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tv   Democracy Now  LINKTV  December 31, 2014 8:00am-9:01am PST

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12/31/14 12/31/14 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] >> from pacifica this is democracy now. >> lord of heaven and earth look upon our planet. frequently exploited by human greed. help them protect all of the victims of natural disasters especially the beloved people of the philippines gravely affected by the recent typhoon. >> pope francis is set to make history by issuing the first-ever conference of vatican teachings on climate change.
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1.2 billion catholics worldwide to take common action in a rare papal letter on climate change and human ecology. the move is expected to have a major impact, coming after pope francis shocked by using his annual christmas remarks to issue a scraping desk scathing critique of the vatican itself. his new biography is "the great reformer or co." >> connect with the concerns and feelings of ordinary people. but he also is a great helper because he understands what is reform. >> we will speak with the biographer, austen ivereigh about the pope's views on climate change, capitalism cuba, war and peace. then we will hear author and activist bill mckibben was
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announced he is stepping down from the daily leadership of 350.org, which he cofounded in 2007 and where he is been the leading voice against climate change. we will play an excerpt from his recent acceptance speech for the right livelihood award known as the alternative nobel. >> global warming is a test for all of us, the test in our time honored. it is a test in a sense of whether the big rain was a good adaptation after all. clearly, that rain think it is in a good deal of trouble, but maybe, just maybe, it is a tax to begin of hard to get us out of some of the trouble. >> all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in canada, nine people are dead including two children following what police say is the worst mass murder to hit alberta's capital city of edmonton.
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it marked the the victims were found in two separate homes, and the suspect was later found dead in a restaurant. edmonton police chief rod knecht spoke after the killings. >> these are not linked to be random acts and there's no risk to the broader public. these events do not appear to begin related. the rather tragic incidents of domestic violence. >> indonesian officials have confirmed bodies and debris found in the java sea off the coast of borneo are from a passenger plane carrying 162 people, which went missing en route to singapore. several bodies have been recovered and at least two have arrived back in the indonesian city of surabaya, where the airasia flight departed from on sunday. in central yemen, a suicide bomber has killed at least 33 people at a gathering of shiite houthi rebels. the governor of ibb province which is controlled by the houthis, was reportedly among
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those injured in the attack. the president of the west african nation of gambia has returned home after his an apparent coup plot while he was out of the country. president yahya jammeh says he remains in control of gambia after a fierce gun battle which reportedly threw the capital banjul into chaos and killed a former army commander who allegedly led the plot. president jammeh who rose to power in a military coup in 1994 has faced two previous coup plots. he has faced international criticism for his homophobic views and repression of political opponents. the failed coup has sparked fears of a crackdown. russia has seen one of its largest anti-government demonstrations in years after a leading opponent of president vladimir putin was dealt a -- convicted of fraud. alexei navalny, a prominent blogger and lawyer, was given a suspended three and a half year sentence but his younger brother was sentenced to prison.
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as many as 250 others were arrested. earlier today, 18 protesters including members of the feminist punk group pussy riot were detained after spending the night near moscow's red square. in washington, state department spokesperson jeff rathke condemned the sentencing of the navalny brothers. >> we are troubled by the guilty verdict handed down in the latest action. the decision is a disturbing development, in our view, and it appears to be designed to further punish and deter political activism. this appears to be another example of the russian government growing crackdown on independent voices. by rain forces have fired tear gas on protesters who gathered outside the home of a detained opposition leader. sheikh ali salman, head of the main shiite group opposed to bahrain's sunni monarchy, was arrested on sunday after leading a rally. the united nations and european union have criticized salman's arrest, with the un human rights
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chief calling for his immediate release. the obama administration says it is looking into the charges against salman and has called for him to be treated equally under the law. bahrain is a close u.s. ally which houses the navy's fleet. the united nations security council has rejected a resolution demanding an end to the israeli occupation of palestinian territories within three years, following u.s. and israeli pressure against it. the draft resolution also called for a peaceful solution between israel and a sovereign palestinian state within 12 months. of the 15 members of the un security council, only the united states and australia voted against the measure the -- but the measure needed nine votes to pass and only received eight after nigeria decided at the last minute to abstain from voting. the guardian reports both u.s. secretary of state john kerry and israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu called nigeria's president, goodluck jonathan, to ask him to oppose the measure.
