As the death toll continues to rise following Sunday's Indian Ocean tsunami, Indian churches and Christian organizations are speeding up their relief efforts.

The 9.0 magnitude quake and its resulting tsunami devastated life along 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers) of South India's coast, so far leaving more than 12,000 dead in India and many thousands missing. The overall death toll from the affected countries like Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Burma, the Maldives, and Somalia is now above 114,000—far more than earlier feared.

India's Christian community was not spared. "It has been a terrible tragedy since it all happened on Sunday when the church service was on, and it occurred during the Christmas period," Donald H.R. De Souza, spokesman for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, said earlier this week. "In the Kottar area of Tamil Nadu, about 300 Christians who were attending a religious service died."

One of the country's holiest Christian sites, the Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health in Velankanni, was hit severely. The shrine, typically busiest during the Christmas season, has reported at least 700 deaths, and that number is expected to rise dramatically.

John Dayal, secretary general of the All India Christian Council, calls the tsunami "a greater tragedy than many others faced in the past" by the country's Christians. It's especially hard on the Christian community, he said, since "most of the boatmen and fishermen in the coastal areas are Christians."

The areas most affected by the tsunami are in the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Pondicherry, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Anthropologists fear that some of the 72 indigenous tribes living in isolation on the 319 islands in the Andaman and Nicobar chains might have been wiped out by the tsunami.

Besides the terrible loss of human life, fear of massive disease haunts medical authorities. The United Nations has warned of an epidemic as corpses rot and drinking water, food, and shelter become scarce. In India, dead bodies are being disposed of in mass burials and cremations.

The country has also had to face panic in the wake of the devastation: A tsunami alert was issued yesterday, and the government urged people to leave coastal areas. Hours later, the alert was retracted, with Science Minister Kapil Sibal explaining that it had been based on faulty information.

The unprecedented tragedy has shattered the local economies of small towns and villages in the coastal areas. The basic infrastructure and amenities have been wiped away by the waves, and the local communities have been impoverished.

"Providing livelihood to the fisher folks would be our main focus to begin with," says Dayal. "Fishermen need nets and boats. We will be focusing on that along with giving them trauma counseling and providing long-term rehabilitation."

Indian churches and Christian organizations are "deeply involved" in aid and relief efforts, says Richard Howell, secretary general of the Evangelical Fellowship of India. "We have been on site from day one providing relief. We have already sent appeals for funds within India and abroad. We see it as a tragedy of human family. We will serve every needy person irrespective of his caste or religion."

James Christian, Bishop's Chaplain for the Church of South India's Diocese of Madras, told Christianity Today that his denomination is providing shelter and clothes and collecting money for relief, but the situation remains "terrible and sad."

"We are doing our best but our resources are insufficient," he said. "A lot more needs to be done. It is a time of great tragedy and we need prayers."

India's churches are organizing a nation-wide day of prayer January 2, but their work with the tsunami victims will likely continue for years.

"It won't be a one-time relief," says Howell. "We are going to be with them, walking with them until they are rehabilitated."

    Thursday 30 December 2004

    Washington - AARP, the influential lobby for older Americans, signaled Wednesday for the first time how fervently it would fight President Bush's proposal for private Social Security accounts, saying it would begin a $5 million two-week advertising campaign timed to coincide with the start of the new Congress.

    The organization, which played a huge role in the passage of Medicare drug legislation last year, said it was prepared to spend much more in the next two years to block the creation of private accounts financed with payroll tax revenues.

    "This is our signature issue," said Christine M. Donohoo, chief communications officer for AARP, which represents 36 million Americans 50 and older. "We will do what it takes."

    The full-page advertisements, to appear next week in more than 50 newspapers around the country, say the accounts would cause "Social Insecurity."

    "There are places in your retirement planning for risk," the advertisements say, "but Social Security isn't one of them."

    One advertisement shows a couple in their 40's looking at the reader. "If we feel like gambling, we'll play the slots," the message says.

    Another advertisement shows traders in the pit of a commodities exchange. "Winners and losers are stock market terms," it says. "Do you really want them to become retirement terms?"

    AARP's confrontational stance on Social Security contrasts with its strategy on Medicare legislation in 2002 and 2003.

