CIRCLE OF FEAR... or doughnut

What would T.E. Lawrence make of THIS? By these standards, McDonalds' uniform is reminiscent of Benito Mussolini or as one reply to the BBC article states, this "is like saying that UPS should change its brown uniform because it pleases the Hitler Youth."

"The US chain Dunkin' Donuts has pulled an advert following complaints that the scarf worn by a celebrity chef offered symbolic support for Islamic extremism."

Further insight into the mind that put forward this paranoid and reactionary thesis can be seen HERE. This ignorance reminds me of the case of Balbir Singh Sodhi who was gunned down in Arizona four days after 9/11. His killer bragged beforehand that he would "kill the ragheads responsible for September 11".

Links:
BBC News
Fox News

NATIONAL PRIORITIES

The National Priorities Project aims to bring clarity to the US Federal Budget through number crunching and contextualization of the resulting costs.

Links:
National Priorities Project
NPP (YouTube)
NPP Wiki
NPP Myspace (official?)

The 2008 SAMUEL JOHNSON PRIZE Shortlist

"The judges for the 2008 BBC FOUR Samuel Johnson Prize announced the shortlist today, 15th May. Now in its tenth year the prize is the world’s richest non-fiction prize and is worth £30,000 to the winner.

The BBC FOUR Samuel Johnson Prize for Non Fiction Shortlist 2008

• Blood River: A Journey to Africa’s Broken Heart by Tim Butcher (Vintage)
• Crow Country by Mark Cocker (Jonathan Cape)
• The Whisperers by Orlando Figes (Allen Lane)
• The World Is What It Is: The Authorized Biography of V.S. Naipaul by Patrick French (Picador)
• The Rest is Noise by Alex Ross (Fourth Estate)
• The Suspicions of Mr Whicher Or The Murder at Road Hill House by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury)

Rosie Boycott, Chair of the judges, comments:

“This superb list of books captures both the surface and the underbelly of human existence in all its myriad variations. There is murder, betrayal, brutality, beauty and tales of the unexpected. In every instance, it is the power and the quality of the writing that has drawn us to this eclectic selection - and, as judges, it has been our great privilege to discover and help promote this award-winning short list. All six books are ones which changed the way we looked at the world, they are all ones we are eager to pass onto others. To quote Yeats ‘He, too, has been changed in his turn / Transformed utterly / A terrible beauty is born.’” (Easter 1916)

Rosie Boycott is joined by an eclectic panel of judges who offer a wide range of literary, journalistic and academic experience. They are literary editor of the Guardian, Claire Armitstead; poet, Daljit Nagra; Director of the Science Museum, Chris Rapley; and documentary maker and journalist, Hannah Rothschild.

The judges will announce the winner of the Prize at an awards event in the Ballroom of the Royal Festival Hall at the Southbank Centre, London on 15th July. The winner receives £30,000, and each of the five shortlisted authors, £1,000."

Links:
Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-fiction
Blood River - Tim Butcher
Crow Country - Mark Cocker (Guardian Unlimited)
The Whisperers - Orlando Figes
The World is What It Is - Patrick French (Guardian Unlimited)
The Rest is Noise - Alex Ross
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher - Kate Summerscale (Guardian Unlimited)

Jehane Noujaim's PANGEA DAY

For those of you following the WIRE, you'll know that I am a great admirer of the TED(Technology. Entertainment. Design) series of lectures. Each year a TED prize is issued from a broad range of disciplines and in 2006, the winner was filmmaker Jehane Noujaim who was granted $100,000. Her aspiration was to create a day which would bring the world together through film and thus Pangea Day was born.

Here is the English trailer(Click HERE for additional languages):

And here is Kenya sings for India, one of the Imagine anthems:

This is Japan sings for Turkey (click HERE to view in high resolution):

From the organisers:

In a world where people are often divided by borders, difference, and conflict, it's easy to lose sight of what we all have in common. Pangea Day seeks to overcome that -- to help people see themselves in others -- through the power of film.

On May 10, 2008 -- Pangea Day -- sites in Cairo, Kigali, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai, and Rio de Janeiro will be linked to produce a 4-hour program of powerful films, visionary speakers, and uplifting music. The program will be broadcast live to the world through the Internet, television, digital cinemas, and mobile phones.

Pangea is the name of the original super-continent which contained all the world's land mass before the continents started splitting apart 250 million years ago. We're launching Pangea Day with the vision that the people of the world can begin to overcome their divisions, and that the power of film can help make it possible.

Movies can't change the world. But the people who watch them can.

Jehane Noujaim is also the director of the highly recommended film Control Room, a documentary on Al Jazeera putting forward an alternative vantage point on the Iraq War and media in general.

UPDATE: Here are the first 20 minutes...

