Podcasting since 2004; Conversations, conflicts, adventures and monologues from around the world.
Arch Duke Ferdinand, Austria-Hungarian Empire, Serbian Nationalism, and how exactly did things end up like this in this part of the world? Richard and I ask these questions and I try to answer them, all in this podcast from Ljubljana.
BBC’s History of the former Yugoslavia
Music:
Just google Slovenian Folk Music, I’m working on buying a disc or two.
Not the usual podjournalism as I’m on the road. This time coming to you from the riverside in Verona, Italy. The sun is setting and I talk about a little history of the city and I get into voter turnout numbers following yesterday’s Dutch elections.
Next Stop: Ljubjana, Slovenia. But first, a few hours in Venice with Madge Weinstein.
The Voter Turnout Surveys That I Sort of Refer To
dutch Elections
As I got on the international train from Brussels to Amsterdam, I knew it would be packed and bursting at the seams with people returning home from their weekend in Belgium. And this day was no different, with people huddling in the space between train cars, struggling to find a spot just to stand and read their magazines in peace.
I’m an international train veteran, so I used my secret methods for getting myself a seat. And as luck would have it, the person sitting next to me was a gentleman heading to the Hague on business. Not just any business… urban planning to deal with rising water levels! Who did he work for, as I surely asked, the government of London!
Amazingly before I knew any of this, we started chatting casually in between his soduku and my final chapters of 4th of July, Asbury Park. He was asking about the train, and what time it actually arrives in the Hague. It eventually evolved in how the city is layed out, and more generally, the ol’ “how the dutch have built the country in unorthodox ways.” We spoke of the taking land from the sea and building below sea level. And it was right around there where he smiled and said “Enjoy while you can, because things will certainly change.” And right there we got into the rising sea levels and the struggle to keep water out; he then explaining what he was doing for the city government of London.
Among the interesting things he pointed out to me, were the cases of London as well as New York City, both of whom are in need of plans to deal with sea levels that are definitely rising. Apparently his work was to address the problem for his city’s context. And I wondered aloud about what New York City could possibly do to protect against water rising up and swallowing its streets.
He wasn’t big in offering me solutions. It was, as he said, the purpose of his meetings in places like the Hague. I asked if he would be heading to New Orleans, he said he very much wanted to:
“That’s really what the future is about… mass movement of people, away from situations where they must leave in order to survive. Cities must all get into planning for it… how and where to move mass amounts of their populations.”
Eventually we got to the Hague and he wished me goodluck with my journalism endeavors.
When I got home I went right to my boat and started taking the water out of it.
So lets just review:
A president of a country.
Gets involved in a few deadly and terrible wars.
Targets civilians and uses deadly weapons.
Strips citizens of their rights
Pockets most of the country’s wealth for himself or his friends
Plunders the wealth of other countries
Refuses to admit he has done anything wrong.
Insists that a president must do everything in his power to preserve the country and his office.
…..gets sentenced to death.
Working on many things and yet… not doing enough, thats how I feel these days. Unemployed yet still going to work, it seems. Oh and I had a lovely visit from Max and Stacy of Karmabanque and even managed to take them out on the Red August despite the rain. Nothing funnier than as Im coming home, and it starts pouring rain – I simply open my umbrella, kick the engine into high gear, and wave to all the cozy party boats as I pass them with reckless abandon.
More importantly today I have a recommendation, as I do occasionally try and point ye my dear readers, to interesting things in this world.
My roomate has been thoroughly wrapped up in a BBC4 documentary that I’ve now become very interested in, entitled: A Brief History of Disbelief. In some ways it reminds us of The Power of Nightmares or the Century of the Self, together the two most important documentaries EVER… period.
The series looks at the history of atheism, nontheism, and belief in general. It makes use of several interesting philosophers, alive and dead. It also uses archeology and economics to put things into context in terms of when people believed what and why those beliefs changed.
Though there are several aspects I could point to and say — this is interesting. What really comes to mind while watching it is the still powerful role and influence of religion in this world, even after so much experience.. so many world events… that would make one assume religion would not be as powerful as it was “back then”.
Thats all… the rest is for you to go and watch. If you can’t find them on bittorent, I will post them on archive.org within the week.
21 people have died and over 100 have been injured as a result of cluster bombs left over from the Israeli invasion and bombing of Lebanon over the summer. I was just reading yet another report about it. DemocracyNow had also mentioned last week that Hezbollah had used cluster ammunition. We know that the US has used cluster bombs at various times during their invasion of Iraq. I was also recently informed that the Dutch military owns cluster bombs for an unknown purpose.
Cluster bombs. What useful purpose could such a thing serve, as if bombs themselves weren’t destructive enough. Apparently the chance to have tiny bomblets drop everywhere and blow up later is an appealing thing for all these armies.
It is indeed a crime against humanity, if not a war crime, when these bombs are used and then days, months, and years later, civilians are blown up when they happen to encounter an unexploded cluster bomb. This recent story in Lebanon was of children picking olives in an orchard.
Besides the obvious condemning of each of the above mentioned governments, as well as any nation that owns cluster bombs, there are more guilty parties out there. Specifically, the companies that produce these bombs and make big money selling them. They include: General Dynamics Corp, L3 Communications Holdings Inc, Raytheon Co, Lockheed Martin Corp, Alliant Techsystems Inc, EADS Co (European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company) and Thales SA. All of these companies should face charges for their role in international crimes; producing weapons that have no defensive use and are known to be uncontrollably destructive.
Now that I made that list, not only am I outraged but I’m also ashamed that so many companies are involved in producing such a terrible weapon.