The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against Occupy New Haven in their request to remain on the New Haven Green. According to our liaison Richard N., some protesters are planning some civil disobedience actions this afternoon, when they expect to be evicted. We’ll continue to update you as we hear news from the ground. Watch the livestream of the eviction here.

The examples are abundant. Across the country, Occupations have saved homes from foreclosure, challenged corrupt municipal officials, and stood up to unfair ordinances and local laws — and the list goes on and on.

However, as the organizers of these actions will tell you, to successfully organize local activism, it is critical to effectively research the issue ahead of time to identify pressure points, supporters and opponents and figure out how to craft your message for real, local change. For this reason, we will be sharing tactics and strategies for researching these types of issues at tonight’s Occupy Supply webinar.

We’re pleased to invite you to join our free online talk “Identify, Investigate, Occupy: Researching Stakeholders for Local Activism” with ACORN founder Wade Rathke, former Occupy Buffalo member and FDL Director of Operations Samantha Colon and Occupy Monterey member Colin Gallagher.

Tonight’s panel will begin with a presentation by Samantha Colon, former protester with Occupy Buffalo and the newest member of the Firedoglake staff. Sam will be talking about the steps to identifying stakeholders in local issues — answering the important questions of who stands to benefit and who stands to be hurt by a particular action? Sam’s work with Occupy Buffalo helped make that Occupation one of the most effective in the nation for local activism.

We’ll also be joined by Wade Rathke, the founder of ACORN, who will talk about the ways in which Occupations can build coalition support with other local groups, which is often necessary for effective community organizing.

Finally we will hear from Occupy Monterey’s Colin Gallagher, who will share his experiences with local activism and discuss the tools available to occupations so that they can learn more about what is happening in their communities.

The presentation portion of our webinar will be recorded for everyone, but we will not record the Q&A portion so that people may speak freely.

As always, tonight’s discussion is open to the public – occupier, activist or supporter.

I hope you can join us on the webinar TONIGHT, 4/4 at 8pm Eastern.

Food sovereignty – the right of people to define their own food and agriculture –  is intricately tied to issues of economic inequality, the global climate, and social justice. From underpaid workers on Kenyan plantations to the destruction of local farming in Chile to the lack of access to healthy food for low-income Americans – our food policy has far reaching implications for people across the planet. The Occupy Movement has started a national conversation on economic justice and it is uniquely situated to start a similar conversation about food justice.

With spring returning, this presents the perfect opportunity for Occupations across the country to step up their efforts in this area. Occupations can begin looking into alternative forms of food production and start organizing outdoor actions that can draw attention to issues of food and farming in this country.

For this reason, Occupy Supply will be devoting tonight’s webinar to food sovereignty, justice and activism. We’re pleased to invite you to join our free online talk “Occupy the Food Supply: Sovereignty, Justice and Activism” with blogger/author Jill Richardson and Occupiers from Asheville, Tampa and Rochester this evening at 8pm eastern.

Tonight’s panel will begin with a presentation by Jill Richardson, blogger at La Vida Locavore and the author of Recipe for America: Why Our Food System Is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It. Jill will focus on the issue of Food Sovereignty – what is it, how is it being attacked and what can we do to restore it? She will cover the global ramifications of our current agricultural system, and discuss ways – large and small – in which we can begin to make that system more just and sustainable.

We’ll also be joined by Occupiers who have done some amazing work in the area of food sovereignty:

Jessica Hardy and Rosetta Star of Occupy Asheville will be talking about various food actions they have organized, Shawn Samuels of Occupy Tampa will share his expertise in Occupy gardening, and Olga of Occupy Rochester will explain the importance of “Urban Gardening” and how to do it effectively.

The presentation portion of our webinar will be recorded for everyone, but we will not record the Q&A portion so that people may speak freely. In addition to the recording, we will also provide resources to help Occupy groups take up issues of food sovereignty and justice in their own communities.

For an interesting take on the role of Occupy in the Food Justice Movement, check out this Huffington Post article by Eric Holt Gimenez ahead of tonight’s discussion.

As always, tonight’s discussion is open to the public – occupier, activist or supporter. I hope you can join us on the webinar TONIGHT, 3/21 at 8pm Eastern.

Update II: A court has issued a preliminary injunction against any eviction until a hearing can be held, likely in about two weeks.  So Occupy New Haven dodged a bullet today.  Thanks to everyone for their calls and support!]
Live streaming by Ustream

The New Haven aristocracy is threatening to evict Occupy New Haven at noon Wednesday.

