUKE NEWS: January 21, 2011

1. NORTHERN SASKATCHEWAN SPEAKING TOUR: Dr. Jim Harding
2. No penalty for woman who refused census + Letter
3. Sask. may try small nuclear reactors: premier
4. Green Party Says Premier Is Betraying Democracy with Plans to Build Small Nuclear Reactors in Saskatchewan
5. "Ottawa must get deal quickly on AECL" – says Ontario's energy minister
6. Why the nuclear renaissance is at risk of going up in smoke
7. Uranium spill sends ship back to B.C.
8. Chinese energy needs send uranium market soaring
9. No Nukes News - Jan. 18, 2011
10. NDP on Canada in Afghanistan
11. President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1961 farewell speech
12. From Military-Industrial Complex to Permanent War State
13. Giant weapons maker becomes Big Brother
14. Turkey hosts Iran nuclear talks
15. Israel tested Stuxnet on Iran, with US help'
16. The Curse of the Sands
17. The Iraq War Inquiry – Anger as Tony Blair admits regrets over Iraq
18. Preparing for War with Russia? Washington To Rearm Georgia For New Conflicts
19. The Logic of Imperial Insanity and the Road to World War III
20. The CEO and the New Feudalism
21. WIKILEAKS UPDATE
22. NSA breaks ground on Utah 'spy center' data center

==============

1. NORTHERN SASKATCHEWAN SPEAKING TOUR: Dr. Jim Harding

Jim Harding, author of "Canada's Deadly Secret: Saskatchewan Uranium and the Global Nuclear System" will visit three Saskatchewan communities to speak about proposals to build a nuclear waste dump in our province and why we should say NO!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011 - 7:00 PM
Frances Morrison Public Library,
311-23rd Street East, Saskatoon, SK.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011 - 7:00 PM
Kikinahk Friendship Centre,
320 Boardman Street, La Ronge, SK

Thursday, February 3, 2011 - 7:00 PM
JMC Public Library,
125-12th Street East, Prince Albert, SK

You can find posters for these events on our web site, feel free to download, post and forward to your networks:
http://www.cleangreensask.ca/Home/
upcoming-speaking-events-1/whysaskatchewanshouldsaynotonuclearwaste

Attached here in PDF format is Jim's article from R-Town News "A Nuclear
Waste Ban: Can We Take The Bull By The Horns" This article can be reprinted & distributed with credit given to R-Town News. You can read more of Jim's columns on our web site:
http://www.cleangreensask.ca/Home/jim-harding-s-column

======================

2. No penalty for woman who refused census + Letter

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2011/01/20/
sk-finley-sentence-1101.html

Last Updated: Thursday, January 20, 2011 | 11:53 AM CST

The Saskatoon woman found guilty after refusing to fill out a long-form census has received an absolute discharge.
Sandra Finley was found guilty last week in provincial court of violating the Statistics Act and had been facing a maximum fine of $500 and a jail sentence of three months.
Instead, Judge Sheila Whelan granted a discharge, which means there will be no penalty.
Finley said she was pleased with the decision.
"I was hopeful," she said. "I did not know what to expect because I totally did not expect a guilty verdict in the first place. So this is welcome."
Finley, a community activist, refused to fill out the longer version of the 2006 federal census over concerns that Statistics Canada was using the services of U.S. defence manufacturer Lockheed Martin.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2011/01/20/
sk-finley-sentence-1101.html

= = = = = =

More info on Lockheed Martin/Census:
http://sandrafinley.ca/?page_id=70

= = = = = =

LETTER: Kurtenbach: Canadian Census and Lockheed Martin

From: "Leo Kurtenbach" <leokurt@sasktel.net>
Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 3:17 PM
Subject: Canadian Census and Lockheed Martin

To the Editor,
This letter is written in support of my friend Sandra Finley of Saskatoon.
Sandra, as well as a number of other Canadians across Canada, refused to complete the last federal census, when she discovered that some of the Canadian census material had been sub-contracted to one of the world's biggest arms manufacturer: an American behemoth corporation named Lockheed Martin.
Sandra Finley is a well-informed, courageous activist for a peaceful Canada and a peaceful world.
The following is a scant description of the corporate power of Lockheed Martin [L.M.].
It is an integral part of the American war and weapons taxpayer's burden of around one trillion dollars annually. L.M. produces fighter planes, drones, cluster bombs, land mines and weapons with Depleted Uranium [DU] and nuclear bombs. It is also involved in the U.S. postal service, the Internal Revenue Service [IRS], and Census statistics. And now it has come to Canada to help in our Census programs. It operates in 44 states in the U.S. with 140,000 employees. Your readers may be interested in knowing, that among its many other diverse interests, Lockheed Martin is instrumental in hiring interrogators for overseas prisons including Guantanamo Bay and Abu Graib in Iraq.
And now Aerospace Giant Lockheed Martin has donated a $3.5 million Training Package to the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technology [SIIT] near Saskatoon at Whitecap. It appears that SIIT will be a training facility in the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles [Drones]. This program has been publicized as "The center is an expression of a successful public private partnership with Industrial and Regional Benefits related to military defence procurement at the core."
However, Canadian taxpayers should be aware that we are partnered in all this through the Government of Canada, [Western Economic Diversification and Industry in Canada], the Province of Saskatchewan, the Saskatoon Airport Authority and SIAST. We are the original fund providers through "offset agreements" in the various lucrative contracts Lockheed Martin has with the federal Government. Remember, Lockheed's extensive record of procurement fraud in the U.S. and the millions of dollars it spends on lobbying in the U.S. and now in Canada. They are corrupt and use it for their bottom line.
Am I being too harsh on this gigantic corporation? Read the words of Chris Hedges. He is an American global journalist, a war correspondent, and the author of at least 8 books. His education includes a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School. He has received numerous awards for his work. Here are a few excerpts from a published article written on January 10th 2011: "Power does not rest with the electorate. It does not reside with either of the two major political parties"; and "Power rests with the corporations. And corporations gain very lucrative profits from war, even wars we have no chance of winning"

For more detailed information about Lockheed Martin, see Sandra's web
site,
www.sandrafinley.ca

Leo Kurtenbach,
Box 268, Cudworth, Sask., SOK IBO
Phone: (306) 256 3638

===================

3. Sask. may try small nuclear reactors: premier

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2011/01/20/
sk-reactors-wall-110120.html

Last Updated: Thursday, January 20, 2011 | 1:24 PM CST CBC News
The Saskatchewan government may have shelved plans for large-scale nuclear reactors, but some mini-reactors might still be a possibility, Premier Brad Wall says.
Wall says the government hopes to announce a partnership with a private company soon to research small nuclear reactors that would more easily plug into the province's existing electrical grid.
"You know, we have a whole lot of 300-megawatt coal plants all over the world," he said in Regina on Wednesday. "Is there a chance to replace them in the future with smaller reactors so you're not building up new grids but plugging them into existing places?"
Wall said there is also potential for more nuclear medicine in Saskatchewan, noting that Prince Edward Island is the only other province that has to send patients away for PET (positron emission tomography) scans used to diagnose certain cancers and other diseases.
The province is a world leader in uranium production but doesn't refine the radioactive metal or have any nuclear power plants.
A province with so much uranium should be a leader in making use of it, Wall said.
More than a year ago, Wall's government gave what it called a "yellow light" — and not a green light — to nuclear power after a series of public meetings.
That's when it decided a proposed nuclear power plant was too expensive for this province, Wall said.
"Our government didn't make its decision with respect to a conventional reactor because of political pressure. In fact, I'd argue that those opposed to adding value to uranium or looking at nuclear power in this province are in the minority," Wall said.

MORE:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2011/01/20/
sk-reactors-wall-110120.html

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More Info on Small Reactors:

http://forum.stopthehogs.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=759

====================

4. Green Party Says Premier Is Betraying Democracy with Plans to Build Small Nuclear Reactors in Saskatchewan

Press Release For Immediate Release January 20, 2011
Green Party of Saskatchewan Leader Larissa Shasko is outraged by Premier Wall's announcement made yesterday of plans to build small nuclear reactors in our province. According to Shasko, "The Government has not listened to the public consultations in 2009 which overwhelmingly said 'we don't want the nuclear industry in our province.' In doing so, Brad Wall has completely turned a blind eye to our democratic rights as citizens."

Small nuclear reactor technology has already been rejected by the people of this province in the 2009 public consultations. Small nuclear reactors come with a huge price tag and do not make economic sense when compared to the alternatives of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy conservation. According to the Saskatchewan Greens, small nuclear reactors pose unnecessary safety risks, pollute our environment and are not needed. "As coal plants age, energy conservation and energy efficiency need to be maximized, and decentralized renewable energy needs to be implemented at a large scale," states Shasko.

Shasko also warns that building small nuclear reactors in our province would leave Saskatchewan wide open as a location for a nuclear waste dump in our province. Saskatchewan communities are currently being targeted by the nuclear industry for the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. This has consequences for all people in Saskatchewan. According to Shasko, "We need legislation passed in our province immediately to ban the transportation and storage of nuclear waste in Saskatchewan -- to protect our province from becoming a nuclear waste dump site. If we build small nuclear reactors in Saskatchewan, we would then be creating nuclear waste here, so we would be even more heavily targeted as a site for a national or international nuclear waste dump. Brad Wall has been misleading voters on the nuclear issue, right from reactors to waste. Brad Wall's commitment to the nuclear industry over the democratic orders of Saskatchewan citizens has shown that the Sask Party can not be trusted by voters."

Shasko points out that the Green Party of Saskatchewan has a different vision for our province. "Jobs are abundant in the renewable energy sector," says Shasko, and the Green Party of Saskatchewan’s plan to create a decentralized renewable energy economy will put both power and money into the hands of Saskatchewan people. The Wall Government has projected that Saskatchewan’s energy needs will continue to rise drastically, regardless of a basically stagnant population and a worsening climate crisis, but the Green Party recognizes that if we want to survive as a planet, our energy needs must be reduced. Saskatchewan has barely seen energy conservation utilized, which is unfortunate because energy conservation is the most cost effective and fastest way to lower greenhouse gas emissions. Instead of taking the climate crisis seriously, the Sask Party Government is going to let the rate of GHG emissions in this province grow drastically to allow for an increased pace and scale of resource extraction. The Wall Government wants to see every last bit of natural resources in our province taken out of the ground over the short-term future leaving nothing but ecological destruction behind for future generations. According to the Saskatchewan Greens, our resource royalities are grossly inadequate. Shasko notes that nearly all of the resources mined here are exported across borders and overseas where those resources pollute the air, water, and soil of other regions. "Under Brad Wall‘s leadership (or lack of leadership), Saskatchewan has become an exporter of climate change," states Shasko. She notes that Saskatchewan’s Minister of the Environment was sent to the Copenhagen climate conference to lobby against a deal from being signed that would interfere with the Wall Government’s plan to develop the tar sands in northern Saskatchewan. According to Shasko, "We can not continue on this path to eco-destruction. Millions if not billions of dollars will be wasted on small reactors that will utimately be used to supply power to the mining industry, as stated in the Government's Uranium Development Partnership Report. Nuclear powered tar sands is an absurd concept!!" The provincial Greens take the position that the mining industry's growing demands for power should not burden public taxpayers.

