by Drew Hendricks, Olympia Copwatch

On June first, people will gather in Seattle to begin to learn about and discuss the Law Enforcement Intelligence Unit. On June 2, they will seek to shut it down.

Some writers question whether the concern is warranted; a column in The Stranger (Vol 12 No. 35) suggested that the activist community has lost touch with the LEIU's current history and is planning a protest for unclear reasons, against a misunderstood foe. The columnist's confusion is understandable, since the LEIU has no web site of its own and does not appear to have an office or published phone . . .

by Erich Albrecht

The US occupation of Iraq has grave implications for the future of the international power structure and the global economy. Iraq has been called the first battle in the fourth world war (the Cold War being the third) by figures inside the Bush administration. Some believe the reasons of this war were for stopping the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, stopping terrorism and liberating the Iraqi people from Saddam Hussein's tyranical rule. None of this has yet been accomplished, which leads many others to believe the Bush administration's reasons for this war were . . .

by Glen Anderson

TRUE security can't be won by weapons. It's rooted in social and economic justice, civil liberties, a vibrant democracy, a healthy environment, and humane values.

The American people are afraid of terrorists.

But they also have deep, troubling fears about the crumbling economy, the loss of civil liberties, the deteriorating environment, and the future our kids and grandkids will inherit.

The Bush regime is escalating the first kind of fears deliberately and the second set of fears unwittingly.

by Erich Albrecht

The question of who is next on the Bush administration's list of countries to be militarily attacked has been on the minds of many. The US economy has been in constant decline since 2000. This is mostly due to the overproduction and volatility inherent in the deregulated capitalist structure under which the US operates, and partly due to the competition created by the euro. The ideologues actively involved developing the Bush administration's policies have long desired to go to war with Iraq as a way to implement a "New World Order." This is their answer to securing US . . .

by Glen Anderson

For many months the peace movement was articulating many reasons why a war on Iraq would be wrong. After March 19 those rotten eggs started to hatch, and the stink has become overwhelming!

· Where are the "weapons of mass destruction"?

· Why aren't the Iraqis welcoming our "liberation"?

· Which US puppet will we install in the guise of "democracy"?

· Which US corporations tied to the Bush regime will profit from the reconstruction and oil contracts?

· How is military spending affecting our federal, state and local budgets?

· How are other nations reacting to Bush's war?

by Jerome Johnson

I was at work on the evening of 19 March. At 6:50pm, my boss called to tell me that bombs and cruise missiles were falling on Baghdad, the war had begun. I was glad it was him and not Frank, my archconservative co-worker. I thanked my boss for telling mewe share interests and views on current eventsand I turned on the TV in my office. I still had to work a few more hours, but I wanted to catch as much "coverage" as I could before I went home. When I got there, there wasn't much news yet, so I called and spoke to a few friends. All of themlike mewere distraught at the prospect . . .

by Tom Wright

"The relationship between Israel and Gazacould be characterized as de-development. De-development is the deliberate, systematic deconstruction of an indigenous economy by a dominant power(It) isdesigned to ensure that there will be no economic base, even one that is malformed, to support an independent indigenous existence."

-Sara Roy, The Gaza Strip, 1995

by B. Frank

CASCADIA is the land influenced by the majestic Cascade Mountain Range and the Colombia River, from British Columbia to Northern California. Our region is home to some of the last great wild forests in the world, only a tiny percentage of what once existed in this country.

THE PROBLEM

Over half of Cascadia is federal public land. It is managed by the Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and exploited as if it were an endless resource solely for private profit. Anyone who has driven through the nearby Gifford Pinchot National Forest or any of our other National . . .

by Tesla Coylea

In the midst of the chaos and confusion surrounding America's "Bush Wars", Olympia has gained an important new presence on the radio dial. Friends of independent media have now declared 91.3 FM to be a Liberated Frequency, and they are engaged in an ongoing project to "free the airwaves", through sustained civil disobedience. Their aim: To bring the people of Olympia access to more alternative information and culture than has heretofore been available, and ultimately to provide a permanent voice for those disenfranchised by the "New World Order".

by Drew Hendricks, Olympia Copwatch

The victim, who requested anonymity for this report, was taken into custody in the early morning hours after Cinco De Mayo, and booked into jail two and one half hours after his reported arrest.

Detective Donald S Heinze and Patrol Officer Charles G Porche Jr took the man into custody for malicious mischief, according to their report. The man verbally resisted according to the report and witnesses at the scene.

