Issues & News From STSSA Friends & Family 01/14/2011
Pole Shift
The Skyworld cometh…
Tucson ...Notes via Twitter from Michael Moore
Sunday, January 9th, 2011
Here are Michael Moore's comments that he posted throughout the day yesterday on Twitter as the tragic events unfolded in Tucson. There is much that isn't known at this moment about the shooter, but one thing thatis known is the climate of hate and violence that exists these days. And yesterday wasn't the first time Congresswoman Giffords was a target of this violence. Nor was she its only victim (please read the link about 9-year-old Christina-Taylor Green, a young girl who was born on 9/11 and died yesterday in a sad and tortured post-9/11 world).
Mike's postings include links that provide context and background that the mainstream media is dancing around and hoping to avoid. (If you'd like to get his updates and analysis of this and other events each day, sign uphere.)
Our condolences go out to all the victims and their families.
Webmaster,
MichaelMoore.com
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Dem Rep Giffords shot in head in Az. Sarah Palin had put CROSSHAIRS/ BULLSEYE on Giffords on her website! OUTRAGE! http://mmflint.me/
When Rep Giffords voted in favor of health care bill, her office in Tucson was attacked & vandalized.http://mmflint.me/
Palin "set gun sights on 20 Dems (including Giffords)." http://mmflint.me/
In 2009, another gun nut showed up where Rep Giffords was speaking (at another Safeway) & dropped his gunhttp://mmflint.me/gPnApk
Giffords opponent held June event 2 "Shoot a Fully Automatic M16" to "Get on Target" & "Remove Gabrielle Giffords" http://mmflint.me/
When Palin put crosshairs on a map w/ Rep. Giffords & 19 other Dem congressmen/women, she urged followers to "reload" & "aim" for Democrats.
RT @RichardKimNYC Giffords was impt brave ally in fight to defeat 2006 AZ anti-gay marriage initiative. i covered in brief http://tinyurl.com/
Past photo of alleged Tucson shooter (in background) http://yfrog.com/
Stunning admission by Tucson sheriff: Arizona "a mecca" of hate & bigotry which unhinges the unbalancedhttp://mmflint.me/
Thanks, Keith, 4 ur powerful Special Comment just now & 4 mentioning Glenn Beck's violent fantasies:http://mmflint.me/
Christina Green was the 9yr old killed. She was born on 9/11. Was on student council & only girl on baseball team. http://mmflint.me/dOs1oY
If a Detroit Muslim put a map on the web w/crosshairs on 20 pols, then 1 of them got shot, where would he b sitting right now? Just asking.
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Tribal Council Postponed Due to Inclement Weather; Rescheduled for Next Week
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For The HTML Format of the Newsletter:
(Having Problems With The Links? Try this version instead.) http://www.cherokee.
AOL - http://www.cherokee.org/
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Osiyo,
Tonight's Cherokee Nation Tribal Council meeting and all committee meetings for today, January 10 and tomorrow January 11 have been rescheduled due to inclement weather to Monday, January 17. You can watch the council meetings live at www.cherokee.org.
The popular online Cherokee Language Course starts this week and there are still some openings! More information and registration can be found here: http://signup.cherokee.
Wado! (Thank you)
Cherokee Nation
P.O.Box 948
Tahlequah, OK 74465
918 453-5000
communications@cherokee.org
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***Cherokee Nation News***
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Cherokee Citizen Tapped as Senior Advisor for Prestigious Law Firm: 1/10/2011
(C) Cherokee Nation
Casey Sixkiller is the first to admit that his surname attracts its fair share of raised eyebrows.
“We’ve heard various stories [about its origin],” Sixkiller said. “In Cherokee Nation, there’s everything from Onekillers through Tenkillers. People tell me, ‘Oh, you’re just about average.’”
http://www.cherokee.org/news.
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**** Other Links of Interest ****
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Games - http://www.cherokee.org/
Community Calendar - http://www.cherokee.org/
RSS Feed - http://rss.cherokee.org
Podcasts - http://podcasts.cherokee.org
E-Cards - http://ecards.cherokee.org
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**** Cultural Tidbits ****
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1822: Cherokee Supreme Court established.
AIM Santa Maria will be having an open AIM meeting this month .
AIM SM is open to supporters with the following qualities:
put your family first
willing to work hard
honest, especially with follow through
have a great sense of humor
team player
confidence WITHOUT a huge ego
please do not respond if you are struggeling with the following:
don't pay child support
have a drug or alcohol problem that you are not seeking treatment for
have a mental health issues & just don't want to take those meds
have an anger management problem & beat up the ones you love
"know your Native" but don't know what tribe you are or much else
We are not a social club and we can not "teach" you about being "Native" -
for serious inquiries contact:
aimsb@ymail.com and an address will be emailed back to you.
http://www.facebook.com/l/
Natives demonstrate outside Seattle inquest for fatal shooting of woodcarver
About a dozen protesters, including Native Americans, gathered Monday morning at the King County Courthouse on the first day of an inquest into Seattle police Officer Ian Birk's fatal shooting of First Nations woodcarver John T. Williams.
Outraged by what they consider an unjustified shooting, some marchers wore headbands saying "4 seconds to death," a reference to the time between when Birk first ordered Williams to drop a knife and the fatal shots.
"Sometimes you just have to draw the line," said Abe Johnny, a First Nations member of the Cowichan band who has lived in Seattle since 1953. "The Seattle Police Department has to follow their own policies. Do they mean 'justice for all,' or do they mean 'justice for just us?' "
The demonstrators moved into the courthouse for the 9 a.m. start of the inquest, which comes more than four months after the Aug. 30 shooting. Security is tight at the proceeding, with an added metal detector on the floor where the hearing is to be held.
As proceedings began, protesters listening to a TV feed in an overflow courtroom took a moment to pray for justice.
Williams, 50, a street inebriate who was a member of the Ditidaht band of the Nuu-Chah-Nulth First Nations in British Columbia, was struck by four bullets.
Still unknown is whether Birk will testify or invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. If he does, it likely won't happen before Tuesday morning.
Birk, 27, who joined the Police Department in July 2008, has previously said he feared for his life when Williams didn't respond to his commands to drop a knife.
Williams died in a burst of gunfire witnessed by pedestrians and people in cars during the late-afternoon rush hour.
Some witnesses told police that Williams did not act in a threatening manner and are expected to testify at the inquest. Their recollections will be crucial in sorting out an incident that was only partly captured on the dashboard video camera in Birk's patrol car.
Three of John T. Williams' sisters traveled by bus Sunday from Vancouver, B.C. to attend the hearing. Nancy and Linda Williams brought their carving tools with them, intending to work throughout the week they are here for the proceedings. All of the Williams family are carvers since childhood, and they carve both for a living, and because, as Nancy puts it, "it's who we are."
John Williams was born at Harborview Medical Center, and made Seattle his home most of his life. Two of Wiliams' brothers, Rick and Eric, live in Seattle. The rest of the family is in B.C., including his mother, Ida who has said she believes her son was murdered.
