UK Newswire Archive
Dumping dead fish in the sea
07-12-2010 01:36
Music to for the masses - fight the cuts then an now
07-12-2010 00:30
Seasonal solidarity greetings for prisoners
07-12-2010 00:22
Bristol ABC's monthly public letter-writing sessionFor our last letter-writing bash of the year we will be in two places at the same time, so no excuses now!
We'll be doing it at both venues from 7 to 9pm on Wednesday December 8. We should be on time, but if we aren't it'll be down to the latest students anti-fee rises and general anti-cuts protests that day...hopefully we'll see you at all events!
Come and join us at:
Kebele social centre, 14 Robertson Rd, Easton, Bristol BS5 6JY
OR Cave Street Factory, 2 - 8 Cave St, St Pauls, Bristol BS2 8RU
We will have copies of our prisoners list, cards, envelopes and other info. You provide the letter-writing muscle, and if you can give donations for postage. There'll be plenty of time for tea and chat about campaigns, ideas, and why we need to support our prisoners. We'll be seeing you there!
Lastly, dont forget to get a copy of the 2011 Political prisoners fundraising calendar, only £7 with all proceeds going to support prisoner campaigns. Details here: http://bristolabc.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/political-pr...-now/
University of Bradford Students Occupy!
06-12-2010 23:26
Tonight, students of the University of Bradford have occupied the management suite of the Richmond Building.
University of Bradford occupied!!!!
06-12-2010 23:21
Following a meeting earlier this evening with the vice chancellor of Bradford University, A large number of us decided to further our message of sincerity against tuition fees by occupying the management suit outside his office.....for however long it takesGreek police vandalise memorial to Alexis, riots and repression today
06-12-2010 22:28
UAL: Camberwell College of Arts Occupied
06-12-2010 22:22
University of the Arts London, Camberwell College of Art is now OCCUPIED!We now have an Amazing space at Wilson Road (SE5 8LU) which is occupied…!! The Lecture Theatre will become a space for students to plan action, make work and perform. It will act as a student union and catalyst to create ideas for action and organisation. We call for more support and involvement! The space is open and everyone is invited to be involved in discussion making and workshop building. Open meeting today: 6.12.10 at 3.30pm.
We, the students of Camberwell College of Arts, believe that if the massive cuts proposed for education happen, it is unlikely that academies such as ours will continue to exist. Arts and humanities courses are being targeted with the largest cuts, while still requiring a great deal of funding, which even a rise in fees will not cover. In response, we have decided to occupy the Wilson’s Road building at our college.
We see the arts as occupying a vital place within society, one which benefits us all, both culturally and economically. If arts education ceases to be a viable route for students, that benefit will be lost.
An artless society is a heartless society!
We oppose the transformation of education into a market. Education should be a forum for all publics, not just those who can afford, to learn, experiment and debate.
Therefore, we call for all arts students, especially those from UAL to join this occupation, and call for more arts-led occupation and actions. We propose to use our space for a practice led resistance. We will run workshops, performances, debates and experiments, creating a collective space of generative discourse. At no point will we disrupt any fellow student’s education, allowing all scheduled lectures to continue. We wish to propose, rather than simply oppose!
We demand that UAL:
- Issue a statement condemning all cuts to Arts education, and the rise in tuition fees and defending the value (economically and culturally) of Arts education for society, and its place within government funded education.
- Put pressure on the MP of every borough that UAL has a college in to vote against the educational reforms.
- Guarantee that there be no more course closures, or course amalgamations. This includes, if possible, the re-instatement of the Ceramics course at Camberwell.
- Safeguard all jobs for our teaching, research and support staff.
- Issue a statement guaranteeing no further cuts in access time to workshops and facilities. This means no losses of current facilities, studio space or access time to workshops.
- Provide full details of the existing budgets, and any projections of how the budget is likely to be spent if cuts and fee reforms do happen.
- Provide all cleaning, catering and security staff with a full living wage package, again with no loss of jobs or hours, and that all outsourced staff and services are brought back in-house.
- Provide a more effective, regular structure for student feedback which effects positive change, in the normal running of the University.
- Do not victimize anyone taking part in this occupation.
- Allow free access in and out of the occupation for all students, staff, speakers and other visitors.