    Senior officials of the group continually talked to the White House and to Republicans in Congress about proposals to add drug coverage to Medicare. But to date, AARP leaders said, they have had few conversations with the White House about Mr. Bush's plans for Social Security.

    Lawmakers of both parties said the Medicare bill might not have passed without a last-minute endorsement by AARP, which describes itself as a nonpartisan organization. The endorsement outraged some members of the group and some Democrats in Congress. But now, it appears, AARP will be working with Democrats against Republican proposals for private accounts.

    AARP strongly supports new incentives for people to save for retirement, but says such savings should supplement the existing system.

    Marie F. Smith, the group's president, and William D. Novelli, its chief executive, set forth the organization's position this month in letters to members and to lawmakers.

    Private accounts would worsen the problems of Social Security, they said, adding: "Taking some of the money that workers pay into the system and diverting it into newly created private accounts would weaken Social Security and put benefits for future generations at risk. AARP is opposed to private accounts that take money out of Social Security."

    Under President Bush's proposal, workers could divert some payroll taxes to personal accounts that could be invested in stocks and bonds.

    At a news conference last week, Mr. Bush defended his proposal as a way to encourage "an ownership society," increase savings and provide "capital for entrepreneurial growth." By investing in private accounts, he said, workers could earn a higher rate of return than they get from the Social Security trust fund, and they could pass on the accumulated assets to their heirs.

    Ms. Donohoo said AARP's advertisements were intended to "mobilize seniors" and to educate younger people about the program, which pays monthly benefits to more than 47 million Americans.

    The advertisements will generally run three times in each newspaper from Jan. 4, when Congress convenes, to Jan. 20, when Mr. Bush is to be inaugurated for a second term.

    Some advocates of private accounts, like the libertarian Cato Institute, are also gearing up. But Jamie W. Dettmer, a Cato spokesman, said: "We do not have plans to do advertising or lobbying. Our experts will write op-ed articles, appear on television and radio and testify before Congress if they're invited."

    At a White House economic conference this month, Mr. Bush previewed his message to Congress on Social Security. "The crisis is now," he said. "You may not feel it, your constituents may not be overwhelming you with letters demanding a fix now, but the crisis is now."

    On the other hand, Ms. Donohoo of AARP said that "rather modest changes" could ensure the solvency of the program for several generations. "It's not a crisis," she said.

Editor's Note | TO reported earlier today that Rep. John Conyers, ranking minority member of the House Judiciary Committee, will officially object to the Ohio Electoral votes being counted when Congress convenes to certify the election on January 6th. Rev. Jesse Jackson will be centrally involved in the effort to convince a Senator to join Conyers in this effort. TO will be reporting on the 6th from Washington D.C. on the hearings. - wrp

    Go to Original

    'We Will Not Faint'
    By Susannah Meadows
    Newsweek

    Thursday 30 December 2004

Jesse Jackson on why he thinks John Kerry really won the election.

    Ohio officials concluded their recount of the presidential vote last Tuesday-reaffirming President George W. Bush’s victory. But the state’s election woes aren’t over yet. As bloggers continue to spin conspiracy theories about a victory stolen from Democratic candidate John Kerry, the Rev. Jesse Jackson plans to lead a Monday rally in Columbus to protest alleged voting irregularities. He warmed up with Newsweek’s Susannah Meadows.

The Democratic candidate and Jackson at Sunday services before the November vote. (Photo: Gerald Herbert / AP)

    Newsweek: What’s the matter with Ohio?

    Rev. Jesse Jackson: In Columbus, Cincinnati, Akron, Youngstown, Cleveland, where I was, you had blacks standing in line for six hours in the rain. That’s a form of voter suppression.

    Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell says that machines were allotted based on turnout in past years, and that he didn’t realize they’d need more machines until it was too late.

    He had to know it because registration was up. Blackwell may have had to deliver for Bush and [Vice President Dick] Cheney and he got a lighter rap than [former Florida Secretary of State Katherine] Harris got. But Ohio may have been more stacked than Florida was.

    So you think Blackwell stole the election for Bush?

    It was under his domain to have enough machines; the machine calibration, tabulation issue. You could rig the machines. We have reason to believe it was rigged.

    What is your evidence?

    Based on distrusting the system, lack of paper trails, the anomaly of the exit polls. In Ukraine, there’s an exit poll gap, they say, "Let’s have another election."