Occupy New Haven is located on the New Haven Green: a public commons administrated by a group of five ‘proprietors’ who are now demanding Occupy New Haven vacate the Green so that ‘others’ may use it.

Ironically, the elite and undemocratic body that has overseen the parks since the 1800′s is headed by Yale Law professor Drew S. Days III: a lifelong civil rights activist, a former Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, and a current staff member of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Sadly, Professor Days has chosen to use his power and prestige to suppress the very kinds of free speech one would assume he supports given his resume. This stunning convergence of hypocrisy and cronyism is threatening the existence of Occupy New Haven, and we need to speak out in their defense. Can you call the Prof. Days and New Haven City officials and demand they stop the eviction of Occupy New Haven?

Call Head Proprietor Prof. Drew Days, New Haven Mayor DeStefano, and other city officials and tell them to stop the eviction of Occupy New Haven.

Click here for phone numbers and a sample script.

Do the New Haven elite, backed by the muscle of city officials, really have in mind the best interests of those who wish to use the Green? Or is this yet another veiled attempt to squash a vibrant protest movement right at the heart of one of the biggest training grounds for the future 1%?

The Proprietors of the Green also include Albertus Magnus College President Julia McNamara, U.S. District Court Judge Janet Bond-Arterton, and Anne Calabresi – a woman who once protested George W. Bush on the Yale president’s lawn.

A civil rights activist, a federal judge, a protester and the president of a liberal arts college: the fact that individuals with these backgrounds have decided that free speech has a five month expiration date is troubling to say the least.

Occupy New Haven has only occupied a portion of the park and has been respectful of anyone wishing to use it, which is why the claim that they must vacate so it can be “cleaned up and restored for use by others who wish to enjoy [it]” is confusing. Perhaps more telling is how the notice ends:

“Both the City of New Haven and the Proprietors of the Green appreciate the dedication to the cause of economic justice, and we wish you well as you move forward elsewhere.”

In other words: you don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here.

Occupy New Haven has sustained an active presence in their community through the winter. They deserve our help in fighting their eviction.

Call Head Proprietor Drew S. Days, Mayor DeStefano and other city officials to tell them to call off this eviction immediately.

Thank you for standing up for Occupy New Haven. If you live near the New Haven Green, please consider dropping by to show solidarity with the protesters and bare witness to their eviction.

In the sometimes-unnavigable sea of media, activism and political organizations Firedoglake is truly unique. It’s not just rare. It’s not just different. It’s unique – meaning one-of-a-kind. I can’t think of any other organization that combines fiercely independent reporting and audience-driven activism in the way that FDL does. And right at the center of this special model lies the FDL Membership program.

Not only do our members help provide the financial support necessary to sustain our small staff and operations (something Brian Sonenstein has already touched on) – our members shape the vision of our entire organization. Take Occupy Supply as an example. It began as a small idea – but the massive, widely-praised operation it has become is the direct result of the input and dedication of our member-liaisons. Without our membership program, Occupy Supply might have been limited to Jane and Ryan running a couple jackets and propane tanks to Occupy DC once a week. Instead, it’s a nationwide campaign that has helped build critical connections between the occupations, while sustaining them through the winter — and it’s all thanks to our members.

Our Occupy Supply webinar topics come from ideas we get from members. The occupy dispatches you see on the blog come from our members. The growth in Firedoglake you’ve seen this past year is due, in large part, to our members.

The point here is that this isn’t some tote-bag membership (although you will get some excellent swag for signing up). By becoming a member you are taking part ownership of Firedoglake. You can donate $45 to public radio, but they aren’t gonna let you help decide who Terry Gross interviews. $45 will get you a New York Times subscription for 1 month – and I can promise you they won’t ask you to write a dispatch from your local occupation (I know, because I do subscribe, and they haven’t called me yet).

But as an FDL member you will be part of the core of our organization. You will help decide what kind of activism we take. You’ll help carry out that activism. You’ll make sure we report on topics that our community cares about. This is what I mean when I say FDL is unique.

Please, if you value our detailed reporting, dedicated activism and vibrant community, join the Firedoglake membership program for as low as $5/month or $45/year.

I previously described FDL as fiercely independent. This is technically untrue. We’re fiercely dependent — on you, our readers and activists. We are beholden to nobody else – no corporations, no politicians, no big donors. We want to keep it that way, and the membership program helps us do that.

