[via]Jun 25, 2009
Jun 22, 2009
Slaves & ku klux klan methods in Greece.
An unprecedented act of racism in New Manolada. Two Greek farmers beat, tortured and robbed two Bangladeshi land workers, tied them with a roped behind a motorcycle and dragged them around in the village. The farmers believed that their missing sheep had been stolen by migrant workers, who took the law in their own hands. Without bothering to report the missing animals to local police decided to find the culprits out on their own. They singled out a migrant worker, terrorized him, who then lead them to his compatriots. The Greeks randomly chose two foreigners to brutalize.
The villagers called the police at the shocking sight of two men being dragged behind a motorcycle driven by their torturers. The two Greek farmers were arrested for dangerous bodily harm, unlawful violence, insults and theft and the two migrant workers for suspicion of animal theft and... for not providing Greek officials with proper papers (residence permits, alien cards)!
On the one hand Greek employers exploit immigrants as cheap labor force and the other blame them for anything that goes wrong, unemployment, crime, missing sheep.
The recent euroelections results have foreshadowed Greek society's mentality. The ultra right wing Greek Party, LAOS, which advocates migrant sweeps and "solving the migrant problem once and for all" tallied a surprising 7% of Greek votes. I'm afraid the disgusting behavior of the Manolada farmers will find applauders and mimics.
The villagers called the police at the shocking sight of two men being dragged behind a motorcycle driven by their torturers. The two Greek farmers were arrested for dangerous bodily harm, unlawful violence, insults and theft and the two migrant workers for suspicion of animal theft and... for not providing Greek officials with proper papers (residence permits, alien cards)!
On the one hand Greek employers exploit immigrants as cheap labor force and the other blame them for anything that goes wrong, unemployment, crime, missing sheep.
The recent euroelections results have foreshadowed Greek society's mentality. The ultra right wing Greek Party, LAOS, which advocates migrant sweeps and "solving the migrant problem once and for all" tallied a surprising 7% of Greek votes. I'm afraid the disgusting behavior of the Manolada farmers will find applauders and mimics.
Jun 18, 2009
Jun 17, 2009
The Cove, an examination of our oceans and our hearts
THE COVE, directed by Louie Psihoyos, tells the amazing true story of how Psihoyos, O’Barry and an elite team of activists, filmmakers and freedivers embarked on a covert mission to penetrate a hidden cove in Japan, shining light on a dark and deadly secret. The mysteries they uncovered were only the tip of the iceberg.
Find out more: http://www.thecovemovie.com/
Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, The Cove follows a high-tech dive team on a mission to discover the truth about the international dolphin capture trade as practiced in Taiji, Japan. Utilizing state-of-the-art techniques, including hidden microphones and cameras in fake rocks, the team uncovers how this small seaside village serves as a horrifying microcosm of massive ecological crimes happening worldwide.
The Cove exposes not only the tragedy of dolphin slaughtering in Japan, but also the dangerously high levels of mercury in dolphin meat and seafood, the cruelty in capturing dolphins for entertainment, and the depletion of our ocean’s fisheries by worldwide seafood consumption. We also see how the mandate of the International Whaling Commission has been manipulated by the Japanese Fisheries Agency for its benefit and its subsequent effect on the rest of the world.
Find out more: http://www.thecovemovie.com/
Jun 16, 2009
Jun 1, 2009
Furry Marley
Furry Marley, originally uploaded by flubberwinkle.
Athens, Peiraios Street.
Caught this while waiting at a stoplight. This big furry version of Marley suddenly appeared and scared the daylights out of a motorcyclist cruising next to the dog's car.
The dog remained in this position even when the light turned green and the vehicle started up. Dog seemed anxious to leap out of the car. Who knows how many bikers and pedestrians the dog managed to scare the daylights out of that day.
When Eleni came to came to the door to greet me she saw me taking the photo with my cell phone and giggled, "You know who wrote this? I did!".
Eleni is no longer with us and neither is the graffiti.
When I went to Eleni's home after the funeral I saw that someone (probably the building manager) had painted over it.
There was a lot of profound and witty graffiti written in Athens during the December '08 riots and my restless friend wanted to add her voice to the protests of young Alexandros Grigoropoulos' murder in December 2008. Her battle with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma wouldn't allow her to take part in marches and demonstrations. But Eleni found a way to protest. I'm glad I preserved it.