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PBS POV-The Way We Get By.Nov 11, 2009.WS-PDTV.XviD.Ekolb

Category: Documentary
Description:
The Way We Get By Premiere Date: November 11, 2009 Synopsis On call 24 hours a day for the past five years, a group of senior citizens has made history by greeting over 900,000 American troops at a tiny airport in Bangor, Maine. The Way We Get By is an intimate look at three of these greeters as they confront the universal losses that come with aging and rediscover their reason for living. Bill Knight, Jerry Mundy and Joan Gaudet find the strength to overcome their personal battles and transform their lives through service. This inspirational and surprising story shatters the stereotypes of today's senior citizens as the greeters redefine the meaning of community. A co-production of Dungby Productions and ITVS in association with WGBH and Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN) with funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Format : AVI Length : 699 MiB for 1h 26mn 22s 182ms Codec : XviD Source : PDTV Language : English US Subtitles : None Genre : Documentary Video #0 : MPEG-4 Visual at 984 Kbps Aspect : 608 x 336 (1.810) at 29.970 fps Audio #0 : MPEG Audio at 133 Kbps Infos : 2 channels, 48.0 KHz Enjoy! Ekolb
Seeders: 0
Leeches: 0

Democracy Now! Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Category: News & Current Affairs
Description:
Today's Headlines Iran Accuses Detained Americans of Espionage CBS: Obama to Send Up to 40,000 Troops to Afghanistan 40 Democrats Threaten to Reject Healthcare Bill over Abortion Restrictions Fort Hood Shooter to Be Tried in Military Court Survey Highlights Global Concerns over Free Market Capitalism Palestinians Knock Down Part of West Bank Wall Again EPA Attempts to Silence Agency Critics of Cap and Trade Maldives President Urges Developing Nations to Become Carbon Neutral Whistleblower: Peak Oil Closer than IEA Forecasts Show China Executes Nine over Xinjiang Riots Watchdog: New York State Regulation of Natural Gas Wells Has Been "Woefully Insufficient for Decades." The New York-based Toxics Targeting went through the Department of Environmental Conservation’s own database of hazardous substances spills over the past thirty years. They found 270 cases documenting fires, explosions, wastewater spills, well contamination and ecological damage related to gas drilling. Many of the cases remain unresolved. The findings are contrary to repeated government assurances that existing natural gas well regulations are sufficient to safeguard the environment and public health. The state is considering allowing for gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale watershed, the source of drinking water for 15 million people, including nine million New Yorkers. Filmmaker Philippe Diaz on "The End of Poverty?" Earlier this year, the IMF and the World Bank warned that the financial crisis posed a serious challenge to reducing poverty. The World Bank predicted that the economic crisis could push another 53 million people in the global South into poverty. Well, according to the latest numbers from the United Nations, we’re now up to 2.7 billion people around the world who survive on less than two dollars a day, one billion of whom live on less than a dollar a day. Given the dire statistics and the widening gap between the rich and the poor, how can we see the eradication of poverty? That’s the central question of a new documentary called The End of Poverty? Hoodwinked: Former Economic Hit Man John Perkins Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded -- and How to Remake Them John Perkins calls himself a former economic hit man. He has seen the signs of today’s financial meltdown before. The subprime mortgage fiasco, the collapse of the banking industry, the rising unemployment rate—these are all familiar to him. Perkins was on the front lines of monitoring and helping create these very events that were once just confined to the Third World. From 1971 to 1981, he worked for the international consulting firm of Chas T. Main, where he was a self-described “economic hit man.” He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Confessions of An Economic Hit Man and The Secret History of the American Empire.
Seeders: 28
Leeches: 48

