LiP Media Blog

THiS WEEK: Hasty accusations about Iran's weapons programs turn out to be based on shaky intelligence from a single source (sound familiar?); the intersection of kinky sex play and racial epithets; why investing in media is so crucial for the Left; a new plan for turning back the clock on global warming; a middle-aged woman in Bahrain dresses in drag and attempts to deliver a sermon in one of the largest mosques in the country; everything you thought you knew about the "War on Terror" is wrong; and an interview with queer-Latina-gangsta-MC JenRO. And more, of course.

This Week's Picks

1. US accusations on Iran 'based on single source'
   Surprise: the recent accusation that Iran is trying to develop a nuclear ballistic missile was based on information from a single, 'walk-in' source whose credibility has not been verified.

   Philippe Naughton | Times Online
   http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1365782,0 0.html



2. Top Priority: Media Infrastructure
   For various reasons, American liberals have opted against investments in media, favoring instead grassroots activism and various charitable endeavors. What makes this strategy so dangerous is that media saturates every corner of this disparate American society. It has become the way for many millions of Americans to understand the world around them and to bond with political leaders and ideas.

   Robert Parry | Consortium News
   http://www.consortiumnews.com/2004/110404.html



3. Playing with Race
   What does it mean for a person of color to be aroused by words like “nigger” or “spic”? A look at 'race play' in the BDSM community.

   Daisy Hernández | Color Lines
   http://www.arc.org/C_Lines/CLArchive/story7_4_01.html



4. Scientist's plan could bury global warming
   A New Zealand economist is promoting a massive worldwide programme of planting crops and burying charcoal to avoid catastrophic global warming. The researcher, Dr. Peter Read, says that the Kyoto Protocol, which requires most developed countries to cut back their emissions of global-warming "greenhouse gases" to slightly below 1990 levels, might be too modest to avoid disaster. In contrast, a massive global programme of planting crops and ploughing organic matter back into the soil could cut carbon dioxide back to pre-1800 levels - and feed poor countries at the same time.

   Simon Collins | New Zealand Herald
   http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm? storyID=3612471&thesection=news&thesubsection=general



5. Woman ‘Imam’ Held in Bahrain Mosque
   Police in Bahrain arrested a woman on Friday for disguising herself as a man and trying to deliver the Friday sermon at one of the largest mosques in the island state, Asharq Al-Awsat reported yesterday. “The 40-year-old woman, who had put on an artificial beard and mustache and was wearing full male dress, took her place in the first row of the mosque packed with 7,000 worshippers, and intended to deliver the sermon before the prayer,” the paper said.

   P.K. Abdul Ghafour | Arab News
   http://www.arabnews.com/? page=1§ion=0&article=54523&d=15&m=11&y=2004&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Kingdom



6. VIDEO | The Power of Nightmares: The Rise of the Politics of Fear
   A new documentary, broadcast on the BBC, challenges key assumptions about the "war on terror." The Power of Nightmares claims that much of the perceived threat of global terrorism "is a fantasy that has been exaggerated and distorted by politicians. It is a dark illusion that has spread unquestioned through governments around the world, the security services, and the international media." The series' explanation for this is even bolder: "In an age when all the grand ideas have lost credibility, fear of a phantom enemy is all the politicians have left to maintain their power."
   
   (Video is approximately 1 hour, split into three parts. Originally broadcast on the BBC, 10/20/04.) - NOTE: THIS SITE OCCASIONALLY EXPERIENCES SERVICE INTERRUPTIONS AND MAY REQUIRE A FEW TRIES.

   Information Clearing House
   http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/video1037.htm



7. I Am Ro
   It's not unusual for a 21-year-old newbie MC to situate herself in a pantheon of big names. What's striking about JenRO, though, is her inclination to mix the different sides of her personality, making the seemingly disparate worlds she inhabits – queer, Latina, gangsta – all of a piece. On her debut album, "The Revelation," which dropped on the label La Movida in September, she spits lyrics about everything from street hustles to hooking up with fly girls.

   Rachel Swan | Alternet
   http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/20570/



8. Aboriginal welfare plans cause stir
   The Australian government is planning a controversial new welfare system for its indigenous Aboriginal population. The proposals, which were leaked to the media, are reported to include financial sanctions for parents who do not send their children to school. "It's fascism gone mad. It's crazy stuff. Two hundred years of enlightenment and this is the best they've been able to deliver?" says Aboriginal leader Pat Dodson.

   BBC News
   http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4002631.stm



9. VIDEO | A Video and a City: Parafonista and El Alto
   A look at El Alto, Bolivia: the city that took on and defeated power just over a year ago, giving the people new hope. This music video by jazz-fusion group Parafonista is a display of pain and rage, of the unstoppable force of people organized to resist a tyrant that had been selling their common patrimony to transnational corporations. It is a portrait of the city that rose up to topple then-President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada even as its fallen lay dead in the streets.

