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Correction to article on Gov. Ryan and the U.S. justice system:

"Point of clarification. I don't think Gov. Ryan pardoned the inmates. I think he commuted the sentences from death to life without parole."
(From Wilmer Leon, Rockville, Maryland)
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Also see letter from Ms. Arlene Johnson at end of this posting. Scroll down.
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Massive Peace Rally in Washington Ridicules Bush-Cheyney-Rumsefeld
Creative Responses to War Propaganda: Brutal Cold defeated by 10-deep Procession
Poor Muslim Representation: Podium Used for Democratic Party support campaign

January 18, 2003 was indeed a historic day for the anti-war movement. Hundreds of small groups from the east coast and the mid-west arrived on the west side of the capitol in Washington, DC to oppose President Bush's plans of war on Iraq. Tremendous support was expressed for Palestine. America's Zionists have lost the support of America's grassroots.

A variety of speeches went on from 11 to almost 3. Some of the speeches were brilliant. The peak of the speech making came when Ramsey Clark urged the IMPEACHMENT of Bush for violation of the U.S. constitution. Jesse Jackson was very good too and ended on a high moral tone, somewhat as if he were in church. Damu Smith was passionate and powerful.

Unfortunately, African-American movements and White groups which reject both Republicans and Democrats were not well represented in the speeches from the dais. At times one got the impression of a Democratic Party rally, what with Mckinney (who lost in Georgia), Jesse Jackson, Conyers, and Sharpton braving the cold to speak. What a blunder it would be to think that replacement of Bush by the Democrats would change the situation when the Democratic party is as much pro-war as Bush's party. Lieberman is the leading hawk in the war campaign. None of the Democratic speakers had to courage to condemn Lieberman's moves or to note that Israel and the American Jews are the main force in the war moves against Iraq.
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IMAM BADI ALI WENT WITH FOUR BUS LOADS OF DEMONSTRATORS FROM GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA.
From NORFOLK, Virginia, Muslim students went with a bus organized by Amnesty International.
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The Muslim representation in the speeches was pathetic. The Muslim speakers were used as fillers, fobbed off with five minutes each. Most of them were unknowns, quite unused to public speaking. The only authentic speaker was Imam Musa from Washington DC but he got less than five minutes. The most ridiculous was one from a recently manufactured group called MAS. He claimed that he represented "thousands of mosques."

The most interesting feature of Muslim representation was that Mahdi Bray (connected to W.D. Muhammad?) was part of the group of dais managers. Although Bray did better than usual but he seemed to think he was on a late night TV show and repeatedly urged the audience to "give it up" (clap) for people whom he introduced as celebrities with a flourish, like an actor on stage..

Bray's own Islamic contribution was extremely limited. He vehemently stated that he is not afraid of saying that he is a Muslim. Once he had made that brave venture, he went on to talk of Martin Luther King, as if that made up for his declaration of being a Muslim.

Ghazi Khankan, CAIR's rep from New York turned up on stage wearing a COWBOY HAT and read a cute poem like a high school kid.

Is that all Islam in America has to offer, the whimpering of intellectual pygmies? The Qur'an and the Hadith were sorely missing from these presentations. A rare occasion for mass da'wa was missed.
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MORE THAN 200,000 WERE THERE

The media have as usual tried to diminish the number of participants. The mass demonstration and march, though shown on C-Span, was rapidly removed from reporting in the major media. Some media claimed that only 30,000 people were there. It's possible that the estimate was made when the rally began or was about the conclusion of the march. The difficulty of counting on such occasions is that people keep joining the gathering all day while others leave after a while.

Our ESTIMATE is that more than 200,000 participated. During the march, from the capitol to the Navy Yard, one of our representatives stayed on the sidewalk while the procession, 10 deep most of the time, passed by for an hour and a half. The people were packed so thickly into the procession that the intense cold made no impression as long as the people marched.
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CRITICISM OF BUSH MORE TRENCHANT THAN ANY FROM MUSLIMS

The participants SHARED ONE THING IN COMMON: They had no illusions about the policies of Bush-Cheyney-Ashcroft-Rumsfeld. One poster compared Bush's foreign policy to a sewer: what goes into a sewer is what will come out.

Some posters raised the question of Bin Laden: Where is he? Why can't the government get him? Gently, the posters brought out Bush's failure in the "war against terrorism."

Some other posters, beautifully prepared by A.N.S.W.E.R (Ramsey Clark's organization), carried pictures of Iraqi girls and boys who would be killed in case of a U.S. attack.

Other protestors used sexual innuendo to attack the relationship between "Dick" Cheyney and Bush. ("Dick" in English is used for the male sexual organ.) The irreverence tried to bring out the nature of the regime which has emerged in America: a cabal in which the very rich, linked to Israel and "Muslim" dictators, is trying to create a fascist America.

Near the Navy Yard, the march ran into a handful of counter demonstrators supporting Bush. They were waving the flag, singing the national anthem and speaking the usual stuff against Saddam.
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REPORTS OF DEMONSTRATIONS FROM OTHER CITIES ARE COMING IN. The second biggest was in San Fancisco.
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HIZB-ut-TAHRIR BANNED IN GERMANY: ACCUSED OF ANTI-SEMITISM

Hizb-ut-Tahrir, an international Islamic movement, was banned in Germany on January 14, 2003. The obscure charges against it indicate that Germany considers the Hizb "anti-semitic." Observers say that the Hizb criticizes Israel which is obviously a Jewish entity carved out of Palestine by force of arms. It is doubtful that the Hizb says anything which other Islamic movements are not saying, except that the Hizb says it clearly and unambiguously.

Germany is seen by many observers as a land mentally enslaved by the allies who were victorious in 1945. Any criticism of the Jewish version of World War II is seen as "anti-semitism." German scholars and scientists have lost their jobs for showing scepticism about the Holocaust story. Even the historian David Irving is banned from visiting Germany. Hans Schmidt, U.S. citizen of German origin critical of pro-Jewish policies of his home country, was arrested when he visited there.

Vast American military bases are firmly established near Frankfurt and other places. Although Germans have shown their opposition to the war planned against Iraq, only days back Germany sent anti-scud missiles to Israel.
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IN A NEW LOW, CAIR, a front for ISNA, HAS JOINED OTHER PRO-GOVERNMENT GROUPS CALLING FOR THE RESIGNATION OF SADDAM HUSSAIN. Their resolution states as follows:

"To call on the President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, to save the Iraqi people from further suffering and despair and to clear the image of Islam, a religion incompatible with dictatorships, by resigning his position as President and by calling on the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Countries to supervise free democratic elections in Iraq for the purpose of electing new leadership that can lead Iraq out of the current desperate situation."
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A few months back, NEW TREND reported that CAIR has received $500,000 from the Saudi Arabian government. CAIR did not comment or deny.
Now MUSLIM LINK, a local newsletter has reported too that CAIR got $500,000 specifically from Prince Waleed of Saudi Arabia. Thus pro-government groups are being primed to control and lead America's Muslims while authentic Islamic voices are censored and/or muzzled.
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Letter:
Thank you for sharing the reality of Khatami with your readers. You are absolutely correct about him and the relationship he holds with the US.

Could you help me by making your readership aware of the accurate history that I publish? We must end the atrocities that my (our) government perpetuates around the world.

In peace and solidarity,

Arlene Johnson
Publisher Truly Independent Press
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P. O. Box 25051
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ajohnsonpresnsi@truedemocracy.net
My Web site: http://truedemocracy.net
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2003-01-19 Sun 16:28ct