Ban Cluster Bombs Now!

From our friends at Avaaz.org, an appeal to pressure all governments to stop producing and using cluster bombs. Please take a moment to view the video and sign their petition. Perhaps now is the time to finally see an end to this abomination.
Dear Friends:
Final negotiations are underway right now in Dublin, Ireland on a treaty to ban cluster bombs. Arms manufacturers are pushing governments to riddle the treaty with loopholes and delays -- and the final text will be decided in the next 72 hours.
Cluster munitions don't just kill during war. They scatter small, shiny, unexploded "bomblets" on the ground that hold their deadly charge for years. When children pick them up, they are often maimed or killed. Most governments agree that these weapons should be outlawed, but back-room pressure is rising to undercut a strong ban.
If enough of us act before the treaty is signed on Friday, we can drown out the weapons merchants and convince our governments to ban cluster bombs once and for all. Click below to send a message, and then forward this email to friends and family: http://www.avaaz.org/en/ban_cluster_munitions/13.php?cl=91927835
The treaty to ban cluster munitions is the result of an inspiring, years-long campaign by citizens from around the world -- with victims and survivors of cluster bombs leading the way. One spokesman for the effort, Branislav Kapetanovic, lost his hands, legs, and some of his hearing and eyesight in a cluster-bomb explosion in his native Serbia. He is now in Dublin, pushing for the treaty -- but he took a moment to sent this message to the Avaaz community (you can see a video on the the Avaaz site):
http://www.avaaz.org/en/ban_cluster_munitions/14.php?cl=91927835 http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/
And here are some news articles about the state of the negotiations:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKL2629379720080526 http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/05/26/news/Ireland-Cluster-Bombs.php
BAN CLUSTER BOMBS NOW!
Cluster munitions kill children and other civilians long after wars are over--and this week, we have a chance to ban them. 116 countries are in the final stages of negotiation on a cluster bomb ban -- but some are trying to water down the treaty with loopholes, exceptions, and delays.
Our information is that the delegations obstructing a strong treaty in the last few days include the UK, France, Germany, South Africa, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Japan, Sweden and Switzerland, so messages to these leaders will be particularly valuable. [my bold] A worldwide outcry for a strong treaty is needed now. The treaty will be signed Thursday--so add your voice by using the tool below to send a message to government leaders:
To see if your country makes, stockpiles, or uses cluster bombs, click here.
Or click here to see a video message from a cluster bomb victim.
Send your message now!
http://www.avaaz.org/en/ban_cluster_munitions/14.php?cl=91927835

Who Counts?

British polling agency: More than one million Iraqi deaths since US invasion

Patrick Martin, WSWS

According to ORB, US-occupied Iraq, with an estimated 1.2 million violent deaths, has "a murder rate that now exceeds the Rwanda genocide from 1994 (800,000 murdered)," with another one million wounded and millions more driven from their homes into internal or external exile.

http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=36289&s2=16

If America was Invaded...

What Bush's invasion would look like in the United States
This map compares deaths and refugees in Iraq to the equivalent percentage in the United States. Click on the map or the link below to get a bigger image.
http://www.atlanticfreepress.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2415&Itemid=81