Indymedia hard disks seized Indymedia hard disks seized
Press Release
7 October 2004
FBI Seizes IMC Servers in the UK
US authorities issued a federal order to Rackspace's office in the US ordering them to provide Indymedia's hardware located in London to the requesting agency. Rackspace is one of Indymedia's web hosting providers with offices in the US and London. Rackspace complied, without first notifying Indymedia, and turned over Indymedia's server in the UK. This affects some 20+ Indymedia sites worldwide.
Since the subpoena was issued to Rackspace and not to Indymedia, the reasons for this action are still unknown to Indymedia. Talking to Indymedia volunteers, Rackspace stated that "they cannot provide Indymedia with any information regarding the order." ISPs have received gag orders in similar situations which prevent them from updating the concerned parties on what is happening.
It is unclear to Indymedia how and why a server that is outside the US jurisdiction can be seized by US authorities.
At the same time a second server was taken down at Rackspace which provided streaming radio to several radio stations, BLAG (linux distro), and a handful of miscellanous things.
The last few months have seen numerous attacks on independent media by the US Federal Government. In August the Secret Service used a subpoena in an attempt to disrupt the NYC IMC before the RNC by trying to get IP logs from an ISP in the US and the Netherlands. Last month the FCC shut down community radio stations around the US. Two weeks ago the FBI requested that ndymedia takes down a post on the Nantes IMC that had a photo of some undercover Swiss police and IMC volunteers in Seattle were visited by the FBI on the same issue. On the other hand, Indymedia and other independent media organisations were successfull with their victories for example against Diebold and the Patroit Act. Today however, the US authorities shut down IMCs around the world.
The list of affected local media collectives includes Ambazonia, Uruguay, Andorra, Poland, Western Massachusetts, Nice, Nantes, Lilles, Marseille (all France), Euskal Herria (Basque Country), Liege, East and West Vlaanderen, Antwerpen (all Belgium), Belgrade, Portugal, Prague, Galiza, Italy, Brazil, UK, part of the Germany site, and the global Indymedia Radio site.
www.indymedia.org
UK : Arts funding freeze
Quote:
Arts funding freeze sparks fury
Charlotte Higgins and Maev Kennedy
Tuesday December 14, 2004
The Guardian
Leading arts figures reacted with fury yesterday after the government announced a £30m cut in funding in real terms - the first such setback to the arts since the Labour victory in 1997.
John Tusa, managing director of the Barbican, described the decision as a "slap in the face" and a return to "the bad old days". He said that those involved in the arts had been "namby-pamby" in their dealings with the government, and advised them to get "rough".
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport announced that its allocation of funding to Arts Council England would be frozen at its 2005 level of £413m until 2008. Taking into account Treasury inflation estimates, the grant will be worth £10m less in the financial year 2006-07 and £20m less in 2007-08, meaning a total shortfall of £30m in real terms.
This is an extract - full article can be found here..
http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/story/0,11711,1373274,00.html
and (unsurprisingly) the Graun is full of further articles.
Sadly, this is the reality of our current situation, there is a war on (whether we like it or not) - that takes £1,000,000 out of the public purse every day in the UK... (thats just frontline costs BTW, it does not include the extra security/policing costs caused by the terrorism paranoia and the the deterioration in racial and community relations)
That said, if you can make the right contacts I'm not sure if this news is all bleak. I see a lot of arts funding going to "big and worthy" projects such as operas and high-brow plays - TBH the bulk of the populace is not interested in; hardly surprising people do not think this is money well spent.
So why not give some money to what are called "quick wins" projects, ones which have less initial spend and are delivered in a faster turnaround time? A lot of the arts projects created by younger people are of this nature; and it would encourage much needed new talent.
I wonder if we could make something good of this situation..
work to neutralise your footprints http://www.futureforests.com/
going on holiday abraod? taking a long distance journey? concerned about your children's future?
have a little look at these guy's work
CZ : Short memories? From BBC archives
Quote:
1989: Police crush Prague protest rally
Riot police in Czechoslovakia have arrested hundreds of people taking part in a protest march.