   Luis A. Gómez | Salon Chingon
   http://www.salonchingon.com/cinema/rios_profundos.php?city=ny



10. Nonleathal Weapons: Terms and References
    This 1997 report from the Institute for National Security Studies - part of the US Air Force Academy - lists dozens of "nonlethal weapons," many of which are very obscure. Categories include acoustics, biotechnicals, electromagnetics, entanglers, holograms, and reactants.

    The Memory Hole
    http://www.thememoryhole.org/mil/nl-weapons_terms/

- Media Picks compiled and edited by Erin Wiegand and Brian Awehali

THiS WEEK: A doctrinal housecleaning in the ranks of the CIA; how white liberals love to exploit their 'bought colored kids'; the problems with racial representations in reports on the Darfur crisis; Eduardo Galeano on water rights in Uruguay; 'Submission,' the controversial film on the abuse of Muslim women (that got its director, Theo van Gogh, killed); MSNBC and CNN react to Arafat's death with racist commentary; Two 'modest proposals'—one from the right, one from the left—for secession from the Union; Wal-Mart's insanely huge database of consumer information; and soldiers prepare to kick some Eye-raqi ass in Falluja— 'the American way.' And more.

This Week's Picks

1. White House Orders Purge of CIA 'Liberals'
   The White House has ordered the new CIA director, Porter J. Goss, to purge the agency of officers believed to have been disloyal to President Bush or of leaking damaging information to the media about the conduct of the Iraq war and the hunt for Osama bin Laden, according to knowledgeable sources.

   Knut Royce | Baltimore Sun
   http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/1114-01.htm



2. Bought Colored Kids: The Coolest Accessory of the White Liberal 'Left'
   Along with dreadlocks and a non-white lover, the coolest accessory of the white liberal "left" these days is a bought colored kid.

   Kil-ja Kim | AZine—Asian American Movement Zine
   http://www.aamovement.net/narratives/boughtkids1.html



3. How can we Name the Darfur Crisis: Preliminary Thoughts on Darfur
   Amidst continued talk of 'ethnic cleansing' in Darfur, Sudan, we must pay attention to the significance of names and racial representations; in Darfur, who is 'black' and who is 'Arab?' Mahmood Mamdani explores the complex nature of ethnic, cultural and political identities.

   Mahmood Mamdani | Pambazuka News
   http://www.pambazuka.org/index.php?id=24982



4. Where the People Voted Against Fear
   A few days before the election of the President of the planet in North America, in South America elections and a plebiscite were held in a little-known, almost secret country called Uruguay. In these elections, for the first time in the country's history, the left won. And in the plebiscite, for the first time in world history, the privatization of water was rejected by popular vote, asserting that water is the right of all people.

   Eduardo Galeano | The Progressive
   http://www.progressive.org/jan05/gal0105.html



5. VIDEO | Submission
   Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh was recently killed after the release of this film, "Submission," about the sexual and physical abuse of Muslim women. The screenwriter, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, is a Somali-born, right-wing member of Parliament who was raised a Muslim but has since renounced her faith. She has referred to Islam as an "oppressive, misogynist religion trapped in the 13th century." The film, as you might expect, was extremely controversial, in particular for scenes showing verses of the Quran written on a woman's naked body. It was meant to be the first of three films on the topic, the second of which was to have been from a Muslim man's perspective.
   
   Watch the movie (note: 56k seems to be the only speed working):
   
   http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2655656

   More information on the film and filmmakers:

   The Day I Became a Martyr: Islam Protest Brings Fatal Fatwa
   In death, Theo van Gogh is a painful symbol for what he so stridently called for in life: the end of tolerance.

   Dennis Lim | The Village Voice
   http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0446/lim.php



6. Rights Groups Blast Racist US Media
   Following the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, both MSNBC and CNN broadcast reports that included descriptions of Arafat&mdashand Palestinians in general—as dirty animals.

   Al Jazeera
   http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/FB53EB48-0428-473A-BA2C-6C9000AAFA22. htm



7. Exit Ashcroft, Enter Gonzales
   The question is not just whether Alberto Gonzales will continue Ashcroft's legacy, but how to undo the damage that Ashcroft has done.

   Mark Whitney | Alternet
   http://www.alternet.org/rights/20496/

and

Ashcroft says Judges Threaten National Security by Questioning Bush decisions
He's not gone yet.

