Julian Assange sighting & his punitive lockdown

• The 48-year-old Australian-born activist made a brief appearance at the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London on Monday, with his lawyers seeking to prevent his extradition to the United States. At the hearing, Judge Vanessa Baraitser ruled that Assange’s next hearing would take place on January 23. Assange is to take part in that hearing by video linkup.

Assange's friends and fellow journalists have repeatedly expressed concerns over a 'rapid decline' in the WikiLeaks founder's health since his imprisonment. Assange's health is believed to have deteriorated steadily since his confinement to the Ecuadorian Embassy in 2012, getting worse after he was jailed.

Julian Assange might feel forgotten but he is not.  None of us should ever forget him.  He took a bullet for all of us.  It's a monumental crime that he is locked down - particularly in solitary confinement with little access to family, friends, legal assistance and the freedom to take in fresh air and materials to help prepare his case.

The US & UK corporate regimes are trying to destroy him as a clear warning to others who might dare to blow the whistle on the corrupt capitalist system that now rules much of the world.

I look for every opportunity to pass on news about Assange.  It is a small thing to do but we must all do more to keep his case in the public eye.

• When I lived in Florida we used to visit the historic city of St. Augustine frequently.  Our dear friend Peg McIntire (one of the key leaders in the Florida Coalition for Peace & Justice) lived there on the beach.  When I couldn't afford to take my son Julian on a 'traditional' summer vacation Peg would invite us to her place for a week at a time so we could swim in the Atlantic and visit the local sites. 

St. Augustine is one of the few places in Florida that has some historical character.  Most of the state is highways, traffic, strip-malls, and tourist traps.  But St. Augustine (the oldest city in the US, a former Spanish colony during the 16th century) also has something very important - a very old fort that should be remembered for one primary reason - it served as a prison for Native Americans who were fighting the US Army for their very survival.

The Castillo de San Marcos is the oldest and largest masonry fort in the continental United States; it is located on the western shore of Matanzas Bay in St. Augustine. During the 1800's the fort was renamed Fort Marion.

The fort was used as a military prison to incarcerate Native American tribes starting with the Seminole—including the famous war chief, Osceola, in the Second Seminole War—and members of western tribes, including Geronimo and others of the Chiricahua Apache.

Apache prisoners at Fort Marion

In October 1837 Seminole chief Osceola was deceitfully taken prisoner by the Americans while attending a peace conference near Fort Peyton under a flag of truce. He was imprisoned in Fort Marion along with his followers, including Uchee Billy, King Philip and his son Coacoochee (Wild Cat).

The Native American art form known as Ledger Art had its origins at the fort during the imprisonment of members of the Plains tribes such as Howling Wolf of the southern Cheyenne.

In 1874, in what became known as the Red River War or Buffalo War, a group of Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche, Arapaho, and Caddo warriors fought the US Army to protect the last free herd of buffalo and to assert their autonomy. In the harsh winter of 1874 to 1875, many tribal camps were forced to surrender to various Indian agencies, and the presumed leaders of the Red River War were rounded up and sent to Fort Marion. From 1875 to 1878, 71 native men and one woman were imprisoned there.

• My point here is that the US government has been punitive toward those who rightly oppose its evil deeds even before the official founding of the nation in 1776.  Being locked up until death was the long-standing modus operandi of the 'Great White Father' in Washington.  It appears to be the current strategy when it comes to Julian Assange as well.  Destroy your worst critics and enemies.  Show no human kindness or mercy.  This is the tactic of a ruling elite that has long ago lost its connection to nature and the spirit world.  It reveals a deep sickness in this nation.

Bruce