MetaFilter posts tagged with freedom

I mean, really! Who throws a shoe?

orville sash — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:28:33 -0800

"After six years of humiliation, of indignity, of killing and violations of sanctity, and desecration of houses of worship, the killer comes, boasting, bragging about victory and democracy. He came to say goodbye to his victims and wanted flowers in response.

"Put simply, that was my flower to the occupier, and to all who are in league with him, whether by spreading lies or taking action, before the occupation or after."

Muntadhar al Zaidi, the journalist sentenced to three years of prison for assaulting a foreign leader after throwing his shoes at President Bush, has been released from prison after serving only nine months. On top of being severely beaten at the time of his arrest, al Zaidi has claimed that his 9 months in prison were marked by beatings, whippings and electric shocks.

Advertising in the public interest

Rhaomi — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 09:54:54 -0800

"What if America wasn't America?" That was the question posed by a series of ads broadcast in the wake of the September 11th attacks, ads which depicted a dystopian America bereft of liberty: Library - Diner - Church. Together with more positive ads like Remember Freedom and I Am an American, they encouraged frightened viewers to cherish their freedoms and defend against division and prejudice in the face of terrorism (seven years previously). The campaign was the work of the Ad Council, a non-profit agency that employs the creative muscle of volunteer advertisers to raise awareness for social issues of national importance. Founded during WWII as the War Advertising Council, the organization has been behind some of the most memorable public service campaigns in American history, including Rosie the Riveter, Smokey the Bear, McGruff the Crime Dog, and the Crash Test Dummies. And the Council is still at it today, producing striking, funny, and above all effective PSAs on everything from student invention to global warming to arts education to community service.

Additional resources: A-to-Z index of Ad Council campaigns - Campaigns organized by category - Award-winning campaigns - PSA Central: A free download directory of TV, radio, and print PSAs (registration req'd) - An exhaustive history of the Ad Council [46-page PDF] - YouTube channel - Vimeo channel - Twitter feed

Allah-o-Akbar

homunculus — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:36:22 -0800

Iran: The Rooftop Project. "This is meant to be the most complete possible collection of recordings of nighttime protest in Iran since the beginning of the uprising. Its goal is to locate and profile at least one video for each night primarily focusing on the nightly chanting of Allah-o-Akbar from the rooftops, whenever that footage is available. Some of these videos have not been widely seen until now." [Via]

"One must be very naïve or dishonest to imagine that men choose their pants independently of their situation."

Liver — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 10:44:22 -0800

Demon Denim. Feeding off a earlier column in the WSJ by Daniel Akst, who wrote, "no fabric has ever been so insidiously effective at undermining national discipline," conservative columnist George Will takes up the (denim-free) banner in the crusade to rid America of "the plague of that ubiquitous fabric, which is symptomatic of deep disorders in the national psyche."

Apologies from a racist

Addlepated — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 15:25:50 -0800

Elwin Wilson burned crosses. He threw jack handles at kids. He hung black dolls in nooses. He threw eggs at men. He beat people up at bus stations - people who would one day become United States Congressmen. He lay in wait for the Freedom Riders in Rock Hill, SC ( more Freedom Rides video 1, 2). And now Elwin Wilson is apologizing for what he did.

"Infandous street corner Cromwell"

numberstation — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 06:41:56 -0800

"Infandous street corner Cromwell" George Galloway MP banned from entering Canada. Justified on 'National Security' grounds, specifically Section 34(1) of the Immigration Act. George Galloway reacts to Canadian Immigraton Spokesman Alykhan Velshi on Channel 4. Velshi suggests this is 'not a freedom of speech issue' but in this day and age of technology is the notion of banning individuals crossing geographical borders due to opinions held absurd. It would seem the Canadian Government think not. Intellectual Protectionism rears its head and the marmite of international politics basks in the publicity. Domestic navel gazing ensues.

