Since 9/11, and the resulting Global War on Terror (GWOT), unconstitutional violations of both international and domestic laws have become all too common.

The United States has started two wars, both of which are approaching a decade in duration without clear paths to their end. Occupation, torture, extraordinary rendition, and high levels of civilian casualties have characterized these wars.

Within the borders of what has become known as the "homeland", violations of protected rights proceeds unabated, even in the wake of the election of a new, supposedly liberal president in 2008. Denial of habeus corpus, warrantless surveillance, watch lists, preventive detention, and "free speech zones" are now an indelible stain on the domestic political landscape.

Meanwhile, no one is held accountable for war crimes first recognized and applied at Nuremberg in 1946.

Voice of the Environment has written a series of articles on many of these subjects. These have appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, the Santa Monica Mirror, Common Dreams and hundreds of internet sites.

Why did the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allow mercury exposures from childhood vaccines to more than double between 1988 and 1992 without bothering to calculate cumulative totals and their potential risks?

Why was there a corresponding spike in reported cases of autism spectrum disorders (ASD)? Why did autism grow from a relatively rare incidence of 1 in every 10,000 births in the 1980s to 1 in 500 in the late 1990s? Why did it continue to increase to 1 in 250 in 2000 and then 1 in 150 today? Why are rates of ADD, ADHC, speech delay, and other childhood disorders also rising, and why does 1 in every 5 American children have a developmental disorder or behavioral problem?

Autism has traditionally been a disease of industrialized nations, at least until recent years. But not all Western countries have autism epidemics. Autism spectrum disorder is much more prevalent in the US than in countries that removed thimerosal from vaccines.

Does mercury in vaccines cause autism in children? A definitive answer remains elusive. Other possible environmental triggers include: mercury in fish and amalgam fillings, mercury and other emissions from power plants, pesticides, PCBs, flame retardants, jet fuel, live viruses in vaccines, and more. It is plausible that any combination of the above, with or without thimerosal exposure added into the mix, might cause harm to some fetuses and infant children.

Voice of the Environment is determined to play a helpful role in an ongoing investigation to get to the bottom of the tragedy of autism. Working with the California State legislatures Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism, the M.I.N.D. Institute (UC Davis Medical Center), and myriad organizations and individuals around the country, we hope to see an end to the autism epidemic and a sharp curtailment of ASD.

Cleaning up our farmlands by stopping the practice of "recycling" hazardous industrial waste by combining it with fertilizer ingredients and spreading it on our farmland.

In 2001, Seattle Times investigative reporter Duff Wilson broke the story that that every year thousands of tons of toxic industrial waste - including heavy metals, dioxin and even radioactive waste - are "recycled" into fertilizer. His subsequent book, which was short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize, was titled Fateful Harvest.

Common crops like lettuce, corn and potatoes are grown in contaminated soils and the poisons, including heavy metals, are then taken up into the bodies of our children. The federal EPA actually encourages this practice.

Voice of the Environment is working on several fronts—testing commercial fertilizers in California and Hawaii (the former regulated, the latter unregulated) for heavy metals, working with legislators to increase the safety of fertilizers (especially in the 46 states that have no regulation), and examining potential legal challenges where legislation is deemed unlikely to succeed.

We are also working to educate political and environmental leaders around the country to the dangers of growing food in soil that is laced with contaminants. Using our farmland as a repository for industrial waste is an unacceptable practice that must be brought to an end. Accomplishing this will take coordinated effort on the federal, state, and local levels.

Voice of the Environment is one of the organization’s leading this effort.

We've all read about how Wal-Mart sucks the commercial life out of America's small and mid-sized towns. But less is known about the harsh restrictions Wal-Mart other big box retailers place on free speech and other constitutionally-protected citizen activities.

The loss of the town square has had profound social and political impacts on our country. Where free speech once flourished on sidewalks, corporations now claim the right to decide when, where, and how citizens exercise their constitutional rights in mega-malls.

