Four Things the Left Should Learn from Kobane

The Disorder Of Things

The Kurdish town of Kobanê has recently become the centre of a geopolitical conflagration that may well change the course of Middle Eastern politics. After months of silence over the threat faced by Kurds from ISIS, the world is now finally watching, even if the ‘international community’ remains conspicuously quiet. However, many Western responses, be it from scholars, journos or activists, have somewhat predictably retracted into recycled critiques of US and UK imperialism, often at the expense of missing what is truly exceptional and noteworthy in recent developments. So, in the style of contemporary leftist listicles, here are four things we can and should learn from events in and around Kobanê.

1. It’s Time to Question the West’s Fixation on ISIS

If Barack Obama, David Cameron and Recep Tayyip Erdogan are to be believed, the ‘savagery’ of ‘fundamentalism’ is the primary focus of NATO involvement in Syria. Notably, many left…

View original post 1,066 more words

The Nuclear Waste Scandal

What can be done with nuclear waste? Please, think about it!

The Most Revolutionary Act

Nightmare Nuclear Waste
(2009)

Film Review

In the face of growing international concern over the ongoing nuclear disaster at Fukushima, an excellent 2009 French/German film (with English subtitles) about nuclear waste has been re-released and is making the rounds of cyberspace. This is truly a life and death issue, owing to the research evidence linking high environmental radiation levels (from the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown) to a big spike in European cancer levels. Important facts come out in this film that the nuclear industry and government are doing their best to conceal:

1. The whole issue of nuclear waste is characterized by secrecy, cover-up, lies and deception by the nuclear industry and pro-nuclear governments (including the extremely pro-nuclear Obama administration).

2. As the world waits with baited breath for the nuclear industry to come up with a permanent solution for deadly waste that will take 100,000 years to decontaminate, massive amounts…

View original post 706 more words

This was published in the Guardian 2014, September 26

Please go to the link below if you want to see and read about these 10 objects that Neil MacGregor chose:

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/26/10-objects-made-modern-germany

Ten objects that made modern Germany
To mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and ahead of a British Museum exhibition, Neil MacGregor chooses the icons that shaped the memories of the new nation

It is 25 years since the Berlin Wall fell and a new Germany was born. In the last quarter of a century the country has seen an unprecedented opening up of archives and a programme of national education and much public debate about the different inheritances of East and West Germany. There has also been an unprecedented building of monuments marking the horrors of the recent past. But what are the memories that German citizens bring to their new state? What, in short, does the world look like if you are German?

At the forefront of that memory is the Third Reich and the Holocaust.

But there is more than that, and one of the ways that German history is not like other European histories is that Germans consciously use it as a warning to act differently in the future. As the historian Michael Stürmer says, “for a long time in Germany, history was what must not be allowed to happen again”. This is very different from Britain or France, where most public engagement with history, in terms of monuments and memorials, is to honour valour and heroism, with little public recognition of any wrongdoing, or of follies that might have led to the wars in which the valour had to be demonstrated. What is striking about German war memorials is that they look forward not back – a characteristic clearly visible in their parliament building.

The historic Reichstag was burnt out in 1933, with the fire blamed on the communists and used to advantage by the Nazis. During the war it was badly damaged, then occupied by the Russians. After reunification the decision was made to restore it, but the marks of the 1933 fire, as well as graffiti made by Soviet soldiers, were left untouched, as a reminder to legislators that if you get things as wrong as Germany did then the consequences are unimaginably terrible. An MP travelling to the Reichstag today will pass not only the Holocaust memorial but also memorials to the killing of homosexuals, disabled people and Roma. When they get to the building, they find it topped by a huge glass dome, to which the public have access. So not only do you have an emblem of a transparent legislature, but the public can literally exercise oversight over their government – a direct reversal of the situation under both the Nazis and the Stasi.

In effect the building is a meditation on different aspects of history. I can’t think of another country in the world that lives so closely with the acutely uncomfortable reminders of its past in order to help it act more wisely in future.

