Headlines for Friday, February 27, 2009

• Obama Will Overturn Bush’s Healthcare ‘Conscience’ Rules
• Enemy Combatant Will Be Tried as Civilian
• UK Govt Wants to Reduce Huge CEO Payout in Largest UK Bank Bailout
• Rocky Mountain News Shutting Down
• Bangladesh Mass Graves Uncovered
• Big Weekend of Environmental Activism in DC
• Pay Raise Given to Workers in Guadeloupe

Obama Will Overturn Bush’s Healthcare ‘Conscience’ Rules
The Obama administration has begun the process of rescinding regulations which allow healthcare workers to refuse to provide services that violate their personal, moral, or religious beliefs.  A Health and Human Services spokesman said the so-called “conscience” rules written in the last months of the Bush administration were too broad; they could potentially allow healthcare providers to not only opt out of performing abortions, but other procedures like blood transfusions and end-of-life care, or allow pharmacists to refuse to sell birth control pills.

Enemy Combatant Will Be Tried as Civilian
The case of the last remaining enemy combatant held in the United States has been transferred to a federal criminal court.   Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri has been held in a military brig in South Carolina for more than 5 years, accused of supporting Al-Qaeda. Now a grand jury in Illinois has charged him with material support for terrorism. President Bush had maintained that the government could indefinitely detain So-called ‘enemy combatants’ without trial; a challenge to that policy on behalf of al-Marri is scheduled for a US Supreme court hearing in April.

UK Govt Wants to Reduce Huge CEO Payout in Largest UK Bank Bailout
The CEO of the biggest banking failure in UK corporate history has walked away with a golden handshake from the British government.  But angry taxpayers want their money back. From London, Naomi Fowler reports on the scandal:
‘Around $1 million in annual income and a pension payoff that was doubled to $23 million at the height of the bank collapse over which he presided; the 50 year old ex-CEO of the now state-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland Sir Fred Goodwin believes it’s fair, and he’s refusing the government’s request to volunteer a reduction. The government claims it was unaware the pension deal was discretionary and that it could have insisted on a much lower amount that reflected the failings of the bank. The bank was rescued with 28 billion dollars of public money in October, with another 35 billion likely to be pumped in; the taxpayer is also about to guarantee $460 billion dollars-worth of toxic loans.  18,000 jobs were cut during Sir Fred’s tenure and 20,000 more are now under threat. The government now says it is seeking legal advice while opposition parties are expressing concerns about the government’s ability to negotiate with and jointly operate banks.  This is Naomi Fowler in London for Free Speech Radio News.’

Rocky Mountain News Shutting Down
For the first time since 1945, the American Society of Newspaper Editors has cancelled their annual convention, in order to let struggling newspapers save money.  This comes on the same day that after nearly 150 years, The Rocky Mountain News published its final paper.  Blake Wesley has more.
Publishers for The Rocky Mountain News put the paper up for sale two months ago after a year of struggling sales and declining advertising.   But with no buyers, the papers owners, E.W. Scripps, told about 250 staff member, on Thursday, they would be shutting the paper down.   President and CEO of E.W. Scripps, Rich Boehne, says with the economic decline, and more people going to the web for news, they could no longer continue. “Denver can’t support two news papers any longer, especially two morning full distribution, general interest news papers. It just can’t happen.”  The Denver Post, the other local newspaper, recently reached an agreement with unions to cut costs by almost 12 percent.  The Rocky was Denver’s oldest paper and staff members say it was a leader in investigative journalism, winning four Pulitzer Prizes since 2000.   Across the country, many other papers are facing closure; after declining advertising sales publishers for the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News declared bankruptcy earlier this month.  And the San Francisco Chronicle says they maybe shutting their doors in the next few weeks if they are unable to find the money to keep the paper going.   For FSRN, I’m Blake Wesley.

Bangladesh Mass Graves Uncovered
Dozens of bodies have been found in hastily dug mass graves in Dhaka, Bangladesh, one day after revolting border guards laid down their arms. The mass graves contain the bodies of at least 66 commanding officers; many other officers are still missing.  The guards had occupied their border station in the capital for 2 days, demanding higher salaries.  300 guards have been arrested, and Prime minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed, says there will be no amnesty for anyone involved in the killings.

Big Weekend of Environmental Activism in DC
Hoping to turn the tide of global warming, thousands of youth organizers will be in Washington DC this weekend, in an effort to convince lawmakers to change US energy policy.  FSRN’s Sam Greenspan reports.
12.000 young people are arriving in Washington for a series of events ranging from a major conference to civil disobedience.  Brianna Cayo Conner is communications director for the energy action coalition, which is hosting the Powershift 09 conference, one of the energy-related events unfolding this weekend in the capital.  She says the government needs to stand up to energy lobbyists, prioritize green jobs, and to base policy decisions on science.  “And then on Monday we’ll take the action to Capitol Hill, where we’ll have the largest lobby day in US history.  We have meetings scheduled with over 360 congressional offices, some of those meetings will be attended by 100s of students.”  Organizers hope that Congress can make substantial changes in time for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, taking place in Copenhagen this December.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate majority leader Harry Reid have already announced they want the coal-burning Capitol Power Plant retrofitted to a 100% natural gas facility by the end of the year.  Capitol Power Plant is the largest source of pollution in Washington DC, and the planned site of an unaffiliated demonstration on Monday.  For FSRN in Washington, I’m Sam Greenspan.

Pay Raise Given to Workers in Guadeloupe
And a pay raise has been granted to striking workers in the French island of Guadeloupe, but the 5 week long work stoppage continues.  The lowest paid workers have been granted a pay raise of about 250 dollars a month, other workers will receive raises of around 6 percent.  But the unions are demanding that the French government still must address rising prices for goods, which are already much higher than on the French mainland. The French Caribbean Island has 20 percent unemployment, the highest in France, but the lowest salaries in the country.