PBS Independent Lens-Journals of a Wily School.Oct 27, 2009.WS-PDTV.XviD.Ekolb

Category: Documentary
Description:
Episode: Journals of a Wily School Aired: Oct 27, 2009 “In childhood when we would play thieves and police, I would always be the thief. Being a thief must have become a habit, and now I’ve become a real one!” —Azad Jalaluddin, pickpocket On the hot and crowded streets of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), three thousand pickpockets ply their trade every day, three hundred of them circulating through police custody at any given time. JOURNALS OF A WILY SCHOOL takes viewers inside the world of these petty thieves and the detectives who doggedly pursue them, day in and day out. With unprecedented access, first-time director Sudeshna Bose follows a young and talented pickpocket named Azad Jalaluddin, revealing in cinema verité style the many layers of his life. The eldest of five children, the 22-year-old lives with his family. While his sisters go to school and his father works in the wholesale fish trade, Azad spends his days picking pockets, using drugs and binging on Bollywood films. His mystified father voices frustration over the wayward son who fancies himself a don and compares himself to the stars of the big screen. Azad speaks candidly about his profession, seemingly delighted to have a film crew following him about his day. He happily shares the tricks of his trade, which in Kolkata have been elevated to an art form. To hone his craft, Azad attends an unusual school where a master pickpocket leads his attentive disciples through a series of challenges. In one, they must reach their hands into a bucket of water and retrieve a coin without creating ripples. In another, the students must carefully use a razor blade to slit a cloth wrapped around a melon, without cutting the melon’s smooth skin. Although a thief, Azad maintains an ethical stance in certain areas. As a matter of course, he returns wallets to their rightful owners—usually by mail—after he has pilfered all cash and valuables. Following a particularly lucrative haul, he returns some small change to the wallet so its owner can buy cigarettes. “Have to help the poor guy,” he says. But Azad’s ethics are put to the test when he inevitably lands himself in jail. Police detective Bidhan Saha, a hard-nosed cop with a fatherly bent, takes Azad under his wing, offering him a pardon and a salary if he will turn in his fellow thieves. The detective is convinced of Azad’s promise and works diligently to build rapport, visiting his home and even taking him on a beach vacation. Given a second chance and the hope for redemption, what choice will Azad make? Collaboration or incarceration? Loyalty or self-interest? Respectability or the lure of the city streets? As it follows Azad’s dilemma, the film offers a fascinating look into crime and criminal justice in a city recognized the world over for its intense poverty. The former home of Mother Teresa, Kolkata—like much of India—is also a city in transition: a teeming metropolis with a growing economy and a burgeoning middle class. With more capital in the city, the stakes for those on both sides of the law are set ever higher. JOURNALS OF A WILY SCHOOL is a classic tale of cops and robbers, set in changing and paradoxical times—for even as the ancient city creeps towards modernity, many of its inhabitants, like Azad, will remain caught in the age-old struggle to survive. Update In August 2009, the film’s producer, Debu Bhattacharyya, reported that Azad had returned to his life as a pickpocket, noting that, despite the hardships, “He says that this is where his heart lies.” Police detective Bidhan Saha was continuing his work and expanding his networks of informants to address issues of national security. Format : AVI Length : 465 MiB for 55mn 19s 185ms Codec : XviD Source : PDTV Language : Hindi Subtitles : English Hardcoded Genre : Documentary Video #0 : MPEG-4 Visual at 1 024 Kbps Aspect : 608 x 336 (1.810) at 29.970 fps Audio #0 : MPEG Audio at 138 Kbps Infos : 2 channels, 48.0 KHz Enjoy! Ekolb
Seeders: 9
Leeches: 9