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the united states was expected to veto the measure if it passed. the vote came amidst widening support for palestinian statehood, with an increasing number of european countries taking steps to recognize palestine. u.s. ambassador to the united nations samantha power explained why the u.s. objected. >> today's staged confrontation in the un security council will not bring the parties closer to achieving a two state solution. we voted against this resolution not because we're indifferent to the daily hardships or the security threats endured by palestinians and israelis, but because we know those hardships will not cease and those threats will not subside until the parties reach a conference of settlement achieved through negotiation. >> the obama administration has released five more prisoners from guantánamo bay. the prisoners include two men from tunisia and three from yemen who have been held for a dozen years without charge. they have all been sent to kazakhstan for resettlement. their release brings the total number of prisoners at guantanamo to 127.
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somali officials have confirmed a u.s. airstrike killed the intelligence chief of the militant group al-shabab. the pentagon had announced the strike but did not identify the , target. somali officials say the leader, abdishakur tahlil, was killed along with two other senior al-shabab members. an earlier u.s. strike in september killed the leader of al-shabab, sparking a deadly revenge attack on an african union base in mogadishu last week. here in new york, the staten island district attorney who failed to produce an indictment of a new york city police officer for the chokehold killing of unarmed african american eric garner has said he is seriously considering a run for the seat vacated by congressmember michael grimm. just hours after grimm announced he is stepping down after pleading guilty to tax charges district attorney daniel donovan, a republican, said his phone had been ringing off the hook with people urging him to run. donovan was soundly criticized for failing to secure an
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indictment of officer daniel pantaleo, the police officer who was caught on video wrestling eric garner down in a banned chokehold. garner died after repeatedly saying, "i can't breathe." new york city police officers have reportedly launched a "virtual work stoppage" in protest of mayor bill de blasio's comments on racial profiling and police brutality. according to "the new york post," traffic tickets and summonses for minor offenses have dropped 94% over the same period last year after the murder of two police officers earlier this month. parking violations dropped 92% and drug arrests dropped 84%. in response to "the post" numbers, "the new york times" issued its second editorial in two days criticizing the nypd's protests of de blasio. "the times" wrote -- "what new yorkers expect of the police department is simple -- 1. don't violate the
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constitution. 2. don't kill unarmed people. to that we can add -- do your jobs." mayor de blasio met with police union leaders on tuesday in a bid to ease ties. following the meeting, the head of the largest police union, patrick lynch, who has previously accused de blasio of having "blood on his hands," said the meeting had failed to produce a resolution. >> there were a number of discussions, especially about the safety issues that our members face. there was no resolve, and are thought here today is that actions speak than words and time will tell. >> while police have focused on the issue of officer safety, a new report finds the current fatality rate for police on the job is .014%. the number of officers killed by firearms rose 56% this year over 2013, but remain far below historic highs and have steadily dropped over time. in hayden, idaho, a two-year-old boy has accidentally shot and
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killed his mother with a gun he found in her purse. the boy and his mother were shopping at walmart with family members when the accident took place. the woman, who was 29 and has not been named, reportedly had a permit to carry the concealed gun. the obama administration has found harvard law school violated the federal statute title ix by mishandling cases of sexual assault. the department of education announced harvard law school had agreed to reform its policies and procedures following a four-year investigation, which marked one of the department's longest-running investigations over sexual violence. in one case highlighted by the government, harvard took over a year to make a final decision after a student issued a complaint, ultimately barring the alleged victim from participating in an appeal and then dismissing the case. meanwhile, harvard college remains under federal investigation for its response to sexual assault, as do scores of other colleges and universities across the country.
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the world-renowned scientist dr. theo colborn, one of the leading experts on the health and environmental impacts of chemicals used to extract oil and gas, has died at the age of 87. in 2003, at the age of 76, colborn founded the endocrine disruption exchange to disseminate scientific evidence related to endocrine disruptors, chemicals that interfere with development. in 2010, theo colborn appeared on democracy now and spoke about her research on endocrine disruptors and the chemicals used to extract natural gas through fracking. >> these are the chemicals that can get into the pregnant woman and enter the womb while her baby is developing and alter how those children are born. this is our big concern today, because we are facing major pandemics of endocrine driven disorders. simple things like adhd, autism, diabetes obesity, early
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testicular cancer, in dimitrios us. these are all endocrine-driven disorders that we are very concerned about. and these products are being injected underground for centuries, maybe before they surface, and also coming back up. >> dr. theo colborn died on december 14 at home in paonia, colorado. and rabbi leonard beerman, a leading voice for social justice, peace and the rights of palestinians for over six decades, has died at the age of 93. in 1947, just before the founding of israel, beerman lived in jerusalem and joined the haganah, the jewish militia, an experience which helped transform him into a lifelong pacifist. he soon moved to los angeles where he worked as a rabbi and embarked on decades of activism, from opposing the vietnam war in in the 1960's to criticizing israel's recent assault on gaza. in 2007, he presented the nation institute's ron ridenhour award to president jimmy carter. in his introduction, he spoke
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about striving for change. >> in this endeavor, there is no guarantee of victory, but there is a choice. one either collaborates with the enemy with whatever is, with whatever is miserable or inhumane, with whatever is unjust, with whatever demeans the life of any human being even those we call our enemies or one joins the resistance and insist upon being among those who strive to diminish the store of insult and agony of the world. >> rabbi leonard beerman died last wednesday in los angeles from congestive heart failure. he was 93 years old. and those are some of the headlines, this is democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. for our last report of 2014. pope francis is set to make history by issuing the first-ever comprehensive vatican teachings on climate change.