Links:
Pangea Day

Pangea Day (YouTube)
Jehane Noujaim - Pangea Day (TED talks)
Jehane Noujaim Wiki
Jehane Noujaim (TED profile)
Jehane Noujaim interview (BBC)
Noujaim Films
TED Talks (YouTube)

SOURCE: Dek at NoFatClips

PHOTOGRAPHER'S RIGHTS

The subject of photographer's rights and their infringement has been blogged quite a lot. I have lived, worked, and photographed a lot in the UK (London in particular) for more than a decade. I've never had any problems in the street though to be safe I always carry THIS with me though apparently this doesn't always help.

That said, I have heard about some bad experiences and seen the proliferation of CCTV. Here's an example I found via Conscientious:

Unfortunately, things are not that much better where I come from in Washington State:

In New York where I attended the School of Visual Arts, there are moves to ban public filming and photography, and the police don't seem to be taking heed of their own printed guidelines. This editorial describes a worrying trend stemming from Guiliani's administration.

In an ideal world, all citizens would know the law of the land (and we wouldn't need lawyers) but we're aware that the volumes that make up our legal framework are too cumbersome. Still, what was once a specialist area of the law in regard to the rights of a photographer are now mainstream as cameras proliferate into our phones, laptops, and other mobile devices. These are rights for which we should all be made aware particularly those in law enforcement.

And then there are examples of photographer's being seen as a security threat in the wake of 9/11. NPR news have some examples of this(audio), also HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Increasingly, it's members of the public who instigate incidents involving the police, suspicious citizens worried about anyone with a camera. I can't help but wonder if it came to referendum, are there enough of these people to vote in favour of restricting the rights of photographers?

The links below have more detailed information on photographer's rights and THIS ARTICLE from USA Today is an interesting read. EDIT: Here is another worrying entry from Conscientious.

Links:
UK Photographer's Rights
USA Photographer's Rights
Photographer's Rights (various regions)
Photography & the Law (worldwide)
NSW Photographer's Rights (Australia)
Photographer's Rights Overview

Biography of the PEACE SYMBOL

The National Geographic Society Press is releasing a book in time with the 50th Anniversary of the peace symbol. Peace: The Biography of a Symbol traces its development from the pinnafore symbols for N and D (Nuclear Disarmament) with a circle to symbolise the globe through its five decade history.

Here is the full press release:

PEACE: The Biography of a Symbol

Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Sign

WASHINGTON (Dec 21, 2007) -- The peace symbol. It is recognized around the globe. It has become an enduring cultural icon. For five decades, millions of people worldwide, regardless of race or religious beliefs, have looked to the peace sign to unite them. And the symbol's appeal continues with each succeeding generation.

In April 2008 the peace sign turns 50. To commemorate this anniversary, National Geographic Books is publishing a tribute that traces the world-famous pictogram as it evolved from a 1950s anti-nuke emblem to a defining icon still widely seen and used today. PEACE: The Biography of a Symbol (National Geographic Books; ISBN: 978-1-4262-0294-0; April 1, 2008; $25 hardcover), by Ken Kolsbun, with Michael Sweeney, is a one-of-a-kind story about the origin of the peace sign, the man who created it and its enduring relevance through the past 50 years.

The story of the peace sign began in the spring of 1958 when peace activists, clergy and Quakers in Great Britain organized a rally to draw attention to the testing and stockpiling of nuclear weapons by some of the world's most powerful countries. Gerald Holtom, a textile designer and commercial artist from Twickenham, suggested the demonstrators carry posters and banners with a simple visual symbol he had designed. He created the symbol by combining the semaphore letters N and D, for nuclear disarmament.

On April 4, 1958, 5,000 people gathered in Trafalgar Square to show support for the Ban the Bomb movement, then walked the few miles to the town of Aldermaston, site of an atomic weapons research plant. The first peace signs appeared during that march and a second Aldermaston march the following year. From there it took flight, appearing on flags, clothes, even scratched on walls and signposts, all over Europe.

Easy to remember and reproduce, the symbol soon crossed borders and cultures in a phenomenal way. It became a classic symbol, an icon of peace for the people. Like a chameleon, the symbol took on additional meanings during the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement, the environmental movement, women's and gay rights movements and the two Iraqi wars.

The symbol "continues to exert almost hypnotic appeal. It's become a rallying cry for almost any group working for social change. I'm fascinated by the simplicity of the peace symbol and how people have used it, worn it, adapted it. Each iteration of the symbol seems unique, because it bears the artistic touch of the person replicating it," writes Kolsbun.

PEACE takes readers on a journey through five decades as Kolsbun presents 50 years of history in pictures and words to tell the fascinating story of mankind's elusive pursuit of peace and the symbol that represents that quest. The book contains iconic images from Kolsbun's own collection as well as a variety of historical archives, illustrating both the symbol itself and the larger history it helped shape. Many of the photographs have seldom been seen before.

