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KucinichGreenAppeal * DeanCompare * E-Fraud * Nukes


02 August 2003

1) Kucinich: Open Letter to Nader Voters and the Greens
- - Willie Nelson Promotes Dennis
2) Comparison of Kucinich and Dean
3) NY Times: "Computer Voting Is Open to Easy Fraud, Experts Say"
4) ‘US scraps nuclear weapons watchdog'

Editor's Notes:


This issue opens with an open letter from Dennis Kucinich to Nader voters and the Greens, and it places emphasis on unity and mutual interests. Also, this item is on the contribution by Willie Nelson for Dennis and America.

The Kucinich campaign represents an opportunity to transform a current corrupt US government. Please note updated "Actions Campaigns & Events" from FlybyNews.com regarding proposed film and discussion programs. Emily Lewis is designing a flier. What we need are dates and venues for the program to happen! Please help!.You can also support this campaign by sponsoring a film at your local access television station. To see a nationwide list of such stations, see:
www.world.std.com/~rghm/alpha.htm

Another recent addition to Flyby's Events is the One World Fair on September 20 in Cummington, MA with Amy Goodman and Greg Palast. On this same day, too, the Kucinich campaign will be present for Jim Hightower's Rolling Thunder Down Home Democracy Tour 12/2003 at Veteran's Park in Manchester, NH There will be a mix of music, speeches, workshops, planning, and networking. Keep an eye FlybyNews.com for more on these and other events and campaigns!

Item 2 revisits the issue on comparing Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich. Some people are misinformed and believe they share the same platform for peace and healthcare. This is far from true, and though all the issues are not discussed, a trust is growing to support the one candidate that voted against the Patriot Act, who accepts no corporate campaign finances, and who stands for real change, transformation, peace. Change can be scary to some people, but can this compare with our concerns of a pseudo-democracy-government destabilizing the world and harming innocent life? We need everyone to be active in this campaign now. The primaries are the real obstacle or opportunity. A Kucinich nomination would be unstoppable for reclaiming US democracy, and overcoming concerns of election fraud, which is reported in item 3. Item 4 has another example that change cannot come a moment too soon: "A US department of energy panel of experts which provided independent oversight of the development of the US nuclear arsenal has been quietly disbanded by the Bush administration . . . yesterday.."

The following are 2 ways to "meetup with the Kucinich campaign:

1) WATCH DENNIS ON C-SPAN SUNDAY
This Sunday evening at 6:30pm and at 9:30pm (Eastern and Pacific), you
can see Congressman Kucinich's speech at the recent "Hear It from the
Heartland" event hosted by Sen. Harkin in Iowa. Spread the word.

2) MEET YOUR KUCINICH-FRIENDLY NEIGHBORS -- (Thursday@7pm)
Our next National MeetUp Day is Thursday, August 7. Across the
country, Kucinich folks will be meeting each other. Sign up now
if you want to meet progressive-thinking folks in your area.
For details, visit
www.kucinich.us/volunteeraction.htm#meetup


"The President failed to reestablish the credibility of his Administration.
At this moment of crisis, while the lives of America's sons and daughters
are on the line in Iraq, the American public deserves the truth, not spin."

– Dennis J. Kucinich
(7/30/03)
Comments regarding President Bush's news conference




1) Kucinich: Open Letter to Nader Voters and the Greens
- - Willie Nelson Promotes Dennis

Open Letter to Nader Voters and the Greens
by Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich

When we marched against the WTO and the corporate trade regime in Seattle in 1999, we marched together.

When we stood together against the war with Iraq, half-a-million strong in New York City, and 15 million strong throughout the world, we stood together.

When we fought the badly-named "Patriot Act," we fought it together -- and I was the only one running who voted against it.

When we tried to stop this war from starting, we fought it together -- and I was able to pull together 126 of my colleagues to vote no to war last fall, working with my friend and ally Barbara Lee, as Co-Chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

We stand together in opposition to the death penalty; in support of living wages; in support of boosting alternative energy rather than wars for oil; in support of medicinal marijuana; in opposition to corporate hog farming; in support of organic farming; in opposition to nukes inspace; in opposition to Star Wars; in support of cutting the military budget by 15% and applying those funds to public education.

We stand together for national health insurance, Canadian style. We stand together on public financing of campaigns, on same day voter registration, on instant runoff voting. We stand together on civil rights, and equal rights, and human rights. We stand together on voting reforms for ex-felons. We stand together on ending the trade and travel embargoes on Cuba. We stand together in opposition to the current war on drugs, which is all too often a war on the urban poor.

