Ricki Lake in 'Business of Being Born,' about
birth in America
January 13, 2008, San Francisco
Chronicle (San Francisco's leading newspaper)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/13/LVSOUBD5M.DTL

Things
did not exactly go as planned when Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein conceived
the idea of working together on an expose of America's delivery rooms.
Called "The Business of Being Born," the documentary examines the politics,
economics and history of how and where most Americans take their first
breaths. This includes the births of Epstein's and Lake's own babies - Lake
delivered at home aided by a midwife. Although they were longtime friends,
Epstein had written off Lake's interest in home birth and midwifery as a
"reckless" crusade that she admits she "totally didn't get." That all
changed in 2004 when Lake showed Epstein a home video of [Lake] giving
birth to her second son in a bathtub in 2001. "Ricki's video was so
inspiring. I didn't know you could have a baby like that - with no blood,
in her own home," Epstein says. "It was clean. It was beautiful. She looked
so powerful and so in control." While "The Business of Being Born"
clearly takes a stance in defending the craft of midwifery, Epstein and
Lake insist that their mission is more about empowering women with
knowledge and reminding them that they may have more choices than they
realize. "The film is not advocating anything but choice. I'm not
at all telling people to have a home birth like me," says Lake, who after
reading a book called Spiritual
Midwifery decided she wanted to give birth to her second child at
home. Citing statistics that show home-birthing rates declining from 95
percent in 1900 to less than 1 percent by 1955, the film questions whether
American women today have been convinced that they are not responsible for
the births of their children or simply don't know how to give birth on
their own.

The Lost Archive
January 12, 2008, Wall Street
Journal

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120008793352784631.html

[In]
1944, British air force bombers hammered ... the Bavarian Academy of
Science.
Among the treasures lost, later lamented Anton Spitaler, an Arabic scholar
at the academy, was a unique photo archive of ancient manuscripts of the
Quran. The 450 rolls of film had been assembled before the war for a bold
venture: a study of the evolution of the Quran. The wartime destruction
made the project "outright impossible," Mr. Spitaler wrote in the 1970s.
Mr. Spitaler was lying. The cache of photos survived, and he was
sitting on it all along. "He pretended it disappeared," says
Angelika Neuwirth, a former pupil and protégée of the late Mr. Spitaler.
Ms. Neuwirth, a professor of Arabic studies ... now is overseeing a revival
of the research. The Quran is viewed by most Muslims as the unchanging word
of God as transmitted to the Prophet Muhammad in the 7th century. The text,
they believe, didn't evolve or get edited.
The earliest manuscripts of the Quran date from around 700 and use a
skeletal version of the Arabic script that is difficult to decipher and can
be open to divergent readings. Mystery and misfortune bedeviled the
Munich archive from the start. The scholar who launched it perished in an
odd climbing accident in 1933. An experienced climber ... his body
was never given an autopsy; rumors spread of suicide or foul play. His
successor died in a 1941 plane crash. Mr. Spitaler, who inherited the Quran
collection and then hid it, fared better. He lived to age 93. The photos of
the old manuscripts will form the foundation of a computer data base that
Ms. Neuwirth's team believes will help tease out the history of Islam's
founding text.

General Clears Army Officer of Crime in Abu
Ghraib Case
January 11, 2008, New York
Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/washington/11abuse.html

The only
United States Army officer to face a court-martial over the scandal at
Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing in the
case. A court-martial convicted Lt. Col. Steven Jordan in August of
disobeying an order not to discuss the investigation of abuse at the jail
and issued him a criminal reprimand as penalty. But Maj. Gen. Richard Rowe,
commanding officer for the Army Military District of Washington,
disapproved of both the conviction and the reprimand. The decision by
General Rowe wipes Colonel Jordan’s record clean of any criminal
responsibility. Colonel Jordan had once faced a maximum punishment of five
years in prison and dismissal from the Army over the Abu Ghraib scandal,
which unleashed a wave of global condemnation against the United States
when images of abused prisoners surfaced in 2004. The photos included
scenes of naked detainees stacked in a pyramid and other inmates cowering
in front of snarling dogs. Colonel Jordan, who was in charge of an Abu
Ghraib interrogation center, said he had played no part in the abuse and
complained that the military was trying to make him a scapegoat. His
defense team also argued that he held no command authority at the prison.
The judicial panel of 10 officers that convicted him in August of
disobeying the order also acquitted him of any responsibility for the cruel
treatment of Abu Ghraib detainees. Eleven lower-ranking soldiers
have been convicted in military courts in connection with the physical
abuse and sexual humiliation of Abu Ghraib detainees. Two other officers
have been disciplined by the Army, but neither faced criminal charges or
dismissal.

