OH MY GOSH - WONDERFUL NEWS! DEPT OF PEACE CAMPAIGN HAS TWO NEW CO-SPONSORS of HR3760 which makes a total of 75! Congratulations to all DoP peacemakers who have been working with these members in CA and OR. Please, everyone give them a call of thanks for signing on.

Rep. David Wu (D-OR-1st) -- (202) 225-0855
Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA-10th) -- (202) 225-1880

WEEKEND IS UPON US - LET’S KICK IT UP A NOTCH WITH SOME LIBERAL NEWS

A Disgraceful Attack on the New York Times
Commentary by Robert Scheer
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0628-21.htm

Playing Politics with TimetablesCommentary by Marjorie Cohn
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0628-33.htm

BUSH'S GLOBAL GREEN ZONE
Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com
The administration has painstakingly created a fictitious bubble of safety in its Baghdad 'Green Zone.' Now Bush expects us to buy into the belief that he's made us all safer, here and abroad.
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/38221/

[DUCHESS NOTE - Safe under the Bush Regime?!? LOL Those who think that Uncle Georgie will keep them safe are in for a rude awakening. What the Bush Regime is putting out there is all propaganda and lies. Your about as safe as a mouse trying to cross a busy highway.]

A CHILDCARE WORKER SPEAKS OUT
Melvina Vandross, Women's Media Center
I take care of your kids 11 hours a day -- here's what you should know about me.
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/38246/

BUSH VS. NEW YORK TIMES
Robert Scheer, Truthdig
Attacks on the New York Times aren't about national security, they're about muting criticism.
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/38251/

[DUCHESS NOTE - Mr. Scheer is so right. It is about muting criticism. Usually one of the main aims of fascism or dictatorships is suppression of the media or press. As well as completely controlling the media or press. One of the top threats to US national security is NOT the NY Times nor peace activists, it’s without a doubt the Bush Regime. Plain and simple.]

When the FBI Raids the Times
Commentary by Dennis Persica
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0628-34.htm

MESSAGE FROM CODEPINK - Stand Up With the War Resisters & Peacemakers!
The Bush administration has repeatedly stated that when the Iraqis stand up, our soldiers will stand down. But when the Iraqi government and several armed groups tried to stand up by unveiling a serious reconciliation plan, the U.S. government scuttled this plan by forcing them to eliminate two key aspects of the original proposal the withdrawal of U.S. troops and amnesty for Iraqis not involved in the killing of civilians. Click here to read more - http://www.codepinkalert.org/article.php?id=1059

A courageous number of people, however, have decided to implement their own peace process: U.S. soldiers who are refusing to fight in this war. On Tuesday, CODEPINK participated in actions all over the country to support the first officer who refused to deploy to Iraq, Lt. Ehren Watada. "A war can end when the soldiers choose to stop fighting it," Lt. Watada said when he announced his decision to resist. He is joined in his resistance by Army Specialist Suzanne Swift, who refused to deploy with her Army unit to Iraq; she is now being held in Ft. Lewis and needs our support. These two brave soldiers are joined by hundreds of U.S. military personnel who have gone to Canada to avoid being sent to Iraq, and over 6,400 U.S. military who have deserted their posts. Read Ann Wright's article here - http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/062706F.shtml

[DUCHESS NOTE - It takes real courage to stand up for what you believe is the correct course of action. And refusing to be part of an illegal occupation with a country that never posed any threats to the US. These two soldiers are brave, honorable patriots and they so need our support. They are our future peacemakers ... bravo!]

Lt. Watada's mom, Carolyn Ho, wrote to CODEPINK, "As a mother, I have evolved from fearing for his safety and for his future to the realization that there is a higher purpose to all that has transpired. My son no longer stands at the crossroads. He has chosen 'the road less traveled'." As part of that "road less traveled", Lt. Watada and his mother have both decided to participate in the Troops Home Fast on July 4, and invite you to join them. The growing list of fasters includes Cindy Sheehan, Dick Gregory, Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Danny Glover, Graham Nash, Dolores Huerta, Julia Butterfly Hill and over 1,500 more.

You can join us in DC or at home; you can fast for one day, one week or leave the process open-ended. Go to http://www.troopshomefast.org/ to learn, sign up, or donate funds to make this fast as effective as possible. Let's stand up with those in the U.S. military who are taking peace into their own hands by refusing to fight. If enough of us stand up, the war-makers will be forced to stand down!