Shasko states, "Under a Green Government, we will become world leaders in renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. As a province, we were leaders with healthcare; now it is time to lead the way in the 21st century to a decentralized renewable energy economy. Unlike the Wall Government, the Green Party of Saskatchewan has been listening to the concerns of those people in our province who are suffering during this time of economic hardship, and we know it doesn’t have to be this way if the voters of this province choose not to re-elect a provincial government who is committed only to the interests of big business while turning a blind eye to increased stress in the lives of the people who live here." --30--

For more information or interviews, please contact

Larissa Shasko, Party Leader, 306-690-1404
larissa.shasko@gmail.com

=================

More on Green Party of Saskatchewan’s Stand on Nuclear Power:
http://www.greenpartysask.ca/policy/nuclear_and_uranium

= = = = = =

LISTEN: Larissa Shasko on the John Gormley Show:
http://www.newstalk650.com/audio/john-gormley-live/
20110120-john-gormley-live-january-20-2011-open-lines

=================

5. "Ottawa must get deal quickly on AECL" – says Ontario's energy minister

http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/ ... /20110118/
aecl-duguid-110118/20110118/?hub=TorontoNewHome

BY MARIA BABBAGE, Canadian Press, Mon Jan 17 2011
TORONTO -- With the sale of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. possibly in jeopardy, Ontario's energy minister is calling on Ottawa to move quickly in deciding the fate of the Crown-owned company.
Two major bidders for AECL have apparently bowed out, which leaves Ontario's plan to buy two nuclear units in limbo.
The federal government put AECL's troubled CANDU reactor business up for sale in 2009, which delayed the province's ability to move ahead with the purchase, Duguid said Monday.
"We feel the federal government has an obligation here to ensure that it gets this together quickly," he said in an interview. "They have a responsibility to Ontario and Ontario families to get their act together on this file."
The Conservative government also needs to get behind Canada's nuclear industry and the 70,000 workers it employs, Duguid added.
"What's been frustrating for us is that in most other countries with a nuclear industry, their national governments take a much greater level of commitment towards ensuring that that industry is viable," he said.
"We're not sure we're seeing that level of commitment from the federal government in the nuclear industry."
His comments come in the wake of reports that Bruce Power and SNC-Lavalin Group are no longer interesting in buying the heavily subsidized Crown corporation.
A source confirmed to The Canadian Press late last week that Bruce Power walked away from the table after the union representing scientists and engineers raised a red flag in a letter to its members.
The Society of Professional Engineers and Associates suggested that SNC had also pulled out.

MORE:
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/ ... /20110118/
aecl-duguid-110118/20110118/?hub=TorontoNewHome

====================

6. Why the nuclear renaissance is at risk of going up in smoke

https://secure.globeadvisor.com/servlet ... story/gam/
20110117/RBAGENDANUCLEAR0117ATL

With governments unwilling to shoulder the financial risks, nuclear plants are becoming a tough sell
Shawn McCarthy, Globe and Mail, Monday, January 17, 2011
North America's much-touted nuclear revival is in jeopardy, but it is not environmental and safety concerns that are undermining it. The industry is finding it increasingly difficult to make the economic case in both Canada and the United States.
The enormous capital cost of building reactors is just one factor holding back the long-promised nuclear renaissance. Just as critical is the risk that already high costs will balloon as companies build new-generation plants that must be able to withstand the impact of a terrorist crashing an airliner into one.
In announcing their proposed merger last week, two North Carolina-based utilities, Duke Energy Inc. and Progress Energy Inc., say the combined company would possess the added heft needed to finance three planned nuclear projects.
But financial strength alone is not enough. The companies are also looking for political and regulatory support to shift financial obligations onto customers and taxpayers to minimize risk in what Moody's Investor Service calls a "bet-the-farm" project.
That effort to offload financial risk to partners, customers and governments is the hallmark of the 21st-century nuclear industry.
It has been a key factor in Ottawa's decision to sell Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., and Ontario's refusal to purchase reactors from the Crown corporation -- neither the federal nor provincial government wants to be on the hook if AECL can't deliver a new reactor on budget. Private-sector bidders for AECL, including Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., are insisting on continued government backing for the company's new-generation reactor program in order to avoid undue risk.
The nuclear revival is already being challenged by competition from natural gas, as development of vast reserves of shale gas in the United States and Canada promise to keep fuel costs much lower than had been expected just a few years ago.

MORE:
https://secure.globeadvisor.com/servlet ... story/gam/
20110117/RBAGENDANUCLEAR0117ATL

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7. Uranium spill sends ship back to B.C.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columb ... 011/01/17/
bc-uranium-ship-altona.html

Last Updated: Monday, January 17, 2011 | 7:00 PM PT CBC News
The Altona is anchored off Ladysmith, B.C., until officials figure out what to do about a uranium spill aboard. (CBC)
Regulators have boarded a ship carrying uranium in B.C. waters, figuring out how to handle a spill of radioactive material in the ship's hold.
The ship left Vancouver just before Christmas, bound for China. It is carrying powdered uranium concentrate from the Saskatchewan mining company Cameco.
But bad weather during the Pacific crossing caused two drums of uranium to spill into the cargo hold, prompting the crew to turn the ship back to British Columbia.
The uranium is safely contained within the ship's hold, Cameco spokesman Rob Gereghty said Monday.
- - - - SNIP - - - -
The ship, the Altona, is currently anchored off Vancouver Island near Ladysmith.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and Transport Canada are aboard. In a statement, the nuclear regulator said there's "no risk to the environment or public at large."
Uranium concentrate is generally handled the same as other heavy metals such as lead.
= = = = = =
Storm knocks open ship´s uranium drums forcing emergency return to BC

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/01/17/
storm-knocks-open-ships-uranium-drums-forcing-emergency-return-to-b-c/

January 17, 2011
A Canadian cargo ship carrying uranium headed for China had to make an emergency return trip after a storm knocked open two containers of the radioactive compound.
Saskatoon-based uranium mining company Cameco said one of its cargo ships had left Vancouver on Dec. 23 bound for Zhanjiang, China, loaded with containers filled with uranium concentrate U3O8, a compound of uranium that has been milled into a fine powder before it is shipped off to be refined for use in nuclear reactors.
The ship survived a turbulent storm off the coast of Hawaii around Jan. 3 and the crew later noticed that two sea containers had shifted and two drums full of uranium had fallen out and lay open.

MORE:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/01/17/
storm-knocks-open-ships-uranium-drums-forcing-emergency-return-to-b-c/

===============

8. Chinese energy needs send uranium market soaring

http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/
article1872125.html

Shirley Won, Globe and Mail, Sunday Jan. 16, 2011

The uranium XUX-FTmarket is crackling again, set afire by China’s quest to secure nuclear fuel. And after watching the price of the radioactive metal crater for much of the past three years, investors are once again optimistic.
“Uranium is in a new bull market,” says Rob Lauzon, a portfolio manager who oversees energy investments at Middlefield Capital Corp.
“We have seen the spot price move from $40 (U.S.) a pound [last March] to over $62. … I think in the next two years, it will settle in that $70 to $75 range. If we look out five years from now, we can probably see $80- to $100-a-pound uranium.”
The spot price, which is determined by private contracts, hit bubble territory when it peaked at $136 a pound in June, 2007, as hedge funds put money on the metal’s future. But the price plunged during the global credit crisis and remained depressed amid a flood of fresh supply from Kazakhstan in 2009.
Market watchers see higher uranium prices ahead because of tightening supply and rising demand, particularly from China and other emerging markets. Barring a major nuclear accident, demand is expected to remain buoyant as developed countries embrace nuclear power as a clean fuel.

MORE:

http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/
article1872125.html

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Video: Uranium: The next gold?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-o ... ess/video/
uranium-the-next-gold/article1757033/?from=1872125

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Editor's Blog: Watchlist tip #9: How to add commodities to your lists

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/
globe-investor-blog/watchlist-tip-9-how-to-add-commodities-to-your-lists/article1831065/?from=1872125

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More related to this story (Links are on original article URL)

A glittering heap of precious metals and resource funds
Commodities ripe for further gains in 2011
The commodity cycle speeds up

========================

9. No Nukes News - Jan. 18, 2011
----------------------------------------------------------------
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Why the nuclear renaissance is at risk of going up in smoke -
With governments unwilling to shoulder the financial risks, nuclear plants are becoming a tough sell
North America's much-touted nuclear revival is in jeopardy, but it is not environmental and safety concerns that are undermining it. The industry is finding it increasingly difficult to make the economic case in both Canada and the United States.
The enormous capital cost of building reactors is just one factor holding back the long-promised nuclear renaissance. Just as critical is the risk that already high costs will balloon as companies build new-generation plants that must be able to withstand the impact of a terrorist crashing an airliner into one.
https://secure.globeadvisor.com/servlet ... story/gam/
20110117/RBAGENDANUCLEAR0117ATL
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AECL bidder backs out
The Conservative government’s efforts to sell off Canada’s nuclear power agency secretly collapsed this week after the most likely buyer walked away from the negotiating table…
For one thing, AECL is not the commercial prize it may have been in its commercial heyday of building its famous Candu nuclear reactors around the world.The agency has not sold a reactor since the 1990s, and had none on its books when the Harper government decided to sell the whole thing. AECL's current refurbishment of reactors in Ontario and New Brunswick are both so far over budget and behind schedule that Canadian taxpayers are facing hundreds of millions of dollars in contract penalties.
Sources close to the failed negotiations with Bruce Power say no matter who finally ends up with AECL, the government will remain on the hook for the billions of dollars in outstanding liabilities for reactor refurbishments and nuclear waste disposal. Finally, AECL earned an international black eye from the roughly $600 million it wasted building two new medical-isotope reactors that don't work, and likely will never be put into operation.
Sources also told CBC News that behind the scenes, the Ontario government has been complicating any possible deal-making with onerous demands of its own.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2011/01/14/
can-aecl-sale-bruce.html

