Dear Friend,

What is propaganda (brain soap)? I remember watching old Bugs Bunny cartoons
that had political messages. It's interesting to look back on them now,
putting them into the context of the historical era in which they were
created (WWII cartoons against the Nazis - a way of preparing and
normalizing citizens for war).

Personally, I agree with some wars and disagree with others. Which wars
truly defend us? Which wars are purely political or for the financial gain
of a select few individuals?

Regardless of the desired outcome of propaganda, it is important for us to
see when we are the target of propaganda so that we can think hard, dig
deeper, look at the facts, and think for ourselves.

In today's edition of InfoQuest*, we'll look at two interesting articles
that deal with little-known present-day government intrusion into our daily
lives. One is on government/political propaganda through the media, and the
other is on what we can do at our city council meetings (local armor!) to
protect our civil rights against the civil-rights-stripping juggernaut
Patriot Act.

CONTENTS:

(1) Actors Say Hollywood's Being 'Pressured' to Make War Movies

(2) Cities Say No to Federal Snooping

(3) News Blip

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(1) Actors Say Hollywood's Being 'Pressured' to Make War Movies

Actors Say Hollywood's Being 'Pressured' to Make War Movies
By Jim Burns
CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer
December 13, 2002
http://www.cnsnews.com/Nation/archive/200212/NAT20021213c.html

(CNSNews.com) - Two American actors reportedly said the Bush administration
is pressuring Hollywood to make war movies and violent films to "push" its
war machine. They allegedly made the comment in Havana, Cuba, while
attending a film festival.

Radio Havana reported Thursday that actors Harry Belafonte and Danny Glover
told a press conference there is a struggle within the U.S. movie industry
for "quality" versus movies "that bring in large amounts of money."

They pointed out that Hollywood is presently controlled by huge corporations
that determine what movies audience will or will not see. According to Radio
Havana, they also said the war movies and violent films that are now in
fashion are "molded by the interests of the Pentagon and the White House."

Belafonte and Glover also told reporters that they were among a group of
actors who recently signed an "open letter" to President Bush calling on him
to stop his war plans.

Glover reportedly said he was "against a war whose victims will be Iraqi
women and children, who have already suffered enough through bombings and
the blockade."

Belafonte told reporters that, "More and more Americans are opposed to the
war machine driven by (President) George W. Bush." He was quoted as saying,
"The (anti-war) movement is growing among intellectuals and university
students and expanding to many other sectors as well."

Belafonte added that the Sept. 11 tragedy provided an "excuse" for Bush to
move ahead with plans "to control the world militarily, economically and
culturally."

It is not the first time Belafonte has criticized the Bush administration.
Last October, on a San Diego radio talk show, he criticized Secretary of
State Colin Powell, comparing him to a house "slave."

"Colin Powell's committed to come into the house of the master," Belafonte
said. "When Colin Powell dares to suggest something other than what the
master wants to hear, he will be turned back out to pasture.

"In the days of slavery, there were those slaves who lived on the plantation
and were those slaves that lived in the house. You got the privilege of
living in the house if you served the master ... exactly the way the master
intended you to serve him," Belafonte said.

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(2) Cities Say No to Federal Snooping

IQ* Note: Dear Friend, I've already contacted the President and Vice
President of my city's city council to pass local law that protects my
family and our local citizens from civil rights intrusions. Please contact
your city council representatives today!

Cities Say No to Federal Snooping
By Julia Scheeres
02:00 AM Dec. 19, 2002 PT
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56922,00.html

Fearing that the Patriot Act will curtail Americans' civil rights,
municipalities across the country are passing resolutions to repudiate the
legislation and protect their residents from a perceived abuse of authority
by the federal government.

On Tuesday, Oakland became the 20th municipality to pass a resolution
http://www.bordc.org/Oakland-res.htm
barring its employees -- from police officer to librarian -- from
collaborating with federal officials who may try to use their new power to
investigate city residents.

Rushed through Congress a month after the terrorist attacks on the World
Trade Center and the Pentagon, the Patriot Act fundamentally changes
http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,55065,00.html
Americans' legal rights. Among other things, the act allows the government
to secretly monitor political groups, seize library records and tap phone
and Internet connections.

The federal government says the expanded powers are needed to prevent
terrorist attacks; but critics say the legislation erodes freedoms protected
by the Constitution. The Justice Department did not return calls for comment
on this article.

A rallying point behind the recent groundswell has been the Bill of Rights
Defense Committee,
http://www.bordc.org/
run by Massachusetts activist Nancy Talanian.

Her site includes a blueprint
http://www.bordc.org/Tools.htm
for communities that want to pass anti-Patriot Act resolutions, based on her
successful lobbying efforts for such legislation in Northhampton,
Massachusetts. The site has gotten over a million hits in the last six
months, Talanian said.

Another group to vehemently oppose the act has been librarians. They are now
required to divulge patrons' book-borrowing and Internet-surfing habits to
federal investigators and are prohibited from making such requests public.

In retaliation, some librarians have called special meetings to educate
their communities about the Patriot Act's implications. Others now routinely
purge borrowing records and Internet caches. One former librarian devised a
series of technically legal signs
http://www.librarian.net/technicality.html
 to warn patrons of FBI snooping.

"We're Sorry!" states one. "Due to National Security concerns, we are unable
to tell you if your Internet surfing habits, passwords and e-mail content
are being monitored by federal agents; please act appropriately."

Jessamyn West said she doesn't necessarily expect libraries to use her
signs, but she hopes that they'll get people talking.

"Hopefully, they'll make people more aware of what's going on," she said.

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(3) News Blip

LOUISIANA ACTIVISTS UNEARTH, REPORT ERRORS IN SCIENCE TEXTS
The Louisiana public school system has approved a list of biology textbooks
that many pro-family activists say contain grossly outdated evolutionary
theories.
More details:  http://headlines.agapepress.org/archive/12/192002c.asp