UK Newswire Archive
European Calling: it is just the beginning!
09-12-2010 19:20
…You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows: occupation of universities everywhere in Europe, blockage of the cities, manif sauvage, rage. This is the answer of a generation to whom they want to cut the future with debts for studying, cuts of welfare state and increasing of tuition fees.
(Pissed off) 'Statement on the Goldsmiths Occupation'
09-12-2010 17:54
A brave statement from one of the occupiers of Goldsmiths asking questions of the endless obstructions, rhetoric and total toss spouted by ' pseudo-radical academics, anxious union reps, obnoxious sub-trotskyists and pedantic anarchist hangers on'. Worth reading!How British higher education became corrupted
09-12-2010 17:14
The rot set in when money began to follow the student rather than a block grant to a university being disbursed by the University Grants Committee. The comercialisation of the student was completed with the withdrawal of maintenance grants and the imposition of tuition fees. Students were transformed into customers.Palestine Today 12 09 2010
09-12-2010 16:38
This Bristolian Supports Wikileaks! Join me...
09-12-2010 15:22
Sometimes it might feel like we're a small city in a small country, but together we're more powerful then the powers that be. WikiLeaks shows that people, acting in the best interests of all, can take on even the might of the US of A.I went to the film night at the Cube (earlier this year http://bristol.indymedia.org/article/693558) and saw the film about Afghanistan and what a total mess that war is - yet our rulers do not want up to know the corruption of the regime for which our taxes and our citizens are being sacrificed.
So I ask my fellow Bristolians to join me in supporting WikiLeaks! Here's is one reason why... (from http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010...leaks)
One thing that might explain the official hysteria about the revelations is the way they expose how political elites in western democracies have been deceiving their electorates.
The leaks make it abundantly clear not just that the US-Anglo-European adventure in Afghanistan is doomed but, more important, that the American, British and other Nato governments privately admit that too.
The problem is that they cannot face their electorates – who also happen to be the taxpayers funding this folly – and tell them this. The leaked dispatches from the US ambassador to Afghanistan provide vivid confirmation that the Karzai regime is as corrupt and incompetent as the South Vietnamese regime in Saigon was when the US was propping it up in the 1970s. And they also make it clear that the US is as much a captive of that regime as it was in Vietnam.
The WikiLeaks revelations expose the extent to which the US and its allies see no real prospect of turning Afghanistan into a viable state, let alone a functioning democracy. They show that there is no light at the end of this tunnel. But the political establishments in Washington, London and Brussels cannot bring themselves to admit this.
Afghanistan is, in that sense, a quagmire in the same way that Vietnam was. The only differences are that the war is now being fought by non-conscripted troops and we are not carpet-bombing civilians.
It also shows how commercial interests, are not interested in anything else but money and 'protecting thier brand'; (from http://www.buzzmachine.com/2010/12/07/just-saying/)
I can use Visa and Mastercard to pay for porn and support anti-abortion fanatics, Prop 8 homophobic bigots, and the Ku Klux Klan. But I can’t use them or PayPal to support Wikileaks, transparency, the First Amendment, and true government reform.
So what can you do? Wikileaks have put out a file, the insurance file, what is encrypted. If you download this to your computer, then when they put the password out we all get to see what the state does not want us to see... (more here http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/07/wikileaks-insu...file/)
If you are new to torrent programs, then here's some help.
1. Download some torrent software - http://www.utorrent.com/downloads
2. Download the torrent file - http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5728614/Wikileaks__insu..._file
3. Use the torrent software to open the torrent file and off you go!
More to follow...
C'mon Bristol!
Book Bloc comes to London
09-12-2010 15:22
Inspired by and in solidarity with the Italian protesters in Rome, and all those fighting austerity cuts
The Book Bloc joins the student and public sector workers' protest to affirm and defend what is under attack: Our universities and public libraries, literacy, thought, culture and jobs. In the past few weeks our attempts to do so peacefully have been met by police with batons, riot shields and horses. These are not isolated incidents of brutality but part of a system of institutional violence. By bringing books into the streets we are drawing attention to the violence at the heart of the neo-liberal ideology of the Con-Dem government.
