From ysaeed7 at yahoo.com Fri Jun 1 10:33:02 2007 From: ysaeed7 at yahoo.com (Yousuf) Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 22:03:02 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Reader-list] Turkish folk musician in Delhi Message-ID: <38401.29108.qm@web51409.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Friends, this is highly reccommended: ======= Turkish Embassy in Delhi cordially invites you to A Journey of Turkish Folk Music by Muammer Ketencoglu Folk Trio Following concerts and a workshop will take place: 5 June 2007, 7 pm, at Banquet Hall, Hotel Ashok, Chanakyapuri 7 June 2007, 6:30 pm, India International Centre, Delhi 4 June 2007 (workshop) School of Arts and Aesthetics, JNU 10 am: a documentary film and discussion on Turkish folk music (followed by tea and snacks) 2 pm: interactive lecture-demonstration by Muammer Ketencoglu For more details about the musician, see: http://www.muammerketencoglu.com/index02.html ____________________________________________________________________________________ Expecting? Get great news right away with email Auto-Check. Try the Yahoo! Mail Beta. http://advision.webevents.yahoo.com/mailbeta/newmail_tools.html From indersalim at gmail.com Fri Jun 1 11:18:32 2007 From: indersalim at gmail.com (inder salim) Date: Fri, 1 Jun 2007 11:18:32 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] invite-performance ( part of Queer Fest 2007 ) In-Reply-To: <47e122a70705312246lf16ec15m1202244d6c4bc2d8@mail.gmail.com> References: <47e122a70705312246lf16ec15m1202244d6c4bc2d8@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <47e122a70705312248s6d850e8axac7bffba83683d49@mail.gmail.com> ( please ignore, if u got this mail already ) Dear all Ist of June 7 PM, an evening of performances. Part of THE QUEER FEST organized by The Nigah. http://www.thequeerfest.com/performance.html I am doing a little performance piece on Hazrat Sufi Sarmad Shaheed Sahib. Please fill the ATTIC with your graceful presence. It is Sansad Marg, next to People Tree, C.P. I have uploaded some image in my blog. Please visit http://indersalim.livejournal.com with love indersalim -- -- From cugambetta at yahoo.com Fri Jun 1 12:10:31 2007 From: cugambetta at yahoo.com (Curt Gambetta) Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 23:40:31 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Reader-list] us embassy in baghdad Message-ID: <612950.84433.qm@web56802.mail.re3.yahoo.com> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070601/ap_on_go_ot/baghdad_embassy_plans how absurd! and crass... a pool? clearly the bush admin has no intention of leaving any time soon... curt ____________________________________________________________________________________ Need a vacation? Get great deals to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel. http://travel.yahoo.com/ From hpp at vsnl.com Fri Jun 1 14:14:26 2007 From: hpp at vsnl.com (hpp at vsnl.com) Date: Fri, 01 Jun 2007 08:44:26 +0000 (GMT) Subject: [Reader-list] All-India Convention, Kolkata, on Nandigram & SEZs Message-ID: Dear Friends, Following the arbitrary cancellation by the West Bengal state govt of the booking for the All India Convention on 2-3 June at the Salt Lake Stadium (Yuva Bharati Krirangan) - this will now be held at Netaji Subhas Institute, Sealdah. This is at the foot of the northern end of the Sealdah flyover. On Kaiser Street, opposite Jagat cinema. Contact nos. of the organisers: Aditi 91 98301 76085 Krishna 91 98304 06870 Samar Bagchi 91 9433526839 Sumit 91 98302 49430 Vaskar Nandy: 91 94340 18621 Best V Ramaswamy cuckooscall.blogspot.com From shijusam at gmail.com Sat Jun 2 22:28:45 2007 From: shijusam at gmail.com (Shiju Sam Varughese) Date: Sat, 2 Jun 2007 22:28:45 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] on media and science Message-ID: <345848710706020958v22fb70bbk1bce120b60acf9ac@mail.gmail.com> Dear Friends, My third posting.. On Media and Science:Insights from a German Sociologist In today's world, mass media has a crucial influence in shaping reality at many levels. When we think about the role of mass media in contemporary science, it can be seen that the media is an important institutional space of negotiations between scientists and the public. Peter Weingart (1998. "Science and the Media". Research Policy, 27/8, December: 869-879; 2002. "The Loss of Distance: Science in Transition", in Garland E. Allen and Roy M. MacLeod eds., Science, History, and Socialism: A Tribute to Everett Mendelsohn. Dordrecht: Kluwer) is a German sociologist and philosopher of science who contends that there is a 'loss of distance' between science and different domains of its social environment. In his opinion there is a "close coupling between science and politics, the economy, the media, and law. These new arrangements have peculiar repercussions on knowledge production, on notions of true and false, certain and uncertain, and on the demarcations between science and non-science" (2002: 170). He points out that the media also have recently gone through a development very similar to science, in terms of growth rates and internal differentiation. The media has developed its own criteria and parameters like profitability and public attention to represent the world, and they construct their own reality in the same way as science does. Media becomes more and more pertinent in shaping public opinion and public perception of reality, and consequently the monopoly of science in judging representational adequacy deteriorates, and science's abstract criterion of truth is now being confronted by the media's criterion of public acclaim. Weingart argues that the importance gained by media in structuring public discourse led to the 'medialisation of science' as media attention is important for the contemporary science. The media provides space for science to communicate with a 'non-scientific public', and the recourse to the public serves the purpose of mobilising legitimacy with reference to securing the expansion of the boundaries of science vis a vis its social environment, as well as the settlement of conflicts within science. For Weingart the practice of pre-publication in the mass media and the scientific communities' attempt to achieve legitimacy through media in their competition for scarce resources are instances of medialisation of science and the close coupling between them. Though communication of science to the public is not a new phenomenon, the novelty here is in the form and intensity that emanates from a closer linkage between science and its social environment as well as the new role of media in observing this connection. It marks a changed configuration of science at the institutional and organisational levels. He stresses that the loss of distance no way implies de-differentiation or blurring of boundaries with politics and media. "In discourse about science", he clarifies, "the notion of truth does not disappear, nor it is replaced by the notion of power, or that of popularity, emotional appeal or others. The relevant sociological question is, however, if and in what ways the complex interrelations observed on the organizational level affect the differentiation between science and other social systems that has emerged over the last three centuries" (1998:181). Weingart's theorisation of the science-media coupling take notice of the changing nature of science and situate the public and media as playing pertinent roles in the contemporary, 'big science'. His conceptualisation of greater public criticism of and participation in science provides fresh openings for the democratisation of science, which is a political process that is part of the everyday life of citizens. Shiju Sam Varughese, 02.06.2007 From hpp at vsnl.com Sun Jun 3 12:56:06 2007 From: hpp at vsnl.com (hpp at vsnl.com) Date: Sun, 03 Jun 2007 07:26:06 +0000 (GMT) Subject: [Reader-list] All-India Convention on Nandigram & SEZs Message-ID: Dear Friends Pictures from the first day's session of the All-India Convention on Nandigram & SEZs (2-3 June) are accessible here: http://new.photos.yahoo.com/album?c=rimcegid&aid=576460762403418509&pid=&wtok=b84OsaD0THI0J7ayWm04aA--&ts=1180855325&.src=ph The Convention continues today, and concludes with a rally at Esplanade at 3 pm. Best V Ramaswamy cuckooscall.blogspot.com From jbnaudy at gmail.com Fri Jun 1 19:32:38 2007 From: jbnaudy at gmail.com (Jean-Baptiste Naudy) Date: Fri, 1 Jun 2007 16:02:38 +0200 Subject: [Reader-list] M6 D3 Abschlussball - WestGermany Message-ID: Manifesta 6, Department 3: Abschlussball WestGermany | SkalitzerStr. 133 | Berlin Abschlussball, Friday June 1, 2007 | from 20:00 till late featuring DJ bad ass - new weird america + new zealand indie classics. DJ Chris van Chrome - soul. You are cordially invited to attend the Manifesta 6, Department 3: Abschlussball, a party to celebrate the signing of the final draft of the contract by Robin Bhattacharya, Chicks on Speed, Samuel Dowd, Pia Fuchs (dt. ID v. Patricia Reed), Gaia Fugazza, Gabriele Gaspari, Ingela Johansson, Ralph Kistler, Magnus Liistamo, Lyn Lowenstein, Susannah Mira, Petros Moris, Can Sarvan, Alexander Schikowski, Anthony Schrag, Societe Realiste, Craig Smith, Jens Strandberg et Inga Zimprich. This carnivalesque party pretends to be the malignant colloidal soulless agonistic turbocurare oikotic emulsive anarcho-passive catho-communist real Ding, to be held at WestGermany tomorrow evening (into maniacal laugh, in deep echo). Network communications as well as the First Draft Contract available at: http://www.abschlussball.net/ Contact: m6.abschlussball at gmail.com with the support of Canadian Embassy - Berlin, Collegium Hungaricum, Bureau des Arts Plastiques -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070601/a980a389/attachment.html From shijusam at gmail.com Sat Jun 2 22:24:29 2007 From: shijusam at gmail.com (Shiju Sam Varughese) Date: Sat, 2 Jun 2007 22:24:29 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] On Media and Science: Insights from a German Sociologist Message-ID: <345848710706020954o2b57f39evf1cc9729e533a987@mail.gmail.com> Dear Friends, My third posting is on Media and Science. In today's world, mass media has a crucial influence in shaping reality at many levels. When we think about the role of mass media in contemporary science, it can be seen that the media is an important institutional space of negotiations between scientists and the public. Peter Weingart (1998. "Science and the Media". Research Policy, 27/8, December: 869-879; 2002. "The Loss of Distance: Science in Transition", in Garland E. Allen and Roy M. MacLeod eds., Science, History, and Socialism: A Tribute to Everett Mendelsohn. Dordrecht: Kluwer) is a German sociologist and philosopher of science who contends that there is a 'loss of distance' between science and different domains of its social environment. In his opinion there is a "close coupling between science and politics, the economy, the media, and law. These new arrangements have peculiar repercussions on knowledge production, on notions of true and false, certain and uncertain, and on the demarcations between science and non-science" (2002: 170). He points out that the media also have recently gone through a development very similar to science, in terms of growth rates and internal differentiation. The media has developed its own criteria and parameters like profitability and public attention to represent the world, and they construct their own reality in the same way as science does. Media becomes more and more pertinent in shaping public opinion and public perception of reality, and consequently the monopoly of science in judging representational adequacy deteriorates, and science's abstract criterion of truth is now being confronted by the media's criterion of public acclaim. Weingart argues that the importance gained by media in structuring public discourse led to the 'medialisation of science' as media attention is important for the contemporary science. The media provides space for science to communicate with a 'non-scientific public', and the recourse to the public serves the purpose of mobilising legitimacy with reference to securing the expansion of the boundaries of science vis a vis its social environment, as well as the settlement of conflicts within science. For Weingart the practice of pre-publication in the mass media and the scientific communities' attempt to achieve legitimacy through media in their competition for scarce resources are instances of medialisation of science and the close coupling between them. Though communication of science to the public is not a new phenomenon, the novelty here is in the form and intensity that emanates from a closer linkage between science and its social environment as well as the new role of media in observing this connection. It marks a changed configuration of science at the institutional and organisational levels. He stresses that the loss of distance no way implies de-differentiation or blurring of boundaries with politics and media. "In discourse about science", he clarifies, "the notion of truth does not disappear, nor it is replaced by the notion of power, or that of popularity, emotional appeal or others. The relevant sociological question is, however, if and in what ways the complex interrelations observed on the organizational level affect the differentiation between science and other social systems that has emerged over the last three centuries" (1998:181). Weingart's theorisation of the science-media coupling take notice of the changing nature of science and situate the public and media as playing pertinent roles in the contemporary, 'big science'. His conceptualisation of greater public criticism of and participation in science provides fresh openings for the democratisation of science, which is a political process that is part of the everyday life of citizens. Shiju Sam Varughese, 02.06.2007 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070602/945a1e3d/attachment.html From iram.ghufran at gmail.com Mon Jun 4 12:13:41 2007 From: iram.ghufran at gmail.com (iram ghufran) Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 12:13:41 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] An online film festival Message-ID: <6c6fbec50706032343y729edbc1k83d5dd694e64dcc6@mail.gmail.com> ================= DearCinema Fest 2007 ================= DearCinema, an online community of filmmakers and film-lovers is organizing an online film festival, the first DearCinema Fest 2007. Short films made on any format (including mobile phone cameras and web cams) may be submitted. The maximum duration of an entry should be not more than 30 minutes. An eminent jury will select the films for online and offline screening. Submission closes on June 30th, 2007. For further details visit: http://DearCinema.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070604/49e6f860/attachment.html -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From hpp at vsnl.com Mon Jun 4 12:21:24 2007 From: hpp at vsnl.com (V Ramaswamy) Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2007 12:21:24 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Public meeting, All-India Convention on Nandigram & SEZs Message-ID: <070d01c7a679$3142bf20$6301a8c0@Ramaswamy> Dear Friends Pictures from the public seesion at Esplanade, Kolkata, on Day 2 of the All-India Convention on Nandigram & SEZs (2-3 June) are accessible here: http://new.photos.yahoo.com/album?c=rimcegid&aid=576460762403602161&pid=&wtok=SsKjcRc7xmnr5pTeyeosOg--&ts=1180938127&.src=ph Among the speakers were: Vaskar Nandy, Hari Sharma, Siddiqullah Chowdhury,Vara Vara Rao, GN Saibaba, Pasupati Prasad Mahato, Dipankar Bhattacharya,Sandeep Pandey and Medha Patkar. Among the resolutions accepted by delegates: Punishment of those responsible for the Nanndigram massacre. Compensation for the victims. Scrapping of the SEZ Act.Amendement of the Land Acquisition Act. All projects must be approved by Gram Sabhas. For me personally, it was astounding and electrifying to see that a Muslim clergyman, Sidiqullah Chowdhury, has entered the public domain and the political space; brought together diverse groups, parties, communities and individuals, and especially from the weaker sections, with significant participation in all aspects by women; and shaken the all-powerful CPI(M) in West Bengal. Speaker after speaker complimented Siddiqullah Chowdhury and lauded his leadership of this movement, which is now an all-India movement against SEZ, and for inclusive economic development. Once again, Bengal shows the way ... Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee had been quick to label the grassroots mobilisation in Nandigram "communal". However, the truth is that the Nandigram resistance and struggle may prove to be a beacon of real unity and solidarity across communities - in this 150th anniversary year of the First War of India's Independence, and the centenary of the son of India, Bhagat Singh - to thwart the whims of the capitalist lapdog CPI(M). Speakers cautioned the public about possible attempts to subvert this unity by provoking communal disturbances. Best V Ramaswamy cuckooscall.blogspot.com From anivar.aravind at gmail.com Mon Jun 4 14:05:11 2007 From: anivar.aravind at gmail.com (Anivar Aravind) Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:05:11 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Please Endorse: Statement on Smartcity SEZ, Kerala Message-ID: <4663CEBF.2000907@gmail.com> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Dear Friends, I Request you to sent the endorsements to anivar at movingrepublic.org before 10th June 2007 You can also Endorse by Leaving a comment at http://smartsez.movingrepublic.org/statement-on-smartcity-sez-cochin-kerala/ . For More details on The Project You can call on Following Numbers C.K Raju +91 9446230270 Johnson +91 9447019546 Dileep raj +91 9447316701 Anivar Aravind +91 9446545336 Anivar Statement on Smartcity SEZ, Kerala ================================== The Smart City project in Kerala is yet another example of the way in which unjust economic development is being pushed as part of globalisation. We are particularly concerned that a Left government elected to power in Kerala on a mandate of questioning the infirmities of globalisation is now firmly on the same path – be it the approval for Smart City or the acceptance of ADB loans with all the attendant conditionalities. The Left is particularly open to criticism because it is exploiting the provisions of the anti-people SEZ Act (2006) to push neo-liberal reforms in places like Kerala while opposing land acquisition via the SEZ Act in every other state. We specifically oppose the Smart City project on the following grounds, and appeal to the Kerala Government to reconsider its decision to grant approval to this project. 1. By granting approval to the Smart City project – an IT/ITES-based SEZ near Kochi, the Government is deliberately making development a vertical process - by focusing and investing on a sector that by itself is the wealthiest. This is a deviation from a socialist ideology, whereby development is conceived to be a horizontal process, through which all sections of society can benefit. 2. Citizens in Kerala have been kept in the dark about the fact that Smart City is an SEZ. Besides not being transparent, the government has also allowed itself to be anti-democratic by: (a) not allowing a debate to be raised on the issue where citizens finally get to know the pros and cons and (b) not allowing the citizens to decide on the issue - which has far reaching consequences for all the citizens in the state. 3. The state in this case has acted on behalf of private capital against the general good of all people. This goes against its constitutional obligation to safeguard interests of all citizens. 4. Wealth creation in the information technology sector is not merely accumulation of labour. Its also based on exploiting international draconian legal framework of patents and intellectual property rights - whereby revenue is generated multiple times from a single labour. There is no case for such activity to receive public financial subsidies. We see no reason why the Smart City SEZ in Kerala has been granted sops of a 10 year tax-holiday and concessions in other forms of tax. 5. Smart City SEZ in Kerala is labelled an IT infrastructure project - a sector which cannot just grow with provision of exclusive space, because of its strong inter-linkages and connections with other sectors of economy. This will lead to unevenness in development of infrastructure and economic growth. In a society that is already witnessing the ill-effects of uneven development – with the highest reported suicide rate in the country – such projects that create enclaves of "prosperity" are against public interest. 6. The Government claim of "new opportunities" in the context is hollow as the project claims to create only 9000 new jobs per year for ten years. In a state that produces nearly 9 lakhs youth every year with training in software seeking jobs in the sector, such a paltry job creator does not deserve the support and hype that the Government has been offering. 7. The creation of Smart City as an SEZ is against the interest of the working class in Kerala. The rights of workers won over years of struggle – to unionise; for an 8-hour day; for tenured employment; for democracy at the workplace – all stand to be denied within the borders of the SEZ as these rights can be suspended by government fiat. In the long run this weakening of workers' rights will not remain confined to the borders of the SEZ. In the context, we, the undersigned, resolve to oppose the Smart City, an SEZ project in Kochi and demand that the Kerala Government immediately repeal the permission given to the project. Ashim Roy, NTUI Sandeep Pandey, Asha Parivar/NAPM Hari Sharma, SANSAD Medha patkar, NAPM/ Sangharsh 2007 Satya Sivaraman, journalist Faizal Khan, Asha Parivar/NAPM Sumit Choudhary, Kolkotta Bolan Gangabodhyay, Kolkotta Manohar Monli Biswas, BDSS Ashok Debray, Kolkotta Manoranjan Mahato, Jharkand Mukthi Morcha Harsh Dobhal, Combat law, HRLN Deepti D'sosa, HRLN Meena Menon, Focus on Global South, Mumbai Nilanjana Biswas, Bangalore Mdr Nagesh, J.P foundation Vaskar Nandy PCC-CPI(ML) Tapon Chakravarty, SJP Farid Ali, All india Minority forum Sirish Agarwal, AID maryland Sukakman Burman, SC, ST, OBC Development Society Sabyasachi Deb Diana Katyan Balu doori Mondal, WB Krishak Sangha kazi Mohd, Peoples Democratic Conference of India Surasri Chaudhury, College Lecturer Kolkotta G.N. Saiba, Revolutionary Democratic Front(RDF) Rupesh Kumar, Youth for Social Change Aditi Choudhary Michele Kelly Sumit Sinha, Bhumi hecked Prathirodh Samiti- Nandigram Shyamali Klastgir, artist, Kolkotta Samar Bagchi, Science & environment Activist, Kolkotta Chandan Sen Gupta, PCCCPI(ML), Assam Bipul Hazarika, PCCCPI(ML), Assam Pradh Sarkar, Nipirita Jatigosth Satmanay Samitee, Barakvalley, Assam Biswajit Das, CHORUS, SILCHAR, Kolkotta sandip Bandopodhyay, writer, kolkotta Willfred D, INSAF Rachana, Bhopal Group for Information & Actions Sunita Furman, Danish Books Jerry Dolly, Youth for Social Change Lakshmi. P, Youth for Social Change Meghna Sukumar, Youth for Social Change Satimath Sarangi, Bhopal Group for Information & Actions Rabin Chakrobarty, Kolkotta Tarun Basu, Freelancer Jishnu das Gupta, Students Consolidation Platform Dr. Tamonash Bhatacharya, Kolkotta Sampat kale, NCAS Pune Shakhyayan Chowdhary, Film Student, Aishee Sengupta, Student of Law Samir Sinha, PCCPIML Anir Bhattacharya, Akineham Patrika Upal Chakrobarti, Student, Kolkotta Tarisha Deb, Student, Kolkotta Soumitra Bose, CPI(ML) Sanjay Ghosal, Student, Kolkotta Pintu Roy, Student, Kolkotta Prosun Chatopadhyay, RDF V.Sreenivasan, PUCL, Tamilnadu Benny Kuruvila, Focus on Global South, Mumbai Anindo Banerjee, Praxis, Patna D.Leena, independent researcher, Delhi Pradeep Esteeves, Bangalore Milap Choraria Lenin, PVCHR -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (GNU/Linux) iD8DBQFGY86/F+jWtLmEaycRAgy1AJ4ubKxqgdZS0NNDuwLQyY+sn+0iFwCfVeZ6 eXKyiS4ojajauyiqM8tStY4= =kYY9 -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- From mail at shivamvij.com Mon Jun 4 14:48:37 2007 From: mail at shivamvij.com (Shivam Vij) Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 14:48:37 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Lord save the world: India TV is the No 2 Hindi news channel Message-ID: <9c06aab30706040218u346eb1fah65d99485c899ca76@mail.gmail.com> Sex, sleaze spell boom for Hindi channels Shuchi Bansal June 02, 2007 Business Standard http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/jun/02spec.htm Earlier this week when Rajat Sharma's Hindi news channel India TV grabbed almost 18 per cent share of the news market, top management teams in rival companies such as Zee News [Get Quote], Aaj Tak and Star News, among others, went into a huddle. Zee executives, it is learnt, spoke to TV Today managers who run Aaj Tak, and wondered if the two could jointly take steps to curb India TV's growing popularity. Star News' top brass, too, reviewed the threat from Rajat Sharma's channel which grew from 12 per cent to 17.4 per cent in the last six or so weeks. Tension ran high in the editorial and advertising sales team of competing channels with people pledging to quit the TV news business if India TV dislodged the leader. Such reactions, a bit alarmist, were understandable. Surprisingly, India TV, which inched its way to occupy the number two position and continues to sit there, is hardly celebrated for its credibility or content. Take a look at the kinds of stories that are helping it climb up the popularity charts. In the last few weeks, among its most watched stories was a private video of a starlet sauntering about her house in lingerie. Jahnvi, the aspiring heroine was in the news some time ago when she slashed her wrists during Abhishek Bachchan's wedding. The video, played by India TV (and refused telecast by others or so they claim), fetched the channel a 26 per cent viewership share and a court notice from Jahnvi. In the weeks gone by, it has aired stories with pulp fiction titles: "Masjid mein sex" (where couples are allowed into ancient monuments for a fee) or "Sex on the Rajdhani" (call girl in the first class train coupe). Snakes mating also made news on the channel as did stuff like "Joota bhagaye bhoot" and "Aurat bani maa Kali". Cold numbers show that viewers have given a thumbs up to India TV's tabloid-like content. Interestingly, people are not only watching it in larger numbers, they are spending more time on the channel. Those in the 15-plus age group are watching the channel for 42 minutes a week, much higher than 34 minutes that the market leader Aaj Tak clocks. Broadcasting industry's most acceptable television monitoring mechanism -- TAM -- shows that even its elite panel (households owning an AC, PC and car) has given India TV's popularity a leg-up by tuning in. On the other hand, a hard news channel like NDTV India saw its viewership slip by four per cent in the last few months. To be sure, India TV is not the first Hindi television network to have used tabloid-like content to get eyeballs. When former Aaj Tak executive producer Uday Shankar was driving it, Star News, the JV between ABP Ltd and Star India, did just that. In fact, media industry veterans indict Star News for starting the trend of blowing up the inconsequential. Among the first trivial stories that occupied Star News' small screen for four to five hours was "Mandir ka rahasya". The story focused on children who visited a temple and, mysteriously, never wanted to return home to their parents. That week in 2005, Star News displaced Aaj Tak from the number one position. Not one to go down without a fight, Aaj Tak came up with "Yamraj se mulakat" where a dead man came alive and recounted his experiences after death. "That was the beginning of the battle for eyeballs and 'naag, nagin, bhoot-preyt' started surfacing on news channels," says a former Aaj Tak producer, adding "racy tabloid content on news TV became common". However, at the same time India TV was taking the definition of "tabloid" content a little further. It not only conducted a sting operation on Bihar politicians' sexual escapades at Delhi's Bihar Bhawan but also aired explicit visuals. Little surprise, then, that media observers hold Hindi news channels collectively responsible for tabloidisation of content. Says Starcom Mediavest's CEO (South Asia) Ravi Kiran: "Pulp and sensationalism are dominant across news channels. News may be the fourth or the fifth element in their content plan after crime, sex, violence etc." Agrees TBWA India's senior vice president, Gopinath Menon: "Hindi news channels are straddling the entertainment space." India TV's CEO Chintamani Rao, formerly a media specialist with McCann-Erickson, is unruffled by such criticism: "People watch what is relevant to them and it is they who decide what is relevant. In a free competitive market, they choose and buy products and brands they prefer. The same applies to TV news," he says. To be sure, sex, sleaze and the slight are driving content on Hindi news in general. But Zee News editor Raju Santhanam would have you believe that sleaze is a subjective term. "What was sleaze earlier is news today. The kind of stories that appear in print today would be defined as sleaze 10 years ago. TV channels too can't remain unaffected by the changing environment." While not all content on news channels is crass, it is, more often than not, flimsy. A senior news channel executive says that most players are weaving content around the four Cs: crime, cinema, comedy and cricket. High viewership of Sansani on Star News and ACP Arjun on India TV clearly show that crime sells. Two weeks ago, Star News' top rated show was not one of its bulletins, but Parde Ke Peeche Kya Hai -- the behind-the-scenes story of Vivek Oberoi' new film Shootout at Lokhandwala. Rao rubbishes the allegation that India TV airs sleaze, adding that "sex, crime and supernatural sell and so does violence on TV, newspapers, magazines, movies, books, the Internet. . . " Psychiatrist Sanjay Chugh, too, isn't surprised by the popular vote to tabloid content on news TV. "Horror, superstition, sleaze, crime has always been part of our life. The only difference is in numbers. What came in spurts, is rolling now," he says. The trivialisation of Hindi news TV content stems from severe competition in the genre. There are at least eight major Hindi news channels fighting for the Rs 550 crore (Rs 5.50 billion) advertising pie growing at 20 to 23 per cent a year. Santhanam says there is increased pressure on channels to deliver ratings to generate revenue. "We don't have the luxury of being a public broadcaster where numbers don't matter. The challenge before a news channel is to keep its reputation ahead of rating. It is a tough call." Unfortunately, sometimes reputation is sacrificed for rating, he adds. Needless to say, in the numbers game, news broadcasters need to generate consumer stickiness to their channels through non-newsy spice dressed as news. According to ABP Ltd (which runs Star News) CEO Pramath Sinha, some broadcasters may be under a different kind of pressure. "The new players have raised money from investors who may want quick returns to cash out. News does not give such fast returns, so you have to show numbers." Besides, the distribution cost of a news channel is very high. Having spent Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million) to Rs 30 crore (Rs 300 million) a year on distribution, there is little money left for investment in programming. "So channels resort to cheap programming," says Sinha. Compelled to drive viewership, channels hire stand-up comedians, invite astrologers to the studio for viewer phone-ins and put up