In making our radio series, British Museum exhibition and book we have tried to look at objects that evoke memories of which pretty well all Germans can say “this is part of me”. Some are obvious, such as the Gutenberg Bible. Every German knows that Germany invented printing and, in that sense, made the modern world. But we have also tried to focus on elements that the British public might not be so familiar with, as well as areas of German history about which there is still a reticence in Germany. People talk about the Holocaust very honestly and fully, but subjects such as the huge civilian losses from allied bombing raids are little discussed, unlike in this country. Yet it remains a potent memory.

It has always been the British Museum’s job to present the history we need in order to make sense of now. Germany is the European state we most need to understand if we are going to comprehend both Europe, and the world.

• Germany: Memories of a Nation is on BBC Radio 4, Monday to Friday at 9.45am, for six weeks from 29 September. The exhibition opens at the British Museum on 16 October, britishmuseum.org. Germany: Memories of a Nation by Neil MacGregor is published by Allen Lane on 6 November (£25).

Burqas Under the Bed – Fabricated Fear for the New Millennium

I think Jenni’s blog is well written with good links. Well worth reading to get a picture where we are at in Australia.

Unload and Unwind

Well it seems as if the new boogeyman of the 21st century is fully established. Instead of drumming up fear and paranoia at the idea of ‘Reds Under the Bed‘ as was done in the past our governments have now determined that all our fear focused hate should be turned in the direction of those who follow the Muslim faith. In short we should all fear the ‘Burqa Under the Bed‘ [courtesy of Yvette Scholtmeyer].

Regardless of the political tap dancing our world leaders use to present the idea that they are only interested in those who are extremist in their faith to the point of violence against others the facts are that they have stirred up a mighty brew of xenophobic fear and hatred. How easy it is to cast stones at those whose beliefs differ to ours especially when we do little…

View original post 740 more words

An Artist’s Eternal Message Of Peace.

I like this post very much. Thanks, Jerry! 🙂

THE ONENESS of HUMANITY

Posted on August 31, 2014

by Jerry Alatalo

“In short art is the education of nature. Thus, in its broadest sense, art is civilization. For civilization is nothing other than the unremitting aim at the major perfections of harmony”.

– ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD (1861-1947) British mathematician, philosopher

Musical artists have inspired billions of men and women through history. German composer Ludwig Van Beethoven said: “Music is a higher revelation than philosophy”. Writer Joseph Conrad called music “magic suggestiveness” and the “art of arts”. English man of letters Walter pater thought “all art constantly aspires toward the condition of music”. Irish writer Oscar Wilde on music: “Music is the art… which most completely realizes the artistic idea, and is the condition to which all the other arts are constantly aspiring”.

At certain points in history musical compositions have been catalysts for social change, and many stirring moments have been captured on film of huge gatherings of people…

View original post 292 more words

Action on Climate Change

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/southern-crossroads/2014/sep/16/peoples-climate-march-350-new-york-blair-palese

The People’s Climate Mobilisation — your chance to commit to real climate action
On Sunday 21 September, tens of thousands of people in Australia will join the global people’s march. Find out why from 350.org’s Blair Palese.
Share 133

inShare
0
Email
Members of Occupy Wall Street celebrate after learning they can stay in Zuccotti Park in New York
New York will be the focus of global “people’s marches” for climate action. Photograph: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images
350.org is a global climate organisation that has rapidly expanded to become a leading voice across the world for action on climate change. Blair Palese is the Australian CEO of 350.org, and she has enormous experience in fossil fuel and oceans campaigning. 350.org is one of the primary organisers for the people’s march on 21 September, and Blair has written this guest blog to explain why tens of thousands of Australians will be marching.

The People’s Climate Mobilisation — your chance to commit to real climate action

This weekend will see be the biggest public climate event in history. More than 100,000 people will march in New York alone and hundreds of thousands of others will join them on the streets of 150 countries around the world, all calling for climate change action.

