By Alan Sears

One talk by racist American right-winger Ann Coulter gets shut down and the media fills up with columns, editorials, stories and opinion pieces about freedom of speech. Yet a concerted silencing campaign against Palestine solidarity that has included the federal government, Israel advocacy organizations and Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff gets virtually no critical media attention.

Costa Ricans have the highest standard of living in Central America including universal free education and health care and a social safety net of workers' unemployment  benefits and pensions that is the the envy of Central  America. However, these hard-won gains are threatened by the capitalist crisis, the implementation of  the Central American  Free Trade  Agreement and other pro- capitalist policies of the governing  social democratic  National Liberation Party.

By Harold Lavender

Opposition to the many negative impacts of the Vancouver Olympics was loud and clear as activists vigorously exercised their right to free speech in wide-ranging protest actions against the 2010 Winter Games.