dance and music shows. While light content gets viewers, do advertisers fall for such "news"? Chintamani Rao says yes. Advertisers are already moving into India TV. Among a slew of local advertisers are major brands such as Tata Motors [Get Quote], Coca Cola and Amul. However, news is a not a rational game as you don't buy it for numbers. "The channels are bought for their image," says TBWA India's senior vice president (media) Gopinath Menon. Agrees Ravi Kiran: "Advertisers look at brand fit. They will not advertise in an environment that doesn't suit them." Hindi news channels have eroded their own brand equity by under-selling themselves. "There was a time when DD's news bulletin sold a 10-second spot for Rs 90,000. The category has degraded itself." While that could be a function of DD's monopoly then, Menon makes a point when he says that today channels follow a marketing and not an editorial model. "There are no benchmarks, no rules for content," he adds. But that is set to change. And it must, say media observers. "If I show a film on a news channel, it will get eyeballs. The question is what you want to do. Viewers may be watching your content, but they are certainly not defining it," says the CEO of a Hindi news channel. Adds Rao: "Viewership is voluntary. If people wanted serious news, DD News would have been the most watched channel." TV Today's executive director G Krishnan, while refusing to comment on India TV ("It is not our competitor. We are in the news business," he says), points out that some serious news channels are slipping not because of content but poor presentation and packaging. "You must remember that the Hindi audiences needs some masala." ________________________________ The Regional Divide Sex on the Rajdhani or in the Masjid will not find takers in Bengal, Kerela or even Andhra Pradesh. "The kind of stuff you see on Hindi news channels is peculiar to the North or, say, the Hindi-speaking belt," says Sanjay Salil, a broadcast media consultant. Salil has studied these markets as he's putting up news channels in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and the North east. "In these markets, sleaze on news doesn't sell." Agrees Star News' business development head Barun Das: "There will be a furore in West Bengal if we put out what the Hindi news channels show." Das should know. He looks after Star Ananda, the ABP and Star JV's Bangla news channel. There are four news channels in West Bengal and none seems to be competing with the Hindi news channel content. Again, Kerala has four news channels. "Their storytelling may evolve but they are unlikely to go for 'tamasha'news of Hindi channels even when competition comes in," feels Salil. But with Rajat Sharma now eyeing the Gujarati news market, will the rules of the game change? ________________________________ However, the news broadcast industry is pausing to give its content some thought. Informal discussions have been on among the Hindi news channels to form an ethics committee and create an ombudsman to do content audit for channels. The information and broadcasting ministry, too, is revising the content code for television. ________________________________ Cracking The Code The information and broadcasting ministry is revising the programming code for TV channels. The review committee, set up more than 15 months ago and comprising people from different sections of society (NGOs, government officials, FICCI members, Film Guild representatives, advertising industry bodies etc), met yesterday to modify the existing programming code. The revised code will spell out details on how sex and nudity, crime and violence can be depicted on the small screen. Explicit visuals of sexual activities and complete nudity will be banned. Crime shows will be allowed but crime cannot be glamorised. Programmes promoting superstition or the occult will not be allowed and "Adults Only" content can be aired post 11 pm. The revised code, part of the Cable Television Networks Regulation Act, is also expected to incorporate rules for news channels which, media representatives feel, may stifle their freedom. "People may think that we just sit here doing nothing, but we do keep an eye on all the TV channels. There is a long process which involves the nod of an inter-ministerial committee," says a senior I&B official. The existing guidelines state that TV programmes must not show obscenity or "encourage superstition", which Hindi news channels happily do. "We send notices for such programmes. Often, news channels hide behind the garb of educating and informing people," says the I&B ministry official. With the committee spelling out the details, the ministry should have fewer reasons to fret. "What constitutes obscenity will be explained. The revised code will encourage self-regulation as we have no desire to be 'thanedaars' or the moral police," says the official. The much awaited Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC) will also come up. "Currently, we informally divide channels to watch among our section officers. Now we will have at least 50 people monitoring them round the clock," he says. ________________________________ Some channels have resorted to introspection and realigned their strategies. Henceforth, Star News will focus on the social aspect of news. Last week it started a consumer affairs programme called Main Hoon Na. "Another pilot of a programme on similar lines is on the cards. We will do a reality show with a social conscience," says Sinha. IBN 7's managing editor Ashutosh (he does not use his surname) claims that the channel tweaked its positioning and content some months ago. It got out of the race for the frivolous to focus on hard news. "In the last six months, we've seen 100 per cent growth (from 6 to 13 per cent) on the back of serious sting operations on corruption among MLAs and spiritual leaders, among other things." The view is that tabloid news is a short cut which eventually does not make much headway. Star News tried it and succeeded up to a point. "It got viewers but advertisers did not follow," says an industry observer. Clearly, the way forward is segmentation between hard news and tabloid news channels. In any case, if Hindi news content on the small screen does not change soon, there will be a consumer rejection of news channels, warns Ravi Kiran. He speaks from experience of holding focus group discussions for his advertisers. Adds Zee News' Santhanam: "Most channel heads are hoping that viewers will get back to news and that news will give us ratings. It's a challenging time for Hindi news channels." From balthassar at gmail.com Tue Jun 5 01:54:51 2007 From: balthassar at gmail.com (Fahad Mustafa) Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 23:24:51 +0300 Subject: [Reader-list] JNU and its discontents Message-ID: <5047ec820706041324j425b3936r6dde23b445809f6e@mail.gmail.com> ** *Following is a blog-post from **http://jnuchronicles.blogspot.com* *. The author who, referred to in my post on JNU **here* *, describes himself as a liberal and hates "the left ideology of branding any non lefty as a right winger". * ** *Interestingly, his "discontent" with JNU, by his own admission reflects a on a divide between the Science and the Arts and Humanities courses. This perhaps has something to do with the fact that many students who study Science at JNU (or any other university for that matter) are or were aspirants for an engineering degree from an IIT or likewise... * ** *The Sanctuary* There is a very little known sanctuary in New Delhi. It is a home for a variety of birds, Neelgais, civet cats (according to the Anandbazzar Patrika) and dodos. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, dodos, albeit of the ideological variety. Booze fuelled Marxists and pot fired Maoists. Wondering where this place is? Well, you know that for sure; in fact you might have been there sometimes as well. Its called JNU, the "Jawaharlal Nehru University". Want to take a tour of this mystical place? You will need a guide for that. I am always at your service for that purpose. But before you accept my services, let me tell you something about myself. Call me "the spectator", for I am rather detached from campus politics. I belong to one of the few non-communist Schools of the University, come from a middle-class background and can be loosely described as an individualist or a libertarian. I am a 'sciencee' proper and don't know much about Political "Science". If you have still retained my services after learning all this, then let's start the tour. I am sure that the Neelgais and the civet cats you'll handle on your own; so let me begin with the dodos and their highly interesting and at times thoroughly outrageous activities. They are collectively known as communists, Marxists, commies, etc., but thinking them as a "collective" is the first big mistake that an outsider makes. Their internal struggles are as intense as their struggle against the 'class enemies'. A most interesting phenomenon is the suitability of the environment of this sanctuary for their survival and procreation. While the world over this species is either extinct or on the verge of extinction, their population in JNU has increased to such an alarming extent that the niche called the "political space" has been completely monopolized by them. The dodos can be broadly classified into three subspecies. On the extreme right is the SFI-AISF (Students Federation of India-All India Students Federation). Once the dominant subspecies, nowadays their dominance is being undone by the activities of their "godfather" CPI(M) in West Bengal. Though absolutely nauseating in their home ranges of West Bengal (and maybe in Kerala as well, but I don't know for sure), here they exist as peace-loving herbivores. The midsection is marshalled by AISA (All India Students Association), the second subspecies. They are known for their sense of balance, tightrope walking skills and the skill of making the most of any given situation, and creating situations which they can make most out of. The third, and the most aggressive sub-species, which inhabits the far-left corners of the political space, is the most ironically named DSU (Democratic Students Union), the 'more radical than thou' banned young guns of a banned naxalite outfit who do not believe in democracy altogether. Visitors are cautioned that this particular sub-specie is extremely aggressive and can explode with dire consequences at the slightest provocation. Let me show you some of their antics. They have brought out a pamphlet (unsigned, as usual) regarding the soon to be conducted re-elections for the post of Councillor of the School of Social Sciences, and I quote: "Nandigram has exposed the anti-people nature of *all* parliamentary forces, and *all*forms of parliamentary politics" (the italics aren't my addition, the are so in the pamphlet as well). While this statement is detestable, what follows is darkly comical- "Its time we vote politically…Let's make a choice now…and decisively vote against parliamentarism, its practitioners, its defenders, and all those who try to justify this oppressive system." The pamphlet concludes by urging the people to "Vote and Elect VANESSA for the SSS Councillor". I don't know if someone has ever tried to explain to them that if you are against parliamentary democracy, you boycott elections, not contest them. Or that if it weren't for the (relatively) liberal democratic system that governs this country, being 'underground' wouldn't have been fashionable (everyone knows who they are), but necessary. They should be thankful that they haven't been thrown into a dungeon in some concentration camp for dissidents, which was a standard practice in the nations ruled by their beloved leaders. I am surprised at the extent to which they can go and yet get away scot-free. Sometime back, they have started a movement deploring the move to create digital archives for the School of Arts and Aesthetics with corporate funding. The project is supposed to be supported by the TATAs or by the Ford Foundation or some other corporate donor. Now, the DSU has problem with anything and everything that is not named "Peoples Revolutionary XYZ" or something similar. But it does it give them the license to level baseless allegation against anyone at will? Sample this poster (again unsigned, bearing only the name of the organization), "The Ford Foundation, in close collaboration with the CIA, has been at the forefront of the capitalist and imperialist propaganda in the Post-War period, especially in third world countries… Why is Ford Foundation interested in funding campuses? To own, control, commodify, and market knowledge, education, art and culture. Particularly in the field of art and culture, to 'preserve' and marginalized (sic) art forms as dead artifacts that no longer evolve, a museum exhibit with no dynamism, no living relevance… Funds from the state for education are rolled back at the behest of the World Bank and the 'philanthropic' imperial foundation it spawns. The government refuses to fund education on the pretext of lack of funds. Then Ford and assorted fronts of imperialist institutions step in and offer funds. They may not make us pay for the archive, dictate terms to us immediately, or try to influence our research right now…but they have deep pockets and long term plans. What they 'give' they take back many times more." I don't know much law, but instinct says that this is enough for a libel suit. Along with the poster, a pamphlet (again unsigned) dated 8th April 2007 was published under the heading "Of funds and foundations: What is wrong with corporate funding in education and research?" Excerpts from that pamphlet "From a reading of the history of 'philanthropic' international intuitions, be it Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Bill Gates Foundation and the likes, it is apparent that that they have worked worldwide, closely with imperialist regimes in the post-War period to propagate and legitimize the worldwide hegemony of imperialism, particularly U.S. imperialism… International monetary institutions such as the World Bank, IMF, WTO; foundations, NGOs…have been used to buy out and silence voices of dissent, to destroy resistance. Peoples movements have been subverted and replaced with the NGO brand of 'conflict management' between the oppressor and the oppressed… Three particularly oppressed sections of the Indian society: women, dalits and adivasis have been particularly targeted by these foundations for funding. This is because all three are important components of a movement for basic change in society." Thankfully, the pamphlet does not mention other social sections/groups as alternative recipients for funding so that their constituency is not encroached upon. If the most oppressed and underprivileged are not to be helped, then who are? Sounds like abusing the firemen for putting out a fire, which would have fetched a large insurance amount ONLY if it had burned down the house completely and killed at least half the occupants in the process. So this was the DSU. If you are asking how are they surviving in the heart of civilization, then I'm sorry to say that I don't have an answer. As I said earlier, the environment of this sanctuary is particularly conducive to their survival. Perhaps because it is the only University in the country (except the wild east cowbelt) where you can accuse the VC of embezzlement (without proof), hold the Registrar hostage for hours in the most humiliating fashion and get away with it. More of that later. -- Fahad Mustafa 26 Narmada Apartments Alaknanda New Delhi, 110019 Phone:+91-9818893784 **** ragon mein daudtey rahney ke ham nahin qayal jo aankh se hi na tapka woh lahoo kya hai http://www.nomadings.blogspot.com/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070604/b056b796/attachment.html From mail at shivamvij.com Tue Jun 5 19:15:38 2007 From: mail at