The Occupiers, Camberwell College of Arts
Cambridge student occupation comes to an end.
06-12-2010 21:55
However, what a rather dry (albeit accurate) press release can't do quite as well is convey an idea of what it was like to be there witnessing history being made.
Hopefully my photos will go some way towards doing this.
Today in central metro station Athens - VIDEO
06-12-2010 21:50
Today in central metro station Athens - VIDEOIndian restaurant donates to UWE occupation
06-12-2010 21:22
Thali feeds the UWE occupantsLocal solidarity expressed by donation of food.
Award winning Indian restaurant, Thali of St Marks Road, Easton, has donated two nights worth of food to the UWE occupation. The food will feed at least twenty protesting students for two nights as they continue occpupying in opposition to the governments proposed education cuts.
The food included rice, chicken, potato and vegan dishes.
This show of local solidarity further demonstrates that students are not alone in their fight back. Education cuts are just one section of the governments overall plans to destroy the welfare state. Bristol as a community can come together and be stronger through mutual support and friendship. Together we can defeat these cuts, which are naked attack on the most poor and vulnerable people of society.
The UWE students wish to thank the Thali staff for their generosity, and invite them round for a cup of tea and some cake.
St Andrews Students Occupy!
06-12-2010 21:22
ST ANDREWS – On Monday 6th of December 2010 at 9:15 AM a group of over 20 students occupied Parliament Hall in protest against the stance adopted by the University of St Andrews in regard to the Browne Report. The University was quick to limit movement in and out of the building, only permitting access to toilet facilities.Lib Dem MP's cant "reward bad behaviour"
06-12-2010 21:15
John Hemming, MP for Yardley in Birmingham had his office occupied today by students who were attempting to remind of his pre election pledge to vote against proposed tuition fee rise.Day 9 Ratcliffe Trial- Flooding and harnesses
06-12-2010 20:24
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This afternoon saw the final expert witness take the stand. Dr Geoff Meaden is a Geographer from Kent, who currently consults for the UN. His evidence was wide-ranging, but began with an explanation of the difference between local weather events and the global climate.
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As an example that must have been present in the minds of the jury, he explained that the recent heavy snowfall is to do with evaporated sea water meeting with icy arctic winds and immediately turning to snow. Asked whether this in any way contradicted the fact that the planet is warming up he said no, absolutely not.
His main body of evidence focused on flooding and its relation to climate change, particularly in the UK. He described in detail the increasing occurrence of unusually heavy rain in the UK and the rising risk of flooding in the East Midlands. As a recent example, he spoke of the flooding in Pakistan, where water levels in one place rose 7 metres within 5 minutes!
Flooding is not just about where the rain falls, but where it goes after it makes landfall. For example rain in the Pennines falls on hard rock which is unable to absorb it into the ground, so it instead flows into river systems which subsequently burst their banks affected towns and villages downstream.
Events took a bizarre twist today as the prosecutor, Felicity Gerry, gave a lengthy explanation of an experiment involving a pole that was buried underground in The Fens. It has slowly been revealed over time, as the soft soil has become compressed and eroded. Dr Meaden clarified that this had been an experiment to measure the effects of farming practices and nothing to do with global warming, but Felicity Gerry seemed to suggest that this would have been a more useful way for the defendants to have taken action on climate change!
Proceedings then returned to one of the defendants who spoke about one aspect of the plan: shutting down the conveyors and preventing them from taking coal into the boilers. In a detailed description of the safety precautions taken, a rope access harness was shown to the court. It was so laden with equipment that the officer who had the job of holding it up was clearly struggling while the defendant explained all of the clips, ropes and straps to the jury!
The defence case will continue with more witnesses tomorrow, and it is expected that the jury will retire to consider their verdict towards the end of the week.
http://ratcliffeontrial.org/2010/12/day-9-flooding-and-harnesses/
9 activists sentenced in ongoing climate trial
06-12-2010 19:22
On Monday the 6th December the first trial will begin at Trafford Magistrates Court. In this trial the 11 activists who used tripods to blockade the World Freight Terminal preventing air freighted goods from being taken in and out will be tried on charges of obstruction of the highway. Mark and Amanda, who were on top of the tripods, are pleading not-guilty and local Hasty Lane resident Peter Johnson and local Lib Dem Councillor Martin Eakins will both give expert witness during the trial. The trial is expected to last 2 or 3 days.