Pfc Bradley Manning will likely face court martial – and if we don’t act now, he could be convicted on charges that he ‘aided the enemy.’

Last week, Lt. Col. Paul Almanza, the investigating officer in Pfc. Bradley Manning’s Article 32 hearing, recommended that Manning face a court-martial for all 23 charges of which he is accused.

The charges Almanza has recommended are absurdly disproportionate to the acts Manning is accused of committing — the most egregious being “aiding the enemy,” which rests on the government’s dubious claim that Manning knowingly provided intelligence to terrorist groups like al-Qaeda, merely because, they claim, he knew Wikileaks might publish some information on the Internet.

Following through on this accusation would set a dangerous precedent for how the government deals with whistleblowers. It would also threaten the foundation of investigative journalism by essentially criminalizing the publishing of any intelligence information.

We’re calling the Department of Defense to demand they drop the “aiding the enemy” against Manning. To make your voice heard:

1. Dial 703-571-3343
2. Press 5 to leave a comment
* If the mailbox is full, leave a written comment for the DOD here: https://kb.defense.gov/app/ask/session/

We see Lt. Col. Almanza’s recommendation as just another step in what is becoming a sham trial. Almanza himself serves as a prosecutor for the Justice Department, which is also investigating Manning, but refused to recuse himself as investigating officer despite the obvious conflict of interest. Manning’s lawyer, David Coombs, claims the DOJ wants to flip Manning and have him testify against Julian Assange and WikiLeaks.

Manning’s defense hasn’t had much of a chance to present testimony supporting the argument that the information leaked did not jeopardize US national security interest and that Manning was not properly supervised. Of the 48 witnesses requested by Manning, Almanza only allowed 12 to testify – 10 of which were also requested by the government. Coombs has been forced to request oral depositions of the denied witnesses, who he says have the potential to show (among other things) just how baseless the “aiding the enemy” charge really is.

Almanza’s recommendation will now move up the chain of command, where Maj. Gen. Michael Linnington will ultimately decide if Manning should be court-martialed, and on what charges. This is our chance to stop the ‘aiding the enemy’ charge from making it to Manning’s court martial.

We are organizing activists to stand up to the zealous overcharging of Bradley Manning, beacuse his life and the protections for other, future whistleblowers depend on it. In just a few hours we’ve already logged more than 400 calls to the Pentagon to demand they drop the “aiding the enemy” charges against Manning.

Call the Department of Defense right now, leave a message for Maj. Gen. Linnington asking him to drop the “aiding the enemy” charges against Bradley Manning.

Click here for a phone number and a sample script: http://action.firedoglake.com/page/s/manning-call

Saturday, July 16th, Civil Rights Attorney, Abby Dees will be here to discuss her new book, Queer Questions Straight Talk, Hosted by Teddy Partridge. Abby’s website and blog.

Sunday, July 17th, Editor of The Washingtonian magazine, Garrett Graff will discuss his new book, The Threat Matrix: The FBI at War in the Age of Global Terror, Hosted by Cynthia Kouril. Garrett’s website.

To contact the FDL Book Salon – FiredoglakeBookSalon@gmail.com.  Book recommendations and your comments are welcomed.  Other upcoming Book Salons are at – FDLBookSalon.com

I look forward to seeing you this weekend.

FDL Book Salon: Queer Questions Straight Talk
Author: Abby Dees
Saturday, July 16, 2011 2:00 pm Pacific time

Long overdue, Queer Questions Straight Talk finally brings up any and every question a straight person might want to ask their gay, lesbian and bi loved ones. QQST is the perfect book for everyone who is, or knows someone who is, lesbian, gay or bi.

Author Abby Dees shows it’s OK to be a little nosy – there are no bad questions or wrong answers if you bring love and a little humor to the table. QQST will help people break the ice and spark an important, sometimes difficult, often surprising conversation.

“I’ve heard so many questions over the years from nervous straight people who were never quite sure if it was OK to ask me about being a lesbian,” says Dees. “I hope that QQST just gets it all out on the table in a loving, respectful way.”

Submitted by straight, lesbian, gay and bisexual people of diverse backgrounds, the questions in QQST range from, “Do you feel there’s something special that comes with being lesbian, gay or bi?” to “What am I supposed to tell my friends at church when they ask about you?”

The book includes submissions from leading public figures such as former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, Married with Children actress Amanda Bearse, executive director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights Kate Kendall and humorist Kate Clinton.