Potential buyers have walked away from AECL
http://www.thestar.com/business/article/
922286--buyers-haved-walked-away-from-aecl-union-says
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Dirty coal-fired electricity exports are costing us the air we breathe
Ontario’s dirty coal-fired electricity generation rose by 29% last year according to the Independent Electricity System Operator.
Ontario has more than sufficient coal-free generation capacity to shut down its dirty coal plants today, yet Ontario Power Generation (OPG) continues to operate its giant Nanticoke coal plant to export power to the United States.
Exporting dirty coal power may be good for OPG's bottom line, but it is not good for our health or our climate. According to Ontario Government calculations, OPG’s coal-fired electricity generation caused up to 158,000 asthma attacks last year. It also released harmful particulate matter, lead and mercury into our environment while pumping out thousands of tonnes of greenhouse gases.
Please send a letter to Premier Dalton McGuinty and ask him to tell OPG to stop exporting dirty coal-fired electricity to the U.S.
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Lets kick start 2011 by getting the government to end tax breaks to dirty fuels!
We are only weeks away from the 2011 federal budget and the federal government continues to give billions of dollars in tax breaks to the companies producing oil and gas in Canada. Analysis shows a total of $1.4 billion per year in federal tax breaks alone, with a disproportionate share going to dirty fuels such as the Alberta Tar Sands.
Read more here: http://www.climateactionnetwork.ca/e/news/2010/release/
index.php?WEBYEP_DI=82
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Surplus power costly for Ontario
Ratepayers paid $52.8M in December to subsidize sales to Quebec, U.S.
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/technology/
Surplus+power+costly+Ontario/4089148/story.html
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Ontario opposition would seek green energy changes
Ontario's opposition Progressive Conservative Party would overhaul the province's feed-in tariff program for producers of renewable energy if it wins the October provincial election, a party leader said on Wednesday. "Going forward, absolutely, we would not be signing these contracts," Yakabuski said.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE70B6PK20110112
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Australian women hate nuclear power. Men don't mind it, but women would rather use candles.
This is the startling finding of Auspoll's latest research, a poll of 1500 Australians' attitudes on energy generation. Australians were often divided along gender lines.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/opinion/
more-power-to-the-people-even-if-they-cannot-agree/story-e6frezz0-1225974638299
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Africa Offers Easy Uranium
Wikileaks cables have revealed a disturbing development in the African uranium mining industry: abysmal safety and security standards in the mines, nuclear research centres, and border customs are enabling international companies to exploit the mines and smuggle dangerous radioactive material across continents.
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53962
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Wikileaks and Nuclear Weapons
Reaching Critical Will, a project of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, has compiled a list of nuclear weapon-related articles that have been released by Wikileaks. Articles cover topics such as the Non-Proliferation Treaty, nuclear disarmament, nuclear cooperation with India, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, missile defense and more.
To see Reaching Critical Will’s list:
http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/act ... .html#dec1
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Stuxnet virus attack: Russia warns of ‘Iranian Chernobyl'
Russian nuclear officials have warned of another Chernobyl-style nuclear disaster at Iran's controversial Bushehr reactor because of the damage caused by the Stuxnet virus, according to the latest Western intelligence reports.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... pe/russia/
8262853/Stuxnet-virus-attack-Russia-warns-of-Iranian-Chernobyl.html
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Pfffft Goes Promise of Pumping C02 Underground
Farmers say high profile carbon sequestration experiment is a bubbling, dangerous failure. - By Andrew Nikiforuk
http://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2011/01/12/Pr ... umpingCO2/

Reported Weyburn carbon capture project failure is bad news for the world
http://communities.canada.com/vancouver ... nnovation/
archive/2011/01/11/reported-weyburn-carbon-capture-project-failure-is-bad-news-for-the-world.aspx

Sask. family claims carbon-capture-and-storage site captured, spewed dead animals
http://www.vancouversun.comzhealth/
Sask+family+claims+carbon+capture+storage+site+captured+spewed+dead/4093755/story.html

Land fizzing like soda pop: farmer says CO2 injected underground is Leaking
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/headline_news/
article.jsp?content=b5620386

Carbon capture leak forces Saskatchewan couple to leave farm
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/prairies/
carbon-capture-leak-forces-saskatchewan-couple-to-leave-farm/article1866294/
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Canadian parliament to ratify nuclear power agreement in February
Canadian Parliament is all set to ratify in February the civil nuclear deal with India. Canadian High Commissioner Stewart G. Beck said the Nuclear Power Agreement (NCA) signed with India in June last year ending a 36-year-old freeze in civil nuclear cooperation is likely to be ratified by parliament in his country next month. Once in place, the agreement will allow India access to Canadian nuclear technology, equipment and fuel.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/a ... 078035.ece
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Report Back on Cancún: Eyewitness Report and Discussion
Thursday, January 20, 7 p.m.
Steelworkers Hall, 25 Cecil Street (East of Spadina, South of College), Toronto
Over 190 countries, developed and developing, met late 2010 at COP16 in Cancún to come up with an agreement to respond to the world climate crisis. Come and listen to the reports of Canadian experts who went there to protest or to witness the negotiations. Vigorous protests inside and outside the conference spoke for the world's peoples in our struggle for climate justice.
Co-organizers: Toronto Climate Campaign; Council of Canadians (Toronto Chapter); Toronto Bolivia Solidarity
----------------------------------------------------------------
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Where is my Electricity Coming From at this Hour? (if I live in Ontario)
http://media.cns-snc.ca/ontarioelectric ... icity.html
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FREE Anti-Nuke Postcards!
Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout: No More Blank Cheques for Ontario Power Generation and its Darlington Nuclear Station.
They contain postcards addressed to Premier McGuinty and the Leader of the Opposition Tim Hudak. Help get the word out that there are lower cost and safer ways to meet all our electricity needs without investing tens of billions of $$ in nuclear energy.

ORDER FREE POSTCARDS:
http://www.cleanairalliance.org/files/active/0/
NuclearHandout_v5.pdf]

Give them to your friends, neighbours, local coffee shops, etc.

Angela Bischoff, Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402, Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

===================

10. NDP on Canada in Afghanistan

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6853&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 16 Jan 2011 08:49 PM PST
This afternoon at the Centre for Policy Studies (CIPS), University of Ottawa - The Hon. Jack Layton delivered a confident and passionate address regarding Canada's leadership on the mission in Afghanistan.

=================

11. President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1961 farewell speech

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6874&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 16 Jan 2011 07:05 PM PST
Video: Fifty years ago, on January 17, 1961, Americans gathered around their TV sets to watch President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s farewell speech from the White House. He warned the American people about the growth in economic power and political influence of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry.

=======================

12. From Military-Industrial Complex to Permanent War State

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/01/17-6

by Gareth Porter Monday, January 17, 2011
Fifty years after Dwight D. Eisenhower's January 17, 1961 speech on the "military-industrial complex", that threat has morphed into a far more powerful and sinister force than Eisenhower could have imagined. It has become a "Permanent War State", with the power to keep the United States at war continuously for the indefinite future.
But despite their seeming invulnerability, the vested interests behind U.S. militarism have been seriously shaken twice in the past four decades by some combination of public revulsion against a major war, opposition to high military spending, serious concern about the budget deficit and a change in perception of the external threat. Today, the Permanent War State faces the first three of those dangers to its power simultaneously -- and in a larger context of the worst economic crisis since the great depression.
When Eisenhower warned in this farewell address of the "potential" for the "disastrous rise of misplaced power", he was referring to the danger that militarist interests would gain control over the country's national security policy. The only reason it didn't happen on Ike's watch is that he stood up to the military and its allies.
The Air Force and the Army were so unhappy with his "New Look" military policy that they each waged political campaigns against it. The Army demanded that Ike reverse his budget cuts and beef up conventional forces. The Air Force twice fabricated intelligence to support its claim that the Soviet Union was rapidly overtaking the United States in strategic striking power -- first in bombers, later in ballistic missiles.
But Ike defied both services, reducing Army manpower by 44 percent from its 1953 level and refusing to order a crash program for bombers or for missiles. He also rejected military recommendations for war in Indochina, bombing attacks on China and an ultimatum to the Soviet Union.

MORE:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/01/17-6

================

13. Giant weapons maker becomes Big Brother

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MA14Ak02.html

By William D Hartung Asia Times
Have you noticed that Lockheed Martin, the giant weapons corporation, is shadowing you? No? Then you haven't been paying much attention. Let me put it this way: If you have a life, Lockheed Martin is likely a part of it.
True, Lockheed Martin doesn't actually run the United States government, but sometimes it seems as if it might as well. After all, it received US$36 billion in government contracts in 2008 alone, more than any company in history. It now does work for more than two dozen government agencies from the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy to the Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency.
It's involved in surveillance and information processing for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the National Security Agency (NSA), the Pentagon, the Census Bureau, and the Postal Service.
Oh, and Lockheed Martin has even helped train those friendly Transportation Security Administration agents who pat you down at the airport. Naturally, the company produces cluster bombs, designs nuclear weapons, and makes the F-35 Lightning (an overpriced, behind-schedule, underperforming combat aircraft that is slated to be bought by customers in more than a dozen countries) - and when it comes to weaponry, that's just the start of a long list.
In recent times, though, it's moved beyond anything usually associated with a weapons corporation and has been virtually running its own foreign policy, doing everything from hiring interrogators for US overseas prisons (including at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and Abu Ghraib in Iraq) to managing a private intelligence network in Pakistan and helping write the Afghan constitution.

MORE:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MA14Ak02.html

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Editorial Reviews: Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial Complex by William D. Hartung

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1568584202/ref=nosim/
?tag=tomdispatch-20

From Publishers Weekly
Corporate clout, military innovation, and political influence make an uneasy mix in this smart and thorough corporate history of Lockheed Martin's emergence as the nation's largest weapons contractor. Hartung (And Weapons for All) traces the company's rise from unimpressive military aircraft manufacturer in WWI through its emergence as a major supplier of fighters and bombers for the Allies in WWII to corporate behemoth and power player in setting American foreign policy. The author explores how deeply Lockheed's tentacles have penetrated American economic and political life, pulling the curtain back on decades of unsavory dealings: Lockheed's decision to sell airplanes to Japan in the late 1930s (they were later converted to military use); reports of widespread bribery of foreign executives and politicians; and vengeful retribution against Pentagon whistleblowers. More…….

From Booklist
Hartung, a frequent commentator on the relationship between government and military contractors, takes readers through the history of Lockheed Martin, a company that began humbly in 1916 and has become a “mega-firm” whose ties to the U.S. government are, at least as presented here, at best ominous and at worst downright frightening. The author, who directs the New America Foundation’s Arms and Security Initiative, sounds like he has a whole arsenal of axes to grind. In his view, the story of Lockheed Martin is a story of shady foreign deals, influence peddling, massive cost overruns, price irregularities, conspiracy, bribery, and shoddy workmanship. More….

Product Description
Enthralling and explosive, Prophets of War is an exposé of America’s largest military contractor, Lockheed Martin. When President Dwight D. Eisenhower gave his famous warning about the dangers of the military industrial complex, he never would have dreamed that a company could accumulate the kind of power and influence now wielded by this behemoth company.

As a full-service weapons maker, Lockheed Martin receives over $25 billion per year in Pentagon contracts. From aircraft and munitions, to the abysmal Star Wars missile defense program, to the spy satellites that the NSA has used to monitor Americans’ phone calls without their knowledge, Lockheed Martin’s reaches into all areas of US defense and American life. More…..

About the Author
William Hartung is the director of the Arms and Security Initiative at the New America Foundation and has written for the New York Times, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times. He lives in New York City.

