Comments on: Dr. Sami Al-Arian vs Big Brother http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/ a radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and social justice Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:07:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: eileen fleming http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16532 eileen fleming Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:20:30 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16532 From an email from WM/Al-Awada, after i alerted him that i posted his email above: In that case, Please post this, which is a direct quote from Peter Erlander which I just received; It is not an anology to contract law, it IS contract law. Numerous cases, incluidng SCOTUS, clearly state that the terms of a plea agreement are a contract...but one that has to be interpreted as reasonably understood as the person to whom the government makes the "offer"....because of the unequal bargaining position and the important constitutional issues at stake. Peter Erlander From an email from WM/Al-Awada, after i alerted him that i posted his email above:

In that case, Please post this, which is a direct quote from Peter Erlander which I just received;

It is not an anology to contract law, it IS contract law. Numerous cases, incluidng SCOTUS, clearly state that the terms of a plea agreement are a contract…but one that has to be interpreted as reasonably understood as the person to whom the government makes the “offer”….because of the unequal bargaining position and the important constitutional issues at stake.

Peter Erlander

]]> By: eileen fleming http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16469 eileen fleming Tue, 18 Mar 2008 13:42:58 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16469 Re: Report on Protest at Butner to Support Professor Sami Al-Arian, March 16; Appeal by Peter Erlinder, Sami's Attorney All persons concerned with loss of human rights in the US, BREAKDOWN OF THE JUDICIARY SYSTEM IN THE US Peter Erlinder, Professor of Law, William Mitchell College of Law, St. Paul, MN, Sami Al-Arian's attorney and friend of more than 10 years, spoke to those 15 assembled at Exit 189 off I-85, one mile from Butner Federal Medical Center, NC, for about 20 minutes on March 16. [One photographer will have photos available soon.] His message of grave concern about the failure of the legal system in the US and stripping of the rights afforded by the US Constitution was to urge everyone to contact the chairs of the judiciary committees immediately to put pressure on the Department of Justice to intervene in case of Al-Arian to force the judge in the 4th District to uphold the US Constitution and the writ of habeas corpus. Everyone should call the Judiciary Committee chairs and also their own Congressmen. [Note Watt and Coble of NC sit on the House Judiciary Committee.] Excellent information: http://www.nlg.org/news/index.php?entry=entry080304-111903. Call: 202-224-4242 and 202-255-5126. Ask for hearing and/oversight of Judiciary on Sami Al-Arian's case. More info: http://www.freesamialarian.com/home.htm, <a href="http://www.aclu.org/search/search_wrap.html?account=436ac9516921&q=al-arian&imageField.x=18&imageField.y=1&imageField=search" rel="nofollow">ACLU Link</a> http://www.wmitchell.edu/academics/faculty/Erlinder.asp, http://w3.usf.edu/~uff/AlArian/ Committee information follows. Margaret Misch Orange County (NC) Bill of Rights Defense Committee ======================================== Patrick J. Leahy CHAIRMAN, D-VERMONT http://leahy.senate.gov/ http://judiciary.senate.gov Majority Staff Director: Bruce Cohen Minority Staff Director: Mike O'Neill 202-224-4242 (telephone) 202-224-3479 (Fax) Edward M. Kennedy D-MASSACHUSETTS Arlen Specter RANKING MEMBER, R-PENNSYLVANIA Joseph R. Biden, Jr. D-DELAWARE Orrin G. Hatch R-UTAH Herb Kohl D-WISCONSIN Charles E. Grassley R-IOWA Dianne Feinstein D-CALIFORNIA Jon Kyl R-ARIZONA Russell D. Feingold D-WISCONSIN Jeff Sessions R-ALABAMA Charles E. Schumer D-NEW YORK Lindsey Graham R-SOUTH CAROLINA Richard J. Durbin D-ILLINOIS John Cornyn R-TEXAS Benjamin L. Cardin D-MARYLAND Sam Brownback R-KANSAS Sheldon Whitehouse D-RHODE ISLAND Tom Coburn R-OKLAHOMA Hon. John Conyers, Jr. (D) Michigan, 14th www.house.gov/conyers http://judiciary.house.gov/ Majority Chief of Staff: Perry Apelbaum Minority Chief of Staff: Joseph Gibson 202-255-5126 (telephone) 202-225-0072 (Fax) Re: Report on Protest at Butner to Support Professor Sami Al-Arian, March 16; Appeal by Peter Erlinder, Sami’s Attorney

All persons concerned with loss of human rights in the US,

BREAKDOWN OF THE JUDICIARY SYSTEM IN THE US

Peter Erlinder, Professor of Law, William Mitchell College of Law, St. Paul, MN, Sami Al-Arian’s attorney and friend of more than 10 years, spoke to those 15 assembled at Exit 189 off I-85, one mile from Butner Federal Medical Center, NC, for about 20 minutes on March 16. [One photographer will have photos available soon.] His message of grave concern about the failure of the legal system in the US and stripping of the rights afforded by the US Constitution was to urge everyone to contact the chairs of the judiciary committees immediately to put pressure on the Department of Justice to intervene in case of Al-Arian to force the judge in the 4th District to uphold the US Constitution and the writ of habeas corpus.