Aljazeera - PEOPLE & POWER - Ingushetia - A second Chechnya? - 01-11-09

Category: Documentary
Description:
By Dom Rotheroe and Antony Butts On October 25, Maksharip Aushev, an Ingush businessman and civil opposition leader, was murdered by unknown gunmen who sprayed his car with more than 60 bullets. Shortly before his death, filmmakers Dom Rotheroe and Antony Butts spoke with him for their film on the conflict in the Russian republic of Ingushetia. Recently, the Russian republic of Ingushetia has become the most dangerous place in the Russian federation. Endemic corruption combined with a battle between Islamic extremists and unaccountable Moscow-backed security forces has plunged the area into violence. The conflict has left many Ingushetians in despair; their human rights suppressed and their faith in the authorities in tatters. It is a cycle of bloody atrocity and counter-atrocity that seems to have no end. While the Ingush stayed out of the Chechens' recent wars for independence from Russia, this did not prevent the violence from finally spilling over. In June 2004, rebels attacked Ingushetia's main city of Nazran and killed scores of security officials. With Russia by then pretty much in control of Chechnya, Chechen rebels wanted to spread the war into neighbouring Muslim republics. And in Ingushetia discontent had been growing ever since Vladimir Putin, the then Russian president, installed the unpopular Murat Zyazikov as president there in 2002. 'Disappeared' Trapped in the middle of the decade-long dirty war are 500,000 Ingush. Maksharip Aushev, a businessman and civil opposition leader, told us that he carries a gun "because it's dangerous out there". "At any moment they can turn up in camouflage and kidnap you - and then you'll just be disappeared. "Although the gun will not protect you at least you'll manage to do something so they don't torture you, don't take you away - so you don't just go missing like most people usually do here," he said. Things changed for businessman Maksharip three years ago when his nephew, who had refused to become an informant, and son were snatched off a train by security forces. They were taken to Chechnya and tortured. "As soon as my son and nephew were abducted, I stepped out," he explained, saying that he never wanted to be involved in politics but felt forced into it. Maksharip blamed the Russian security forces (FSB) and rallied public protests, which led to the release of his son and nephew. In the process he also kicked off widespread civil opposition to the regime and became one of the most outspoken leaders of the opposition to Zyazikov, a former KGB officer and an ally of Putin. According to Magomed Mutsolgov, the co-founder of the local human rights group Mashr, it was after Zyazikov became president that anyone even vaguely suspected of opposing the regime began getting visits from the security forces. Mutsolgov co-founded Mashr when his younger brother disappeared four years ago. "Altogether we have had over 500 cases of kidnapping. Some of those people were found dead," he says. 'Nothing left to lose' The violence has been increasing exponentially. Mashr estimates that 212 people were killed in 2008. By August 2009 that number had already been reached. Yet violence by the security forces is only one side of Ingushetia's mayhem. In the last seven years, Islamic militants have killed over 200 policemen, soldiers and government officials. The most devastating attack happened in August 2009 when a suicide bomber drove a truck into Nazran's main police station, killing 24 people and injuring more than 160. In recent years religious extremists among the rebels have turned the war for Chechen independence into a jihad for a Sharia-based emirate covering all of Russia's Caucasian Muslim republics. They have also started targeting civilians whom they deem un-Islamic. Recently, two sisters, aged 52 and 60, were shot to death in a roadside kiosk, supposedly for selling alcohol. "They are psychotic. Putting seven, eight bullets into women. What Sharia law are they talking about?" the victim's sister asks. "We have nothing more to be afraid of. We have gone through all this and are ready for anything. We have lost our parents, husbands. What else can we be afraid of? We have nothing left to lose." Yet even this family lay the final blame less on the militants than on the authorities and the lawlessness and corruption they believe Zyazikov fostered. Poverty Ingushetia is not only Russia's most violent republic. It is also its poorest. "Zyazikov declared that over 70 factories had been built in the republic, that the unemployment problem had been solved, etc etc. We risked our lives trying to prove to the Russian government that there were no factories, that the huge amounts of money allocated to us were simply being fiddled away by Zyazikov and his people," Maksharip said. By October 2008, opposition to Zyazikov had grown to such a pitch and the violence and corruption had become so brazen that Moscow finally replaced him with the popular ex-general, Yunus-bek Yevkurov. The new leader set out to tackle the corruption and violence and brought advisors from the civil opposition into his administration. He also sacked some corrupt officials, tried to initiate talks with the rebels and gained the public's trust. But then, on June 22, 2009, his presidential convoy was rammed by a suicide bomber. Yevkurov ended up in a critical condition in hospital. Extra-judicial executions In his absence, and with the Kremlin demanding even better results against the rebels, allegations of extra-judicial executions by the security forces began flooding in. Many believe it is Russia's FSB, the former KGB, that is orchestrating the cycle of violence in Ingushetia. Their agents have even been caught firing on Ingush policemen, raising suspicions that Moscow is deliberately keeping the fractious north Caucasus destablised in order to justify its controlling military presence. Others believe the motive is also the money that those in power can make from conflict. "As the Russian saying goes, 'It is good fishing in troubled waters.' These kind of civil wars are started to make it easier to steal money," Maksharip said. Suspicion Suspicion of the FSB here is reminiscent of Soviet times. Several human rights campaigners have been killed in the north Caucasus in the last few years. Aslambek Paev, a human rights campaigner, told us: "Everything is monitored. You have to be very careful and observant when you work. Probably I'm the next one. "What difference does it make for us? We know we're dead anyway, that sooner or later they'll kill us." Yevkurov recovered from the attack on him and returned to office. He has since sacked his entire cabinet for making problems worse in his absence. But it is yet to be seen how far his promised reforms will go - or indeed how effective they can be in a land which both the militants and elements of Russia's power structures seem determined to keep on the boil. Losing control One month before his death, the security forces had stopped Maksharip's car and attempted to take him into custody after he left a government meeting. He escaped only because a crowd of motorists, including an aide to the governor, surrounded him. "If I had been a half-metre closer, they would have tied me up and I would have disappeared without a trace," he told Caucasian Knot, a website that covers the region. Yevkurov has reached out to human rights activists and the opposition, offering them a degree of protection, but Aushev's killing suggests that he, and by extension the Kremlin, may be losing control over the overlapping law enforcement agencies fighting a growing Islamist insurgency in the region. Though deep in mourning, Maksharip Aushev's family agreed to our film being broadcast. His assassination highlights the continuing perils faced by anyone who seeks to defend basic freedoms in Ingushetia, raising fears of further violence in the region.
Seeders: 4
Leeches: 0