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in an effort to urge catholics worldwide to take climate action, the pope will issue a rare papal letter -- or encyclical -- on climate change and human ecology following a visit in march to tacloban, the philippine city devastated in 2012 by typhoon haiyan. the document will then be sent to the world's 5,000 catholic bishops and 400,000 priests who will distribute it to their parishioners. given the sheer number of people who identify as catholics worldwide, the pope's clarion call to tackle climate change could reach far more people than even the largest environmental groups. globally, there are 1.2 billion catholics, of which around 75 million live in the united states. the pope also plans to address the united nations general assembly and convene a summit of the world's main religions in hopes of bolstering next year's crucial u.n. climate meeting in paris. last year, during his first christmas mass as head of the catholic church, pope francis called for protection of the environment from human greed.
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>> lord of heaven and earth, look upon our planet. frequently exploited by human greed and rapacity. help them protect all the victims of natural disasters especially the beloved people of the philippines gravely affected by the recent typhoon. >> this year, pope francis shocked cardinals, bishops and priests by using his annual christmas remarks to deliver a scathing critique of the vatican itself -- the central governing body of the catholic church. he said the vatican is plagued with "spiritual alzheimer's," "existential schizophrenia," "social exhibitionism" and a lust for power -- all of which have resulted in an "orchestra that plays out of tune." pope francis also lambasted the gossip, pettiness, and rivalry he said were infecting the church. this is part of what he said. >> there is also the sickness of
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the stony mind and spirit, of those who have a stone heart and hartnett, of those who lose her inner serenity and audacity and end up hiding behind papers, becoming machines for practices and not men of god. it is dangerous to lose the human sensitivity and we need to cry with those who cry and to rejoice with those who rejoice. >> pope francis has also captured global attention for his criticism of capitalism, his softer tone on key social issues including abortion and homosexuality, and his calls to re-focus the church towards the needs of the poor. in his personal life, the pope has chosen to live simply at the vatican, residing in a guest house, instead of the apostolic palace, forgoing a chauffeured mercedes in favor a plain black sedan. he has also made headlines for his everyday acts of extraordinary compassion -- he invited a teenager with down syndrome, alberto di tullio, for a ride in the popemobile. he embraced and kissed vinicio
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riva, a man severely scarred by a genetic disease. and he washed a dozen prisoners' feet at a jail for juveniles in rome. the pope also responded to a letter from a rape survivor by personally calling to console her, saying "you are not alone." most recently, the pope has emerged as a star diplomat -- a key player in the thawing of relations between the cuba and the united states. cuban president raul castro thanked him for his support. >> this decision by president obama deserves respect and recognition from our people. i would like to thank and recognize the support of the vatican and especially that of pope francis in helping improve the relations between cuba and the united states. >> earlier this month, the pope offered to assist the united states with another diplomatic hurdle -- its efforts to close guantanamo prison. the vatican has reportedly offered to help find adequate
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humanitarian solutions through its international contacts. meanwhile, the pope has rejected change in two other areas -- the ordination of women to the priesthood and the church's view on abortion. well, for more on pope francis , we go now to oxford, england where we're joined by his biographer. austen ivereigh is a british writer, commentator, and co-founder of catholic voices. he's the author of a new biography called, "the great reformer: francis and the making of a radical pope." austen ivereigh, welcome to democracy now! let's begin with this encyclical that he is putting out on climate change. how rare and how important is this? >> first of all, it is an encyclical, the highest form of people teaching. what that means, it is a letter sent to the bishops and clergy and indirectly to all of the catholics of the world. it is saying, this needs to be taken very seriously by catholics.