Everyone should call the Judiciary Committee chairs and also their own Congressmen. [Note Watt and Coble of NC sit on the House Judiciary Committee.] Excellent information: http://www.nlg.org/news/index.php?entry=entry080304-111903.

Call: 202-224-4242 and 202-255-5126. Ask for hearing and/oversight of Judiciary on Sami Al-Arian’s case.

More info: http://www.freesamialarian.com/home.htm,
ACLU Link
http://www.wmitchell.edu/academics/faculty/Erlinder.asp, http://w3.usf.edu/~uff/AlArian/

Committee information follows.

Margaret Misch
Orange County (NC) Bill of Rights Defense Committee
========================================

Patrick J. Leahy
CHAIRMAN, D-VERMONT
http://leahy.senate.gov/
http://judiciary.senate.gov
Majority Staff Director: Bruce Cohen
Minority Staff Director: Mike O’Neill
202-224-4242 (telephone)
202-224-3479 (Fax)

Edward M. Kennedy
D-MASSACHUSETTS

Arlen Specter
RANKING MEMBER, R-PENNSYLVANIA

Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
D-DELAWARE

Orrin G. Hatch
R-UTAH

Herb Kohl
D-WISCONSIN

Charles E. Grassley
R-IOWA

Dianne Feinstein
D-CALIFORNIA

Jon Kyl
R-ARIZONA

Russell D. Feingold
D-WISCONSIN

Jeff Sessions
R-ALABAMA

Charles E. Schumer
D-NEW YORK

Lindsey Graham
R-SOUTH CAROLINA

Richard J. Durbin
D-ILLINOIS

John Cornyn
R-TEXAS

Benjamin L. Cardin
D-MARYLAND

Sam Brownback
R-KANSAS

Sheldon Whitehouse
D-RHODE ISLAND

Tom Coburn
R-OKLAHOMA

Hon. John Conyers, Jr.

(D) Michigan, 14th
http://www.house.gov/conyers
http://judiciary.house.gov/
Majority Chief of Staff: Perry Apelbaum
Minority Chief of Staff: Joseph Gibson
202-255-5126 (telephone)
202-225-0072 (Fax)

]]> By: eileen fleming http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16465 eileen fleming Tue, 18 Mar 2008 13:14:54 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16465 IN SOLIDARITY with all you say! The latest bad news I received in an email via AL-AWDA-Florida group Re Sami Al Arian I talked to Al Arian’s lawyer, Peter Erlander, yesterday. He said that there is no provision in the plea agreement that al Arian would or would not have to testify at other trials. He said that the state originally included such a contract for him to testify at other trials but that Al Arian refused to agree and therefore had it deleted. Thus he is claiming that that is equivalent to including a provision that Al Arian not have to testify. He used the analogy of my signing contract to supply elephants and my refusing because I did not have any elephants and thus having that clause deleted, and then their coming back and saying that I was responsible for supplying elephants. However, he is using an analogy from contract law and criminal law is another matter. I did not think to raise this point at the time. I hope that Al Arian does not die because of poor legal advice. But I am not a lawyer. Erlander said that he has seen Al Arian earlier and that he was very weak. William J. Martin IN SOLIDARITY with all you say!

The latest bad news I received in an email via AL-AWDA-Florida group

Re Sami Al Arian

I talked to Al Arian’s lawyer, Peter Erlander, yesterday. He said that there is no provision in the plea agreement that al Arian would or would not have to testify at other trials. He said that the state originally included such a contract for him to testify at other trials but that Al Arian refused to agree and therefore had it deleted. Thus he is claiming that that is equivalent to including a provision that Al Arian not have to testify. He used the analogy of my signing contract to supply elephants and my refusing because I did not have any elephants and thus having that clause deleted, and then their coming back and saying that I was responsible for supplying elephants.

