Archive - Jan 25, 2010

• Haitians turn to local radio to connect with loved ones
• Afghans demand a strategy to reduce civilian deaths, days ahead of international meeting
• Obama Administration announces initiatives to help nation’s middle class
• Responding to new political climate, Democrats weigh options on health care reform
• Air America goes silent after six years of progressive programming

• Blasts kill dozens in Baghdad, Chemical Ali hanged
• Activists protest NJ Congress member over healthcare for 9/11 responders
• Plaintiffs in Prop 8 trial rest case
• Bernanke job prospects look a bit brighter after two key Senators pledge support
• Bolivia inaugurates Evo to second term
• Venezuelan forces use rubber bullets on protesters after RCTV silenced

In Haiti, concern is growing over where to house survivors of the June 12th earthquake. According to the UN as many as 1 million people, or one out of every 9 residents of Haiti, is in need of shelter. As temporary shelters are being set up for the homeless, aid organizations are pushing for long term recovery. Oxfam International said in a statement that moving to the temporary camps being set up for the homeless should be voluntary. The aid group also urged officials to create a clear exit strategy for the camps, so people can return to their homes.

One of those made homeless is radio DJ Carel Pedre. After the quake hit, Pedre was one of the first to send out updates and photos on the social networking sites Twitter and Facebook. Pedre – who is a DJ at the station Radio One in Peton-ville -- spent the next week living in his car and updating listeners through radio broadcasts. Pedre said the station has become a refuge for residents, charging cell phones and reconnecting with loved ones. He spoke to FSRN via Skype.

In Afghanistan, the Independent Election Commission has postponed parliamentary elections scheduled until September, a move that violates the country's constitution. Officials said a lack of funds, ongoing violence and concerns about election fraud makes it impossible to meet the original date in May. Afghanistan funds it elections through the United Nations and Western countries, but the UN and US have demanded changes to the system - including safeguards against fraud and corruption - before they sends more money. The UN, US government, and other countries expressed support for the delay.

The news comes just days before this Friday's London Conference, a high-level meeting of military officials and diplomats from countries that have troops in Afghanistan. One of the main topics will be military strategy in the country, including the troop surge and training Afghan forces. But many Afghans also want leaders to prioritize the issue of civilian deaths - including who's responsible and how it can be prevented. FSRN's Mujahid Jawad reports from Kabul.

Today, the Obama administration announced new initiatives to help the nation's middle class. The proposals would cover education, child and eldercare, retirement and long-term savings.

"They're very simple ideas, but they are the ideas that are at the heart of our middle class, the middle class that made the twentieth century the American century.”

The plan would nearly double a child tax credit to be claimed by families making under $85,000.

It would also limit student loan payments to 10 percent of income above basic living allowance. And, a proposal that Vice President Joe Biden highlighted in remarks today, would create a new system of automatic workplace savings accounts for retirement.

"It's an incentive but in the long term saves the government a lot more money that the five hundred bucks put in if we find that, in fact, we have a generation that’s ready to care for themselves and not have to look to the government for some basic needs. This will not only build up a nest egg for existing savers but it could encourage workers who currently have no retirement accounts, to start to save."

Biden is chair of the president’s Middle Class Task Force, created just days after he took office. The proposals put forth today will be included in a report from the task force which Biden said will be released next month.

Nearly one week after the Democrats lost the Massachusetts Senate seat, health care reform is stalled. Democrats are unclear how to move forward in the wake of the devastating loss that highlights the political reality for the party in power. But as FSRN’s Leigh Ann Caldwell reports, a coalition of progressive groups has decided that some reform is better than no reform at all.

Today, after nearly six years, Air America is broadcasting for its final day. On a posting to its website, the company said it would soon file Chapter 7 bankruptcy and called economic conditions in the past year a "perfect storm" in the media industry which led to the company folding. The network launched in the heat of an election year in 2004 and featured progressive hosts such as Rachel Maddow and Al Franken. Now, local stations are trying to figure out how to fill that hole.

We're joined by Christy Dixon, station manager at WCHL in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.