Terror Fried Brains
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wake up! wake up! it’s yer sunny side up Summer Solstice 2003 Free/Donation Issue 411/412 TERROR FRIED BRAINS “Every ten years or so, the United States Poached Rights needs to pick up some small crappy little Switch on the news and you hear about CRAP ARREST OF THE WEEK country and throw it against the wall, just to more terrorists being arrested. But who For reading the paper! show the world we mean business.”-Michael are they? In December, five Turks and a An American anti-war prisoner serving time Ledden, holder of the ‘Freedom Chair’ at Briton were charged under the Terrorism for protesting at a military base was put the American Enterprise Institute. Act 2000 for supporting the Turkish into solitary confinement for eight days af- Last week a poll revealed that a third Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party- ter he got sent and distributed anti-war ar- of Americans believe that weapons of mass Front, or DHKP-C. They were nicked be- ticles from such radical publications as the destruction have been found in Iraq, while New York Times, Readers’ Digest, cause DHKP-C has been banned by the Newsweek, and The Guardian! Better not 22 per cent reckon Iraq actually used UK government and the six arrestees were send him this weeks SchNEWS then. them! Even before the war, half of those supposedly “facilitating the retention or www.naplesnews.com/03/06/florida/ polled said the Iraq regime was responsi- control of terrorist property.” Guns? d939395a.htm ble for September 11th. But no one’s found Bombs? Er, no, the people arrested were any weapons of mass destruction let alone simply in possession of magazines, vid- handcuffed at gunpoint and driven to Govan used them (well apart from the Americans eos and posters that supported the Police Station. Their house was searched for and British) and no Iraqis were on the DHKP-C. At a pre-trial hearing, the judge two days while Karen was held for 36 hours planes that hit the twin towers. So how ordered all the defendants to surrender and Ali for four months under the Immigra- could people be so misinformed? their passports and banned them from tion Act because they didn’t believe his mar- “Most people get little whiffs and frag- selling or distributing copies of ‘Vatan’ riage was valid. He was very nearly deported ments of news, not in any organized way,” and ‘Ekmek ve Adalet’ both radical Turk- back to Algeria before finally being released a says Thomas Mann of Brookings Insti- ish-based magazines that has the bare fortnight ago, without being charged with tution “And there have been a lot of con- faced cheek to criticise that bastion of any terrorism offences. flicting reports on the weapons.” But for human rights, Turkey. Leading barrister Mike Mansfield says that conflicting reports read lies – a constant One of those nicked was Rory O’Driscoll, by using the atrocities in the US as an excuse, drip feed of false rumours (like alleged who had recently visited Turkish hunger Neo-Labour has effectively declared war on weapons factories and mobile labs) which strikers protesting about prison condi- Britons’ civil liberties “Anti terror legislation if later proved wrong don’t seem to regis- tions. His house was raided and he was introduced by the Government has done more ter so highly on the media Richter scale. held for two weeks at Paddington Green to attack people in Britain than defend them This sort of media sensationalism is what police station where every hour someone from terrorists.” author Noam Chomsky (see SchNEWS would open up the hatch to his cell and These anti-terror laws came in very handy 386) describes as ‘manufacturing consent’ ask if he was ‘alright’ (a friendly way to for stifling protest when the war started. – getting us so damn scared of the en- deny a prisoner of sleep, don’t you As B-52 planes left Fairford to drop ‘clean’ emy out there that we will swallow any- reckon?). If found guilty of the ‘crime’ of bombs on the grateful Iraqi people the police thing and ignore what’s really happening possessing magazines and supporting imposed an anti-terrorist cordon over the whole on our doorstep. In President Bush’s Turkish hunger strikers, Rory could face of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire giving them case it was the mid term congressional up to 10 years in prison. the power to stop and search anyone without campaign, which his campaign manager, In February at 5.20am, Ali Serir and his any excuse. People had terrorist objects like Karl Rove, very clearly explained could pregnant wife’s house were raided by toothbrushes confiscated and sandwiches not be won by focusing on social and armed terrorist police – part of an