New rules on licenses pit states against
feds
January 11, 2008, CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/01/11/real.id.ap/index.html

Residents
of at least 17 states are suddenly stuck in the middle of a fight between
the Bush administration and state governments over post-September 11
security rules for driver's licenses -- a dispute that, by May, could leave
millions of people unable to use their licenses to board planes or enter
federal buildings. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, who
unveiled final details of the REAL ID Act's rules on Friday, said that if
states want their licenses to remain valid for air travel after May 2008,
those states must seek a waiver indicating they want more time to comply
with the legislation. Chertoff said that in instances where a particular
state doesn't seek a waiver, its residents will have to use a passport or a
newly created federal passport card if they want to avoid a vigorous
secondary screening at airport security. Chertoff spoke as he discussed the
details of the administration's plan to improve security for driver's
licenses in all 50 states -- an effort delayed due to opposition from
states worried about the cost and civil libertarians upset about what they
believe are invasions of privacy. Under the rules announced Friday,
Americans born after Dec. 1, 1964, will have to get more secure driver's
licenses in the next six years. The American
Civil Liberties Union has fiercely objected to the effort, particularly
the sharing of personal data among government agencies. In its
written objection to the law, the ACLU claims REAL ID amounts to the
"first-ever national identity card system," which "would irreparably damage
the fabric of American life."

2008 Tata Nano Is the $2500 Car That Might Change
the World
January 10, 2008, Popular
Mechanics

http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/new_cars/4244226.html

Fireworks
blossomed on giant video screens, the 2001: A Space Odyssey theme reached
its brassy peak, and the world’s most affordable car—the $2500 Tata
Nano—rolled out onto the stage. Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group,
parked and got out as hundreds of camera flashes speckled the darkened
convention hall. Here at the 2008 AutoExpo in India, the Nano’s debut was
about much more than a car. The Nano, many tradeshow attendees seemed to
believe, would transform the country and then, maybe, the world. The Nano
looked underwhelming, [like] a golf cart crossed with a jelly bean. Its
journey onto the stage and into history was powered by a 2-cylinder, 33-hp
engine, and the spec sheet is best given as what the car has not: no air
conditioning, no radio, no power steering, no sun visors. But it
carries four people, gets 50 mpg, and costs less than a trendy motor
scooter. The Nano is no solution to the traffic problem in big
[Indian] cities; a prominent Indian environmentalist called the prospect of
these ultra-affordable vehicles flooding the roads a “nightmare.” But the
Nano represents both national pride about India’s ingenuity and the promise
that the benefits of middle-class life will reach more people. “What can
you get for $2500 in the U.S.?” a young man ... asked. “You can’t carry
your family for $2500 in a [new] car. But in India we have done this.” His
friend, Rajesh Relia, agreed. He makes 6000 rupees a month, about $150. He
doesn’t own a car, and carries his family of four, dangerously and
cumbersomely, on a motor scooter. The Nano is a car he can actually
afford, and he said he will buy one as soon as it becomes available in late
2008. “This is my dream,” he said, beaming toward the stage. “I am very
happy today.”

