The world faces enormous changes in weather patterns and other natural phenomena. These changes have resulted from the emission of man-made pollutants from traditional, non-renewable fuels such as coal and oil in energy production.

COMPARING the destruction of the twin towers with the Reichstag fire is not likely to win you any accolades in US government circles, but then Gary Indiana is not out to win praise from them.

[The Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission]... had, incongruously, in its August 30, 2003 official report, stated that the Fujimori anti-terrorism laws, under which Berenson was initially tried by hooded military judges with purportedly no legal training, were illegal and that they must be brought into compliance with international standards...Lori Berenson’s punishment clearly has been cruel and excessive, especially for a crime that claimed no victims, even if she had been involved as charged.

Three members of the advisory panel appointed by Health Canada to review the possible re-approval of silicone breast implants for the Canadian market have ties to the manufacturers, and the government does not appear to have any intention of removing them before the public hearings taking place September 29, 2005.

:?w|are and public education have been two major points of social reform for the Chávez administration in Venezuela. While the private sector has decried the government's promotion of public services in these sectors as cutting into private profit margins, early indicators point to important improvements in health care delivery and general access to educational institutions.

The respected human-rights monitoring organization, Human Rights Watch, has recently issued a startling account, based on the testimony of three Army officers, which confirms the widespread, systematic use of severe physical and mental torture against detainees at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Mercury in Iraq.

I got to the White House around noon and found hundreds of people gathered awaiting the arrival of marchers who planned to get themselves arrested protesting the war...

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - 24SEPTEMBER05 - 20,000 people march and demonstrate in San Francisco to oppose the war in Iraq.

There are 75,000 evacuees from Hurricane Katrina in Arkansas, according to Kathryn Hall-Trujillo. She is the director of the Birthing Project USA, a maternal and child health program nationwide.“One of the most patriotic duties we all have right now is to mobilize ourselves and let Congress know that it is genocidal to divert the resources of our country to kill people who are not our enemies both at home and abroad,”

Every generation the wide world of corporate sports produces an athlete with the iron resolve and moral urgency to step off their pedestal and join the fight for social justice. A century ago, it was boxer Jack Johnson, flaunting, as WEB DuBois put it, "his unforgivable blackness "...Today we may just have a figure to join their ranks in the NBA’s Etan Thomas.

Brazil's Lula, elected on a wave of optimistic idealism, has learned to make political moves far less than ideal...He was elected to lead a nation with a failed domestic economy and a shadow foreign policy, rich beyond measure in resources, but as poor as any in the world. And he was elected with a mandate, but had to work with a Congress whose parties he defeated.

Usually the staid New Yorker magazine can be counted upon to publish fairly informative, if not always completely reliable, articles about the goings on in our world. The August 22, 2005 issue, however, has an hysterical rant about North Korea more suitable to a tabloid such as the Enquirer than to a magazine that prides itself on its "quality."

The Vanguard Public Foundation, which Danny Glover and I serve, has a long history of social justice philanthropy and activism, and has established a People's Hurricane Relief Fund. And tonight, on the occasion of this inspiring benefit convened by Wynton Marsalis, the Vanguard Foundation is making a donation of $200,000 to the Higher Ground Hurricane Relief Fund.

The New Direction initiative includes immediate steps to address Katrina’s damage—including restoring wage protections for construction workers in the region, which President George W. Bush revoked, and demanding accountability in all reconstruction contracts—as well as longer term nationwide efforts.

In a commentary published on the www.antiterroristas.cu web site, Cuban American activist Andres Gomez, recalled that on March 3rd, 2004 a full-page entitled: "Can One be Jailed in the United States for Opposing Terrorism?, Yes, if one opposed terrorism in Miami", was published in the New York Times.

"Instead of keeping them in prison, it is more productive to have them do communal work," Emmanuel Twagirumukiza, the official in charge of the work, said on Thursday.Rwandan authorities refer to the community service as "work of general interest". It involves the building of homes for genocide survivors whose houses were destroyed or burnt down during the genocide.

Mired in controversy, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Lester Crawford became the second Bush-appointee to a major federal agency to resign in less than three weeks. FEMA boss Michael Brown was the first to go as revelations that his appointment was a gesture to political patronage rather than expertise.

DURING the recent visit of prime minister Manmohan Singh to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly session, among the various activities conducted on the sidelines of the session was the launching of the UN Democracy Fund. The meeting was co-hosted by the US president, the Indian prime minister and the UN secretary general.

"Not with me," said Joschka Fischer, head of the Greens Party, who remains Foreign Minister until a new government is formed. His refusal meant he would not join a government headed by Angela Merkel, the leader of the right-wing Christian Democratic Union, which won a very thin, unexpectedly thin victory in last Sunday's election.