See also Michael Leon Guerrero’s From the Ashes of Neoliberalism

1. CRITICAL/RADICAL PSYCHOLOGY DINNER

Thursday, August 14, 7 PM - time is tentative, location to be determined later.

RSVP if you plan to attend so I can let you know the restaurant location and any time change. Also, I need to know how many people are interested before I make a reservation. This is a pay-your-own-share event (not much grant money for this sort of thing!). It’s a dinner, not a meeting, to connect with like-minded people before descending into convention overdrive.

2. PROTEST FOR AN ETHICAL APA

Saturday, August 16, 1-3 PM in the park at the front entrance of the Convention Center.

Check the Ethical APA website for more details about this interrogations-focused demonstration and related events, including a possible time change:

<http://www.ethicalapa.com/2008_convention_demonstration.html>

3. CRITICAL PSYCHOLOGY ISSUES CONVERSATION HOUR

Sunday, August 17, 11:00-11:50 AM, Boston Convention Center, Meeting Room 103.

Thomas Teo and Dennis Fox will start off a general discussion (not read papers) about philosophical, political, stylistic, pragmatic, and other issues facing and sometimes dividing critical psychologists. Please help us all figure out where critical psychology is at, including how critical psychology and radical psychology (are they the same thing?) connect with social justice

If you let me know of other convention events of interest. I’ll send out an updated list in August and also distribute it through the RadPsyNet listserv (http://radpsynet.org).

Semi-Related Brag Note. As many of you know and have had a hand in creating, the second edition of Critical Psychology: An Introduction is now at the publisher’s, scheduled for February 2009 publication (co-edited by me, Isaac Prilleltensky, and Stephanie Austin). You can see the Table of Contents here: <http://dennisfox.net/critpsy/second_edition.html>. Perhaps there will be a brochure about it at the Sage booth.

Health Care for America NOW

Psychologists have moved to the center of this controversy for diverse reasons. First, the Pentagon’s stated intention to rely on psychologists rather than psychiatrists fits well with the American Psychological Association’s stated belief in contributing to detainee interrogations to prevent terrorism.

In stark contrast to these enforceable protections and standards [of laboratory animals], the American Psychological Association decided against adding enforceable standards for psychologists’ work with detainees. Why refuse to give detainees the enforceable ethical mandate of humane treatment that the code explicitly accords to laboratory animals?

Psychology prides itself as being a scientific discipline that is empirically grounded and open to questions. In addition to the other questions raised in this article, it is worth carefully considering the answers that the American Psychological Association provides for such fundamental questions as: What methods did it use to determine that “psychologists knew not to participate in activities that harmed detainees”? In addition, what methods did it use to determine that psychologists’ behavior would not, however unintentionally, depart from such knowledge?

Finally, the president of the American Psychological Association wrote in 2007: “The Association’s position is rooted in our belief that having psychologists consult with interrogation teams makes an important contribution toward keeping interrogations safe and ethical.” Over the years that the detainee interrogations have been conducted, what methods of assessment has the association used to determine that the interrogations have been kept safe, causing no harm to detainees, and what methods has the association used to determine that the interrogations have been kept ethical, in accordance with the detainees’ human and legal rights?

Read the the entire excellent article here:

American Psychological Association & Detainee Interrogations: Unanswered Questions

Deep flaws found in U.S. health care - International Herald Tribune

naked capitalism: Dani Rodrik: “Death of globalisation consensus”

Click here to join the Health Care for America Now campaign

Campaign for America’s Future has joined with other groups to forge a new coalition effort to solve the health care crisis in America. Health Care for America Now, a massive national grassroots campaign launching today, will organize millions of people to win a guarantee of quality, affordable health care we all can count on.

Health Care for America NOW

torture-nordic-psych-assoc-letter-to-apa

Dr. Henry Morgentaler is one of 75 Canadians to receive honours for their contribution to the country. 

The Governor General announced the new inductees on Tuesday after the names were recommended by an advisory panel.