The Friends of California Libre...

01 December 2003

Thanksgiving Leftovers

Greetings, friends,
WHAT! Thanksgiving leftovers!
Not in this house. I'm on a no-leftover diet (sorry, Tracy and Christine), so you get to keep all the yum-yum. Perhaps my Aunt Nona has a suggestion (see the enclosed cartoon.) But now that December is upon us and the last moon of 2003 is waxing in the west, it's time to redouble our efforts on behalf of our fellows (and each other, natch). I'll continue to distribute screeds, tasty snacks, bottles of liquor and weird movies (just to name a few) from this location throughout the month! How will YOU participate in the Hannukah/Christmas/Kwanzaa celebration?

For starters, remember not to s**t where you eat (thanks, Jennifer):
WHAT YOU CAN DO is Please DO NOT SHOP AT Vons, Pavilions, Ralph's, Safeway or Albertson's! I have not shopped there for the entire duration of this strike, and let me tell you, it is not that hard to find alternatives. Go at less "crowded" times instead of after work and weekends. Find a local small store and give them some business, you might like it as well as the big stores anyway. Find a local area Farmer's Market for fresh produce and bakery items - it's better for you and the local economy anyway. Also check out: http://www.saveourhealthcare.org./altshop.html for alternate stores to shop at in your area.

Thanks for reading this, and let others know as well - Support these workers during the holidays.
*************************************************************************************************
Mike's Department of Homeland Security
From the United States Government in Exile
Sunday, November 16th, 2003
CRISIS SITUATION:

Almost one month ago, we used this space to alert people to the supermarket strike taking place in Southern California. More than 70,000 members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union have been locked out of their jobs by these supermarket chains: Vons, Ralph's, and Albertson's. Von's is owned by grocery giant Safeway, while Ralph's is owned by the country's largest grocery store chain, Krogers.

Since October 12th, these workers have been holding the line, standing up for decent treatment from their employers. With giant corporations demanding wholesale cuts in health benefits that would leave current workers unable to pay for their care--and effectively leave future employees without any health care coverage at all--workers have joined together to fight back. The strike is no longer centered only in Southern California, having spread to Northern California, West Virginia, and Ohio.

Even though operating profits for Kroger, Safeway, and Albertson's over the past decade have risen ten times faster than their contributions to worker health care in Southern California, the companies insist on what amounts to a 50 percent cut in medical benefits that would shift almost a billion dollars in health care costs onto employees over the term of the proposed contract.

Find out more about their fight for decent health care, and how their fight is a fight for all Americans and for Corporate responsibility: CLICK HERE.

Read testimonials from some of the striking workers here. For even more information, check out the UFCW's California based Local 135.

YOUR MISSION:
These companies are stubbornly holding to a belief that they can treat employees badly and their customers will neither notice nor care. Let's let these bad boys know just what we think of these despicable actions:

Vons and Safeway:
Customer Call Center: 1.877.723.3929 Corporate Headquarters: 925.467.3000 E-Mail Form

Ralphs: 1.888.437.3496 E-Mail Form

Kroger (Parent of Ralphs):
Customer Call Center: 1.866.221.4141 Executive Officers: 513.762.4000 E-Mail Form

Albertsons:
Toll Free Line: 1.888.746.7252 Corporate Headquarters: 208.395.6200 E-Mail: absfeedback@albertsons.com

Give these companies a call or drop them a line and tell them to share their wealth with their workers. Tell them to protect their workers. Tell them to respect their workers.

If you are in California, support the striking workers. Most importantly, don't cross any picket lines. Encourage your friends to do the same. If you are not in California, but regularly shop at a Vons, Ralphs, Albertsons, Safeway, or Krogers--find another grocery store for the time being.

You can download a petition from the Los Angeles Strikers Solidarity Organization HERE. Print it up, take it around your community, take it to your local grocery store, get it signed and send it back.

Also, if you'd like to help the strikers and their families, you can donate time and money to the Union. For Local 770, you can make your donations here.

Let's let these companies know they can't walk over their employees and expect to get away with it. We are watching and listening, and we know what they're up to.

Thank you, Michael Moore! And if you're not yet convinced of the danger Wal-Mart poses to our civilization, check this out (thanks, Geri):
http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/South/11/29/sprj.hs03.trampled.shopper.ap/index.html

Although this website frankly made me hungry, for those interested in factory farming of animals, it's the MEATRIX (thanks, Josh and Andrea):
http://www.bancruelfarms.org/meatrix/

There must be other ways for us to get our tasty MEAT:
Cops Seize 756 Pounds of Smuggled Bologna
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031124/ap_on_fe_st/odds_and_ends

How about a tasty vegetarian diet (thanks, Monde)?
Psyche's "Holland Green" Style Christmas Cookies:
Ingredients:
1 cup water
4 large eggs
2 cups dried fruit
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 cup brown sugar
I cup flour
1/2 lb mixed nuts
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 oz. highest quality marijuana