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that in itself is a major event. the fact it is also on climate change is deeply significant because there's never been a major document on the subject from the church. so there is a lot of anticipation about it. he is about to go to sri lanka in the philippines in mid-january and many will be issuing this cyclical we think in march or possibly april. it will take a position on the science of climate change. this is a case of the church as we are waiting into a scientific matter and taking a position, as i understand, the document will take the position in favor of the scientific consensus that time it changes real. in the document will also link deforestation, the destruction of the national environment, to the particular economic model of which pope francis has been a very stern critic ever since he became pope in a deep beforehand, a system which creates too much inequality, which regards the unemployed and the elderly as it were to be dispensed with, leftovers, as he
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calls them. an economic system which is dysfunctional in its impact on the world's population. and he will also show excessive consumerism and the pattern of the global economic model as well as the prices being paid by the environment. there will be a call we understand for the church to work for changing the system which produces deforestation and climate devastation. it will also be laying out the basis for the church thinking on this, prior to what i understand will be a meeting of other world religious leaders and civic leaders, in other words, pope francis wants to build a global consensus to help bring about action later this year, prior to that, very important summit -- u.n. summit in paris on climate change. it is about building momentum to bring about real effective change in this area. >> ahead of this year's un
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climate conference in lima peru pope francis wrote a letter , to organizers noting that climate change will -- "affect all of humanity, especially the poorest and future generations. what's more, it represents a serious ethical and moral responsibility." so how do you expect the bishops, the cardinals, the more than one billion catholics to respond? what does this mean when the pope focuses on an issue like climate change, austen ivereigh? >> i think it will be problematic. there will be controversial, because there are some church leaders and also some prominent catholics who, if not right the power except its, will be skeptical of his attempts to link that to particular form of capitalism. we have already seen this critique when he came up in november last year with his first major document called "the
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joy of the gospel" in which he had very stern words for the liberal capitalist system and who is speaking very much from the point of view of the poor. this is one of the things that distinguishes his voice. he takes the position of the developing world, of the poor, the people who are normally ignored in these discussions who are not present at the table, positioning himself and the church indirectly indefinitely as the advocate for those people. in doing that, he is naturally going to find there is pushed back from business interests prominent catholics in the world of business and finance, you're going to probably attack, no doubt, some of the science behind the encyclical. but will also critique them as he was criticized last year, criticized for naivety and waiting into an area of which they say the church has no direct understanding or direct
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knowledge or -- the church has always taken a very clear position and strong position in its moral teaching about capitalism. this goes back to late 19th century when the pope issued is great encyclical on new things which was precisely in indictment of the way in which industrialization and canterbury capitalism had divided the world into the haves and have-nots left the port the mercy of the rich. pope francis, even though will be greeted as a great novelty and speaking out of a radical prophetic tradition which has been consistent in the church throughout the popes of the 20 century since the late 19th century, but doing so is what he sees as the contemporary equivalent now of the debate about industrialization and the market in the 19th century. the same kind of moral critique. look at the devastation and the impact the economic model is having. if we have an economic system which produces tremendous
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wealth, treatment is growth in many parts of the world, but produces poverty, chronic long-term unemployment in other parts of the world and results in devastation of the environment, he is going to say this is not a system that works. we need a system where the human beings come first. rather than making human beings particularly the poor, instruments of a machine which benefits the few. that will be the kind of response or critique, if you like that francis will be making and this encyclical. it looks to generate an extraordinary amount of debate. my understanding for those involved in the preparation of this document, it has been very very carefully thought through. the church does not want to be dismissed by having a name position on the science. >> even the pope's, he is the first to take the papal name francis after the reform figure francis of assisi. last year, he explained why he chose the name saying --
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"for me, he is the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who loves and protects creation. these days we don't have a very good relationship with creation, do we? he is the man who gives us this spirit of peace, the poor man." austen ivereigh, if you could respond? >> i was there when he said those words to the 5000 journalists shortly after his election. he was explaining why it was he took the name of francis of assisi. he is identifying himself with a figure that is really the icon in the catholic tradition of poverty, of humility of identification with the poor but also a man who was famous with his love of creation and an actual world and i were he saw mankind, as it were, man fits into human beings fit into god's creation and god's creation is much more than just us. we are stewards of the planet. we're been entrusted with the responsibility for the planet we
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must not damage it. we must care and embrace it. we must support it. by taking the name, he was signaling from the beginning that he was going to be doing this. i understand this encyclical has been under preparation almost ever since he was elected. he is also involved a number of theologians who were out of favor for some time, including a brazilian and other latin american liberal theologians have long seat the effect of capitalism on the environment. positioning himself in at radical stream of the catholic tradition. >> austen ivereigh, we will continue the discussion of the pope this year from capitalism and climate change to cuba, war, and peace. austen ivereigh's new book is called, "the great reformer: francis and the making of a radical pope."
