GAGGED! #19 • September 2007 • http;//www.gaggedanarchist.tk • FREE
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Grassroots Resistance to Capitalism & Government
Produced by South Wales Anarchists • http;//www.southwalesanarchists.org
Camp Combats Corporate Climate Crimes
This year’s Camp for Climate Action was held on squatted land at Heathrow, the world’s busiest airport & a bigger source of CO2 emissions than most countries. The squatted land along with the nearby village of Sipson are planned to be turned into Heathrow’s 3rd runway, destroying over 700 homes. Despite press squealing from BAA that the camp would target hard-working families going on their summer holidays, a report in 2003 showed that 96% of Heathrow’s passengers were from socio-economic categories A, B & C1. At Stansted, where low cost carriers account for nearly all the flights, the average annual household income of passengers exceeds £51,000. The most recent figures show that 4.5% of the population take 44% of all flights. The core of the problem isn’t working class families flying to Greece every couple of years, it’s the rich jetting off to Paris or Manchester (the two most popular destination from Heathrow) five times a week.
Around 1000 people arrived at the camp to get involved in a week of self-organisation & direct action. Within a couple of days an empty field was turned into an autonomous community powered by the wind & sun. Over 1,800 police were mobilised to monitor the protests including the FIT political police (who have a pathological hatred of protesters) all of whom did their best to bully & intimidate everyone as much as possible. Experienced activists & local residents combined to struggle against continual police harassment, while at the same time the camp soon became the centre of a media frenzy. This resulted in huge press coverage worldwide, although much of it was nonsense – there was even talk of anarchists ‘infiltrating’ the site when we’d set it up!
The focus of the direct actions was the corporations promoting air travel. Although we all need to make changes to avoid ecological destruction the major problem is capitalism & the corporations that profit from aviation & who are pushing for its expansion despite the deadly threat of climate chaos. The actions were numerous & effective, with targets including the offices of Leeds Airport, carbon offsetting companies, private charter company XL (contracted to the Home Office to deport rejected asylum seekers, – climate change refuges now outnumber people displaced by conflict), as well as Carmel Agrexco’s Heathrow warehouse (where produce is air freighted in from territories occupied by Israel). Blockades were held at BP headquarters, BA world cargo depot, World Freight Centre at Heathrow, nuclear power stations, Farnborough & Biggin Hill private airports, while others chained shut the doors of 6 travel agencies in London. The target of the mass action was BAA headquarters, as they’re the ones in charge of Britain’s fastest growing contributor to climate chaos: Heathrow Airport. About 300 people went on foot cross-country, while another group of about 100 people made it to BAA by road & shut it down for 24 hours.
The climate camp was a glimpse of the ideas we create & actions we can take when we get together & work collectively. It is just a tiny part of what we need to be doing to tackle climate chaos with people leaving inspired & hopeful for the future. The camp lasted a week but the causes of climate change are happening every day, as is the resistance. Check out http://www.climateimc.org & http://www.earthfirst.org.uk
The Great Recycling Swindle!
Recycling industry insiders have told us that Cardiff residents’ waste, which is picked up all in one bag without being separated, ends up far too mixed & contaminated to be recycled effectively. The situation is the same in most UK towns. Much of it is sold on to waste dealers who export it halfway across the world to Indonesia, India & China, burning tonnes of carbon dioxide to dump rubbish on poorer people in the global South.
Our waste should be recycled separately by operations in the UK, but because it is collected mixed together in one bag, paper mills, plastics, & glass handlers find it impossible to work with. Many UK paper mills have had to close down because councils are too short-sighted to implement proper recycling schemes to provide them with clean materials.
One insider told us: “Cardiff Council will claim that it sends its paper to the paper mill at Ayelsford in Kent to be recycled. But none of the kerbside recycling from Cardiff gets there. By the time it’s been picked up & taken to the central depot it’s been contaminated by broken glass & other materials, & it’s mostly unusable. I know this because I’ve been speaking to people at the paper mills. I don’t know exactly where it gets sent, but it stands to reason that if the UK recyclers are refusing it, it’ll be sold by middle-men to the big dealers in the Far East.”
Another industry expert, who also prefers to remain anonymous, told us that lots of our waste ends up in the global South where it is picked over by poor labourers in dangerous & unsanitary conditions. “There are containers full of mixed materials illegally exported to developing countries where health & safety is not a consideration & where children sift through what we would call landfill sites. I’ve heard rumours that Cardiff’s so-called recycled waste gets sent to Indonesia, but only a few people know for sure. They don’t want to broadcast it”.
Cardiff Council only recently opened the expensive recycling ‘sorting’ facility at Lamby Way. One source told us, “Lamby Way is a complete disaster. All it produces is low-grade contaminated waste that’s next to useless. That place was a total waste of money”.
Another told us that big & costly separating plants like Lamby Way wouldn’t be necessary if the public were asked to do the job in the home, or if collectors separated on collection. “Getting individuals separating waste in the home is not difficult – it’s common practice in other European countries like Germany, & it’s also done in Newport!”
One big difference in the Newport recycling method, apart from separating waste at source, not exporting it & actually recycling it, is it isn’t run by the council, it’s run by a community group! Check out: http://www.realrecycling.org.uk & http://www.wastesavers.co.uk
Cardiff incinerator
Politicians have a approved plans to build a massive incinerator in Cardiff Bay in the site of the former Nippon Electrical Glass factory. The companies who plan to build this monster claim it will not only dispose of our rubbish, but that the heat it produces will be used to generate electricity.
At first glance this may seem like a green & sustainable solution to the problem of what to do with waste. It is nothing of the sort.
Incinerators burn paper & plastics that could be recycled & re-used. Far from being an environmentally friendly way of dealing with our mountains of rubbish, simply burning them ends up perpetuating our use of plastics, which are made from oil, a fossil fuel that’s gonna run out in the very near future.
Instead of building facilities like this, we need to start building proper local recycling facilities, while going about changing the way we consume non-renewable materials like plastic. Rather than hoping our waste problems will go away in a puff of smoke we need to seriously start to reduce, re-use, & recycle!
Gas Pipeline Sabotaged
Protesters have sabotaged the controversial liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline, causing significant damage both to the pipe itself & works vehicles. Meanwhile, National Grid is considering building a 2nd ecologically damaging gas pipeline across Wales.
The Brecon Beacons gas pipeline works were sabotaged during the night to coincide with the Camp for Climate Action. A small team bypassed security & rendered immobile a total of 11 machines including tipper trucks & excavators. Major engine & hydraulic components were destroyed & the pipeline itself was holed in several places.