anti- were searched for weapons! economic issues. Slashing public medi- terrorist operation mounted across the As Noam Chomsky put it “The bewildered cal assistance, education and social se- UK. Seven were arrested in the raids and herd is a problem. We’ve got to prevent their curity, while giving huge tax cuts for the the media had a field day. Ali and his wife rage and trampling. We’ve got to distract them. rich, sharp increases in military spending had their front door smashed in, before being They should be watching the Superbowl or sit- and increasing state power is not a vote coms or violent movies. Every once in a while winner. As Rove pointed out, if they can Peace de Resistance you call on them to chant meaningless slogans make national security the main issue then SchNEWS like “Support our troops.” You’ve got to keep people will forget all this and instead rally Annual 2003 them pretty scared, because unless they’re prop- round the troops. OUT NOW erly scared and frightened of all kinds of devils In Britain Prime Sinister Blair said we This annual is an that are going to destroy them from outside or were only 45 minutes from an Iraqi attack; ‘anti-war special’ featuring coverage of inside or somewhere, they may start to think, a few days before the biggest anti-war which is very dangerous, because they’re not demonstration in British history tanks all the direct action against the war on competent to think. Therefore it’s important to were stationed outside Heathrow airport, Iraq which they never distract them and marginalize them.” and only this week the head of MI5 said mentioned in the With Recommended reading: John Pilger - The New it was only a matter of time before those mainstream media. Free Rulers of the World (Verso 2002). Noam Chomsky terrorists got themselves a ‘dirty bomb’ Available now for £8 - Multimedia & Edward S. Herman - Manufacturing Consent. and used it on the West (SchNEWS including the CD - or CD The Political Economy of the Mass Media (Pan- order yours from theon Books). would like to point out that this is totally SchNEWS - for £9.70 LOOK FOR IT AT THE different to a nice ‘clean bomb’ which is incl. p&p cheques For an indepth analysis of world events see HIGH IMPACT SchNEWS www.zmag.org what Britain and America dropped on the payable to ‘Justice’. STALL IN THE ‘LOW Iraqi people). ISBN 09529748 7 8 IMPACT AREA’ free party and protest guide inside It’s yer SchNEWS Summer Party and Protest Guide JULY governments and industries end the toxic practice of burning waste. www.no- SUBHEAD3 INJUSTICE - Celebrity Screening. A special screen- burn.org ** 14 “Public Consultation” on the Baku-Ceyhan Pipeline. ing of the award winning film which follows the story of the strug- Midday at the Department for International Development, 1 Palace Street gles for justice of the families of people that have died in police London. [email protected] ** 14 North Korea: Is there a threat? Hosted custody in the UK. 8pm, Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square, by Jeremy Corbyn MP, 7-9pm, Committee Room 9, House of Commons, London. www.injusticefilm.co.uk Bookings: 020 7494 3654 3-6 Win- London. [email protected] ** 14 Naked Vegetarian March in Toulouse to bring the message of vegetarianism and non-violence to the chester Hat Fair, Hampshire. Festival of street theatre, performers people. Watch out for the veggie sausages. www.vegetariensnus.free.fr/ from all over Europe. Free. 01962 849841 www.hatfair.co.uk English ** 15 Why didn’t we stop the war? The anti-war movement and thoughts for next time. Brighthelm Centre, North Rd, Brighton, 7pm. 4th July - Independence from America Day www.safp.org.uk ** 16-20 Somerset Buddhafield Gathering Gate Crashers Ball, at Menwith Hill Spy Base, North Yorkshire. 12- www.buddhafield.com/budffest.html 17-20 Larmer Tree Festival Larmer 4 pm Speakers including comedian Mark Thomas. 01943 466405 Tree Gardens, nr. Tollard Royal, on the Wilts./Dorset border. £68 “the www.caab.org.uk. Transport from Brighton – tickets £10 from Com- most unique festival setting with a free campsite right next door, overlook- munity Base, Queens Road or Cowley Club, London Road. Transport ing the Cranborne Chase the friendliest, safest, child-friendly atmosphere” from Manchester 0161 2738283. Transport from Lancaster 01524 www.larmertree.co.uk ** 18 Play For Peace Local bands playing a ben- 383102. Tickets from London 020 7700 2393. efit gig for the victims of the Iraqi war. 7.30pm Wykham Hall, Banbury Peacemaker’s Ball, Lakenheath, Suffolk, home to 30 US Illegal Nu- School, Banbury, Oxfordshire £6/£5 [email protected] ** 18- clear Weapons, Put on a party mask and wear your best tuxedo or ball 19 Wakestock Europe’s biggest wakeboard music festival.