Protester Doreen McGrath said she stood in the cold and snow with the others early Monday as a show of solidarity. "I want to see justice served," she said. "I want to see the police held accountable."
Inquest jurors will answer questions at the end of the proceeding, including some likely to touch on whether Williams posed a threat to Birk. A final list of questions won't be prepared until the jury hears all the evidence.
The jury's answers, which do not have to be unanimous, could indicate whether they think Birk was justified. But the jury will not be asked to reach a criminal or civil finding.
Its answers will be considered by the King County Prosecutor's Office in determining whether a criminal charge against Birk is warranted.
Information from Seattle Times archives is included in this story.
Steve Miletich: 206-464-3302 or smiletich@seattletimes.com
Lynda V. Mapes: 206-464-2736 or lmapes@seattletimes.com
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Posted By: TjMaxx Henhawk
To: Members in First Nations & Aboriginal Rights
Seattle Officer 'Surprised' That Woodcarver's Knife Was Found Closed
SEATTLE -- The Seattle police officer who fatally shot a Native American woodcarver in August testified at an inquest hearing on Wednesday that he was surprised to find that the knife the man was holding was closed after the shooting.
Officer Ian Birk shot John T. Williams on August 30.
In his second day of testimony on Tuesday, Birk said that Williams was not responsive the day of the shooting and took an aggressive stance when told to drop his knife.
Related: Seattle Officer Testifies In Inquest Into Fatal Woodcarver Shooting
Under questioning from the Williams family attorney, Tim Ford, Birk role-played as if he were Williams.
"The knife is up in front of him, and he's not doing anything like putting his hands up, or looking confused, or asking me what's going on, or showing any sign of compliance whatsoever," Birk said. "All I got from him, the only information I got from him, was aggression directed toward me."
Ford showed Birk the knife that Williams was carrying and said that when Birk approached the body, Birk saw that the knife was closed.
"Did you think, 'My God, the knife is closed'?" Ford asked.
"Nothing of that specific nature went through my mind," Birk said. "It did surprise me that the knife was closed, having just seen Mr. Williams holding the knife open in his hand. So I have no idea how that knife was closed (or) if it was the knife I saw initially or not."
A friend of Williams remained suspicious after the day's testimony.
"How did that knife get closed at that time at that specific time?" the friend asked.
Dashboard camera video indicated that Birk shot Williams four seconds after asking him to drop the knife.
Birk concluded his testimony on Wednesday.
The inquest jury's next task is to hear from witnesses.
At the end of the inquest, the jury will be asked a series of questions, which will help prosecutors determine whether to pursue criminal charges against Birk.
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Some Big Indians Grab Iron Ore in Nunavut
The Imperial Global Elitist Plan Continues to Unfold
Detailed Report
January 11, 2011
A battle has been waging in the financial markets since September over Baffinland Iron Mines BIM. The giant steel producer, ArcelorMittal AM has been trying to buy up 100% of the yet to be developed but huge iron deposits on Baffin Island 160 kilometres south of Pond Inlet in Nunavut Territory. Their adversary, Nunavut Iron Ore Acquisitions has been manoeuvering to gain controlling interests in BIM.
The directors of Baffinland Iron Mines are advising the shareholders to take the latest ArcelorMittal offer of about $551million. The head of BIM, Richard D. McCloskey, the second largest shareholder, stands to make $millions. BIM's largest shareholder is private equity firm Resource Capital Funds RCF, based in Denver Colorado. David Thomas is RCF's Toronto representative.
The Inuit people of Nunavut, the Nunavummiut, are uneasy and have no say in the deal. The bids keep getting higher and higher. Some greedy elitists are set to make a lot of money. This is bad news for the Inuit people and for steel workers everywhere.
THE CONTENDERS:
Nunavut Iron Ore Acquisitions was set up for the express purpose of bidding on Baffinland Iron Mines. It is wholly owned by US-based Iron Ore Holdings which is owned by Canadian professional dealmaker Bruce Walter, former consultant to BIM Jowdat Waheed, and "funds" managed by the Energy & Minerals Group EMG, based in Dallas, Texas. Typically, EMG is providing the majority of the equity financing. Investors are people who like their money to work for them. They are willing to take big financial risks for big gains.
Nunavut Iron Ore is currently negotiating with the Ontario Securities Commission to keep them in the bidding. Though the deal is not officially final yet, the continued bidding keeps the price going up and up. It looks obvious that AM will win the prized iron ore deposits.
ArcelorMittal claims about 10% of global steel production with operations in the whole process from mining and milling the iron ore through smelting to selling various steel products. It already has 26 per cent of Baffinland in so-called "lockup agreements" with Baffinland board members and RCF. Their focus markets are China and India where they are stockpiling steel for future use.
Steel is needed for thousands of bomber planes, ships and all kinds of trucks being built for militaries all over the world to wage war and control resource plunder. The Canadian military industry is a big part of this imperial picture. ArcelorMittal anticipate lots of business. The costs in human suffering are not included in their ledgers.
Lakshmi Mittal is Chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal while chip off the ole block, Aditya Mittal is chief financial officer.
Lakshmi is one of the 2010 top ten billionaires in the world. He owns the most expensive house in England. Is this some kinda reverse colonialism?? Born in India, Lakshmi went to the Jesuit College, St. Xavier's in Calcutta and owned his own steel business at the age of 26. He wanted to go global. He bought up companies in Canada and Germany and then Kazakhstan where he "saved" the national economy.
Lakshmi created Mittal Steel in 2004 "via a takeover of his private company, “LNM” by his public one; Ispat. Mittal Steel became the largest steelmaker in the world, with shipments of 42.1 million tons of steel and profits of over $22 billion in 2004".
With merger after merger, Lakshmi finally joined the big Luxembourg-based Arcelor Steel, a company created through a merger of firms from Spain, France, Luxembourg and Belgium, to his Mittal, creating an even bigger top global steel producer. ArcelorMittal then launched into a worldwide commodities boom that has seen steel prices skyrocket from $240 a tonne in 2002 to $1,000 in 2009. Arcelor Mittal was the first to produce more than 100 million tonnes of steel a year.
Lakshmi had achieved his dream but he kept on going. Seems guys like Lakshmi get a big rush from wielding power and wealth. The company's goal is to produce 200 million tons per year by 2015.
Zbigniew Brzezinski describes people like Lakshmi Mittal,
"A...general phenomenon is the appearance of a distinct global elite with a globalist outlook and a transnational loyalty. Fluent in English and using that language to conduct its business, the new global elite is characterized by high mobility, a cosmopolitan lifestyle and a primary commitment to the workplace, typically a transnational business or financial corporation. Non-native senior executives within such firms are now common with 20 percent of Europe's largest companies even directed by indiviudlals who once would have been considered foreigners. The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum WEF [chaired by the ubiquitous Maurice Strong] has become a party congress for the new global elite: top politicians, financial tycoons, captains of commerce, media moguls, academic heavyweights and even rock stars. That elite increasingly displays its own distinctive sense of interest, camaraderie and identity."