The first pipeline, which will transport LNG from Milford Haven to Gloucestershire has already cut a huge swathe through the Welsh countryside. When activated it will transport dangerous highly pressurised gas through towns & villages, often running just metres from schools, homes & public buildings. Direct action by climate change protesters has already significantly delayed progress on the first pipe, & National Grid has spent thousands evicting several camps along the way. Due to a combination of determined protests & harsh terrain the first pipe is badly behind schedule. The company will be fined if they don’t complete on time, so they’re spending more & more cash to catch up. Protesters have vowed to resist a 2nd pipeline as strongly as the 1st.
GOwer residents Oppose Dredging
Dredging is already having catastrophic effects on South Wales’ beaches. Now companies are looking to double the amount of sand they can take from the sea off the coast.
The companies – Hanson, United Marine Dredging & CEMEX UK – have a licence to remove up to 900,000 tonnes every year until 2010 from Nash Bank, off Porthcawl, where there has already been significant beach erosion. They are now seeking permission from the Welsh Assembly to dredge up to 1.8m tonnes a year from a new location south of Carmarthen Bay & west of Gower. If this carries on the coast will lose its beaches altogether, & an already fragile ecosystem will be destroyed.
Last week Minister for Environment, ‘Sustainability’(!) & Housing Jane Davidson gave the go-ahead for ‘Llanelli Sand Dredging Ltd’ to conduct more dredging off Gower despite a 30,000 signature petition of opposition to it. Check out: http://www.gower-sos.com
Watching the detectives
FIT are police ‘forward intelligence’ teams that film & harass protesters. It has become normal to see these specialist police teams at all sorts of political meetings & events. The fact that it is now a normal occurrence does not make it right.
The first FITWATCH action was when FIT were attempting to film people attending a meeting about the DSEi arms fair. Having asked the police to stop photographing people who did not wish to be photographed two activists used pieces of cardboard to obstruct the view of the camera, stopping the police from taking footage. The police used physical force to keep the activists away from the camera, & then arrested both of them for obstructing a police officer in the course of his duty. They will be on trial at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on the 9th October 2007. All supporters welcome!
This trial will be the first test of whether FIT have a legal right to intimidate, harass, photograph & collect data on people attending political meetings.
“It is not acceptable for the police to be compiling data on people attending a political meeting,” said Val Swain, one of the defendants. “We are not supposed to be living in a totalitarian society where police can hold data on people just because of their political views. The police behave in a very intimidating manner, forcing people to ‘run the gauntlet’ of camera flashguns & police scrutiny simply to attend a meeting. I believe that in acting the way that they do, the police are acting unlawfully & this trial will attempt to hold them to account.” Check out: http://www.fitwatch.blogspot.com
Stop the st athan murder academy
On 23rd August, anti-militarists including South Wales Anarchists visited RAF St Athan, to oppose its planned expansion into an international training complex. The development, costing £14 billion, will be privately operated for the benefit of the entire British armed forces & allies. The ‘St Athan Defence Academy’ headed by the Metrix Consortium, & run in partnership with City & Guilds, Laing O’Rourke, Raytheon, & Open University will be operational by 2013.
The Welsh Assembly has forced this deal through with no public discussion, focussing on the supposed ‘economic benefits’, including new jobs for local people. Despite figures of 5000 being toted the vast majority will be re-located specialist personnel, there are only a few hundred low paid service jobs for local people (see Gagged #16).
Prison isn’t working so why build more?
As part of the Home Office’s plans for 10,000 new prison places in the next 2 years, privately run Parc Prison in Bridgend is to raise its number of inmates by more than a third to over 1,500, & a new jail in North Wales is proposed. The Probation Service is concerned by the costs of expansion & suggested there should be a debate about prison population.
No debate is needed. Prisons are a failure. Overcrowding is huge, more than half of all prisoners have mental health problems, while suicide & self-harm are rife. The number of innocent prisoners in the UK – victims of miscarriages of justice – is highly disputed but some claim it is as high as 3,000 ( http://www.portia.org). Despite the rhetoric, prison does not rehabilitate as it’s not designed to: re-offending rates are 70% for some categories. Inmates are forced to work for peanuts for private companies who make huge profits out of prison slavery ( http://www.againstprisonslavery.org). The fact is prisons do nothing to address the number 1 cause of crime: massive inequality between the rich & the poor.
Disarm the D.S.E.i. arms Fair
The world’s biggest arms fair opens for business on 11th September. Defence Systems Exhibition International comes to London docklands every 2 years, along with warships, fighter planes, corrupt arms dealers & military dictators. For these businesses world conflict is successful capitalism. They are responsible for the fighter jets & bombers that have terrorised Baghdad, South Lebanon & Palestine. All for profit.
A day of action is planned on the 11th September. Further actions will take place later in the week when the arms traders celebrate their deals with dinner at a posh hotel. For those coming from out of town accommodation will be available at a convergence space, the location of which will be announced a week in advance. Check out http://www.dsei.org
Welsh Republican Army threaten Charlie
A paramilitary group calling itself the Welsh Republican Army contacted a newspaper with threats to target Prince Charles if he doesn’t quit his estate near Llandovery & give up the title ‘Prince of Wales’.
“If he [Charles] continues to live here & continues to hold the title Prince of Wales, he continues to be a legitimate target for Republican action. The WRA’s primary objective is to establish a Welsh socialist republic & free Cymru from its shackles. We will continue to oppose the British state’s domination & rule of our country”.
We understand their feelings about Charlie, but as good as getting rid of royalty & the British state would be, Welsh politicians ain’t any better. We need a more fundamental change than moving parliament to Cardiff. The idea that independence would be a step closer to a more just, libertarian society doesn’t add up. Mind you their slogan “We shall see the last English Prince strangled with the entrails of the last capitalist” is a cracker!
End deportations & shut detention prisons
On 28th August members of the Congolese Community of Wales & supporters from No Borders demonstrated outside the Home Office against the deportation of Congolese asylum seekers. Despite Foreign Office advice to British nationals “not to travel at all” to eastern & north-eastern DRC & against “all but essential travel” to the rest of the country as it is deemed “too unstable,” the Home Office continues to deport Congolese asylum seekers, including children born here.
From September 19th – 24th there will be a No Border camp near Gatwick, next to the planned site of a new detention prison. The camp will be an opportunity to stop the building of the detention centre & to share ideas on how to fight against migration controls. There is transport organised from Cardiff to the camp. Get in touch with No Borders Wales to book a space. Check out: http://www.noborders.org.uk
2 more polluting power stations?
Fossil fuel pushers at Npower have signed a deal to build a massive gas power station in Pembrokeshire, & serial polluters Severn Power have just had the go-ahead to build a second gas power station in Newport.
Both stations will be ecologically damaging & will waste hundreds of millions of pounds – money that could be spent on small-scale sustainable electricity generation using tidal, wind, & solar power. The move has been welcomed by carbon dinosaurs at Pembrokeshire & Newport councils, who say the stations will provide much-needed jobs. However, most of the jobs created will be filled by highly trained workers from outside our local communities, leaving only short-term construction jobs & low-skill low-wage positions for local people.