shivamvij.com (Shivam Vij) Date: Tue, 5 Jun 2007 19:15:38 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Urban Delhi meets country cousins Message-ID: <9c06aab30706050645g73f804fcjaa10a373a201e057@mail.gmail.com> Urban Delhi meets country cousins Neha Lalchandani TIMES NEWS NETWORK / 5 Jun, 2007 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Urban_Delhi_meets_country_cousins/articleshow/2098329.cms NEW DELHI: It isn't easy to shake the Delhiite's phlegmatic self-absorbtion. But the Capital's urban cocoon was shattered on Monday when the Gujjars hit the town. Agitated mobs, driven by the force of caste interests, lathis in hand, made the city feel vulnerable. The Gujjars who torched buses, clashed with police and turned the office-goers morning into a heated crawl displayed the power of community bonding coupled with a readiness to impose themselves onto the heart of urban Delhi, its new economy extention of Gurgaon and the eastern enclaves of Noida and Ghaziabad. In a swift, military move, Gujjars sniped Delhi's arteries. Suddenly, it was not about newspaper headlines about some people wanting a change of status, from OBC to ST, which sounded distant and quite unrelated to the urban cycle. Meenas and Gujjars killing each in Rajasthan, though only a few hours away, sounded far-away and not "my problem." The gunshots that reverberated in Lalsot in Rajasthan's Dausa district, had found an echo in Delhi as Gujjars, an agressive community, took to the streets. In the last one week, slogans on the back of buses like "sherni Gujjar ki" came to mean more than quaint trivia to residents of Delhi's leafy colonies. Drawing rooms with split a/cs learn't all about Gujjars. "People in Delhi are politically indifferent. Even when agitations happen, it is just the disruption to their lives that bothers them, not the cause per se. Only when it hurts directly, like reservations or demolitions and sealings, do they react," said Dr Anuja Agarwal, sociologist. Delhi, as the capital of the country, is the hub of political activity but it is not often that the city is held ransom by a particular community. "Gujjars were just another community. Truthfully, I would not have given them a second thought. Even when the rioting started in Rajasthan, it didn't really matter to me but when they took over the city on Monday did I realise how important it had become," said Sayali Mathur, a DU student. The previous two agitations the city witnessed in the recent past have been different. For many, the quota protests had a PLU factor and the traders' agitation found its sympathisers. Though not on the same scale, Gujjars reminded citizens of the 1991 Mandal stir and the even earlier "kisan" rallies of Devi Lal. In teh mid-80's Delhi came to fear Devi Lal's anti-Rajiv Gandhi mobilisations which saw rallyists "capture" India Gate. Delhi's urban indifference is hardly unique, said sociologist Pratap Bhanu Mehta. "Such a reaction holds true for all places — from metros to rural areas. Why would anyone bother if the issue doesn't concern them. The engagement of the middle class with mass politics is increasingly diminishing but it is nothing peculiar to Delhi. Each group keeps to itself which is why it is impossible to create any coalition," he said. Agreed Dipankar Gupta of JNU. "Delhi is the Capital city so everyone turns up here for greater visibility. Why should we react to each and everything even when it does not affect us," he asked. neha.lalchandani at timesgroup.com From mail at shivamvij.com Tue Jun 5 20:29:57 2007 From: mail at shivamvij.com (Shivam Vij) Date: Tue, 5 Jun 2007 20:29:57 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow Message-ID: <9c06aab30706050759p6cd46831s9ff0420e77f878b1@mail.gmail.com> Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow By Kamna Mathur http://www.dailyindia.com/show/145852.php/Devotees-offer-cigarettes-at-Captain-Babas-mausoleum-in-Lucknow Lucknow, June 1: Though smoking or drinking at any religious place can offend many believers at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow, offering cigarettes is a gesture of respect. It is believed all prayers can be answered on lighting cigarettes a-la joss sticks. And, a large number of Hindus and Muslims do so while visiting this sacred mausoleum here. Everyday, hundreds of cigarettes are offered by devotees who visit this place to seek blessings of Captain Baba. "One of my uncles told me that many of his wishes were fulfilled once he visited Captain Baba's shrine. I accompanied him on the first occasion. Now, I am regular visitor. All wishes are fulfilled here", said Ram Gopal Pal, a devotee. It is said Gore Baba alias Mohammad Ashim, worked as Captain in the British Army when the British ruled India. He died during the uprising of 1857. But he had a special liking for the "Capstan" brand of cigarette. After his death, a mausoleum was built and today it is revered as "Captain Baba's Dargarh". As he was known for smoking cigarettes, the followers started a convention to offer the same at his mausoleum.The devotees bring this particular brand as their expression of affection for the Baba. Gore Baba was a highly respected person and some believed he had divine qualities. Later, admirers started calling him Captain Baba. Every Thursday, there is a big rush at Captain Baba's mausoleum and all visitors, irrespective of caste or creed, come along their cigarettes. "We have deep faith in Baba. He is near to God. However, we are just his devotees who come here to seek blessing for ourselves and our children," said Aquil Ahmed, a devotee. 'After lighting the cigarette, I express my desires to Baba. The wishes are fulfilled, so we have faith in Baba", said Nazim Ali, a devotee. People light the cigarettes and insert them in cracked crevices on Captain Baba's grave, just like incense sticks are lit at mausoleums. From nc-agricowi at netcologne.de Mon Jun 4 12:27:42 2007 From: nc-agricowi at netcologne.de (videoNET) Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2007 08:57:42 +0200 Subject: [Reader-list] =?iso-8859-1?q?=5BAnnouncements=5D_Women_Directors_?= =?iso-8859-1?q?Cut_II?= Message-ID: <20070604085742.D870751B.BF74B98C@192.168.0.4> June 2007 VideoChannel - video art project environments http://videochannel.newmediafest.org launched in April 2007 a series of bi-monthly shows featuring a young generation of female video/film artists/directors participating in VideoChannel, entitled: Women Directors Cut [WDC] --> Now, in June 2007, the 2nd edition of the feature series - curated by Agricola de Cologne - spotlight another six film/video artists ---> Eva Drangsholt (Norway), Erika Frenkel (Brazil), Ji-Hyun Kim (South Korea), Petra Lindholm (Sweden), Irene Coremberg (Argentina), Sonja Vuk (Croatia) --> "Women Directors Cut II" can be entered here directly http://videochannel.newmediafest.org/blog/?page_id=114 ---------------------------------------- VideoChannel - video art project environments http://videochannel.newmediafest.org is a corporate part of [NewMediaArtProjectNetwork]:||cologne http://www.nmartproject.net the experimental platform for art and New Media from Cologne/Germany # info (at) nmartproject.net _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From bfs at bgl.vsnl.net.in Mon Jun 4 12:34:43 2007 From: bfs at bgl.vsnl.net.in (SIEDS) Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2007 12:34:43 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Voices from the Waters 2007: Invite Message-ID: <007801c7a677$dc57a940$0b09a8c0@NEWSYSTEM> WATER IS CLOUD WATER IS RAIN WATER FROM YOUR TAP WATER- THE SOURCE OF LIFE WATER IS CIVILIZATION WATER IS PANI PURI WATER, A PRECIOUS GIFT WATER WE TAKE BATH IN WATER IS CULTURE WATER, POETRY WATER IS GETTING SCARCE WATER, WE BUY? WATER FLOWS BRIGHT and SPARKLING WATER IS HAPPINESS WATER IS MAGIC CELEBRATE, WATCH, THINK, SPLASH, TALK WATER! - THE BIGGEST FILM FESTIVAL IN BANGALORE 2 screens, 50 films, 30 countries Interact with 14 film directors, 6 water voices from different parts of the country Painting & Photograph Exhibition, Stalls VOICES FROM THE WATERS 2007: 2nd INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ON WATER 7th to 11th June 2007 10am to 9pm at Gurunanak Bhavan, Bangalore. ADMISSION FREE "If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water" - Loran Eisley Scroll below the schedule and the short synopsis. For further details contact: email- bfs at bgl.vsnl.net.in tel: 080- 25493705/ 9886213516 Arghyam- safe, sustainable water for all, Bangalore Film Society and Films for Freedom, Bangalore in collaboration with Water Journeys- Forum for the Fundamental Right to Water, Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival, Ithaca College (FLEFF) and Urban Research Centre are proud to present the second edition of the International Film Festival on Water titled 'Voices from the Waters 2007'- a vibrant celebration of life itself in all its liquid blue glory. SCREENINGS IN MAIN AUDITORIUM: JUNE 7, 2007 SESSION 1: 2.00pm to 4.00pm OPENING FILM:- Film: 1000 Days and a Dream Dir: P. Baburaj and C. Saratchandran Dur: 77 minutes An affecting human document that captures four years of courage, resilience, joys and sorrows as a small community in Plachimada District, Kerala dares to go up against global conglomerate that threatens to destroy their fresh water sources. Directors P. Baburaj and C. Saratchandran, veteran artists of the Indian Documentary scene will be present at the screening along with activists from Plachimada for a question and answer session after the screening. http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/fr/2006/11/03/stories/2006110300510300.htm Film: Zone of initial dilution Dir: Antoine Boutet Dur: 30 minutes Acclaimed and feted at the most prestigious documentary film festival across the globe, Zone of initial dilution is a chronicle of the dilemma of progress and urban sprawl that documents the change in the landscape effected by the construction of the Three Rivers Dam in China. http://www.uta.fi/festnews/2007/sunday/37465.shtml Film: 'International Water and Film Event' Spots Pro: International Water and Film Event Dur: 5mins40secs A collection of public awareness spots from across the globe that won acclaim and awards at the 'International Water and Film Event 2006', Mexico. http://www.internationalwaterandfilm.com/ SESSION 2: 4.15pm to 5.50pm Film: Ganashatru Dir: Satyajit Ray Dur: 93mins Ray's scathing film on greed, corruption and pollution, Ganashatru is set in small town Bengal where Dr. Ashoke Gupta (Soumitra Chatterjee) is the head of a town hospital. Gupta's younger brother, Nisith (Dhritiman Chatterjee), is the head of the committee running the hospital and a temple, both built by a local Industrialist. When Dr. Gupta is convinced that the holy water of the temple is causing an epidemic in the town, the industrialist and other town officials reject his view and refuse to close the temple to carry out the repairs. SESSION 3: 6.15pm INVOCATION FILM: Window Facing the Sun Dir: Bijan Zamanpira Dur: 12 Mins A carnival shadow-play of prayers, ceremonies, the land and the clouds as a desert community in Iran beseeches the clouds to rain water and life down upon their scorching land. A triumphant, poetic invocation of the source of life weaved with simple strokes that make Iranian cinema so poignant, so powerful. http://www.payvand.com/news/05/jun/1101.html IMAUGURAL FILM:- We Corner People Dir: Kesang Tseten Dur: 50mins Adjudged the Best Documentary at the 2006 Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival, 'We Corner People' offers a intimate glimpse into the life and complexities of the inhabitants of a remote Tamang village who are at the mercy of poverty, an indifferent government and an angry river when they are given the chance for a better life in the form of a suspension bridge. Director and iconoclast, Kesang Tseten will be present at the film screening and participate in a question and answer session. http://www.nepalitimes.com/issue/119/DomesticBrief/5136 JUNE 8, 2007 SESSION 1: 2.00pm to 4.00pm Film: Cutting off a Lifeline Dir: Saraswati Kauvala Dur: 62mins When the most of Hyderabad has dismissed the river Musi as nothing more than a big open drain, 'Cutting off a Lifeline' reveals the deep relationship between the ancient river and life in and around the flourishing city that through the years has been abused by the callous city dwellers, planners and policy makers. Director Saraswati Kauvala will be present at the film screening and participate in an interactive session with the audience. Film: Ganga: From the Ground Up Dir: Yves Saduvani & Miriam Ciscar Dur: 43min 41sec With vibrant images and sounds, the kinetic documentary takes you along the course of the river Ganges affirming its spiritual and ecological importance as a sustainer of an entire civilization while delving into the myriad crises plaguing the river at almost every point of its course, exploiting its water and its poorer inhabitants in the name of progress and development and offer simple and thoughtful suggestions so that yet another generation can witness the magnificence that is the Ganges. http://citizen.nfb.ca/blogs/uncategorized/ganga-from-the-ground-up/ WATER VOICES: 4.15pm to 4.45pm Shivaji Kagnikar, a Gandhian; and he laughs at the term, has been working in the village Kattanbhavi and its environs near Belgaum. His work along with many has resulted in the village well in Kattanbhavi being always full. Forest planting, watershed works, check dams, pond desilting, recharge structures, gobar gas plants for every household and water security for the village is achievement if it can be called that. SESSION 2: 4.45pm to 6.45pm Film: Dweepa Dir: Girish Kasaravalli Dur: 100min Winner of 2002 National Award for Best Film and Best Cinematography, 'Dweepa' gives a human face to the tragedy of the displaced. When the village of Sita Parvata is being submerged by the construction of a dam, the government evacuates its residents, giving them meager compensation but temple priest Duggajja and his family are yet to come to terms with the implications of life outside their tiny island. In Ganapa's own words, the compensation can give them food and shelter, but cannot compensate for the love and respect of their people. Winner of multiple National awards and a major personality in Indian art house cinema, Girish Kasaravalli will be present at the screening and participate in an interactive session. WATER VOICES: 7.00pm to 7.30pm Pokkudan plants mangroves. This incredible feat by an individual is amazing for the sensitivity displayed in a biological system that acts in many ways to buffer erosion, enhance bio-diversity, minimise high tide, tsunami impacts and many other things. Why does he do it? The man himself will answer. SESSION 3: 7.30pm to 9.00pm Film: The Lost Water Dir: Dakxin Bajrange Dur: 25min21sec There is an old folk tale that is told in the Rann of Kutch that in the vast desert expanse, the Agariya tribe is perpetually found digging the sand is search of lost water. It's almost as if time has stood still in the salt pans of Gujarat as the film sheds light on the plight of the tribe who have been cultivating salt through the generations and in return have been exploited and reduced to sickness, poverty and thirst. Award winning Director, playwright, actor, director and founder of the Budhan school of theatre, Dakxin Bajrange will be present at the screening for an interactive session with the audience. http://english.georgetown.edu/Lannan/bioarchive/chhara.html Film: Solitary Cedar Dir: Hegedus 2 Laszlo Dur: 4min Torrents of wind, rain, thunder and lighting, enduring nature's wrath, the solitary cedar survives and is blissful. Film: Mountains in the Mist - Discovering Cloud Forests Pro: Halsundbeinbruch Film Dur: 40 min Home to 100 species of mammals, 400 species of birds (including 30 kinds of hummingbirds), tens of thousands of insect species and 2500 species of plants (420 kinds of orchids), Cloud Forests are rare and intriguing eco-systems that are intense with life and color. 