The war of mass deception continued, and while the AAA estimated that 38 million Americans traveled 50 miles or more to celebrate Thanksgiving Day, they hadn’t counted the mileage from Washington, DC to Baghdad where the Big Turkey flew for another photo op.

Despite the holiday, the news remained grim as some 30 wars continue around the world. At least one cease fire came into existence. India and Pakistan have halted military actions in the Kashmir region, although their territorial dispute is far from being settled.

Locally, the Stadium Authority has proposed a downtown location for a new venture—a major new race track which will also house gambling and entertainment. While the local elites are studying the project, the Baltimore City school system laid off over 700 teachers and staff. More layoffs are expected in order for the school system to avoid bankruptcy. (Baltimore Sun)

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization released a report this week indicating that 842 million people endure chronic hunger including having no access to nutritious food. (Washington Post)

Another somber report from the UN, the World Health Organization, and other international agencies indicated that between 4 million and 6 million people were infected this year with HIV. The world wide total is estimated as high as 46 million (www.who.int/en/)

An extraordinarily complex set of changes to Medicare passed the Senate in a highly contentious session and was sent to Shrub. The full significance won’t be known until 2006 when its major provisions kick in. There is no question but that it will increase the medical bureaucracy and protect if not enhance the profits of employers, insurance companies, and the pharmaceutical houses. The bill will cost at least $400 billion over the next 10 years. (Washington Post)

Homeland Represion.....Stories of police abuse in Miami November 20 at the FTAA demonstrations are being assembled. A spokesperson for the National Lawyers Guild said the day was punctuated by "indiscriminate, excessive force against hundreds of nonviolent protesters with weapons including pepper spray, tear gas, and concussion grenades and rubber bullets." The police action was financed by a Congressional appropriation. (Associated Press)

This week in history....Mary Harris 'Mother' Jones, organizer for Industrial Workers of the World and United Mine Workers, dies (1930); Rosa Parks took a bus ride (1956); 34 black unions united to form the Congress of South African Trade Unions--COSATU (1985); the Iran-Contra event was exposed revealing that profits from secret and illegal arms sales to Iran had been channeled to right wing forces in Nicaragua (1986); anarchists, environmentalists, unionists, and others shut down meetings of the World Trade Organization in Seattle (1999)