“Finally! Some real questions and answers in our ongoing national conversation about LGBT equality. This is a public service!” says Clinton about Queer Questions Straight Talk.

Abby Dees: I have worked as a civil rights attorney on issues ranging from housing discrimination to prison health care, with people from amazing array of backgrounds. Through this work, I have seen time and again that most conflicts arise because of simple communication breakdowns. In fact, most of my clients’ problems could be addressed if we took the time together to tell their story accurately and truthfully – no lawsuit required. (St Lynn’s Press)
FDL Book Salon: The Threat Matrix: The FBI at War in the Age of Global Terror
Author: Garrett M. Graff
Sunday, July 17, 2011 2:00 pm Pacific time

The Threat Matrix is the story of a small group of FBI agents who believed that they could confront a new generation of international terrorists like al Qaeda without sacrificing America’s moral high ground. At the heart of this classic good versus evil battle are decades of tensions between the FBI and the CIA, which repeatedly fell short as America’s eyes overseas.

Given unprecedented access, thousands of pages of once secret documents, and hundreds of interviews, Garrett M. Graff takes us inside the FBI and its attempt to protect America. From the corridors of the Hoover Building to the cells of Gitmo and the mountains of Afghanistan and Pakistan, Graff tells the true story of how a generation of FBI agents taught themselves to confront threats no one had ever seen before.

Brilliantly reported and suspensefully told, The Threat Matrix peers into the darkest corners of this secret war and will change your view of the FBI forever.

Garrett Graff is the editor-in-chief of The Washingtonian. He is the author of The First Campaign: Globalization, the Web, and the Race for the White House (FSG, 2007) and the founding editor of the FishbowlDC.com, the first blog to cover the White House press briefings. (Little, Brown & Company)

Worth revisiting today, an essay on the life of MLK, Jr.: Prophet with Honor, by Marshall Frady for New York Review of Books, October 27, 1983.

Have we made any real progress toward the dream?

Sign the letter to the Commanding Officer of Bradley Manning’s brig urging for Bradley’s unnecessary POI order to be lifted

Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old Army private accused of leaking classified information to Wikileaks, has been held in the brig at Quantico Marine Corp Base for five months in inhumane conditions, with severe restrictions on his ability to exercise, communicate, or even sleep. Manning has not been convicted of any crime. Nor is there a date certain for any court hearing.

The conditions of Bradley Manning’s confinement became a top issue in the press last week as bloggers traded blows with US officials over allegations that Manning endures inhumane treatment at the Quantico, VA detainment facility. In the midst of this rush by the Defense Department to contextualize Manning’s confinement, I traveled to see the man himself at the Marine Corps detainment facility in Quantico, VA.

In my visit to see Bradley at the Quantico brig, it became clear that the Pentagon’s public spin from last week sharply contradicts the reality of Bradley Manning’s detainment. In his five months of detention, it has become obvious to me that Manning’s physical and mental well-being are deteriorating. What Manning needs, and what his attorney has already urged, is to have the unnecessary “Prevention of Injury” order lifted that severely restricts his ability to exercise, communicate, and sleep.

My Visits to Manning in Quantico

I am one of the few people allowed to visit Bradley Manning while he is detained in the Quantico brig.

Manning is held in “maximum custody,” the military’s most severe detention policy. Manning is also confined under a longstanding Prevention of Injury (POI) order which limits his social contact, news consumption, ability to exercise, and that places restrictions on his ability to sleep.

Manning has been living under the solitary restrictions of POI for five months despite being cleared by a military psychologist earlier this year, and despite repeated calls from his attorney David Coombs to lift the severely restrictive and isolating order. POI orders are short-term restrictions that are typically implemented when a detainee changes confinement facilities and these orders are lifted after the detainee passes psychological evaluation.

Our conversations, which take place in the presence of marines and electronic monitoring equipment, typically revolve around topics in physics, computer science, and philosophy; he recently mentioned that he hopes to one day make use of the GI Bill towards earning a graduate degree in Physics and a bachelors in Political Science. He rarely if ever talks about his conditions in the brig, and it is not unusual for him to shy away from questions about his well-being by changing the subject entirely.

When I arrived at the brig on December 18th I found him to be much more open to lines of inquiry regarding his circumstances, and in a two and a half hour conversation I learned new details about his life in confinement.