'Mountains in the Mist' is a lush journey through the secrets of these mystical forests in the clouds. http://www.monteverdeinfo.com/index.htm JUNE 9, 2007 SESSION 1: 10.00am to 11.15am Film: Flow Dir: Scott Nyerges Dur: 4:26 min Handpainted 16mm and 35mm filmstrips collude with video to render a meditation on the creeks and rivers of Austin, Texas, in paint and pixels. Flow has exhibited at the TriBeca Film Festival, the International Film Festival in Rotterdam, and CinemaTexas. http://www.nyerges.com/ Film: Faecal Attraction Dir: Pradeep Saha Dur: 32 minutes 'When you flush, where does the water go?' Find Out. Director Pradeep Saha, freelance photographer, film-maker and managing editor of the CSE environmental journal, Down to Earth will be present at the screening of his film to answer what you can do the next time you press the lever for a flush. http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2408/stories/20070504001409200.htm SESSION 2: 11.30pm to 1.30pm Film: Desert's voice: A sufi tale Dir: Massimiliano Troiani Music Dir: Stephan Micus Dur: 9:50 mins It lives among the clouds and comes down to earth so that it can run in rapid streams and travel to different places. A beautiful sufi invocation of the journey of water on earth. Film: Swaraj: The Little Republic Dir: Anwar Jamal Dur: 90min Winner of the Silver Lotus at the National Awards 2003 for the Best Film on Social Issues and inspired by the true story of a woman councilor who took on the might of the water mafia, Director Anwar Jamal's 'Swaraj: The Little Republic' is a rousing tale of four women journeying barefoot and audacious, across the desert in the search of justice and water. Director Anwar Jamal will be present at the screening for a question and answer session with the audience. http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2010/stories/20030523001708200.htm SESSION 3: 2.00pm to 4.00pm Film: Sea in the Blood Dir: Richard Fung Dur: 26min A personal documentary about living with illness, tracing the relationship of the artist to thalassemia in his sister, Nan and AIDS in his partner, Tim. The narrative of love and loss is set against a background of colonialism in the Carribean and the reverberations of migration and political change. http://www.latrobe.edu.au/screeningthepast/firstrelease/fr0703/kbfr15.html Film: Shadows of Tehri Dur: 45 Mins Dir: Anirban Dutta A one-of-a-kind film that interweaves folklore, music, tradition and history to create a textured memory of the essence of old Tehri town in Tehri Garhwal, Uttaranchal, after it is lost forever under the swirling waters of the world's highest dam, built over the rivers of Bhagirathi and Bhilangana. Film: The Disappearing of Tuvalu: Trouble in Paradise Dir: Christopher Horner and Gilliane Le Gallic Dur: 50 min Incisive, controversial and featured in the most prestigious environmental film festivals across the globe, 'The Disappearing of Tuvalu' is a detailed overview of the first sovereign nation that is in danger of being capsized and drowned by the rising waters of the global warming phenomena. A tale of loss and displacement, the film beholds a frightening future of drowned worlds and environmental refugees. http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/rough/2005/12/tuvalu_that_sin_1.html WATER VOICES: 4.15pm to 4.45pm Farhad Contractor empowers people. Working in Rajasthan through his organization, Sambhav, Farhad fills hope in people to be able to manage their water affairs themselves. Traditional water structures are on revival in Barmer and Jaisalmer simply because Farhad Contractor has thought it fit to work with these communities SESSION 4: 4.45pm to 6.45pm Film: Village of Dust City of Water Director: Sanjay Barnela & Vasant Saberwal Duration: 28 minutes Winner of the Lion Award 2007 for Best environmental film and Nominated for the International Natural History Museum One Planet Award, the country's foremost environmental documentary film-makers focus on water-induced migration and the discriminatory divide in the supply of water between the urban and the rural. Director, screen-writer, academic researcher with a doctorate from Yale for his work with the Gaddi community of Himachal Pradesh, Dr. Vasant Saberwal will be attending the screening and participate in a question and answer session. Nor any Drop to Drink Director: Joska Wessels Duration: 23 minutes An inspiring, informative slice-of-life that travels from Jordan to Egypt to Palestine capturing the interaction between the general public and the policymakers, surprisingly sans red-tape and ego hassles, as they try together to initiate solutions for the looming water issues. http://www.sapiensproductions.com/news.htm Film: The Never Never Water Dir: Allessandra Speciale Dur: 15min The "water lords" have arrived in the Sahell. In Ougadougou, Burkina Faso, the search for water has always been an exhausting chore. In addition to the shortage of water there is now also the threat of privatization. In this period of drought, people crowd around the wells, waiting hours to fill a few buckets. Midway between reportage and narrative story-telling, this documentary tells the story of Moussa, an itinerant water seller in the suburbs of the capital. It is a mesmerizing and paced tale of water justice at a very personal level. WATER VOICES: 7.00pm to 7.30pm Chattar Singh knows the tradition, history and development of each of the water structures in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. How and why is a tanka built? What are naadis? What are beris? How does society decide wher a water harvesting structure should be? How can malaria be detected and remedied? Chattar Singh is the water bard of Jaisalmer SESSION 5: 7.30pm to 9.00pm Film: Erosion Dir: Sourav Sarangi Dur: 60mins Erosion is a powerful document of the vicious circle of human tragedy allowed to perpetuate by a callous and greedy government. Every year, the banks of the Ganga and the Padma overflow in the Malda and Murshidabad districts in West Bengal disrupting the life and livelihoods of thousands while concerned authorities only add to their tragedy for monetary and political gain. Erosion is a stirring account of the pains and penury, the anger and resoluteness of the sufferers of erosion. Director Sourav Sarangi and scholars and activists of the grassroots' movement will be present at the screening for an interactive session with the audience. Film: Let's not disturb the water Dir: Bijan Zamanpira Dur: 22 mins Another award winning gem from Iran that captures a day in the life of migrant mountain dwellers adapting to a new landscape without disrupting the course of nature. http://www.payvand.com/news/05/jun/1101.html JUNE 10, 2007 SESSION 1: 10.00am to 11.15am Film: The Beginning Dir: Parvez Imam Dur: 3min30sec The concept of buying and selling is turning almost everything into a commodity. And a thrifty, businessman decides to invest his bit on an ocean. This short fiction brings to life a powerful screenplay with merely three characters and the ocean. http://www.kalpana.it/eng/film/parvez_imam/index.htm Film: Al Otro Lado Dir: Natalia Almada Dur: 70min When you're an aspiring Mexican singer trying to move up in life, you have two choices: traffic drugs or make an illegal cross over the border to the US. Set to the pulse of Mexico's corrido music, the movie takes to the streets of Sinaloa Mexico all the way to L.A. through a hard-boiled network of drug trafficing, illegal immigrants and a fishing industry in decline, tracing the plight of those who dream to crossover to the other side. http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2006/alotrolado/about.html SESSION 2: 11.30am to 1.30pm Film: Loktak- The Dying lake of Manipur Dir: Aribam Shyam Sharma Dur: 58 minutes Director and Iconoclast Aribam Shyam Sharma, who in his long and esteemed career has been compared to the likes of Akira Kurosawa and Satyajit Ray, documents with compassion and anger the death throes of Manipur's Lake Loktak and its inhabitants (which include the endangered dancing deer) brought on by the Manipur government's plan to set up a hydroelectric power station with dreams of 'progress'. Auteur Ariban Shyam Sharma will be present at the screening for an interactive session with the audience. http://readerlist.freeflux.net/blog/archive/2007/04/03/reader-list-how-satyajit-ray-got-floored-2nd-if-posting-2.html Film: The Rainy Season Dir: Isaac Pinhanta, Valdete Pinhanta, Tsirotsi Ashaninka, Llullu Manchineri, Maru Kaxinawá, Nelson Kulina, Fernando Katuquina and André Kanamari Dur: 38 min >From the Indigenous Video Makers series from the Video in the Villages project in Brazil. A daily chronicle of the Ashaninka community during the rainy season recorded during a workshop in a village on the Amônia River in Acre. The involvement among the filmmakers and the Ashaninka community makes the film go beyond a mere description of activities, reflecting the rhythm of the village and the humor of its inhabitants. www.videonasaldeias.org.br SESSION 3: 2.00pm to 4.00pm Film: Devil's water Dir: Amirul Arham Dur: 53.10 min Winner of Best Documentary at the Terra Festival, 'The Devil's Water' is Director Arham's vivid record of the humanitarian catastrophe involving 49 million people in Bangadesh afflicted by the arsenic contaminated water they are forced to consume daily. Through the personal accounts of Asma and Najma, two girls affected by the contamination and Jamal, a scientist fighting against the effects of contamination; this film hopes to contribute to a vision of hope for a better future. http://www.sos-arsenic.net/english/article/index.html#18 Film: Dui Paatan ke Beech Mein (Between The Devil and The Deep River) Dir: Arvind Sinha Dur: 65mins Director Arvind Sinha's Swarna Kamal (President's Gold Medal) winning documentary is an incisive indictment of the hypocrisy of 'development models' chosen and implemented by the governments only to ravage the land with man-made floods and reduce its inhabitants to poverty and disorientation. He also studies the coping mechanisms developed by the people, which over the years have become integral to their culture. And all the while, the government shamelessly continues to declare that all has been done in the name of "protecting people from the floods". Winner of multiple National Awards and internationally acclaimed, Arvind Sinha is one of the most prominent documentary film-makers of the country and he will be present for an interactive session at the screening. http://www.yidff.jp/97/cat051/97c068-e.html WATER VOICES: 4.15pm to 4.45pm Eklavya Prasad is a young modern development professional. Leading the Maegh Pyne Abhiyaan he has chosen Bihar as his 'karma bhoomi'. Working with partners in the flood affected districts, he seeks solutions for peoples drinking water and sanitation needs. He also searches for livelihood opportunities for people on embankments whose lives are impacted by the floods of the Kosi and its tributaries. SESSION 4: 4.45pm to 6.45pm Film: Old Sea and the Man Dir: R.R. Srinivas Dur: 70mins Director R.R. Srinivasan brings out the tragedy of the post-tsunami 'relief and rehabilitation' efforts when a shameful circus of greed and manipulation is played out in the name of development. The film exposes the design of the state to forcibly relocate the fishing community from their pre-tsunami settlements that amounts to completely uprooting them from their livelihood while also bearing testament to the brave resilience of the coastal communities to not only recover from the devastation of the tsunami but the larger forces bent on disrupting their very existence. Radical and controversial film-maker R.R. Srinivasan will be present at the screening for an interactive session with the audience. http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mp/2005/12/10/stories/2005121002080800.htm Film: Gharat Dir: Pankaj Rishi Kumar Dur: 41mins 'Gharat' celebrates the indigenous, traditional watermills of Garwhal, which have been around since as early the 7th century A.D. as the spirit and path to decentralized sustainable development. Director Pankaj Kumar, acclaimed film-maker and editor of 'Bandit Queen' narrates the triumphant story of Tau's attempts to bring electricity to his house with a 'gharat' while critiquing the government's excesses in the name of 'progress' like the 'Tehri Hydel Project'. http://www.goodnewsindia.com/Pages/content/discovery/waterwheels.html WATER VOICES: 7.00pm to 7.30pm Premji is with an organisation called SAMTA. Based in Khagaria he has seen the Kosi and sisters rise up and fill the town with water as much as he has seen people on embankments living with snakes and scorpions. His has been a constant voice to plead their case. In times of emergency, to row with food and medical supplies, in other times to drain the waters so that cultivation can happen. SESSION 5: 7.30pm to 9.30pm CLOSING FILM: Bara Dir: M.S. Sathyu Dur: 120mins M.S. Sathyu's classic Bara follows his idealist protagonist as he becomes a mere pawn caught in the intense political rivalry between the chief minister and a political aspirant that is played out in the times of drought and poverty. Local political rowdies instigate chaos. Everything from hiding rice and wheat from the starving public to violating women and igniting a communal war takes place. All this is done just to keep their bellies full at the cost of the poor people. The famine is used as an excuse for all of them to pursue their own personal goals. Director, playwright, screenwriter, cinematographer M.S. Sathyu who has given us films like Bara and Garam Hawa will be present at the screening for an interactive session with the audience. EXPERIMENTALS & SHORTS on SCREEN 2: Name of Film Filmmaker Country Dur. 1 WATER IN OVERTIME Dominique Jonard Mexico 5.00 2 THIS, AND THIS Vincent Grenier US (FLEFF) 10.00 3 THE BEGINNING Parvez Imam India 3.31 4 SOLITARY CEDAR Hegadus Lazlo Hungary 4.00 5 THE DESERT'S VOICE Massimiliano Troiani Italy 9.50 6 LIFE IN THE RIVER Marjan Riahi Iran 5.00 7 THE DIARY Mohammed Ali Safoora Iran 5.30 8 FLUX Gruppo Sinestetico Italy 9.48 9 HERE Vincent Grenier US (FLEFF) 7.00 10 FLOW Scott Nyerges US (FLEFF) 4:26 11 LIFE IN OFFSHORE ISLAND Kazi Amirul Islam Shoya Bangladesh 8.10 12 WOMEN OF DORFAK Mohammed Nami Iran 20.00 13 CLIMACTIC REFUGEES - Shishmaref - Tuvalu - Maldives - Chad - Bangladesh France 5.50 6.30 7.00 6.30 6.25 14 WATER AND FLOWER Mohammed Ali Safoora Iran 15.00 15 WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE Simon Welch UK 4.00 16 INSIDE /OUTSIDE Celine Trouillet France 3.00 17 PLIP AND PLOP Christaine Doring USA 6.10 18 DIRTY AID, DIRTY WATER Jo Winterburn UK 17.00 19 KITUI SAND DAMS Eva Zwart & Hans Van Westerlaak Kenya/Netherlands 14.00 20 WATER AND FILM EVENT SPOTS 5.00 21 ORANGE FARM WATER CRISIS SA 16.51 22 CRAZY ON THE ROCK Altaf Mazid India 15.00 23 WATER AND AUTONOMY US (FLEFF) 14.00 24 RADIO NONMDAA Chiapas Media Project/Promedios Mexico (FLEFF) 15.00 25 SUNCOOKERS Catherine Scott US / Kenya (FLEFF) 18.00 26 PROSPECTING Brooke White US (FLEFF) 12.00 27 ISLANDS Richard Fung Canada (FLEFF) 9.00 28 THE LAND BELONGS TO THOSE WORK IT Chiapas Media Project/Promedios Mexico (FLEFF) 15.00 __._,_.___ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070604/aa806c46/attachment.html -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From pukar at pukar.org.in Mon Jun 4 12:36:43 2007 From: pukar at pukar.org.in (PUKAR) Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2007 12:36:43 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] [announcements] Inviting applications for India China Institute Fellows Programme Message-ID: <001601c7a676$eb9af020$9966c2cb@freeda> India China Institute - PUKAR (Local Partner) invites applications for the India China Institute Fellows Program The India China Institute (ICI) based at The New School, New York, invites applications for its second fellowship program: Prosperity and Inequality: India and China India China Fellows Program (ICFP), ICI seeks applicants who are highly accomplished, innovative and emerging leaders with 5 to 15 years of professional experience in their respective fields. Applicants from diverse backgrounds such as public administration, academics, media, civic action, art, architecture and private entrepreneurship are encouraged to apply. Applicants should address the program theme with particular focus on regional development, migration, and design strategies. Priority will be given to applicants who are sensitive to social, cultural and gender aspects. This two year fellowship requires: 1. Indian citizenship and proof of residency for more than 5 years 2. Masters Degree or equivalent experience 3. Willingness to be an active and essential participant in an interactive, intellectual, collaborative research project that will be innovative and influential 4. Commitment to participate in 4 international residencies: . March 16-30, 2008, NY . November2-9, 2008, China . August 23-30, 2009, India . April 14-18, 2010 (tbd) 5. Total fluency in English, working knowledge of the computer and access to internet for communication and research purpose 6. The selected fellows could continue their current profession during their fellowship period. They will be assisted in the research proposal, travel, workshops and compensated appropriately by an honorarium 7. Applications must be postmarked no later than August 30, 2007. Late applications will not be considered. (Kindly ignore this mail if you have already applied) Application Forms can be downloaded from: www.indiachina.newschool.edu For further information, please write or email: Dr. Anita Patil-Deshmukh Senior Advisor, India China Institute C/o PUKAR, 1-4, 2nd floor, Kamanwala Chambers, Sir P M Road, Fort, Mumbai, 400 001 Tel: 91 22 6505 3302 Fax: 91 22 6664 0561 E-mail : deshmuka at newschool.edu; pukar at pukar.org.in PUKAR (Partners for Urban Knowledge Action and Research) Address:: 1-4, 2nd Floor, Kamanwala Chambers, Sir P. M. Road, Fort, Mumbai 400 001 Telephone:: +91 (22) 6574 8152 Fax:: +91 (22) 6664 0561 Email:: pukar at pukar.org.in Website:: www.pukar.org.in -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/attachments/20070604/1f91f975/attachment.html -------------- next part -------------- _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From turbulence at turbulence.org Tue Jun 5 19:37:43 2007 From: turbulence at turbulence.org (Turbulence) Date: Tue, 5 Jun 2007 10:07:43 -0400 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] Turbulence Commissions: Mixed Realities Message-ID: June 5, 2007 Turbulence Commissions: "Mixed Realities" Venues: Ars Virtua (Second Life); Huret & Spector Gallery (Emerson College, Boston); and Turbulence.org With funds from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts http://turbulence.org/comp_07/awards.html New Radio and Performing Arts, Inc. is pleased to announce the winners of "Mixed Realities," an international juried competition and exhibition. The five commissioned works ($5,000 each) will be exhibited simultaneously at Ars Virtua (Second Life), Huret & Spector Gallery (Boston), and Turbulence.org in spring 2008. They are: IMAGING KALININGRAD: THE SEVEN BRIDGES OF KOENIGSBERG John (Craig) Freeman REMOTELY COUPLED DEVICES (WORKING TITLE) Usman Haque, Georg Tremmel and Neill Zero NO MATTER Scott Kildall and Victoria Scott THE VITRUVIAN WORLD Michael Takeo Magruder, Drew Baker and David Steele CATERWAUL Pierre Proske, with technical assistance from Artem Baguinski and Brigit Lichtenegger KALININGRAD AND THE SEVEN BRIDGES OF KOENIGSBERG by John (Craig) Freeman is an extension of Freeman's "Imaging Place" project; a place-based, immersive, virtual reality project that takes the form of a user navigated, interactive computer program combining panoramic photography, digital video, and three-dimensional technologies to investigate and document situations where the forces of globalization are impacting the lives of individuals in local communities. The famous Swiss mathematician Leonard Euler invented Topology--the key to understanding how networks are formed--in the city of Koenigsberg, now Kaliningrad, in 1735. When Euler visited the city, there were seven bridges connecting the city's center to the banks of the Pregel River. A favorite pastime for visitors was to try to solve the puzzle of whether or not a person could walk throughout the city and cross each of the bridges exactly once. Freeman will retrace the imaginary steps of Leonard Euler across these seven bridges. Users will be able to navigate the virtual space as the story of the seven bridges unfolds, as well as the story of how globalization is impacting this remote Russian city. Full proposal here: http://turbulence.org/comp_07/proposals/freeman/index.html REMOTELY COUPLED DEVICES by Usman Haque, Georg Tremmel and Neill Zero: This proposal takes as its starting point that the distinction between 'virtual' and 'real' is as quaint as the nineteenth century distinction between 'mind' and 'body'. As such, the spaces of Ars Virtua and Huret & Spector Gallery will be treated equivalently. A device will be constructed for each space which--via the EnvironmentXML framework--will enable people around the world to build remote devices and environments that respond in real time to the local environmental conditions of the two galleries. A Java applet and historical data repository, residing on the Turbulence.org server, will enable the tracking of real time and historical sensory data from the two locations as well as the connections that people make over time. Full proposal here: http://turbulence.org/comp_07/proposals/haque/index.html NO MATTER by Scott Kildall and Victoria Scott: No Matter is an interactive installation that translates the psychology of the Second Life virtual economy into physical space. Virtual economies--where artificial currencies are exchanged in online worlds for dematerialized goods and services--are presently impacting the 'real' economy. The leakage of one to another appears on eBay, on the SL Exchange and through virtual land brokers. This mixed economic model overturns established relationships between labor and production. As specialty items can be obtained at a fraction of their real world cost, our perception of the value of objects becomes further obscured. No Matter reflects this conflation of imaginary and real economics by: (1) commissioning the creation of imaginary objects in Second Life; (2) inviting viewers to re-construct these immaterial 3D objects in physical space; (3) paying them Second Life wages; and (4) reselling the replicas on eBay. Full proposal here: http://turbulence.org/comp_07/proposals/kildall_scott/index.html THE VITRUVIAN WORLD by Michael Takeo Magruder, Drew Baker and David Steele: In the 1st century BC, Roman writer, architect and engineer Vitruvius authored specific building formulae based on the guiding principles of strength, utility and beauty. For him, architecture is intrinsically linked to nature and is an imitation of cosmic order. The most well-known interpretation of this postulate is the Vitruvian Man by Leonardo da Vinci in which the human form is depicted in unity with the square and circle--representing material and spiritual existence respectively. Given that this tripart union of human body, material form and spiritual essence maintains relevance within the current climate of distributed presence, mixed realities and internet culture, The Vitruvian World will embody the principles of Vitruvius within a contemporary context. Full proposal here: http://turbulence.org/comp_07/proposals/magruder/index.htm CATERWAUL by Pierre Proske, with technical assistance from Artem Baguinski and Brigit Lichtenegger: When someone screams in real life, do they hear us in virtual reality? Do they want to? The proliferation of networked online worlds has provided a small quota of the human race the option to seek refuge in utopian, less troubled imaginary lands. Rolling synthetic green pastures offer us respite from a planet undergoing exploitation and climate change. For those of us too firmly rooted in this material world to join them, how shall we communicate with them? In what way shall we lament their departure? The essence of Caterwaul is a large, monolithic, dark wall that is represented both in the real and virtual worlds. It is a one-way portal to the virtual world through which people can whisper their thoughts, scream their frustrations and convey regret without the privilege of reply. It is a wailing wall through which to mourn the loss of our humanity to the virtual network. Full proposal here: http://turbulence.org/comp_07/proposals/proske/index.html The competition was juried by Yasmine Abbas, Founder, Neo-Nomad; Michael Frumin, Technical Director Emeritus, Eyebeam; James Morgan, Director, Ars Virtua; Trebor Scholz, Founder, Institute for Distributed Creativity; and Helen Thorington, Co-Director, Turbulence. Jo-Anne Green, Co-Director New Radio and Performing Arts, Inc.: http://new-radio.org New York: 917.548.7780 . Boston: 617.522.3856 Turbulence: http://turbulence.org Networked_Performance Blog: http://turbulence.org/blog Networked_Music_Review: http://turbulence.org/networked_music_review Upgrade! Boston: http://turbulence.org/upgrade New American Radio: http://somewhere.org _______________________________________________ announcements mailing list announcements at sarai.net https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/announcements From 125548 at soas.ac.uk Wed Jun 6 12:18:04 2007 From: 125548 at soas.ac.uk (MATTI POHJONEN) Date: Wed, 06 Jun 2007 06:48:04 +0000 Subject: [Reader-list] Conference - SOAS Message-ID: <1181112484.8c7e1cc125548@soas.ac.uk> Friends, Just a quick reminder about our upcoming conference "The Indian Mass Media and the Politics of Change" we are organising together with the Centre for Film and Media Studies at SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London) on the 13th of October, 2007. We are glad to now announce that we have now confirmed our speakers. The opening address will be given by Dr Paul Webley, the director of SOAS. The keynote will given by Dr John Hutnyk, the Director for the Centre for Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths University, and the endnote will be given by Professor Laura Mulvey from Birkbeck University. In addition, we have also received a number of outstanding abstracts looking at the complex relationship between mass media and change in the Indian context from a variety of disciplines and countries. We are still accepting abstracts until the 15th of July when we will announce the shortlisted candidates. Then on the 15th of August we will provide specific details about the conference for those who will be attending. We except this to be a timely and thought-provoking event and hope to see you all there. Best, SMC collective From iwasthere2000 at yahoo.com Wed Jun 6 16:57:07 2007 From: iwasthere2000 at yahoo.com (S.Shashidhar) Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2007 04:27:07 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Reader-list] Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow Message-ID: <15588.88659.qm@web32415.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Price of agitations THIS is with reference to the forthright tone of your stinging editorial, ‘No raj in Rajasthan’ (IE, June 5), in which you rightly say that “for a modern state, the rule of law is a non-negotiable”. Can you imagine my misery yesterday when, having come here on some urgent professional business, I could not go beyond two kilometres from my parent’s home in Ghaziabad, because of the sealing of Delhi’s borders by the sponsors of the bandh? If in many parts of Rajasthan, both the Gujjars and the Meenas had played havoc with the normal life of ordinary citizens for six days, in the Capital, Monday was made into a nightmare. Yet no one from the UPA government or the BJP said anything about it. You are right when you say that “shrill and uninformed accusations of police excesses” dissuade the police from acting tough. When the police act tough, their political bosses must stand by them. Now, who will pick up the bill for the damage caused to public and private property, as well as for the time lost at work? — M. Ravi, Ghaziabad ----- Original Message ---- From: Shivam Vij To: sarai list Sent: Tuesday, June 5, 2007 8:29:57 PM Subject: [Reader-list] Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow By Kamna Mathur http://www.dailyindia.com/show/145852.php/Devotees-offer-cigarettes-at-Captain-Babas-mausoleum-in-Lucknow Lucknow, June 1: Though smoking or drinking at any religious place can offend many believers at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow, offering cigarettes is a gesture of respect. It is believed all prayers can be answered on lighting cigarettes a-la joss sticks. And, a large number of Hindus and Muslims do so while visiting this sacred mausoleum here. Everyday, hundreds of cigarettes are offered by devotees who visit this place to seek blessings of Captain Baba. "One of my uncles told me that many of his wishes were fulfilled once he visited Captain Baba's shrine. I accompanied him on the first occasion. Now, I am regular visitor. All wishes are fulfilled here", said Ram Gopal Pal, a devotee. It is said Gore Baba alias Mohammad Ashim, worked as Captain in the British Army when the British ruled India. He died during the uprising of 1857. But he had a special liking for the "Capstan" brand of cigarette. After his death, a mausoleum was built and today it is revered as "Captain Baba's Dargarh". As he was known for smoking cigarettes, the followers started a convention to offer the same at his mausoleum.The devotees bring this particular brand as their expression of affection for the Baba. Gore Baba was a highly respected person and some believed he had divine qualities. Later, admirers started calling him Captain Baba. Every Thursday, there is a big rush at Captain Baba's mausoleum and all visitors, irrespective of caste or creed, come along their cigarettes. "We have deep faith in Baba. He is near to God. However, we are just his devotees who come here to seek blessing for ourselves and our children," said Aquil Ahmed, a devotee. 'After lighting the cigarette, I express my desires to Baba. The wishes are fulfilled, so we have faith in Baba", said Nazim Ali, a devotee. People light the cigarettes and insert them in cracked crevices on Captain Baba's grave, just like incense sticks are lit at mausoleums. _________________________________________ reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. Critiques & Collaborations To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list List archive: <https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/> Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com From mail at shivamvij.com Wed Jun 6 21:57:16 2007 From: mail at shivamvij.com (Shivam Vij) Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2007 21:57:16 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow In-Reply-To: <15588.88659.qm@web32415.mail.mud.yahoo.com> References: <15588.88659.qm@web32415.