Japan, one of the most technologically advanced nations in the world, recently stated that, by 2020, it intends to reduce emission levels by 15 percent. A number of critics argue that 15 percent is not enough - Japan must pick a higher target in order to set some global standards before climate talks that will take place in Copenhagen later this year.
Japan maintains that, with it's growing population, cutting emissions by 15 percent will require a number of sacrifices from the public, as well as from corporations - the Institute of Energy Economics said that the nation would struggle to meet its goal.
Despite the critics' focus on Japan, people should realize that, to help stall the climate crisis, a strong commitment to reducing emissions will be necessary from all nations that can afford it. Climate change is a global crisis and, even if Japan reduced its emissions by 50 percent, there would be little effect unless other nations did their part as well. A certain worldwide unity will be required if emission control is intended to help solve climate issues.
This Sunday at Rockaway Beach in Brooklyn, Todd P hosts a reeediculuss lineup for a free, all-ages acoustic, unamplified BBQ. Full lineup on BK Vegan featuring every band ever in Brooklyn, including our heros The So So Glos, fresh off the road from the BLK JKS tour, and my friends George and Tom in Javelin.
For homework in 8th grade I read a few chapters about Stalin's labors camps. That knowledge, combined with some aesthetics provided by Hollywood, made up my knowledge of Asian prisons. Recently, however, the sentencing of American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee to 12 years of labor has brought a lot of attention to North Korea's primitive and dangerous prison system. A recent article in Time discusses the shameful prison conditions and the experience the Americans are most likely to have.
It is estimated that only 50 percent of prisoners in North Korea survive their first year. This is due to starvation, disease, torture, and outright executions. The atrocities committed at these camps are "on par with Nazi concentration camps". Prison guards are regularly cruel, and a ominous aura of hopelessness lingers throughout most prisons.
Due to the media attention they have drawn, it is unlikely that Laura Ling and Euna Lee will experience unusually harsh conditions. They will probably be separated from the main prison population, and wont experience corporal punishment or starvation. That being said, going to a North Korean prison is hardly a walk in the park. There are a number of organizations working to get the journalists home as quickly as possible.
Leaving New York to bask in some cool shit was just what I needed. As you know, BLK JKS and The So So Glos embarked on four days of solid gold situations. Each show had mad energy and fans exuded their love and appreciation to BLK JKS and So So Glos during and after sets.
It wasn't all acoustic jam sessions and clinking pint glasses, however. I about wanted to run the car into a tree after sets, from the stench of sweaty boys, nasty socks and booze. On the way to Washington DC we encountered a disgruntled dreaddy in a rest area. He threatened to kick our ass for only offering $5 for his shitty burned house CD; dude was mad passionate about house music like it was his girl. Later that evening, around 3 am we ran the battery dead from blasting Danger Doom in the parking lot of one of the worst pizza joints ever (they put Indian food toppings on these giants grease slices of cheese; mmm day old chickpeas and spinach on a slice). Finally arriving in New York around 7 am, we said our good byes. There were single tears and long embraces... Not really, but have look at what went down. Stay up!
While you're sitting there
in your carbon-emitting monster going about a mile an hour, dreading the search
for parking, someone is coasting by you on the same
street, getting in shape, and causing no environmental harm. But what if you don’t
have a bike, and what if you’re afraid of it getting stolen...
Problem Solved! The Bike Dispenser, a new company started in
Holland has begun to place these odd looking bicycle dispensing structures near
train stations and commuter destinations. They have 180 locations around the Netherlands. Think of it
as a more sustainable zip car. All you have to do is put a little bit money in
the dispenser and you have a bike for however long you need it. When you're done,
bring it to any dispenser and simply put the bike back in.
It doesn't look like Ahmadinejad is going to lose to the more moderate, democracy-friendly Mir-Hossein Mousavi, but at least people are taking to the streets and apparently engaging in some harrowing debates. Check this Kerouac-style LA Times article that puts you right in the fray -- women on street telling Dr. Ahmadinejad: "Doctor, go to the doctor!" and yelling at each other to "Dance better" for Mousavi. Iran, really? Sounds like a party.
On a similar note, I just read this article on Dennis Ross in Haaretz. Dennis was a family friend from when I used to live in DC. The book he co-authored on Iran just came out and he's now Obama's US envoy to Iran. Haaretz quotes his book: "Tougher policies - either militarily or meaningful
containment - will be easier to sell internationally and domestically
if we have diplomatically tried to resolve our differences with Iran in
a serious and credible fashion."
Translation: inviting Iran to 4th of July celebrations is awesome as a diplomatic gesture, but it's also the type of diplomacy that Obama needs to extend before using military force. So far, Iran has not responded to various US attempts at diplomacy. Me on the other hand, I'm down to respond anytime to Persian cinema. Makhmalbaf below.
Above we have the newly elected leader of the right wing British National Party , NIck Griffin getting pelted with eggs. Last week the BNP beat the Labour party and now they threaten to have a legitimate voice in British Politics. Linton Kwesi Johnson (featured below Mr. Griffin) apparently saw this kind of shit coming. Raise your glasses everyone it's starting to feel like 77 in 09. The Clash's White Riot in the stream.