More than 15,000 people, mostly students, took part in the demonstration, the biggest show of public dissent for two decades.
They called for the resignation of their country's communist government, led by Milos Jakes.
Scores of people were injured, several seriously, as the police forcibly broke up the rally.
Witnesses said the police used clubs to beat marchers and sprayed tear gas indiscriminately.
Expectations
It comes in the wake of a wave of reform sweeping through other former Soviet bloc states.
In particular, the fall of the Berlin Wall last week in neighbouring East Germany and the disintegration of its hard-line communist regime has heightened expectations of possible change here.
The demonstration began at Charles University, just south of the city's centre.
It started off as an officially-sanctioned march to commemorate Czech student martyr Jan Opletal, who died at the hands of the country's Nazi occupiers 50 years ago.
The fact permission for the march was given at all reflects a growing recognition on the part of the country's communist leaders of the need for change.
It was only the second time a non-government rally had been allowed in Czechoslovakia since the crushing of Alexander Dubcek's reformist government by the Soviet Union 21 years ago.
Mr Dubcek, who has since lived in relative obscurity, was refused permission to travel to Prague to take part in the rally.
Now look here. The pictures and the term "Welcome to the EU" say it all...
http://wanderkolonie.org/cz/cz.html
such short memories... or a potential return to bad old days?
regime change :mad:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3980553.stm
you losers
when you all wake up and stand up for yourselves?
this is not acceptable
Blunkett’s reforms Do Blunkett's law and order reforms appear to anyone as the encroachment of a police state, what with drug testing for criminals (being done for possession if blood tests positive!) detention without trial for "suspected" terrorists, phone tapping submissible as evidence, judge only trials on the horizon, what can be done by we the people to reclaim the initiative and stop the onset of a Brave New World?
FR : tear gas used to stop rave original at
http://www.lci.fr/news/france/0,,3189314-VU5WX0lEIDUy,00.html
posted by trinacria on SJ
Quote:
Pas de rave-party pendant les les transmusicales de Rennes.
L’ordre de la préfecture de Loire-Atlantique était clair mais plusieurs centaines de jeunes "teufeurs" ont tout de même essayé de se réunir dans un champ privé. L’alcool aidant, le ton est monté entre les forces de l’ordre et quelques jeunes qui voulaient à tout prix se rendre sur le site où un millier de personnes avait réussi à se rendre. "Des gendarmes mobiles ont lancé des gaz lacrymogènes pour répondre aux jets de projectile de quelques dizaines de personnes cherchant à tout prix à accéder au site du rassemblement dont l'accès a été fermé", a-t-on expliqué à la préfecture.
Après la décision des préfets d'Ille-et-Vilaine et des Côtes-d'Armor d'interdire tout "rassemblement festif" dans leurs départements entre le 30 novembre et le 10 décembre, des centaines de jeunes ont tenté de tenir un teknival à Frossay où ils ont occupé un terrain privé. La préfecture de Loire Atlantique a décidé d'interdire le rassemblement et les forces de l'ordre ont fermé les accès menant au site, empêchant notamment l'acheminement de la sono.
Depuis plusieurs années, les "teufeurs" profitent ainsi des Transmusicales pour se réunir dans l'agglomération rennaise, sans concertation avec les responsables du festival, qui ne participent pas à l'organisation de ces rassemblements techno. Organisée sur un terrain de la ville de Rennes réquisitionné par la préfecture, une rave party avait réuni jusqu'à 18.000 "teufeurs" en décembre 2003.