Both companies try to sell the use of gas as a clean alternative to coal & nuclear power, but in fact gas is just another fossil fuel adding to runaway climate change.
Picket Lines
At the beginning of August Lloyds TSB, the UK’s 5th largest bank, reported half-year profits of £2bn, up 15% on last year. Despite these profits, workers for Lloyds TSB in Cardiff will be amongst 550 made redundant across the UK as a result of the closure of more than 30 Cheltenham & Gloucester branches (which Lloyds bought in 1995) & moving IT jobs to countries where they can pay even lower wages.
• • • • •
The disabled employment service ‘Remploy’ is closing down it’s factories, in Aberdare, Abertillery, Bridgend, Brynamman, Treforest, Wrexham & Ystradgynlais making 465 people unemployed. Demonstrations have already happened in Wrexham & there will be more at the Swansea Shared Service Centre on 11 September, Bridgend, Treforest, Aberdare & Port Talbot on 12 September & Brynamman, Ystradgynlais & Abertillery on 13 September.
• • • • •
During the Camp for Climate Action, workers at Cargo company Nippon Express, Heathrow held a 48-hour strike against a new work regime, which would, amongst other things, see them working 25% longer hours for no extra pay & mean a £1265 pay cut for many of them. Many climate campers showed solidarity with them by visiting the picket line during this period & likewise some of the workers visited the camp. It’s not hard to see the link between these two struggles – capitalism & its insatiable drive for profit which is put above the needs of people & planet. It’s only by working to destroy capitalism that we will be able to end worker exploitation & climate chaos, & build a free world in harmony with our environment.
• • • • •
Prison officers in Wales & England staged a surprise strike over pay on 29th August, breaching the 1994 ban on strike action. Prison officers are clearly very confident. It is unthinkable that the government would cut back on prison officers while prison numbers grow. It’s definitely a growth industry, which gives them industrial leverage that just wouldn’t be available in other sectors. They received support from the Police Federation with threats that the police could consider following suit. More money for screws & cops? Forgive us if we are less than enthusiastic!! We suggest that they all think about making drastic career changes. Or jump off the nearest tall building….
• • • • •
Following Council workers rejection of a pay offer earlier this year, the employers made an improved offer, breaking Gordon Brown’s 2% public sector pay limit; 2.475% & a new minimum rate of £6 per hour. On 4th September UNISON’s National Executive decided to reject this offer & is proceeding to ballot for industrial action. As we go to press the GMB are consulting all members by post to decide if they will be balloting for strike action.
COPWATCH
Yet more sexual abuse in custody
A North Wales police detective has been suspended amid allegations of sexual assault & misconduct in public office. He has not yet been arrested or charged. It is thought the allegations may have been made by a female who had been in custody.
They do like to be beside the seaside!
Gwent cops are being investigated for taking trips to the beach when they should have been on duty. Only coming a cropper when they got a flat tyre in England & had to call for assistance! It’s claimed cops competed to see who could get furthest away from their Blackwood patrol area. Up to four officers allegedly took trips to places like Barry Island & Porthcawl.
Speeding cops caught out
It has been revealed that 20 South Wales police officers have been caught speeding on traffic cameras. Only 4 of them were prosecuted, with 3 cases still ongoing. In another case a Mid-Wales detective, Ashley Brice, got away with a fine & a 12-month ban after being found guilty of dangerous driving that caused the death of another driver in 2005.
Yet another death in custody
Recalled to prison after breaching parole, David King, 41, was discovered hanging in his cell by staff at Swansea jail on August 11th & pronounced dead.
It was the 57th suicide in jails in Wales & England so far this year, compared with 41 at the same point last year. Almost one third of suicides occur within the first week of jail. Many happen while people are on remand, not even convicted of a crime.
Metropolitan FIT police on holiday
FIT Officer LX365 – Ian Skivens was in attendance at a small demo outside the St. Athan RAF base on Thursday 23rd August with a photographer from Staffordshire police. When asked what he was doing such a long way from home, Ian said he was there to “check out how other UK forces deal with protests, nothing more sinister than that”. The Met already consider themselves head of a national police force.
Stun guns for welsh cops
Gwent & North Wales Police are now to be armed with 50,000-volt taser weapons. Until now Tasers have only been issued to police firearms units. Over 220 people have died after being shot with Tasers in the US since 2001.
Fine for being run over
A police car swerved off the road in Beddau, & ran over Daniel Horne’s foot.
“The police car came on to the pavement, hit my right leg & I fell over – with my foot being crushed under the front wheel.”
Instead of an apology he got an £80 fine – stating: “You ran into the nearside front wing of a marked police vehicle causing a dent.” He’s unable to work & plans to sue.
Diary Dates
September
11 – Disarm Dsei – actions against Defence Systems & Equipment International (DSEi), the arms fair. ExCel Centre, London. http://www.dsei.org
13 – Cymru-imc-Wales benefit gig – Cosmo, Imran & Lou Noble & the Red Silhouettes. Minsky’s, Charles Street, Cardiff, 8-11.30pm. £2
19-24 – No Borders Camp, near Gatwick. http://www.noborders.org.uk
22 – All Wales Peace Festival Caernarfon. http://www.cymdeithasycymod.org.uk/gwylheddwch
October
1 – South Wales Anarchist Forum – monthly meeting of all of the south Wales groups. 8pm. Glamorgan staff club, westgate street, Cardiff.
6 – Stop St. Athan Defence Training Academy, Temple of Peace, Cardiff, 2pm- meeting of the coalition campaigning against the development of new military training academy in South Wales.
27 – Anarchist Bookfair – Queen Mary & Westfield College, Mile End Road, London, E1. 10am-7pm http://www.anarchistbookfair.org.uk
November
3 – Gagged! benefit gig – No Choice, KilnAboy, & Gunrack? Le Pub, Caxton Place, Newport. £3
Got any news or an event you want us to cover? send details to news@gaggedanarchist.tk
An audio version of Gagged! is available, check out http://www.gaggedanarchist.tk, where you can also subscribe online. 5,000 copies of each issue are distributed – can you help? If you are interested in getting involved, please get in touch info@gaggedanarchist.tk
Peoples Autonomous Destination
a physical space in Cardiff for groups & individuals who cannot or will not work within the constraints of governmental or corporate control. Food co-op every wednesday from 5pm. meetings every wednesday from 7pm. Vegan-fry-up every sunday from 12noon. & lots more, call by & see notice board 118 Clifton Street, Cardiff CF24 1LW • http://www.thepad.org.
