Act Now!

For the Political Gift-Giver

By Peter Rothberg

Thirteen beautiful women versus one hideous president.

Babes Against Bush is taking protest politics in an unlikely direction. A new group from southeastern Michigan, B.A.B. is looking to attract attention to a cause--unseating George W. Bush in 2004--and hoping to spur more people to take notice of some basic facts about the Bush Administration by using the venerable, politically incorrect vehicle of the "pinup girl" as the medium for its message.

Why? "Because hot chicks hate him too."

"What could be more un-American than that election-hijacking, economy-wrecking, war-mongering chimp George W. Bush?" the group asks on its website. "What could be more All-American than thirteen beautiful young women, exercising their first amendment right to thumb their nose at our bozo president?"

The result is the Official Babes Against Bush Regime Change Calendar, which counts off the number of days remaining until "the moving vans pull up to the White House." Lavishly produced in glossy color, each of the thirteen months' pages feature one anti-Bush babe as well as well-informed facts and figures detailing the failures and lies of the Bush Administration.

It's only $11.00! Click here to buy a copy.

There are also numerous good Bush books out there currently, even beyond the deservedly best-selling troika of Michael Moore, Molly Ivins and Al Franken.

Nation Books' new release The Bush Hater's Handbook: A Guide to the Most Appalling Presidency of the Past 100 Years is a great gift for anyone looking to arm themselves with useful talking points on the Bush Administration as we head into the presidential season. It's also a concise, entertaining read arranged alphabetically by topic.

Nation Washington editor David Corn's The Lies of George W. Bush: Mastering the Politics of Deception, recently released by Crown Publishers, offers a full account of the falsehoods, fibs and fabrications of the Bush presidency to date. This fact-driven journalistic account is a scorching indictment of a man who claimed he would "restore" honesty to the Oval Office.

The Bush Administration did more than lie in the rush to war with Iraq: the pattern of obfuscation, misstatement and half-retraction amounted to a calculated entrapment of the American people.

A new book co-written by Nation contributing editor Robert Scheer, his son and Alternet editor Christopher Scheer, and Alternet senior editor Lakshmi Chaudhry offers the first analysis of this pattern of deception, underscoring that the move to war was a highly managed marketing campaign conducted by a small group of influential extremists inside the Bush Administration.

The Five Biggest Lies Bush Told Us About Iraq is an insightful primer exposing the mendacious misinformation campaign George Bush's White House used to secure the support of Congress, the media and a majority of Americans for a preemptive invasion and occupation of Iraq.

A new documentary film offers far more proof, if any were still necessary, that the Bush Administration's extremism is severely compromising America's national security interests. Featuring never-before-seen interviews with more than twenty national security experts--including former Ambassador Joe Wilson; ex-CIA chief Stansfield Turner; weapons inspector David Albright; CIA operative Robert Baer and The Nation's own David Corn--Uncovered is a compelling call to action.

Click here to purchase a DVD. It's only $14.95, including shipping and handling. Putting this film on America's radar is a strong step toward fostering regime change in the United States in 2004.

Finally, make sure to check out The Nation's New Online Shop. Given the rush on our antiwar buttons and anti-Bush apparel this past year, we've developed a full catalogue of new Nation merchandise. All clothing is union-made, ideal for gifts, and can be purchased online in just a few minutes.

The Highlights:

Block Bush Shirts and Posters.

Alfred W. Bush Shirts and Posters.

Antiwar/Anti-Bush Buttons and Bumper Stickers.

(We've also found twenty-five different sites selling anti-Bush bumper stickers and fifty-three hawking t-shirts.)

Happy Holidays!

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December 21, 2003

National Conf. on Organized Resistance

By Peter Rothberg

The seventh annual National Conference on Organized Resistance--"a space for radical discourse"--is happening this January 24 and 25th on the campus of American University in Washington, DC. Last year's conference featured nearly seventy workshops and panel discussions as well as concerts, parties and tabling space for dozens of radical, youth-oriented groups.

In years past, the conference has played a significant role in coordinating dialogue and strategizing among various components of the social justice movement. This year, NCOR again envisions being a forum for people of all different levels of political involvement with an emphasis on the roots of global economic insecurity. More than 1,000 people converged on Washington in 2003 for a weekend of planning and protest. Click here for more info on this year's events.

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December 17, 2003

Debating Media Ownership--Dec. 15

By Peter Rothberg

Capitol Hill observers say that media ownership has been the second most discussed issue by constituents in 2003, trailing only the war on Iraq. This is a remarkable turnaround for an issue--media consolidation--that until recently was of interest only to a select group of watchdogs, theorists and corporate titans.

Next week will see the fourth in a series of free public debates between The Nation and The Economist, two of the world's leading political publications--this one on the question of media regulation and consolidation. Taking place at Columbia University in New York City on Monday, December 15, the event will feature The Nation's John Nichols and the Future of Music Coalition's Jenny Toomey teaming up to debate The Economist's Ben Edwards and the FCC's "Media Bureau" chief W. Kenneth Ferree. The debate will be moderated by WNYC Radio's Brian Lehrer, the very able New York City public radio host and the moderator of two of the first three Nation/Economist debates.

Here are the details:

Monday, December 15, 7:00--9:00pm; Roone Arledge Auditorium, Alfred Lerner Hall; Columbia University--Entrance bet. 114th & 115th Streets on Broadway; New York City.

FREE Admission. No reservations. Please arrive early. Doors open at 6:30pm.

CSPAN has indicated interest in broadcasting the event nationally and WNYC, which is sponsoring the debate, will air the proceedings shortly after it takes place over both its New York airwaves and its website. Watch this space for further info. And check out the Free Press's website for the latest info on the grassroots movement for media democracy.

Co-founded by Nichols and Robert McChesney, Free Press is a national nonpartisan organization working to increase informed public participation in media policy debates. The site is a gold-mine of media resources for activists, researchers and educators. Audio clips of remarks by Bill Moyers, Al Franken, Ralph Nader, Naomi Klein, Lori Wallach and Toomey from Free Press's recent national conference are also available. You can also find Nation-compiled links to numerous groups working for a more democratic media including Toomey's Future of Music Coalition-- along with a collection of relevant Nation articles--by clicking here.

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December 7, 2003