I’m inserting portions of an email I received from <a href="http://adifferentkindofluxury.blogspot.com/">Andy Couturier</a>.

<em>I spoke with Atsuko Watanabe, from Chapter 3 of my book (A Different Kind of Luxury).  She recommended two groups, both of which, she says, would be helped *tremendously* by a donation of $1000.

After getting two suggestions from Atsuko, I spoke later with my old colleague and friend Koichi Honda, who speaks excellent English and uses email.  His email is: hondak@mb.pikara.ne.jp .  I have copied him in this email.  His phone number is: 011-81-88-665-0758 Be sure to check the time difference before calling. I usually call between 4 PM and 11 PM California time.  He’s the best person to be in contact with.

Here are two groups.  One is a national group which, among other things, provides crucial factual information about nuclear power.  Honda-san says “we check with them every day to see what’s happening.”

</em>

<em>The second group is a local Shikoku group (the island I lived on for 4 years, and where five people I profiled live.  Please see the map in the book.).  They are fighting to close down the nuclear reactor in Matsuyama city, and their leader is Ms. Kyoko Ono.  They will be protesting at a shareholders meeting in May, and they need money to fund their campaign and get the word out.  They are definitely “scrappy” as you asked for.  So here’s the information.

The first group:

Based in Tokyo, we are the Citizen`s Nuclear Information Center (CNIC). With a network of scientists, activists, and common citizens, we work to create a nuclear free world.

Their website in English is: http://www.cnic.jp/english/
Here’s how to support them: http://www.cnic.jp/english/cnic/support.html
People outside Japan should send an international postal money order made out to Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center. Please specify the purpose of the money order as ‘Donation’. Alternatively, you can ask us to send you details regarding bank transfers.
Citizens’ Nuclear Information Center
3F Kotobuki Bldg., 1-58-15 Higashi-nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo 164 Japan
Tel: 81-3-5330-9520; Fax: 81-3-5330-9530

The second group:

Nuclear Power “Sayonara” Shikoku Network.  This group is fighting to close down the nuclear power station in Shikoku.  Please contact Mr. Honda about them and their work.  He’s an active local member.  The webpage I found for them, only in Japanese, is here:

http://genpatsu-sayonara.net/?p=25

I would imagine they don’t have the resources or the time to translate their website into English.  Also, I think using an international postal money order is the way to donate to them.

Lastly, Oizumi (Chapter 1) has faxed me a list of nuclear power companies/ plant administrators, and he asks us (fervently) that we CALL them up and say, in Englsih: “Shut down the nuclear power plants.”  I think this could actually be effective, for us to call from the US.  I will get you that list when I receive it (it was faxed to my friend Matt).  For more information on Oizumi and his activities, please look at my recent blog posts at http://differentkindofluxury.com Cynthia has gotten together to buy him geiger counters.

My other friend, Kai Sawyer, may be able to help out with groups doing anti nuclear work.  I’ve also cc’d him.  He’s bilingual, and has just fled from Tokyo.  He’s a young permaculture / engaged Buddhism activist, and a fantastic person.  His excellent blog is here, with info about the post-tsunami and earthquake and nuclear situation: http://livingpermaculture.blogspot.com/

Before I got off the phone, Honda san said to me “We Japanese are very strong, and helping each other we can overcome this.”

Best,
Andy
</em>

Senator Jim Webb is taking the neo-con position on terror trials.

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archive s/2009/11/webb_on_terror_trials.php#more ?ref=fpblg

He's joined Lieberman in a threat to filibuster the public option.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/ 11/webb-not-committed-to-party-unity-on- procedural-votes.php

I know he was never really progressive.  But do you think this last election in Virginia may have rattled his nerves a little bit?

He's got a few years yet to worry about it.  But he seems almost panicked.

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This is a news story originating in a tiny sleepy village called Westport on the North Coast of California, where hippies and retiring liberal yuppies have been making their way up into the countryside for several decades leading to a small scale culture war.  The demise of the logging industry has been a factor in bringing many people into the marijuana industry - it's not just for hippies anymore.  The North Coast Journal, a paper based in Arcata a couple of hours to the north of where these amazing events took place.  This is a story involving a man who headed up the Mendocino County Republican Party, recalled from a utilities district board for what the voters believed to be incompetence, and most recently convicted for conspiracy to murder.  You see, he tried to arrange for a political assassination of his liberal political opponent.