Cardiff Rising Tide
is a grassroots group committed to taking action & building a movement against climate change.
cardiff@risingtide.org.uk http://www.risingtide.org.uk
No Borders Wales
organises on migration issues & acts to break down boundaries that divide us. Meet at the PAD thursdays 7pm.
noborderswales@riseup.net http://www.noborderswales.wordpress.com
Cardiff Reading Anti-Capitalism
is a study/reading group exploring revolutionary vision & strategy. Meet 7pm every other tuesday of the month at PAD. http://www.myspace.com/cardiffanticapitalism
South Wales Anarchists
A network of collectives who are against all forms of exploitation & bigotry. We are concerned with taking direct action against capitalism & government. We spread information & build resistance to create a world based on justice & freedom. We organise autonomously without authority or hierarchy, so that everybody involved can have an equal say. http://www.southwalesanarchists.org
Cardiff Anarchist Network (CAN) Meetings on Mondays 8pm, at the PAD. Contact cardiffanarchists@riseup.net or http://www.myspace.com/cardiffanarchists.
Gwent Anarchists Meetings on every other Monday 8.30pm at the Murenger, High Street, Newport. Contact gwentanarchists@yahoo.co.uk or http://www.myspace.com/gwentanarchists
Pembrokeshire Anarchists Contact pembrokeshireanarchists@riseup.net or http://www.myspace.com/pembrokeshireanarchists.
Rhondda Cyon Taf Anarchists Contact rctanarchists@riseup.net.
For international news like the sort you find in Gagged! check out: http://www.schnews.org.uk http://www.indymedia.org.uk http;//www.libcom.org http://www.anarkismo.net http://www.infoshop.org
South Wales Anarchists
info@gaggedanarchist.tk
http://www.gaggedanarchist.tk
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*The Bath Bomb * Issue #2 September ‘07 * @nti-copyright: copy and distribute! *
“All the news the Chron didn’t choose!”
(For further info on any of our stories, see www.myspace.com/bathbomb)
Shocking Behaviour from Bath’s Authorities
Bath has just been given the honour of hosting the dress rehearsal of the cops’ latest torture techniques. Starting in September, Bath cops will be tooled up with tazer guns capable of delivering a 50,000 volt shock as part of a one-year trial. If the trial is deemed a success (if enough of us get zapped!), the weapons look set to be thrown out to any cop nationwide who wants one.
This move spells disaster for us, as the Metropolitan police, the most armed force in the country, have already shown remarkable skill in murdering and wounding innocent bystanders (see Jean Charles De Menezes – a Brazilian electrician murdered on the London underground for looking “a little bit brown”). Even without these new weapons, in 2006, cops managed to kill 63 people in custody, not counting suicides – a statistic which looks set to rise this year. Will extra weaponry stop crime and terrorism? Have any of the wave of repressive measures introduced by the government in recent years stopped crime and terrorism? It is the oppressive, unfair way the system works that creates crime, and the average copper is just as much a victim of
the system as anyone else, but we can’t cure this violent society with more violence. In this journalist’s opinion, the cops at the top need to start putting more time and effort into stopping muggers and rapists and less into compensating for their collective ‘small man’ complex with big toys! There will be upcoming protests against this worrying development – check out the events calendar on http://www.myspace.com/bathactivistnetwork for more info. In the meantime – let’s make sure it’s the cops who get a nasty shock, not us!
FCK KFC
There is an area of Southgate that the bulldozers have sadly not yet claimed. KFC have been the centre of controversy in recent years because their chickens are sourced from factory-farms. Factory farmed chickens are kept in extremely cramped conditions which can cause them to suffer from broken bones. They suffer from brittle bones because the fattest birds are often chosen for breeding to maximise meat production. When animals are crowded and irritated they are likely to be aggressive, and due to lack of exercise hens have been known to injure each other. PETA and other animal rights organisations claim that the recommendations of the so-called KFC ‘Animal Welfare Advisory Council’ have been ignored and that, because of this, five members of the council have resigned. Adele Douglass, a former member of the council, claims that KFC “never had any meetings. They never asked any advice, and then they touted to the press that they had this animal-welfare advisory committee. I felt like I was being used.” KFC also allegedly buy chickens that have been fed on soya from the Amazon. After a successful campaign by Greenpeace many food chains have promised not to use soya grown illegally in the rainforest, yet Greenpeace say that KFC have completely refused to discuss their role in Amazon destruction.
If you reckon their outdated practices should kick the bucket, join the boycott outside the Bath restaurant on Saturday the 8th September at 12.30 – bring banners, placards and friends!
Propagandist Spiel of the Month:
“Like a cancer (Tesco’s) are, they creep up all slow, and then you can’t get rid of ‘em@
Carry on Camping
And now some breaking news from our Heathrow correspondent: “On the 14th August, I went deep undercover to infiltrate the Camp for Climate Action, just north of Heathrow. Smuggling myself in inside a wheelie bin, I waited till I got towed to camp, disguised as an undercover reporter disguised as a protester. However, when I got there, I found no eco-terrorist mastermind cell. Neither were there any suspicious packages. All I could spy was a tent village housing around 1,000 campers demonstrating low-impact living, powered by wind, solar and pedal power. Meals were communal affairs, locally-produced and organic. Meetings too were communal, run without leaders, as well as debates and workshops – covering everything from law, to agriculture, to foraging, to electrics. Jobs on the camp were dished out voluntarily, whether cleaning out the compost loos, child minding, or meeting and greeting newcomers. Local villagers (more than 1,100 nearby homes being under threat from Heathrow) eagerly joined in. Despite over-zealous policing, the protests went off to great effect – shutting down executive flights, freight depots, and even BAA’s HQ, with a 24 hour slumber party! Carbon trading companies were also targeted, accused of peddling dubious science. All in all, this second annual climate camp proved an inspiring event for many, and next year should be even better. But, unfortunately for the gutter press, there wasn’t a bomb-wielding extremist in sight.”
Events Listing
Monday nights Bath Hunt Saboteur meetings 8pm back room of Bell
8th Sept Bath FreeShop Stall Street 12-3pm
8th Sept Anti KFC demo 12.30-3pm Henry Street
11th-14th Sept Disarm DSEI @ The ExCeL Centre in London. www.dsei.org
15th Sept ‘There is such things a free lunch!’ stall Stall Street, 11.00-1.00pm
16th Sept Christain Aid’s ‘Cut the Carbon’ march Abbey Courtyard 4.30pm.
19th-24th Sept No Border Camp in Gatwick. www.noborders.org.uk/
21st Sept Leftism benefit club night for Bristle magazine downstairs at The Crown on Bathwick Street
23rd Sept ‘Bubbling Under’ 12.30-3pm Porter Cellar on George Street
26th Sept ‘Nuclear, Unclear?’ debate BRLSI Queen Square 7pm
3rd Oct Bath Animal Action meeting 7.30pm back room of Bell
4th oct Bath activist Network meeting 7.30pm back room of Bell
Killers in our Communities!