    Have you been in touch with John Kerry about the issue? Does he share your concerns?

    His lawyers are now involved in a minimal way. We are appealing to him to get involved. We think it should be certified provisionally, until there can be a forensic investigation of these machines, and until there’s a random recount. In only two of the counties did they do any hand recounting.

    What can be done now?

    Thursday is when Congress is scheduled to certify the vote. Kerry should take the floor and ask for a debate on the subject. Kerry pulled out too early. The scrutiny pulled out with him.

    If the election were held again with these alleged problems solved, would Kerry win?

    Of course I think that. If we deal with the anomalies, a fair random count, the urban-suppressed vote, Kerry would get at least 60,000 more votes. At least! I believe that. I don’t know that.

    Is it possible that election will be overturned?

    I don’t know. All we want is a fair count and a transparent election. We can live with the result. We’re fighting the odds but we will not faint in the face of the odds.

Falloujans Get an Unsettling Look at Their City

Refugees eager to return change their minds after seeing the ruin. Will balloting be feasible? 

By Edmund Sanders
Times Staff Writer 

12/30/04 "Los Angeles Times" -- BAGHDAD — Yasser Abbas Atiya swore he'd sooner sleep on the streets of his beloved hometown of Fallouja than spend another night in the squalid Baghdad shelter where his family had been squatting.

Thirty minutes after he returned home this week, however, Atiya had seen enough. He left in disgust and had no plans to go back.

"I couldn't stand it," the grocer said. "I was born in that town. I know every inch of it. But when I got there, I didn't recognize it."

Lakes of sewage in the streets. The smell of corpses inside charred buildings. No water or electricity. Long waits and thorough searches by U.S. troops at checkpoints. Warnings to watch out for land mines and booby traps. Occasional gunfire between troops and insurgents.

"I thought, 'This is not my town,' " Atiya said Tuesday after going back to the abandoned Baghdad clinic his family shares with nearly 100 other displaced Falloujans. "How can I take my family to live there?"

The initial clamor by an estimated 200,000 refugees to return to the homes they had fled last month is being replaced by a bitter resignation that the city remains largely uninhabitable and unsafe. Hopes of quickly restoring normality to the restive Sunni Muslim city are fading, raising questions about whether Fallouja will be ready to participate in the Jan. 30 national election.

"We have no intention of going back," said Yasser Mowfauk Abbas, 20, a university student who was among the first residents allowed in to inspect their homes. "No one is staying."

U.S. and Iraqi officials say that they tried to warn Falloujans that it was too soon to return, but that they let them go last week after a groundswell of protest. Officials also face pressure to reopen the city before the election. The U.S.-led invasion of the city last month was prompted, in part, by a desire to clear the way for the vote.

"We told them that until now there are areas where debris and wreckage are still not removed," said Kasim Daoud, Iraq's interim security minister. "We also told them that there are some streets that contain land mines. But our dear people insisted that they must return back."

Nearly 15,000 residents have reentered Fallouja during the last week, military figures show. The returnees have been given the option of staying permanently or leaving by the end of the day.

Military officials said they were not keeping track of how many were opting to stay.

U.S. Marines say they are working to make the city livable again but are grappling with decades of neglect and decay, as well as the results of last month's bombardment.

More than 700 workers have been hired for the rebuilding effort. Aid centers distribute bottled water, food and blankets. On Wednesday, a hospital reopened.

Military leaders are mindful that drawing Falloujans back into Iraqi society and into the election would send a powerful signal that the country was headed in a positive direction.

"We are attacking reconstruction efforts with the same grit, sweat and determination used to eliminate the malicious threat posed by the terrorists and insurgents," said Lt. Col. Dan Wilson, deputy operations officer of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Fallouja. "We want to help the residents, so they will be able to live in peace and enjoy the privilege of voting in the upcoming elections."

But the effort to win the hearts and minds of the local population has fallen flat as soon as returning homeowners see the burned buildings, piles of rubble and heavy troop presence. The residents say voting is the last thing on their minds.

"What election?" Atiya, 35, asked. "I'm a refugee. How can a refugee take part in an election? Let me get back home and then I'll talk about elections."

After enduring three hours of military checkpoints and searches, Atiya and two brothers anxiously reentered the city Monday, uncertain what to expect.