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we will continue in a moment. ♪ [music break]
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>> patti smith performing "people have the power" at this year's vatican christmas concert. last night in new york on her 68th birthday, she talked about the significance of performing at the vatican. this is democracy now! democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. on this last democracy now! program of the year, we continue our conversation on pope francis with austen ivereigh. he is a british writer commentator, and co-founder of catholic voices. ivereigh is the author of a new biography called, "the great reformer: francis and the making of a radical pope." earlier this month, president obama thanked pope francis by name for his role in negotiating a more open policy on cuba. the vatican also released a statement noting the pontiff had hosted delegations from both countries in october to negotiate the deal after he had written to both leaders. pope francis also commented on
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the achievement. >> today we are all happy because we've seen how to nations who were separated for many years, yesterday, took a step closer to each other. you see, this was brought about my ambassadors, by diplomacy. your work is a noble one. very noble. >> the announcement of the vatican's role in the u.s.-cuba negotiations is also noteworthy, because pope francis plans his first trip to the united states next september. the vatican has not said he will also travel to cuba then. austen ivereigh, talk about why the pope care so much about this issue and what his role was in these negotiations. >> well, when i wrote my biography, i did not realize that this was going to happen, the extraordinary breakthrough in the restoration of relations
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between u.s. and cuba. but i did comment in one of the chapters about his visit to cuba shortly after he became -- he wasn't quite archbishop of buenos aires but waiting in the wings to be made archbishop. he was sent to cuba as part of the delegation of latin american bishops who were accompanied pope john paul ii on his historic visit to the island. he wrote after the book called "dialogues" and it is a fascinating book now to look back in retrospect given what we now know about his involvement in bringing about this historic breakthrough. one thing that comes across in the book is that he has a very powerful critique mesilla to that of the cuban bishops, of communism. as a dead hand, something which actually runs against cuban traditions and values, but also equally critical of the consumerist capitalism. he positioned himself very
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clearly in the book in favor of a long-term democratization pluralism and democracy in cuba but in a way it would respect the country's traditions. he also wrote a strong critique of the embargo which he described as futile and pointless, given the two countries were no longer in a state of war. it was a classic situation where there is an ideological confrontation. this is like pope francis is life mission has been to bring together or bring about reconciliation, to breakthrough the impasses which exists when people are back ideological barriers, see the world through a particular filter. they demonize the other. they end up in a self-defeating, intractable kind of opposition which of course, benefits nobody. in a way, looking back, to see this was really a classic topic for him. what we understand about his role in this is from the very
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beginning, he is also close to the cardinal archbishop of havana. i think it was he who asked him to be involved very early on in this. what we understand is even though it began in canada, the meetings between the u.s. and cuba, pope francis's intervention was vital in building up trust, creating ace ace where both sides could come together in a neutral space within the auspices of the catcher -- catholic church. and it was francis his own patient intervention, his letters to both leaders at a particular moment that was crucial over the summer, is what paved the way for this extraordinary breakthrough. what it does is it opens the door now to change. and a change, and evil lucian. cuba is going to have to be democracy. it is going to have to be a free-market country will step on
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the other hand, he is a latin american pope and he knows what latin america has defined its own model of economic growth which is true to its own traditions and locates itself, cuba, after all, even though it isn't necessarily a highly practicing catholic country, nevertheless is a country of catholic tradition. the church will play a very important role i think in bringing about in bringing to birth a nurturing democratic transition in cuba. a wonderful example of francis as bridge builder, as a man who creates spaces for the holy spirit to act, this is his whole spirituality -- in many ways this is his life's work. he did it back in the 1970's and then in argentina as an archbishop and a leader in the latin american church and now as pope, building bridges of trust to create new possibilities, new creative possibilities which power -- which are humanly
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unimaginable 12/31/14 12/31/14 speaking of him as an argentine leader, his fellow archbishop oscar romero, talk about what his role is now in recognizing archbishop oscar romero who was gunned down march 24 1980, i think it was also the former foreign minister of nicaragua. >> that's right. archbishop oscar romero gunned down at the altar in 1980, archbishop of san salvador. in many ways, an iconic case of latin america church standing with the poor and willing to sacrifice itself, its own privileges and in the case of oscar romero, the very lives of the priests who stem with the poor. oscar ramirez martyrdom enabled him to become a saint, to be canonized by the catholic church a long time ago.