Kolsbun recounts the controversy inspired by the peace symbol, including several legal trials that challenged its very existence, and he debunks a number of incorrect theories about the sign, such as its being a symbol of the devil.

Although it's a sign that baby boomers identify with, it has cross-generational appeal. "Children of today easily identify it. They may not know its original meaning, but they know it stands for good things -- be nice to friends, be kind to animals, no fighting. This is a marvelous achievement for Gerald Holtom's simple design. Peoples around the world have marched with it, worn it, displayed it during combat, held it high on banners, and been arrested in its name. Ask any man, woman, or child, 'What one thing would everyone in the world want more than anything else?' The answer would surely be world peace," Kolsbun concludes in his epilogue.

Kolsbun, a self-described Jack-of-all trades, is a photographer, writer, historian, peace activist, game inventor, landscape architect, horticulturalist, baseball fan, mail-order catalog designer, husband and father. He continues to be active in the peace movement and is an authority of the peace symbol. He lives in Forestville, Calif.

Sweeney is a professor of journalism at Utah State University. He is the award-winning author of "Secrets of Victory," which was named 2001 Book of the Year by the American Journalism Historians Association, of the National Geographic book "God Grew Tired of Us," with John Bul Dau.

Links:
BBC Online article
A tribute to the peace symbol
DesignBoom article
National Geographic

A Missed Wonder & 7 Postcards

So with the unveiling of the new "Seven Wonders of the World" inexplicably getting more publicity than it really should and germinating from a Dubious (yes, capital D) process, I was reminded of a recent modern wonder that is among many incredible structures built in the name of science, the Super-Kamiokande neutrino observatory in Japan.

1000 meters underground in a disused mine, consisting of 50,000 tons of pure heavy water, 11,200 photomultiplier tubes, 41.4 meters tall, and 39.3 meters across, the Super-Kamiokande's purpose is hard to grasp (neutrino observation) but its beauty both in terms of aesthetics and theory is not.

So where does science fall into the public's conscience in terms of "wonder"? The world's larger satellite arrays could easily dwarf the Taj Majal (not that that's hard to do), but are we resistant to accepting something utilitarian as beautiful? Or something sourced from science as art?

Take for example, photographer Felice Frankel who revolutionized scientific photography but doesn't feel her works merit being called art. She cites that they don't sell and have no emotional investment as they simply record phenomena. Edward Winkleman has the full story on his blog.

Returning to the original "New Seven Wonders" (Does that not sound like a new cola or boy band?), it is undeniably flawed. Did everyone voting visit all these wonders? Or consider the creator's motivation? Or even simply think about why a list like this is even necessary?

UNESCO has stated the following in regard to the "New Seven":

In order to avoid any damaging confusion, UNESCO wishes to reaffirm that there is no link whatsoever between UNESCO’s World Heritage programme, which aims to protect world heritage, and the current campaign concerning “The New 7 Wonders of the World”.

This campaign was launched in 2000 as a private initiative by Bernard Weber, the idea being to encourage citizens around the world to select seven new wonders of the world by popular vote.

Although UNESCO was invited to support this project on several occasions, the Organizaton decided not to collaborate with Mr. Weber.

UNESCO’s objective and mandate is to assist countries in identifying, protecting and preserving World Heritage. Acknowledging the sentimental or emblematic value of sites and inscribing them on a new list is not enough. Scientific criteria must be defined, the quality of candidates evaluated, and legislative and management frameworks set up. The relevant authorities must also demonstrate commitment to these frameworks as well as to permanently monitoring the state of conservation of sites. The task is one of technical conservation and political persuasion. There is also a clear educational role with respect to the sites’ inherent value, the threats they face and what must be done to prevent their loss.

There is no comparison between Mr Weber’s mediatised campaign and the scientific and educational work resulting from the inscription of sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The list of the “7 New Wonders of the World” will be the result of a private undertaking, reflecting only the opinions of those with access to the internet and not the entire world. This initiative cannot, in any significant and sustainable manner, contribute to the preservation of sites elected by this public.

Links:
Kamioka Observatory
Super-Kamiokande wiki
UNESCO
Felice Frankel (MIT)
Edward Winkleman blog

* Title image composited from photographs credited to Kamioka Observatory, ICRR(Institute for Cosmic Ray Research), The University of Tokyo, originally found on Pruned

MIKA BRZEZINSKI makes a stand for journalism

It is about time a journalist actually stood up against the skewed balance of fame in favour of real issues . Mika Brzezinski refused to lead on the story of Paris Hilton and in turn came in for repeated criticism from her colleagues who actually look rather villainous and vacuous.

Her colleagues also seem to be in denial about the impact of her actions particularly in the digital age. It's an inspiring act of integrity.

Links:
Mika Brzeninski Wiki
BBC report