Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

"A global movement of climate justice organizers and direct actionistas has been building People Power against the root causes of climate change for quite some time. In North America, our fight to stop climate change and fossil fuel extraction is happening right now all over the country" - Scott Parkin

"The power of, and results possible through peaceful protest reported from around the world seemed to galvanise the UK public in such a way that an all-encompassing demonstration which took place this past weekend (March 26th) in London attracted half a million people." - Amy Freeborn

Sure, let’s make the most of the renewed attention and reawakened concerns about nukes. But in doing so, let’s not spend too much energy attacking phantom reactors. I'd rather leapfrog over any questions of hypothetical reactors to confront the reality of uranium mining. I don't know that we can do anything about earthquakes and tsunami, but we have a responsibility, and an opportunity, to act now to avoid the risk of another Fukushima.

A prominent Cairns businessman is spearheading a push to bring thousands of Japanese refugees left homeless by the earthquake and tsunami to the Far North to ease the pressure on the disaster-struck nation.

My only hope is that this Full Moon at Perigee doesn't add the emotional push that causes someone who shouldn't to do something stupid. If you've seen lots of people do lots of peculiar things in bright moonlight, you begin to wonder what people in already-intense situations might do if given an extra dose of what's in the moonbeams.

Richard Koo says that if government stimulus stops now we will face another downturn in the global economy. He says governments should continue with their fiscal stimulus until private sector borrowing reaches more normal levels.

During a time of war a leader who wanted to appease the enemy would be called a traitor. It is about time we asked who is paying these people when the scientific evidence is so overwhelming. Whose interests are they supporting?

I have a vision for the Arabs:.One people, one nation,one country encompassing the middle east and north Africa. As such it would right many wrongs, provide equity, dilute extremism, and usher in a new world order.

Just before 2 a.m. on February 19, the war on climate science showed its grip on the U.S. House of Representatives as it voted to eliminate U.S. funding for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The Republican majority, on a mostly party-line vote of 244-179, went on record as essentially saying that it no longer wishes to have the IPCC prepare its comprehensive international climate science assessments.

A friend of mine has been shot around 100 meters away from Almokhtar clinic. Nobody can take him to the clinic and no ambulance can reach him. Mercenaries keep firing at the people who tried to help him, shot in the stomach, bleeding in a house nearby. Is this how Libyan life ends now?

65 dead.. so far..

Their argument is not that we now have the technology to live forever. Their argument is that we now have the technology (and knowledge) to live twenty years longer. In twenty years, we will have breakthroughs that prevent and cure most illnesses.

"I had no idea how this story would end or what I would discover when I finally sat down at the computer and started to type. I now know that torture not only permanently scars the torture victim, but it also leaves its mark on everyone who comes in contact with that person."  - Jason Leopold

Faith restored as banners burn..

In memory of longtime Webdiarist Malcolm B. Duncan. His delightful writing, wit, insight, and generosity will be greatly missed.

I want to help others see that it can be done, if you want it enough.I am only a pensioner, with a child that's most bedridden, and yet I can run this farm on the principles of permaculture and communalism. We don't make any money, but we don't have big expenses

Back in March 2008, I put down my prediction that later that year the oil price would reach $145 and bring an end to world economic growth. Now we're back at $90, will it happen again?

Now as Foley makes a final visit to his own ghost writers, I can't help wondering what the in-flight movie will be.  If he's reading the Clancy and watching the Polanski,while looking at the clouds out his window and pretending to be Superman, I wouldn't be surprised at all.

Sometimes an inquiry is necessary. There is a need to quickly and efficiently cut out dead wood so that the tree can sprout again. This is not the case with the flood response.

The latest update from the Democratic Audit program at Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, on how our democracy is working.