Manning’s Conditions Exposed, Pentagon Goes on Defense

The media skirmishes began on December 15th when Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com published an article stating that Manning’s pretrial confinement conditions are equivalent to solitary confinement. Greenwald based his assertions partially upon written and verbal statements made by Quantico brig official Brian Villiard. The Quantico information office reacted the next day by publishing a statement on Greenwald’s blog entitled “Safety and Security = Job #1 at the Brig” which defended the nature of Manning’s “maximum custody” detainment and distanced his conditions from those of solitary confinement.

The statement reads in part:

A maximum custody detainee is able to receive the same privileges that a detainee classified as general population may receive. … A maximum custody detainee also receives daily television, hygiene call, reading and outside physical activity without restraint.

The Quantico information office also posted a text transcript of Greenwald’s interview with Villiard as purported evidence that Greenwald had misrepresented the facts of Manning’s confinement; this transcript includes Villiard’s official statement regarding Manning’s confinement with particular focus paid to details surrounding Manning’s access to news, adequate exercise, and proper bedding:

Pfc. Manning, as well as every other maximum custody detainee, is allotted approximately one hour of television per day. He may view any of the available channels. …

Pfc. Manning is allotted one hour of recreation time per day, as is every other maximum custody detainee. Depending on the weather, his recreation time may be spend indoors or outdoors. Activities may include calisthenics, running, basketball, etc. …

Pfc. Manning, as well as all other detainees, is issued adequate bedding.

This transcript and the accompanying statement by the Quantico information office were quickly cited in the press as a riposte to Greenwald’s original piece on the conditions of Manning’s confinement.

The Guardian contacted me for a comment about Bradley’s conditions on December 16th. Apart from his attorney, David Coombs, I am the only person that regularly visits Brad in the brig. I gave an interview to the Guardian in which I made my concerns for Bradley’s health known, based on my observations of a decline in his mental well-being and noticeable changes in his physical health due to a complete lack of exercise (more on that later).

The Guardian article ran the following morning, and in the interim the media coverage of the issue intensified. Early Friday, in a likely reaction to mounting press attention, Pentagon spokesperson Col. David Lapan issued a statement that downplayed the isolation aspect of Manning’s confinement while harping on four circumstances that allegedly separate Manning’s detainment from a situation consistent with solitary confinement.

From the Washington Post:

Defense Department spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said Friday that Manning has the same privileges as all other prisoners held in what the military calls “maximum custody.” He said Manning is in a standard single-person cell and gets exercise, recreation, access to newspapers and visitors.

Manning Detained Beyond “Maximum Custody”

The unusual nature of a longstanding POI order and the consequences it carries (such as 23-hour per day cell confinement with no substantive exercise) has led Manning’s lawyer David Coombs to make an uncharacteristic appeal in the press, to halt what he says is punitive pretrial treatment of his client. Coombs appears in an interview with the Daily Beast, released shortly after (and possibly in response to) Lapan’s statement on Friday:

When he was first arrested, Manning was put on suicide watch, but his status was quickly changed to “Prevention of Injury” watch (POI), and under this lesser pretense he has been forced into his life of mind-numbing tedium. His treatment is harsh, punitive and taking its toll, says Coombs.

Both Coombs and Manning’s psychologist, Coombs says, are sure Manning is mentally healthy, that there is no evidence he’s a threat to himself, and shouldn’t be held in such severe conditions under the artifice of his own protection.”

Yes, that was Bradley Manning’s lawyer echoing the concerns of Glenn Greenwald: severe, punitive, solitary treatment under the auspices of protecting Bradley.

Villiard still had one final point to make late last Friday: appearing in the same article as Coombs, Villiard defends Manning’s compulsory alternative bedding, brought about as a condition of the POI, in a statement to the Daily Beast:

First Lieutenant Brian Villiard, an officer at Quantico, said [Manning] is allowed bedding of “non-shreddable” material. “I’ve held it, I’ve felt it, it’s soft, I’d sleep under it,” he told The Daily Beast.

As a final act of public education, attorney David Coombs published a facts-only account of Manning’s detention on his blog last Saturday. The article details a typical day for the Private, and lists the specific conditions that Manning must live under as part of the punitive POI order:

PFC Manning is held in his cell for approximately 23 hours a day.

[]

He is not allowed to have a pillow or sheets. However, he is given access to two blankets and has recently been given a new mattress that has a built-in pillow.

He is not allowed to have any personal items in his cell.