On a recent trawl through the murky world of the arms trade (inspired by the upcoming DSEI arms fair taking place in London on the 11th of September), the Bath Bomb uncovered an uncomfortable truth – Bath is home to at least two arms companies. We have BMT on Lower Bristol Road, who are in the charming business of selling warships and nuclear-capacity submarines to any maniac with enough cash, and Horstman Defence Systems on Locksbrook Road, who make trigger mechs and the wheely bits for tanks and other armoured vehicles. In this climate of international conflict, attacking the arms trade has never been more timely. While the rich make a killing from the arms trade, and we simply get killed, it seems to us at the Bath Bomb that the thing that divides us isn’t race or nationality, but class. The rich profit from wars – from the arms company who sells weapons, to the government that plunders the losing country to the companies that move in afterwards to pick the bones, while average people the world over get slaughtered and exploited by the whole process from factory floor to battlefield. Both of our local companies will be displaying at DSEI, selling to corrupt governments
such as Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Israel and the US. To find out more about the fair, check out www.dsei.org, but in the meantime, let’s pull out our red paint and padlocks and get busy with our own local death dealers! (Bath Bomb in no way advocates the padlocking shut and covering in slogans of any arms companies… honest, officer!)
Who Are Bath Activist Network?
We are a local umbrella group campaigning on issues as diverse as development, environmentalism, anti-war, animal rights, workers’ rights and more. Helping to produce The Bath Bomb, we are open to anyone, and our members range from trade unionists to anarchists, liberals to greens, and people who just want to change Bath for the better.
For details on meetings, demos, or just to get in touch, ring us on 07949 611912, email bathactivistnet@yahoo.co.uk, or see our website: www.myspace.com/bathactivistnetwork
The Only Good Border is a Text Border
Back in mid-August, the Cinnamon restaurant in Keynsham was raided by BIA [Border and Immigration Agency] heavies, who arrested four members of staff. These so-called ‘illegal workers’ are from Bangladesh, a country where political murder is rife, and floods are an ever-increasing hazard. Whilst the restaurant is currently struggling to find staff bi-lingual in English and Bengali, BIA jobsworths claim the men lacked the correct papers. But who cares about silly little things like papers? Whilst the dignity and wealth of Bangladesh is drained by Western companies in the Export Processing Zones, some people are forced to move on just to survive. No one in their right mind would abandon their home and heritage lightly, risking their lives in border crossings, just to settle for Britain. Whilst asylum applications are being processed, refugees are forbidden to work, expected to make do on £36.54 a week. Their only option is to try and find work in low-paying, often degrading jobs, whilst avoiding discovery, racist violence and deportation.
Are you bored of immigration control and nanny state fascism? If so, why not come along to the UK’s first ever ‘No Border Camp’ near Gatwick! From the 19th to the 24th of September, people will gather to fight the building of a new detention centre, as well as other kinds of state control, such as ID cards and constant surveillance. At this camp, no one is illegal, and all forms of division will be challenged: racism, sexism and homophobia. In a world without borders, nobody will ask for papers anymore.
Foie Gras Campaign Update
Following on from last month’s issue, the Cavendish Restaurant have now also dropped foie gras. Outlets in the city have since apparently gathered to meet and discuss in private their response to the campaign. That’s three restaurants now – follow this link for further info:
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=211421146&blogID=296816530
The Bath Bomb ‘Golden Showers’ Appeal
On the night of July the 11th, KKK-wannabes barged in to the Mosque on Pierrepont Street and drunkenly pished over worshipper’s clothes and shoes. Please could any info as to their identity be sent in to your friendly neighbourhood vigilante hotline, at bathbombpress@yahoo.co.uk. Bath Antifa would ever so love to see the two proud British bulldogs poo themselves. And if you are one of the guys in the picture, Mr Pee Pee “I can’t hold my pint” Pissypants, then isn’t it about time Mummy and Daddy had you potty-trained?
for images, see: http://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/LocalPages/NewsDetails.aspx?nsid=9853&t=1&lid=3
FILMS THAT TELL THE TRUTH
A new season of activist films is opening in Bath. The ‘Bubbling Under’ lunchtime screenings will show films made by radical action groups and alternative news networks.
Showing at the Porter Cellar bar, the first session will be Sunday the 23rd of September, at 12.30: ‘V for Video Activist’ – SchNEWS DVD Collection for 2006. The event is free entry, and all are welcome!
GOT A STORY? WANT TO RECEIVE THE BATH BOMB BY EMAIL? HOPING TO SUE?
Contact us by e-mailing bathbombpress@yahoo.co.uk. Large print e-versions are available on request
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The 11th issue of West Wales’ very own alternative magazine is out now, available from all the usual outlets and, thanks to the fact that we have finally got with the programme and entered the 21st century, also available online at http://cambriansnooze.org.uk/
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Climate Action News sheet 71, September 2007
Compiled and sent out by Rising Tide UK: info at risingtide.org.uk
To receive this News Sheet monthly, email news-subscribe at risingtide.org.uk with the subject line ‘subscribe’ (without the quotes).
CONTENTS:
———————————————-
UPCOMING ACTIONS AND EVENTS:
———————————————-
1) NATIONWIDE DAY OF ACTION AGAINST ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND – 15.10.07
2) CRITICAL MASS UPDATES – nationwide.
3) ART ACTION EXHIBITION AT PORTSMOUTH CATHEDRAL – 8-23.9.07
4) ROAD BLOCK NATIONAL CONFERENCE – 27.10.07, Birmingham.
5) PLANNING FOR HARD TIMES – 26-28.10.07, Ohio, USA.
6) I-COUNT COMMUNITIES PROJECT – AUGUST ‘07, UK.
7) NATIONAL CLIMATE MARCH/GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION – 8.12.07; PLANNING MEETING, 6.10.07, Oxford
———————————————-
RECENT HAPPENINGS:
———————————————-
1) CLIMATE CAMP – 11-21.8.07, Heathrow & nationwide.
2) PIXIES IN THE PIPELINE – during the week of climate action.