Needless to say, Lakshmi Mittal is part of the IN club at the WEF. He is a member of its International Business Council.
IMPERIAL DESIGNS
ArcelorMittal is a Corporate Member of Chatham House, originally known as the Royal Institute of International Affairs. Chatham House is the headquarters in St James's Square, London, England for a global network of groups or "round tables" with the job of maintaining and sustaining British imperialism.
According to Carroll Quigley,
"The Round Table Groups were semi-secret discussion and lobbying groups organized by Lionel Curtis, Philip H. Kerr (Lord Lothian), and (Sir) William S. Marris in 1908-1911. This was done on behalf of Lord Milner, the dominant Trustee of the Rhodes Trust in the two decades 1905-1925.
"The original purpose of these groups was to seek to federate the English-speaking world along lines laid down by Cecil Rhodes (1853-1902) and William T. Stead, (1840-1912), and the money for the organizational work came originally from the Rhodes Trust.
"By 1915 Round Table groups existed in seven countries, including England, South Africa, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, and a rather loosely organized group in the United States..." which became the Council on Foreign Relations CFR. Canada has the Canadian International Council CIC.
Another corporate member of Chatham House, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), has a membership of 15,000 Parliamentarians in Commonwealth, ie British imperial countries around the globe.
THE VICTIMS
Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak told the Globe and Mail the proposed deal [to sell Baffinland Iron Mines to ArcelorMittal] is "good news for Nunavut."
"I hope they'll invest in our people as much as they've invested in the mine," she said.
The Nunavut premier was recently dazzled by money when the Canadian government promised $1billion to Nunavut for schools, health clinics and government infrastructure where the bureaucrats can hang out in comfort while robbing the Indigenous. It's not all that different from the days of the Hudson's Bay Company. It's still colonialism.
This one mine is going for $1/2billion. There is plenty of other mineral wealth in Nunavut like uranium, diamonds, zinc and gold. Most of the riches from the land and the profits will be leaving the territory with the pirates. They'll scurry away as they have always done and always do, avoiding responsibility for the huge mess they have made.
Communities in the North are still relatively isolated. Contact with the outside world is expensive and many people still do not speak English. Conversely, traveling to the North is costly.
What do people in the North know about global corporatists and their selfish plans for pillage and plunder? They're about to find out. For that matter, what do people in the South know about Indigenous struggles in the face of climate change in the Arctic? The Inuit are on the front lines of 21st century resource extraction. The Canadian oligarchs are paving the way for a free for all in the North.
ArcelorMittal already owns mines and processing plants in Cree/Innu territory in Quebec, producing 40% of Canadian iron ore for global use.
According to their web site,
"ArcelorMittal Mines Canada operates two large open-pit mines: one in Mont-Wright, the largest of its kind in North America, and one in Fire Lake. Also at Mont-Wright ... a concentrator, massive workshops and an automated concentrate train loading system. The site is linked by Company rail to the Port-Cartier industrial complex [on the St. Lawrence River], which comprises the pellet plant, storage areas and port facilities for shipping."
With frequent blasting at the Mont-Wright mine, the billions of tons of iron ore are being dug up by a workforce of 1,000. The mine site covers 24 square kilometres. An endless convoy of 250-ton trucks make 1,000 trips daily with the raw ore. It's a non-stop 24-7 energy-consuming, polluting, destructive assault on the land.
The processing of the ore also uses large quantities of electricity and water. ArcelorMittal says they'll clean up their growing tailings ponds when the mining is done. They get cheap electricity from the Quebec government who stole it from Cree territory through the destructive James Bay hydro projects.
DIRT ON ARCELORMITTAL
ArcelorMittal likes to cut corners. They have a reputation for making the cuts on their workers' wages and pensions. They would rather dismantle the plant and close the doors before paying higher wages to workers. As true global corporatists, ArcelorMittal would then shift operations to another country where wages are very low. Safety and environmental violations are widespread too.
Last June, several thousand workers went on indefinite strike over wages at ArcelorMittal's steel plant in Algeria. Algerians are also resisting the privatization of industries in their country.
In 1998, Lakshmi Mittal purchased the Irish Steel plant based in Cork from the government for a nominal fee of £1. Three years later, the plant was closed, leaving 400 people redundant. Subsequent environmental issues at the site have been a cause for criticism. The Government tried to sue in the High Court to have Mittal pay for the clean-up of Cork Harbour but failed. The clean up was expected to cost €70m. (wiki)
According to one report, "...191 people have died in accidents in the past 12 years at Mittal's Kazakhstan operations, where campaigners argue that more money should have been spent on safety measures. The company has strongly rejected allegations of negligence, but later earmarked an extra $1.2bn for improvements."
According to Wikipedia,
"In Kazakhstan, employees of Mittal have accused him of "slave labour" conditions after multiple fatalities in his mines. During December 2004, twenty-three miners died in explosions in Mittal mines in Kazakhstan caused by faulty gas detectors."
While manufacturing is way down in the US, the financial sector is booming for investors and financiers. Roger Bybee describes it this way,
"Money could be made solely out of money, without the intervention of actual production. The new secret was presumed to be leverage and risk management, which allowed the purchase of assets that promised higher returns even if they carried a higher risk.
"This was both an economic and a political development, as the financial sector gained leverage over the rest of the economy, in effect gaining the power to dictate priorities to debtors, vulnerable corporations, and governments. As its power grew, it could demand greater deregulation, allowing it to grow still further and endangering the stability of the larger financial system.
"“The decimation of employment in legacy American brands such as General Motors is a trend that’s likely to continue,” said Robert E. Hall, an economist at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution."
Wiki reveals, "In December 2008, ArcelorMittal announced several plant closings, including the former Bethlehem Steel plant in Lackawanna, New York and LTV Steel in Hennepin, Illinois."
After ArcelorMittal rushed to dismantle complex, custom-built ovens and other equipment that would take months to replace, the Lackawanna workers were able to find a friendly buyer at the last minute, no thanks to ArcelorMittal who had already moved on to other prey.
"On 30 June 2010, the European Commission fined 17 steel producers a total of €518M for running a price-fixing cartel, with ArcelorMittal being hit the hardest." (Wiki)
That means ArcelorMittal was the leader of the pack and stood to gain or lose the most, depending on the final outcome. It's a dog eat dog world out there, they tell us.
The global village isn't looking very friendly. Yet, we know somehow it doesn't have to be that way.
Already tottering on the brink of complete collapse, capitalism depends on market growth and constant development. It is not a sustainable system. With consumer manufacturing at a glut, there is only one option left for the capitalists, the military one. Constant warfare means more machines and weapons and the constant need for reconstruction.
The imperial, colonial economic system of capitalism must be scrapped and replaced with a more balanced system. How much longer can the People and other Life Forms of the Earth bear the burden for the elitists and their fears and insatiable desires? Enuf is Enuf!