Le maire de Rennes, Edmond Hervé (PS), a toutefois estimé dimanche qu'interdire toute rave party en marge du festival des Transmusicales était "une erreur", quelques heures après les affrontements. "La fête ne doit pas signifier violence et casse. Ces actes, dans notre société de liberté, sont inadmissibles et doivent être sanctionnés", écrit le maire de Rennes dans un communiqué. "Ceci étant, qu'on le veuille ou non, le phénomène de la rave party existe. Il attire massivement la jeunesse, qui aime s'y retrouver. L'interdire était une erreur".
English translation – stuff I have added where things may be unclear is in brackets - any further clarification welcome from native French speakers!
Quote:
No rave during the Transmusical festival at Rennes (some kind of festival a bit like Britain’s WOMAD wvent? )
The decision of the Loire-Atlantique council ( to prevent this event) was clear; but many hundreds of young ravers tried anyway to get into a private field. Helped by the drink (giving them courage?), the situation deteriorated between the police and many youths who were intending to get into the field by any means, where about a thousand people had already got in.
A spokesperson for the council explained: “The Police discharged tear-gas canisters in response to missiles thrown by many dozens of people intending to enter the site, to which the entry point had been blocked”.
After the decision of the councils of “Ille et villaine” and “Côtes-d'Armor” to forbid all raves in their council areas between 2004-11-30 and 2004-12-10, hundreds of youths attempted to hold a teknival at Frossay where they got into a private field. The Loire Atlantique council decided to stop the party; the authorities blocked the site entrance, preventing the sound system from being brought in.
Six people were arrested after scuffles between the youths and police. In the Ille-et-Villaine council area, a CRS officer was”lightly wounded”, and 21 others (cops?) “bruised”. The Accident and Emergency department at Rennes Hospital took in “between 25 to 30 injured” amongst the youths, “essentially due to “alcohol intoxication” and woundings from “pieces of glass”. (during the disturbances) A nursery school was ransacked, and nine shop windows were broken.
For several years, ravers have profited from the transmusicales festival to organise their own free party on the sidelines. This was done without consulting the organisers of the (legal) festival. In December 2003, 18,000 ravers partied together on a field in Rennes which had been requisitioned by the council (presumably as there were too many then to stop it!) (!)
Edmond Herve, mayor of Rennes, said that it was a “mistake” to forbid all raves on the fringes of the Transmusicale festive, some hours after the disturbances.
“The party must not mean violence and breakages”. These acts, in our free society, are inadmissible and those who commit them should be punished"; wrote the mayor in a press release. “However, whether one likes it or not, the phenomenon of raves exists.” It attracts massive amounts of young people, who love to get together. To forbid it is a mistake.
RU: You’re never to old to put on a party :) Fair play to the lady; at least she is not like those killjoys in Belgorod I mentioned in my other post
I wonder what is in the "herbal potion" she is drinking... :D
Quote:
Grandma DJ rocks Russian village
Yuliya Ryabinina recording (Russia
A 70-year-old Russian grandmother is taking a small village east of Moscow by storm.
Yuliya Ryabinina, the director of culture for Bolshiye Otary, has decided that discos are the best way to connect with local teenagers.
And she has taken it on herself to spin the discs.
Under the guise of DJ Baba Yuliya, Mrs Ryabinina holds regular dance parties at the village hall.
"I'm a real party animal," she tells Russia's Channel One TV. "My feet and arms start moving and I just want to dance."
Hardly a spring chicken any more, the groovy granny keeps her strength up at the turntables by taking a potion of herbs and roots.
Wanting to look good, she also takes great care with her makeup, the TV says.
Traditional Russian folks songs are strictly off the play list and Baba Yuliya plays only current pop songs.
In the remote village in Nizhny Novgorod region, it is not easy for the septuagenarian DJ to keep up with the latest tunes.
But she does not let this stand in her way and records any new songs she hears from her medium- and short-wave radio.
Karma always catches up with you…. His businesses, whilst financially successful, were constantly being cricitised for not dealing with environmental and people issues...
Quote:
Business giant Lord Hanson dies
Lord Hanson, one of the most successful and influential businessmen of the past 50 years, has died aged 82.
