Thursday, July 28, 2005

Transcript of Truth & Rec testimony by Elizabeth Wheaton. (Thanks to John Young). A must-read for anyone who wants to write off the process as a one-sided whitewash of the events of 11/3/79. Wheaton: "My writing on the CWP's strategy and tactics, both leading up to and following Nov. 3rd, has been called 'blaming the victims,' a betrayal of the left, and worse.  But it seems to me that we can't do justice to this tragedy if we hold the various players to different standards.  We cannot find the whole truth by looking at half truths." [snip] "You also asked about the role of a police informant and a federal undercover agent in this story...While we can question their judgment, their actions and inactions, there was no evidence in either of the federal conspiracy trials that they goaded, incited, or in any way led the Klan and Nazis to do anything they weren't already planning to do.  In fact, you need to remember that even the CWP's own civil suit, with three months worth of testimony and evidence alleging a vast conspiracy, a jury that their lawyers helped select found two of the police officers, the police informant, and five of the Klan and Nazi shooters guilty of the wrongful death of one CWP member and assault and battery of two others.  No conspiracy. A significant part of the reasoning behind that decision -- indeed, behind both prior acquittals -- was the CWP's own rhetoric."   [snip]   "The police certainly had knowledge that there was a potential for violence, if not, that the Klan and Nazis were going there intent on fighting."   One of the most important contributions she makes is her research on the role of the CWP in the labor movement. A vital part of the CWP story is that they were so scary that The Man had to take them out. Wheaton calls that very much into question.   Read the whole thing. Previous coverage. 4:31:50 PM   permalink   comment []

Chewie on a possible outcome of the Truth and Reconciliation process: "Greensboro can redouble its claim to being a progressive, innovative City of Peace, where people aren't afraid to confront their differences and work together to understand and resolve them. Difficult? Yes. Scary? A little. Needed? Definitely." 3:09:38 PM   permalink   comment []

Withdrawing troops from Iraq doesn't mean bringing them home, says Glenn Reynolds. "One question is where U.S. troops will go from there: Syria? Iran? Saudi Arabia? Or elsewhere? I suspect we want to keep people guessing about that, too." Told ya so: "Instead, we may be on to Damascus, or Tehran, or even Riyadh." 2:16:08 PM   permalink   comment []

Hoggard knew his wife's illness made this the wrong year to run for City Council...but then the roster of candidates changed, and the odds of winning got a lot better, and Jinni was on the mend...but in the end, he is sticking with his decision not to run. 9:15:57 AM   permalink   comment []

JR explains the decision behind this morning's unusual N&R front page -- a single story, with photos, by Allison Perkins about area people serving in Iraq. 9:07:14 AM   permalink   comment []

CAFTA passes in House. Coble votes "no." 8:45:30 AM   permalink   comment []