Kittoh
<kittoh@storm.ca>
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Notes, Sources, Contact Info and More Info for the Relentless Reader
BAFFINLAND IRON MINES CORPORATION
You can view images from this link. It does not appear that any actual mining has gone on yet. What is painfully evident is the lack of ice and snow.
http://www.baffinland.com/
Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation (TSX: BIM ) is a Canadian publicly-traded junior mining company that is focused on its 100%-owned Mary River iron ore deposits located about 160 kilometres south of Pond Inlet, Baffin Island, Nunavut Territory, Canada.
Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation
Daniella Dimitrov Director and Vice Chair
416-814-3172
info@baffinland.com
DFH Public Affairs 416-206-0118
Baffinland Iron Mines
120 Adelaide Street West, Toronto, ON M5H 1T1
(416) 364-8820
BIM recently signed a joint venture agreement with Nunavut Tunngavik Inc ("NTI"). The mine hasn't even gotten started yet they are thinking ahead about "the potential in the future for the mining operation to be extended by increasing mine life and/or production rate".
On February 11, 2009, the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada ("INAC") referred the Project to a Part 5 review under Article 12 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement ("NLCA"). This referral was made in response to the recommendations of the Nunavut Impact Review Board's ("NIRB") Screening Report completed after a positive conformity of the Project to the North Baffin Regional Land Use Plan was first determined by the Nunavut Planning Commission ("NPC").
BAFFINLAND DIRECTORS
http://www.baffinland.com/
Daniella Dimitrov loves money and has experience in senior executive roles with major international companies. She's into mergers, acquisitions, financings, corporate finance and joint ventures.
Russell Cranswick, a geologist, is part of Resource Capital Fund, a resource focussed private equity group with offices in Denver, Colorado and Perth, Australia.
Grant A. Edey, another mining-moneyman, was a bigshot at IAMGOLD Corporation, Strathcona Mineral Services Limited, TransCanada Pipelines Limited, Eldorado Nuclear Limited, Rio Algom Limited and INCO Limited.
Gary Fietz, an Aussie, is managing director of New Age Exploration Limited, a junior Australian company that is targeting multi-commodity exploration and early stage projects in Australia and globally. Previously, Fietz held various positions with BHP Billiton Limited ("BHP"). He directed the business development activities for BHP, Iron Ore in India and West Africa and led a concept study for the multi-billion dollar Nimba iron ore project in Guinea.
John W. Lydall, an Englishman is a mining analyst with decades of experience.
Ronald S. Simkus knows how to set up and run mining operations. He was the President and CEO of Compania Minera Antamina S.A. in Peru where he got the Antamina deposit going as a "sustainable mining operation". Since mining is about as unsustainable as it gets, Simkus suffers from severe cognitive dissonance.
Gordon Watts makes up mining plans all over the world. His bio states, "He is skilled in tax modeling, risk analysis and Monte Carlo simulations" whatever that means.
RESOURCE CAPITAL FUNDS
http://investing.businessweek.
Resource Capital Funds
1400 Sixteenth Street, Suite 200
Denver, Colorado 80202
Tel: +1 (720) 946-1444 Fax: +1 (720) 946-1450
NUNAVUT IRON ORE ACQUISITIONS
http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/
Canadian Bruce Walter "...says his U.S.-based private equity backer, the $2-billion Energy & Minerals Group, has the support of major global pension and sovereign wealth funds and is experienced in developing major resource projects".
http://www.cnw.ca/en/releases/
Nunavut Iron was incorporated under the laws of Canada on August 27, 2010 and has not carried on any material business other than in connection with matters directly related to the Offer. Nunavut Iron is wholly owned by Iron Ore Holdings.
Iron Ore Holdings is a limited partnership formed under the laws of Delaware for the purpose of making the Offer. Iron Ore Holdings is owned by Bruce Walter, the Chairman of Nunavut Iron, Jowdat Waheed, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Nunavut Iron, and funds managed by The Energy & Minerals Group, which is providing the majority of the equity financing for the Offer. The Energy & Minerals Group is a private investment firm with a family of funds with over US$2 billion under management that invest in the energy and minerals sectors.
For further information:
SHAREHOLDERS OF BAFFINLAND IRON MINES CORPORATION
Kingsdale Shareholder Services Inc.
Toll Free 1-888-518-1562 (English or French)
Outside North America, Bankers and Brokers Call Collect 416-867-2272
Facsimile: 416-867-2271, Toll Free Facsimile 1-866-545-5580
Email: contactus@
or visit www.baffinlandoffer.com
MEDIA
John Lute, Lute & Company
416-929-5883 Email: jlute@luteco.com
NUNAVUT TERRITORY
Government of Nunavut
P.O. Box 1000 Station 200, Iqaluit, Nunavut X0A 0H0
Call us toll free: 1-877-212-6438 (867) 975-6000
http://www.gov.nu.ca email: info@gov.nu.ca
Premier Eva Aariak Government of Nunavut
Box 2410, Iqaluit, NU X0A 0H0
eaariak@gov.nu.ca
http://www.gov.nu.ca/premier/
Premier Eva Aariak’s vision of re-inspiring Nunavummiut, listening to the communities, and developing a strong government led her to become Nunavut’s second territorial leader. She was sworn into office on November 19, 2008.
In her distinguished career, Ms. Aariak has extensively promoted the majority language of Nunavut, Inuktitut. For six years, she served as Nunavut’s Languages Commissioner, the body which monitors the Government of Nunavut’s use of the Inuit language, French and English. Ms. Aariak reviewed Nunavut’s progress in making Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun working languages of the Government and made recommendations to legislative standing committees on the Official Language Bill and Inuit Language Protection Bill. She has also: assisted in the translation of the Microsoft interface into syllabics; produced Inuktitut children’s books for use by schools in the Eastern Arctic; and instructed senior level government employees enrolled in intensive Inuktitut training.
Ms. Aariak also brings experience in communications, human resources, entrepreneurship, education and public governance to her office. She worked in public affairs with the Office of the Interim Commissioner of Nunavut, the organization which was tasked with implementing the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement and establishing a public government. Ms. Aariak was a journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and human resource specialist with the Government of the Northwest Territories. Among others, she sat as Councilor on the Arctic Bay Education Council, the Iqaluit Education Council and the Pond Inlet Hamlet Council.
Prior to being elected to the Legislative Assembly, Ms. Aariak was the owner and operator of a successful small business and Chair of the Baffin Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Originally from Arctic Bay, Eva Qamaniq Aariak resides in Iqaluit. She is the mother of four children, Karliin, Jordan, Shawn and Jari, and proud grandmother of two, Tasiana and Joyce.
http://uranowski.blogspot.com/
Nunavummiut are the people of Nunavut
The main language is Inuktitut
The word for December is Tisaipa
The Nunavut minimum wage has just been increased from $10/hr to $11/hr, making it the highest in the country. Ontario is second at $10.25 per hour. Nunavut also has the highest cost of living in Canada.