Jade Lantern News Service

On July 1st, 400 employees of Miller Brewing will lose their jobs, and South Sound residents could lose their say in the future of a community asset of untold value. We are invited to a Public Forum on at 6:00 pm on June 23, to have at least one last say in what happens.

Built by Leopold Schmidt in 1902, the Tumwater Brewery has amazing historic, environmental and cultural values, with a river running through it to the Sound. The future of the Brewery is worth talking about.

Jade Lantern News Service

The Green Party of the United States is looking for progressives to run for elected office. To date, 177 Green office holders in 24 states are hard at work. They are creating public policy on important issues including civil rights, a living wage, affordable housing, alternative voting systems, and peace. They are advocating for peace and opposing urban sprawl and expansion of corporate power. Green office holders ran to make an immediate impact on their communities as town council members, county commissioners, school board members etc. These Greens reached out to . . .

by TJ Johnson

Olympia Needs Responsive Leadership

In March, I announced that I was a candidate for the Olympia City Council. Today, I'm telling you why I'm running and what I hope to accomplish, and am asking for your support.

Olympia is a great place to live, but we have the potential to be an even stronger and more vibrant community in the future. To achieve this potential we need responsive leaders who will listen to the many voices of the community, and who will bring diverse people together to identify opportunities and solve problems. I am committee to this concept of responsive leadership, . . .

From: Copwatch

To: Thurston County Prosecutor: Ed Holm

May 8, 2003

Dear Mr. Holm,

A member of Copwatch had been waiting for better than 1 month for you to get back to him. No longer.

On April 4th 2003, he presented to you the one page evidence of a faulty investigation by TCSO (Thurston County Sheriffs Office) regarding the shooting of Kent DeBoer by officers Jordan and Brown of the Olympia Police Department.

A letter to the editor:

May 9, 2003

Studies in the last few years by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) found pesticides contaminating every single watershed tested in Washington. Especially concerning are 2,4-D and Dichlobenil, two herbicides used by the Washington State Department of Transportation that are found in 100% of USGS tested streams and have known impacts to our endangered salmon. Herbicides used by the WSDOT are known to either kill salmon directly or cause decreased survival rates by impacting their ability to avoid predators, fend off disease, or spawn. The chemical . . .

by Linda Malanchuck-Finnan

The following is an Interview with Danica Anderson, a forensic psychotherapist who returned this February from working with refugees in Sri Lanka. She had been invited by UNICEF-Movimondo to work with local NGO professionals such as teachers, social workers, and social mobilizers who work with the large refugee camp populations and many refugee camp-centers. Her goal was to reproduce the success of her trauma healing and counselor training program first developed in Bosnia. She uses Feminist Archetypal Psychology to heal and developed the kolo as a cultural and . . .

by Holly Gwinn Graham

Dominican Sisters Carol Gilbert, O.P., Jackie Hudson, O.P. and Ardeth Platte, O.P., have left Clear Creek County Jail in Georgetown, Colorado on their own recognizance. The Plowshares activists have completed nearly 7 months of incarceration for their symbolic act of blood-pouring and ballpeen hammering at Minuteman III nuclear missile silo N8 in Colorado on October 6, 2002.

• The US ranks 139th in the world in average turnout in national elections since 1945. It's been decades since even half of adults voted in congressional elections in a nonpresidential year.

• The US Senate has great powers but lacks a single African-American or Latino. A random group of 100 Americans would include 25 African-Americans and Latinos.

• During the 2000 election, 13% of black men were barred from voting contrasted to only 2% of white men.

• The total percentage of women in Congress is stalled at less than 15 percent, and the percentage in state legislatures has declined.

Jade Lantern News Service

Warning of a military-police state, massive loss of liberties, assaults on government workers' protections, and environmental damage, Greens urge defeat of proposed Defense Department and 'Patriot II' legislation.

WASHINGTON, D.C. A legislative proposal from the office of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld would, if enacted, grant the military nearly unlimited freedom from civilian oversight, and, in combination with other recent laws and policies, bring the U.S. to the brink of a military-dominated state, say members of the Green Party of the United States.

14th ANNUAL SUMMER SCHOOL FOR UNION WOMEN

June 25 through June 29,

The Evergreen State College Longhouse, Olympia, WA

With the theme, 'Realizing our Power and Using our Voices', this year's school will look critically at labor and community alliances, the right to organize in the workplace, and how the economy looks to different groups of workers. Some of the featured workshops include Environmental Health and Safety, Organizing through Diversity, Creative Organizing to Mobilize Union Members, and Effective Communication with Practice. Participants will share their personal stories of struggles . . .