The Animal Rights of Shakespeare: On Hunters, Vivisectors, Carnivores etc.
06-12-2010 17:43
Shakespeare on calves, deer, wild pigs,horses, rabbits, etcYou are welcome to send these to teachers of English literature and poetry.
Palestine Today 12 06 2010
06-12-2010 17:35
Day 9- Ratcliffe trial update
06-12-2010 17:23
Day 9- Epidemiology Prof warns court climate change is a “public health emergency”
It's been a sobering Monday morning in court with evidence presented by Dr Ian Roberts, Professor of Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Medicine. He explained the real and imminent threat to health posed by climate change. His warnings could hardly have been starker: we risk “generational genocide” as we “sleep walk into a nightmare”.
The effects of Climate Change could be “unimaginably horrible” if we don't act now, with mass migration leading to “violence and conflict on an unprecedented scale”. He painted a bleak picture of a world with reduced food security, millions more children dying of preventable diseases and ecosystems across the world collapsing like dominoes.
He spelt out the reasons why the year 2000 World Health Organisation estimate of 150,000 deaths annually due to climate change is certainly out of date. For one thing experts now have a much greater awareness of the extent to which human health is jeopardised by climate change. Furthermore the 2000 model did not take into consideration the increasing number of unpredictable climate events, like heat-waves and floods, that cause mass casualties.
His evidence highlighted that the uncertainty inherent within climate change forecasts is one of the reasons that the problem is so challenging and dangerous, and that it's topsy turvy logic to use the uncertainties in predictions as a reason to ignore the warnings.
In this context of imminent doom the next witness, defendant Bradley Day, sounded reasonable and measured as he explained how he planned to take action to stop emissions from Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station.
When the prosecution suggested that the action had been planned in order just to make a point Bradley was quick to clarify things for the court. This plan was all about taking the action we desperately need and that our political process is so totally failing to deliver: action to stop emissions now.
Bradley had his eyes opened to the extent of the problem after attending a march against climate change in 2005, where he was persuaded that this was not just an environmental problem, but a global social problem with devastating human impacts. By the beginning of 2009 it was clear to him that the Copenhagen process was set up to fail and that ordinary people needed to step up to the challenge.
No one can say that awareness raising and campaigning did not have a big part to play in the action that was planned. The coming together of 114 people for an action to shut down a power station to save tens of thousands of tonnes of CO2 was a direct consequence of the long term outreach, public education and engagement that the climate movement has been involved in for many years. After all awareness raising is all well and good, but once we can all quote the science and know the risks, it's time to make the change happen ourselves.
If not now then when?
Notts Occupation Ends; Resistance Continues
06-12-2010 17:23
On Friday 3rd December, the students occupying the Great Hall at the University of Nottingham agreed to leave, in return for a meeting with the Vice Chancellor. This is not the end of the campaign and on Saturday, students protested in the Market Square, joining up with other local anti-cuts campaigners.
On the newswire: Anti-cuts day of action in Nottingham | Student Protesters on Long Row | Notts students cave in | Sudents End Uni of Nottingham Occupation | Billy Bragg visits Nottingham Uni occupation
Students agreed to leave after a heated meeting on Friday. The university had offered a meeting on Monday and also claimed that there was to be a wedding in the Great Hall which the occupation would disrupt. Ultimately, after a vote it was agreed to “temporarily suspend” the occupation.
The protest on Saturday was organised with students from Nottingham, Nottingham Trent and several of the FE colleges. A protest had been called the same day as part of the day of action against tax avoiders and despite some confusion over the start times of the two events (the student protest was originally called for Sunday and the tax demo moved back an hour from the original time) the two essentially merged into one very long protest.
Everyone to the streets!!
06-12-2010 17:22
Everyone to the streets!!By any means possible
The future is in your hands
‘Protesters linked arms and tried to walk through police lines, arguing that they held a right to free assembly and peaceful public protest, but were met by a flurry of police fists which drove them back.’
Report on bindy, from Anti Cuts Demo 5/12/10 Bristol
You are allowed to defend yourselves. If anybody comes at you with,
“a flurry of fists” don’t allow yourselves to be bullied
– whether that bully wears a uniform or not.