Media Contact:
Nick Pashkoski
Office of the Hon. Keith Peterson Minister of Justice
Tel: (867) 975-5007 Email: npashkoski@gov.nu.ca
The Nunavummiut were in Cancun, Mexico at COP16, the Climate Change Conference
"Infrastructure damages due to thawing permafrost, and altered access to wildlife because of changing ice and weather patterns, are just two examples of the impacts already being experienced in Nunavut."
Sharina Dodsworth A/Manager, Communications
Department of Environment
(867) 975-7749 sdodsworth@gov.
ARCELORMITTAL
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
http://www.arcelormittal.com/
Lakshmi N. Mittal
Aditya Mittal
Gonzalo Urquijo, (Spain)
Kathryn A. Matthews (UK)
David B. Burritt (USA)
Luxembourg
19 avenue de la Liberté, L-2930 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Tel: +352 4792-1 Fax: +352 4792 2675
London
Berkeley Square House, 7th Floor
Berkeley Square, London W1J 6DA
England
Tel: +44 20 7629 7988 Fax: +44 20 7629 7993
ARCELORMITTAL MINES CANADA
http://www.arcelormittal.com/
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada is one of Canada's leading suppliers of iron ore to steel markets around the world, generating 40 per cent of Canada’s total production. As both a mining and primary processing company, it operates extensive facilities in the Province of Quebec.
The Company, established in January 2008 following ArcelorMittal’s acquisition of the Québec Cartier Mining Company in 2006... 2,000 talented employees... wholly-owned subsidiary of ArcelorMittal with 320,000 employees in more than 60 countries ...
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada produces some 15 million tonnes of iron ore concentrate and over nine million tonnes of iron oxide pellets annually.
The port facilities at Port-Cartier have an annual shipping capacity of over 20 million tonnes, making it one of Canada’s largest private ports. Marine traffic tops approximately 450 vessels a year. [No doubt, they are a major polluter of the St. Lawrence River!]
Hewn into the rock at the Gulf of St. Lawrence estuary, the five-dock facility is accessible year-round. Two docks are reserved exclusively for concentrate and pellet shipping, while the third receives raw materials for pelleting. The last two are leased for transhipment of grain from Western Canada.
The Company’s rolling stock includes 22 locomotives, some 950 cars, more than 300 utility cars, and many different railway maintenance and inspection vehicles. They are maintained at the rail workshops in Port-Cartier, where empty trains are also prepared to leave for Mont-Wright.
On average, five full trains return from Mont-Wright each day. Each train, propelled by two locomotives, carries 14,900 tonnes of concentrate in 160 cars and measures 1.5 kilometres from nose to tail. A round trip takes about 25 hours.
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada
1801 Mcgill College, Suite 1400, Montreal (Quebec) H3A 2N4
Tel.: 514 285-1464 Fax.: 514 285-1978
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada
24, boul. des Îles, Suite 201 Port-Cartier (Quebec)
Tel.: 418 766-2000 Fax.: 418 768-2128
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada
Louise 283 Av., Box 23, 1050 Brussels Belgium
Tel.: 32-2-646-3365 Fax.: 32-2-646-0915
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada
Mont-Wright P. O. Box 1817 Mont-Wright (Quebec)
Tel.: 418 287-4512 Fax.: 418 287-3445
ArcelorMittal Mines Canada
Port-Cartier 24, boulevard des Îles,
Suite 201 Port-Cartier (Quebec)
Tel.: 418 766-2000 Fax.: 418 768-2512
http://www.arcelormittal.com/
Benoit Alain Vice President, Commercial and Business Development
Alain Cauchon Vice President, Operational Excellence and Human Resources
Joaquim Eleutério Vice President, Sales and Marketing
André La Flèche Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Gaston Morin Vice President, Technology
LAKSHMI MITTAL
Lakshmi, who was named for the Indian goddess of wealth, is on the board at Goldman Sachs.
http://www2.goldmansachs.com/
Mr. Mittal has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ArcelorMittal S.A. since May 2008. He previously served as ArcelorMittal’s President and Chief Executive Officer from November 2006 to May 2008. Prior to that, Mr. Mittal was Chief Executive Officer of Mittal Steel Company N.V. (formerly the LNM Group) since 1976, when he founded the company. Mr. Mittal has been a director of Goldman Sachs since June 2008. Mr. Mittal is on the board of the following public company in addition to Goldman Sachs and ArcelorMittal: European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS N.V. He has also been a director of the following public companies in the past five years: ICICI Bank Limited. In addition, Mr. Mittal is affiliated with non-profit organizations, including as a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum, the Advisory Board of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, the Board of Trustees of Cleveland Clinic, the Executive Committee of World Steel Association and the Executive Board of the Indian School of Business, and as a Golden Patron of The Prince’s Trust.
http://strategicbusinessteam.
How Lakshmi Mittal Created Arcelor Mittal Steel and became a Billionaire
» by Ajaero Tony Martins in: Successful Entrepreneurs
"...191 people have died in accidents in the past 12 years at his Kazakhstan operations, where campaigners argue that more money should have been spent on safety measures. The company has strongly rejected allegations of negligence, but later earmarked an extra $1.2bn for improvements.
"The Choice: Global Domination or Global Leadership", p. 134. In this 2004 book, Zbigniew Brzezinski describes the global elite and refers to this article at:
http://www.newstatesman.com/
IMPERIAL DESIGNS
http://www.chathamhouse.org.
http://www.sweetliberty.org/
from "TRAGEDY AND HOPE" by Carroll Quigley
http://www.cfr.org
Acc to the Council on Foreign Relations CFR web site, ""A fortuitous transatlantic circumstance solved the problem of naming the surviving organization. The British diplomats returning from Paris had made great headway in founding their Royal Institute of International Affairs. Undeterred by isolationism or the inhibitions of the Americans, they had even acquired an elegant London headquarters, the St. James's mansion once owned by William Pitt, known as Chatham House. The American branch foreseen at the Hotel Majestic, by contrast, seemed unable to keep up.
Gradually dawning upon the American veterans of the Inquiry was the realization that, in the mood of post-Wilson America, they could no longer promote the congenial Anglo-American fellowship of the Peace Conference common rooms. A combined membership of the two branches, London and New York, was simply not on. During the merger negotiations, Shepardson noted that membership in the New York branch would have to be "restricted to American citizens, on the grounds that discussions and other meetings, confidential in nature, would be more productive if participants and speakers knew for sure that the others in the room were all Americans."
To Shepardson fell the task of informing the British colleagues of this unfortunate reality. Crossing to London, he recalled thinking that "it might be quite unpleasant to have to say for the first time that the Paris Group of British colleagues could not be members" of the American branch. "The explanation to the British was begun (shall we say?) haltingly. However, instead of the frigid look which had been feared, the faces of the British governing body showed slightly red and very happy. They had reached the same conclusion in reverse, but had not yet found a good way of getting word to the other side of the Atlantic!"
To make the distinction clear, the American academics were relieved to adopt the name of their preexisting institutional partner. On July 29, 1921, a New York certificate of incorporation was prepared and the new Council on Foreign Relations came into being."
http://www.onlinecic.org/?