We stand together in demanding that publicly-owned clean water is a human right. We stand together in demanding that the developing world's debt be forgiven, as if it were still the JubileeYear; and that we act seriously to build a world in which arms sales decline, hunger declines, poverty declines, and human rights increase.

We stand together on rejoining the rest of the world, and signing the Kyoto Treaty, the International Criminal Court Treaty, the Land Mines Ban Treaty, and all the rest of the treaties and agreements and working relationships that the current Administration has so cavalierly tossed aside.

We stand together in opposition to excessive CEO salaries; in opposition to offshore tax havens for corporations; in support of real pension reforms, real SEC enforcement, real crackdowns on corporate scofflaws. And we stand together in opposition to sweetheart deals for corporate friends of this Administration, whether it's Enron wrecking California for profit, the drug companies ripping off seniors and HIV patients and poor people for profit, or Halliburton ripping off Iraqi oil revenues for profit.

I am a Democrat, but I understand that Greens and Nader voters are not just liberal Democrats. Still, I note that in Europe, even when political parties disagree on issues, they are often able to work together with each other in coalition. I'd like to raise that possibility again today. And I note that Ralph Nader has suggested that my candidacy is worth supporting.

We all know we will do better if we work together. Perhaps we can find common ground on issues and principles. I would like to open up that possibility. And I would like to ask that you give serious consideration to my candidacy for President. Because a better world is still possible.

www.commondreams.org/views03/0724-08.htm

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For a related article, published in the San Francisco Examiner
August 1, 2003 - -, see: "Kucinich Gets Green Support"

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- - Willie Nelson Promotes Dennis

From: Kucinich Campaign < info@kucinich.us >
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 2003

WILLIE ON THE AIR
Willie Nelson's radio ads supporting Dennis for President will air this week in Iowa. Besides endorsing the candidate, the ads also advertise Willie's Labor Day benefit concert in Des Moines. The radio spots are running on a number of Iowa stations, will expand to more stations in Iowa and then to other states.

You can listen to the ads on our Willie Nelson page:
kucinich.us/willienelson.htm
If you go that page, you can make an online donation to help us increase the number of stations that air these ads. Send any Willie fan you know to that page.

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For a related article in the Associated Press:
Willie Nelson to play three Kucinich benefits

WASHINGTON - Country music troubadour Willie Nelson will strum guitar and sing for Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich at benefit concerts in Iowa, Ohio and Wisconsin. Details:
www.theunionleader.com/prez_show.html?article=24052

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For more information on Dennis Kucinich for President, see:
www.kucinich.us



2) Comparison of Kucinich and Dean

Posted by Bob Harris - Resources: Candidates websites and Google searches

1. Health-Care Plan

Kucinich: Canadian-style single-payer system, extending the successes of Medicare, financed by a tax on employers lower than the current cost of private insurance. [Also financed in part by a peace dividend from a reduced military budget and waste.]

Dean: Complex 4-prong plan, extending multiple state and federal programs piecemeal, combined with tax credits and incentives, all of which Dean claims is more likely to become law, but still won't cover everyone

2. Death Penalty

Kucinich: Opposes.

Dean: Favors for "extreme" crimes like terrorism or the killing of a police officer, although critical of Bush administration's "careless" approach to executions.

3. Roe v. Wade

Kucinich: Pro-life until recently; now the only candidate pledging to make Roe v. Wade a "litmus test" for appointing federal judges.

Dean: Pro-choice, but refuses to make Roe v. Wade a litmus test for federal judges.

4. Kyoto Treaty

Kucinich: Supports.

Dean: Says we must "take another look," but has "concerns" about some provisions.

5. Patriot Act

Kucinich: Only presidential candidate who personally voted against it.

Dean: Would repeal "parts," but also wants to expand intelligence agencies; praises Russ Feingold as only Senator who opposed the act, ignoring Kucinich's vocal House opposition, implying no other candidate opposed the Patriot Act.

6. NAFTA/WTO

Kucinich: Full withdrawal, to replace with fair trade; opposes "fast track" treatment of any future trade legislation; personally marched in Seattle protests.

Dean: Notes problems with "free" trade, suggesting the need for inclusion of human rights, environmental, and labor standards in trade agreements -- but still pro-NAFTA.

7. "Star Wars" Ballistic Missile System

Kucinich: Would abolish; has sponsored legislation banning weapons from space.

Dean: Would cut only 1/8 of the funding, transferring it to international threat-reduction programs.

8. Pentagon Waste

Kucinich: Would cut Pentagon programs which don't even work, like the V-22, F-22, and "Star Wars," and demand accountability for over a $1 trillion in "lost" funds.