RT @350: Exactly 1 week to the #PeoplesClimate March worldwide – Will you be there? pic.twitter.com/gjrPZVf9Ud

— 350Australia (@350Australia) September 15, 2014

This weekend also will see the heads of state from more than 125 countries, including Barack Obama and David Cameron gather in New York for a summit on climate change organised by Ban Ki Moon. This is the first time world leaders have come together on the issue since the landmark Copenhagen summit in 2009 and the UN Secretary General hopes the summit will inject new momentum to reach a global deal on cutting greenhouse gas emissions in Paris at the end of 2015.

Amazingly Australia’s our own prime minister, Tony Abbott, will be in New York for the UN Security Council meeting – no doubt to talk about war – but refuses to attend the Climate Summit. Although this may have come as a disappointment for the EU Commissioner for climate action, few in Australia are surprised as this government has already made its priorities and prejudices abundantly clear.

The fact that the Prime Minister of Australia, the world’s second largest exporter of coal, has chosen to shun this summit speaks volumes about why we need the People’s Climate Mobilisation. With global leaders so far failing to act in the world’s best interest to address climate change, it’s time for the global public to not only show that it is demanding change but that we will also act together to bring about the change we need.

People’s Climate events are planned in almost every continent in the world. In Bogata, Columbia, over 10,000 people are expected to join in a march through the capital calling for action. In rural Papua New Guinea, students from a primary school will march to a nearby lighthouse, recently semi-submerged due to rising sea levels. In Tanzania, the Maasai people plan to march, calling for action to protect their ancient homeland in the Serengeti. On the other side of the world, on the border between Vancouver and Seattle, thousands of people will link hands across the boundary to show that climate change knows no borders.

In Australia, an epic Climate March will convene in Melbourne with a group committed to walking 700 km along the eastern seaboard to Canberra, arriving at Parliament to raise awareness about climate impacts. There are over 30 People’s Climate events taking place in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and Brisbane, as well as on Magnetic Island on the Great Barrier Reef, in Alice Springs, Darwin and the remote mining town of Mount Isa. Organisations such as Get Up!, Avaaz, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, Our Land Our Water Our Future and the Leard Alliance are working nationally to organise and support large and small events alike.

One of the most impressive things about the day and the 2,000 plus events taking place across the globe is not just the individuals organising and taking part but the thousands of organisations – including unions, medical professionals, faith, social justice and community groups and those fighting for the rights of immigrants, refugees and indigenous peoples, that have signed on. The People’s Climate Mobilisation is about how we use this opportunity to build the networks we need to demand global leadership and real action on climate change.

Together, on Sunday, we’ll be calling for Action Not Words and we’ll be hoping to sign up hundreds of thousands of people to stand up for the planet they care about. Whether it’s divesting your bank, super fund, university or church from fossil fuels, supporting the shift to renewable energy at your home or in your community or taking action on the ground at places like the Leard Blockade at Maules Creek, the Galilee Basin or the proposed gas fields of WA, we all need to get involved to overcome the influence and dominance of the fossil fuel industry working to stop movement on climate change.

People around the world, and especially Australians, realise that we can’t leave the fate of the planet up to our politicians. We need to work together around the world, raise our voices, and apply pressure where it counts if we are going to see tangible change. This is why we are calling on all Australians, regardless of political allegiance, cultural background or profession, to join us on Sunday and show that, contrary to the opinions of many of our politicians, we DO care about the planet and what happens to it beyond our generation

Sea Level Rises

Sea level rises due to climate change could cost Australia $200b, Climate Council report finds

Lateline

By Hamish Fitzsimmons

Updated 25 minutes agoWed 17 Sep 2014, 6:18am

PHOTO: Sydney was named as one of the places which would be hardest hit by rising sea levels.(Karen Barlow, file photo: ABC News)

MAP: Australia

Future sea level rises could put more than $200 billion of Australian infrastructure at risk, a report by the Climate Council has found.

The report, Counting the Costs: Climate Change and Coastal Flooding, showed sea levels were likely to rise by between 40 centimetres and one metre over the next century.

