Thursday, March 06, 2008
University of Minnesota orders up 108- by 48-foot HD scoreboard from Daktronics
The University of Minnesota has finally found a way to one-up OSU and the other U of M's football squads by ordering up the first Daktronics HD-16 scoreboard in the Big Ten (Will you be able to watch the Big Ten Network on it?). Second-largest in college football to Texas' Godzillatron, the 108- by 48-foot display takes advantage of all the company's latest technologies, and should be ready for Minnesota's home opener against Air Force in 2009. Some fans may wonder how the big screen will make the football team better, but if top-notch facilities help recruit the next Marion Barber III-Laurence Maroney connection then it should be well worth it.
Teamster Reformers Struggle to Overcome Sabotage by Outgoing Officers
By staff
Chicago, IL - Five union reformers entered the offices of Teamsters Local 743 Dec. 31 to receive keys to the union hall from their opponents who had lost election in the fall. The old president Richard Lopez knew he was defeated and that he might be going to jail.
Since that day, Richard Berg, the new president of Local 743, and his staff have been working around the clock to repair a broken union.
"They said that there were two break-ins, one a couple of days after we won the election and one right before they had to hand over the keys," said Richard Berg, the new president. The walk-through that night told a different story: The old guard leaders had done their best to cover up their theft and wrongdoing.
Massive bags of shredded documents were found in the garbage. Most of the computers were gone. Bills were gone. The phone system was sabotaged. Trustee documents for the pension funds were gone, and the list goes on and on.
Members of the local have expressed excitement about the new leaders and the staff. "I was just happy someone returned my call," said one caller from Bagcraft, a local manufacturer of boxes. Hundreds of other members have joined in this sentiment.
"There were 175 messages on the phone at my new desk, the old desk of Michael Corrigan. They went all the way back to March of 2007. These guys were really vacationing on the members money," said Tony Caldera, union representative.
"We are committed to turning this local around and making it a fighting union once again," said Berg, "I put the union on notice that we are going to train and educate workers from bottom to top about effective union leadership and building a fighting movement of workers."
Berg continued, "We had over 50 people attend our first stewards and activist training with very little notice. Our members are hungry for change." The road ahead is going to be tough in the down-turned economy and the new leadership is asking all members to step up and play a role in re-building the union.
As staff and members try to unbury themselves from the years of neglect and theft left behind by the old officers - Walston and Lopez and the others - they are realizing a new thing lies underneath: The members have expressed hope and are now getting involved in the affairs of the union like they have not done since 30 years ago.
Chicago, IL - Five union reformers entered the offices of Teamsters Local 743 Dec. 31 to receive keys to the union hall from their opponents who had lost election in the fall. The old president Richard Lopez knew he was defeated and that he might be going to jail.
Since that day, Richard Berg, the new president of Local 743, and his staff have been working around the clock to repair a broken union.
"They said that there were two break-ins, one a couple of days after we won the election and one right before they had to hand over the keys," said Richard Berg, the new president. The walk-through that night told a different story: The old guard leaders had done their best to cover up their theft and wrongdoing.
Massive bags of shredded documents were found in the garbage. Most of the computers were gone. Bills were gone. The phone system was sabotaged. Trustee documents for the pension funds were gone, and the list goes on and on.
Members of the local have expressed excitement about the new leaders and the staff. "I was just happy someone returned my call," said one caller from Bagcraft, a local manufacturer of boxes. Hundreds of other members have joined in this sentiment.
"There were 175 messages on the phone at my new desk, the old desk of Michael Corrigan. They went all the way back to March of 2007. These guys were really vacationing on the members money," said Tony Caldera, union representative.
"We are committed to turning this local around and making it a fighting union once again," said Berg, "I put the union on notice that we are going to train and educate workers from bottom to top about effective union leadership and building a fighting movement of workers."
Berg continued, "We had over 50 people attend our first stewards and activist training with very little notice. Our members are hungry for change." The road ahead is going to be tough in the down-turned economy and the new leadership is asking all members to step up and play a role in re-building the union.
As staff and members try to unbury themselves from the years of neglect and theft left behind by the old officers - Walston and Lopez and the others - they are realizing a new thing lies underneath: The members have expressed hope and are now getting involved in the affairs of the union like they have not done since 30 years ago.
