THREE CHEERS FOR TRUE LIBERAL/PROGRESSIVE NEWS – HIP HIP HURRAY!

A WHITER SHADE OF CHRISTMAS
Maria Luisa Tucker, AlterNet
As the holidays draw near, Women for Aryan Unity keeps busy sending Christmas cards to incarcerated white supremacists and raising money for needy Aryans.
http://www.alternet.org/story/29686/

SPYING AND THE PUBLIC'S RIGHT TO KNOW
Robert Parry, Consortium News
The New York Times doesn't have a good explanation for why it waited until after the 2004 election to print a devastating report against the White House.
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/29747/

NO PRESIDENT IS ABOVE THE LAW
Floor Speech by US Senator Robert Byrd
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/1219-35.htm

THE PRO-LIFE CONTINUUM
David Morris, AlterNet
From sperm to zygote to fetus to baby, isn't it time we brought some precision to the language of the reproductive rights debate?
http://www.alternet.org/rights/29466/

PUT AN END TO CEO EXCESS
Sarah Anderson, AlterNet
Executives at some companies with military contracts have increased their salaries by 200 percent since 9/11. It's time to close the loopholes that permit war profiteering.
http://www.alternet.org/story/29709/

IS U.S. BECOMING A POLICE STATE?
Sean Gonsalves, Cape Cod Times
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/1220-27.htm

A TIME TO IMPEACH
Doug Ireland, Direland
President Bush may find himself in deep trouble after ordering and defending illegal wiretaps of U.S. citizens -- a crime for which Richard Nixon was impeached.
http://www.alternet.org/story/29826/

SPYING AND TORTURE: DON'T GO THERE
Stephen Pizzo, News for Real
If Bush wants to know where domestic spying leads, he should read some of the millions of files the East German Stasi compiled on its own citizens.
http://www.alternet.org/rights/29814/

DANCING WITH GHOSTS
By Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Truthdig
December 20, 2005
http://www.alternet.org/story/29834/

LIFE AND DEATH IN THE ARCTIC
Robert Collier, Truthdig
A GOP-led proposal to allow oil drilling in the Arctic Refuge threatens not only one of North America's most beautiful wilderness areas but a way of life thousands of years old.
http://www.alternet.org/envirohealth/29838/

Rep. Dennis Kucinich Condemns Drilling In the Refuge
http://www.alternet.org/story/29834/

NOBODY IS A STRANGER
Laura Sheahen, Beliefnet
Activist and actor Susan Sarandon talks about 'hands-on spirituality,' why New York is her extended family and how to exercise your heart muscle by doing the right thing.
http://www.alternet.org/story/29475/

MCDONALD'S VS. THE TOMATO PICKERS
Kari Lydersen, The NewStandard
The fast-food giant tries to appease migrant farm workers while doing everything possible to keep its labor costs dirt-cheap.
http://www.alternet.org/story/29832/

NEW YORK COPES WITH COMMUTER CHAOS
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/12/20/NYC-transit-051220.html

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM UFPJ
[Duchess Note – Those of you who still have your heads in the sand and continue to support one of the foulest regimes in history. WAKE UP! You are not being governed by a decent, honest president. You are being viciously ruled by Georgie the puppet king and the evil twin dictators Rove and Cheney. We must ALL stand together as Americans and tear down this regime. The terrorists are not abroad, they are here and living in DC. The country is not being run in our favor, but against us 100%. Who does it favor? Numerous corporations and the filthy rich. Neither of whom give a damn about the poor or middle class. So join with us peace-loving Americans and take back our country. If we don’t do it, no one else will.]

Did you hear Bush on Saturday? Did you see his speech on Sunday? When you stop and think about it, it's truly amazing. The president of the United States admitted that he had ordered our citizens to be spied upon, and said the illegal spying would continue. Meanwhile, the Pentagon admitted last week that it has been regularly spying on the anti-war movement, including many member groups of UFPJ.

The surveillance is an outright violation of our laws, but Bush defends his action in the name of fighting alleged -- but always unspecified -- terrorist threats.

Then, the next day, Bush said that things are going well in Iraq. Oh yes, the intelligence on which he led us into war was wrong, but that's not a problem. After all, Saddam Hussein was a tyrant and therefore -- again in the name of fighting terrorism -- it was right for our nation to wage war in Iraq. The twisted logic, the arrogance and abuse of power, and the shameless insistence that his administration has done nothing wrong is simply staggering. Spying, lying, torture, death and destruction. All with our tax dollars and in the name of "protecting" us!

The good news in all of this is that George W. Bush is being forced to take a defensive posture. He has to address his critics, implicitly acknowledging that while he may be staying the course in Iraq his support here at home is at all time lows. We, the movement for peace and justice that finds expression in every corner of the country, must take some credit for the recent, dramatic turn of events. The president and his cronies are very worried about the country's political mood.

You are part of this movement. You know how important the work of United for Peace and Justice is, and how vital it is that we strengthen our work. As we prepare for the year ahead we must ask for your financial support. In the coming months we will be offering local activists organizing materials to action around the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday and the State of the Union address. We will be calling for a week of de-centralized actions - a full menu of educational and protest activities - on the 3rd anniversary of the war in March.

We will expand our legislative action network from the several hundred people already active in it to force that is large enough to make sure every single member of Congress hears from us. Please make a generous contribution to UFPJ today and help us to move forward with our plans for the 3rd anniversary actions and increase the pressure on the Bush administration and Congress. There are three easy ways to make a donation to support the peace and justice movement:

1. Become a sustainer or make a one-time donation using our secure online donation page.

2. If you prefer to donate by credit card over the phone, you can call our office at 212-868-5545.
3. You can also mail a check or money order to:

United for Peace and Justice
P.O. Box 607
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We know you are as outraged and appalled by the Bush administration as we are. United for Peace and Justice is prepared to work just as hard in the coming months as we have for these past three years. None of our efforts would have been possible without your support, and so once again we turn to you for help. Please give now, and please give as generously as you possibly can. Thank you, so much.