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Amy Goodman grills St. Paul Police Chief About her arrest and two Democracy Now! Producers

September 3rd, 2008 by CD

AMY GOODMAN: I’m Amy Goodman from Democracy Now!, a daily public radio and television program. I was arrested yesterday by the police, along with my two producers. And I want to know what the policy is for reporters. We are fully credentialed, all of us, both from the convention and our own press credentials.

First, it was our two producers. It was over at 7th and Jackson. One of them, Nicole Salazar, had a camera. She was videotaping. The police moved in very quickly. She was stepping back behind the car. She was videotaping this whole thing. The police moved in at her. We have the videotape, played it on the show today. As she shouted “Press! Press!,” they said put your face in the ground. They pushed her to the ground. They put their boot in her back. Another one pulled on her leg, and they were telling her to keep her face down to pull along the gravel. Sharif Abdel Kouddous is our other producer. He was there. They threw him up against the wall. They bloodied his arm. They bloodied her face.

And I was called. I was on the convention floor interviewing the delegation from Minnesota and Alaska. I got a call, the producers are being arrested. I raced down here by foot. I went up to the riot police line. I said, “I would like to talk to a commanding officer.” This is all videotaped. And they took me, handcuffed me immediately, said, “You’re under arrest.” They pushed me to the ground. I said, “You can clearly see I have all the proper credentials.” I have my security clearance for the floor, for example, of the convention. So Secret Service came over, and they pulled it off. “Now you don’t,” they said.

So, my question is, they have—they face PC riot, probable cause riot. I’ve already been charged with a misdemeanor. What is your policy with the press? How is the press to operate in this kind of environment? And a last question is, our producers were here, but the police only allow in two people from each press, but this is empty, and all the police are here. They far outnumber us in the press. Why our reporters can’t be here?
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Democracy Now! radio host Amy Goodman

September 2nd, 2008 by CD

By Holly Watt
ST. PAUL — Democracy Now! radio host Amy Goodman and two producers were arrested while covering demonstrations at the Republican convention in St. Paul, Minn. Goodman was released after being held for over three hours, but is still waiting to hear when Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar would be released.

“I was down on the convention floor interviewing delegates when I heard that two of our producers had been arrested,” said Goodman. “I ran down to Jackson and 7th Street, where the police had moved in.”

Goodman said that when she ran up to find out what was going on, she was also arrested.

“They seriously manhandled me and handcuffed my hands behind my back. The top ID [at the convention] is to get on the floor and the Secret Service ripped that off me. I had my Democracy Now! ID too. I was clearly a reporter.”

Goodman, who was released after being charged with a misdemeanor, said that Salazar had been hurt in the face, while Kouddous had been thrown up against a wall and hurt his elbow.

“Nicole told me that as they moved in on three sides, she asked them ‘How do I get away from this?’ and they jumped on her.”

Both Kouddous and Salazar could be held for up to 36 hours.

“One of the police kept shouting at me ‘Shut up, shut up,” she said. “It was extremely threatening.”

Top CEOs give 10 time more money to John McCain

August 18th, 2008 by CD

The Hill newspaper reports the top executives from the country’s largest companies have donated ten times more money to John McCain’s campaign than to Barack Obama’s. The chief executive officers of the 100 biggest Fortune 500 corporations have given McCain just over $218,000. Obama has received about $20,000 from the same CEOs. McCain has pledged to drastically cut the the corporate tax rate, a move that would save the country’s 200 largest corporations almost $45 billion a year. According to the Center for American Progress, eight companies would save over a billion dollars a year under McCain’s plan: Wal-Mart, AT&T, Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, Bank of America, Microsoft, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase.

The truth about Georgia gets censored again on TV

August 18th, 2008 by CD

The Truth about Georgia gets censored again on TV. A reporter makes a comparison to the US reaction to 911 to Russia’s reaction to Georgian attacks and the satellite feed drops off in the middle of his question. TV is censored every day and every hour but sometimes the censorship is plain to see.

I feel the laugh at the end is very meaningful.

Click here to see the video….

The truth about South Ossetia, Georgia attack Russia responded

August 18th, 2008 by CD

The coverage of the western media has been abysmal. Nearly every article and TV news segment begins with accusations of Russian aggression concealing the fact that the Georgian Army bombarded and invaded the capital of South Ossetia one full day before the first Russian even tank crossed the border. By the time the Russians arrived, the city was already in a shambles and thousands were dead.

McCain: A complete idiot “Nations don’t invade other nations”

August 15th, 2008 by CD

So says John McCain, as part of his tough talk about Russia’s attacks on Georgia. In calling for Russia to get out, McCain says he doesn’t think we’ll reignite the Cold War, but that you can’t justify the “extent and degree” of Russia’s intervention in Georgia. The presumptive Republican nominee insists that we need to make sure that in the 21st century, we all have respect for the sovereignty and independence of nations.

Say what? The United States invaded the sovereign nation of Iraq more than 5 years ago. And you, Senator McCain, were all for the idea. You voted for the war, remember? At the time, McCain insisted that the U.S. needed to act before Saddam Hussein could develop more advanced weapons. And since then, McCain has remained steadfast in his support of arguably the biggest foreign policy blunder in the history of this country. At one point, McCain said U-S troops could remain in Iraq, a sovereign nation, for 100 years.

Pike’s family sues LA city for wrongful taser death

August 14th, 2008 by CD

In Louisiana, the family of a police taser victim has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against city officials in the town of Winnfield. Baron Pikes died on January 17 from electrocution after a police officer shot him nine times with a taser. Pikes had been in handcuffs at the time. His death has been ruled a homicide. Pikes was the first cousin of Mychal Bell, the lead defendant in the Jena Six case. The lawsuit comes as a grand jury has begun convening on whether to charge the police officer involved.

ll Mare: I’m Crying by Ji Young Seon

August 12th, 2008 by CD

From the movie Il Mare - “I’m Crying” sung by Ji Young Seon.

Enjoy (requires Quicktime)

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