3) ACTION IN THE LEAD UP TO THE CAMP – JULY/AUGUST ‘07
4) BAA CLIMATE CAMP INJUNCTION UPDATE – 1.8.07
5) CONVERGENCE FOR CLIMATE ACTION, USA – 8-14.8.07
6) THE TOOLKIT FOR CLIMATE ACTION – AUGUST ‘07
7) LAUNCH OF RADICAL NEWS-SHEET, ‘THE BATH BOMB’ – JULY/AUGUST ‘07
8) GAGGED! 18 – SOUTH WALES ANARCHIST NEWSLETTER – AUGUST ‘07
9) AMAZON PIPELINE PLANS SHELVED – 3.8.07
10) EVICTION THREAT AT ROSSPORT, Co MAYO – 31.7.07
11) SAVING ICELAND CAMP CLOSES BUT ACTIONS CONTINUE – 27.7.07
12) ELF ACTION IN SOLIDARITY WITH SAVING ICELAND – 30.7.07
13) CORPORATE SPONSORSHIPS COMPROMISE THEATRE – 31.7.07
14) ARRESTS AT TARA – 18.7.07
15) ROADBUILDING IN THE NEWS – JULY/AUGUST 07
16) BP PLEDGE TO AVOID INCREASED POLLUTION INTO LAKE MICHIGAN! – 23.8.07
17) STOCKHOLM 4×4 STRIKES – 6.8.07
18) SWEDISH CLIMATE ACTION ROUND-UP – APRIL/JUNE 07
19) SHELL OIL PLANS HALTED – 21.7.07, ALASKA
20) MORI POLL HIGHLIGHTS DENIAL – 25.7.07
21) SPIRIT OF FREEDOM NEWSLETTER – AUGUST 2007
22) NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION AGAINST BANK OF AMERICA – 31.8.07
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UPCOMING ACTIONS AND EVENTS:
———————————————-
1) NATIONWIDE DAY OF ACTION AGAINST ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND – 15.10.07
The Rising Tide UK network has called a Day of Action against RBS and is inviting Climate Campers and others to organise local actions. Calling itself the “oil & gas bank”, RBS is financing controversial projects in Nigeria, the Caucasus and Wales. RBS is a major funder of the LNG Gas Pipeline (see Recent Happenings). The bank’s involvement in Angolan and Nigerian oil fields encourages corruption and conflict, while gas projects from the Arabian Gulf to the Gulf of Mexico threaten environmental destruction. RBS is also a big player in the aviation industry. http://risingtide.org.uk/node/221
Find out more about the LNG pipeline – www.fightthepipe.co.uk
Plan an effective action – www.networkforclimateaction.org.uk
Oil Bank of Scotland webpage: http://www.platformlondon.org/carbonweb/showitem.asp?article=258&parent=39
2) CRITICAL MASS UPDATES – nationwide.
There are currently Critical Mass bike rides in many major cities throughout the land. Check: http://www.urban75.com/Action/critical.html
for more details, or start another one yourself!
See also: http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/3283 for reports of police hassle at London Critical Mass.
Glossop Critical Mass – 14.9.07
This event has been organised by the newly formed “Road Alert Glossop”. The plan is for Glossop’s first ever Critical Mass bike ride from Glossop to Tintwistle (and back). This will take place on Friday 14th September,
meeting at 5.30pm. See their website on MySpace for details: http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=200655900&blogID=286207685
Birmingham Critical Mass – Held on the first Friday of the month, this has apparently been building steadily with a good atmosphere and no hassle.
Meet at St Phillip’s Cathedral, 5.30pm.
3) ART ACTION EXHIBITION AT PORTSMOUTH CATHEDRAL – 8-23.9.07
Art Action – Turning the Tide on Climate Change Opening Fair with stalls, music and activities – Sat 8 Sept.
www.radicalartgroup.org.uk
4) ROAD BLOCK NATIONAL CONFERENCE – 27.10.07 Birmingham.
Transport 2000’s Road Block conference – Saturday 27 October 2007, 11am-5pm, Central Birmingham, with special guest speaker George Monbiot.
Early registration is strongly recommended. The registration fee of £20 waged (£10 low/unwaged) contributes towards the costs of the event.
To register, email roadsconference@transport2000.org.uk. You can book places online from Tuesday 21 August on Transport 2000’s website.
5) PLANNING FOR HARD TIMES – 26-28.10.07 Ohio, USA.
Fourth Annual Conference, Yellow Springs, Ohio.
“The world’s largest gathering of Peak Oil activists!” Three days of presentations, workshop sessions, and networking with experts in Peak Oil and lifestyle solutions. Learn tactics for Peak Oil education and community organising, strategies for reducing your personal energy use, and participate in visioning a
viable post-peak future. Heathrow was a lot nearer!
http://www.communitysolution.org/conference.html
6) I-COUNT COMMUNITIES PROJECT – AUGUST ’07, UK.
The Climate Outreach Information network is working with Stop Climate Chaos on a new project called ICount Communities, which aims to link together local groups working in climate change. Groups will be put
on to a map with contact details and a brief description of what they do. There will also be a free message board service, both for individual groups and areas. Groups may advertise their activities; generate new ideas by seeing what other groups are doing; increase their numbers of contacts, since they will be able to contact other groups on the map and increase their chances of getting more members, due to greater publicity.
Details from katie@coinet.org.uk or matt@coinet.org.uk or 01865 727911.
www.icount.org.uk
7) NATIONAL CLIMATE MARCH/GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION – 8.12.07
Action on Climate Change – The Time is Now. Before it’s Too Late.
Assemble Millbank, London, 12 noon. 2.30 pm Rally at US embassy. Speakers include George Monbiot, Caroline Lucas MEP.
http://www.campaigncc.org/
PLANNING MEETING FOR UK MARCH – 6.10.07, Oxford.
National Planning Meeting for the London & international demo – 6.10.07, St Mary’s Church, High Street, Oxford, 1-6 pm. Speakers: Mark Lynas, George Marshall.
http://www.campaigncc.org/
———————————————
RECENT HAPPENINGS:
———————————————-
1) CLIMATE CAMP – 11-21.8.07 Heathrow and nationwide.
The focus of the Camp was on direct action and there was a glut of actions that soon spread nationwide. However, the anarchic eco-village experiment was also a huge success, and the information exchange was incredible. New solutions were being proposed to tackle climate chaos and there was quiet optimism, wild celebratory resistance and of course a fair smattering of grim resolve. Rising Tide groups were very well represented at the Camp.
> From direct action to communication, from soul singing to giving workshops, from the media to the toilets – we were there! We also had the opportunity to talk about the RT UK network and encourage others to dip
their toes… The actions themselves targeted the corporations who profit from climate chaos.
Here is a brief resume:
13.8.07 – A group of activists set up a climate camp on the wing of an Airbus A380 on its way to be assembled in France.
16.8.07 – Farnborough and Biggin Hill airports, both exclusively used by private executive jets, were blockaded by two teams of climate activists.
17.8.07 – The doors of six London travel agencies were chained shut and plastered with signs saying ‘Closed, gone to the Climate Camp.’ Ten people occupied the office of private charter company XL. Activists super-glued
themselves to the front doors of the Department for Transport’s London headquarters. A tourist joined the protest and chained himself to the doors!
18.8.07 – Children and their parents blockade the World Freight Centre at Heathrow. 60 people occupied Carmel Agrexco’s Heathrow warehouse.