==================

14. Turkey hosts Iran nuclear talks

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/
20111218501267212.html

Little hope of breakthrough as six world powers and Iran meet in Istanbul to discuss Tehran's nuclear programme.
Last Modified: 21 Jan 2011 09:53 GMT
Iran and six world powers have begun talks in Turkey on Tehran's controversial nuclear programme, but diplomats say hopes of a breakthrough are slim.
"No one is expecting any big breakthrough, but Iran needs to show that it is interested in engaging in a wider process," said one diplomat as the opening session began on Friday.
"There are fundamental issues Iran needs to address and those are pretty clear, but no one's expecting any great shift."
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the US - plus Germany (collectively known as the P5+1 group) have said they believe Iran's uranium enrichment process is a cover for developing nuclear weapons.
Iran has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying it is developing the technology to meet its civilian energy needs.
Catherine Ashton, the EU policy chief, is representing the P5+1 in Istanbul while Saeed Jalili, Iran's top nuclear negotiator, is heading his country's delegation.
The delegations are meeting behind closed doors for the two-day meeting at Ciragan, an Ottoman palace on the banks of the Bopshorus.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/
20111218501267212.html

=================

15. Israel tested Stuxnet on Iran, with US help'

http://www.hindustantimes.com/
Israel-tested-Stuxnet-on-Iran-with-US-help/Article1-650988.aspx

Washington, January 16, 2011
US and Israeli intelligence services collaborated to develop a destructive computer worm to sabotage Iran's efforts to make a nuclear bomb, The New York Times reported on Saturday. In its online edition, the Times quoted intelligence and military experts as saying Israel has tested the effectiveness of the Stuxnet computer worm, which apparently shut down a fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges in November and helped delay its ability to make its first nuclear weapons.
The testing took place at the heavily guarded Dimona complex in the Negev desert housing the Middle East's sole, albeit undeclared nuclear weapons program. Experts and officials told the Times the effort to create Stuxnet was a US-Israeli project with the help, knowingly or not, of Britain and Germany.
"To check out the worm, you have to know the machines," a US expert told the newspaper.
"The reason the worm has been effective is that the Israelis tried it out."
There has been widespread speculation Israel was behind the Stuxnet worm that has attacked computers in Iran, and Tehran has blamed the Jewish state and the United States for the killing of two nuclear scientists in November and January.
The Times report came as Iran earlier said its controversial uranium enrichment program was progressing "very strongly," just days ahead of a high-profile meeting between Tehran and six world powers over the Islamic republic's nuclear program.
Both the United States and Israel have recently announced they believe the program has been set back by several years. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pointed to a series of sanctions imposed since June 2009 by the UN Security Council and individual countries.

MORE:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/
Israel-tested-Stuxnet-on-Iran-with-US-help/Article1-650988.aspx

===================

16. The Curse of the Sands

http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes ... l/2010/03/
201033143946840949.html

After more than 65 years, mines keep maiming and killing in the deserts of northern Egypt.
Special programme Last Modified: 19 Jan 2011 09:10 GMT
In an area 100 kilometer west of Alexandria in northern Egypt lies the famous region of el-Alamein – scene of a mighty battle between the UK and its allies fighting German and Italian forces for control of North Africa in 1942.
The battle marked a turning point in the war: Montgomery's Desert Rats and his allies broke through German lines, pushing Rommel's forces back to Tunisia, taking control of the Suez canal, and gaining access to the Middle Eastern oil fields.
With no natural barriers in the desert, Rommel ordered half a million mines to be laid around the coastal town, while the British reportedly put down even more.
- - - - SNIP - - - -
"The war ended, prisoners were taken, others were dead and the mines were left. Mines were buried in the ground.
"They left us with nothing but mines. In the trenches you can find thousands of mines. If you touch them, they'll explode. We came back and knew nothing. There were mines everywhere," Abd el-Rassoul Awad, the guard of el-Alamein's Italian cementary, says.
Egypt ranks alongside such troublespots as Bosnia, Afghanistan and Angola for unexploded ordnance, and nowhere is the problem more acute than in el-Alamein itself

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes ... l/2010/03/
201033143946840949.html

====================

17. The Iraq War Inquiry – Anger as Tony Blair admits regrets over Iraq

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/
anger-as-tony-blair-admits-regrets-over-iraq-2190548.html

January 21m 2011
Tony Blair was barracked today as he expressed regret for the loss of life in the Iraq War.
The former prime minister told the official inquiry into the conflict that he regretted "deeply and profoundly" the deaths of British troops and Iraqi civilians.

Related articles (Links are on website above)
Patrick Cockburn: The real scandal is Blair's ignorance
The case against Blair: 15 charges that have yet to be answered
Damaged but undaunted, ex-PM returns for one more grilling on Iraq
Blair faces Chilcot as Iraq bombs kill 130
= = = = =
Lord Goldsmith: Blair did not reflect legal advice on Iraq war
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/
goldsmith-blair-did-not-reflect-legal-advice-on-iraq-war-2187031.html

Ex-attorney general's revelation breathes new life into inquiry
By Michael Savage January 18, 2011
Tony Blair was placed under further pressure ahead of his second appearance before the Iraq Inquiry after his most senior legal adviser said last night that the former prime minister's public statements about the invasion contradicted the legal advice he had been given.
In a written statement to the Chilcot inquiry, Lord Goldsmith, the former attorney general, suggested Mr Blair's statements to Parliament about the legality of the invasion were not compatible with the advice handed to the prime minister. He said Mr Blair's statements made him "uncomfortable". He described how he was cut out of discussions over the drafting of the UN resolution used as cover for the invasion of March 2003. He said if he had been consulted, he would have seriously altered the wording of the resolution.
The revelations will intensify criticisms of Mr Blair, who will give further evidence on Friday. He will be asked about why he made definitive statements disputed by Lord Goldsmith.

MORE:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/
goldsmith-blair-did-not-reflect-legal-advice-on-iraq-war-2187031.html

===================

18. Preparing for War with Russia? Washington To Rearm Georgia For New Conflicts

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22805

By Rick Rozoff Global Research, January 15, 2011 Stop NATO
Recent reports in the Russian news media have detailed plans by the U.S. to provide the Mikheil Saakashvili government in Georgia with tens of millions of dollars worth of anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons.
The Russian government's Itar-Tass news agency and Voice of Russia have confirmed the arms package with officials from the Russian special services and the Joint Staff of the armed forces.
An official from the second source responded to the proposed arms sale by stating: "We deeply regret that the reset of US-Russian relations declared by the administration of Barack Obama does not change anything in Washington's military support for the Georgian leadership, which began the war in the Caucasus in August 2008 and which is continuing to mastermind aggressive plans against the independent states of Abkhazia and South Ossetia." [1]
The Georgian-South Ossetian-Russian war of 2008 was preceded by Georgian artillery barrages against the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali on August 1 which killed six people including a Russian peacekeeper stationed there.
That attack occurred within hours of 1,000 U.S. Marines, airborne forces and other troops completing the two-week Immediate Response 2008 North Atlantic Treaty Organization Partnership for Peace exercise in Georgia.

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22805

================

19. The Logic of Imperial Insanity and the Road to World War III

www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22781

By Andrew Gavin Marshall Global Research, January 14, 2011
Defining the Imperial Stratagem
In the late 1990s Brzezinski wrote up the design for America’s imperial project in the 21st century in his book, “The Grand Chessboard.” He stated bluntly that, “it is imperative that no Eurasian challenger emerges, capable of dominating Eurasia and thus of also challenging America,” and then made clear the imperial nature of his strategy:
To put it in a terminology that harkens back to the more brutal age of ancient empires, the three grand imperatives of imperial geostrategy are to prevent collusion and maintain security dependence among the vassals, to keep tributaries pliant and protected, and to keep the barbarians from coming together.[1]
He further explained that the Central Asian nations (or “Eurasian Balkans” as he refers to them): are of importance from the standpoint of security and historical ambitions to at least three of their most immediate and more powerful neighbors, namely Russia, Turkey and Iran, with China also signaling an increasing political interest in the region. But the Eurasian Balkans are infinitely more important as a potential economic prize: an enormous concentration of natural gas and oil reserves is located in the region, in addition to important minerals, including gold.[2]
Brzezinski emphasizes “that America's primary interest is to help ensure that no single power comes to control this geopolitical space and that the global community has unhindered financial and economic access to it.”[3]

MORE:
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22781

==================

20. The CEO and the New Feudalism

http://murraydobbin.ca/

Posted on January 17, 2011 by murraydobbin
Few developments in our era of savage capitalism are so powerfully symbolic of the new feudalism than the obscene compensation paid out to the new economic elite: the CEOs of the most powerful corporations in the country. The CCPA’s Hugh MacKenzie now reminds us yearly of this economic and social sickness by identifying exactly when the average CEO (of the 100 largest firms) has earned as much as the average worker makes in a year (this time around it was by 2:30 p.m. on January 3rd.) The average total compensation for Canada’s 100 highest paid CEOs was $6,643,895 in 2009.
The social and political implications of this grotesque over-compensation are more important than the actual dollars. Socially, in terms of class, it represents the ruling elite’s deliberate and conscious declaration that they will take as much money as they want out of the system simply because they can. It is the most powerful way that the elite can make clear that they have nothing in common with the rest of us. Their excess compensation has little to do with their value to a firm, their contribution or their ability.
Yet, says MacKenzie, the disparity between CEO compensation and the average worker’s pay continues to grow: “In 1995, the average pay of Canada’s highest paid 50 CEOs was $2.66 million, 85 times the pay of the average worker. In 2009, the average pay of the highest paid 50 CEOs had skyrocketed to 219 times the pay of the average worker.” The ratio for the top 100 went from 104 times in 1998 but to 155 times in 2009

MORE:
http://murraydobbin.ca/

=======================

21. WIKILEAKS UPDATE

Swiss Banker Gave WikiLeaks Information Revealing Crimes by World's Most Powerful People, as Attacks on Assange and the Site Continue

http://www.alternet.org/story/149559/
swiss_banker_gave_wikileaks_information_revealing_crimes_by_world%27s_most_powerful_people%2C_as_attacks_on_assange_and_the_site_continue

January 17, 2011
The mountain of damning information acquired by WikiLeaks just keeps growing -- as do attacks on Assange.
The mountain of damning information acquired by WikiLeaks just keeps growing, this time thanks to former Swiss banker Rudolf Elmer, who has reportedly fed the whistle-blower site information that could uncover "massive, unmitigated tax evasion " by powerful individuals and corporations around the globe.
Elmer handed over two optical discs worth of data, said to contain Swiss bank accounts linked to thousands of individuals, including some 40 politicians and "pillars of society" from the U.S., Asia and Europe. Speaking at a press conference outside the Frontline Club, where WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is under house arrest, Elmer called WikiLeaks "my only hope to get society to know what's going on" and said "it is damaging our society in the way that money is moved."
After leaving a Cayman Islands outpost of the Swiss bank Julius Baer in 2004, Elmer alleged that many of the bank's top clients engaged in tax fraud with the full cooperation of Julius Baer leaders, according to Raw Story. Elmer, who went on to found the Swiss Whistleblower website, has fed significant information to WikiLeaks once before, in 2007. He faced a court hearing over that release just last Tuesday.
Assange said he plans to release the information in "a matter of weeks," as soon as it's been verified.

MORE:
http://www.alternet.org/story/149559/
swiss_banker_gave_wikileaks_information_revealing_crimes_by_world%27s_most_powerful_people%2C_as_attacks_on_assange_and_the_site_continue

= = = = = = = =

WikiLeaks caused 'limited damage'

http://blogs.aljazeera.net/americas/2011/01/19/
wikileaks-caused-limited-damage

By Teymoor Nabili in Americas on January 19th, 2011.
The Wikileaks fallout then:
"It puts people's lives in danger, threatens our national security and undermines our efforts to work with other countries to solve shared problems," Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state
And Now:
Internal US government reviews have determined that a mass leak of diplomatic cables caused only limited damage to US interests abroad, despite the Obama administration's public statements to the contrary.
State Department sources are now quoted as saying that Clinton's hyperbolic assessment was an attempt to bolster the case for future legal action against WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange.
Of course, none of this will come as a surprise to anyone who was paying any attention.

