 |
| Pride at the Railyard Map |
|
|
DAVID BARSAMIAN AT CCA
Tuesday, June 9th 6pm
CCA Cinematheque
1050 Old Pecos Trail
The War Expands: Obama, Afghanistan and Pakistan
6 p.m. Tuesday, June 9
Suggested donation $5; reservations at 982-1338
What's really going on in Afghanistan and Pakistan? Why is U.S.
involvement rapidly escalating? Is our exit strategy from Iraq merely
send those troops to Afghanistan? Noted author and media scholar David
Barsamian reveals how, though the Obama administration no longer uses
the phrase "war on terror," it is waging one on the Afghanistan-
Pakistan border, doubling troop strength and greatly expanding attacks
on Pakistan that increasingly destabilize that impoverished country.
Throw in nukes, feudalism, an emboldened Taliban, a collapsing
infrastructure and you have a volatile cocktail that could explode in
Washington's face and undermine the Obama presidency. Is this the
change we can believe in?
David Barsamian is the award-winning founder and director of
Alternative Radio, the independent weekly series based in Boulder,
Colorado whose books include Targeting Iran, and What We Say Goes with
Noam Chomsky; Speaking of Empire & Resistance with Tariq Ali; Original
Zinn with Howard Zinn. His earlier books include The Checkbook and the
Cruise Missile with Arundhati Roy; Imperial Ambitions with Noam
Chomsky; Eqbal Ahmad: Confronting Empire and The Decline and Fall of
Public Broadcasting. Barsamian lectures around the world on subjects
including U.S. foreign policy, corporate power, the media, and
propaganda. He is winner of the Media Education Award, the ACLU's
Upton Sinclair Award for independent journalism, the Rocky Mountain
Peace and Justice Award and the Cultural Freedom Fellowship from the
Lannan Foundation. The Institute for Alternative Journalism named him
one of its Top Ten Media Heroes. In December 2007 he delivered the
prestigious Eqbal Ahmad lectures in Pakistan in Karachi, Islamabad,
and Lahore.
Alternative Radio (http://www.alternativeradio.org) can be heard at 6
p.m. Saturdays on KUNM and 4 p.m. Sundays on KSFR.
David Barsamian, Director
Alternative Radio
2129 Mapleton
Boulder, CO 80304 USA
303 444 8788
http://www.alternativeradio.org
|
49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009
INTRODUCED BY
AN ACT
RELATING TO VETERANS; REQUESTING THE JUDICIAL BRANCH OF GOVERNMENT TO IMPLEMENT A SCREENING PROGRAM FOR DEFENDENTS WHO HAVE SERVED IN COMBAT IN THE UNIFORMED SERVICES OF THE UNITED STATES
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1.
a. In the case of any person accused of a criminal offense who would otherwise be sentenced to county jail or state prison and who alleges that he or she committed the offense as a result of, or mitigated by circumstances directly related to, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, traumatic brain injury, depression, or other psychological problems stemming from service in a combat theater while in service of the United States military, the court shall, prior to trial and sentencing, hold a hearing to determine whether the defendant is or was a member of the uniformed services of the United States who served in combat and shall further assess whether the defendant suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, traumatic brain injury, depression, or other psychological problems resulting from that service.
b. If the court concludes that a defendant accused of a criminal offense is a person described in Section 1. a., it shall refer the case for treatment and placement of the defendant in a facility where appropriate treatment will be facilely provided.
c. If the defendant is otherwise eligible for probation and the court places the defendant on probation, the court may order the defendant into a local, state, federal, or private nonprofit treatment program for a period not to exceed that which the defendant would have served in state prison or county jail, provided the defendant agrees to participate in the program and the court determines that an appropriate treatment program exists.
d. If treatment services are ordered by the court, the county mental health agency shall coordinate appropriate referral of the defendant to the county veterans service officer. The county mental health agency shall not be responsible for providing services outside its traditional scope of services. An order shall be made referring a defendant to a county mental health agency only if that agency has agreed to accept responsibility for the treatment of the defendant.
e. When determining the sentencing of a defendant as described in section 1. a., the court shall give consideration to whether the defendant and society would be best served by the defendant being ordered into a treatment program or being ordered to be incarcerated.
f. A defendant granted probation under this section and committed to a residential treatment program shall earn sentence credits for the actual time the defendant served in residential treatment.
g. The court, in making an order to commit a defendant to an established treatment program, shall give preference to a treatment program that has a history of successfully treating combat veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or psychological problems as a result of that service.
h. These guidelines, if enacted may shall apply retroactively to all incarcerated persons, on a case by case basis, shown to have served in combat theaters in the uniformed services of the United States.
| SENATE MEMORIAL 74
49TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 2009
INTRODUCED BY
Eric G. Griego
A MEMORIAL
REQUESTING THAT THREE AGENCIES COOPERATE TO STUDY THE
FEASIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING A NEW MEXICO VETERANS COURT.