The Climate Council succeeded the Australian Climate Commission, which was axed after the Federal Government took office last year.

The report’s lead author, Professor Will Steffen, warned national income would suffer huge losses if action was not taken to protect against rising sea levels and extreme weather events.

“You’re looking at anywhere from three tenths of a per cent of loss of GDP per year, all the way up to 9 per cent loss of GDP per year,” Professor Steffen said.

Coastal flooding report:

At least $226 billion of infrastructure exposed to flooding and erosion (with a 1.1m sea level rise), including:

$81b – commercial buildings
$72b – residential
$67b – road and rail
$6b – light industrial buildings

Source: Climate Council

“That upper scenario is higher than the growth rate of GDP per year, so you’re looking basically at staggering economic costs if we don’t get this under control.”

The Victorian coast, the south-east corner of Queensland and Sydney would be the hardest hit by rising sea levels, the report found.

With more than 75 per cent of Australians living near the coast, Professor Steffen said large swathes of infrastructure were at risk.

“Much of our road, rail, port facilities, airports and so on are on the coast,” he said.

“If you look at a 1.1 metre sea level rise – which is the high-end scenario for 2100 but that’s what we’re tracking towards – you’re looking at more than $200 billion worth of infrastructure that’s at risk.”

Professor Steffen said so-called once-in-a-lifetime natural events could become regular occurrences.

VIDEO: Watch Hamish Fitzsimmons’ report. (Lateline)

“If you look at some of our most vulnerable areas, and the Sydney region is one of those, you would say toward the end of this century that a one-in-100-year flood is going to be happening every few days,” he said.

“That’s an impossible situation to cope with.”

Professor Steffen said infrastructure projects, like the new runway planned for Brisbane’s airport, needed to factor in future sea rises.

“The people who are investing actually went to the best scientists here in Australia, experts of sea level rises, and took the best science into account and decided they were going to build that third runway higher than previously planned,” he said.

If sea level rises were ignored, by 2050 the report predicted the global the impact of coastal flooding would cost $US1 trillion per year – the same size as the Australian economy.

Climate change impacting insurance premiums

The Climate Council warned sea level rises would put pressure on home insurance premiums, as rising sea levels fed coastal erosion.

Australian Local Government Association president Felicity-Ann Lewis said erosion was already causing problems for home owners.

National infrastructure within 200 metres of the coastline:

120 ports
five power stations/substations
three water treatment plants
258 police, fire and ambulance stations
75 hospitals and health services
11 emergency services facilities
41 waste disposal facilities

“The insurance industry is very interested in this because some of the insurance premiums are becoming such that people can’t afford to take out insurance on their properties,” Dr Lewis said.

“This is a very big issue.”

Dr Lewis said a lack of coordination across all levels of government was impeding action.

“It’s a very mixed bag; there is no consistent view or approach for local government to try to deal with this,” she said.

“Each state and territory association is trying to deal with different guidelines; there is no consensus around that, so for us it’s a very big challenge.”

Food for Thought

http://macedoniaonline.eu/content/view/25981/53/

.”A letter sent by a prominent Dutch Professor to Russian president Vladimir Putin has attracted much media attention in Europe. The letter was written by Professor Cees Hamelink and signed by dozens of Dutch intellectuals and professors. Below is the letter in its entirety.”

http://oosterman.wordpress.com/2014/09/05/an-apology-to-mr-putin-food-for-thought/

Gerard Oosterman put this up after reading about it in Bob Ellises blog.

Here is the letter sent by Professor Cees Hamelink:

“Dear Mr. President Putin,

Please accept our apologies on behalf of a great many people here in the Netherlands for our Government and our Media. The facts concerning MH17 are twisted to defame you and your country.

We are powerless onlookers, as we witness how the Western Nations, led by the United States, accuse Russia of crimes they commit themselves more than anybody else. We reject the double standards that are used for Russia and the West. In our societies, sufficient evidence is required for a conviction. The way you and your Nation are convicted for ‘crimes’ without evidence, is ruthless and despicable.