However, he is using an analogy from contract law and criminal law is another matter. I did not think to raise this point at the time. I hope that Al Arian does not die because of poor legal advice. But I am not a lawyer.

Erlander said that he has seen Al Arian earlier and that he was very weak.

William J. Martin

]]> By: Shabnam http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16458 Shabnam Tue, 18 Mar 2008 02:44:00 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2008/03/dr-sami-al-arian-vs-big-brother/#comment-16458 Ms. Fleming: Thank you for your humanity to bring Dr. Al-Arian’s case to this site. The case of Dr. Sami Amin Al-Arian is very sad but it is not unique in American System of justice especially in the era of “war on terror.” Mr. Al-Arian believed he was protected under the US law. However, his case has proven him wrong because he values humanity and can not be salient about the condition of his fellow men, Palestinians, who have been brutalized and forced out of their land by the European settlers. It is obvious that Dr. Al-Arian is not neither a terrorist nor a conspirator. If he was, then there could have been rooms for negotiation, like Mujahedin of Iran, MEK, a terrorist organization. Both US and Israel are in contact with MEK. The MEK has a long history of violence: they murdered several Americans during the 1970s; they were involved with the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran; they killed 70 high ranking officials by bombing the Premier’s office and the head office of the Islamic Republic Party in 1981; they helped the Iraqi government violently suppress Shia and Kurdish uprisings during the 1990s. Yet Mr. Jafarzadeh, front man for the MEK is free in the United States, was introduced by the Fox News Network as their independent Iran analyst, who is against Iranian government and the terrorist’s activity of his organization, the MEK, is useful for the US and Israel. Thus, he has enough cards to play the game, not Dr. Al-Arian who has no useful “knowledge” on which to negotiate with. He is an academician who tries to inform American public how their tax money supports genocide in Palestine which does not go well with the authorities in Washington. Al-Arian was sentenced to nearly five years in prison, after which he was to be deported. During the trial, the government presented evidence that Al-Arian's think tank, World and Islam Studies Enterprise, received funding from the International Institute of Islamic Thought, based in Herndon, VA. The US place many organizations on the terrorist list in order to limit their legitimate political, social and cultural activities to hold a pretext for prosecution of unwanted political activists who expose Palestinian condition to greater audience including Americans. I hope everything goes well for him and they let an innocent person to go free soon and to end the phony “war on terror” which has claimed many victims around the world. We should tell his story to everyone we know and follow his case closely to remember that his case is not limited to him and people like him. It can happen to everyone including Americans. Ms. Fleming:
Thank you for your humanity to bring Dr. Al-Arian’s case to this site.
The case of Dr. Sami Amin Al-Arian is very sad but it is not unique in American System of justice especially in the era of “war on terror.” Mr. Al-Arian believed he was protected under the US law. However, his case has proven him wrong because he values humanity and can not be salient about the condition of his fellow men, Palestinians, who have been brutalized and forced out of their land by the European settlers.
It is obvious that Dr. Al-Arian is not neither a terrorist nor a conspirator. If he was, then there could have been rooms for negotiation, like Mujahedin of Iran, MEK, a terrorist organization. Both US and Israel are in contact with MEK. The MEK has a long history of violence: they murdered several Americans during the 1970s; they were involved with the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran; they killed 70 high ranking officials by bombing the Premier’s office and the head office of the Islamic Republic Party in 1981; they helped the Iraqi government violently suppress Shia and Kurdish uprisings during the 1990s. Yet Mr. Jafarzadeh, front man for the MEK is free in the United States, was introduced by the Fox News Network as their independent Iran analyst, who is against Iranian government and the terrorist’s activity of his organization, the MEK, is useful for the US and Israel. Thus, he has enough cards to play the game, not Dr. Al-Arian who has no useful “knowledge” on which to negotiate with.
He is an academician who tries to inform American public how their tax money supports genocide in Palestine which does not go well with the authorities in Washington.
Al-Arian was sentenced to nearly five years in prison, after which he was to be deported. During the trial, the government presented evidence that Al-Arian’s think tank, World and Islam Studies Enterprise, received funding from the International Institute of Islamic Thought, based in Herndon, VA.
The US place many organizations on the terrorist list in order to limit their legitimate political, social and cultural activities to hold a pretext for prosecution of unwanted political activists who expose Palestinian condition to greater audience including Americans. I hope everything goes well for him and they let an innocent person to go free soon and to end the phony “war on terror” which has claimed many victims around the world. We should tell his story to everyone we know and follow his case closely to remember that his case is not limited to him and people like him. It can happen to everyone including Americans.

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