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January 25, 2002 | Issue 391
FRONT PAGE
Enron and the politicians
Liars, crooks and con artists
Clyde Johnson thought that Enron would reward him for his hard work. Then Enron went belly-up--and Clyde was told that he had 30 minutes to clear out.
"Advisers" sent to Philippines
Stop Bush's war machine
The Bush administration is sending 660 "military advisers" to train the Philippines army in its war on Abu Sayyaf, an Islamist group fighting an armed struggle against the government. And that's only the latest effort to widen the U.S. "war on terrorism."
Barbaric conditions at Camp X-Ray
U.S. officials thought it would be a good photo op. But the pictures of suspected al-Qaeda fighters in custody at Camp X-Ray in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, have provoked outrage across the world.
SPECIAL FEATURES
The story of the world's most valuable commodity
The politics of oil
"Is there any man, is there any woman, let me say any child here, that does not know that the seed of war in the modern world is industrial and commercial rivalry?" asked former U.S. President Woodrow Wilson in a 1919 speech. Since Wilson asked this question, no commodity has been fought over more fiercely than oil.
Recession exposes cruel impact of the politicians' cuts
"People need help now"
Bruce had a decent job as a dispatcher for a courier company in downtown Manhattan. But the company did 98 percent of its business at the World Trade Center. After September 11, it went under--and Bruce was out of work.
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WHAT WE THINK
The World Economic Forum comes to New York City
Protest the global fat cats
The fattest of the world's fat cats are coming to New York City for the World Economic Forum to reassure one another that free markets work fine--despite the fact that their system leaves 1 billion people to live on less than $1 a day.
New stage in Israel's reign of terror
Israeli troops occupied the West Bank town of Tulkarem early this week in the largest invasion of Palestinian Authority territory in the 16 months of the new Palestinian Intifada.
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NATIONAL NEWS
Two trigger-happy troopers in N.J. walk free
Green light for racial profiling
A New Jersey court gave police the green light for racial profiling January 14 when it let off two trigger-happy state troopers with a slap on the wrist.
While Bush schmoozes with Hoffa...
Administration goes after unions
George W. Bush spent last weekend schmoozing with Teamsters President James P. Hoffa. But don't think that Bush is offering to "scratch your back if you scratch mine." Union members should know that he's got a knife with him.
Will Boeing's bedbugs bite?
Chinese President Jiang Zemin is getting bugged by the U.S. In August, Boeing delivered a jet specially outfitted for Jiang--with 27 satellite-operated bugs spread throughout the plane, including in the upholstery, the bathroom and the headboard of Jiang's bed.
Relatives of 9/11 victims say:
Don't use our grief to justify your war
Relatives of victims of the September 11 air attacks are in Afghanistan to meet people whose family members died in George W. Bush's war. The visit exposes the U.S. government's claim that it's bringing those responsible for September 11 to justice.
Frame-up trial of Black Power leader
Jamil Al-Amin, the former 1960s Black Power leader then known as H. Rap Brown, is on trial for his life in Atlanta this month.
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COLUMNS AND FEATURES
Why the Bush gang wants an offensive against the rebels
U.S. pushes for war in Colombia
George W. Bush's "war on terrorism" is pushing Colombia to the brink of a bloodbath. On January 9, Colombian President Andrés Pastrana announced that he would send 12,000 troops into territory run by left-wing rebels if they didn't agree to a cease-fire.
WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?
Causing misery around the world
Since September 11, the mass media has been awash with the refrain: "Why do they hate us so much?" When asked why the U.S. has been the target of terrorists, George W. Bush responded, "Like most Americans, I just cannot believe it, because I know how good we are."
THE MEANING OF MARXISM
Between labor and capital
For Marxists, the working class is central to achieving a different world--socialism. It is labor that produces profits--the life's blood of capitalism. Workers therefore have a great deal of leverage, if they organize collectively, to bring down the system.
INSIDE THE SYSTEM
Guard that groundhog
A team of state police, bomb-sniffing dogs and National Guard troops are going to the annual Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney, Pa., to guard "Punxsutawney Phil," the furry rodent who makes his annual weather prediction.
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SW READERS SPEAK OUT
Harvard University president attacks Cornel West
Black professors stand up to racism
Lawrence Summers, the treasury secretary during the Clinton administration and now president of Harvard University, has really put his foot in his mouth this time.
New York politicians make cuts that will kill
Hungry elderly immigrants? They don't need to eat. Cut $6.5 million in food aid out of the New York City budget. Infant mortality? Tough luck. Cut programs to prevent infant mortality by one-third.
Should we eat stones to live?
A few hours ago, I saw a television news segment that announced a 20 percent rise in the price of fuel in Indonesia. This rise will create a bad effect in another sector--public transportation.
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ON THE PICKET LINE
United mechanics ready to strike
No more givebacks!
Some 10,600 mechanics at United Airlines could strike February 20 in a high-stakes battle for the entire labor movement.
Accuride workers tell UAW members at Kentucky Ford plant:
"You could be next in line"
Locked-out Accuride workers and other United Auto Workers activists picketed the Louisville, Ky., Ford truck plant January 14, while protests also took place at Detroit UAW headquarters and at a Janesville, Wis., General Motors plant.
Marriott workers fight for NYC jobs
Chanting "Marriott stop the firing! Time to do some hiring!" more than 200 workers from the destroyed Marriott World Trade Center rallied last week.
Labor in brief
United Parcel Service; Portland, Ore., nurses; ILWU Local 6
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REPORTS FROM THE STRUGGLE
Protest Bush
More than 150 protesters came to expose George W. Bush's war on terrorism and his joke of an education plan when he visited Boston last week.
Stop private prisons
Activists came together in San Antonio, Texas, on January 12 to show their opposition to the criminal injustice system and those who profit from it.
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REVIEWS
The case for ending the death penalty
Clarence Brandley and a fellow high school custodian in Bellville, Texas, had the misfortune to discover the body of a murdered 16-year-old student, Cheryl Dee Ferguson. The two were immediately considered suspects by the police.
Biting comment on the Bosnia war
No Man's Land, set in 1993 during the Balkans War, is a welcome antidote to the pro-war Hollywood films in theaters today.
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