You have saved us from a conflict in Syria that could have escalated into a World War. The mass killing of innocent Syrian civilians through gassing by ‘Al-‐Qaeda’ terrorists, trained and armed by the US and paid for by Saudi Arabia, was blamed on Assad. In doing so, the West hoped public opinion would turn against Assad, paving the way for an attack on Syria.

Not long after this, Western forces have built up, trained and armed an ‘opposition’ in the Ukraine, to prepare a coup against the legitimate Government in Kiev. The putschists taking over were quickly recognized by Western Governments. They were provided with loans from our tax money to prop their new Government up.

The people of the Crimea did not agree with this and showed this with peaceful demonstrations. Anonymous snipers and violence by Ukrainian troops turned these demonstrations into demands for independence from Kiev. Whether you support these separatist movements is immaterial, considering the blatant Imperialism of the West.

Russia is wrongly accused, without evidence or investigation, of delivering the weapons systems that allegedly brought down MH17. For this reason Western Governments claim they have a right to economically pressure Russia.

We, awake citizens of the West, who see the lies and machinations of our Governments, wish to offer you our apologies for what is done in our name.
It’s unfortunately true, that our media have lost all independence and are just mouthpieces for the Powers that Be. Because of this, Western people tend to have a warped view of reality and are unable to hold their politicians to account.

Our hopes are focused on your wisdom. We want Peace. We see that Western Governments do not serve the people but are working towards a New World Order. The destruction of sovereign nations and the killing of millions of innocent people is, seemingly, a price worth paying for them, to achieve this goal.

We, the people of the Netherlands, want Peace and Justice, also for and with Russia.
We hope to make clear that the Dutch Government speaks for itself only. We pray our efforts will help to diffuse the rising tensions between our Nations.

Sincerely,

Professor Cees Hamelink “

Reflections: UN Forum On The Culture Of Peace

I reckon to think about PEACE is most important. And not just think about it but actually doing something about it to keep the peace. Why can’t we all have governments who only want peace and not war?

Mirth and Motivation

“Peace is more than the end of armed conflict. Peace is a mode of behavior.” It is a “deep rooted commitment to the principles of liberty, justice, equality and solidarity among all.” Yamoussoukro Declaration

Reflections: UN Forum On The Culture Of Peace – UN Sec Gen, Ban Ki-Moon speaks

Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the UN – High-level Forum on the Culture of Peace, Opening session (Video)
Remarks: By H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations at the Opening session of the High-level Forum on the Culture of Peace.

The Culture Of Peace: 25 years ago, in Yamoussoukro, capital of Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), the concept of a global culture of peace was initiated by the UNESCO-supported International Congress of Peace. UNESCO declared that peace must be “nurtured through the dignity, rights and capacities of every man and woman.” Today, at the UN High-level Forum on the Culture…

View original post 897 more words

NO-BAG LADIES: FIRST WRAPPING-FREE SUPERMARKET OPENS IN THE KIEZ

Thank you. You have excellent ideas!

KREUZBERGED - BERLIN COMPANION

With each of us producing some 250 kg of plastic wrapping rubbish a year, it might sound like a good idea to stop. But how do you do this if almost every single grocery shop and every supermarket in town – including the organic ones – offers its products pre-packed and pre-wrapped in plastic?

For someone who grew up in the 1980s Eastern Europe, where practically every shop looked like an environmentally-conscious Bio-Laden with goods offered in big boxes, barrels or crates to be filled into own bags and baskets, it might not be hard to envision a solution: you do just that. But Sara Wolf and Milena Glimbowski, the women behind the new Berlin-Kreuzberg packaging-free supermarket Original Unverpackt (Originally Unpacked), could tell you long stories about trying to start trading with wrapping-free goods and often hitting another plastic wall.

After the massive crowd-funding success which brought them well over…

View original post 640 more words

Category: Uncategorized