Dean: Disagrees with any proposed Pentagon cutbacks, and advocates aggressive expansion of intelligence, police, and special forces.

9. Balanced Budget

Kucinich: A long-term goal, but deficits may be necessary in the short run for economic and social investment.

Dean: A main priority -- even equating it with social progress: "we cannot have social justice without a sound fiscal foundation" -- describing himself as "to the right of Bush" on the issue.

10. Gun Control

Kucinich: Supports federal gun control legislation, and sponsored a bill calling for child safety devices on all new handguns.

Dean: Supports closing the gun show loophole, but opposes other new federal regulation; considers guns a states' rights issue; an "A" rating from NRA most of his career.

11. Medical Marijuana

Kucinich: Supports compassionate use.

Dean: Firmly opposed, although promises to abide by a proposed FDA evaluation.

12. War on Drugs

Kucinich: Proposes European-style treatment of addiction as a medical, not criminal problem, with attendant reductions in crime and violence.

Dean: Has accepted National Governors Association position: more federal funding for all aspects of the drug war; however, also speaks of drug use as a medical problem, and has called the War on Drugs a failure; website and recent speeches simply do not clarify what policies he would pursue, as far as I can tell.

13. Gay Rights

Kucinich: Believes gay and straight couples should be 100% equal before the law, including Social Security and domestic-partner benefits; supports federal civil union legislation.

Dean: Signed a civil union (not gay marriage) bill, but opposes similar national laws as a states' rights issue.

14. Energy

Kucinich: Supports investment in solar, wind, ocean, and other clean energy; risked career to prevent a power monopoly in Cleveland, saving taxpayers over $200 million.

Dean: Supports investment in alternative energy and energy efficiency; however, has sided with Vermont state utilities on most issues [including Vermont Yankee nuclear power].

15. Political Experience

Kucinch: Has held local, state, and federal office for a total of 17 years. Four-term member of Congress, since 1997. Currently chair of the Progressive Caucus, largest Democratic caucus in Congress.

Dean: Vermont state legislator, 1982-86; Lt. Governor, 1986-91; Governor, 1991-2002. Former chair, National Governors Association.

16. Iraq War

Kucinich: Opposed staunchly from the beginning, has never wavered.

Dean: Firmly opposed, before, although he told the L.A. Times in January that he would support unilateral action if Iraq had WMDs; softened his rhetoric again in March, once the war began, explaining in conservative South Carolina, "it's hard to criticize the President when you've got troops in the field... we all have got to support the troops;" now again firmly opposed, and highly vocal.

17. Personal

Kucinich: Lifelong member of the working class. Grew up so poor that his family lived in a car more than once. Currently a vegan.

Dean: Patrician upbringing. Though speaks harshly about negative environmental impact of SUVs. Drives an SUV (a Chevy Suburban).

18. Wellstone Connections

Kucinich: Wellstone was a proud member of the Progressive Caucus, which Kucinich leads.

Dean: Used the "democratic wing of the democratic party" line from Wellstone after his death.

19. Ambition

Kucinich: Began campaign late, in part because he was busy organizing anti-war voices in Congress.

Dean: Vermont newspapers had to sue to get Dean's 2002 schedule as Governor; Dean spent almost all of the year out of the state, and didn't want his constituents to know.

20. Home State

Kucinich: Ohio, 21 electoral votes.

Dean: Vermont, 3 electoral votes.

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For the posting of this comparison on Kucinich and Dean on the Issues, see:
www.bobharris.com/kucinichdean.html

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DEAN SAYS: "I'M NOT YOUR GUY"

Again distancing himself from a progressive agenda, Howard Dean was quoted on healthcare reform in 30 July 2003 issue of the New York Times: "My plan is not reform -- if you want to totally change the healthcare system, I'm not your guy." Dean advocates incremental changes that leave insurance giants in the center of healthcare.

By contrast, Kucinich supports a commonsense plan of national health insurance for all -- a proven success in industrial democracies far less wealthy than our country. Kucinich says that only by eliminating the waste, bureaucracy and profiteering of insurance companies, can everyone be covered -- a sentiment echoed by Physicians for a National Health Program.