CNN-Amanpour.Oct 25, 2009.PDTV.XviD.Ekolb

Category: Talks, Debates, Interviews
Description:
Sunday Oct 25, 2009 Afghan Opium A new report from the U.N. reveals the extent of the Taliban's involvement in the global heroin trade. Women for Sale Poverty, fueled by drought and economic crisis, has increased the trafficking of women and girls - sold off to raise money for their families. Envoys United Three U.N. ambassadors on the front lines of the fight against radical Islamist terrorism presented a united front Thursday against extremism Ban Ki-moon U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says 200 Afghan election officials will be sacked ahead of the November 7 presidential run-off.
Seeders: 3
Leeches: 19

Revolutionary Anti-Imperialist Movement [RAIM] Resource Pack - [Third-Worldist & Anti-Capitalist Thought]

Category: Misc
Description:
An assortment of activist resources from RAIM-Denver. Includes: short films, 2008 'zine, pamphlets, booklets, fliers, posters, images, and 2009 digests #'s 1-5. Most resources are also available at: raimdarchives.wordpress.com/ See below for additional links. About RAIM-Denver: - What is RAIM-Denver? A loosely organized group of dedicated activists, agitators, and intellectuals who work to proliferate anti-imperialist thought and action. - What does RAIM-Denver want? A utopian society. We want a world free from oppression of groups by groups and people by people. A world without imperialism, capitalism, patriarchy, national oppression, or youth oppression. We want a world based on egalitarianism and mutuality. -Why is RAIM-Denver so focused on anti-imperialism? Because we are revolutionary humanitarians. People live off of three dollars a day, not because they are workers, women or children, but because they were born into the Third World. Everything is connected. The affluence of the First World is directly causative of the poverty in the Third World. The destruction of imperialism is the first step towards a mutualistic society. -So what then? Continuous revolution. We believe revolution is a never-ending process involving the masses of people against all forms of oppression, both current and those which may yet arise. Overthrowing imperialism is simply the primary task of revolution today. -What exactly do you do? We agitate and educate against imperialism through a variety of means: we shout down oppressors, often through a bullhorn; we maintain a blog where we report on upcoming and past events; we research, produce and distribute anti-imperialist literature and videos; we show up to protests and other events; we do solidarity work for various national liberation movements; and we conduct educational workshops from time to time. The possibilities for revolutionary action are limitless when anti-imperialism is the guiding principle. Boring Disclaimer: Yo! Just because RAIM-Denver recommends, republishes or distributes this literature it does not imply any kind of organizational tie or affiliation. Nor does it mean we agree with everything in it. RAIM-Denver recommends and distributes a wide variety of anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist, national liberation,feminist and revolutionary material. RAIM-Denver does not profit from the reproduction or distribution of such materials. RAIM-Denver does not even break even on the cost of promoting such materials. RAIM-Denver is not led or funded by any other organization. Any donations will stay with RAIMDenver and be used to continue our local, regional and national work. Additional relevant info at: raimd.wordpress.com monkeysmashesheaven.wordpress.com amihanmalaya.wordpress.com/ shubelmorgan.wordpress.com antiimperialism.wordpress.com
Seeders: 2
Leeches: 2