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the process of canonization was blocked in rome from a very early stage under john paul ii by group of latin american conservative cardinals particularly in the vatican, who saw also romero -- believed oscar romero was too political. so his cause was really frozen. it was put on hold. one of the first things pope francis did, here he is a latin american, jesuit, a man who himself is always stood with the poor and identified with that task of the church, one of the first things he did was to unblock the process so that now there is nothing to stop oscar romero been declared a saint. however, there is still a process to be undergone. nobody can become a saint without undergoing certain processes. there needs to be a miracle and the one. however, he as pope, if you once, can accelerate that process. pope francis has talked about going to latin america in 2015.
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we at her the bolivians say it is likely to be bolivia. we don't know what countries it will be. i think it is a fair bet to say is likely to be el salvador because i think you would love to declare oscar romero a saint released yet if i him, which is to declare him a blessed stage prior to canonization. in doing that, he wilson a powerful signal that the catholic church is not on the side of the rich, but on the side of the poor. the catholic church for the salvation of everybody, catholic church is in interested in the welfare of everyone. the very few control the political and economic system to the detriment of the majority, the church should be standing with the defenseless poor majority because that is where jesus was, where the church should be. a very powerful signal. unblocking a process of sainthood for oscar romero together with this
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groundbreaking encyclical on ecology, will reposition the catholic church in a way that hasn't been seen for generations. and really will be a very powerful turning point. already through cuba and other initiatives like in the middle east that pope francis took last year, he is returned the catholic church the center of global politics. in many ways, the weight was under john paul ii. positioning the church and himself in those acts. >> and the significance of reinstating father must go to who had been suspended from clerical activities when he became a political leader nicaragua. he was among the sandinistas. this crippled a lot of liberation theology, the way the church had gone after religious leaders in latin america at the
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time. could you talk about that? >> the descoto case, the rehabilitation would be important because it sends a message that actually what francis values here is a person and his priesthood, his ministry, his witness. i suppose what this is about is depoliticize and christian witness. in many ways you can argue under john paul ii when there was a clampdown on liberation the allergy and on latin america what happened, if you like, if the allergy have been used at the service of the certain kind of left-wing politics, and there was a danger of that, the risk was in the clampdown, there would be the opposite. in other words, summit would not be recognized for their virtue and their witness, precisely because of their political engagement. francis is interesting on this because as i show in the book, he was totally committed to the basics of liberation theology as expressed in the great meeting
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in 1968 in columbia. that is when you first have the phrase, the option for the poor. that is when the church identified itself with that stream of liberation, which was seeking the liberation of latin america from colonial and postcolonial servitude. what happen with liberation theology is in the 1970's, it became political. -- politicized. seeking to capture the state and use the state to redistribute wealth. much in the manner of the cuban revolution. back then pope francis as a young jazz with oppose this politicization -- a young jazz with a post this legislation politicization. his own anthology was a branch
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which was not much known about it at the time. what was happening in argentina was a very important theology the elegy of the people, which was all about respecting an understanding the values in the traditions of ordinary people. this has been a source of contention because people said he has been described by some in argentina, some saw him as a conservative because he resisted the politicization of the theology. as i show in my book, it is safer to see him as a defender of the traditions and the values of the ordinary people against elite ideologies. quite an important -- >> do you think he is repenting for what happened in argentina with some the elegy priest, the death of them today, as pope?
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>> he is never identified with any kind of repression of liberation elegy. he was on his critical of it. what is happening now in the case of oscar romero and descoto , we're now in a post communist in a post-socialist era. therefore it is safe for him now to rescue them as it were, the really important gospel tenets of liberation theology, which are the option for the poor and or near people and a critique of power and certain form of capitalism which denigrates the poor. i think that is what is going on. the rehabilitation of the essence of that the elegy now in a post-left-wing period. >> we just have about one minute. i want to go to the issue of women and nuns.