[]

He is prevented from exercising in his cell. If he attempts to do push-ups, sit-ups, or any other form of exercise he will be forced to stop.

He does receive one hour of “exercise” outside of his cell daily. He is taken to an empty room and only allowed to walk. PFC Manning normally just walks figure eights in the room for the entire hour. If he indicates that he no long feels like walking, he is immediately returned to his cell.

When PFC Manning goes to sleep, he is required to strip down to his boxer shorts and surrender his clothing to the guards. His clothing is returned to him the next morning.

This report from Coombs is consistent on each count with the investigative findings of Glenn Greenwald in the December 15 Salon article that broke this story. But there is one potential error: attorney David Coombs’ claim that Manning’s exercise regimen consists of walking circles in an empty room seems to be inconsistent with the Quantico information office’s December 16 statement cited above, which claims that Manning is allowed “outside physical activity without restraint”, and also appears to be inconsistent with Villiard’s December 14 statement that calisthenics, basketball, and running may constitute part of Manning’s exercise. This is likely just some mistake on the part of the brig and Villiard, right?

The only statements I can find from the Department of Defense about this whole issue reinforce the “maximum custody” trope without addressing the administrative solitary confinement that results from the longstanding POI order. Either Brian Villiard, Col. David Lapan, and the Quantico Information Office have somehow never heard of Manning’s POI order, which implies incompetence, or they are skirting around it in the media in order to avoid admitting Manning’s true conditions of confinement, which implies deception. Let’s find out which it is.

Manning’s Reality vs. Pentagon’s Spin

My meeting with Bradley this weekend provided new information to refute the Pentagon’s assertions this week about Bradley’s detention, and that show the Prevention of Injury (POI) order under which Bradley is held and restricted is unnecessary and should be removed.

1 – Ability to View Current Events & Access to Newspapers

“Pfc. Manning, as well as every other maximum custody detainee, is allotted approximately one hour of television per day. He may view any of the available channels.” — Quantico brig official Brian Villiard, Interview with Glenn Greenwald, posted online December 14 2010

“Defense Department spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said Friday that Manning has the same privileges as all other prisoners held in what the military calls “maximum custody.” He said Manning is in a standard single-person cell and gets exercise, recreation, access to newspapers and visitors.” — Col. Dave Lapan, Pentagon Statement released to AP December 17 2010

Manning’s Response

Manning related to me on December 18 2010 that he is not allowed to view international news during his television period. He mentioned that he might theoretically be able to view local news, but his television period is typically from 7pm – 8pm such that no local news is playing in the Quantico, VA area.

Manning told me explicitly on December 18 2010 that he is not, nor has he ever been, allowed newspapers while in confinement. When I said “The Pentagon has stated that you are allowed newspapers”, his immediate reaction was surprised laughter.

Analysis

Villiard skirts the issue of news censorship by playing word games with “available” channels. Two days later Greenwald posts this update to his December 15 2010 Salon article: “I was contacted by Lt. Villiard … he claims that Manning is not restricted from accessing news or current events during the prescribed time he is permitted to watch television.” Although his word games are little more than evasive sophistry, the claim from Villiard to Greenwald that Manning is not denied access to news or current events directly contradicts what Manning clearly related during our December 18 2010 meeting.

Lapan’s December 17 2010 statement encourages the reader that Manning’s conditions are no different than those of anyone else held in maximum custody. In reality, Manning has an extra set of restrictions imposed upon his confinement — the longstanding POI order — that by definition requires Manning to be denied basic exercise and isolated for 23 hours per day. Either Lapan is unaware of the harsh conditions imposed on Manning by a POI, or he is (mistakenly or not) conflating “maximum custody restrictions” with “POI restrictions”, or he is being deceptive to the media and the public about the conditions of Manning’s confinement. Not a lot of good options here.

Lapan’s December 17 2010 statement concludes by claiming outright that Manning has access to newspapers. This contradicts Manning’s explicit statement during our December 18 2010 meeting that he has not, nor has he ever been, allowed newspapers during his time in confinement.

2 – Ability to Engage in Outdoor Recreation

“Depending on the weather, his recreation time may be spend [sic] indoors or outdoors. Activities may include calisthenics, running, basketball, etc.” — Quantico brig official Brian Villiard Interview with Glenn Greenwald, posted online December 14 2010

“A maximum custody detainee is able to receive the same privileges that a detainee classified as general population may receive. … A maximum custody detainee also receives daily television, hygiene call, reading and outside physical activity without restraint.” — Quantico information office Statement posted to Salon.com December 16 2010

Manning’s Response

Manning stated to me on December 18 2010 that he has not been outside or into the brig yard for either recreation nor exercise in four full weeks. He related that visits to the outdoors have been infrequent and sporadic for the past several months.

