Our day in court delayed
- Paul
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- 05 Dec 2008
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- 2 comments
Shopping kills
- Paul
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- 28 Nov 2008
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- 65 comments
A Wal-Mart employee in suburban New York died after being trampled by a crush of shoppers who tore down the front doors and thronged into the store early Friday morning...The 34-year-old employee, who was not identified, was knocked down by a crowd that broke down the doors of the Wal-Mart at the Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream, N.Y., and surged into the store. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital at 6 a.m.Link
One shopper, Kimberly Cribbs, said she was standing near the back of the crowd at around 5 a.m. on Friday when people started pulling the doors from their hinges and rushing into the store. She said several people were knocked to the ground, and parents had to grab their children by the hands to keep them from being caught in the crush.“They were falling all over each other,” she said. “It was terrible.”
Collectively Punished
Israeli blockade leaves the Gaza Strip in the dark.
- Staff
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- 10 Nov 2008
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- 17 comments
Much of the Gaza Strip is in darkness tonight as Israel continues to block shipments of industrial diesel fuel into the besieged territory. Israel began the blockade last week, in retaliation to Palestinian rockets fired from within Gaza. In a statement issued today, the Israeli Defense Ministry claims that despite the blockade, Gaza is receiving enough power from Israeli and Egyptian grids to operate at 75 percent capacity.
Within Gaza, however, the story is different. Most of the strip has been hit with “a total power blackout,” according to Sameh Habeeb, a photojournalist and peace activist living in Gaza. He adds that Israel has also announced a comprehensive closing of already-blocked borders, making any delivery of fuel to Gaza’s sole power plant impossible.
Habeeb describes the collective mood within the territory as “an amalgamation of fear, sadness and frustration.” He goes on to say that within Gaza, “no one is allowed to move or travel. We are always awaiting another bad day.” Despite efforts by the Free Gaza Movement with the cooperation of the Popular Committee Against Siege (PCAS), an international committee of activists and politicians that has been sending siege-breaking boats into the territories, Israel has refused to end its policy of collective punishment. It was only at the behest of Tony Blair, former British prime minister and present envoy of the Middle East Quartet, that Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak agreed to allow for a “limited resumption” of supplies into Gaza. Article 33 of the Geneva Convention explicitly forbids collective punishment, yet Gaza’s 1.5 million citizens are in darkness, paralyzed with fear at this very moment. When is the world going to organize in support of the millions of innocent Palestinians held captive by Israeli policy? When are Americans going to demand that our government stop bowing to lobbies, and revoke Israel’s carte blanche in the Middle East?
Seize the Opportunity for Change
In the wake of Obama’s victory, we must rise together and manifest a cultural shift.
- Sarah Nardi
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- 05 Nov 2008
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- 40 comments
Despite today’s euphoria, when Barack Obama takes office in January 2009, he will inherit a decidedly grim reality. He will preside over a culture of overweight, overwrought and overextended Americans who may not have the capacity to sustain the sense of hope on which we are now so happily drunk.
He will have to stride unflinchingly into the economic aftermath brought about by an overgrown model and preach measure and moderation to a country that has long worshipped at the altar of consumption. He will be singularly charged with purifying our toxic collective consciousness, with eradicating the seeds of cynicism, apathy and malaise. Once inaugurated, Obama is Atlas – the weight of the world and its future resting on the shoulders of one man. Now is the time for us to truly rise. To come together as a single entity of disparate parts working to recreate American culture and resurrect the American dream. Our hopes, our dreams and our strength cannot concentrate in the body of one man. It is our job, as cultural creatives, jammers and meme warriors, to truly seize this opportunity for change. This is our window. The world is listening.
We are hopeful, we are strong, we are alive. The future is up for grabs – it's time to make our move. What will we do to carry this momentum forward?
The scariest costume of the year
Little kid dresses up as a credit card for Halloween.
- Paul
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- 03 Nov 2008
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- 9 comments
'Adbuster,' James Stafford, blogs about a ten-year-old girl in his neighborhood dressing up in the ultimate consumerist costume.
"Yesterday, I saw the most spectacular Halloween costume. A little girl, about ten years old, was parading through my neighbourhood (engaging in glorified begging for junk food) whilst dressed in the most outlandish outfit. Her choice of costume? A witch? No. A ghost? No. An undead bride of Dracula? No. A hideously disfigured corpse? No. A credit card? Yes. Yes, you read that right. She was dressed as a credit card. A girl, about ten years old, dressed as a credit card. I really don’t know where to start. (I found an advert of this costume on Google, see below.) My first thought was: “That’s not a proper Halloween costume. There’s no blood, no gore.” My second thought was: “What kind of spoilt little bitch wants to dress as a credit card for Halloween?” Why the hell is a ten year old even interested in credit cards anyway? If a child of mine ever asked to dress up as a credit card for Halloween they’d be off to a foster home before they’d even finished their sentence. I'd also be handing myself into the police for failing to raise a child properly..."Read the rest here.
Meme Warrior Video Contest
Be A Part of ABTV's New Viral Initiative.
- Trevor
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- 27 Oct 2008
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- 0 comments
ABTV's new video contest is designed for the DIY filmmaker.
