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JINN MAGAZINE

PACIFIC NEWS SERVICE

Issue No. 6.03

02/07/00 - 02/18/00

CONTENTS


* VOICES: First-Person Essays Linking the Private to the Public

    Public Support Weakening -- But The Death Penalty Will Be Slow To Die
    By Michael Kroll
    Date: 02-07-00
    In a time when polls are said to drive all political action, a governor who suspends the death penalty is significant news. But just such a move by Illinois' governor Ryan may reflect a deep, if slow, change in public attitude. PNS associate editor Michael Kroll is a veteran death penalty abolitionist and founder of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, D.C.

    Paying The Price Of Privatization -- A Bolivian Town Goes To War Over Water
    By Jim Shultz
    Date: 02-08-00
    The doctrine of privatization moves so swiftly across the underdeveloped world that there is rarely a chance to see what is actually going on. But when the government of Bolivia sold off the public water system of Cochabamba to foreign investors who then spiked the cost of water by $30 a month, town residents went into open revolt. PNS correspondent Jim Shultz, a resident of the town, reports from the eye of the hurricane on the water wars of Cochabamba. Shultz writes for The Democracy Center. His e-mail address is info@democractctr.org".

    Remembering Estevanico, America's First African ExplorerR
    By Jeff Biggers
    Date: 02-11-00
    Most histories of African-Americans begin not long before the Mayflower, but one amazing story, buried like so many others, begins in 1527 and involves the first non-indigenous person of any color to enter what is now the southwestern United States. PNS correspondent Jeff Biggers is a writer based in Tucson whose work has appeared in The Atlantic Monthly, USA TODAY, Bloomsbury Review and Utne Reader/Web Watch Daily.

    A Vote For Prop. 21 Is A Vote Against The Future
    By Joe Loya
    Date: 02-16-00
    Backers and opponents of California's Proposition 21, which proposes harsher treatment of young offenders, throw statistics at each other with abandon. But the real argument, writes PNS associate editor Joe Loya, has much less to do with the number of teen-age felons than it does with the hearts of voting-age civilians. Loya is working on a memoir about his years in federal prison. His e-mail address is buddhalobo@aol.com.


* VECTORS: A Regular Column on the Ideas and Directions Behind Today's News

    Cybernerds Hunger For The Human Touch
    By Koren L. Capozza
    Date: 02-09-00
    More and more, the new office is just not there, not any one particular where, and work involves people alone in a room with a computer. Everyone marvels at what they can do, but their answer to the old problem of how to meet people may surprise you. PNS associate editor Koren Capozza writes for New California Media, PNS' ethnic news media collaborative and web site (NCMonline.com).

    Independent Voters Threaten California's Two-Party System
    By Rene P. Ciria-Cruz
    Date: 02-10-00
    The number of voters in California who decline to state party affiliation is growing at a steady clip, with San Francisco leading the pack. Political analysts say the phenomenon portends a troubled future for both the Democratic Party and the GOP in the state. Pacific News Service associate editor Rene P. Ciria-Cruz also edits New California Media Online (WWW.NCMonline.com).


* PACIFIC PULSE: The Pacific Century and Its Impact on the Americas

    Patriarchy And Landlordism -- Immigrants' Baggage Should Not Include Harmful Practices
    By Sarita Sarvate
    Date: 02-15-00
    Charges against a landlord and restaurant owner in Berkeley, California -- including allegations that he imported young girls for sexual purposes -- have been greeted with distress and outrage. The alleged behavior, writes PNS commentator Sarita Sarvate, reveals a great deal about cultural practices in India, practices that should not be tolerated in either place. PNS correspondent Sarita Sarvate writes for India Currents and other publications.


* CIVIL CONFLICTS: Interpretive Reports on Ethnic, Religious, and Inter-National Conflicts Worldwide

    University Struggle Likely To Resound In Mexican Presidential Elections
    By David Bacon
    Date: 02-14-00
    The 70-year unbroken rule of Mexico's governing party, the PRI, is up for grabs, and its iron-fisted moves to end the university strike last week may not work in its favor -- at least in the Mexican capital. PNS associate editor David Bacon writes widely on immigrant and labor issues. Photos available upon request; e-mail pacificnews@pacificnews.org.

    San Francisco's New Apporach To Homeless -- A Band Aid That Threatens TO Deepen The Wound
    By Donal Brown
    Date: 02-17-00
    On March 7, voters in San Francisco will be asked to decide on an initiative proposal that would leave many welfare recipients with only about $1.50 a day in cash. The measure, purportedly designed to deal with the city's homeless population by forcing recipients to pay rent by issuing rent vouchers, threatens to make the situation worse. PNS correspondent Donal Brown taught journalism and English literature in California's public schools for 35 years.

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