Why should we be nervous when right wingers show up at presidential events with guns?  Read the story.  It has everything.  Thomas Pynchon couldn't have done a better job in Vineland.

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Let me start with some historical perspective.

Lynden is a town in Whatcom County, which occupies the northwestern corner of the State of Washington.  Lynden is a few miles north of Bellingham, just off the Guide Meridian and a few miles south of the Canadian border.  It's a Dutch colony of sorts, and very religious - churches everywhere (at one time holding the world record for churches per capita, the big one being the Dutch Reformed) and some very odd blue laws.  A dairy town, they actually flourished during the Great Depression and interpreted their comparative affluence as favor from God for their piety.  The town is very clean, nicknamed "Tidytown," and in fact there is an ordnance which requires regular mowing.  If you don't mow often enough, the city will do it for you and bill you (nobody has ever challenged that one in court, or I suspect it would not be upheld).

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During the primaries, this site was Hillary central much as DKos was Obama central.  I've still got the scars to prove it.

I haven't seen the interviews with that blond woman who takes credit for starting PUMA since the convention.  I'm wondering how many of the Hillory-or-bust folk are still carrying that torch, particularly after McCain's dismissal of health as an issue for abortion.

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A weird thing on CNN's post debate coverage. The first comments after Blitzer and Cooper delivered their summary came from Bill Bennett. He reminded us that he had been unhappy with McCain's previous performances, but exuberantly proclaimed McCain the winner of this debate. They went to Paul Begala who gave a less enthusiastic nod to Obama, pointing out that McCain again came across as angry. Then they went to David Gergen who argued for reasons I don't remember that Obama won. The reason I don't remember is that I was distracted by Bennet's rather pronounced head shaking and sarcastic grimacing.

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Of corruption that is, not stupidity.  I still think that just sending people out to register voters on a quasi-commission basis was a dumb move, and my biggest fear isn't that Obama or other Democrats will be tainted with voter fraud charges.  My concern is that this will provide Republicans with more excuse to purge voter rolls and cage anybody registered by ACORN.

Obviously there's no way these false voter registrations can impact the election unless people actually show up to vote under these names.  It doesn't seem likely.  In fact, using celebrity names would be a stupid way to go about it.  This is obviously a problem of ACORN being taken by economically desperate individuals who either should not have been hired at all, or otherwise supervised much more closely.

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Hotline has the national race suddenly narrowing to two points with the following analysis.

-- The race has tightened in the last day. After trailing by 5-7 pts. for the last 10 days, McCain is now just 2 pts. behind Obama.

--One potential reason: Obama's one-time lead on the question of who'd best handle the economy has evaporated. Today, Obama and McCain are tied at 42%. Independent voters favor McCain on the economy by an 8 pt. margin (42-34%).

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I just happened to channel flip to O'Reilly's show tonight and he had two very beautiful women on, neither of whom I recognized, who said they had read through the Palin emails and found plenty of grounds with which she would have had to fire Walt Monegan.

So far the emails themselves aren't posted anywhere, but the following are being reported on the right wing blogs such as this one:

According to the papers filed by Palin's legal team, that was not the only instance of insubordination from Monegan:

   * 12/9/07: Monegan holds a press conference with Hollis French to push his own budget plan.

   * 1/29/08: Palin's staffers have to rework their procedures to keep Monegan from bypassing normal channels for budget requests.

   * February 2008: Monegan publicly releases a letter he wrote to Palin supporting a project she vetoed.

   * June 26, 2008: Monegan bypassed the governor's office entirely and contacted Alaska's Congressional delegation to gain funding for a project.

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Not in those words, but in what appears to be a late Saturday night/Sunday morning news drop, they're admitting what the Globe reported today.  CNN has it.

I hope this gets discussed on the Sunday morning shows.  Obama has a narrative now.  He needs to reinvigorate his campaign, and what can be more inspiring than showing that he won't go the way of Kerry?

It's nice that the media is finally doing its job.  I think the McCain campaign started to feel like they could say anything and wouldn't pay consequences.  In recovery lingo the media has been an "enabler."

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