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <9c06aab30706060927q7d261b4ejb0fe83fbec788b4a@mail.gmail.com> "for a modern state, the rule of law is a non-negotiable" It must be modernity that the rule of natural justice for an entire community (Gurjars) is negotiable. best s On 6/6/07, S.Shashidhar wrote: > Price of agitations > > THIS is with reference to the forthright tone of your stinging editorial, 'No raj in Rajasthan' (IE, June 5), in which you rightly say that "for a modern state, the rule of law is a non-negotiable". Can you imagine my misery yesterday when, having come here on some urgent professional business, I could not go beyond two kilometres from my parent's home in Ghaziabad, because of the sealing of Delhi's borders by the sponsors of the bandh? If in many parts of Rajasthan, both the Gujjars and the Meenas had played havoc with the normal life of ordinary citizens for six days, in the Capital, Monday was made into a nightmare. Yet no one from the UPA government or the BJP said anything about it. You are right when you say that "shrill and uninformed accusations of police excesses" dissuade the police from acting tough. When the police act tough, their political bosses must stand by them. Now, who will pick up the bill for the damage caused to public and private property, as well > as for the time lost at work? > > — M. Ravi, Ghaziabad > > > ----- Original Message ---- > From: Shivam Vij > To: sarai list > Sent: Tuesday, June 5, 2007 8:29:57 PM > Subject: [Reader-list] Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow > > > Devotees offer cigarettes at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow > > > By Kamna Mathur > http://www.dailyindia.com/show/145852.php/Devotees-offer-cigarettes-at-Captain-Babas-mausoleum-in-Lucknow > > > Lucknow, June 1: Though smoking or drinking at any religious place can > offend many believers at Captain Baba's mausoleum in Lucknow, offering > cigarettes is a gesture of respect. > > It is believed all prayers can be answered on lighting cigarettes a-la > joss sticks. And, a large number of Hindus and Muslims do so while > visiting this sacred mausoleum here. > > Everyday, hundreds of cigarettes are offered by devotees who visit > this place to seek blessings of Captain Baba. > > "One of my uncles told me that many of his wishes were fulfilled once > he visited Captain Baba's shrine. I accompanied him on the first > occasion. Now, I am regular visitor. All wishes are fulfilled here", > said Ram Gopal Pal, a devotee. > > It is said Gore Baba alias Mohammad Ashim, worked as Captain in the > British Army when the British ruled India. He died during the uprising > of 1857. But he had a special liking for the "Capstan" brand of > cigarette. > > After his death, a mausoleum was built and today it is revered as > "Captain Baba's Dargarh". As he was known for smoking cigarettes, the > followers started a convention to offer the same at his mausoleum.The > devotees bring this particular brand as their expression of affection > for the Baba. > > Gore Baba was a highly respected person and some believed he had > divine qualities. Later, admirers started calling him Captain Baba. > > Every Thursday, there is a big rush at Captain Baba's mausoleum and > all visitors, irrespective of caste or creed, come along their > cigarettes. > > "We have deep faith in Baba. He is near to God. However, we are just > his devotees who come here to seek blessing for ourselves and our > children," said Aquil Ahmed, a devotee. > > 'After lighting the cigarette, I express my desires to Baba. The > wishes are fulfilled, so we have faith in Baba", said Nazim Ali, a > devotee. > > People light the cigarettes and insert them in cracked crevices on > Captain Baba's grave, just like incense sticks are lit at mausoleums. > _________________________________________ > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city. > Critiques & Collaborations > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe in the subject header. > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list > List archive: > > Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com > -- http://www.shivamvij.com From iwasthere2000 at yahoo.com Thu Jun 7 08:11:43 2007 From: iwasthere2000 at yahoo.com (S.Shashidhar) Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2007 19:41:43 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Reader-list] corporators with fake caste certificates Message-ID: <879005.61645.qm@web32411.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Radheshyam Jadhav Pune, June 5: Politics in Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has hit a roller coaster with membership of five corporators getting cancelled on account of invalid caste certificates submitted while contesting polls from reserved wards. Decision in two similar cases are pending. Membership of another four corporators is under a cloud as the defeated candidates have approached Bombay High Court raising objections on the caste certificates of these corporators. Congress corporators Usha Jadhav and Suman Chimte have resigned from their posts while Nitin Jagtap is on his way to join the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). Seven posts are already vacant and result is awaited in six cases in the house of 144. As of now NCPs strength stands reduced to 44 from 46, Congress to 40 from 44 and MNS left with 7 members, having lost one member in the caste validity row. However, the BJP and Sena numbers — 25 and 20 — remain intact. “This will not have an immediate effect on the power equations in the municipal corporation. But we as ruling party will put in every effort to win maximum seats in the bypolls,” said one senior NCP leader. The BJP-Sena members in the standing committee have already started complaining that they are not getting ‘proper share’ in the power, he also said. “It’s been hardly four months and some differences in the ruling coalition are already shaping. With state assembly polls only a year away, the number game in municipal corporation will undergo a change and then every single member will count. But as of now BJP-Sena will continue to support us,” he said. “We would like to contest all vacant seats despite our alliance with the NCP in municipal corporation,” said a BJP leader while Congress leader Aba Bagul put the onus on the election commission. “The state election commission has goofed up in the matter,” he said, alluding to the invalid caste certificates. Municipal secretary Sharad Samel said the decision about conducting the bypolls will be taken as per instructions from the state government and election commission. Five corporators including Bandu Gaikwad (Congress) Malan Bhintade (independent Congress supporter), Balasaheb Bodke (NCP) Bandu Kemse (independent NCP supporter) and Rajendra Gorde (MNS) had contested in reserved seats. They had claimed that as Kunbis, they were entitled to contest from reserved seats. However their opponents objected the Kunbi caste certificate and claimed that Maratha corporators had submitted invalid caste certificates as Kunbis. Thereafter, the caste verification committee agreed with the point raised by defeated candidates. NCP corporator Sunil Gogale and Rekha Shinde of Congress failed to submit their caste certificates in the stipulated period of four months and their case have been referred to the state government. State EC seeks information from PMC The State Election Commission has sought information from the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on the invalid caste certificate row. “We provided the information sought by the Election Commission on Tuesday,” said civic election officer Dyandeo Thube. Of the 144 seats, 57 seats were reserved under various categories. “In the case of the two corporators whose caste certificates are valid — but who failed to submit the same in time — the State government will take a final decision soon,” said Thube. Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com From ysikand at gmail.com Thu Jun 7 09:10:46 2007 From: ysikand at gmail.com (Yogi Sikand) Date: Thu, 7 Jun 2007 09:10:46 +0530 Subject: [Reader-list] Book Review: Target Iran: The Truth about the White House's Plans for Regime Change Message-ID: <48097acc0706062040t44dc7e19i74fe459102b546f@mail.gmail.com> Target Iran: The Truth about the White House's Plans for Regime Change by Scott Ritter. Pub: Nation Books, New York, 2006. Pp: 316. Hbk: US$25.95. http://www.muslimedia.com/usiranbk.htm Target Iran is the latest book by Scott Ritter, one of the UN's top weapons inspectors in Iraq between 1991 and 1998. He is the author of many books, including Iraq Confidential (2005), in which he revealed how the CIA deliberately sabotaged the activities of the UN Special Commission on Iraq. An integral, independent inspector, Ritter insisted over and over again, in 2002 and early 2004, that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The US, however, was only using allegations of weapons of mass destruction as a pretext to pursue its real aim: regime change. Seeing history repeat itself before his very eyes, Ritter has written Target Iran with a sense of urgency, hoping that his call from the wilderness will not go unheeded again. Ritter's book is based on IAEA reports, media accounts, and his extensive contacts among academics, weapons inspectors, nuclear experts, intelligence officials, and diplomatic sources. Target Iran reveals that the present Iranian crisis was manufactured in Israel, an effort spearheaded by Major-General Amos Gilad, senior advisor to Israel's Minister of Defence. Rejecting the disciplined approach that Israeli military intelligence had embraced since 1973, Gilad moved from fact-based analysis to faith-based konseptsia. He took on the task of elevating Iran to the state of number one threat facing Israel, overseeing the 1996 National Threat Assessment which called for regime change in Iran. Amos Gilad then engaged the services of the pro-Israeli lobby, the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), in order to bring the battle to the US Congress. History, of course, was repeating itself. Amos Gilad, along with Israeli intelligence, had plenty of experience manipulating American political opinion against Syria and Iraq. He had previously placed Iraq as the number one threat facing the state of Israel, unleashing the propaganda campaign which eventually led to the overthrown of Saddam Hussein. In February 2003, Amos Gilad made one of his most outlandish allegations, claiming that Saddam "kept astounding quantities of chemical weapons aimed at half the world. He apparently also has biological weapons and is engaged in building nuclear weapons." As Ritter explains, the statement was stunning since it was not backed by any serious assessment from within the Israeli military system. Despite the fact that the Israeli-supplied information against Iraq had been manufactured, it was presented as fact by the fear-mongering Bush administration. Vice President Dick Cheney claimed that "Saddam has resumed his efforts to acquire nuclear weapon," that "Saddam will acquire nuclear weapons fairly soon," and that "he is using his procurement system to acquire the equipment he needs in order to enrich uranium to build a nuclear weapon". Condoleeza Rice claimed that Saddam had the infrastructure and nuclear scientists to make a nuclear weapon and that he was only six months away from making a crude nuclear device. Dismissing United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) inspectors who found no evidence whatsoever of a nuclear programme in Iraq, Rice claimed that "there will always be some uncertainty about how quickly he can acquire nuclear weapons. But we don't want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud." Even though Mohammed El-Baradei, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), refuted every single allegation made by the US regarding an Iraqi reconstituted nuclear program, his calls for calm fell on deaf ears. The decision to destroy Iraq had long been made in both Israel and the US. The UN weapons-inspection process had long been hijacked by the US, using it as a justification for military action against Iraq. Since lies lead to more lies, the reasons for invading and occupying Iraq have continued to morph: 9/11, the war against terror, weapons of mass destruction, freedom and democracy… Although Ritter clearly understands the Israeli agenda against Iraq and Iran, he should also have stressed the Syrian-Lebanese situation. After the invasion of Iraq, Israeli intelligence intensified its propaganda against Syria and Iran. In April 2003, Amos Gilad said that "Now that Saddam Hussein's regime has collapsed, it's time for a change in Syria too." On February 14, 2005, Lebanon's former Primer Minister, Rafiq Hariri, was assassinated by the Mossad in Beirut, unleashing events that had been orchestrated for years by the Israel and US intelligence: a "popular" uprising against the Syrian "occupation" which was coined the "Cedar Revolution" by US undersecretary of state for global affairs, Paula J. Dobriansky in a news conference. Lacking the sophistication of the Israelis and Americans when it comes to world-wide media manipulation and political machination, the Syrians were pressured into withdrawing their 14,000 troops from Lebanon on April 27, 2005. The aim of this operation was not to bring freedom and democracy to the Lebanese, but rather to facilitate an Israeli invasion of Lebanon which took place in July of 2006. Lebanon and Syria, of course, were only part of the pie. The Zionist set eyes on the big baker, Iran, which was seen as the leavening agent in the entire Islamic world. No soon was Saddam Hussein overthrown, that Israeli foreign minister Silvan Shalmo told the UN general assembly that "Iran has replaced Saddam Hussein as the world's number one exporter of terror, hate and instability." Following the lead of Amos Gilad, the Bush administration's 2006 National Security Strategy listed Iran as the greatest threat to the United States, claiming that it was in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Although Ritter possesses pieces of the puzzle, he has not completely put them together. As part of its paranoia, Israel believes that it is in a state of perpetual war. While the early zionists openly advocated the creation of a Greater Israel, from the Nile to the Euphrates, they soon realised that such a goal was not attainable militarily. Rather than focusing on physical force in all circumstances, Israel invested enormously in its intelligence service, seeking to influence and eventually dominate regional powers. There was no need for annexation if Israel could get engaged to Egypt, sleep with Saudi Arabia, "get jiggy" with Jordan, elope with the Emirates, kiss Kuwait, tongue-twist Turkey, and make love to Morocco. As for those who fail to submit to Israeli seduction, they will simply be violated by means of regime change in order to create a buffer zone. Like a mercenary mistress, America has offered its services, reshaping the Islamic world, to protect its persuasive pimp. Israel, of course, understands its image and lack of credibility. In order to advance their agenda against Iran, the Israelis have used intermediaries which include the Kurds loyal to Mustafa Barzani, the Mujahidin-e Khalq, and US neo-conservatives. Kurdish separatists loyal to Mustafa Barzani's Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) have long maintained close ties with Israeli intelligence, relations which expanded during the Iran-Iraq. Barzani initiated contacts with Israel in 1963, and military cooperation began in 1965 with Kurdish guerrillas being led into battle by officers from Israel's military intelligence. Thanks to the Kurd connection, Israel created a number of intelligence-gathering networks in Iran and Iraq. After the 1991 Gulf War, Israel greatly expanded its presence in northern Iraq, using elite teams of spies drawn from the ranks of Israeli Kurds of Iraqi origin which number around 50,000. By 1995, this Kurdish network was providing Israeli intelligence with information regarding Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, evidence which was used to support aggression and invasion against the country. At the same time, of course, Israel was supporting the destruction of the Kurdish rebellion in Turkey. In fact, it was largely due to Israeli intelligence that Turkish authorities were able to apprehend PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan. Like