U.S. troops handed them leaflets warning against a myriad of dangers and advising them that the U.S. military could not guarantee their safety. Don't drink the water, the leaflets warned, or eat food left behind.

Every resident is required to carry a small card outlining special new rules for the city. There's a 6 p.m. curfew. No weapons are allowed. Graffiti and public gatherings are illegal. Cars and visitors are banned.

Males between the ages of 15 and 55 must carry special identification cards. U.S. military officials have announced plans to use fingerprinting and retina scans to prevent insurgents from returning.

As Atiya and his brothers traveled through the city and saw the destruction, they braced for the worst. When he caught a glimpse of his roof, Atiya's first emotion was relief. The house was still there.

As they drew closer, however, Atiya and his brothers began to curse. A gaping hole in the two-story house appeared to have been caused by a tank, whose tracks were visible in the mud, he said. Most of the furniture was smashed. "Half my house was demolished," Atiya said.

In the kitchen, cabinets had been ripped from the walls, he said. Others were emptied of their contents, which lay in heaps on the floor.

"Every dish was broken, every cup, every plate, as if someone had just stood there breaking one dish after another," said Atiya's brother Raaid Abbas, 37. "Why?"

The brothers don't know who ransacked the house, but they blame American troops, who they say left muddy boot prints.

Military officials expressed sympathy with the plight of returning residents but said the blame should rest with militants who took control of the city and continued to hide among the population.

"Our forces never intentionally damage structures or homes," said Wilson, the deputy operations officer. "After all, we, in partnership with the [interim Iraqi government], will be at the forefront of assisting in the restoration and cleanup of Fallouja."

The brothers quickly determined that the house, where all three had been born, was uninhabitable. They had wanted to leave with some supplies, such as a kerosene heater, for use at the Baghdad shelter.

But in an effort to prevent theft and looting, U.S. troops prohibited residents from removing property from the city. The most the brothers could do was sneak out some extra clothing, which they wore as they left.

When the brothers returned to Baghdad and recounted their stories, other Falloujans shook their heads in amazement.

"After I heard what they said, I'm not willing to go back," said Latif Jasim, 45.

Atiya broke the bad news to his wife and four children. His youngest daughter, Noora, 4, had trouble understanding why she couldn't return home. "I want my dresses," she said, hiding shyly behind an older brother.

Atiya said the family had no choice but to stay in the makeshift shelter until conditions in Fallouja improved. "We are fed up with being here," he said. "We just want to go home." 

Copyright 2004 Los Angeles Times

“Yet Another Pro-Life Betrayal!”
Sen. Specter Must Not Become
Chairman of the Senate Judicial Committee

Once Again, We Need Your Help To Stop Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA)

Not long ago, under a barrage of millions of calls, faxes, petitions, letters, and emails; we were promised that Sen. Specter would toe the Pro-Life line and work to ensure President Bush's judicial nominees were confirmed.

Just before Christmas, President Bush announced he will resubmit the names of 20 nominees that were filibustered by abortion extremists in the last session of Congress.

Despite his earlier assurances, Senator Specter immediately started crowing about how "troubled" he was by the President's decision.

All this before the senate has even been gaveled into session! Specter is once again showing his true colors.

It is NOT too Late to Stop Specter from Getting the
Chairmanship of the Judiciary Committee

Pro-Life, Pro-Christian, and Pro-Family Organizations are Banding Together for One Final Effort To Stop Senator Specter

Arlen Specter is NOT the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, YET. He must first win the final approval of his senate colleagues.

YOUR Help is Needed Now!

Less than two months ago you flooded Washington with your concerns. As a result, Sen. Specter said all of the right words and gave all of the proper assurances in an effort to obtain the chairmanship he so covets. Now, when he appears to have the backing he needs, he has returned to his old ways.

Time is short. The senate will be voting on committee chairmanships in just a few days. Many members of the senate have doubts about Arlen Specter but need a reason to go against the senate seniority system and deny this man the chairmanship. You can make the difference.

Join the 'Final Stand' to Stop Senator Specter
http://www.voicesheard.org/pet/pet-as3.php

It will be an uphill battle but it is not too late to stop Arlen Specter. We cannot do it without YOUR support.

We also ask that you forward this email to every Pro-Life, Pro-Christian in your address book. Time is short, You must act NOW!

Please Forward This To Anyone You Feel Can Help!