Circumvention of Bell's Throttle Monster: three alternatives.

tybeet — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 11:01:49 -0800

On November 20th, the CTRC made a landmark ruling that defeated the CAIP's plea to stop Bell's conjuration of the Deep Packet Throttle Monster. However all was not lost, as consumers of Bell's copper pipes can take solace in three recent developments that aim to reclaim the pipes for We, the little guy. hooray! What is currently known about how to beat the beast: 1) In a letter from research organization PerVices to the CTRC, details surfaced as to how to bypass the throttle, and have been put into concise instructions, with many users reporting success. 2) Developers of the uTorrent/BitTorrent clients have been, in the interim, working on a vast changeover in the way Torrenting operates: by switching the protocol from primarily TCP to entirely UDP (called UDP Torrent Protocol or uTP) which in effect evades the traffic-shaping process entirely. With this, manysuccess stories abound. (You can download a copy of uTorrent 1.9a here) 3) Finally, and as perhaps the most intensive last-ditch effort, users can obtain a router capable of being flashed with the Linux-based, modified "Tomato" firmware which uses the MLPPP protocol in order to circumvent the deep-packet inspection process. (note: you don't actually need to run Linux to use it, and also note: your ISP must support MLPPP).

El Comandante Americano

mrducts — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 11:10:24 -0800

William Alexander Morgan: The improbable story of how a high school dropout, ex-con, ranch hand, gambling enforcer, mafia gunrunner and circus fire eater from Ohio, became one of the top leaders in Castro’s revolutionary army (pops), only to be executed as a traitor after the revolution.

CPJ's census of jailed journalists in 2008

jeffburdges — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:45:30 -0800

The Committee to Protect Journalists has released the 2008 prison census. China retains the lead with Tibetan issues bringing them 28 jailed journalists. Cuba claims 2nd place with 21 jailed journalists. Burma & Eritrea almost tied for 3rd with 14 & 13, respectively. But the biggest news is internet journalists are now the largest group of journalists in jail.

Miriam Makeba Has Died

fourcheesemac — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 07:03:19 -0800

Miriam Makeba, 1932-2008. "Her haunting melodies gave voice to the pain of exile and dislocation which she felt for 31 long years. At the same time, her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us" -- Nelson Mandela Just a taste:
Pata Pata
The Click Song

John McCain and democracy

shetterly — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:56:09 -0800

John McCain served on the advisory board to the U.S. chapter of an international group linked to ultra-right-wing death squads in Central America in the 1980s. As the head of the IRI, he helped finance coups against democratic governments in Haiti and Venezuela. Were those governments fairly elected? The 1984 elections were perhaps the freest and fairest in Nicaraguan history. Aristide...won the first free and fair election in the country’s history with 67 percent of the vote. In Venezuela, all of Chavez's victories in elections were monitored and certified by a variety of observers including the Organization of American States, the European Union and the Carter Center.

Practising drugs safely?

daksya — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:43:05 -0800

Towards a culture of responsible drug use - an essay by the creators of Erowid [via]

Drowning

homunculus — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:24:13 -0800

Can the Burmese people rescue themselves? A powerful piece by George Packer in the New Yorker on the recent history and current conditions in Burma.

Most countries treat tourists better than citizens

Mutant — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 09:27:56 -0800

The Perpetual Traveller wields Five Flags in the quest for personal freedom.

"Are we in the midst of a coup?"

homunculus — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 20:50:14 -0800

2009: A True Story. "My name is Sara Ford and I am 18 years old. I moved to California at the end of last year. Before the first attacks... before everything changed." [Via] On YouTube: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12, Episode 13. NSFW.

Bye!

punkbitch — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 21:49:34 -0800

Travelers' Laptops May Be Detained At Border. The policies cover "any device capable of storing information in digital or analog form," including hard drives, flash drives, cell phones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes. They also cover "all papers and other written documentation," including books, pamphlets and "written materials commonly referred to as 'pocket trash' or 'pocket litter.' " Good bye freedom. Nice knowing you.

Traction Park

concreteforest — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:09:34 -0800

Active in the years before padded jungle gyms (and class action lawsuits), Action Park was a sometimes bloody rite of passage for many New Jersey kids. Infamous for its gravity-and-friction-defying looping waterslide and beer gardens, it eventually produced so many injuries that the park bought the surrounding city extra ambulances to cope. It still is alive in many New Jersey hearts today.<-video. Action Park is now no longer in operation, with a new waterpark named Mountain Creek having inherited its location, but not its dubious safety record. Or watersnakes. Or 40 foot diving cliff located on top of a public swimming area. Or flesh burning fibreglass alpine slide.

