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This week on Uprising —

• Is the Internet as we know it coming to an end? Jeff Chester explains how big telephone and cable companies are lobbying Congress against the democratic nature of today’s internet.
• In the wake of the controversy over government spying on Americans, constitutional lawyer Ann Fagan Ginger discusses how ordinary people can fight Bush.
• 30 years after the incarceration of AIM activist Leonard Peltier, we’ll speak with his lawyer on new documents that may uncover Peltier’s innocence.
• Plus Empire Notes on anti-Muslim cartoons in the media, and the Black Commentator on Bush’s proposed budget for 2007.

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GUEST: Jeff Chester, Executive Director of the Center for Digital Democracy

Companies such as AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast have accused internet services such as Yahoo and Google of having a “free lunch” at their expense. They claim that billions of dollars invested in upgrading broadband networks will yield no return unless such services are charged. Also, major telephone and cable companies are considering using various strategies including data mining for heavy marketing purposes and subscription plan schemes. Meanwhile, lawmakers in Washington, D.C. have been holding hearings on internet issues such as “net neutrality.” Net neutrality would guarantee that broadband carriers allow consumers unrestricted access to the Web. Our guest is Jeff Chester, Executive Director of the Center for Digital Democracy. He has just written an article called “The End of the Internet.”

For more information, visit www.democraticmedia.org.

Empire Notes
GUEST: Rahul Mahajan, author of Full Spectrum Dominance and The New Crusade

Empire Notes are weekly commentaries filed by Rahul Mahajan, author of Full Spectrum Dominance and The New Crusade. Today’s commentary is about the widespread outrage over recent anti-Muslim cartoons in the European media.

Empire Notes is online at www.empirenotes.org.

GUEST: Ann Fagan Ginger, Constitutional Lawyer and author, Executive Director of the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute, editor of “Challenging US Human Rights Violations since 9/11”

Last Monday, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was questioned by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the National Security Agency’s warantless wiretaps of international phone calls made by American residents. Some senators wondered out loud why the NSA stopped short of monitoring domestic-to-domestic calls. We live in a historic time, when many freedoms we took for granted, and many assumptions we had about the role of the government are being violated. Most of these violations stem from the exploitation of post-9/11 fears. My next guest, Ann Fagan Ginger, is an acclaimed constitutional lawyer and author. She has just edited a detailed volume of reports on various human rights violations since 9/11. Ann Fagan Ginger is in Los Angeles for a series of speaking events.

For more information, visit www.mcli.org.

Glen Ford, co-publisher of The Black Commentator

The Black Commentator is an online political magazine bringing you commentary, analysis and investigation from a black perspective. Today’s commentary is about Bush’s proposed budget for 2007.

The Black Commentator is online at www.blackcommentator.com.

GUESTS: Mike Kuzma, attorney involved in obtaining documents regarding Peltier’s case

On February 6th, 1976, American Indian Movement activist Leonard Peltier was arrested in Canada and extradited to the United States. He was tried and convicted for the deaths of two FBI agents, Jack Coler and Ron Williams, during what has become known as the “Incident at Oglala”. On June 26th the previous year, Coler and Williams entered Jumping Bull Ranch, allegedly seeking the arrest of Jimmy Eagle, a young Native American man. Peltier and others had gathered at Jumping Bull Ranch for self-defense against increasing police violence. A shootout ensued, resulting in the deaths of Coler and Williams and a Native American man named Joe Stuntz. A FBI-led manhunt lead to the arrest of three AIM members, including Leonard Peltier. In a separate trial, the other two AIM members Dino Butler and Robert Robideau were found not guilty of the crimes. Peltier, on the other hand, was found guilty by an all-white jury. Many believe that Peltier did not receive a fair trail. Peltier was apparently extradited on the basis of testimony coerced by the FBI. Peltier, who has been repeatedly denied parole, has garnered international support as a political prisoner. This February 13th, there is a hearing scheduled to address Peltier’s sentence. We just passed the 30th anniversary of Peltier’s original arrest and today we examine the latest legal efforts to release him.

For more information, visit www.leonardpeltier.org.