As James Hanson, he built Hanson into one of the most powerful industrial conglomerates in the country through a series of fierce takeover battles.
In its heyday Hanson's company was worth more than £11bn and had interests ranging from tobacco to chemicals.
Lord Hanson, who had been suffering from cancer, retired in 1997 but remained in the public spotlight.
It is worrying though to realise this man was so determined to do well in business, he even sacrificed his own health - when you have someone who doesn't even care for his own life how on earth do you think he would ever care for others?
Perhaps he is the corporate equivalent of a suicide terrorist....
UK : Club owner claims Chinese licensing laws less restrictive!! This is from Reading's local newspaper...
Quote:
30/11/2004 - Eastern promise for After Dark Club
New venue could open in Bejing
REVELLERS in China could soon be treated to the After Dark experience.
The legendary nightclub in London Street is planning to open a sister venue in Beijing.
And club manager Neil Richardson believes he may have found a venue in the Chinese capital that embodies his club’s quintessential atmosphere.
“I would say it’s the kind of venue that looks better when the lights are down,” he told the Evening Post.
Mr Richardson is now in talks with bosses at the World of Suzie Wong, which opened two years ago in the Chaoyang district of Beijing, to see how a partnership could be set up.
A website dedicated to the Beijing venue explains its décor was inspired by the 1960s movie The World of Suzie Wong, which was set in Hong Kong.
“The décor of the club takes its inspiration from the hotels and opium dens of that particular era – dimly lit and secretive, yet also welcoming,” the site adds.
Mr Richardson got the idea to open an After Dark-style club venue from one of his former staff
Kathy Wang, who returned to her homeland after a year of study in Reading.
She loved the place so much she encouraged him to visit Beijing – and he said he was impressed by what he saw.
“Beijing is an extremely modern town and it was a bit of a culture shock,” he said after his visit two weeks ago.
“My friend lives there and she said the Beijing I saw was completely unrecognisable from the Beijing of 10 years ago.
“It really puts London to shame.”
Mr Richardson said he was confident he could find a niche for an After Dark-style venue in Beijing.
He said: “The thing about the night life in Beijing is that it’s quite limited at the moment – it does not really exist.
“But young people want a night life because they have been more exposed to Western culture.”
He said he had thought of opening another venue in the UK, but was reluctant to do so now because he believes the new licensing law could jeopardise the future of nightclubs.
“A lot of our customers have said many times ‘why have you not opened another After Dark Club?’” Mr Richardson said.
“But in the long term in the UK the future of nightclubs is not fantastic. We have secured ourselves a niche, we are a relatively small club but for the bigger clubs the future is bleak.”
He said the new system being introduced in February could mean bars and pubs being allowed to open all night, possibly encouraging fewer people to move on to a nightclub.
He added he had already noticed that revellers go to a club much later than a decade ago.
Mr Richardson explained the Chinese After Dark look-alike could realistically launch within the next two years.
His must-have list for a perfect nightclub includes, apart from dim lighting of course, a friendly atmosphere, low prices and music that does not follow trends.
“We stick to it and the customers like that,” he said.
“I’m very happy with the After Dark in Reading and I would like to be here for some time.
“What makes the After Dark good is that a lot of customers come in and say to us they are glad it’s here – it’s the best encouragement to continue.”
To check out the latest news and listings from the After Dark, visit www.theafterdarkclub.com.
CN : HK : "Rave Parties Face Having to Be Licensed" (from 2000) Originally from "The People, Beijing, China" (official newspaper!)
Quote:
Rave Parties Face Having to Be Licensed
A licensing system for rave parties is expected to be introduced in Hong Kong as part of a clampdown on drug abuse amongst youngsters.
The message came from Professor Lee Shiu-hung, chairman of the Action Committee Against Narcotics who disclosed the figures of drug abusers in the first three months at a media briefing on Thursday.