Analysis

The statement sent by Villiard to Glenn Greenwald on December 14 2010 and later posted to Salon by the Quantico information office implies that Manning has the option to spend time outdoors on days with fair weather. Manning’s assertion in our December 18 2010 meeting that outdoor trips over the last several months have been rare leads me to believe that the claim “Depending on the weather, his recreation time may be spent indoors or outdoors” directly contradicts the reality of Manning’s situation as expressed in his own words.

The statement released by the Quantico information office stating that detainees receive “outside physical activity without restraint” is inconsistent with reports from Manning that outside recreation is sporadic and rare.

3 – Ability to Exercise

“Depending on the weather, his recreation time may be spend [sic] indoors or outdoors. Activities may include calisthenics, running, basketball, etc.” — Quantico brig official Brian Villiard Interview with Glenn Greenwald, posted online December 14 2010

“Defense Department spokesman Col. Dave Lapan said Friday that Manning has the same privileges as all other prisoners held in what the military calls “maximum custody.” He said Manning is in a standard single-person cell and gets exercise, recreation, access to newspapers and visitors.” — Col. Dave Lapan, Pentagon Statement released to AP December 17 2010

Manning’s Response

Manning related to me on December 18 2010 that he does not receive any substantive exercise and cannot perform even basic exercises in his cell. When told of the Pentagon’s statement that he did indeed receive exercise, Manning’s reply was that he is able to exercise insofar as walking in chains is a form of exercise.

Analysis

As Manning stated during our December 18 2010 meeting and as David Coombs confirms in notes on his blog, Manning’s only exercise is walking in an empty room for an hour each day. It is unknown whether Manning’s reference to chains during my meeting with him was meant to imply that he is in chains during his period of circle-walking exercise, or if he was instead referring to the action of wearing chains while being escorted through the halls of the brig. Regardless, it is safe to say that Villiard’s claim of “calisthenics, running, basketball” is every bit as untrue as Lapan’s claim that Manning gets exercise at all — insofar as walking in circles, potentially chained, is exercise.

4 – Conditions of Bedding

Pfc. Manning, as well as all other detainees, is issued adequate bedding.” — Quantico brig official Brian Villiard Interview with Glenn Greenwald, posted online December 14 2010

“…First Lieutenant Brian Villiard, an officer at Quantico, said [Manning] is allowed bedding of “non-shreddable” material. “I’ve held it, I’ve felt it, it’s soft, I’d sleep under it,” he told The Daily Beast.” — Quantico brig official Brian Villard, Interview with Daily Beast, December 17 2010

Manning’s Response

Manning related to me on December 19 2010 that his blankets are similar in weight and heft to lead aprons used in X-ray laboratories, and similar in texture to coarse and stiff carpet. He stated explicitly that the blankets are not soft in the least and expressed concern that he had to lie very still at night to avoid receiving carpet burns. The problem of carpet burns was exacerbated, he related, by the stipulation that he must sleep only in his boxer shorts as part of the longstanding POI order. Manning also stated on December 19 2010 that hallway-mounted lights shine through his window at night. This constant illumination is consistent with reports from attorney David Coombs’ blog that marines must visually inspect Manning as he sleeps.

Analysis

It is apparent from Manning’s description of his bedding and his explicit concern about their propensity to cause carpet burn that Brian Villiard’s statement attesting to the comfort of the bedding is without basis.

It would be useful to determine how many times per night Manning is rousted from sleep as a result of either the blankets, the lights, or the guards. Such an analysis of his sleeping conditions might give insight into his mental state determined by his overall ability to maintain rest in conditions of isolation.

Manning’s POI Order Should Be Lifted Immediately

Based on Bradley Manning’s description of his detention to myself and to his attorney, there are clear, unavoidable contradictions with the Pentagon’s public statements about Manning. Because of the longstanding POI order, Manning is subjected to restrictions far beyond the minimum right of other “maximum custody” prisoners held in the same brig.