MORE:
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/americas/2011/01/19/
wikileaks-caused-limited-damage

= = = = = = =

WikiLeaks cables: Turkey let US use airbase for rendition flights

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/17/
wikileaks-cables-turkey-rendition-flights

Mark Tran guardian.co.uk, Monday 17 January 2011 20.42 GMT
Turkey allowed the US to use its airbase at Incirlik in southern Turkey as part of the "extraordinary rendition" programme to take suspected terrorists to Guantánamo Bay, according to a US diplomatic cable. Turkey's involvement in the controversial programme was revealed in a cable dated 8 June 2006, written by the then US ambassador to Turkey, Ross Wilson. More……

=================

22. NSA breaks ground on Utah 'spy center' data center

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/
011011-nsa-breaks-ground.html

By Tim Greene, Network World January 10, 2011 11:55 AM ET
The National Security Agency is building one of the largest and most expensive data centers as a place to gather and analyze intelligence data.
At $1.2 billion, this is the largest Department of Defense construction project underway. Officals broke ground at the site 25 miles south of Salt Lake City Thursday, and it will give NSA diversity with a separate data center beyond the one it has in Ft. Meade, Md., says NSA Deputy Director J. Chris Inglis. MORE……

= = = = = = =

Utah city may use blimp as anti-crime spy in the sky

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70F1DJ20110116

By James Nelson SALT LAKE CITY, Utah | Sun Jan 16, 2011 10:53am EST
(Reuters) - A proposed unmanned floating airship surveillance system is being hailed by city officials in Ogden, Utah as one way to fight crime in its neighborhoods.
"We believe it will be a deterrent to crime when it is out and about and will help us solve crimes more quickly when they do occur," Ogden City Mayor Matthew Godfrey told Reuters.
The airship entails military technology now available to local law enforcement, he said.
Godfrey floated the idea of a dirigible in the skies above Ogden for his city council members last week. The council is expected to vote on the measure in coming weeks.
He says the cost of the blimp is being negotiated but said it is more "cost effective" to operate than helicopters or fixed winged aircraft.
"We anticipate using it mainly at night. The cameras have incredible night vision to see with tremendous clarity daytime and nighttime. It will be used like a patrol car. It will be used to go and check things out and keep things safe," said Godfrey.
One person will be able to operate the system but Godfrey says it will also function on its own with programing directives.

MORE…….

by **Oscar** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 10:43 am

NUKE NEWS: January 27, 2011

1. Isotopes deal for CLS - Feds, province funding project worth $12M
2. U of S eyes centre for nuclear studies
3. Barlow speaks to 900 in Michigan about the Great Lakes / FILM
4. Decision on Great Lakes shipments delayed indefinitely
5. Used nuclear company is no bargain
6. Why is Hydro-Quebec Silent About the Point Lepreau Fiasco?
7. Radioactive Waste from Horizontal Hydrofracking
8. Environmental group raises alarm over shipment of spilled uranium that was docked off Ladysmith
9. No Nukes News - Jan. 25, 2011
10. Fair Winds and Following Seas
11. Fallujah: City of no children
12. Germans sound nuclear dump alarm
13. Iran talks end without agreement
14. WATCH: Iran's nuclear setback (25 min.)
15. (SK) UPDATE 1-Denison expands exploration at Wheeler River
16. Broken Arrows: Nuclear Weapons Accidents
17. Ernie Regehr awarded Pearson Peace Medal
18. Winslow Wheeler on F-35 purchase
19. Protesters in Halifax speak out against F-35
20. Is Canada-U.S. military integration on agenda for tomorrow’s “inaugural” meeting of N.A. defence ministers?

===================

1. Isotopes deal for CLS - Feds, province funding project worth $12M

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/health/Isotopes+deal/
4161937/story.html

BY JEREMY WARREN, THE STAR PHOENIX JANUARY 25, 2011 8:17 AM
A $12-million pilot project in Saskatoon will produce medical isotopes at the Canadian Light Source (CLS) by using linear accelerator technology instead of a more expensive and less reliable nuclear reactor.
The project is one of four in Canada that aim to prove high-energy particle accelerators, which do not require the uranium used in current isotope production at nuclear reactors, can mass-produce medical isotopes.
Federal and provincial officials made the funding announcement Monday at the CLS on the University of Saskatchewan campus. Natural Resources Canada approved the project in October, but the funding details - $10 million from Ottawa, $2 million from the province - had not been revealed until this week.
The CLS, home of Canada's synchrotron research centre, will use the $12 million to purchase and operate a linear accelerator to produce and study the isotopes, which are used for diagnosis and treatment in nuclear medicine.
National Research Council of Canada research proved linear accelerators can make medical isotopes, but mass production of isotopes hasn't been tested. The CLS prototype hopes to prove production works on a mass scale.
"Our project aims to demonstrate that a reliable supply of the medical isotope technetium-99m can be produced safely, reliably, affordably and in sufficient quantities to meet the needs of Canadians," said CLS director of accelerators Mark de Jong.

MORE:
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/health/Isotopes+deal/
4161937/story.html

================

2. U of S eyes centre for nuclear studies

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/health/
eyes+centre+nuclear+studies/4161713/story.html

BY JAMES WOOD, THE STAR PHOENIX WITH STAR PHOENIX FILES BY JEREMY WARREN.JANUARY 25, 2011
The University of Saskatchewan's long-planned Institute for Nuclear Studies appears to be on the verge of launching.
"We're getting closer, I think, to something that makes sense. And hopefully we will have something that will move forward in the next couple of months," Richard Florizone, the university vice-president who also chaired the Saskatchewan Party government's Uranium Development Partnership, said in an interview Monday.
The university has envisioned for a number of years a "centre of nuclear excellence" that would combine multiple academic disciplines looking at various aspects of nuclear research.
It has also been long touted by Premier Brad Wall, whose government has made "adding value" to Saskatchewan's world-leading reserves of uranium a major priority.
Wall made mention of the project again last week as he served notice that the government intended to push hard this year on a nuclear agenda encompassing medicine, research and power.
Florizone said he welcomed Wall's comments.
Whether the research centre will go ahead and what shape it would take if it does will depend on the commitment of the provincial government, he said.
"It's ultimately up to government. There's certainly an academic interest in these areas. Some of the work, many elements are already underway inside the U of S. The question is, how much more of an investment will the province make? How much further will the U of S go in this? And that will really be up to government and the funding decision," said Florizone.

MORE:
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/health/
eyes+centre+nuclear+studies/4161713/story.html

================

3. Barlow speaks to 900 in Michigan about the Great Lakes / FILM

http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=6062

January 22, 2011
On January 20, Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow spoke about the Great Lakes as a commons at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. The speech, part of the Penny Stamps Lecture Series hosted by the University of Michigan School of Art and Design, was attended by more than 900 people.
The Council of Canadians has begun to campaign to defend the Great Lakes from the many threats that it faces. This work will include a new report and multi-city speaking tour by Maude. And as she has highlighted, “An exciting new network of Canadian, American and First Nations communities around the Great Lakes is determined to have these lakes names a Commons, a public trust and a protected bioregion.”
To help promote the Ann Arbor speaking event, Sam Bozzo’s film Blue Gold: World Water Wars was screened at the university on January 18.

For more on the Great Lakes as a commons and public trust, as well as on the threats it faces, please go to

http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=5266.

The web-page promoting Maude’s January 20 speaking event is at

http://art-design.umich.edu/stamps/detail/maude_barlow.

= = = = = = =

FIL:M: Water on the Table: A film about our most wasted resource

http://www.rabble.ca/news/2011/01/
water-table-film-about-our-most-wasted-resource

BY MELANIE REDMAN | JANUARY 20, 2011
Will the global community define water as a human right, available to all, or as a commodity to be bought, sold, traded, and ultimately out of reach from the poorest people on this earth? Liz Marshall's documentary, Water on the Table, explores this question through a portrait of Maude Barlow and her tireless efforts to define water as a human right. Maude's work as the national chairperson for the Council of Canadians, and her earlier efforts as a leading dissident concerning the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), has placed her in the global hot seat when it comes to water. With a grace most of us will never attain, Maude has leveraged this position to make the question of water front-and-center on the agenda of the United Nations, where efforts continue to implement a global water covenant or treaty, much like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, guaranteeing water as a human right, as well as solidifying governments' obligations to provide access.

Info on future screenings:

http://www.wateronthetable.com/screenings/

================

4. Decision on Great Lakes shipments delayed indefinitely

http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=6036

Thursday, January 20th, 2011
CottageCountryNow.ca reports that, “A federal decision to permit the shipment of 16 radioactive steam generators across the Great Lakes has been delayed indefinitely. For reasons unexplained, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) said on Monday (January 17) that it needs more time to deliberate the proposed shipment.”
“On November 22, the commission set a deadline of 30-business days before it was obligated to reach a decision. (But now), ‘While the CNSC strives to render hearing decisions within 30-business days, in some instances more time is needed for deliberations,’ the CNSC said in a statement.”
The Sarnia Observer adds that, “Aurele Gervais, spokesperson for the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, said the commissioners have gone beyond the normal 30 business day deadline for a response. ‘I don’t know what (they) are discussing. I only know that the commission members are still in deliberations. (Thirty days) is an internal guideline that we try to follow but the commission members can take the time they feel is necessary to deliberate,’ Gervais said. ‘Sometimes we fall within that 30 business days, sometimes we don’t.’”
Bruce Power applied to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission in April 2010 to proceed with these shipments of radioactive waste on the Great Lakes. Then in July, due to public concern, the CNSC announced that one-day of hearings would take place in September. Reports from that time said that the CNSC would make its decision by November 11. Then it was announced that the decision would be delayed until December 22. Then there were media reports that the decision would be made by late-December or early January. Now no time frame is being given for a decision.
CountryCountryNow.ca notes, “Dr. Gordon Edwards of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility believes the CNSC is delaying their decision for several reasons, but mainly because the transfer has become so controversial. ‘I think they do see it as a public relations problem more than anything else,’ he said. ‘It’s also conceivable that, they think, if they just wait long enough everybody will lose interest.’”
The Sarnia Observer also highlights, “Gervais (from the CNSC) said the delay has nothing to do with a uranium shipment that was diverted from its destination in China after rough seas damaged the containers used to haul the material. ‘I wouldn’t want to link the two files,’ he said. ‘They are two very separate files. In all matters, the commission members examine all information available to them and carry out their due diligence on each specific file.’”

More on that early-January incident in this National Post article at:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/01/17/
storm-knocks-open-ships-uranium-drums-forcing-emergency-return-to-b-c/

The Council of Canadians has been speaking out against the proposed nuclear shipments since August when we first issued an ACTION ALERT against the Bruce Power plan. In September national water campaigner Emma Lui made our case against the shipments in a deputation to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission:
http://www.canadians.org/campaignblog/?p=4770.