Pentagon Won't Probe KBR Rape
Charges
January 8, 2008, ABC News

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4099514

The
Defense Department's top watchdog has declined to investigate allegations
that an American woman working under an Army contract in Iraq was raped by
her co-workers. The case of former Halliburton/KBR employee Jamie Leigh
Jones gained national attention last month. An ABC News investigation
revealed how an earlier investigation into Jones' alleged gang-rape in 2005
had not resulted in any prosecution, and that neither Jones nor Democratic
and Republican lawmakers have been able to get answers from the Bush
administration on the state of her case. In letters to lawmakers, DoD
Inspector General Claude Kicklighter said that because the Justice
Department still considers the investigation into Jones' case open, there
is no need for him to look into the matter. "We're not satisfied with
that," a Nelson spokesman said. Jones' lawyers also professed
disappointment. Despite deferring to the Justice Department, Kicklighter's
office told Nelson it was willing to pursue other questions Nelson raised
about Jones' case. Kicklighter agreed to explore "whether and why"
a U.S. Army doctor handed to KBR security officials the results of Jones'
medical examination, a so-called "rape kit," which would have contained
evidence of the crime if it had occurred. In a separate letter,
Kicklighter's office said that the State Department had said its security
officials had Jones' rape kit in their possession at one point.

Note:
For a treasure trove of reliable reports on government corruption from
major media sources, click
here.

Exclusive Club Has One Rule: Just
Give
December 23, 2007, ABC News

http://abcnews.go.com/WN/Story?id=4045409

Americans
set a new record for generosity last year. We gave a total of nearly $300
billion. But few of us could match the generosity of Richard Semmler.
Semmler is a 61-year-old math professor at Northern Virginia Community
College. He's also a maintenance man, and a book editor. His hard work
earns him more than $100,000 per year, but he lives very modestly. Even
with three jobs, Semmler lives in a tiny apartment. He's not working so
hard to get more -- he's working to give more. Semmler has donated nearly
$1 million -- between 50 percent and 60 percent of his income each year --
to six charities, and his money helps to feed the homeless and build houses
for families in need. Semmler's not just writing checks -- he's getting his
hands dirty, building those homes with Habitat for Humanity, and handing
out food in soup kitchens. "I prefer to live in a small apartment.
I prefer to drive an old car," he said. "I get a lot of satisfaction out of
that. I get a chance to see my dollars at work. For me, it's a personal
satisfaction in seeing the house built, but more important, it's personal
satisfaction in seeing a family that truly needs this," said
Semmler. [He] belongs to a very exclusive club that anyone can join. It's
called the Fifty Percent League. Members give away at least half their
income to charity. Not all of the donors have big incomes. One woman earned
just $16,000 dollars last year, and gave half of it away to help newly
arrived immigrants. The group is made up of about 100 people and growing.
Collectively, they have given away more than $1 billion over the past
decade. Millionaire David Ludlow is a fifty-percenter, who funds an
after-school program in Boston's inner city. "This has made me a truly
happy man, being able to do this. It's been magnificent. It's totally
turned my life around," Ludlow said.

Note:
One of the wonderful people featured in this article, David Ludlow, is a
major
supporter of our work in the form of a large monthly donation (http://www.peerservice.org/donations#monthly).
This is a powerful example of how one inspired individual can make a big
difference in the world. Let us all do our best to use our money in
support of
personal and global transformation to the best of our ability. We invite
you also to make a difference by donating to support our empowering work at
http://www.peerservice.org/donations.
For two inspiring media clips of David and this great organization, click here
and here.


Special note: Amazingly, the 9/11 cover-up was recently discussed
in the Japanese parliament by top cabinet and parliament members. To read
about this historic event, click
here. To read a highly revealing list of the national security and
foreign policy advisers to the leading presidential candidates from both
parties, click
here. For those interested in the indigo children phenomenon, you will
love a piece on Borishka in Russia available here. The
entire Project Camelot website is filled with fascinating, deep
information. Don't miss it at http://projectcamelot.org. And for
those who are interested in how Diebold is editing Wikipedia, click
here.


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important to balance disturbing
cover-up information with inspirational writings which call us to be all
that we
can be and to work together for positive change. Please visit our
Inspiration
Center at http://www.WantToKnow.info/inspirational
for an abundance of uplifting material.


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