Since his arrest Bradley Manning has been neither a threat to himself nor others. Over the course of my visits to see Bradley in Quantico, it’s become increasingly clear that the severe, inhumane conditions of his detention are wearing on Manning. The extraordinary restrictions of Manning’s basic rights to sleep, exercise, and communicate under the Prevention of Injury order are unnecessary and should be lifted immediately.

Please add your name to my letter urging the Quantico Brig Commanding Officer to lift Bradley Manning’s unnecessary POI order. I’ll deliver your signature to the Quantico Brig when I visit Bradley next month.

* Special note: No notepads, pens, phones, tape recorders, or other useful documentation devices are allowed into the brig’s visitation rooms. For this reason the key points of my conversations with Manning, his explicit replies to questions regarding confinement, were temporarily stored mentally through repetition. I am fortunate that many of his replies could be summed up in very few words. When visiting hours conclude I create a voice memo with a brain-dump of the meeting that just took place. I’ll try to get the relevant recordings online in the next few days. Aside from that, I encourage any curious parties to file an FOIA request for the government-curated audio tapes created in brig visitation room #2 on December 18 and December 19 2010 from 1:00pm – 3:00pm.

David House is a researcher at MIT who helped set up the Bradley Manning Support Network, a group raising funds for Manning’s legal defense. Glenn Greenwald has an account here of House being harassed at the border, like others associated in one way or another with Wikileaks.

See also:
. Dr. Jeff Kaye, Bradley Manning & the Torture That Is Solitary Confinement
. Bradley Manning/Wikileaks Timeline
. Michael Whitney on GritTV with Laura Flanders on Bradley Manning’s detention

For the love of the sweet baby Jesus, I beg you all to not get embroiled in the bankrupt pastime of figuring out how to balance the budget. That is what all the very serious people, the economic royalists of The Washington Post (“If you don’t get it, you’ve got a quarter!”), the ignorant television talking heads, and now a parade of bankrupt commentators and commissions would have us do. This is the ultimate sucker’s game.

There should be no doubt that austerity — tax increases and spending cuts — would make the current awful employment situation appreciably worse. This is frankly acknowledged by deficit hawks, who are nothing if not cagey. Nevertheless, they would immerse us in discussions of austerity, in the middle of the worst employment crisis of the past thirty years.   . . .

In the face of this perverse distraction, what is called for is a doctrine of implacable massive resistance: no discussions of austerity until the current employment situation is adequately addressed. What is called for is a trillion of new spending. It’s time for the WPA and the CCC. High-speed rail. Rebuild the Gulf Coast wetlands. Weatherize tens of millions of houses. Wire the schools. Free municipal wireless broadband. Reverse all state and local government budget cuts.

Maybe in five years we will have some leeway to start looking at reducing the rate of growth of Federal spending. Any talk before that point is a vicious affront to the current plight of tens of millions of Americans.

The deficit commission(s) would presume to not merely reduce the deficit, but to remake social policy (by eliminating the most defensible piece of welfare reform — the Earned Income Tax Credit), tax policy (by using revenue increases to cut taxes in other ways), and health care policy (by proposing effective monkey-wrenches for the new health care reform act), among other adventures in hubris. They are way out of their league. Of course, they are undaunted by a history of incompetence and failure. As Noel Coward said of another, “[They] are completely unspoiled by failure.”

By failure we of course refer to the mismanagement of financial markets leading to this horrible recession, topped by a massive reward to the miscreants at the bottom of it all: bonuses and elimination of competition, in the form of now-immortal “too big to fail” financial institutions whose fangs are granted official license to our financial necks indefinitely.

Show me an enacted program to raise employment massively, and I’d be willing to talk about ways to fix the budget in a humane way, closing military bases, withdrawing from Afghanistan and Iraq, raising taxes, and plenty of other wholesome devices. Until then, forget it. The notion that we have to do something “now” or else is just a flaming lie. We’ve been told this for twenty years. Who can still believe it?

You would think twice if you lived under a totalitarian regime and some mundane topic like civil service pay, legitimate in and of itself, was raised. No, there are some issues that automatically justify postponement of other discussions. 9.5% unemployment is one of them.

The flagship proposal of the commission’s chairmen is to slash Social Security benefits and 401(k) tax advantages simultaneously. So our children will enjoy less debt and more indigent parents and grandparents. The effective political response is obvious: “WHERE ARE THE JOBS?” You fucks.

The legendary Henry Aaron demolishes the Bowles-Simpson excuse-for-a-plan. Future legend Dean Baker motivates “the urgent case for delay.”