The CottageCountryNow article is at
http://www.cottagecountrynow.ca/news/article/
931346–feds-delay-plans-to-ship-toxic-waste

The Sarnia Observer article is at
http://www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2939140

===================

5. Used nuclear company is no bargain

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editoria ... n/article/
927373--used-nuclear-company-is-no-bargain

Jack Gibbons, Toronto Star, Monday January 24 2011
Hey buddy, want to buy a used nuclear company?
Sure, there’s a huge pile of debt under the hood and nobody will buy its products without massive taxpayer handouts, but there might be a few miles left in fixing crumbling reactors in Ontario and if it could ever get that New Brunswick job finished that would be one less anchor tied to the back bumper.
SNC Lavalin, the engineering and construction giant, and Bruce Power have both kicked the tires and decided to pass on the idea of buying Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL). But that hasn’t stopped Ontario Energy Minister Brad Duguid from asking taxpayers all across Canada to pony up for AECL so Ontario can build more high-cost nuclear generating stations.
If I were a taxpayer in B.C. or Newfoundland, I would not be racing to get a cheque in the mail to Ontario. But if I were a taxpayer in Quebec or Manitoba, I probably would drop Ontario a line, pointing out that my province has lots of low-cost hydro power it would be happy to sell my neighbour at less than a third of the price of new nuclear.
I’d point out that Quebec, for example, just inked a 26-year deal with Vermont to supply power starting in 2012 at a cost of under 6 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Compare that to the 21 cents per kWh we know is the minimum cost for new nuclear power in Ontario (because that is what AECL’s most recent bid works out to).
Transmission capacity? We’ve got it — Ontario and Quebec have recently expanded the connections between our provinces, although Ontario energy planners just don’t seem to want to use it. Supply? Quebec has it now, and by increasing the province’s rock bottom
energy efficiency, can free up millions of kilowatts more.
But, in reality, I am a taxpayer in Ontario, so I am going to point out to Minister Duguid that he can help all of us use electricity more efficiently and help reduce our electricity bills at a cost that is even cheaper than importing water power. We know from Ontario Power Authority spending figures that we can reduce electricity usage at a cost of under 4 cents per kWh. So we can build a “virtual” nuclear power plant by eliminating wasteful energy use at less than one-fifth the cost of a real one.

MORE:
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editoria ... n/article/
927373--used-nuclear-company-is-no-bargain

=================

6. Why is Hydro-Quebec Silent About the Point Lepreau Fiasco?

Media Release For Immediate Release January 26 2011
New Brunswick citizens are staging a protest at noon today in Fredericton, outside the headquarters of NB Power, protesting the incompetence of those carrying out the reconstruction of the Point Lepreau nuclear reactor. On this occasion, the MSQN (Mouvement sortons le Québec du nucléaire) is asking Hydro-Quebec why they are not informing Quebeckers about the massive delays, cost overruns, and technical blunders associated with this reconstruction project. Because the Point Lepreau reactor is the twin of the Gentilly-2 reactor at Bécancour, which Hydro-Quebec wants to rebuild using the same techniques as those being used in New Brunswick, Hydro-Quebec has stationed observers at Point Lepreau to monitor the entire operation. Yet there have been no reports given to the Quebec population of the unrealistic assumptions that have been made and the errors that have been committed.
Like the proposed Gentilly-2 project, the rebuilding of the Point Lepreau reactor was supposed to take only 18 months to complete. It is already taken three years. The cost of delay is about a million dollars a day, according to the NB government.
Like the Gentilly-2 project, the Point Lepreau rebuild was supposed to cost less than two billion dollars. But it is already at least one billion dollars over budget.
As in the case of Gentilly-2, all of the 380 metallic calandria tubes in the core of the Point Lepreau reactor have to be replaced with new ones, while the old ones are stored as radioactive waste for centuries. But after installing all of the new tubes over a course of 9 weeks, it was decided to remove them all again and start all over because the installation was not leak-tight.
But the unacceptable nature of the calandria tube installation was apparent from the very beginning, when only a fraction of the tubes had been installed. Why did Hydro-Quebec not report this fact to the Quebec population? Why didn’t Hydro-Quebec notify NB authorities that an unacceptable installation was continuing?
The MSQN believes that the rebuilding of the Gentilly-2 reactor is a huge mistake and should not be undertaken. It will be far more costly than anticipated, and will create entirely new categories of radioactive waste that will have to remain in Quebec for permanent storage because the federal government takes no responsibility for such wastes. It will also add about 100 tonnes of high-level waste to the existing stockpile for every year of continued operation. And it will require the services of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., a federal crown corporation that the government is trying to sell due to its incompetence. At the very least, Hydro-Quebec should be required to report honestly to the Quebec population all of the difficulties and costly errors which are being experienced at Point Lepreau, since this unhappy history may prove directly relevant to the Gentilly-2 project.

For more information

Michel Duguay, Mouvement sortons le Québec du nucléaire, (418) 656 3557 or 802 2740
Gordon Edwards, Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility, (514) 489 2665 or 839 7214
Raphael Shay, Conservation Council of New Brunswick, (506) 458 8747

= = = = = =

Pointless Lepreau Reappears in New Brunswick

http://nuclearfreenb.org/

For immediate release Fredericton, New Brunswick January 19, 2011
White Elephant Symbolizes What the Province Doesn't Want to Talk About
The Point Lepreau nuclear generating station provides the quintessential definition of a white elephant.
The aging nuclear plant opened its doors three times over budget in 1983. The Energy and Utilities Board refused to support spending on refurbishing it beyond its expected lifetime, but politicians went ahead anyway. Today, costs for the touch-and-go overhaul are already over $1.4 billion. The latest guess at a completion date is May 2012, a delay of almost three years. Damage to public and worker health and the environment have yet to be calculated and the final costs for taxpayers may not end for generations.
An alliance of public interest groups in New Brunswick, known as the Point Lepreau Decommissioning Caucus, is spreading a simple, but powerful message: Point Lepreau is a white elephant, we don't need it. Pointless Lepreau is old, sickly and on its last legs: Do Not Resuscitate.
To underline the foolishness of refurbishing Lepreau, the groups are holding surprise events featuring their newest member, an actual white elephant costume aptly named Pointless Lepreau.
This Elephant in the NB Legislature is so big the new Energy Commission isn't even allowed to talk about it, forcing politicians to setup a separate panel for it alone. Pointless Lepreau is so big that New Brunswick courtrooms can't hold it, so the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has to hold hearings about it in Ottawa, where New Brunswickers can't hear just how bad it is.
The Pointless Lepreau white elephant symbolizes how no one wants to talk about it.
You can expect to be seeing it around the province, reminding us all that we do not need what it stands for. -30-

For more information contact members of the Point Lepreau Decommissioning Caucus:

Willi Nolan 506-785-4660 willi@iicph.org
Matt Abbott 506-529-8838 marine@conservationcouncil.ca
Raphael Shay 506-458-8747 energy@conservationcouncil.ca
Beth McLaughlin 506-854-6399 occur@nbnet.nb.ca

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7. Radioactive Waste from Horizontal Hydrofracking

http://www.sustainableotsego.org/
index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&id=1:general&Itemid=77#

By James L. “Chip” Northrup
http://www.otsego2000.org/
In a previous paper,1 I compared the horizontal hydrofracking of shale to a “pipe bomb.” Real bombs have been used to frack shale, including at least one nuclear device at Rulison, Colorado.2 The bomb worked, but the gas was too radioactive to be marketable. Ironically, the horizontal hydrofracking of Marcellus shale poses a similar problem – it produces radioactive waste.
The frack fluid effectively leaches radioactive radium out of the shale. When the frack water is pumped back out of the well, it is laced with radium, a potent carcinogen.3 Based on a recent article in Scientific American, the amount of radium in water from the Marcellus is 267 times the safe limit for disposal, and thousands of times the level considered safe to drink.4
In New York, municipal treatment plants filter or settle sediment out of water. Using this method to treat ‘produced’ water from fracking operations would effectively reduce the sediment in the wastewater to a radioactive sludge, which, depending on the level of contamination, would have to be disposed of as a HAZMAT waste. New York state municipal treatment plants are simply not equipped to do this. Handling the radioactive wastewater would put municipal water treatment workers at risk.

MORE:
http://www.sustainableotsego.org/
index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&id=1:general&Itemid=77#
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Resources:

1 “Potential Leaks from High Pressure Hydrofracking of Shale,” September 8, 2010.
http://63.134.196.109/documents/Northru ... -12-10.pdf

2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rulison

3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium

4 http://www.scientificamerican.com/
article.cfm?id=marcellus-shale-natural-gas-drilling-radioactive-wastewater

5 http://63.134.196.109/documents/
HydroQuestEPAComments9-11-10withfigures.pdf

6 http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/29856.html

7 http://www.epa.gov/radon/pubs/citguide.html

8 http://ny-radon.info/NY_general.html

9 http://www.pipelineandgastechnology.com/
Headlines/2010/09/item67443.php

10 http://www.neb.gc.ca/clf-nsi/rsftyndthn ... dvsr/1994/
nbs199401-eng.pdf

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8. Environmental group raises alarm over shipment of spilled uranium that was docked off Ladysmith

http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/
Environmental+group+raises+alarm+over+shipment+spilled+uranium+that+docked+Ladysmith/4160356/story.html

By DUSTIN WALKER, Postmedia News January 24, 2011
NANAIMO — A shipment of partially spilled uranium concentrate that was docked offshore from Ladysmith for a few days raises questions about what kinds of hazardous materials are being shipped through B.C. waters, an environmental organization says.
The Liberian-registered cargo ship Altona was carrying 350 tonnes of uranium from Saskatoon-based Cameco Corp. when heavy seas forced it to return to Canada after several of its containers had shifted.
The ship was docked near Ladysmith but is now picking up fuel and food in Vancouver.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission considers the uranium concentrate, also known as yellowcake, as “mildly radioactive” and said it poses no threat to the ship’s crew, the public or the environment.
But Christianne Wilhelmson, clean air and water program co-ordinator with the Georgia Strait Alliance, says the media buzz around the Altona’s spilled cargo illustrates how little people know about what’s being shipped through our waters.
- - - -SNIP - - -
Edward Dahlgren, harbour master for the authority, said there’s “a tremendous volume” of dangerous goods that are shipped to Nanaimo without incident, ranging from propane and bleach for pulp mills to ammunition for navy vessels.
Dahlgren said the port makes every effort to be transparent but because of the vast amount of cargo that comes through the harbour, disclosing details on every shipment would create logistical problems.
Sharing too much information about the transportation of ammunition or other materials could make them targets for criminals, he said. Also, the port cannot release details of shipments that might hurt the competitiveness of some companies.
“We have to respect corporations’ needs for private business, but they are very heavily regulated,” he said.
Dahlgren said that the spilled uranium concentrate on the Altona was handled in a transparent manner by Cameco and the federal government.
= = = =
Uranium cleanup plan in works

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/
Uranium+cleanup+plan+works/4136054/story.html