How can there be such Ignorance in an Age of Enlightment. I feel dirty even putting this shit up, but I think people should see what kind of crazy shit there is out there.
I'd be surprised if you'd ever heard of Hardin, Montana. This little town with a big sky, however, may take on an interesting role in the nation's Guantanamo Bay dealings.
In 2007, the City of Hardin built The Two Rivers Detention Facility with hope that the prison would create jobs. Whoever christened the Two Rivers chose a somewhat ironic name given the fact that, historically, Montana's rivers were key factors in the United States' western expansion, a movement that conjures thoughts of freedom and prospect. However, regardless of its imperfect historical allusion, Two Rivers has recently drawn attention as the first institution in the United States offering to house Guantanamo detainees.
With no prisoners, and thus no ability to provide jobs, Two Rivers is currently as empty as a ghost town. Accomodating Guantanamo's inmates would jump start the towns economy, but it would also mean that suspected terrorists would be residing in Hardin, Montana. The uncomfortably close proximity of the prison to the town has, not surprisingly, provoked some local anxiety.
In any case, the transference of international super-criminals from a shady military prison in Cuba to a comparatively innocent building in small-town Montana will only come about after long debates with extensive press coverage - but who knows, by the end of the year we may all be familiar with Hardin, Montana and The Two Rivers Detention Facility, the little prison that could, that despite its strange location and fragile character, won the respect of the American people and proved that it was mighty enough to restrain whoever.
A lengthy and bitter series of rallies culminated in a deadly clash between Peruvian riot police and Amazonian demonstrators on Friday. Native Amazonians had been blocking roads and protesting against the Peruvian government's movements into the Amazon with the intent of extracting resources, particularly oil and natural gas. The government has stated that the riches of the Amazon should be used to benefit the entire country. The Amazonians, however, take offense at the government's attempts to carve up and pilfer their ancestral lands.
The indigenous Peruvians feel neglected; their national leaders have, in search of resources, overlooked Amazonian cultural values. The government, on other hand, argues that the Amazonians, in not utilizing a valuable opportunity to aid the country's economy, put their own heritage before Peru's well-being. The essence of the governments argument lies in the fact that the Amazonians, with their out-of-date indigenous tendencies, have not conquered the jungle by a modern standard.
The assertion that undeveloped native land would be more prolific under the control of a comparatively advanced establishment is a fairly antiquated idea. In fact, it bears a resemblance to the argument that John Smith made 402 years ago when he landed in Virginia and decided that Native American land would be better off in the hands of the English. That conflict, however, was a complex struggle between two cultures that were removed from one another culturally, ethically, and linguistically - the fraternal conflict between the Peruvian government and it's Amazonian citizens is much more personal.
The violent protests on Friday left 54 people dead, 14 of whom were police officers. The fact that 150 demonstrators are still missing has sparked a number of conspiracy theories contending that police had killed more people than originally thought, and hid the bodies. This disturbing fight over natural resources both adds to the long list of problems generated by oil dependency, and also demonstrates an obsolete and civil-war-instigating ideology currently being employed by the Peruvian government.
Just came across this site that let's you paint your own music video. The song (and the design) is bit Starbucks, but the idea is hot -- participatory internet kitch. Gotta love that long time. [Link via VSL]
My friend Charles Yawson and I were recently discussing African barbershop art. He told me that in Ghana, "God is my Barber" is a common catch-phrase that applies to bald men. Amazing, right? But even more amazing is Phil Spector's mugshot (above) -- a far cry from the wigs he was rockin in that California courtroom before being sentenced to 19 long ones.
Mini tours are really neat. You get all the bonding, fun, and drunken nocturnal escapades but in a limited amount of time. You don't start daydreaming about pushing one of your tour mates down a flight of stairs backwards on mini tours. As of now, BLK JKS, The So So Glos and myself have been on a regional rampage; scampering along Boston, Philadelphia and headed to Washington DC. Both shows have been pretty dynamite, however, Philly has showed us a great deal of brotherly love. These photo's are from Kung Fu Necktie in Philadelphia on June 9th. The opening act was a awesome Philly band called Grandchildren, they needed 18 outlets for their set so check them out. Today is DC at Black Cat. More to come gang! Special thanks to Tiffany!
If you've been keeping up with the GO blog, you've probably heard about Janka Nabay, the father of Bubu Music in Sierra Leone. Bubu is a music that was popularized in Sierra Leone during a ten-year civil war in the 90s.
Long-standing war has a strange effect on culture. In Sierra Leone, the war sometimes causes a kind of cultural amnesia -- people abandon old ways and replace them with new ways. The process is progressive and healthy; but it can cause some people to forget the natural resources in their own history.
The natural resource of bubu culture can be seen in the photos above and below. These "bubu boys" blow into carberator pipes and bamboo shoots to create rich tones that give bubu its signature style. The technique of blowing tones comes from ancient Timini Muslim processional music.
In my search for Sierra Leonean music, I found a rare recording of Timini processional music. It was recorded on cassette in the 80s by a visiting peace corps worker. Bo Sabi Dance in the stream.
