[pjw] REPORT BACK: I love peace: Friday rally #218 since stay-at-home orders

[Peace and Justice Works]

Iraq Affinity Group supporters

We had a total of nine people at the Friday Rally for Peace and Justice 
last night-- eight at the rally and eight on the march, with one person 
departing and one joining after the announcements. We also had an oddly 
large number of negative comments being shouted our way, beginning with a 
person who passed by and said "so you love terrorists?" I don't know if 
they heard me but I replied, "No, I love peace." Many of the other insults 
came from people who were driving by so were mostly unintelligible. We 
also had plenty of honking horns in support. I'm not sure whether some of 
the hostility was due to a few signs that said "No War on Russia," which 
was to accompany the updated Iraq Affinity Group statement on the war in 
Ukraine that we released yesterday.

  https://pjw.info/ukraine_statement0524.pdf

On that note, we began this week with updates specifically about the 
re-invigorated war in Europe, and then other news stories:

--I began by noting a fact from the statement that the US has now spent or 
set aside over $180 billion for Ukraine since the war started in February 
2022, equivalent to 20% of the US military budget. (Though a stickler 
might point out if you prorated it over the two years that's 10%/year).

--Ukraine has asked NATO to send trainers into the country. Apparently 
there have been at least 97 trainers from the Alliance in Ukraine for the 
past year.

  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/05/16/ukrainian-officials-ask-nato-to-send-troops-for-training-inside-ukraine/

---But most of the training now is happening in other countries. For 
instance, Germany expelled seven Ukrainian soldiers training in their 
country because the soldiers were sporting Nazi symbols on their uniforms. 
The source here, Ynet, is an Israeli news source.

  https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hydtdcxmr

--This fight has been declared a battle for democracy. But Ukraine 
canceled its elections for the second time in two years, I guess to 
perpetuate martial law longer. Secretary of Chaos Antony Blinken is fine 
with the contradiction.

  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/05/14/blinken-justifies-zelenskys-decision-to-cancel-ukrainian-elections/

--Meanwhile to the other current "great war," the House voted 224-187 to 
try forcing President Biden to deliver the withheld 3000 bombs to 
Israel. It's not a 2/3 majority so Biden said he'd veto it if the 
Senate tries too. All Oregon Democrats voted against (both R's for).

  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/05/16/house-passes-bill-that-would-force-biden-to-give-paused-bomb-shipment-to-israel/

---South Africa, following up on its petition leading to a ruling that 
Israel could be engaged in genocide, asked the International Court of 
Justice to halt the attack on Rafah.

  https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/watch-live-icj-hear-south-africa-request-halt-israel-offensive-rafah-gaza

---In the US, a Jewish Interior Department appointee quit over the 
policy in Israel... yes, due to the treatment of Palestinians, she says.

  https://apnews.com/article/resignation-gaza-war-biden-israel-a55c20d136f08127d16bce6ced1af82d

---... and a Defense Intelligence Agency analyst said he also is quitting 
because of the policies.

  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/05/13/us-army-officer-resigns-over-unqualified-support-for-israeli-slaughter-in-gaza/

---On the other side of Israel from Gaza, two children and one adult 
were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.

  https://www.arabnews.com/node/2511976/middle-east

--For the first time in weeks (that I've read about, let me know if I 
missed something) the US bombed Yemen again, this time hitting "uncrewed" 
aerial systems. I guess they somehow know whether any people were there?

  https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-801352

--And continuing their newfound freedom to act outside their borders (due 
to a water rights deal I told you about a few weeks ago), Turkey killed 12 
people in northern Iraq.

  https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-says-it-killed-pkk-members-northern-iraq-strikes-2024-05-15/

In local news, the oversight system that was voted upon in 2020 is a 
little closer to being instituted, perhaps. In court on Wednesday, the 
City said they had forwarded the proposed City Code for review by the US 
Department of Justice. This is the code that stripped most of the 
provisions designed by the Police Accountability Commission from the 
community-led board.

The oversight system is on the City Council agenda for Wednesday at 3:45 
PM, but while the DOJ is looking over the watered-down proposal, the code 
is only three sentences long and creates the "Community Police Oversight 
System," so... they're admitting this is a real POS?

  https://www.portland.gov/council/documents/ordinance/amend-city-code-reflect-charter-reform

Also, Judge Simon failed to condemn the Police Association for filing a 
ballot measure that would overturn the 2020 initiative, seeming more 
concerned about their free speech rights than that they lied in court in 
2022 when they said they thought putting the new system in place was 
"fair, adequate and reasonable" to fix the problems that arose in the 
protests of 2020.

Oh, and one more thing, Commissioner Rene Gonzalez called Portland 
Copwatch an "extremist" group after we testified that officers under 
investigation or facing discipline for misconduct who retire should not be 
eligible for a new rehiring program that lets them collect their pension 
and a salary and keep working.

Along the march route, I noted that real extremist Israeli settlers set 
fire tot he UNRWA building in Jerusalem. No, that's not a repeat of last 
week's story, they burned the building a second time.

  https://www.newarab.com/news/israeli-extremists-set-fire-unrwa-hq-east-jerusalem

To their credit, Senate Democrats are saying that if there's going to be a 
lifting on the cap for military spending, there must be an equal increase, 
dollar for dollar, on human needs spending. The Republicans are refusing, 
saying defense spending is more important.

  https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4669408-mcconnell-collins-on-collision-course-with-democrats-over-spending-parity/
The Ann Huntwork Peace Memorial Sign went out at the "Mystery Spot" across 
from the Apple store where two little squares on the sidewalk mark the 
former location of a (mystery) metal box that was removed along with the 
MAX station. Does anyone remember the phone number for the Ghostbusters?

OK, remember that we are out every week, rain or shine, at Pioneer 
Courthouse Square's southwest corner if you want to join us to promote 
a better planet.

peace
--dan handelman
peace and justice works iraq affinity group

PS I accidentally re-used the title from rally #216 on the email last week 
due to my being overly tired. Oops!