Canadian International Council / Conseil International du Canada
45 Willcocks Street, Suite 210 Toronto Ontario M5S 1C7
Tel: 416-946-7209 | Fax: 416-946-7319
info@onlinecic.org
Board of Directors
Chair.Jim Balsillie Co-CEO, Research In Motion
Co-vice Chairs:
Bill Graham Chancellor of Trinity College and Chair of the Atlantic Council of Canada
Perrin Beatty President and CEO, Canadian Chamber of Commerce
CIC Board of Directors.
David Bercuson Director, Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, University of Calgary
Jennifer Jeffs President, CIC (ex officio)
Scott Burk President, Wealhouse Capital Management
Tom Jenkins Executive Chairman & CSO, Open Text Corporation
Raymond Chrétien, Strategic Advisor, Fasken Martineau
Keith Martin, Past-President, CIC-Toronto Branch
André Desmarais, President & Co-CEO, Power Corporation of Canada
Indira Samarasekera, President, University of Alberta
Edward Goldenberg, Partner, Bennett Jones LLP
Janice Stein, Director, Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto (ex officio)
Nicholas Hirst, President, CIC-Winnipeg Branch
Jodi White, Distinguished Senior Fellow, Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs, Carleton University
http://www.thecommonwealth.
THE DIRT ON ARCELORMITTAL
Lackawanna, N.Y., and Hennepin, Ill
Excerpt from:
http://www.dollarsandsense.
Firms decide to shut profitable plants while spurning buyers By Roger Bybee
ArcelorMittal is rushing to dismantle complex, custom-built ovens and other equipment that will take months to replace...At a moment when unemployment around Hennepin—about 100 miles west of Chicago—has hit 10%, ArcelorMittal is preparing to discard the 285 USW members who have performed the hard work of steel production.
The plant has been consistently profitable, earning $48.4 million even in a recessionary year like 2008. Yet ArcelorMittal is intent on shipping one product line to low-wage Brazil and another to France. Moreover, ArcelorMittal has rebuffed a proposal by another major steel company to buy the Hennepin mill and keep it running.
...The New York Times reported on a massive wave of job offshoring and wholesale divesting of product lines.
“These jobs aren’t coming back,” John E. Silvia, chief economist at Wachovia in Charlotte, N.C., told the Times. “A lot of production either isn’t going to happen at all, or it’s going to happen somewhere other than the United States. There are going to be fewer stores, fewer factories, and fewer financial services operations. Firms are making strategic decisions that they don’t want to be in their businesses.”
...
Roger Bybee is the former editor of the union weekly Racine Labor and is now a consultant and freelance writer whose work has appeared in Z Magazine, The Progressive, Extra!, The Progressive Populist, In These Times, commondreams.org, and other national publications and websites. Visit his webpage at www.zmag.org/zspace/
Algeria
http://www.socialistworld.net/
Arcelor Mittal on second indefinite strike this year 23/06/2010
website of the committee for a workers' international, CWI
SEEING THE BIGGER PICTURE
http://www.wsws.org/articles/
By Carl Bronski
20 November 2010
Nine hundred workers, members of United Steelworkers Local 1005 in Hamilton, Ontario, were locked out last week by a US Steel management determined to gut their pension plan.
...US Steel's wholesale attack on its workers' retirement plan is part of an employer offensive that has seen companies across the country gut pension plans that were won through decades of struggle. Only last April, United Steelworkers officials accepted a similar offer at US Steel's Lake Erie Works in Nanticoke, Ontario, after an eight-month lockout. And in Sudbury, at the giant nickel mining complex of Vale Inco, USW officials imposed a concessions-laden deal after a year-long strike, which included a two-tier pension plan and give-backs on bonuses, work rules and other benefits.
When the union leadership in Hamilton refused to put the company's derisory final offer to a vote, management shut the gates at the iconic plant formerly known as Stelco...
In 2007, US Steel bought a bankrupt Stelco Inc. for $1.2 billion-the same amount that Canadian-based Stelco owed an under-funded pension plan. To obtain the approval of the federal government and meet the Investment Canada Act's stipulation that a foreign takeover must provide a "net benefit" to Canada, US Steel made certain production commitments designed to maintain job levels at the complex for three years.
Ontario's Liberal government meanwhile arranged to top up the already under-funded pension plan at the steel works by $150 million, as part of the negotiations to secure a buyer...
And in a cynical twist to the definition of "net benefit" it has argued that because steel prices of competitors such as Arcelor Mittal Dofasco remained somewhat higher due to the US Steel shutdown of production in Hamilton, the country actually may have gained a "net benefit."
Mrs. Stanley
to eaglewatch@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
We are starting to hear truly tragic stories of need for fuel, wood on Pine Ridge. We are asking all affiliated with WnT to send just $5 - if everyone did so, we could really impact this crisis. We know that each year, people and animals, some to the point of death, are adversely affected by the deep winter. Please donate today...won't you? We know that we need to disperse funds to the propane companies etc asap.
Billie
Send your donation to the address below, ATTN EREZ Fund Thank you so much! Peace.
Billie K. Fidlin
President, Whisper n Thunder Inc.
P.O. Box 10891
Glendale, AZ 85318
602.705.5797
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Posted By: TjMaxx Henhawk
To: Members in First Nations & Aboriginal Rights
Top 10 Wiki Leaks from Minister of Indian Affairs Minister John Duncan
John Duncan, the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development must be embarrassed for what Wiki Leaks has revealed about his view on Canada's Aboriginal People. After all his job is supposed to be the liaison between Government and Aboriginal people and provide solutions, but it looks like his job is about to get even harder.
Recently, Investigative Reporter, Obidiah of The First Perspective dug up this shocking information from Wiki Leaks (a website owned and founded by Julian Assange revealing many other secrets from other prominent political leaders).
Apparently, Duncan keeps a diary of his travels from across Canada when he meets with Aboriginal leaders and their communities. Based on these entries, it sounds like he could use a vacation other than a First Nations reserve since he complains so much lol. What is funny is they read like facebook statuses or tweets. What is sad is this is who we have as our Minister of Indian Affairs and this is what he really thinks of us.
So enjoy or get angry.
John Duncan's Top 10 Wiki Leaked Diary Entries on Aboriginal People
10. "But I agree the strategy should be increasing avenues for municipal status through tax reforms, and funding arrangements that are geared to Departmental goals of limited "self-government" based on principles of "accountability and transparency". We can achieve all of this administratively, without the need for high profile amendments and consultations which are likely to be stir up allegations of `colonialism` etc..``- Dec. 15, 2010
9. "On the other hand, there's a lot to be said - and appreciated - in the arts and ceremonials of our First Nations people. I especially like the smoke salmon, the masks, and the moccasins." - Oct. 1, 2010
8. "La Barriere Lake. What was I to do? I was damned if I did and damned if I didn't. Well, at least it's a change. There's always the option of another change in the future if these people can't work it out. That's why I'm here after all. I AM the Minister. Difficult decisions must be made. Churchill made difficult decisions. Come to think of it, Chretien was a Minister of Indians and he climbed to the top. All may not be lost yet..." - Dec. 13, 2010
7. "Chretien and Trudeau had it right in the 69 white paper. The only hope for them is assimilation into the mainstream culture. And the gradual decline of numbers residing on reserves. I mean, what hope is there for a community on the Hudson Bay? With not even a road in? And polar bears! These communities have to be encouraged to migrate to centres that are their only hope for a better future. If only the Supreme court judges could be educated on the big picture and get it right!" - Nov. 10, 2010
6. "Thirteen years in parliament and this is what I get? In charge of Indians? Jeepers Creepers! It was bad enough being secretary under Strahl, now I gotta suck up to all those chiefs...Some of whom make a hell of lot more than I'm gonna make on this job..." - Aug. 9, 2010, The day after Stephen Harper appoints him Minister of Indian Affairs.