We took on Wal-Mart's restrictions on free speech and won. In February 2004, we prevailed in the state Court of Appeals San Francisco before a three-judge appellate panel. The judges maintained that Wal-Mart had falsely arrested eight free speech protesters and remanded their case to Mendocino County Superior Court for a jury trial. Rather than face a jury, Wal-Mart settled the case.

Over the past several years, pressure on Wal-Mart has increased. Citizen groups regularly protest new stores moving into their towns. Studies showing the negative effects of Wal-Mart are proliferating. Recently, the New York Times published an article on Wal-Mart employees and the welfare system; because Wal-Mart offers only scant benefits to its employees (while cheekily referring to them as “associates”), the public is forced to pick up the tab. Another recent article showed that other big box stores like Costco manage to be profitable without being stingy.

Voice of the Environment will continue to monitor Wal-Mart, including their recent attempt to flood Napa and Sonoma counties in northern California with new, monstrous “supercenters.”

Protecting the pristine agriculture of Mendocino County by prohibiting the growing of genetically engineered (GMO) plants and animals.

A genetically modified organism is a man-made, patented, organism created in a laboratory through genetic engineering. It is created when a gene from a totally unrelated species is shot into the genetic material of another species. Scientists worldwide now admit that the rush to sell genetically engineered product has put people's health, property and the environment at risk.

A genetically modified organism is a man-made, patented, organism created in a laboratory through genetic engineering. It is created when a gene from a totally unrelated species is shot into the genetic material of another species. Scientists worldwide now admit that the rush to sell genetically engineered product has put people's health, property and the environment at risk.

That's why 30 countries have banned, or propose to ban GMOs, including many European countries. In the U.S., Gerber and Heinz baby foods, Frito-Lay, IAMS Pet Foods, Trader Joe's and even McDonald's and Burger King are now refusing GMO corn, potatoes, and other ingredients. Contrary to industry contention, GMOs have increased pesticide use and produced significantly lower yields than natural varieties.

The citizens of Mendocino County placed Measure H on their March, 2004 ballot to ban the growing of GMO plants and animals. Despite being outspent 10-1, the initiative passed with a resounding 58% of the vote. Two other California counties—Marin and Trinity—quickly followed suit. Several others, including Humboldt and Sonoma, have anti-GMO initiatives coming up.

Meanwhile, the biotech industry—led by its trade association CropLife America and supported by the American Farm Bureau—is trying to “preempt” counties and cities from taking this matter into their own hands. They want state, and ultimately, federal laws that will force genetic engineering literally down our throats.

Voice of the Environment will work hard to support local initiatives banning GMOs. We will also do everything in our power to stop preemption of local laws like Measure H by the biotech industry, corporate agribusiness, and their allies in the California legislature.

Preserving California's remaining old-growth forests on non-federal land by passing the Heritage Tree Preservation Act.

Voice of the Environment has been committed to the fight to save old growth trees and forests since our inception in 1992. In that year, Voice played a key role in stopping legislation that would have greatly expanded cutting of old growth in the national forests of Montana.

This issue is not only about trees—it is about ecosystems and the overall healthfulness of our air and water, even our economy. Furthermore, it is our moral responsibility to leave a positive legacy of old growth forests for succeeding generations of Americans. Sadly, today, less than 3% of the native old growth trees of California remain standing. Across the rest of the country, the numbers are just as bleak, and are threatened to decline further due to the pro-corporate policies of the Bush administration.

The Heritage Tree Preservation Act (SB 1057/Perata) will protect all trees on nonfederal land that were alive before 1850 (the year California achieved statehood). Up-to-date information on the bill and what you can do to help it pass is available at www.ancienttrees.org and on this website.

Today, Voice is working with the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the League of Conservation Voters (CLCV) and thousands of California citizens to make this bill into law by the end of the current legislative session in 2006.