Incremental change over the years has left 40 million Americans uninsured and millions more under-insured -- a failed approach, says legendary public health physician and Kucinich endorser Quentin Young: "You can't leap an abyss in 2 jumps." For more on the Kucinich plan: www.kucinich.us/issues/issue_universalhealth.htm

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- - The Difference Between Dean, Kerry and Kucinich
by Ron Harold (received by email 31 Jul 2003)

Let me say this very loud and very clear:

I recommend thinking about the difference between Kucinich, Dean and Kerry, when it comes to the War on Terror, the War on Iraq, and the War on Our Freedom;

If Dean or Kerry were president right now, they would KEEP our sons and daughters in Iraq AND SEND MORE of our sons and daughters to be killed in Iraq. For What? And I'm supposed to consider supporting Dean and Kerry despite their obvious disregard for human life, a nation's right to sovereignty, and our wallets? No. Kerry and Dean are no different than Bush, inasmuch they all three sincerely believe they can kill and spend their way to peace and security for America AND Iraq. This assumption is staggering to the liberal mind.

No, all three men are too arrogant and hard-headed to admit attacking Iraq was a mistake we should immediately correct by internationalizing Iraq and withdrawing ASAP from Iraq. Dennis Kucinich is the only true LIBERAL POPULIST CANDIDATE who has already made his promise and recommendation to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq. Dean is NOT a liberal! Kerry is NOT a liberal! ONLY a liberal would possess the courage, decency and temerity to admit invading and occupying a sovereign nation was a mistake, and to subsequently -- BRING OUR SONS AND DAUGHTERS HOME NOW!

If we can't trust Dean and Kerry to just "do the right thing" when it comes to bringing our sons and daughters home, then how in the hell do you expect me to trust these guys to restore our democracy and our freedom?

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- - Will the Real Howard Dean Please Stand Up?


Will the Real Howard Dean Please Stand Up?
Article from Washington Post (Thursday, July 31)

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A4798-2003Jul30.html?referrer=email



3) NY Times: "Computer Voting Is Open to Easy Fraud, Experts Say"

New York Times
Computer Voting Is Open to Easy Fraud, Experts Say
By JOHN SCHWARTZ

July 24, 2003

The software that runs many high-tech voting machines contains serious flaws that would allow voters to cast extra votes and permit poll workers to alter ballots without being detected, computer security researchers said yesterday.

"We found some stunning, stunning flaws," said Aviel D. Rubin, technical director of the Information Security Institute at Johns Hopkins University, who led a team that examined the software from Diebold Election Systems, which has about 33,000 voting machines operating in the United States.

The systems, in which voters are given computer-chip-bearing smart cards to operate the machines, could be tricked by anyone with $100 worth of computer equipment, said Adam Stubblefield, a co-author of the paper.

"With what we found, practically anyone in the country — from a teenager on up — could produce these smart cards that could allow someone to vote as many times as they like," Mr. Stubblefield said.

The software was initially obtained by critics of electronic voting, who discovered it on a Diebold Internet site in January. This is the first review of the software by recognized computer security experts.

A spokesman for Diebold, Joe Richardson, said the company could not comment in detail until it had seen the full report. He said that the software on the site was "about a year old" and that "if there were problems with it, the code could have been rectified or changed" since then. The company, he said, puts its software through rigorous testing.

"We're constantly improving it so the technology we have 10 years from now will be better than what we have today," Mr. Richardson said. "We're always open to anything that can improve our systems."

Another co-author of the paper, Tadayoshi Kohno, said it was unlikely that the company had plugged all of the holes they discovered.

"There is no easy fix," Mr. Kohno said.

The move to electronic voting — which intensified after the troubled Florida presidential balloting in 2000 — has been a source of controversy among security researchers. They argue that the companies should open their software to public review to be sure it operates properly.

Mr. Richardson of Diebold said the company's voting-machine source code, the basis of its computer program, had been certified by an independent testing group. Outsiders might want more access, he said, but "we don't feel it's necessary to turn it over to everyone who asks to see it, because it is proprietary."

Diebold is one of the most successful companies in this field. Georgia and Maryland are among its clients, as are many counties around the country. The Maryland contract, announced this month, is worth $56 million. Diebold, based in North Canton, Ohio, is best known as a maker of automated teller machines. The company acquired Global Election Systems last year and renamed it Diebold Election Systems. Last year the election unit contributed more than $110 million in sales to the company's $2 billion in revenue.

As an industry leader, Diebold has been the focus of much of the controversy over high-tech voting. Some people, in comments widely circulated on the Internet, contend that the company's software has been designed to allow voter fraud. Mr. Rubin called such assertions "ludicrous" and said the software's flaws showed the hallmarks of poor design, not subterfuge.

The list of flaws in the Diebold software is long, according to the paper, which is online at http://avirubin .com/vote.pdf. Among other things, the researchers said, ballots could be altered by anyone with access to a machine, so that a voter might think he is casting a ballot for one candidate while the vote is recorded for an opponent.