5. "I must make sure I send a gift of tobacco to that grand chief in Manitoba before going to their assembly. He thinks volume and belligerence in diplomacy substitutes well for reason. Not that reason is all that relevant to the Department...The Department. I have my work cut out." - Oct. 18, 2010
4. "The raw clam I had on the marina at was bad enough! This week I'm invited to Chisasibi where I hear the delicacy is fish guts soup! God help me and my liver." - Oct. 15, 2010
3. "The annual pow wow at Black Sun Dog is coming up. I really don't look forward to sitting cross legged for an hour. And that passing the pipe thing, And I'm always the last to smoke it. In this day, should we be encouraging that?" - Sept. 10, 2010
2. "Sometimes I wish we could cut out the praying and just get down to business? Guys?" - Sept. 30, 2010
And the Number One Wiki Leak from John Duncan...
1. "To think that these people survived the prairie winters in Tipis. Now we have a housing crisis, lack of drinking water and no infrastructure on many reserves. And I'm supposed to have the answers." - Nov. 1, 2010
- RezXtra, (thanks to Ross Pratt for finding the link to this story and Obidiah of The First Perspective for digging up this info)
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(Send a note to let them know they are not alone. It mean more than you know to a victim.)
Alert Date: Jan 12, 2010
Porci - 21 yr old bay Paso Fino mare - missing from Pasture - HAS BEEN SEEN - Hunterdon County, NJ - 12/29/10
 |
| Click flyer for more pictures and to print larger flyer. |
Gender: Mare Breed: Paso Fino Color: bay
Height: 14 hands Markings:
* large star
* four Black Legs / no white on legs
* thick black mane
See full details and markings here.
YOU CAN HELP: Circulate this alert and info to your friends and ask them to do the same, post on twitter, facebook, craigslist.
Sixty-nine Buffalo in Yellowstone's Trap, Torturous Testing Begins
Buffalo Field Campaign is the only group working in the field
and in the policy arena to protect America's last wild buffalo.
Buffalo Field Campaign
Yellowstone Bison
Update from the Field
January 13, 2011
------------------------------
------------------------------
* Update from the Field
* TAKE ACTION! Three Things You Can Do Right Now
* A Few 2011 Wild Bison Calenders Left; We Need Your Photos for 2012!
* Last Words
* By the Numbers
* Helpful Links
------------------------------
* Update from the Field
Since Tuesday, January 4, Yellowstone National Park has captured sixty-nine wild buffalo. Various family groups - some that never even left the park - have been forced into the Stephens Creek bison trap inside Yellowstone National Park. The government began testing them for exposure to brucellosis on Wednesday. The buffalo will suffer the violence and torment of testing so that twenty-five brucellosis-free buffalo - randomly pulled from different family groups - can be selected by humans for the contemptible Royal Teton Ranch land scheme, what bison advocates identify as the ill-fated "Corridor to Nowhere." Yellowstone plans to haze these twenty-five buffalo into the fenced-in corridor this coming Wednesday where they will be expected to remain until they are hazed back into Yellowstone in early May. The Park will continue to hold the remaining forty-four buffalo in the trap, and will later haze them in the opposite direction, into Yellowstone. Their thinking is that this separation will prevent the two groups of buffalo from wanting to be together. Such cold human calculations are blind to the tearing apart of family groups and wild buffalo are not so easily persuaded away from each other.
Other hazing operations have been taking place near Gardiner, nearly every day, just across from the Stephens Creek buffalo trap, on the other side of the Yellowstone River. Family groups of migrating buffalo have actually been chased into areas of Gallatin National Forest where they can be shot by hunters. Fifteen more wild buffalo have been killed in the hunt.
Near West Yellowstone, in the Hebgen Basin, the landscape holds the ghosts of buffalo. There is just one little calf, orphaned in the hunt, and it is being fiercely guarded by BFC and Yellowstone Village residents. The calf's lonely state is not only heartbreaking, but also quite life-threatening. The snow is at least three feet deep here, much deeper in some areas, and the little calf is going to have a very difficult time pushing the heavy snow away from the grass beneath. Without the safety and comfort of his family, without the added nutrition of rich milk from his mother, his future is bleak. BFC volunteers have been trying to help, shoveling snow away from areas near where the calf is grazing, in hopes this will help.
For decades Montana's livestock industry has dominated the lives of America's last wild bison based on a theory that bison exposed to brucellosis could threaten their cattle. The threat of brucellosis initially came from cattle, and wild bison have never transmitted the disease back. But, according to the rancher's arguments, bison free of brucellosis should be welcome to roam, right? Nope. The issue has never been about brucellosis. That's only an excuse, and a very effective scare tactic. Indeed, the issue has always been about the grass and who gets to eat it. Errol Rice, executive VP of the Montana Stockgrowers Association recently confirmed what BFC has always known,"Bottom line, our ranchers don't support bison relocation. Our ranchers are just very fearful that bison restoration will result in the elimination of cattle grazing." Make no mistake about it, this very statement is what the war against wild buffalo is all about.
This fear - based solely on greed and ignorance - has driven mad debate and insane policies that threaten the very evolutionary potential of America's largest land mammal, one that has been here on this continent much longer than humans, an animal that is currently ecologically extinct. Hazing, capture, slaughter, quarantine, canned hunting, electrified-corridors, radio collars, tags, transmitters, vaccinations, slaughterhouses: these are the manifestations of Montana's fear. These are all the ugly faces of control, manipulation, and the slow and steady drive to eradicate the wildness from the Yellowstone bison.
Today BFC is not only on the front lines with the buffalo in Gardiner and West Yellowstone, we are also in Helena, Montana's capitol. In the cold, dark hours of early morning, Mike and Hunter traveled three hours over icy winter roads to represent wild buffalo at a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission meeting, where they will speak out against yet another livestock model of buffalo mismanagement. FWP is proposing to relocate quarantined buffalo - kidnapped as calves from their wild families and raised for more than five years in captivity - on a fenced-in pasture where they would eventually be hunted. Catering to livestock industry pressure, this is the best Montana wildlife officials can come up with? This is what Montana officials call "wild"? Mike and Hunter will call them to task. We will give you a full report of the meeting in next week's Update. We will be frequenting Helena quite often this season, as the Montana legislature is poised to intensify the war against wild buffalo in the form of nine different bills that aim to give livestock interests more control. One bill's sponsor even has the audacity to attempt classifying America's last wild buffalo as livestock! We will be calling on you in the near future - especially Montana residents - to help us fight these bills. Many thanks to everyone who emailed the FWP Commission last week, insisting that Montana embrace fenceless and truly wild, migrating buffalo. Please keep the pressure on, and see below for other important actions you can take.
