Wednesday 19 February 2014

See it, even read about it, don't miss it.

As I write this blog, it's around one o'clock in New York City, and it's around six o'clock in London. This means that if I were planning on what to do, if I were New York City this afternoon or evening, I'd perhaps have time to think about going to a film.. and if I was going to a film, I know where I'd be heading.
Today is the last day of the travelling Uranium Film Festival's stop over in the USA.
 Film after film by courageous, innovative and talented directors  have been shown over the past few days and culminate in an evening of three films, "08:15 de 1945", "In My Lifetime" and the film based on the famous book of the same name, "Quietly Into The Disaster"...
To find out more, go to the festival's website, http://www.uraniumfilmfestival.org/en/traveling-festival/usa-2014/new-york-city/wednesday-feb-19
 Meanwhile, on this side of the Atlantic, a report which has taken two years to compile was launched by NIS, The Nuclear Information Service, and Medact. It states that over fifty (over one third) of British Universities have received funding from the Atomic Weapons Establishment. http://www.nuclearinfo.org/article/awe-aldermaston/atoms-peace-investigation-int-links-between-uk-universities-and-atomic 
I am so grateful for the people who keep showing us what is happening, when a whole lot of other people would rather they didn't!


Thursday 6 February 2014

Listening to the director of the film discussing it.

If you are in Washington DC or in New York City in the next couple of weeks, there is a rare chance to see some films you may not have come across.  You may also be able to hear several of the directors of the films discussing them as part of a panel about the theme they are in.
At a time when old fashioned copyright can be transformed into a form of modern censorship, when concealed censorship is probably as common as direct censorship in some countries...but at a time when, happily, there is so much protest against the disregard for individual privacy, liberty and the freedom to know... then this is perhaps a good time to find out from films, that history which governments would perhaps prefer we did not know.
This chance is being brought to the USA by the travelling Uranium Film Festival. The films are being shown at the Goethe-Institut, Washington DC from February 10th-12th 2014 and at the Pavillion Theater in NewYork City, from the 14th-19th February 2014.
One of the films to be shown is  "Nuclear Savage: The Islands of Secret Project 4.1". This is about the nuclear tests in the Marshall Islands in the 1950's and the subsequent treatment of the people of Rongelap. Another is "Tailings", about a 200 acre heap of toxic uranium waste.. just outside Grants, New Mexico where after 30 years of failed clean up, the waste has contaminated the air and the water.
Both directors will be on the panels for themed discussion and there are other excellent films to be seen and discussed.  More details are on the Uranium Film Festival website; the Washington and the New York City films are there with pictures and links to previews, and there is plenty of real information about all the films.
At last, some countries are waking up to the bright and powerful future of solar and wind power... If  ever there was a cogent reason why this is so utterly necessary... as well as being wonderful (!) I would suggest that you visit the website to find out...or better still, if you are in Washington or New York and can make it....see the films.








The London (U.K.) Underground strike.

Usually if there is something which is causing problems in a lot of people's lives, you hear complaints, grumbling, muttering. Having been out and about today in London... and queued for longer than usual at the bus stop, I didn't hear one complaint by people about the strike by underground workers... not one.
People weren't enjoying it and there was a lot of quiet information being offered on which bus to catch or how long the wait would be...but no complaints... Just a determined stoicism.
This backs up a survey done by the RMT, from which I quote:

Tube Users Oppose Ticket Office Closures

RMT Commissioned Survation to seek the views of Tube users to find out their views on Ticket Offices.
The survey of a thousand tube users demonstrated overwhelming opposition the proposals to close ticket offices. 
•         71% of tube users would be quite concerned or very concerned if ticket offices were closed down
•         52% of tube users had experienced being unable to buy tickets from a machine because it was broken
•         Tourists , essential to the London economy , are even more worried about ticket office closures with 81% either quite concerned or very concerned.
•         Amongst those who voted for Mayor Boris Johnson in 2012 56% said that they would be less likely to support a candidate for Mayor who acted to close ticket offices after pledging to keep them open.
•         78% of regular commuters said that they thought current fares are too high.

I personally think people are also very concerned about safety at tube stations and not finding help when they need it.
There is a leaflet put out by the RMT, "Why we are striking". It is downloadable from their website  as a pdf.  They are asking people to email London Mayor Boris Johnson mayor@london.gov.uk and Mike Brown, MikeBrown@tfl.gov.uk
For suggested text for an email visit www.rmt.org.uk/everyjobmatters