AP/Tuscon Citizen
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/breaking/111204ashcroft.html



8. Two 'Modest Proposals'
   Pundits on both the right and the left are calling for a division of 'red' and 'blue states: first, a 'modest proposal' by Mike Thompson for conservatives to finally rid themselves of the 'liberal cancer.' Followed by a much cruder (but much funnier) rebuttal from Fuckthesouth.com.
   
   Declaration of Expulsion: A Modest Proposal

   Mike Thompson | Human Events Online
   http://www.humaneventsonline.com/article.php?id=5652

   and
   

   Fuck the South
   http://www.fuckthesouth.com



9. What Wal-Mart Knows About Customers' Habits
   With 3,600 stores in the United States and roughly 100 million customers walking through the doors each week, Wal-Mart has access to information about a broad slice of America—from individual Social Security and driver's license numbers to geographic proclivities for Mallomars, or lipsticks, or jugs of antifreeze. The data are gathered item by item at the checkout aisle, then recorded, mapped and updated by store, by state, by region. By its own count, Wal-Mart has 460 terabytes of data stored on Teradata mainframes, made by NCR, at its Bentonville headquarters. To put that in perspective, the Internet has less than half as much data.

   Constance L. Hays| The New York Times
   http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/14/business/yourmoney/14wal.html?th=&pagewant



10. "Let's Kick Ass ... the American Way'
    In the huge, muddy field which serves as a forward base, Major-General Richard Natonski prepared his troops for the battle ahead. 'We're goin' in to raise the Eye-raqi flag above Falluja - to give it back to the Fallujans,' he shouted, the eyes of the entire 1st Marine Division on him. Pausing to remember the marine corps who fought in Vietnam, Korea and the two world wars, they then stood to attention and launched into the marine hymn. 'Only two songs send a shiver up my spine,' said one marine, his face scored with the pockmarks and confidence of youth. 'The marine hymn, and that song by Toby Keith after 9/11 which says "we're gonna kick you up the ass—that's the American way".'

    Lindsey Hilsum | The Guardian
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1350831,00.html



11. Materialistic Madness
    The biggest moral value of all was on display in a parking lot in Hershey, Pa. Five cars, four of them SUVs, were clustered together. All of them had the yellow ribbon magnet in support of our troops in Iraq. The ribbons glowed against the grayness of a drizzly fall day. Circled by fallen leaves, the hulks were an impenetrable metallic forest resting on asphalt soil. This forest spoke as powerfully about our moral values as the debate over gay marriage and Iraq. Americans are still voting for denial. The SUV forest thickens. The real forest thins. America voted for the asphalt jungle.

    Derrick Z. Jackson | The Boston Globe
    http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2004/11/12/ valuing_the_unsustainable?

- Media Picks compiled and edited by Erin Wiegand and Brian Awehali

THiS WEEK: Election news and all else occurring "meanwhile:"biotech plunder in Iraq; excellent video collage of Republican soundbiting; Hunter S. Thompson on election bloodsport and When Bush Lost It; army reserves just aren't showing up for return duty; that anti-Bush Eminem video you've probably already seen; a comparison of journalistic freedom in the 18th and 21st centuries; Triumph the Comic Insult Dog got into the post-convention "Spin Room," and has words with Karl Rove, Carol Mosely-Braun and an unfortunate array of spinmeisters; rape is being ignored in the military ranks; María Sanchez has become the first woman to govern an indigenous municipality in Chiapas; the problem with Kerrycrats; converting to the metric system starts with yourself. And more, of course.

This Week's Picks

1. American Multinational Firms Stealing Iraqi Grain Seeds
   A new report by GRAIN and Focus on the Global South has found that new legislation in Iraq has been carefully put in place by the US that prevents farmers from saving their seeds, effectively handing over the seed market to transnational corporations.

   Focus on the Global South and GRAIN
   http://www.grain.org/articles/?id=6



2. VIDEO | FEAR. 9/11. Did we mention fear?
   Check out this clip of Republicans hammering home their essential message: 9/11, fear, terrorism. . .

   http://www.oliverwillis.com/stuff/gopmashup.mov



3. One Third of Reserves Fail to Report for Duty
   More than 800 former soldiers have refused to comply with Army orders to get back in uniform and report for duty in Iraq or Afghanistan. That is more than one-third of the total who were told to report to a mobilization station by Oct. 17.

   Robert Burns | AP
   http://www.world-crisis.com/news/969_0_1_0_M/



4. Fear and Loathing, Campaign 2004
   The genetically vicious nature of presidential campaigns in America is too obvious to argue with, but some people call it fun, and I am one of them. Election Day—especially a presidential election—is always a wild and terrifying time for politics junkies, and I am one of those, too. We look forward to major election days like sex addicts look forward to orgies. We are slaves to it.