ROAM FREE!
~Stephany
P.S. Hot off the press is a great article by Deborah Bassett that appeared today in The Huffington Post.
------------------------------
* TAKE ACTION! 3 Things You Can Do Right Now!
Endless pressure, endlessly applied! We can and will make the difference for wild buffalo in America! Here are three things you can do right now to help:
1. CONTACT YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
2. FLOOD PRESIDENT OBAMA WITH LETTERS!
3. BOMBARD THE MEDIA WITH THE TRUTH!
Straight from your heart, the message is the same: Let wild buffalo roam! America doesn't want Montana killing or harming the nation's last wild buffalo population. Livestock should be removed from the buffalo's habitat - especially on our public lands - so buffalo may migrate freely. Congress and the President can find habitat-based solutions and redirect the millions of U.S. tax dollars wasted annually on the harassment and slaughter of America's last wild buffalo. These buffalo are a national treasure, indigenous to most of North America and they must be protected now if they are to reach their evolutionary potential and maintain integrity as a wildlife species. The American bison is not currently protected as an endangered species, but is in dire need of such protections if they are ever to be truly restored, reach their evolutionary potential, and help heal the broken heart of North America.
------------------------------
* A Few 2011 Wild Bison Calenders Left; We Need Your Photos for 2012!
It has been really cool to finally get to January 2011 and put up our first-ever Wild Bison Calendar! The frosty bull illustrating January is indeed a true portrait of current buffalo life. We have a small supply of calendars left and they will look great on your wall!
Order now! 
These first-ever BFC Wild Bison 2011 calendars were such a huge success that we are going for it again in 2012! We are looking for high quality digital images of wild buffalo for every season, so if you have photographed the wild buffalo of Yellowstone, please consider submitting your pictures for BFC's Wild Bison 2012 calendar! Please email Stephany for photo submission guidelines, more information, or with any questions.
------------------------------
* Last Words
"I have been following the BFC for almost a year. I have donated money and written letters and signed petitions. I have called my Senators. I wrote a letter regarding the issues with relocation of the bison and the brucellosis debacle.
I am very much with you all in spirit, since I cannot be there in person. In my life I have seen one bison up close, maybe a length of two arms dividing us. Without movies or a national geographic program or an old photograph, the sight of a plain covered in bison would never be comprehensible to me.
There are some sights that require to remain. There are species that mean much to Americans, for reasons we cannot always voice. Bison are just meant to be. There must be someplace in this continent where they can live unmolested.
I despair of the human animal. Most times our behavior toward other species is aberrant. It eludes me.
I will continue to do what simple acts I can."
~ Laural Mancini
BFC supporter Laural Mancini recently sent us these powerful words of support and love for the buffalo. We have been extremely touched by the deep feeling and understanding they convey. We are in this together, for the buffalo, for as long as it takes.
Do you have submissions for Last Words? Send them to bfc-media@wildrockies.org. Thank you all for the poems, songs and stories you have been sending; you'll see them here!
------------------------------
* By the Numbers
AMERICAN BUFFALO ELIMINATED from the last wild population in the U.S. Fewer than 3,900 wild buffalo are all that remains.
2010-2011 Total: 61
2010-2011 Government Slaughter: 0
2010-2011 State & Treaty Hunts: 60
2010-2011 Quarantine: 0
2010-2011 Shot by Agents: 0
2010-2011 Highway Mortality: 1
2009-2010 Total: 7
2008-2009 Total: 22
2007-2008 Total: 1,631
Total Since 2000: 3,772*
*includes lethal government action, quarantine, hunts, highway mortality
-----------------------------
Media & Outreach
Buffalo Field Campaign
P.O. Box 957
West Yellowstone, MT 59758
406-646-0070
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
http://www.
BFC is the only group working in the field every day
in defense of the last wild buffalo population in the U.S.
KEEP BFC ON THE FRONTLINES WITH A TAX DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTION TODAY
Join Buffalo Field Campaign -- It's Free!
Tell-a-Friend!
Take Action!
Saturday's tragedy in Arizona was a shock for many. The facts are still emerging and we still don't know enough about what motivated Jared Loughner to commit this atrocious act. What we do know, however, is that as a nation we need to have a much-needed conversation about acting responsibly and realizing that rhetoric has consequences.
The Latino and immigrant community has been plagued with the worst of words and, in some cases, real acts of violence driven by hate.
Even Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik in Tucson, Arizona - who is not the greatest friend to the immigrant rights movement - got it right in a press conference on Saturday, when he said:
"The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous, and unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry."1
This commonsense take has caused him to be attacked by conservative pundits and marginalized in the media, because there has been an effort to manufacture fear and anger out of real problems -- and there is no doubt it has led to a polarized political climate.
We know what it's like to be attacked and made afraid of each other. We've seen a 35% increase in hate crimes against Latinos.2 In Shenandoah, PA, Luis Ramirez was murdered by the hands of a group of white teens who beat him to death for being "undocumented." And in the lead-up to the passage of SB 1070 in Arizona, we saw the racist signs that anti-immigrant activists used. We were disgusted by the rhetoric that demonized and dehumanized immigrants and Latinos.
Meanwhile, we have record deportations and the continuous expansion of the 287g program, which empowers local and state law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration law and tear apart families. As a nation, we should instead be focusing on solving the immigration crisis, not expanding the problem with solutions that create fear in our communities.
Laws like SB 1070 in Arizona, the copycat bills being filed in state legislatures all over the country, as well as the debate about states overturning the 14th Amendment, which provides U.S. citizenship to anyone born in this nation, are an immoral sideshow. They serve only to polarize one community against another, and line the pockets of groups that are perpetuating this charade.
People are looking for answers, for ways to sort through this tragedy. In addition to saying a prayer -- in whatever way you choose -- for the victims and for those still fighting for their lives, please take a moment to pass this message on to your friends and family.
The only way we will get through this and build a better country is if we empower our communities and stand strong together as one.
Thank you and ¡adelante!
Joaquin, Laurie, Favianna, and the rest of the Presente.org team.
P.S. Email us at tips@presente.org, when you see or read examples of anti-immigrant and Latino rhetoric in your community. All it takes is a link to an article or a brief description to help us hold leaders responsible for their rhetoric.
Sources
1. "Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik Calls Out Vitriolic, Hateful Rhetoric," Arizona Daily Star,
http://bit.ly/eid4mP
2. "Latino Hate Crimes on the Rise," National Public Radio, 12/23/2007
http://n.pr/eGtpgM
"When crazy people call you crazy,
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