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Organizers of RNC anti-war protest say, "Permits now! No police spying and Tasers"
From Fight Back News
St. Paul, MN - About 300 people demonstrated here, March 1, as part of the continuing fight to get permits for the massive anti-war protest scheduled for the opening day of the Republican National Convention. Organized by the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, protesters marched from the State Capitol to the Xcel Center.
Katrina Plotz of the Anti-war Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War told the crowd that organizations from all over the country are building for the Sept. 1 protests and slammed city officials for holding up the permits.
Says Plotz, "We're frustrated that the St. Paul police seem more concerned with spying on activists and intimidating protesters than with upholding our right to freedom of speech. We applied for permits over a year ago. Having a permit is crucial for our ability to organize a national anti-war demonstration that will draw tens of thousands. We have the right to protest the war within sight and sound of the Xcel Center during the RNC, and we expect a permit to guarantee that right."
The March 1 protest was the second in a series of recurring demonstrations to pressure the city of St. Paul to grant a permit for an anti-war march on Sept. 1.
A St. Paul city ordinance states that permits for a recurring event can be granted within 30 days of the request. As part of a new strategy first enacted in January, the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War applied for a recurring permit to rally in front of the State Capitol and march to the Xcel Center on the first of every other month culminating with the Sept. 1 protest at the RNC. So far, city officials have granted permits for the January and March demonstrations but continue to withhold a permit for Sept. 1.
St. Paul police have given no indication that they will grant permits in a timely manner, instead focusing on their capacity to repress protest activities. Last week St. Paul police documents revealed a framework to use when infiltrating and spying on activist groups. St. Paul police recently ordered 230 additional Taser weapons, enough for every officer on the force. They claim these policies are not related to the RNC.
"The protest on March 1 is important because it kicks off a month of protests against the war in Iraq," said Anh Pham, also a member of the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War. "This is the fifth anniversary and anti-war activists still say no to war. As long as the Iraqi people suffer under occupation, progressive people will come to Saint Paul to say, 'no to the Republican agenda; no to wars for profit; money for human needs and not for war; troops out now!'"
Listen to Podcasts from March 1 protest
Katrina Plotz of the Anti-war Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War
Didi Frances of the Welfare Rights Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War
St. Paul, MN - About 300 people demonstrated here, March 1, as part of the continuing fight to get permits for the massive anti-war protest scheduled for the opening day of the Republican National Convention. Organized by the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, protesters marched from the State Capitol to the Xcel Center.
Katrina Plotz of the Anti-war Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War told the crowd that organizations from all over the country are building for the Sept. 1 protests and slammed city officials for holding up the permits.
Says Plotz, "We're frustrated that the St. Paul police seem more concerned with spying on activists and intimidating protesters than with upholding our right to freedom of speech. We applied for permits over a year ago. Having a permit is crucial for our ability to organize a national anti-war demonstration that will draw tens of thousands. We have the right to protest the war within sight and sound of the Xcel Center during the RNC, and we expect a permit to guarantee that right."
The March 1 protest was the second in a series of recurring demonstrations to pressure the city of St. Paul to grant a permit for an anti-war march on Sept. 1.
A St. Paul city ordinance states that permits for a recurring event can be granted within 30 days of the request. As part of a new strategy first enacted in January, the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War applied for a recurring permit to rally in front of the State Capitol and march to the Xcel Center on the first of every other month culminating with the Sept. 1 protest at the RNC. So far, city officials have granted permits for the January and March demonstrations but continue to withhold a permit for Sept. 1.
St. Paul police have given no indication that they will grant permits in a timely manner, instead focusing on their capacity to repress protest activities. Last week St. Paul police documents revealed a framework to use when infiltrating and spying on activist groups. St. Paul police recently ordered 230 additional Taser weapons, enough for every officer on the force. They claim these policies are not related to the RNC.
"The protest on March 1 is important because it kicks off a month of protests against the war in Iraq," said Anh Pham, also a member of the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War. "This is the fifth anniversary and anti-war activists still say no to war. As long as the Iraqi people suffer under occupation, progressive people will come to Saint Paul to say, 'no to the Republican agenda; no to wars for profit; money for human needs and not for war; troops out now!'"
Listen to Podcasts from March 1 protest
Katrina Plotz of the Anti-war Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War
Didi Frances of the Welfare Rights Committee and the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War
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