First of all, you should open your bag and sample the marijuana, to ascertain that it is of top quality.
Take a large bowl. Toke a large bale.
Turn on the electric mixer (try plugging it in first) and beat one cup of sugar in a fluffy bowl. Add one teaspoon of sugar and beat.
Make sure the marijuana is still OK...test it to be really sure it is the highest quality possible. Pack one level bowl and smoke. Repeat if necessary.
Turn off the mixer. Break two legs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of fried druit. Mix on the turner. Flour the ad and spin clockwise for 3 minutes. If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers, pry it loose with a scrydroover. Taste the marijuana to check for tonsisticity.
Next, pour in two cups of salt, or something or other white. Who cares? Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table to spoon for sugar......or, um...something.....whatever you can find.....Betel nuts? Kumquat rinds? Pomelo juice? Whatever.
Add some Dill Weed. Subtract some Pot Weed, so that it ends up even. Grease the Pot. Er, pan. Fire the oven. Turn the cake tin to 450 filigrees hairinflight. Don't forget to beat off the tuner.
Now find some corny strings and linkinbrights. While waiting for your cookies to bake, feel free to share the experience and become baked. Smoke the Christmas tree. Decorate the marijuana. When the dinger kitchen bells helling, run there, fast!
You should now have two bowls turning black, with wisps of smoke slowly rising out of them. Take one bowl and light it; throw the other one out the window. Be careful not to hit Father Christmas, though!
Check the marijuana again. Give Father Christmas a hit.
Go to bed and watch sugar plums dance, and perhaps even join them for a tango. Beat a bongo, smoke a bong. Do a fandango from Durango. Bang a gong. Get it on...
But most of all...have a Hairy Christ Mess, and a Harpy You Near!
-Demitria M. "Psyche" Thraam, (with help from her Britannia pal, "Aging Hippie")

Even our elected leaders are adopting a vegetarian diet (albeit with plenty of DC LARD):
A slight thaw, but U.S. is sticking to 'freedom fries'
By Brian Knowlton/IHT
http://www.iht.com./articles/118453.htm

Meanwhile, across the world in Iran, a different kind of holiday cheer:
Riot as tiger-woman rumours dashed

Don't these people have enough trouble?
Israel threatens strikes on Iranian nuclear targets
TEL AVIV vows to take unilateral action if the West fails to halt Tehran's atomic programme.
Full article: http://www.news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=1292472003

Okay, let's shift gears slightly to the more serious. Those looking for inspiration might find some in the designs for the World Trade Center memorial in New York City. Here's the eight finalists for your perusal:
http://www.wtcsitememorial.org/finalists.html

While on both sides of the Atlantic, kids are dancing through the holidays, not a care for the problems of the world; the new trend is to replace the turntable with...you guessed...the IPOD (thanks, Miles):
MP3Jing:
http://www.methodshop.com/mp3/articles/mp3dj/ipoddj.stm

Mr. Lightwood also offers this suggestion to those who feel guilty about all the music they stole for their IPOD:
"So send them back! We did... and we feel great!"
http://www.sendthemback.org/

Over in Europe, technology is being applied more seriously:
** Firm considers 'son of Concorde' **
A faster, quieter successor to Concorde is being considered by aerospace giant EADS, the group confirms.
< http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/business/3231354.stm >

Well, maybe not:
Berlin to Get Trash Cans That Can Talk
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031120/ap_on_fe_st/germany_talking_trash_cans

While we play with toys, our planet is in peril:
Crimes Against Nature
By Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Rolling Stone
Bush is sabotaging the laws that have protected America's environment for more than thirty years.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/112103C.shtml

But fortunately for Mister Bush, far more important things are going on...yes, forget about the riots in Miami, massive protests in London, the continuing war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 2004 election, or the massive budget cuts being proprosed by our own Governor Schwarzenegger. There's one event going on that will change the very future of planet Earth:
George W. Bush Loves Michael Jackson
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t Perspective
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/112103A.shtml

By the way, can I just state that NO, I do not know where you can go on the Internet to see the "Paris Hilton Sex Tapes". Could such a thing possibly be FREE? And WHO CARES? I put this one right up with Michael Jackson. Heiresses of the world, be on your guard.

Also, to the same inquisitive soul, thank you for the link to what appears to be a pornographic site for hippies! I offer a disclaimer straight off: Just because a woman doesn't shave her armpits does not make her a hippie. I spent four years in Berkeley and know what of I speak. In my experience, two kinds of women "let it grow", 1) Powerful, and 2) Lazy. That's my two bits.

Okay, to move along, not everyone in entertainment is that bad. I found this little tidbit on the web that may interest the film lovers among you...PS No, I don't agree with some of the judgments...
Here's an interesting list of the 40 best film directors working today,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/fridayreview/story/0,12102,1084266,00.html
-------
The world's 40 best directors
The Hollywood blockbuster may be in crisis, but the art of the cinema is as healthy as ever. Our panel of critics picks out the film-makers who are leading the way
Peter Bradshaw, Xan Brooks, Molly Haskell, Derek Malcolm, Andrew Pulver, B Ruby Rich and Steve Rose
Thursday November 13 2003
The Guardian

And finally, two websites that make you wonder what some people are doing in their spare time. Warning...if you don't have sound on your computer, the second website will make no sense (or should I say, less sense than it does already)(thanks, Geri):
http://www.mudflapboy.com/
http://www.zombo.com/

Vive le Screed!

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