the separatist Kurds, the People's Mujahidin of Iran, known as the Mujahidin-e Khalq or MEK, has also been providing Israel with information regarding Iran's military capabilities for decades. In order to gather public support for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic, Israeli intelligence started to feed false information to the National Council of Resistance in Iran in Washington DC, often using the Israeli lobby as an intermediary. The NCRI, of course, is merely the official façade of the Mujahidin-e Khalq, which is designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, Canada, the EU, and Iran. The Israelis denounce Iran for its support of Hizbullah and Hamas when the Israelis themselves support terrorist groups such as the MEK. In the US, the Israeli agenda against Iran was further advanced by extreme right-wing think-tanks like the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs, as well as the Project for the New American Century. Both the JINSC and the PNAC have long advocated the neutralisation of Palestine, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and Libya by means of regime change. Thanks to falsified information fed by Israeli intelligence to counter-revolutionary Iranians, and continued pressure by the America-Israel Public Relations Committee (AIPAC), members of Congress started to express their support for regime-change in Tehran. By the late 1990s, the US government had been convinced of the Israeli way of thinking. With the rise to power of the Republicans in 2000, many leading members of the JINSC and PNAC assumed positions of political power, including: George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove, Richard Perle, James Woolsey, John Bolton, Richard Armitage, Zalmay Khalilzad, Lewis Libby, Donald Rumsfeld, and Paul Wolfowitz, among many more. By 2004 the US House of Representatives had passed resolution 398, which expressed the concern of the Congress over Iran's development of the means to produce nuclear weapons, and calls upon the president to use all appropriate means to deter, dissuade, and prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Despite the fact that the IAEA concluded that there was no evidence of a nuclear weapons programme in Iran, the head of the Mossad insisted that Iran was on the point of no return. During a trip to Germany, Donald Rumsfeld claimed that Iran has "a very active program and are likely to have nuclear weapons in a relatively short period of time." John Bolton claimed that the IAEA report was "impossible to believe" and that it actually proved that Iran was engaged in a "massive covert" effort to acquire nuclear weapons. In his words, "There's just no doubt that for close to 20 years, the Iranians have been pursuing nuclear weapons through a clandestine program that we've uncovered." According to Ritter, Bolton has leaked Israeli provided information to US media outlets. The CIA, which lied about the existence of an Iraqi nuclear weapons program, continued its campaign of falsehood, claiming that: "Tehran has been pursuing a clandestine nuclear weapons program." As proof, the CIA stated that its satellites showed Iran actively trying to bury the centrifuge enrichment facility at Natanz. As Ritter explains, the CIA position is absolutely absurd since the facility in Natanz was under the total monitoring of IAEA inspectors, who reported back that the plant was still very much under construction and engaged in no activity whatsoever. Despite the objections of the IAEA, the Bush administration continues to misrepresent the capabilities of the Iranian uranium-enrichment programme, irresponsibly inserting red herrings in their assessment. The US even claimed that the Shahib-3 missile was designed to carry a nuclear warhead. Since Israeli-US allegations regarding the Iranian nuclear enrichment programme have been proved to be unfounded, their propaganda machines have attempted to cast a broader net. As Condi Rice now says, "it's not just Iran's nuclear program, but also their support for terrorism around the world. They are, in effect, the central banker for terrorism around the world." Iran is now accused of arming insurgents in Iraq, along with a renewal of old accusations: violation of human rights, oppression of women, suppressing democracy and so on. As Ritter explains, the Iranian nuclear power program dates back to the time of the Shah of Iran. During the mid 1970s, the monarchy decided to install a network of twenty nuclear reactors which would supply the country with all of its energy needs. Iran is a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and, according to Article IV, has the inalienable right to develop, research, produce, and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination. At present, Iran finds itself embroiled in a very difficult situation. If it walks away from the IAEA, it jeopardises lucrative trade talks with the European Union. The Russians have also made it clear that their assistance is linked to Iran's continued cooperation with the IAEA. If Iran refuses to cooperate with the IAEA or pulls out of the NPT, Israel and the US will use it as proof of Iran's culpability. At the same time, the IAEA is infiltrated with Israeli and American agents, who use the inspection programme to acquire sensitive information regarding to Iran's military capabilities. The hypocrisy of the world community towards Iran is not lost on Ritter. One only has to look to Israel to see the double standard. The Zionist regime has an undeclared nuclear weapons program, and refuses to sign on to the provisions of the NPT. Even El-Baradei admits that Iran is much more forthcoming and cooperative about its nuclear programme than Israel has ever been. Such an important issue never makes it to the mainstream media, which is more concerned with demonising the present Iranian president. Despite all the outrage caused by Ahmadinejad's statements against Israel, and all the false allegations made regarding his hostage-holding past, Ritter argues that these allegations cannot be used as grounds to justify war against Iran. In the Islamic Republic, he says, the president has no power whatsoever when it comes to using force against any threat, domestic or foreign. All power resides with the Supreme Leader, Imam 'Ali Khamenei. As Ritter reveals to those who are unfamiliar with the Iranian political system, whatever the president's views may be, he has no effective authority to do so without the agreement of the Supreme Leader, whose public position is very different. This is in stark contrast to the paranoid delusions of John Bolton who presents Ahmadinejad as a Holocaust-denier with his finger on a nuclear button. As Ritter points out, Imam Khamenei clarified Iran's position after Ahmedinejad's statements had been sensationally misreported, stating that Iran "will not commit aggression towards any nations." In contrast, while Khamenei calls for calm, President Bush calls for war, openly threatening to use nuclear weapons against friends or foes who challenge US interests. The 2002 National Security Policy states that "the United States…will not hesitate to act alone…by acting preemptively." When indirectly asked about nuking Iran, Bush stated in September 2003 that "we don't take options off the table." In May 2006, John Bolton told B'nai Brith that if Iran did not play ball, it would not be allowed to stay in place. As Ritter shows, the US and Israel are paranoid players in the Iran crisis, the French and the Germans are appeasers, and the Russians are the only rational players. Interestingly enough, the solution to the crisis will not come from Western powers. According to Ritter, "Ayatollah 'Ali Khamenei may represent the best hope for a diplomatic resolution of the Iranian nuclear crisis." As the author explains, Khamenei has reached out to the US on several occasions by means of ambassadorial intermediaries. In its stubborn-minded arrogance, the diplomatically-deficient Bush administration has failed to respond in any fashion. Khamenei, however, was not swayed, and continues to articulate a moderate approach towards resolving the differences between Iran and the US. Strategically silenced by the mainstream media in the Western world, Imam Khamenei seems to be the sole hope for saving Iran. As Ritter has revealed in his book, "the conflict currently underway between the US and Iran is, first and foremost, a conflict born in Israel. It is based upon an Israeli contention that Iran poses a threat to Israel, and defined by Israeli assertions that Iran possesses a nuclear weapons program. None of this has been shown to be true, and indeed much of the allegations made by Israel against Iran have been clearly demonstrated as being false. And yet the US continues to trumpet the Israeli claims." The author denounces the unparalleled influence the Israeli lobby exerts over the US Congress and the executive branch of government. He reminds Americans that while many of them may feel compelled to support Israel out of sense of moral duty and obligation, Israel in the end does not share the same moral bond in terms of supporting the United States. As Ritter explains, Israeli security policy makers view America as but a tool to be wielded in support of larger Israeli interests. Whether reason will prevail remains to be seen. The outlook, however, is far from promising. As Ritter admits, "When it comes time to Iran, the Bush administration ultimately has only a single policy objective: regime change, at any cost." As the author explains, US military and intelligence officials had reviewed the possibility of a decapitating strike against Iran's nuclear programme, and the results were not encouraging. Unlike Iraq, Iran does not possess a single target that could be bombed to destroy a nuclear programme. In Iran there are numerous targets, spread out over a vast territory, requiring a massive military effort. According to military planners, a war against Iran lacked the certainty of success, risking a rapid escalation of violence which could not be contained. In short, "according to U.S. military planners, an attack on Iran, even if it was limited in scope to Iran's nuclear activities, would rapidly spin out of control into a regional conflict that could not be contained." Ritter's conclusion is gripping: Iran is not Iraq…Iran remains a very modern nation state…with access to the complete spectrum of technologies…This includes military technology. Iran is a vastly larger country than Iraq, with a correspondingly larger population and military. The Iranian people are a proud people who cherish their culture history, and independence. Any notion that the Iranian people who somehow stand idly while the United States bombarded their nation or occupied their soil is tragically unfounded. Iran would resist any attack against its soil with all of the considerable means available. Any aerial bombardment of Iran would result in an immediate attack by Iranian missiles on targets in Israel, followed by a major Hezbollah rocketing from northern Israel. If U.S. military forces were deployed from the soil of any nation within striking distance of Iran, those nations too could be expected to come under Iranian attack. Iran will fire missile barrages against American forces in Iraq, and then engage the entire collation occupation force on the ground…Iran will do its utmost to play the oil card, not only shutting off its exportation of oil and natural gas, but also threaten the oil production of Iraq, Kuwait, UAE, and Saudi Arabia… US naval forces operating in the Persian will be put at risk… There is a better than even chance that Iran would succeed in shutting down the straight [sic.] of Hormuz, chocking [sic.] off the global oil supply…The Iranian reaction will have global reach, with …terror bombings, kidnappings and/or assassinations… Attacks will definitely occur in Europe, and may even spread to American soil…Any American ground invasion of Iran would be doomed to fail…America simply does not have the conventional combat power to fight a sustained ground combat action in Iran…Faced with such a disaster, the United States would have to no choice but to escalate the conflict along military lines, which means engage Iran with nuclear weapons. At this juncture, the equation becomes unpredictable, the damage done incalculable, and the course of world history, including America's role as a viable global leader. Ritter's vision may be realistic; let us hope that it is not prophetic. From cahen.x at levels9.com Thu Jun 7 03:01:49 2007 From: cahen.x at levels9.com (xavier cahen) Date: Wed, 06 Jun 2007 23:31:49 +0200 Subject: [Reader-list] [Announcements] pourinfos Newsletter / 06-06 to 13-06-2007 Message-ID: <466727C5.8070905@levels9.com> pourinfos.org l'actualité du monde de l'art / daily Art news ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From Wenesday June 06, 2007 to Wenesday June 13 2007 (included) ------------------------------------------------------------------- (mostly in french) @ 001 (06/06/2007) Meetings: François Morellet, Wednesday June 6, 2007, Coffee of the Museum, the Museum of contemporary art of Lyon, Lyon, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34945-tit--Francois-Morellet-Mercredi-6-Juin-2007- -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 002 (06/06/2007) Residencies: chantier public, residency #3, Lyon, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34975-tit--chantier-public-residence-3-Lyon- -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 003 (06/06/2007) Residence: Artist in Residence (Air) program, The Netherlands Media Art Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands. http://pourinfos.org/art-34976-tit-Residence-Artist-in-Residence-AiR- -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 004 (06/06/2007) Meetings: Future Histories of the Moving Image, Nov. 2007, University of Sunderland, Sunberland, United Kingdom. http://pourinfos.org/art-34983-tit--Future-Histories-of-the-Moving-Image-Nov -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 005 (06/06/2007) Rencontres : Meetings: Mutamorphosis conference: opening of the inscriptions, CIANT, Prague, Czech Republic. http://pourinfos.org/art-34984-tit--Conference-Mutamorphosis-ouverture-des -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 006 (06/06/2007) Meetings: lecture “On DIGITAL Arts” - Wednesday June 6th 2007, Island6 Center Arts, Shanghai, China. http://pourinfos.org/art-34985-tit--Lecture-On-Digital-Arts-Wednesday -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 007 (06/06/2007) Meetings: Day discusses: “times of art of feminism”, July 7, 2007, Le Plateau, Paris, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34986-tit--Journee-debat-les-temps-d-art-du -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 008 (06/06/2007) Publication: #.05 Semaine, editions Analogues, Arles, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34988-tit--no-05-Semaines-editions-Analogues- -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 009 (06/06/2007) Publication : Lectureof the contemporary art, Textual n°52, Paris-Diderot University, Paris, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34989-tit--Lectures-de-l-art-contemporain-Textuel -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 010 (06/06/2007) Formation: Initiation Maxmsp, June 11, 2007, Petahertz, Montreuil, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34993-tit-Formation-Initiation-Maxmsp-11-12-juin -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 011 (06/06/2007) Various: Paul Burty Haviland, medal of Right among the Nations (médaille des Justes parmi les Nations,), Yzeures, France. http://pourinfos.org/art-34995-tit-Divers-Paul-Burty-Haviland-medaille-des -------------------------------------------------------------------- @ 012 (06/06/2007) Various: Diplomas Conservation-restoration of Scultpure, École supérieure des beaux-a