WHEREAS, New Mexico is home to more than one hundred eighty thousand veterans, some ten thousand of them Native Americans, according to the veterans' services department; and
WHEREAS, most of those veterans have served during wartime, including almost forty thousand who served in Iraq or Afghanistan; and WHEREAS, military veterans in New Mexico have an estimated economic impact of more than one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000), according to the veterans' services
department; and
WHEREAS, post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury from wartime engagement, substance abuse and psychological problems may be more common among combat veterans upon their
return home; and
WHEREAS, these problems may cause a formerly law-abiding veteran to commit infractions of the law; and
WHEREAS, some states and local communities have started veterans courts to divert veterans who commit crimes into programs directed at recovery from addictions, mental illness, post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury; and
WHEREAS, many of the veterans courts result from concerns that the numbers of returning soldiers will only increase for some years to come; and
WHEREAS, a significant number of veterans courts involve job-placement services and psychological counseling as part of their jail-diversion programming; and
WHEREAS, the states and local communities with veterans courts have predicted that significant savings will result from diverting veterans from expensive incarceration to socially productive programs that will aid society as they aid veterans;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the administrative office of the courts, the veterans' services department and the department of military affairs commence a joint study of the feasibility of establishing a New Mexico veterans court, including an analysis
of projected caseloads and costs for the purpose of providing just and constructive interventions for United States combat veterans alleged to have broken the law when the alleged infraction is possibly related to traumatic brain injury or behavioral health issues; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the three agencies write a report and present it to the appropriate interim legislative committee by October 1, 2009; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the director of the administrative office of the courts, the secretary of veterans' services and the adjutant general of New Mexico.
|
New GI Bill !!!
In July 2008, Congress enacted a new GI Bill over President Bush's veto! Claims against the new GI Bill may be made by Post-911 veterans any time beginning on August 1, 2009. A two page fact sheet about the new bill can be downloaded by clicking on the PDF symbol in the frame to the right.
| 
New GI Bill Fact Sheet |
H. RES. 1045
Recognizing the paramount need to address the threat of international terrorism
and protect the global security of the United States by reducing
the number and accessibility of nuclear weapons and preventing their
proliferation, and directing a portion of the resulting savings towards
child survival, hunger, and universal education, and calling on the President
to take action to achieve these goals.
The bill can be downloaded by clicking on the PDF symbol to the right ----->
|
Global Security Priorities Resolution |
MEMORIAL DAY
On the Plaza
Monday, May 26, 2008
Iraq/Afghanistan Memorial Installation
Series of 93 banners (900 feet) with the names, faces and
brief military biographies of those killed in these wars.
“Eyes Wide Open”
Military boots representing the New Mexico fallen and a collection of civilian shoes symbolizing the many deaths of Iraqis. A project of the American Friends Service Committee
2:00 Spiritual Perspectives with Interfaith Speakers at the Plaza Gazebo
Speakers from various faith communities with
brief reminders of the relevance of the day.