   Dr. Hunter S. Thompson| Rolling Stone
   http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/_/id/6562575?rnd=1098530795030&ha s-player=unknown



5. This Election Really Does Offer a Choice: Kerry and the Conservatives vs. Bush and the Fundamentalists
   A common criticism of the US two party system is that it actually functions to exclude differences of opinion. The Democrats and Republicans, the argument goes, are merely two sides of the same coin, and they collude to preserve the status quo in the face of widespread, if unnoticed, opposition. Normally, I am inclined to agree. Typically, both of the two major parties generate their coffers from the same selective sources, ensuring a common elitist agenda. However, the 2004 race is neither normal or typical. Instead, we are given a stark choice between not just two candidates, but two political philosophies. . . in 2004 the race is between the Conservatives, represented by John Kerry, and the Fundamentalists that support George W. Bush.

   Unknown News
   http://www.unknownnews.net/041022a-Atomicktom.html



6. Thailand 'Risks Revolt' After Muslim Deaths
   Almost 80 Muslims in southern Thailand died in military custody on Monday; the main Muslim political party in Malaysia has warned that Thailand now risks a major uprising in the south. Most of the victims suffocated and several broke their necks when 1300 people in the southern Narathiwat province were stuffed into vehicles for at least six hours on Monday after Thai officials used water cannon, gunfire and tear gas to break up a demonstration.

   Al Jazeera
   http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/1B02B3F1-C049-4453-9F62-1CCFABF6BCCF.htm



7. VIDEO | Eminem's "Mosh" Music Video
   OK, so the way mostly white pundits are falling all over themselves to proclaim Eminem the voice of a generation is vaguely embarrassing, but his latest song, "Mosh," and the video, are a strong indictment of the Bush regime and imperialism. It's also kind of catchy.

   Ian Inaba | Guerrilla News Network
   http://www.gnn.tv/content/eminem_mosh.html



8. Indymedia and Zenger
   Do 21st century electronic journalists have less freedom to dissent than did 18th century American print journalists? The FBI's recent seizure in London of Indymedia servers from their service provider, Texas-based Rackspace, calls this question into stark relief. Not only are countries cracking down, but countries are cracking down on dissenting journalism in OTHER countries.

   Joe Lockard | Bad Subjects
   http://bad.eserver.org/editors/2004/indymediaandzenger.html



9. Rape In the U.S. Army
   With thousands of women on the front line of America's war on terror, the Pentagon has been forced to acknowledge that female soldiers are at risk from their comrades in arms, and that, in the US military, rapists often go unpunished.

   Suzanne Goldenberg | The Guardian
   http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1335180,00.html



10. VIDEO | The Real No-Spin Zone: Triumph the Insult Comic Dog Visits Poop Valhalla
    Everyone's favorite cigar-chomping rubber dog puppet visits the post-presidential debate spin room to uncover what really goes on.

    http://www.ifilm.com/bigpicture/political



11. Female Chiapas Mayor
    In December María Sanchez will become the first woman to govern an indigenous municipality in the southeastern Mexican state of Chiapas, where she is bucking local tradition. "I am the first, but there will be many more," she says.

    Diego Cevallos | Z Magazine
    http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm? SectionID=59&ItemID=6515



12. Twelve Ways Bush is Now Stealing the Ohio Vote
    The Republican "November Surprise" to steal the 2004 election is in full force here in Ohio. With polls showing a dead heat, the GOP is staging an all-out attack on a fair vote count in the Buckeye State.

    Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman | The Free Press
    http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/19/2004/810



13. The Great Delusion: Kerrycrats and the War
    I asked one usually radical friend of mine, now a Kerrycrat, how she could support a fellow who pledges a "better", wider war in Iraq and then a march on Teheran. "Oh," she said airily, "you can't believe anything a candidate will say."

    Alexander Cockburn | Counterpunch
    http://www.counterpunch.org/cockburn10282004.html



14. Rise of Drug Trade Threat to Afghanistan's Security
    After decades of occupation and conflict, this nation is finally embracing democracy as returns from Afghanistan's first presidential election point to interim leader Hamid Karzai as the victor. But a competing power structure no Afghan voted for is lurking just off the political stage: a deeply rooted and ever-expanding opium industry.

    Pakistan Tribune
    http://paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=82045



15. Converting to the Metric System Starts With The Individual
    If you want to change the world, you can't sit on your hands expecting some higher authority to do it for you. You've gotta get out there and make things happen. As my mother taught me, converting to the metric system starts with the individual.

    The Onion
    http://www.theonion.com/opinion/index.php?issue=4043

- Media Picks compiled and edited by Erin Wiegand and Brian Awehali