The kind of scrutiny that the researchers applied to the Diebold software would turn up flaws in all but the most rigorously produced software, Mr. Stubblefield said. But the standards must be as high as the stakes, he said.

"This isn't the code for a vending machine," he said. "This is the code that protects our democracy."

Still, things that seem troubling in coding may not be as big a problem in the real world, Mr. Richardson said. For example, counties restrict access to the voting machines before and after elections, he said. While the researchers "are all experts at writing code, they may not have a full understanding of how elections are run," he said.

But Douglas W. Jones, an associate professor of computer science at the University of Iowa, said he was shocked to discover flaws cited in Mr. Rubin's paper that he had mentioned to the system's developers about five years ago as a state elections official.

"To find that such flaws have not been corrected in half a decade is awful," Professor Jones said.

Peter G. Neumann, an expert in computer security at SRI International, said the Diebold code was "just the tip of the iceberg" of problems with electronic voting systems.

"This is an iceberg that needs to be hacked at a good bit," Mr. Neumann said, "so this is a step forward."

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Following is more on this issue from AlterNet, received via
RHINOS BOTTOM LINE:
VOTING AND DEMOCRACY: THE CHALLENGES AHEAD

Don Hazen, AlterNet
Voting security irregularities have put the populace on edge. The solution? Push hard on reform opportunities now, and don't stay home on Election Day.
www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16508

THE THEFT OF YOUR VOTE IS JUST A CHIP AWAY
Thom Hartmann, AlterNet
Are computerized voting machines a wide-open back door to massive voting fraud? A growing number of Americans are saying our votes are too sacred to reside only on computer chips.
www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16474

BEYOND VOTING MACHINES: HAVA AND REAL ELECTION REFORM
Miles Rapoport, AlterNet
The Florida 2000 election proved to Americans of all political persuasions that our election laws are broken. Yet the debacle also created an opening for voting reform that we have not seen for decades.
www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16490

THE VOTING RIGHTS STRUGGLE OF OUR TIME
Kim Alexander, AlterNet
California is at the forefront of the paper trail debate with electronic voting machines. Thanks to a state task force, there's still time to weigh in on the controversy.
www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16476

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"RHINOS BLOG" is the responsibility of Gary Rhine. (rhino@kifaru.com)
www.rhinosblog.info



4) ‘US scraps nuclear weapons watchdog'

US scraps nuclear weapons watchdog
Julian Borger in Washington
Thursday July 31, 2003
The Guardian

A US department of energy panel of experts which provided independent oversight of the development of the US nuclear arsenal has been quietly disbanded by the Bush administration, it emerged yesterday.

The decision to close down the national nuclear security administration advisory committee - required by law to hold public hearings and issue public reports on nuclear weapons issues - has come just days before a closed-door meeting at a US air force base in Nebraska to discuss the development of a new generation of tactical "mini nukes" and "bunker buster" bombs, as well as an eventual resumption of nuclear testing.

Ed Markey, a Democratic congressman and co-chairman of a congressional taskforce on non-proliferation, said: "Instead of seeking balanced expert advice and analysis about this important topic, the department of energy has disbanded the one forum for honest, unbiased external review of its nuclear weapons policies."

Neither the NNSA - part of the department of energy - nor the 15 panel members returned calls seeking comment yesterday.

The NNSA advisory panel is made up of academics, retired officials and business leaders.

Although federal law requires regular open meetings and publication of its reports, the energy department has not convened the panel since May 2002. Its reports have not been released.

The statute establishing federal advisory committees requires their dissolution to be officially gazetted in the federal register but, according to Mr Markey, the NNSA panel was disbanded by a simple email to its members.

Daryl Kimball, the head of the independent, Washington-based Arms Control Association, said: "This will make the department of energy and the NNSA even more opaque. It will be all the more difficult to understand what they are planning to do."

Hawks in the Pentagon and the energy department are pushing for the development of tactical nuclear weapons with yields of less than 5 kilotons and hardened "bunker buster" nuclear bombs, designed to penetrate deeply buried targets, where enemy leaders or weapons may be hidden.

According to the leaked agenda for the Omaha meeting in early August, Pentagon and energy department officials will discuss how to test small numbers of these new weapons, and whether this will require a break from the moratorium on nuclear tests.

Critics argue that the new weapons will blur the distinction between conventional and nuclear arms, and trigger a new arms race.

"The Bush administration is considering policy changes that will alter the role of nuclear weapons in national defence," Mr Markey said. "Given the importance and sheer complexity of the issues raised ... why was the only independent contemplative body studying nuclear weapons disbanded - and disbanded in such a surreptitious fashion?"

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2003
www.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4723467,00.html


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