When the police kettle us, baton us or charge us we will not only see police violence against individuals but the state's violence against free thought, expression and education.
Books are our tools – we teach with them, we learn with them, we play with them, we create with them, we make love with them and, sometimes, we must fight with them.
Book Bloc
Ex-Intelligence Officers, Others See Plusses in WikiLeaks Disclosures
09-12-2010 14:05
WASHINGTON – December 7 – The following statement was released today, signed by Daniel Ellsberg, Frank Grevil, Katharine Gun, David MacMichael, Ray McGovern, Craig Murray, Coleen Rowley and Larry Wilkerson; all are associated with Sam Adams Associates for Integrity in Intelligence.Where is our Internet Dome?
09-12-2010 13:20
The Hamp Estate in Bridgwater is the fifth most deprived area in Somerset, therefore the Government awarded funding to improve the area. £3.6 million in fact, however the money seems to have disappeared.WikiLeaks cable exposes NATO war plan against Russia
09-12-2010 13:10
US State Department cables released by WikiLeaks have unveiled secret NATO plans for a US-led war against Russia over the Baltic states.Australia: WikiLeaks cables reveal secret ties between Rudd coup plotters and US
09-12-2010 13:08
The latest batch of the several hundred leaked US diplomatic cables concerning Australia, provided by WikiLeaks to the Fairfax company’s Sydney Morning Herald and Melbourne Age, provide further extraordinary evidence of Washington’s direct involvement in the anti-democratic coup against former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd last June.UK students protest prior to parliamentary vote on increased fees
09-12-2010 13:02
A day of action by student protesters was held Wednesday, ahead of today’s parliamentary vote to raise tuition fees.
Sexual Intrigues ... The Plot Against WikiLeaks
09-12-2010 12:23
Petros Evdokas from IMC Cyprus has produced a round-up of reports and thinking around the sexual aspects of the persecution of WikiLeaks. Drawing on activist and academic feminist sources, we read of the belittling of sexual violence and the impact this is likely to have for survivors and those who work with them.
See also this global indymedia feature about the repression of WikiLeaks.
Media helps hackers target Paypal
09-12-2010 11:22
The global news media is acting as an unwitting accomplice in the cyber attacks bringing down the sites of major corporations.At least one script kiddie in Bristol has been participating, and with the increasing media attention more and more from Bristol will be joining the cyber terrorists.
The perpetrators are using a easy to install application http://gizmodo.com/5709630/what-is-loic
That apparently has little risk to the user because a DDoS knocks everything offline—at least when it works as intended—the log files that would normally record each incoming connection typically just don't work. And even if they do, many LOIC users claim that another user was on their network or that their machine was part of a bot net—a DDoS client delivered by virus that performs like a hivemind LOIC, minus the computer owner actually knowing they are participating.
There is a flurry of Global media attention on the attacks that brought down Visa and Mastercard
https://news.google.co.uk/news/more?hl=en&expIds=17259,...gIwAA
Over 12,000 people have downloaded the application in the last 12 hours
https://github.com/NewEraCracker/LOIC/downloads
Exeter University occupation
09-12-2010 01:53
WL- There is nothing so strong as the simple truth
09-12-2010 01:47
Ratcliffe Day 10 – Defence calls more Defendants
09-12-2010 01:23
7 December 2010
The defence continued their case. Mr Rees called a further two defendants to the witness box.
LH is a marine biologist. She described how she had observed dying coral reefs in the Middle East and Australia; this is, she says, undoubtedly due to ocean acidification and warmer water as a result of increased carbon emissions. This has a devastating effect on the eco-systems which rely on the coral reefs, as well as the local economy.