Local officials believed that Hong Kong is following the worldwide trend of chalking up a rapid increase in the number of people under the age of 21 taking drugs. They said the rising popularity of rave parties is responsible though there is no concrete evidence to back their view.
According to figures from the Central Registry of Drug Abusers, the number increased from 765 in the last quarter of 1999 to 1,057 in the first quarter of this year. The increase in the number of cases of people abusing the "party drug" ecstasy rose from 170 to 465 over the same quarterly period.
The figures also showed that abusers of ketamine, an anesthetic used by veterinary surgeons that has also become synonymous with raves, rose from 10 to 141.
The licensing system will be discussed next month when police anti-drugs officers and members of the Action Committee Against Narcotics meet owners of premises used for rave and party organizers.
More youngsters are taking psychotropic drugs as the "rave" culture makes it easier to obtain party drugs such as ecstasy and ketamine, local officials said. They estimated that about five large "rave" organizers were running events for up 4,000 party- goers as well as dozens of small "raves" in Hong Kong.
A licensing system for rave parties is expected to be introduced in Hong Kong as part of a clampdown on drug abuse amongst youngsters.
The message came from Professor Lee Shiu-hung, chairman of the Action Committee Against Narcotics who disclosed the figures of drug abusers in the first three months at a media briefing on Thursday.
Local officials believed that Hong Kong is following the worldwide trend of chalking up a rapid increase in the number of people under the age of 21 taking drugs. They said the rising popularity of rave parties is responsible though there is no concrete evidence to back their view.
According to figures from the Central Registry of Drug Abusers, the number increased from 765 in the last quarter of 1999 to 1,057 in the first quarter of this year. The increase in the number of cases of people abusing the "party drug" ecstasy rose from 170 to 465 over the same quarterly period.
The figures also showed that abusers of ketamine, an anesthetic used by veterinary surgeons that has also become synonymous with raves, rose from 10 to 141.
The licensing system will be discussed next month when police anti-drugs officers and members of the Action Committee Against Narcotics meet owners of premises used for rave and party organizers.
More youngsters are taking psychotropic drugs as the "rave" culture makes it easier to obtain party drugs such as ecstasy and ketamine, local officials said. They estimated that about five large "rave" organizers were running events for up 4,000 party- goers as well as dozens of small "raves" in Hong Kong.
in 2003 I read an article on Al-Jazeera English Service (would post it but probably not the best news site to look at from work ;) ) - which claimed that raves were now commonplace in mainland South China as well!
Curiously, although China is a highly regulated country there is not as much fuss made over neighbourhood noise as there is in Britain or Europe - there is also a love of music and bright lights, so discos and raves are tolerated to an extent!
The issues with drug use are more due to worries about lost human productivity, organised crime and the effects they have on family relations.
Chinese rave music itself mostly consists of hard house and hardstyle, some of it rather cheesy although TBH no worse than anything played over here ;)
shame on US if the only the population of USA had stood up for themselves 4 years ago
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4040041.stm
and taken a leaf out of their book, or followed the examples of several ex-soviet countries that have refused to accept such shameful deceit as that which passes for 'democracy' in the USA
FAKING IT TLC’s award-winning TV reality series, FAKING IT, is now looking for a Dancing Raver who wants to fake it at their DREAM JOB!
Do you ever wish you had taken a different path? Do you fantasize about your dream job? Do you ever wonder who you would be if you had a different career? Do you want to break out of your shell and get over your shyness? Would you like to be given the opportunity of a lifetime?
Here is your chance…
Faking It is a transformational battle against the odds. It tells the story of what happens when real people take up the challenge of converting themselves into someone entirely different. Our hero/#@*%!e is plucked from their daily lives and given four weeks to master a skill well enough to fool a group of expert judges. During the month of intensive training, top practitioners, famous in their field, mentor the faker and try their best to help them succeed. They will teach you how to walk, talk, and act the part!