A Hidden America-Children of the Mountains 2009 02 13 (20/20)

Category: Documentary
Description:
A Hidden America-Children of the Mountains 2009 02 13 (20/20) 350mib / 40mins In the hills of Central Appalachia, up winding, mountain roads, is a place where children and families face unthinkable conditions, living without what most Americans take for granted. Isolated pockets in Central Appalachia have three times the national poverty rate, an epidemic of prescription drug abuse, the shortest life span in the nation, toothlessness, incest, cancer and chronic depression. It's been 41 years since Robert Kennedy called on the rest of America to reach out and help the people of Appalachia. These are the descendents of Davey Crockett, Daniel Boone, Loretta Lynn and Patsy Cline and the families of legendary soldiers and pioneers who helped open up the treacherous mountain passes and create an American continent. They are fighters steeped in family, ferocity and faith. For nearly two years, ABC News cameras followed four Appalachian children, each one facing unimaginable obstacles. "A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains" is a continuation of Diane Sawyer's reporting on America's forgotten children. Sawyer won an Emmy for outstanding feature story in a news magazine for "Waiting on the World to Change. More decription: http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=6845770&page=1
Seeders: 0
Leeches: 0

PBS POV - Bronx Princess (September 22 2009)

Category: Documentary
Description:
PBS POV - Bronx Princess September 22 2009 Rocky Otoo is the Bronx-bred teenage daughter of Ghanaian parents, and she's no pushover. She is a sassy high-achiever bound for college. With freedom in sight, Rocky rebels against her mother's rules. When their relationship reaches a breaking point, Rocky flees to her father, a chief in Ghana. What follows is captured in Bronx Princess, a tumultuous coming-of-age story set in a homeland both familiar and strange. Her precocious — and very American — ideas of a successful, independent life conflict with her father's traditional African values. Reconciling her dual legacies becomes an unexpected chapter in this unforgettable young woman's education.
Seeders: 10
Leeches: 10

PBS POV - The Principal Story September 15 2009

Category: Documentary
Description:
PBS POV - The Principal Story September 15 2009 The Principal Story tells two stories, painting a dramatic portrait of the challenges facing America's public schools — and of the great difference a dedicated principal can make. Tresa Dunbar is a second-year principal at Chicago's Nash Elementary, where 98% of students come from low-income families; in Springfield, Illinois, Kerry Purcell has led Harvard Park Elementary, with similar demographics, for six years. Tod Lending (Omar & Pete, POV 2005) and David Mrazek followed both women over the course of a school year, discovering each one's unique styles yet similar passions. The Principal Story takes the viewer along for an emotional ride that reveals what effective educational leadership looks like in the 21st century.
Seeders: 15
Leeches: 13

PBS POV - The English Surgeon September 8 2009

Category: Documentary
Description:
PBS POV - The English Surgeon September 8 2009 What is it like to have power over life and death, and yet to struggle with your own humanity? This is the story of acclaimed British neurosurgeon Henry Marsh, who has traveled to Ukraine for 15 years to treat patients who have been left to die; of his friend and medical colleague in Kyiv who carries on the fight despite official hostility and archaic surgical conditions; and of a young patient who hopes that Henry can save his life. Tense, heartbreaking and humorous, The English Surgeon is a remarkable depiction of one doctor's commitment to relieving suffering and of the emotional turmoil he undergoes in bringing hope to a desperate people.
Seeders: 9
Leeches: 12