She described her energy and climate outreach work with Greenpeace in Australia and other organisations in the UK, educating the ‘ordinary members of the public’ that the prosecution repeatedly had claimed that defendants had not adequately engaged with and ‘abandoned’ in favour of the secret direct action that they had done, to close down the power station.
Her main role in the action was to be one of the lead climbers in the Green team, whose task it was to ascend the chimney of Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station. Her extensive and professionally recognised climbing experience gave her confidence that all safety procedures were in place for that part of the action.
Cross-examined by the prosecution, Miss Gerry, continued to ask why, instead of educating people, LH had supposedly avoided taking steps to educate the general public. She responded that it wasn’t an ‘either/or’ – it was truly possible to continue education at the same time as planning an action, of which the sole purpose was to stop carbon emissions. [Ratcliffe Blog]
++
Mr Rees calls the next defendant Mr BS. He was initially asked by the defence to respond to a number of the prosecution’s queries in her initial opening statement about whether defendants had spoken to civil society groups like the Women’s Institute in order to raise awareness of climate change. BS was able to state that he had in fact worked with the Women’s Institute, along with a number of other charitable organisations and unions, in order to raise awareness of climate change for the UN climate summit in Nairobi 2006.
When asked why he had decided to take part in the Ratcliffe action, BS said that the World Health Organisation report estimating that 150,000 people die per year due to the effects of climate change. For him, this is a human rights issue; cheap fuel is used to cut corners saying “it’s too expensive [for energy companies and governments] not to let these people die.”
He continued to explain using Dr. Jim Hansen’s statistic that a species is made extinct every 6 weeks due to climate change. Looking at the jury, BS asserted that “we don’t have the right to eradicate species our kids will never see.”
After lunch BS is recalled, to continue his evidence. Turning to the press release, he’s asked what it’s primary purpose was? Although the main objective of the action was to cut CO2 emissions, he thinks that it’s likely that there would be a lot of media interest. It would probably be a main story. He had been responsible for earlier drafts of the press release and included much about climate change issues at large.
The content was a ‘work in progress’ and had to be edited further to take all the participant views into account. It needed to be a democratic document. Reference is made to E-on building a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth and peoples opposition to this. E-on had pulled out of the project and carbon capture there due to escalating cost of compliance with government conditions.
He agreed he was a press officer for the enterprise and part of the Green team intending to climb the chimney.
Cross-Examining Miss Gerry says, in climbing the chimney, climbers would go up first with photographer, video cameraman and media liaison [him up next]. Taking him through the list of equipment he had with him including camcorder and the microwave downlink with compass. He agreed that this was all his. She that went on to conclude that the object of the action was thus clearly a media stunt. Nothing to do with emissions and necessity action at all, was it? BS says he wanted to film the progress of the action, to illustrate its non violent nature. He thought this might have been necessary and useful, since at an earlier Climate Camp at Kingsnorth power Startion, Vernon Coaker MP a Home Office Minister at the time had alleged violence against the police by those in attendance in the vicinity of the camp. On a later investigation, it turned out that police injuries had turned out to include a graze shine, when climbing a fence, toothache and bee stings etc. He was interested in gathering evidence in case of other such untruths. The downlink provided a means of transmitting the information ahead of any confiscation by the police.
Minister Vernon Coaker apologises for misleading MPs over police injuries
Home Office minister says sorry to parliament after Guardian reveals most police injuries from climate protest were from insects or heat
John Vidal, environment editor
Monday 15 December 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/dec/15/greenpolitics-police
Moving on to the press release, again, BS agrees he was involved. She takes him through it again, to the passage including reference to the section about Ed Miliband MP the then Energy Secretary. The object was to put pressure on the minister? He say his object was mainly to prevent emissions from this power station.
Miss Gerry continues to suggest that this was part of a campaign against E-on. But he says Ratcliffe is the 2nd most polluting power station in the UK and if it was owned by another company, then that would have been a stated objective. It doesn’t matter who owned it.