3:00 Solemn Procession from the Plaza
to the National Cemetery
To pay respects to the fallen
7:30 “Body of War”
Documentary of the human face of war. CCA, Old Pecos Trail
Sponsored by Veterans for Peace
Joan Duffy Chapter, Santa Fe, NM
|
Santa Fe City Council Passes Resolution to End the Iraq War
|
CITY OF SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO
RESOLUTION NO. 2007-______
INTRODUCED BY: MAYOR PRO TEM MIGUEL CHAVEZ
AND MAYOR DAVID COSS
A RESOLUTION
CALLING FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO PETITION
THE PRESIDENT AND THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS
TO IMMEDIATELY CEASE COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ,
END THE OCCUPATION,
AND SAFELY BRING HOME ALL AMERICAN TROOPS
WHEREAS, the citizens of the City of Santa Fe and their local elected officials have the constitutional right to petition the federal government on matters of grave concern to our community; and
WHEREAS, Santa Fe is The City of Holy Faith, whose residents hold high the sanctity of human life; and
WHEREAS, war is not a humane or effective means of resolving international conflicts; it dehumanizes all people; it causes destruction and waste on an unprecedented scale; and it creates environmental and ecological devastation that takes decades if not centuries to correct; and
WHEREAS, the country and people of Iraq have at no time posed any threat to the United States or its citizens; and
WHEREAS, the Santa Fe City Council, on October 30, 2002, passed Resolution No. 2002-69 voicing its opposition to a preemptive attack on Iraq and urging the exhaustion of all diplomatic avenues in order to avert a war; and
WHEREAS, in February 2003 Virginia Miller, representing the City of Santa Fe, as part of a contingent of 160 Cities for Peace, went to New York City and Washington, D.C. to present Santa Fe’s Resolution opposing U.S. preemptive action against Iraq; and
WHEREAS, the federal government invaded Iraq in violation of the principles of the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the rule of international law, all of which the City of Santa Fe has affirmed and endorsed; and
WHEREAS, this use of military force will not provide Americans with the safety and security they need; and
WHEREAS, this senseless war has brought incalculable misery, death and destruction; and
WHEREAS, the war in Iraq, now in its fifth year, has caused the deaths of more than 3,500 U.S. service personnel and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis; the physical and psychological wounding and disabling of more than 25,000 U.S. service personnel and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis; the destruction of the homes, communities, and livelihoods of more than 1.7 million Iraqis; and the creation of more than 2 million Iraqi refugees; and
WHEREAS, the economic cost of this war now exceeds $450 billion (with estimates of the total cost exceeding $2 trillion), while the basic services of government in this country have been cut, limiting access to health care, education, housing, infrastructure needs, and public safety for our citizens; and
WHEREAS, according to the National Priorities Project, the funds spent by Santa Fe taxpayers alone on the war and occupation equal more than $56,200,000, which instead could have provided enough money for the hiring of 279 school teachers, OR 1,751 Head Start places for young children, OR 588 affordable housing units, OR 3,922 four-year scholarships at public universities, OR health care coverage for 4,167 people each year since the war began; and
WHEREAS, Santa Fe citizens have held many protests and local peace organizations and citizens have been demonstrating against the Iraq War every Friday at the intersection of Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive since August of 2002 urging the U.S. government to bring our troops home now; and
WHEREAS, with this resolution Santa Fe will join more than 255 other cities around the country that have passed similar resolutions; and
WHEREAS, this resolution is supported by the following Santa Fe organizations and religious leaders: Veterans for Peace, Peace Action New Mexico, People for Peace, the New Mexico Department of Peace Initiative, the Network of Spiritual Progressives, Women in Black, Cranes for Peace, the Los Alamos Peace Project, Pax Christi New Mexico, Code Pink, Sister Penny McMullen (Sisters of Loretto), the Social Justice Committee of the Unitarian Church, the Forum Committee of the Unitarian Church, Deacon Anthony Trujillo (Guadalupe Church), Rabbi Malka Drucker, Father Richard Murphy, Father Adam Lee Ortega y Ortiz (Santa María de la Paz Catholic Community), Santa Fe Friends Meeting (Quakers), Father John Dear, Azher Saleh (Board of Trustees of the Islamic Society of Northern New Mexico), New Mexico Conference of Churches,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF SANTA FE, that the City Council on behalf of the citizens of Santa Fe urges the United States government to immediately commence an orderly and rapid withdrawal of United States military personnel from Iraq; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the returning troops be ensured compensation and care including full mental and physical health care, education, housing, employment, and disability and rehabilitation benefits; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the financial resources used to prosecute the war be redirected to address the urgent needs of the most vulnerable portions of our population in the areas of housing, health care, job creation, and education; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be forwarded immediately to George W. Bush, President of the United States, and all members of the New Mexico Congressional Delegation.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this _____ day of ____________, 2007.
___________________________ DAVID COSS, MAYOR
ATTEST:
_________________________________
YOLANDA Y. VIGIL, CITY CLERK
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________________
FRANK KATZ, CITY ATTORNEY
|
|