We are looking for candidates who have always wanted to be one of the following but do not have any prior experience:
Flair Bartender (male)
Stand-up Comic (male)
Martial Artist (male)
In the final test at the end of the month, the faker must not only demonstrate the skill required but, if they are to convince the expert panel, they must also look, act, and talk the part as well. At the heart of the show is the journey the faker takes into an unknown world and the relationships that develop between the faker and their mentors.
Requirements:
Must be 21 – 35 years of age
Must be able to leave your job and family for 4 weeks
If you know that you have what it takes to fool the experts, please email a JPEG PHOTO of yourself and a short paragraph that provides the following information.
Your name:
Your gender:
Your age:
Your weight and height:
Your address:
Your job:
Could you take a month away from your job/life at short notice?
What do you want to fake it as (from the list above) and why?
****In the subject line of your email, please put the following information, in the following order: *YOUR OCCUPATION(S), *AGE, *STATE. (For example: Subject: Truck Driver, 25, Texas or Subject: Plumber, 22, Kansas, etc.)
PLEASE EMAIL TO:
shana.kemp@rdfusa.com
Participant selection based solely on Producer’s discretion.
Compensation: We provide travel, accommodations, food, (per diem) & a wage.
http://rdfmedia.com/reality/FakingIt.asp
Rapture returns! Saw on one of the media news sites that club channel Rapture TV is to be re-launched soon (having changed ownership and run out of cash a few times IIRC) - albeit sharing an EPG on SkyDigital (industry-speak for a digital channel position)
They (understandably) concentrate on commercial events - and IIRC it was just the standard shots of stomping people, munted interviews with DJs and clubbers (which from experience is all the material you are likely to get videoing clubs!) with a few music videos, however it is good I suppose to see at least one UK-based dance music TV channel.
Might also be of interest to the East Anglian massive as they may know people who work or have worked there, IIRC Rapture used to be based at Anglia in Norwich (nearly went for a job there once!)
I don't even have sky though....
Middle England pro hunt lot – the *real* terrorist threat! After years of increased public access to lobby MPs and watch Westminster and Whitehall at work - now armed police guard the House of Commons, in a country where we once proudly said we did not need to have them there.
Not because of Usama Bin Laden or the Real IRA - but born and bred white middle class males, fighting for the "right" to kill animals in a sadistic and cruel manner (using other animals from the same species group who are themselves killed aftr they "cease to be of use").
When our political system, flawed as it is, produced (by democratic vote) a result they didn't want, they took to the streets to protest.
When the Police moved in to regulate the flow of protesters, they were pelted, and firearms and explosives discharged in their direction. The shotgun cartridges may be blank, and the explosives mere display fireworks - but this is nevertheless a symbolic act of war - something no other activist group (other than those who are part of or linked to terrorist organisations) have brought to the streets of London in the last 20 years.
And it is surely very unpatriotic to put extra stress on your countrys emergency services at a time of war - a war these self-same self-centred individuals no doubt support in their misguided desires to see "the return of the proud British empire"?
They also used inside knowledge provided by their privileged class to infiltrate the very seat of British government in disguise, and attempt to disrupt proceedings after a democratic vote had not gone in their favour. Luckily for all involved the trouble was verbal eather than physical; but now instead of men in tights guarding our politicians it is men in guns.
So much for "British traditions of civilised argument, restraint (and a modicum of cross-dressing). Jokes aside, London is now an even more paranoid and angry place (particularly for any other activists who want to exercise their right to protest) and nothing whatsoever has been solved by the protests. essentially they have led to everyones freedom being limited further.
Elsewhere, worse stuff happens - an electricity pylon carrying 132,000 volts is partly sawn through by a "pro hunting" group (the pro-hunt lobby did threaten to do so earlier in the year). Luckily these pylons are made of strong stuff - but had they succeeded they would have not only put themselves in mortal danger but disrupted the lives of thousands, and increased their utility bills.
I think we've now found out who some of the terrorists and traitors really are..
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