Dec. 15, 2007

PARIS, Maine — It is freezing cold and the countryside here in the “Down East” state is blanketed in snow. As home heating prices double or triple, low- and middle-income families in this low-wage state are struggling to stay warm.

The UN-sponsored Bali conference that wound up Dec. 14 in Indonesia laid the basis for negotiations for an international agreement to follow the Kyoto Protocol, due to expire in 2012. While there are many sharp disagreements, and counties advocate varied strategies to address global climate change, there is increasing world consensus about the necessity of cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Get your mind into the holiday spirit of giving with a great mantra for progressives the world over: “What happens to the beast if you don’t feed it?”

Libero Della Piana suggests supporting the Writers Guild strikers and buying union-made, cool and funny T-shirts at www.strikeswag.com.

NEW YORK — Outside the New York Stock Exchange Dec. 10, holiday music competed with the chants of “Save our homes!” A few yards away from the Wall Street Christmas tree display, hundreds of protesters gathered to demand a swift and decisive response by government and big business to the growing subprime loan crisis sweeping the nation.

Those who think it is only a matter of time before striking screenwriters cave in to the Hollywood producers are not getting what this strike, now supported by two-thirds of the public, is all about. This point was made clear Dec. 7 when talks between the writers and producers broke down.

OAKLAND, Calif. — After the second fatal accident at the Port of Oakland in 10 weeks, port workers and their union are raising urgent concerns about safety at the nation’s fourth largest port.

COLUMBIA, S.C.: Obama, Winfrey draw thousands into politics
PITTSBURGH: Abandon torture, say 49 retired military officers

Meeting in the southwestern city of Oruro on Dec. 8-9, Bolivia’s Constituent Assembly approved “99.8 percent” of a new constitution by a two-thirds majority. The full text of the constitution, including some hitherto unresolved land reform provisions, will be put before the voters for approval in a referendum sometime next year.