Democracy Now! Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Today's Headlines

Occupy Wall Street Protesters File Class Action Suit; …

Lawsuit Accuses Banks of Defrauding Veterans, Taxpayers

Obama Invokes Reagan in Push for Tax Changes

Study: Corporations Laid-Off Workers Following Tax Holiday

Russia, China Veto Security Council Measure on Syria …

Iraq: No Immunity for U.S. Troops

Palestinians Protest U.S. Aid Freeze

Bahrain Sentences 26 Protesters

HRW: No Improvement in Accountability for Colombia Union …

Greeks Stage General Strike Over Austerity Cuts

Rumsfeld Refuses to Answer Al Jazeera Reporter on Iraq War

Somalia Blowback: After Deadly Mogadishu Bombing, A Look at How U.S. Fueled Militant Islamist Threat

In Somalia, at least 70 people were killed yesterday in the capital of Mogadishu after a large truck bomb exploded near a government compound that housed the Somali cabinet and eight ministries, including the Ministry of Education. The militant group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, which maintains control of much of southern Somalia. Many in the country blame its refusal to accept Western aid for causing the deadly famine now accompanying a massive drought in the Horn of Africa. We’re joined by award-winning investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill, who was recently in Somalia to report for The Nation magazine. His article "Blowback in Somalia,” examines how U.S. policy there has helped create a militant Islamist threat.

As Unions, Students Join Occupy Wall Street, Are We Witnessing Growth of a New Movement?

As the Occupy Wall Street protest enters its twentieth day, New York City’s most powerful unions are set to march today from City Hall to the movement’s encampment in the Financial District. The demonstration will be bolstered by the walkout of potentially thousands of students at major public universities in New York City where tuition rates are on the rise. Meanwhile, similar "occupation" movements are springing up in cities around the country. On Tuesday, the Greater Boston Labor Council, representing 154 unions with 90,000 workers, supported the Occupy Boston encampment for shining "a spotlight on the imbalance of power in our nation and the role that Wall Street has played in devastating our economy." We host a discussion about whether the Occupy Wall Street movement is sparking a diverse, grassroots movement for economic change. We’re joined by Kai Wright, contributor to The Nation magazine and editorial director of ColorLines.com, where he wrote "Here’s to Occupying Wall Street! (If Only That Were Actually Happening)." We also speak with Arun Gupta, an editor with of The Indypendent, and of “The Occupied Wall Street Journal,” a newspaper affiliated with the Occupy Wall Street movement, where he published an article titled, "The Revolution Begins at Home."

Social Justice, Antiwar Protesters to Occupy D.C.’s Freedom Plaza in “October 2011” Protest

Tomorrow, thousands of people are expected to gather in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., for a “people’s assembly” organized by a movement calling itself "October 2011." They plan to occupy the plaza until they have brainstormed sustainable solutions to promote universal healthcare and economic justice, as well as end the nearly decade-long Afghanistan War. We speak with two of the movement’s organizers, Kevin Zeese and Dr. Margaret Flowers. Zeese is a lawyer who works with ItsOurEconomy.us, while Flowers is a pediatrician who serves as a congressional fellow for Physicians for a National Health Program. “This came out of seeing that all of the issues — the work in the peace movement and the wars, the work for single payer, the work for environmental justice — have been hampered by the same obstacle which is the corporate control of our political process and the corporate media message,” Flowers says. “We saw the need back and to bring these movements to gather to unite because we do have the strength in our numbers.”