Washington threatens new military strikes in Middle East

Scan page 1

VOL. 30, NO. 10, OCTOBER 2012 WWW.SOCIALISTACTION.ORG U.S. / CANADA $1 INSIDE SOCIALIST ACTION As the presidential election rapidly ap­ proaches, it is predictably clear that the im­ perialist foreign policy agenda of the U.S. gov­ ernment will continue to advance unabated regardless of whether Barack Obama or Mitt Romney occupies the White House come Janu­ ary. Obama, the Nobel Peace Prize winner (!), has continued and expanded U.S. military aggression abroad by bombing or sending troops to Yemen, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, Haiti, Uganda, Afghanistan, and Iraq—to name a few of his targets. Romney’s campaign offers little alternative to the imperialist assaults carried out by the Democratic and Republican administrations for the last decade.

Following the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi that left an American ambassador dead, many are predicting an­ other military action in Libya. The Obama administration continues to raise the spec­ ter of al-Qaeda to justify its warmongering policies abroad. According to the Washington Post, for several months the White House has met secretly to “examine the threat posed by Mark Ostapiak / Socialist Action al-Qaeda’s franchise in North Africa and con­ sider for the first time whether to prepare for unilateral strikes.” Use of drones may factor in prominently to any military intervention the United States makes in North Africa.

Obama, who massively expanded the drone program in Pakistan, defended the use of drone strikes in a January interview, stating that “drones have actually not caused a huge number of civilian casualties. For the most part they have been very precise.” But a recent report, entitled “Living Under Drones: Death, Injury and Trauma to Civilians from U.S. Drone Practices in Pakistan,” contradicts statements issued by government officials about the true effects of drone warfare. The report, which was a joint project of law professors at Stan­ ford and New York University, describes how the government repeatedly under-reports ci­ vilian casualty rates by categorizing many vic­ tims as “combatants” and undermines efforts of other organizations to follow up on the site of drone strikes.

Obama’s war policies in Afghanistan and Pakistan have failed to achieve success in po­ (continued on page 11, in “S. African miners resist repression Will winds from Chicago be felt in Philly?”)

With the U.S. presidential elec­ tions coming up again, a lot of workers and activists are eagerly discussing the campaigns, watch­ ing the debates, and even hitting the pavement to campaign for their candidates. We in Social­ ist Action commend people who take politics seriously and who are committed to fighting for what they believe in. However, we urge people to abstain from cast­ ing a ballot for the Democrats or Republicans, and to instead cast a protest vote for socialism.

Elections pose the question of which class shall rule. Should it be the class that has crashed the economy and stolen the jobs and homes of millions, or should it be the working class? That’s why we’re calling on people to Vote Socialist.

With both the Democrats and Republicans having been bought and paid for by Wall Street, we feel now more than ever it’s cru­ cial for working people to declare their political independence by voting socialist.

Contrary to what the defenders of the status quo say, we don’t be­ lieve that casting a vote for a so­ cialist candidate is a wasted vote. Change does not come through elections, but from social move­ ments and mass action. But a protest vote for a socialist candi­ Tony Savino / Socialist Action date can be used to send a mes­ sage that you reject the misplaced priorities of our current political system and the political trap of lesser evilism!

We are calling for people to vote for whatever socialist candidate is on the ballot, or running as a write-in candidate, in their state. In particular, we endorse the fol­ lowing candidates for president:

• Peta Lindsay of the Party for Socialism and Liberation • James Harris of the Socialist Workers Party • Stephan Durham of the Free­ dom Socialist Party • Stewart Alexander of the So­ cialist Party While we have differences with each of these organizations on a number of political questions, we are giving them our critical sup­ port because we feel their cam­ paigns represent a step towards working-class political indepen­ dence. Campaigns such as these can serve as a placeholder for what our class ultimately needs— a mass labor party based on the unions.

Even more important than cast­ ing your ballot this fall, we urge you to get involved in your union, in the antiwar movement, in the women’s movement, the immi­ grant rights movement—in the social movements that really can and will bring about the change we so desperately need! n

----- pull-quotes -----

Lynne Stewart appeal rejected — 2 Candidates ignore women — 3 Attorney fees against Mackler — 4 Europe workers mobilize — 5

Anti-Muslim video / Pakistan — 6,7 Canada news: Auto Workers — 8 Quebec students / elections — 9 S. Africa / Detropia — 10

U.S. presidential candidates ignore women’s rights.

Chicago Teachers See page 12 .