Democracy Now! August 12, 2002

Congressmember Cynthia McKinney Under Fire: She is Georgia's first African-American Congresswoman. She is the only woman serving in Georgia s congressional delegation. She is an internationally renowned advocate for voting rights, human rights and Africa. She is fighting for her political life in next week s Georgia primary. Colombia s President Declares a State of Emergency: Colombia s newly inaugurated president declares a "state of internal commotion" authorizing the government to take special measures and boost military spending, following a wave of violence that left 115 people dead since his inauguration five days ago Airplane Contrails Affect Temperatures On Earth: A new report based on the sudden three-day grounding of air traffic after September 11th shows that the empty skies affected temperatures on earth. 9:01-9:06 Headlines: 9:06-9:07 One Minute Music Break 9:07-9:20 CONGRESSMEMBER CYNTHIA McKINNEY UNDER FIRE: A DISCUSSION WITH GEORGIA'S FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN CONGRESSWOMAN Cynthia McKinney is Georgia's first African-American Congresswoman. She is the only woman serving in the state's congressional delegation. In her nine years in Congress, she has become an internationally renowned advocate for voting rights, human rights and Africa. This month s Georgia Democratic primary has turned into a battle over Middle East politics. That s because McKinney, Congressmember for nine years, has come under fierce attack for her support for Palestinian rights, and her early call for an 9/11 investigation of the Bush Administration,. In April, McKinney issued a statement pointing out that President Bush's father, through the Carlyle Group had -- at the time of the attacks -- joint business interests with the bin Laden construction company and many defense industry holdings, the stocks of which have soared since September 11." In May, McKinney was among only 21 House members who voted against a pro-Israel resolution that passed with 352 votes. In October, McKinney wrote to Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, thanking him for offering $10 million to New York after September 11th. City officials rejected the money because bin Talal used the occasion to say: "Our Palestinian brethren continue to be slaughtered at the hands of Israelis while the world turns the other cheek." McKinney s primary race echoes that of another black politician from the south, Representative Earl Hilliard, a five-term congressman from Alabama. He lost the primary to Artur Davis, a black attorney and political newcomer. Davis visited this year's American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) convention in Washington. Hilliard is one of a few congressmen who occasionally voted against the interests of the Israel lobby and spoke out about the conditions of Palestinians. McKinney s opponent is Denise Majette, a retired state judge with centrist domestic positions and pro-Israel views. Like Davis in Alabama, Majette is ardently courting Jewish support. Next Saturday after the Millions for Reparations March, Cynthia McKinney s supporters political activists, musicians, and artists--are kicking off a We Love Cynthia Freedom Ride bus tour from Washington DC down to Georgia. Guest: Kharabia Rayford, McKinney outrreach coordinator, political activist and musician organizing the We Love Cynthia McKinney Freedom Ride Contact: www.khayumbia.com, www.adoptcynthiamckinney.com Contact phone: 202 234 3839 Guest: US Representative Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) Contact: www.house.gov/mckinney www.cynthia2002.com 9:21-9:30 CONGRESSMEMBER CYNTHIA MCKINNEY, cont d 9:30-9:40 COLOMBIA S NEWLY INAUGURATED PRESIDENT DECLARES A "STATE OF INTERNAL COMMOTION" AUTHORIZING THE GOVERNMENT TO TAKE SPECIAL MEASURES AND BOOST DEFENSE SPENDING Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has declared a limited state of emergency and decreed a new tax to raise close to $800 million for new military spending. The declaration follows a wave of violence that has left 115 people dead since his inauguration five days ago. During Uribe s inauguration, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia launched an unprecedented urban attack. They used remote-controlled mortars, and hit the nearby presidential palace. One mortar misfired into a slum and killed 20 people. Critics charge Uribe has links to paramilitary groups. Uribe also plans to create a million-strong civilian force of "supporters" to help inform police and the army of rebel and paramilitary activity. This, as the Bush administration has authorized Colombia to use nearly $1.7 billion in US military aid directly against the rebels. This is a major intensification of US intervention in Colombia. It was slipped into the anti-terrorism legislation Bush signed last week. Guest: Steven Dudley, freelance journalist in Bogota. He wrote a piece in the Nation magazine this week, War in Colombia's Oilfields. He is currently finishing a book on Colombia to be published by Routledge. 9:40-9:41 One Minute Music Break 9:40-9:50 THE THREE-DAY GROUNDING OF AIR TRAFFIC AFTER SEPTEMBER 11TH SHOWS THAT HIGH ALTITUDE JET PLANE CONTRAILS CAN AFFECT TEMPERATURES ON EARTH Following the Sept. 11th attacks, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded all commercial aircraft in the United States. For three days the skies were nearly as clear and quiet as they'd been since before the Wright Brothers skidded aloft. These almost empty skies presented scientists with an unprecedented chance to answer a question that has vexed them for years: Do the wispy tracings left behind by jets - known formally as contrails - somehow alter the environment? A new study in the British journal Nature finds that high-altitude jet contrails have an effect on daily temperatures. The sudden three-day grounding of commercial flights after last September's terrorist attacks allowed researchers to study the true impacts of contrails from jet trails on climate. The absence of flights eliminated the thin blanket of cirrus clouds that usually forms from the water vapor in the exhaust from jet planes, allowing daytime temperatures to rise and nighttime temperatures to fall. On a typical travel day, scientists have counted more than 14,000 flights crisscrossing the skies. In the long term, the skies are expected to become even more crowded, making contrails a growing concern for some atmospheric scientists. Guest: David Travis, climatologist at the University of Wisconsin and lead author of a study, published in Nature magazine, on the effect of the grounding of air traffic 9:50-9:59 DEMOCRACY NOW! BIDS FAREWELL TO DEMOCRACY NOW! PRODUCER MIRANDA KENNEDY: AS THE ANNIVERSARY OF SEPTEMBER 11TH APPROACHES, A CONVERSATION WITH MIRANDA KENNEDY ABOUT THE LAST YEAR OF DEMOCRACY NOW! Guest: Miranda Kennedy, Democracy Now! producer IN STUDIO 9:58-9:59 Outro and Credits