China's plan to tame Tibet

homunculus — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 11:56:02 -0800

China's secret plot to tame Tibet. "Internal Communist party documents have revealed that China is planning a programme of harsh political repression in Tibet despite a public show of moderation to win over world opinion before the Olympic Games next month." Meanwhile, the military has sealed off several monasteries in Lhasa, keeping over 1,000 monks locked up. Another 1,000 monks have mysteriously disappeared, and may have been sent to prisons in a neighbouring province to keep them silent through the Olympics.

Freedom Flies

dejah420 — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 10:35:45 -0800

The Department of Homeland Security has expressed interest [PDFs] in forcing all commercial airline passengers to wear a taser bracelet that can be used to incapacitate anyone on an airline. This video, from the company that will produce the bracelets, explains how the bracelet would be put on the passenger at the point that they clear security, and would not be removed until they leave secure areas. It would take the place of boarding passes, carry personal and biometric information about the passengers, track and monitor every passenger via GPS and shock the wearer on command, immobilizing him or her for several minutes. DHS official, Paul S. Ruwaldt of the Science and Technology Directorate, office of Research and Development is also excited about the possiblility of using it as an interrogation tool at airports. Ah freedom, who knew it smelled like burning flesh?

A New World Is At Hand

netbros — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 05:38:16 -0800

These are the documents that started it all. The Charters of Freedom. As the USA celebrates another Independence Day, the National Archives presents the historical development of the Declaration, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, and their impact upon the nation and the world.

Underground Railroad

netbros — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 07:36:24 -0800

The Underground Railroad refers to the effort -- sometimes spontaneous, sometimes highly organized -- to assist persons held in bondage in North America to escape from slavery. Historic places along the Underground Railroad are testament of African American resolve. One of those places is Lycoming County, PA. Freedom means a hard, dangerous trek. Do you try it?

42 days and a resignation

ArkhanJG — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 04:41:02 -0800

42 days and a resignation. The day after the British Labour government narrowly won a parliamentary vote to extend the time that the police can hold people for questioning without charge from 28 days to 42 days, Tory frontbench MP David Davis has resigned his seat. David Davis is a senior member of the main parliamentary opposition party - who strongly opposed the 42 day bill - and has stepped down to fight a by-election for his own constituency to start a debate over "the slow strangulation of fundamental British freedoms by this government". This move is virtually unprecedented in British politics; the last time this happened was a mass resignation of Northern Irish MPs over the Anglo-Irish agreement in 1986, and before that the resignation of George Lansbury in 1912 over women's suffrage (who was subsequently jailed and went on hunger strike over the issue). Some have called David Davis' action a rare brave and principled act* against 42 days detention without charge and other measures such as CCTV, the DNA database and the coming ID cards by a senior politician. Others have called it a stunt and a farce that will split the Tory party. Most of the other parties will not contest the by-election, so now an ex-editor of the Sun tabloid newspaper will likely stand, backed by the weight of Rupert Murdoch's media empire, specifically in support of 42 days detention. *Having trouble adding the direct link; click 'readers recommended' for the highest rated comments in support of Davis.

Dignity and Bioethics

homunculus — Wed, 28 May 2008 13:35:43 -0800

The Stupidity of Dignity: Conservative bioethics' latest, most dangerous ploy. Steven Pinker reviews Human Dignity and Bioethics, the latest report from the President's Council on Bioethics. dgaicun posted Pinker's article in the Leon Kass vs. ice-cream thread, but I think it and the report deserve their own post.

Out of Africa

hadjiboy — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 06:29:29 -0800

"Please don't beat me. I'm having my period." ~ Mama Wangari
"It is being both black and gay [which is problematic]." ~ Zanele Muholi (Nehanda Nyakasikana) [NSFW]
"Sisters at heart, these women are: from Kibera to Loresho." ~ WM
"My vagina wants an Uzi" ~ Larissa Klazinga (Amanda Atwood)
"You are from Kenya? So are you Kikuyu or Luo?" ~ Wangui

Blogs of women from Africa. That is all.

Indonesia bans YouTube and MySpace

BobsterLobster — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 21:39:22 -0800

As a result of the Dutch film Fitna, Indonesia has blocked several websites including MySpace and YouTube. This follows hot on the heels of a new bill which could see people face six years of jail time or a 1 billion rupiah fine for being caught sending out porn, “false news” or racial or religious slurs on the Web. The Indonesian government will start censoring the Internet next month with specialised software. Very disappointing for a country which had a reasonably free press.