GOOD NEWS: MEDIACHANNEL TO SURVIVE THANKS TO LAST MINUTE SAVE

BURMA PROTESTS AND RESPONSE
ARMY TOO TUCKERED TO FIGHT AGAIN
HOW THE IRISH INVENTED SLANG

Its Friday, and we are about to say goodbye to September. I thought we would also be saying goodbye to the Mediachannel too—but we are close to having a partner come in and keep us alive. He was very impressed by the letters we received and the donations you have made. We will be making a full announcement very soon.

We are keeping the fundraising drive going for the rest of the month—ie two days—and would appreciate any and all support. One reader wrote us protesting those obnoxious mortgage ads on the site and we are going to get rid of them. (We had no control over the actual ads since we contracted with a service to handle the advertising.)

RANGOON CALLING

In the news, I have been riveted by the developments in Burma, the country renamed Muanmar by a group of murderous military thugs,

I guess the junta doesn’t agree with George Bush’s call for human rights there. And China doesn’t want the UN sanctioning the SLORC more.

Here are some reports:

NYT: Nine Deaths Reported in Myanmar Crackdown

Witnesses said soldiers fired automatic weapons into a crowd of protesters today during the second day of an armed crackdown in Myanmar.

Guardian: Riot police charge Yangon crowd

Burma riot police charged a crowd of more than 1 000 protesters after they pelted soldiers with rocks and water bottles in central Yangon on Thursday and at least one person collapsed as shots were fired, witnesses said. One man was on the ground, unconscious, but it was not clear whether he was alive or dead.

BEHIND THE PROTESTS (PINR)

The first sign of the current protests currently underway in Myanmar occurred in a rare display of public outrage over the economic conditions within the country in February 2007. A small group calling themselves the Myanmar Development Committee called on the military rulers to address consumer prices, lack of health care, education and the poor electricity infrastructure. Normally unseen in Myanmar, the protest was quickly broken up after only 30 minutes of activity. Likely in response to the protests, the ruling military junta appointed Brigadier-General Than Han of the Myanmar police to the responsibility of handling civil unrest in Rangoon.

On August 15, 2007, the government made significant cuts to national fuel subsidies, which had an immediate effect of increasing the price of diesel fuel by a reported 100 percent, causing a five-fold increase in the price of compressed natural gas, and placing additional inflationary pressure on an economy already facing estimated inflation levels of 17.7 percent in 2005 and 21.4 percent in 2006.

www.pinr.org

FOR BLOGS AND VIDEO

BURMA NEWS FROM THE INDEPENDENT IN LONDON
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article3001620.ece

BURMA PROTEST AGAINST CHINA AT UN TODAY

Protest China’s continued support of Burma’s Military Junta and failure to stop ongoing violence, murder and oppression of the people of Burma.. Friday, September 28, 2007 at 2.45 p.m. 1st Avenue and 47th Street, New York City.

Meanwhile: WASHINGTON - Voice of America and Radio Free Asia have doubled their broadcasts to Myanmar in response to the military-run government’s crackdown on protesters.

Russia, US In Harsh Exchange Over West’s Bullying Of Iran

The Senate has now called for the partition of Iraq. The Cat’s Dream blog comments:

TEEN FREED IN JENA

AP: JENA, La. - A black teenager whose prosecution in the beating of a white classmate prompted a massive civil rights protest here walked out of a courthouse Thursday after a judge ordered him freed on bail.

Mychal Bell’s release came hours after a prosecutor confirmed he will no longer seek an adult trial for the 17-year-old. Bell, one of the teenagers known as the Jena Six, still faces trial as a juvenile in the December beating.
District Attorney Reed Walters’ decision to abandon adult charges means that Bell, who had faced a maximum of 15 years in prison on his aggravated second-degree battery conviction last month, instead could be held only until he turns 21 if he is found guilty in juvenile court.

VIA UNDERNEWS: ARMY BROKEN—-BRYAN BENDER, BOSTON GLOBE

The Army’s top officer, General George Casey, told Congress yesterday that his branch of the military has been stretched so thin by the war in Iraq that it can not adequately respond to another conflict - one of the strongest warnings yet from a military leader that repeated deployments to war zones in the Middle East have hamstrung the military’s ability to deter future aggression.

In his first appearance as Army chief of staff, Casey told the House Armed Services Committee that the Army is “out of balance” and “the current demand for our forces exceeds the sustainable supply. We are consumed with meeting the demands of the current fight and are unable to provide ready forces as rapidly as necessary
for other potential contingencies.”

Officials said Casey, who appeared along with Army Secretary Pete Geren, personally requested the public hearing - a highly unusual move that military analysts said underscores his growing concern about the health of the Army, America’s primary fighting force.

WAS THIS ON DISNEY ABC?

Police Arrest 2 Protesters at Hong Kong Disneyland

HONG KONG (AP) — Police arrested two protesters during a parade at Hong Kong Disneyland after they lifted banners accusing The Walt Disney Co. of labor abuses in China, police said Thursday. The two men, identified only by the surnames Yau and Lai, disrupted the parade as they scuffled with park workers who tried to stop them, police spokeswoman Celia Tam said.

Hong Kong’s Apple Daily newspaper reported Thursday that the banners said “Disney exploits Chinese labor.”

Tam said the two protesters were arrested for disorder in a public place, but wer

The two protesters were members of the Hong Kong activist group Students and Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior, or SACOM, which has accused Disney suppliers in China of overworking their employees and skimping on pay and benefits. Disney has said it tries to use suppliers that adhere to labor standards.
Calls to SACOM on Thursday went unanswered.