BY CASSANDRA KYLE, THE STAR PHOENIX JANUARY 20, 2011
The ship containing Cameco Corp.'s spilled uranium concentrate will likely be moved to the Port of Vancouver for cleanup, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) says. [ . . . ]
= = = = = =
Cameco in Cleanup Mode + Photos

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
Cameco+cleanup+mode/4129879/story.html

By Cassandra Kyle, The Star Phoenix January 19, 2011
A cargo ship containing spilled uranium concentrate is back at a Canadian port while a Cameco Corp. team assesses damage to its product and plans a cleanup program.
The ship Altona docked at Ladysmith, B.C., on Sunday and was met by an 11-member Cameco team, company spokesperson Rob Gereghty said in an interview Tuesday. The Altona left Vancouver on Dec. 23 en route to Zhanjiang, China, carrying 770,000 pounds of uranium concentrate in roughly 840 drums.
After travelling through days of bad weather, the crew of the Hartmann-Reederei-owned ship notified Cameco on Jan. 3, that several of its sea containers had shifted and a number of drums fell out. Cameco asked the Altona to turn around while it was sailing between Hawaii and the Midway Islands and set a route back to Canada.
"Once our assessment team went in, we took a look at the cargo hold and we saw a number of sea containers had been damaged, but we weren't allowed to get beyond the hold," Gereghty said. "There were 24 sea containers and we were only able to see a small number in comparison to the full load."
The view was enough for Cameco to determine several drums were damaged and uranium concentrate spilled inside of the ship. Gereghty said the spill is contained within the cargo hold, so "the crew is fine and they're not concerned, the environment is safe and the public is safe."
Uranium concentrate is considered to be "mildly radioactive," Gereghty said, explaining the radiation a person standing four to five metres from a drum would receive would be the same as everyday background radiation levels.

MORE:
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
Cameco+cleanup+mode/4129879/story.html
= = = = = =
Photo Gallery: Cameco's uranium spill

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/technology/
Photo+Gallery+Cameco+uranium+spill/4134597/story.html

A cargo ship containing spilled uranium concentrate is back at a Canadian port while a Cameco Corp. team assesses damage to its product and plans a cleanup program.After travelling through days of bad weather, the crew of the Hartmann-Reederei-owned ship notified Cameco on Jan. 3, that several of its sea containers had shifted and a number of drums fell out. Cameco asked the Altona to turn around while it was sailing between Hawaii and the Midway Islands and set a route back to Canada.

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9. No Nukes News - Jan. 25, 2011
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Used nuclear company is no bargain
Toronto Star Op Ed piece by Jack Gibbons, Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Hey buddy, want to buy a used nuclear company? Sure, there’s a huge pile of debt under the hood and nobody will buy its products without massive taxpayer handouts, but there might be a few miles left in fixing crumbling reactors in Ontario and if it could ever get that New Brunswick job finished that would be one less anchor tied to the back bumper…
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editoria ... n/article/
927373--used-nuclear-company-is-no-bargain

Don't abandon Canada's stake
Toronto Star Editorial
Is Canada prepared to let our nuclear industry wither away, along with the $6.6 billion and 30,000 jobs it generates directly for the economy?
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/
927397--don-t-abandon-canada-s-stake

ACTION: Please write a letter to the editor of the Toronto Star.
Tell them what you think – should Canadian taxpayers continue to subsidize our AECL boondoogle? lettertoed@thestar.ca
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Stop Darlington!
Ontario is planning to spend $36 billion to build new reactors at the Darlington nuclear station just east of Toronto. This plan drains funding from affordable green energy and creates radioactive waste, emissions and increased risk of accidents. Let’s make Ontario 100% renewable! Investing in a diverse mix of conservation and efficiency combined with wind, solar, and hydro electric generation allows lets us avoid the long-term danger and expense of risky nuclear.

Excellent resources here:
http://stopdarlington.org/

And if you’re on facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stop-Darlington/
154293134613131
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Deadline: Darlington

January 31st Workshop - February 21st* Deadline for Written Submissions
A public hearing has been announced for March 2011 on a proposal to build up to four new nuclear reactors at Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, with a February 21st* deadline for written submissions.
To support participants in preparing their written or oral submissions a preparatory workshop will be held to share information about key issues and strategies for presentation and brief-writing.
WORKSHOP: Toronto - Monday, January 31st, 7 pm
OISE, 7th Floor, Peace Lounge, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto
The workshop will include:
brief presentation of key issues and associated information sources
outline of strategies for presentation and preparation of written submissions presentation of a "model" written submission group discussion and break-out groups as needed to support
A brief overview of the proposal by Ontario Power Generation to build additional reactors at Darlington and an explanation of the hearing rules and timeline will also be available with an opportunity for question and answers on the review process and OPG proposal.
For more information email nukes@onlink.net or telephone 1 877 553 0481.
* The deadline for written submission has been extended from February 14th to February 21st.
Please note that this workshop is being provided by public interest groups working together to support public participation. The workshop is not being provided by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission or Ontario Power Generation.
Background
The Ontario Government plans to build up to four new nuclear reactors at the site of the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station near Oshawa, 60 km east of Toronto, at an estimated cost of $36 billion.

A joint panel appointed over a year ago to conduct an environmental review of the proposal announced on December 14th that the public hearing will begin March 21st, 2011. The panel has declared that anyone wanting to speak at the hearing or provide written comments (or both) was required to register their intention to do so by January 13th.Written submissions must be filed by February 21st, and any visual (such as powerpoint presentations, slideshows, etc.) by March 9th.

If you missed the January 13th deadline to register but would like to participate in this review contact the Hearing Secretariat immediately: 1-866-582-1884 or
darlington.review@ceaa-acee.gc.ca
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FREE Anti-Nuke Postcards!
Stop a $35 Billion Nuclear Handout: No More Blank Cheques for Ontario Power Generation and its Darlington Nuclear Station.
They contain postcards addressed to Premier McGuinty and the Leader of the Opposition Tim Hudak.

Order FREE copies here:
http://www.cleanairalliance.org/files/active/0/
NuclearHandout_v5.pdf

Give them to your friends, neighbours, local coffee shops, etc. Help get the word out that there are lower cost and safer ways to meet all our electricity needs without investing tens of billions of $$ in nuclear energy.
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The Nuclear Blowout over AECL
AECL, a cash drain, is therefore caught between two levels of government that are trying to either get out of the business of supplying more subsidies to a money-losing operation or are trying to get their hands on electricity at lower cost. For Ontario, which is currently paying up to 80¢ a kilowatt hour for green energy, it will be hard to sell new multi-billion-dollar liabilities to citizens. If TransCanada and OMERS don't want the risk, why should ratepayers take on even more?
http://www.financialpost.com/opinion/columnists/
nuclear+blowout+over+AECL/4135802/story.html
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AECL's uncertain future ushers in unrest for Canada’s nuclear industry
SNC-Lavalin sole remaining bidder for Crown-owned atomic energy outfit after Ontario's Bruce Power drops out
http://v1.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/
RTGAM.20110118.escenic_1875177/BNStory/Other/
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Province's energy plan gets nuked
News that both SNC Lavalin and Bruce Power may have dropped out of the bidding for troubled Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) leaves a gaping hole in the province's energy plans.
http://www.thewhig.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2935770
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Battle of the Grids
Clash between renewables, coal and nuclear set to grow – new Greenpeace Internat. report
http://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/press-centre/
press-releases2/battle-of-the-grids-2011-1-18#
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Nuclear power is not “emissions-free”
Nuclear power plants are not “emissions-free”. In 2010, Advertising Standards Canada formally decided that ads making this claim were inaccurate, unsupported, and misleading.
ASC’s decision was based, in part, on documentation proving that CANDU reactors at nuclear plants such as the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station emit many different contaminants: 2-propenoic acid, ammonia, aromatic hydrocarbon resin, benzene, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrazine, morpholine, nitrogen oxides, phosphoric acid, quarterly ammonium compounds, sulphur dioxide, suspended particulate matter, total hydrocarbons, as well as tritium.
http://www.waterkeeper.ca/2011/01/17/
nuclear-power-is-not-emissions-free-correction-request/
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Nuclear shipment decision delayed
http://www.theobserver.ca/
ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2939140
http://www.thetimesherald.com/article/2 ... on-delayed
Both the Sarnia Observer and the Port Huron Times Herald recently published articles regarding the delay on the decision regarding the proposal to transport radioactive steam generators through the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, across the Atlantic to Sweden, where part of the contaminated metal would be mixed with clean metal and sold unlabeled and without consumer consent into the global metal supply.
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Lets kick start 2011 by getting the government to end tax breaks to dirty fuels!
We are only weeks away from the 2011 federal budget and the federal government continues to give billions of dollars in tax breaks to the companies producing oil and gas in Canada. Analysis shows a total of $1.4 billion per year in federal tax breaks alone, with a disproportionate share going to dirty fuels such as the Alberta Tar Sands.
Lets find out where every MP in the country stands on this issue and make sure we are putting pressure on in the right places.
The first step is easy – Call, e-mail, or meet with your MP and find out one simple thing: do they support ending the giveaway of over a billion dollars a year to oil companies?
The second step is even easier – let us know where your MP stands by sending us an email, and let others know how it went on our Facebook page. From here we can build a map and figure out where we need the most pressure.

For more information on the federal government’s tax breaks to dirty fuels:

1. Climate Action Network Canada’s report: Fuelling the Problem, why it is time to end tax breaks to oil and gas companies in Canada
2. An open letter to PM Harper and Minister Flaherty calling for an end to tax breaks to dirty fuels
Please pass this on to your lists and friends!
Here are a few helpful lines:
End subsidies for dirty fuels!
Canadian companies in the business of extracting oil made billions of dollars in profit last year. So why does our government annually give the fossil fuel industry $1 billion?
If lawmakers in Ottawa are looking for ways to reduce spending, it seems that subsidies to the oil, coal and gas industries are the best place to start.
Scientists are warning that we face disastrous consequences unless we reduce greenhouse gas emissions that come from burning fossil fuels. By subsidizing the fossil fuel industry, the Canadian government is delaying the conversion to clean energy that’s needed to stabilize the Earth’s climate.
Canadian taxpayers should not be giving money to highly profitable corporations. When the federal government passes a new budget in March, these subsidies for dirty fuels must come to an end. By doing so, Canada will meet its 2009 commitment made in Pittsburgh, along with other G20 leaders, to phase out subsidies and tax breaks to companies producing oil, gas and coal.
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Geothermal energy: All the benefits of nuclear - but none of the problems
It runs 24 hours a day, so perfect for baseload. The water circulates in a closed-loop, so it's clean and sustainable. It is virtually zero carbon and the plants have a small surface footprint, so it's pretty nimby-proof.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/
damian-carrington-blog/2011/jan/18/geothermal-energy-nuclear
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Powering the Future in a Finite World
With David Hughes
Thursday, February 3, 7:00 PM
Toronto City Hall, Cttee. Rm. 2
David Hughes is a geoscientist who has studied the energy resources of Canada for nearly four decades, including 32 years with the Geological Survey of Canada as a scientist and research manager. He developed the National Coal Inventory to determine the availability and environmental constraints associated with Canada’s coal resources. As Team Leader for Unconventional Gas on the Canadian Gas Potential Committee, he coordinated the recent publication of a comprehensive assessment of Canada’s unconventional natural gas potential. Over the past decade, he has researched, published and lectured widely on global energy and sustainability issues in North America and internationally. He is a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute and his work has been featured in the popular press (Canadian Business, Walrus etc.) and other public media. He is currently president of Global Sustainability Research Inc, a consultancy dedicated to research on energy and sustainability issues.
RSVP to this Meetup:
http://www.meetup.com/PostCarbonTorontoMeetup/
calendar/15976138/
To visit Post Carbon Toronto MeetUp, go here:
http://www.meetup.com/PostCarbonTorontoMeetup/
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Angela Bischoff
Outreach Director
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Tel: 416 926 1907 x 246
625 Church Street, #402
Toronto, ON M4Y 2G1
angela@cleanairalliance.org
www.ontariosgreenfuture.ca
www.cleanairalliance.org
Our Facebook Group
Sign Our Petition
No Nukes News
Health Power
Coal Must Go