Yet again, he has to tell Miss Gerry as she continues to suggest this was a media stunt, that [as all the times before] that the needs for action are immediate and this opportunity was taken to reduce such a large amount of emissions that could not be achieved by any other means. He had been to Copenhagen and was very disillusioned at the complete lack of progress and continues to feel that immediate action is required.
As ever Miss Gerry asserted that instead of the action, BS and other defendants should have considered other action to ‘get the message across’, such as a slogan or illustration of ‘the earth wrapped in a blanket’, to get the attention of the masses. BS refuted this, stating that there was no slogan which would stop 150,000 tonnes of carbon emissions. He pointed out that the easily understandable image of the earth wrapped in a blanket, getting hotter, was used by Hansen in Al Gore’s ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, a film that attracted millions of viewers, won Oscars, but has failed to contribute significantly to emissions reduction. Global emissions of CO2 continue to rise, as BS pointed out.
His evidence summed up the experiences he had, as a climate change campaigner, which led him to decide to circumvent the more conventional channels in which he has been involved for over a decade.
The trial continues … progresses and continues a bit more …
++
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Conspiracy Trial Begins [Feature]
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/701
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe conspiracy to trespass trial opens today
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/693
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 2 - Prosecution’s Opening
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/702
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 3 - Prosecution case continues
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/710
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial: Prosecution Opens [Feature 2]
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/714
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 4 - Prosecution case concludes
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/716
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 5 – Defence case opens
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/735
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 6 – The Defence Continues
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/744
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 7 ‘Snowed off’
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 8 – Defence Calls MP's
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/765
2010 Nottingham Ratcliffe Trial Day 9 – Defence Calls More Experts
http://notts.indymedia.org.uk/articles/786
Ratcliffe on Trial Blog http://ratcliffeontrial.org/blog
Onwards ... >
____________________________________________
ALAN LODGE
Photographer - Media: One Eye on the Road. Nottingham. UK
Email: tash@indymedia.org
Web: http://digitaljournalist.eu
Member of the National Union of Journalists [NUJ]
____________________________________________
"It is not enough to curse the darkness.
It is also necessary to light a lamp!!"
___________________________________________
<ends>
Don't let the cops trample on you or your rights!
09-12-2010 01:22
Don't let the cops trample on you or your rights while protesting. Download, print out and share the bust-card attached below. It contains essential info about your rights if arrested or during stop & search.
Why's this important? Even if you've done little or nothing wrong, if you don't know the score you may well find yourself fucked over by the cops. Those who don't know their rights often end up needlessly accepting a caution or a bind over when the cops had no evidence, or incriminating themselves or their mates by engaging with the police in conversation or interview. Don't let this happen...
Write these numbers on your arm: GBC Legal 07946 541511 * BINDMANS solicitors 02078334433
- If you witness and arrest or police assault, please phone GBC Legal ASAP (See http://greenandblackcross.org/legal/witness)
- If you are arrested DON'T PANIC. Have the custody sergent inform GBC Legal of your arrest. Give a NO COMMENT interview. If you want a solicitor use Bindmans - DONT use the duty solicitor! Hang tight, you'll be out soon.
READ THE FULL BUSTCARD PROVIDED!!
DOWNLOAD / PRINT / SHARE
For more information and legal briefs check out http://greenandblackcross.org/legal/briefings
Also, after the protests, keep an eye out for witness appeals (http://greenandblackcross.org/legal/appeals)
Follow @GBClegal on twiiter (http://twitter.com/gbclegal) for updates during protests, witness appeals etc
Leaked Embassy Cables Lend Credence to Prior Allegations of State Department Spy
09-12-2010 01:17
Documents Released by WikiLeaks Could Serve as Evidence In Ongoing Congressional Investigation Focused on State Department, CIA