19.8.07 – A noisy and joyous kid’s and local peoples’ march headed to Harmondsworth village via the threatened village of Sipson.. Elsewhere, protesters broke free of mounted police wearing copies of the Tyndall
Report on their hands and carried a banner reading, ‘We are armed…only with peer-reviewed science’. Late on Sunday evening, BA World Cargo depot was blockaded for about four and a half hours by eight protestors locked
to eachother. The day also saw the start of a BAA national HQ blockade, Cardiff banner solidarity, Norwich Airport solidarity demo, and a clown visit to Heathrow.
20.8.07 – Carbon offset companies targeted by protesters dressed as red herrings. Fifteen occupied the offices of Climate Care in Oxford. Ten leafleted the offices of the Carbon Neutral Company in London. Five
protesters locked-on outside Sizewell A and B nuclear power stations, saying ‘Nuclear power is not the answer to climate chaos.’ Twelve protesters super-glued themselves to the entrance at BP headquarters. Eighteen protesters occupied the office of the owners of Leeds airport, Bridgepoint Capital, on Warwick Street in London. Meanwhile, the mass siege of BAA national headquarters forced its closure for the day. Also today; Newcastle solidarity demo, Tyneside Esso banner drop, a Trafalgar Square fountain action, clowns mark out runway in Clive Soley (boss of ‘Future Heathrow’)’s garden…
21.8.07 – Climate camp activists targeted Stansted Airport in an increasing wave of activity. Leaflets were handed out and a slogan attached to a wall on a main entrance/exit.
During the week there were over 71 arrests. The Camp made a big splash in the media across the globe; searching for “climate camp heathrow” in either google or you tube will yield a whole host of articles. Here
are a few worthwhile links:
http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/08/379135.htm
http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/
Newly-formed Rising Tide Hastings had a mention in Hastings Observer too!
http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/newshastings/Camp-for-Climate-action.3134885.jp
2) PIXIES IN THE PIPELINE – During The Week of Climate Action.
The Brecon Beacons gas pipeline works were sabotaged during a night action as part of the week of action against climate change and in defence of the earth. A small team bypassed the poor security and immobilised a total of 11 machines including tipper trucks and excavators! The pipe itself was holed in several places. The pipeline is destroying natural habitats in order to supply a fuel that we cannot burn if the life on this planet is to survive.
3) ACTION IN THE LEAD UP TO THE CAMP – JULY/AUGUST ‘07
28.7.07 – Oxford Climate Campers took over Carfax Tower and dropped a banner satirising the Oxford City Council logo and promoting the Camp for Climate Action.
3.8.07 – A 16 metre-long banner was dropped from the Edinburgh Crags to promote Climate Camp. The banner read ‘This planet has no emergency exits’, and then gave the website for the climate camp
10.8.07 – A spoof demo at Bristol International Airport attracted lots of media attention as Sleazy-jet and Fry-in-air dropped by (before cycling to Heathrow).
Oxford – www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/oxford/2007/07/377181.html
Edinburgh – http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/4358
Bristol – http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/4991
4) BAA CLIMATE CAMP INJUNCTION UPDATE – 1.8.07
Mrs. Justice Swift struck out most of BAA’s application, pointing out that much of its evidence was based on news reports and web sites, and ruling that, as there is a “divergence of interest” within the groups named,
[with the exception of Plane Stupid], they should not be targeted. http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/4354
5) CONVERGENCE FOR CLIMATE ACTION, USA. – 8-14.8.07
Just prior to the Heathrow camp, Rising Tide North America hosted two Climate Convergences in The States. Over 400 people gathered for the West Coast Convergence for Climate Action in Washington. Participants took part
in nearly 100 workshops and two days of direct action including a lock down in front of the PacifiCorp building in Portland, to demand that the company shut down the four dams it operates on the Klamath river and
stop developing coal fire power plants. Meanwhile, at the Southeast Convergence for Climate Action in Asheville, activists took direct action against Bank of America regarding their many investments in climate injustice. They locked-on and blockaded the entrance successfully. Four activists were later arrested.
http://risingtidenorthamerica.org/wordpress/category/front-page/
6) THE TOOLKIT FOR CLIMATE ACTION – AUGUST 07
‘With this toolkit we hope to inspire you to take action – at home, at school, at work, in your community. The toolkit has been put together by the Network for Climate Action, which has grown out of and is associated
with the Climate Camp.’ This is an astonishing resource and essential reading.
http://www.networkforclimateaction.org.uk/
7) LAUNCH OF RADICAL NEWS-SHEET, ‘THE BATH BOMB’ – JULY/AUGUST 07
To get a copy e-mailed every month, e-mail bathbombpress@yahoo.co.uk
8) GAGGED! 18 – SOUTH WALES ANARCHIST NEWSLETTER – AUGUST 07
http://lists.riseup.net/www/d_read/gagged/gagged18.pdf
9) AMAZON PIPELINE PLANS SHELVED – 3.8.07
It is reported that plans to build a massive South American gas pipeline through the Amazon rainforest, from the Caribbean to Brazil have “cooled off”. 75,765 protest emails have been sent in nearly a year, along with
local protests on environmental and economic grounds.
http://www.rainforestportal.org/
10) EVICTION THREAT AT ROSSPORT, Co MAYO – 31.7.07
After over eighteen months of providing a base for activists supporting the local Shell to Sea campaign, the Rossport Solidarity Camp was recently served notice to quit by Mayo County Council. It seems no coincidence
that the council’s moves to evict the camp come at a time when Shell has been extensively surveying the estuary that runs alongside the camp in preparation for pipeline development.
http://www.corribsos.com/index.php?id=1496
Meanwhile, in Norfolk a small group of local campaigners visited Shell’s processing plant at Bacton (3.08.07) to demonstrate solidarity with communities struggling against Shell in Co. Mayo, Eire.
11) SAVING ICELAND CAMP CLOSES BUT ACTIONS CONTINUE – 27.7.07
After a busy summer of actions including the blockade of a smelter and power station, the Saving Iceland protest camp has been wound up. However they are not through with this summers actions, so if you are
planning to join them fight against heavy industry in Iceland you can contact them at savingiceland@riseup.net
http://www.savingiceland.org/node/891
12) ELF ACTION IN SOLIDARITY WITH SAVING ICELAND – 30.7.07
Saboteurs struck at Smurfit Kappa, a plastics factory owned by Rio Tinto-Alcan in Chelmsford, Essex. The gates were locked shut, office doors and loading bays were sabotaged with glue and a message left painted on the wall. Vehicles belonging to Rio Tinto were also sabotaged. Rio Tinto, which has recently acquired the business have appalling environmental and human rights records. Its recent acquisition of Alcan makes it party to the greatest ecological crime currently being committed in Europe. It is looking to turn Iceland’s wildernesses into a series of monolithic power stations to power aluminium smelters; one of the most polluting and energy
intensive industries in the world.