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10. Fair Winds and Following Seas

http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/Blog/
fair-winds-and-following-seas/blog/32684

Blogpost by Steve Erwood - January 25, 2011
We were saddened to hear of the passing of Dave Birmingham, at his home in Keremeos, British Columbia, on 17 January. Dave was the engineer on board the Phyllis Cormack, the boat chartered by the Don’t Make a Wave Committee in 1971 to travel to Amchitka and protest the US nuclear missile testing there. As the Phyllis Cormack sailed towards the Aleutian Islands it also sailed into history, with this determined group of protestors becoming the founders of Greenpeace.
Barbara Stowe, daughter of the late Greenpeace founders Irving and Dorothy Stowe, met Dave a few years ago, at the wake held for another Phyllis Cormack crewmember, Lyle Thurston. I asked her about her memories of him:

MORE:
http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/
Blog/fair-winds-and-following-seas/blog/32684

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11. Fallujah: City of no children

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=73961&s2=17

The horror of the effects of depleted uranium deserve to be heard in Scotland, argues Bill Wilson
Scottish Left Review, January 16, 2011
It was recently reported that doctors had advised women in Fallujah not to give birth. There are many medical reasons for infertility which might shatter the dreams of a young woman. It is not difficult to imagine how heartbreaking it must be for a woman who is advised that she can never bear children. But for the young women of an entire city – tens of thousands of them – to be advised not to give birth, how can one imagine such collective pain? But perhaps it does not matter – one life is a tragedy, a million a statistic? Certainly this episode attracted limited press attention. Media Lens highlighted an interesting contrast with the attention directed at the lady who chucked a cat into a bin – one cat confined for a few hours was a tragedy.
This year the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health published a study, "Cancer, Infant Mortality and Birth Sex-Ratio in Fallujah, Iraq 2005–2009" by Chris Busby, Malak Hamdan and Entesar Ariabi. The report concludes "results confirm the reported increases in cancer and infant mortality which are alarmingly high. The remarkable reduction in the sex ratio in the cohort born one year after the fighting in [Falluja] 2004 identifies that year as the time of the environmental contamination." It was this increase in the incidence of child cancer and deformities which resulted in women being advised not to give birth. Fallujah is not the only city witnessing skyrocketing rates of child cancer. "The rapidly soaring child cancer rate in the southern Iraqi province of Basra has prompted the officials in the country to open the country’s first specialist cancer hospital for children in the province’s capital. […] Since 1993, Basra province has witnessed a sharp rise in the incidence of childhood cancer. 'Leukemia (a type of blood cancer) among children under 15 has increased by about four times,’ said Dr. Janan Hasan of the hospital inaugurated on Thursday in the southern port city of Basra."
In response to such reports, I lodged a motion in the Scottish Parliament highlighting the issue. This was of limited interest to my fellow parliamentarians (fewer than 20 supported it), and of no interest to the Scottish media, but it did attract the attention of a number of dedicated individuals campaigning on the issues raised by the Iraq war, including the issue very relevant to the increase in childhood cancers and birth deformities: depleted uranium (DU). I have subsequently come to appreciate their bravery and determination in the face of what would seem to be attack, denial and disinformation by a ruthless, dishonest and uncaring establishment. The Non-Aligned Movement in the UN believes at least 400,000 kg of DU shells have been fired. Precisely how many and even where is uncertain. Whether we will ever know is also uncertain. The United Nations First Committee recently voted, by an overwhelming margin, for state users of depleted uranium weapons to release data on where the weapons have been used to governments of the states affected by their use. However, four nations opposed the motion: the UK, the USA, Israel and France. Three of these nations have used DU weapons; France produces them. The resolution then went forward to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for a second vote. The result was identical. However, as such votes are non-binding, it is likely that the four nations opposed to the resolution will simply ignore it.

MORE:
http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=73961&s2=17

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12. Germans sound nuclear dump alarm

http://english.aljazeera.net/video/europe/2011/01/
201112062521686852.html

Cancer statistics cited to oppose soon-to-be waste-storage site in the country's north.
Last Modified: 20 Jan 2011 06:52 GMT
Thousands of angry protesters delayed a shipment of nuclear waste arriving at a dumping site in Germany last November. Authorities are considering using the site for long-term nuclear waste storage, but anti-nuclear campaigners say alarming cancer statistics at a site in the same region should serve as a warning. Al Jazeera's Nadim Baba reports.

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13. Iran talks end without agreement

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/
20111223415978248.html

Last Modified: 22 Jan 2011 14:03
The Iranian delegation feels they are taking the high road in offering to co-operate with these world powers, Ronaghi said, but they will not be seen to compromise.
"[Iran is] suggesting that if anyone wants these talks to work, these world powers should compromise. They should backtrack from what they have approved in the UN Security Council before," our correspondent said.
"Iran is asking the world to put aside their concerns and their worries about Iran's nuclear programme."
But the probability of that happening was "very, very unlikely".

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/01/
20111223415978248.html

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14. WATCH: Iran's nuclear setback (25 min.)

http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/insidestory/
2011/01/201112273221522177.html

We investigate the computer virus thought to have set Iran's nuclear programme back by years.
Inside Story Last Modified: 22 Jan 2011 08:18 GMT
Iran's nuclear programme is under the spotlight again this week; diplomats from the five permanent members of the UN security council plus Germany are in Istanbul for talks with Saeed Jalili, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator.
Iran is under pressure to prove that its nuclear activities are peaceful. The US has warned of more sanctions if the government does not cooperate.
But behind the scenes, US and Israeli officials are surprisingly upbeat about the issue. That is because it is widely believed that Iran's nuclear programme has been put back by several years after a computer virus damaged a number of its centrifuges.
But who is behind the Stuxnet worm?
Inside Story, with presenter Shiulie Gosh, discusses with guests: Scott Steinberg, the CEO and head of technology for consulting firm Tech Savvy; Fred Cohen, the CEO of Fred Cohen and Associates, a company specialising in enterprise information protection; and Kamran Bokhari, the Middle East and Asia regional director for global intelligence company STRATFOR.

MORE:
http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/insidestory/
2011/01/201112273221522177.html

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15. (SK) UPDATE 1-Denison expands exploration at Wheeler River

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN205274520110120

Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:26am EST
* Plans to extensive drilling at Wheeler River in 2011
* Wheeler jv to make production decision by 2013
* Shares in Denison up over 50 percent in last 90 days
TORONTO, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Denison Mines (DML.TO) said on Thursday that it had begun an exploration program at its Wheeler River property in the Athabasca Basin as it gears up to make a production decision on the uranium project by 2013.
The Toronto-based uranium producer said it would drill 15,000 meters over the winter and then 20,000 meters in the summer, as it looks to expand the resource at Wheeler River.
Denison has tested 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles) of the possible 18 kilometer deposit, which is located in the uranium-rich Athabasca basin in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan.
The Wheeler River project is a joint venture of Denison, top Canadian uranium producer Cameco (CCO.TO) and JCU Exploration. Denison holds a 60 percent stake in the project.
The joint venture will spend C$10 million ($10 million) on exploration in 2011. Denison said it would be the largest exploration program to date in the 35-year history of the project.

MORE:
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN205274520110120

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16. Broken Arrows: Nuclear Weapons Accidents

http://www.atomicarchive.com/Almanac/
Brokenarrows_static.shtml

Since 1950, there have been 32 nuclear weapon accidents, known as "Broken Arrows." A Broken Arrow is defined as an unexpected event involving nuclear weapons that result in the accidental launching, firing, detonating, theft or loss of the weapon. To date, six nuclear weapons have been lost and never recovered.

See List:
http://www.atomicarchive.com/Almanac/
Brokenarrows_static.shtml

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17. Ernie Regehr awarded Pearson Peace Medal

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6945&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 11:58 AM PST
Congratulations to Project Ploughshares’ co-founder Ernie Regehr on being awarded the Pearson Peace Medal! The medal is awarded by the United Nations Association in Canada to a Canadian who has personally contributed, through his or her working life and voluntary commitments, to causes to which Lester B. Pearson devoted his career: aid to the developing [...]

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18. Winslow Wheeler on F-35 purchase

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6927&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 23 Jan 2011 07:30 PM PST
In this written statement to the Standing Committee on National Defence, Director Winslow T. Wheeler of the Straus Military Reform Project uses his American experience to offer valuable insight to the Canadian government on the purchase of F-35 stealth fighters. (Winslow T. Wheeler, "Canada's Next Generation Fighter Aircraft", House of Commons: Parliament of Canada, December 2010).

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19. Protesters in Halifax speak out against F-35

http://www.ceasefire.ca/
?p=6918&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ceasefire%2FycPl+%28Ceasefire.ca%29

Posted: 21 Jan 2011 11:34 AM PST
The Halifax Peace Coalition held a protest against the Conservative government’s decision to buy the F-35 fighter-bomber on January 17th, which was Martin Luther King Jr. Day and also the 50th anniversary of U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower’s speech warning of the dangers of the military-industrial complex (Moira Peters, “Pricy Jets a Nice Haul for Lockheed [...]

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20. Is Canada-U.S. military integration on agenda for tomorrow’s “inaugural” meeting of N.A. defence ministers?

http://www.canadians.org/tradeblog/?p=1265

January 26, 2011
We’re all impatiently awaiting the joint announcement by Harper and Obama of a “new” perimeter security deal. From media reports, the agreement would fast-track some of the Security and Prosperity Partnership’s more contentious harmonization projects, including establishing a common entry and exit system for travellers to and from North America. The more hardcore Canadian supporters of deep integration with the United States are digging up old arguments to support it. Yet there was so much controversy when news of the deal leaked out in December that Obama and Harper had to postpone their big announcement.
I wonder if tomorrow’s trilateral meeting of North American defence ministers in Ottawa will reveal the anticipated military component to the concept of perimeter security or if it’s more or less unrelated. The use of “inaugural” to describe the meeting is interesting because of how much North American military cooperation already exists. Should we expect a strong drug focus, for example? It’s possible with Mexico’s presence and the extent to which the U.S. military has taken a commanding control there of border security, immigration and drug enforcement. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow’s post-meeting media announcement to know for sure.

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