B.C. is only province to cut arts funding, according to Canadian

I am so tired of cultural industries being called on to justify their existence. This is not something other industries ever have to do. One look at the comments on this story in the Georgia Straight cuts right to the place of debate that we return to over and over again:...

Senate to Vote on Outlawing Organic Farming

I received this email and wanted to pass along the information, as it will be voted on in 2 weeks time and is a very scary proposal. This is a dangerous - and stupid - proposal, so I hope people get it together to protest it or block it. Food should not be centralized and...

Introducing.... Emily Carr's New Look !

Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver, Canada has launched a new identity. It is a new logo - a circle. Shown here as a (really nice) animation. I like it, do you? "To accompany Emily Carr's brand-new university status and name change, we've revamped our...

Giant rat caught in China

Ok, disgusting!"The rat, which weighed six pounds and had a 12-inch tail, was caught at the weekend in a residential area of Fuzhou, a city of six million people on China's south coast. The ratcatcher, who was only named as Mr Xian, said he swooped for the rodent after seeing...

Foster's to make 300 to 400 redundancies

I'm noticing anecdotally that the recession is really hitting architects....here are another 400 laid off by Norman Foster's office."Foster & Partners shuts Berlin and Istanbul offices the day after it highlights profitability to staff Foster & Partners has announced...

Farmer's secret GM crop defies green rulebook

It is so scary how easily these policies are sabotaged. "Environmentalists are calling for the prosecution of a farmer who claims to have sabotaged Wales's GM-free status by secretly planting and harvesting genetically modified varieties of maize and feeding them to local...

NFB makes films free online

This is really exciting news. The archive at the National Film Board of Canada (the NFB) is pure gold and has up until now been fairly inaccessible. "The National Film Board of Canada has launched a new project to allow Canadians to see its films through online streaming....

Israelis 'shot at fleeing Gazans'

This is so appalling. Why isn't anyone doing anything?"Claims have been received by the BBC and an Israeli human rights group that Israeli troops have fired on Gaza residents trying to escape the conflict area. Israel has strongly denied the allegations. BBC journalists in...

Israeli Navy Gunships Surround Free Gaza Boat

I heard about this via Laila El-Haddad, the Palestinian journalist. The ship, in international waters loaded with crucial supplies and doctors, is being surrounded by Israeli gunships."The Free Gaza mercy ship, SPIRIT OF HUMANITY, left port in Cyprus this morning on an...

Group accuses Israel of firing white phosphorus into Gaza

For 10 days I have heard from sources on the ground that white phosphorus is being used. Now the mainstream media is covering the issue. "HRW said the use of white phosphorus in Gaza would violate "the requirement under international humanitarian law to take all feasible...