A Critical Ear

This week the focus of our show was the DNC, with Bob reporting live from Denver. However, we managed to fit in reports from Gaza and a world news bulletin, before connecting up with Bob.

With Bob, we started by talking about how the DNC compared to other protest events, then talked about Kucinich’s speech and the importance of international law. I mentioned a new Pew survey (showing that people feel they know more about Obama’s personal story than his policies) as a segue into a discussion of where Obama stands on foreign policy. We then discussed the IVAW rally at the DNC, and closed our DNC focus by talking about a rumoured raid on Indymedia space in Denver. To finish, I asked Bob about significant events in the world this week, and he gave some context on the Gaza convoy, pointed to the continued discussions on a ‘Status of Forces’ agreement (SOFA) in Iraq, as well as to new signs that the Afghan government is interested in having a SOFA to govern US forces in Afghanistan.

During our discussion, Bob mentioned a video he produced of a Code Pink rally, which was included in his blog post on Common Dreams. I promised a link (there’s also a link to Kucinich’s speech in there).

There was also mention of the Blue Dog party hosted by AT&T (to thank them for the gift of retroactive immunity). More from Glenn Greenwald of Salon here. Further DNC coverage from the Colorado IMC.

Next week we’ll be at the RNC.

Audio now up at Radio.Indymedia (mp3), Audioport (mp3), Radio4All

The show is now on Radio4All and Audioport. This week we cover more geography than usual:

• We start, as usual, with the Panos Institute news bulletin.
• Ecuador is in the process of putting in place a ban on foreign military bases
• Chevron using the US Trade Representative to put pressure on Ecuador and resist an environmental lawsuit. The money quote? We Can’t Let Little Countries Screw Around With Big Companies
• Disputes in Bolivia about attempts to reform constitution. Rich, white provinces (illegally) undertake ‘autonomy’ referendums to protect their privilege.
• Venezuela’s Citgo to offer Venezuelan coffee at their service stations. Post-air update: this is currently a pilot program in Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia, and Citgo will expand it if there is interest.
• AIPAC-backed Congressional resolution calling for blockade of Iran losing steam. Four original sponsors have now revoked their support.
• Ultimatum on ‘Freeze for Freeze’ proposal coming up this weekend.
• Possibilities of a US ‘interests section’ in Iran.
• Prof. Francis Boyle of Illinois says Iran should sue the USA in the International Court of Justice. We discuss the positive normative and diplomatic aspects of such a move. A video interview with Prof. Boyle is available on YouTube.
• US still negotiating ’security agreement’ with Iraq - have now missed their original deadline. We discuss the issue of ‘permanent’ and ‘enduring’ bases.
• Iraqi government supports Obama’s call for a timetable on withdrawal.
• Increased opposition to calls for more troops being sent to Afghanistan - even Thomas Friedman has criticized Obama’s calls for more troops.

Those are among the most significant developments we discuss in our latest show (for June 19, 2008). Also available on Audioport.

We’ve fallen a little behind in posting shows to the site (I’ve concentrated on getting them onto Audioport during some recent travels). I plan to clear the backlog and get them up soon, probably as a combined post.

You can listen to yesterday’s edition on the WRFU site. It’s also available, of course, on Audioport.This week we talked about Iran and Iraq (and interplay between the two), Afghanistan and the IMF, and trade deals in South America. A good show all around, if I say so myself.