Audio – Page 74 – Citizen Reporter

bm130 Oil Costs; Iran, Venezuela, Energy Security and the Death of the US Auto Industry

If you run down the list of top oil exporters in the world, each one has a special story that somehow relates back to the US. Venezuela and Iran are no exception, as they occupy important spots on that list. Meanwhile the oil companies hide behind prices while posting record profits. And in the background you can hear the deafening silence, as the US auto industry goes silent. DRock, the perennial DC insider, explains it all.

Useful Links:

PBS NewsHour Special on GM
Oil Producers/Exporters Listing
Common Dreams article on GM going into the future

Additional note: This one was produced specially as a fill in show for Madge Weinstein on Sirius Stars.

Back Like Old Times

“So who’s still around?” Brooke asked me, fresh off the plane from Berlin. Who is still around. Tricky question in most beloved European cities these days. I tried to name names, stumbling when I’d realize she never knew this person or that person. Sometimes I’d name someone I knew from 4 years ago, other times I’d mention someone I’d only met in the last year… in both cases it reminded me of how tricky time is, resulting in this pseudo-expat-amsterdamer-alzheimers. Where you forget the year, mix up the name, or just go blank.

Still having one of the allstars of my Amsterdam past back in town after a year in Berlin is a great thing. She looks at the city with great excitement, with a certain giddyness that in the daily routine, I sometimes forget. It is, as they say, a breath of fresh air.

Funny thing, as I look up at my first two paragraphs, I think I’ve said similar before when someone returns. It is the way, after all, around these parts. People come and go. They often come back, though it’s not the same. Sometimes they fall right back into things, sometimes they cherish the little things more than the last time. However you go about it, it is a tradition.

Oh.. and as a bonus today, a captivating video of my first mate and I navigating the ruthless sea.

Crisis at the Server

Hello dear readers. As a result of a massive computer problem at the bicyclemark.org secret server location somewhere in the northwest of the United States, the entire blog has been taken back in time by one week. Fear not, I have backups – sort of. So all the posts of the past week will be put back up and hopefully I didn’t lose too much.

Thanks for all the emails and messages saying “hey its broken”. The people in charge are recovering and fixing what they can. Regular posting will resume this evening, complete with a new videoblog and other shtuff.

**update** painstakingly posted this past weeks posts back up, luckily I had the text opened from before the collapse of the server. Oh misery.

bm129 Playing Politics with Immigration in the Netherlands

Anyone who remembers the murder of the film director Theo Van Gogh is likely to remember the person who wrote the film that he would later be murdered over. Somali born asylum seeker and member of Dutch parliament Ayaan Hirsi Ali has won international admiration as well as cirticism over the past few years, as an outspoken critic of Islam. Now a new chapter in her political career, the attempted deportation and the political and perhaps social fallout that follows. Famed videoblogger Marc the Mindcaster returns to the program to explain it to we the non-Dutch who are trying to make sense of it all.

AudioCommunique #129 (mp3)

Useful Links:

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is all over YouTube, go watch
The NYTimes article about the recent events

Music:

K’Naan – Hoobaale
Neil Young – We Need a Leader

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podcast made possible by you the listener and also Springheeljack.net

Monday Top 4 from my Feedreader

Rainy days ahead in Amsterdam. The Red August has been properly covered so hopefully nor rain nor empty beer bottles will find their way into the boat. But nevermind that… there’s a whole world going on out there.

Instead of starting a conversation about the very peculiar situation with just who is leading the Polish government now, I instead refer you to the Beatroot and all his hard work. If there were a poll (pun intended) about what EU country was the wackiest, Poland would have to be a strong contender for 1st place, things never seem to go as planned over there.

In keeping with the recommended reading rundown for today, I threw my hat into the discussion on Majikthise, where L is talking about Roman Polanski and whether people should support the work of someone who’s done something morally questionable. This theme has been discussed on this blog before, but she’s got a big comment debate raging over there. I used “if Hitler had been a great painter” as a hypothetical example… go read or participate if you’re curious.

And in staying with the world of art meets politics, the talented Tim of Radio Clash dedicated a show to Joe Strummer… and myself! Talk about unworthy, it was very cool to see my name in that context – go listen. Thanks Tim!

bm128 Politicizing the FDA, Holding the US Back

It was designed to be an independent agency of the US government, to maintain standards in the areas of food, drugs, and cosmetics. But in the past few years the FDA has been hesitant to make decisions, especially when it comes to anything related to sex. Why is this happening? Who is benefiting and creating this behavior? And what about cases like the Plan B emergency contraceptive and the Cervical Cancer Vaccine Gardasil, how are they affected? My guest, a veteran of the pharmaceutical industry and blogger, Ed Vawter, joins me to discuss this and more.

AudioCommunique #128 (mp3)

Useful Links:

Formerly of the FDA, Susan F. Wood in the Washington Post.
Pharmaceutical Engineering Blog on the Politicizing of the FDA
The official FDA’s q & a on Plan B

Music:

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists – Biomusicology
Mighty Mighty Bosstones – Another Drinking Song (Remedy)
K’Naan – Strugglin’

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podcast made possible by you the listener and also Springheeljack.net