Taking action for a better world

Swiss voters have supported a referendum proposal to ban the building of minarets, official results show…. more

One third of all recorded cluster bomb casualties are children. Yet despite efforts to ban these indiscriminate weapons, 138 banks and other financial institutions continue to invest over US$20 billion in companies that produce them. Email your bank now

Cluster bombs are large explosive weapons that scatter dozens or hundreds of smaller submunitions over a wide area. They cannot distinguish between military targets and civilians. Many submunitions fail to detonate on impact and, like landmines, continue to kill and maim people long after the conflict has ended. Find out more about Dtar’s story by watching this short film.

The good

The global campaign to eradicate cluster bombs, spearheaded by the Cluster Munitions Coalition, reached a major breakthrough in 2008 when governments negotiated an international treaty to ban them. So far, 103 countries have joined the Convention on Cluster Munitions, including the UK.

The bad

Although the UK government has signed the ban and stopped production of cluster bombs, UK banks still invest in cluster bomb producers in countries that have not yet outlawed them. A ban simply can’t be effective if there is still funding for the production of these weapons.

The downright ugly

A recent report* finds that UK high street banks are lending or providing investment banking services to cluster bomb producers to the tune of:

– Barclays: US$274 million
– HSBC: US$657 million
– Royal Bank of Scotland (includes NatWest): US$64 million

That could be YOUR cash. And if there’s one thing banks can’t do without, it’s customers: tell your bank to stop this shameful practice once and for all. If you’re not a customer of these banks you can still contact them to let them know that you find their investment in producers of cluster bombs totally unacceptable.

A stunning 87 countries around the world are still littered with undetonated landmines, and their impact is devastating. Tens of thousands of people are killed or injured by mines every year, and they pose a grave threat to ecosystems and wildlife. But an unexpected solution may be on the way–scientists have developed a special kind of bacteria that actually begins to glow in the presence of landmines.

….. More

End World Hunger

Next week’s World Food Summit in Rome is our best chance to hold world leaders to their minimum commitments and push them to take significant action to tackle global hunger.   Let them know we are watching them by signing the petition.

Thanks!

The following Charter for Compassion was launched on the 12th November 2009.
Please consider affirming the Charter by adding your signature

The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves. Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.

It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others—even our enemies—is a denial of our common humanity. We acknowledge that we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased the sum of human misery in the name of religion.

We therefore call upon all men and women ~ to restore compassion to the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures ~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity ~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings—even those regarded as enemies.

We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensible to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.

If you’d like to help make this a reality then please add your voice by signing the Charter

If you are as fed up as me with having to pay extra to call your hospital or GP then please sign this petition.

Although BT and a few other providers have started to include 0845 and 0870 numbers in their “all calls free” packages they don’t include all the other numbers starting with 08 and and they don’t include even the 0845 and 0870 in all their packages.

What’s even worse is when you need to phone from your mobile.  I have 1200 minutes free a month but still get big bills when i need to phone the hospital to book an appointment.  The hospital switchboard picks up and transfers me to the extension which rings and rings and rings.  No answer, no voice mail.  A call on my 02 monthly plan to an 0845 number is 25p per minute!

Sign that petition!

There is help at hand – some dedicated folk have put together a list of alternative numbers.  The site is www.saynoto0870.com type in the 08 number and there’s a very good chance they’ll come up with a cheaper alternative for you.

Yup, believe it or not the Duke of Edinburgh is hosting a vegan banquet for 200 guests. Hope he invites me next time.

Yes, A Just Life has now opened a food and drink section. The blog, which is in its infancy, is set up to provide a fabulous selection of yummy recipes, together with information on healthy eating and the politics of food.

If you want to understand why so many people are deprived of food and clean water, why the rain forests are being decimated and how what you eat and how you shop can influence this then bookmark Just Food.

Yesterday my sister and I were shopping in Tesco.  I couldn’t see any Fair Trade bananas and asked one of the staff where they were.  She pointed to one empty box and said “that’s all we’ve got”.  There was shelf upon shelf upon shelf of non-fair trade ones though.

I asked to see the Manager and we spent 5 minutes discussing supermarket price wars and how slashing prices of non-fair trade products is making it harder for people to opt for fair trade. I pointed out that a significant number of people wanted to trade fairly and that Tesco had a responsibility to help them.  He said the way to make that happen is for people to ask.  He gave an example.  A few weeks ago the store had withdrawn a particular brand of bread and 20 people had complained.  As a result the store was now reviewing its decision and they are probably going to restock it.  20 people!  Just 20 people is all it took.

So if you see something wrong, or something missing from the aisles, or something that really shouldn’t be there then take a few minutes to let the store know.  It does make a difference.

A third of the world’s oceans must be closed to fishing if depleted stocks are to recover, scientists and conservation groups have warned. Such a measure could “set the clock back 200 years” and reverse the decline in fish populations, after which responsible fisheries management could regenerate the industry.

read more | digg story

An “independent” Justice Department means that decisions about whether to indict are shielded from political considerations of the White House.

read more | digg story