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the vatican has praised the role of nuns in the united states following a controversial years-long probe into their adherence to catholic doctrine. the report marks a shift in tone from a 2012 vatican reprimand which resulted in an all-male takeover of the largest group of u.s. nuns. the nuns were accused of promoting "radical feminist" ideas and challenging teachings on homosexuality and the all-male priesthood. can you talk about what his position is now and on the issue of abortion and homosexuality? >> right well, on the very report into women religious indeed, the final report which came out on women and religious is very positive, very praiseworthy and i think francis would be the first and has been consistently praising women and women religious. however, the investigation into the leadership of one of the main groups of women religious in the united states is yet to come. that is the report that is likely to contain some of the critiques that were first
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expressed in 2012. we will have to wait to see on that. it just on francis and women in general, as i share in my book his head a number of women who have been very close to him. some of the most influential influences was his grandmother and also important people involved in politics and human rights have been women. he now has, as pope and cardinal archbishop of when a series, a number of women who are very close to him. he respects women. he admires strong women. that is a consistent theme. on the issue of women priests he is made clear that catholic tradition is a male priesthood because of the catholic understanding that the maleness of jesus christ is in some way represented by the priest. he is not going to change that because in many ways francis is a very conservative man. he believes in conserving the traditions of the catholicism. he does, however, want to see
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more women in positions of leadership in rome, and we're going to see in the course of 2015 a very important vatican reform being announced reform in a structure in the governance of the carrier and there will be women are put in positions -- i should say more women being put in place. then we are seen up to now. >> austen ivereigh, thank you so much for being with us british , writer, commentator, and co-founder of catholic voices. ivereigh is the author of a new biography called, "the great reformer: francis and the making of a radical pope." he is speaking to us from oxford, england. when we come back, we will hear from bill mckibben, major address he gave in the swedish parliament. stay with us. ♪ [music break]
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>> "step by step" by jesse winchester, the sing-songwriter who played a major role in 1960's anti-war movement when he moved to canada to avoid the draft and was later pardoned by jimmy carter. he is one of many musicians we lost this year. he died on april 11. he was 69. this is democracy now! democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we end today's show with author and activist bill mckibben, who recently announced he is stepping down from the daily leadership of 350.org, which he co-founded in 2007, and where he has been a leading voice against climate change. this group gets its name from a comment made by climate scientist jim henson's of the world must cut carbon dioxide emissions to three and 50 parts
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per million. mckibben wrote in a statement -- "i'm stepping down as chair of the board at 350.org to become what we're calling a 'senior advisor.' ... i will stay on as an active member of the board, and 90% of my daily work will stay the same, since it's always involved the external work of campaigning, not the internal work of budgets and flow charts. i'm not standing down from that work, or stepping back, or walking away." well earlier this month, bill mckibben was in stockholm sweden, where he received the right livelihood award, known as the alternative nobel prize. this is an excerpt of his address. >> as we meet here today, the world is almost done with what will be the hottest calendar year in all the years that we have measured temperatures. 14 so the warmest temperatures by four ever recorded in the northern pacific. it was also the year when we learned, tragically, the melt of the west antarctic sheet is now irreversible. 25 years ago when i wrote the
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first book length account of this crisis, none of these wounds could have been predicted, but that is because scientists are conservative. the damage is outpaced the forecast. every ocean, including the one outside these doors, is now 30% more acidic than a generation ago. every continent now sees drought and flood on an unprecedented scale. every scientific audie now urges upon us with ever more desperate rhetoric than need for action. you will find in your packet as one concise reminder of the relevant points, recent publication of the american association for the advancement of science outlining, once more, the very plain facts of climate change. and yet, so little action has come. the world will meet again a year from today in paris to try and reach a treaty, a replay of the
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meeting that five years ago ended in fiasco in copenhagen. so far, the fossil fuel industry has been our full enough to block substantial action in most nations, especially, the united states. historically, the biggest source of carbon now overheating the earth. we in the comment movement have long since concluded that the fountain of fossil fuel money which buys politicians and spreads disinformation, can only be met if we coin our own currency. in this case, the currency of move ends. passion, spirit, creativity, sometimes we need to spend the currency of our own bodies and head to jail. and so here is the good news to temper that week weather forecast. all over the world, that movement is finally rising. in late september, 400,000 people filled the streets of new york to demand that the u.n.