http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/3341
13) CORPORATE SPONSORSHIPS COMPROMISE THEATRE – 31.7.07
A piece in Guardian Unlimited questioning Shell’s sponsorship of The National Theatre’s production “Much Ado About Nothing”, mentions London Rising Tide’s blockade of the National Portrait Gallery.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/theatre/2007/07/do_corporate_sponsorships_comp.html
…AND MUSEUM
Along worryingly similar lines; BP has recently committed itself to an unprecedented five-year deal with the British Museum, under which it will finance a series of large-scale exhibitions, starting with one on the
Emperor Hadrian, next June.
www.artnotoil.org.uk
14) ARRESTS AT TARA – 18.7.07
Four Hill of Tara protesters have been jailed for a week after they refused to comply with bail conditions requiring them to stay away from the site of the M3 motorway. The four were among a group of seven who
were charged with public order offences following clashes with security and construction workers. A number of the protesters were injured when security contractors dragged them away from machinery. The Gardai at the
sites did nothing to protect the peaceful protesters from being assaulted. Tara support is critically needed. The EU told Ireland to stop building in June and is taking the Irish govt. to court on Aug 29th. “It it is only £15 on coach to Dublin. 7 euro bus to Tara. Even a few days and a few people will make all the difference.”
Vigil Camp 00353(0) 861758557 or Rath Lugh Action camp 00353( 0)867372983
www.tarapixie.net
www.savetara.com
www.circlecommunity.org
15) ROADBUILDING IN THE NEWS – JULY/AUGUST ‘07
Road building has been in the news a lot recently. The Guardian wrote about the massive cost of the proposed M6 widening which at £2.9 billion works out to be £1,000 per inch! This was picked up by The Mirror and
The Mail. Then the M1 came under the spotlight when The Guardian revealed that the Government was planning to add not two but four new lanes to the M1 – creating a 10-lane superhighway. Next came the New Statesman cover story. This article exposed the flaws in the DfT’s decision-making structures that result in road schemes always being seen to make economic sense. This is one of the strongest attacks on the DfT’s appraisal system ever written and is essential reading for roads campaigners.
(http://www.guardian.co.uk/transport/Story/0,,2138044,00.html)
(http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/aug/08/
transportintheuk.motoring)
(http://www.newstatesman.com/200708090012)
Check out www.roadblock.org.uk for campaign updates from across the country.
16) BP PLEDGES TO AVOID INCREASED POLLUTION INTO LAKE MICHIGAN – 23.8.07
Citing “ongoing regional opposition”, BP America Chairman and President Bob Malone has announced that the company will avoid any increased pollution into Lake Michigan from its oil refinery in Whiting, Indiana.
Good old BP, eh? However, BP still holds its permit to increase pollution and we need to make sure that today’s promise is set in stone. BP should apply for a new discharge permit that doesn’t allow for any increase in ammonia or toxic suspended solids.
http://www.environmentillinois.org/action/protect-lake-michigan/bp-email?id4=ES
17) STOCKHOLM 4×4 STRIKES – 6.8.07
A newly formed activist group, calling itself The Indians of the Concrete Jungle, has struck repeatedly against 4×4’s in the centre of Stockholm over the last weeks. Some 110 have been temporarily disarmed. The
activists unscrew the cap of the valve, insert a grain of gravel or stone in it, and screw it back on leaving a letter to the owner on the windscreen wherein the action is explained. Three Indians have been nabbed by the police and face various criminal charges. If you can read Swedish check out The Indians of the Concrete Jungle: http://asfaltsdjungelnsindianer.wordpress.com/in-english/
Also worth a look is www.stopurban4x4s.org.uk. They have further suggestions for taking creative action against these dangerous gas-guzzlers.
18) SWEDISH CLIMATE ACTION ROUND-UP – APRIL/JUNE 07
14 April: Climax is formed as a network of climate activists, after a group of ten seizes the runway at Bromma Airport in Stockholm for 30 minutes. Trials are pending.
11 May: The entrance to a travel agency in the city of Stockholm was blocked, when activists from Climax unloaded sand in front of it, revealing to the customers what Botswana will become in a few decades.
26 May: The most heavily trafficked highway bridge in Sweden’s fourth city, was blocked for 30 minutes during rush hour.
1 June: Outside the entrance to Sweden’s major daily newspaper, a group of activists from Climax unloaded coal and swept it under a rug, dressed as the editors of the paper. The paper promotes carbon offsetting as a
solution.
8 June: A street at a central square in Stockholm, was blocked for one hour by activists from Climax, preventing cars from coming through. Cookies were handed out to subway passengers and bike riders in the
vicinity.
www.klimatet.org (in Swedish)
19) SHELL OIL PLANS HALTED – 21.7.07, ALASKA
Shell Offshore Inc. plans to drill several exploratory oil wells in the Beaufort Sea were halted by the US Court of Appeals. The proposed wells were sited in the middle of the bowhead whale migration corridor.
http://www.pacificenvironment.org/article.php?id=2514
20) MORI POLL HIGHLIGHTS DENIAL – 25.7.07
Recent MORI poll data reveals that that most people still believe that climate change is undecided, in the future, somewhere else and someone else’s problem. Ipsos-MORI’s new report Tipping Point or Turning Point- a report on social attitudes to climate change makes disturbing reading.
www.climatedenial.org.
Exeter University came up with another report claiming that Britons are addicted to cheap flights –
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6970730.stm
21) SPIRIT OF FREEDOM NEWSLETTER – AUGUST 2007
Produced by the Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network.
http://www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk/
http://earthfirst.org.uk/actionreports/node/4820
22) NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION AGAINST BANK OF AMERICA – 31.8.07
Mountain Justice Summer has called a day of action against Bank of America to demand they stop funding the coal industry which is destroying the Appalachian mountains through mountaintop removal mining as well as
perpetuating climate chaos. Actions have been planned in 19 cities across the US. Reports should be coming back soon…
www.mountainjusticesummer.org
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Please send anything you’d like included in this news sheet to:
newssheet@risingtide.org.uk
To view previous editions of the Rising Tide News Sheet, visit the News Sheet Archive at http://risingtide.org.uk/newssheet
This News Sheet was brought to you by Rising Tide, a grassroots network of groups and individuals committed to taking action and building a movement against climate change.
For more information…
email: info@risingtide.org.uk
Phone: +44 (0)7708 794665
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Undercurrents is calling for submissions of short videos and animations on the theme of the festival: social justice and environmental action.
It’s only a week away! There are plans afoot all over the country, and there’s still time for you to organise something in your local area. A few things that might help:
Cardiff Total closed in Burma protest
Inspired by the Camp for Climate Action? Don’t wait till next year to take part in collective direct action against the causes of climate change. At this year’s Camp, the Rising Tide network called a Day of Local Action against RBS, major backer of the aviation industry, key funder of the Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) pipeline currently tearing up the Welsh