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take action on climate. that was the largest demonstration about anything in the u.s. for some years, and the largest in menstruation about climate change in history. those people were joined at a park protesters in 2600 other cities around the world. the world's first truly global problem is seeing the world's first truly global movement and it is beginning to have an effect. the same night of that march in new york, the heirs to the rockefeller fortune announced they were divesting holdings and false of fuel companies. the first family of also fuel was selling its oil stock. in so doing -- [applause] in so doing, they join institutions from stanford university to the church of sweden, and hopefully soon, the
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city of stockholm and many others in his green minded country. just as 30 years ago when the question was apartheid in south africa, the world's people are coming together to withdraw their money from the companies that simply refuse to change their practices. those companies -- exxon, shell, chevron, gazprom, china coal, bp -- all the rest, have in their combined reserves, five times more carbon than the world scientist say we can safely burn. and yet those companies have told their shareholders and their banks that they will dig up coal and oil and gas and burn it if they carry out those business plans, then there is no mystery about how this story ends. the planet will simply break. and so we must fight -- peacefully, but firmly. we must build green cities. and like so many others, i have
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gone to visit stockholm's green neighborhood. it is a model of what the future could look like. as congenial as it is ecological. but beautiful as that vision is, we cannot be taken one step forward and another back most of this is the point which i become the impolite dinner guest who criticizes the host. in the city, for instance, planning continues on a massive highway. ask your self weather in a decade or two that is the legacy this planet needs or whether a sharp and germanic move toward public transit -- dramatic move toward public transit and car sharing might not be more better. [applause] my fellow honorees last night had the rare privilege of getting to walk aboard the good
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ship ended up or jimmy -- it occurred to me that perhaps projects like that how we may represent this sort of grand and expensive ventures perhaps not perfectly suited for the world in which they must sail. [applause] ask your self sharp questions about trying to make every possible penny off the current situation. is that involved, sibley sells its stake -- simply sells its stake, there's no doubt the coal is not the responsible choice that grew wealthy in part by burning fossil fuel. to make a small economic sacrifice and key that coal forever underground where it can do no harm, is that any different than what, for instance, we have asked the brazilians when it comes to the amazon -- [applause]
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and we very badly need to see sweden cities and governments to follow the lead of the church of sweden and divest those fossil fuel holdings. we simply must defeat those forces that want to delay large-scale change so they can have a decade or two more of profit. there is no ducking that fight will stop if you invest in fossil fuel companies, you profit from the destruction of the earth. that is the definition of dirty money. those who invest in fossil fuel companies are making a wager that the world will do nothing to combat climate change. that is an immoral wager. [applause] it is an unwise wager as well, because civil society really is rising up. i am reminded of the iconic scene earlier this autumn when r 350.org colleagues in 12 pacific island nations nations that will be underwater on the cricketer dirty dust trajectory
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by the end of the century, to the traditional canoes and transported them to the largest coal port in the world newcastle in australia. and for a day, used those tiny canoes to block some of the largest ships in the world to keep them in port. their slogan, a good one for the whole world would be, "we are not drowning, we are fighting." i'm reminded of the scenes in north america earlier this year were cattle ranchers and native americans formed what they called the cowboy indian alliance. a cia, slightly different than the one mr. snowden used to work for, to block the keystone pipeline and its cargo of filthy oil from the tar sands of canada. we stand in solidarity with activists losing the glaciers that supply their drinking water and bangladeshi activist watching the seas rise.
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we will learn from african leaders like desmond tutu, who recently called time of change the greatest human rights challenge of our time, and from sami leaders who are watching winter weather wrecked time-honored ways of life. we struggle alongside residents of delhi and beijing and the other smog-trooped patroclus's of our planet, for we other children die from the same false of fuel combustion that endangers the whole earth. we look with great inspiration to the countries like germany that are demonstrating daily that it is entirely possible to turn to renewable energy for the power that we need on this planet. global warming is a test for all of us -- d test in our time on earth. it is a test in a sense of whether the big brain was a good adaptation after all.
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clearly, that brain can get us in a good deal of trouble, but maybe, just maybe, it is attached to big enough heart to get us out of some of that trouble. i cannot promise you that we will win this struggle. we have waited a very long time to get started and the science is quite dark, but i can promise you that in every corner of the world, we will fight and fight hard. thank you so much for helping spread word of that struggle with this great honor. [applause] >> that was bill mckibben, found a 350.org, accepting the right livelihood award. that does it for this year's democracy now! tune in and 2015, the rest of the week for our holiday , specials. on friday, we'll air our interview with russell brand. quirks you constantly see how
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hard the establishment has to work to maintain order. look at all of the institutions. they hold ordinary people down constantly through the media they try to prevent different arguments emerging. that is because they know change is notable. people in the media have an obligation to refrain this argument, to tell people they can change the world, that we are connected to one another have more in common with each other. people that say the system works, work for the system. we can change the world. the revolution can begin as soon as you decide it does. >> that is friday on democracy now!. we will also air interview with chilling massage. on thursday, matt taibbi and jpmorgan chase whistleblower alayne fleischmann. "the $9 billion witness." that does it for our show. democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. [captioning made possible by democracy now!]
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