Info Wars 2011 Live Money Bomb

Your Mission, If You Choose to Accept It: Taking the Infowar to the Next Level

It cannot be denied that Infowars.com and its multimedia operation are the tip of the spear in the fight against tyranny. It also cannot be denied it has effectively challenged the establishment.
Hide

Because we have had so much success and have reached tens of millions of people, we have a responsibility to go to the next level. In order to do that, we are announcing an Infowars Moneybomb, the most critical of the three previous.
The first Infowars Moneybomb was launched by supporters and since then we have used it to raise the money required to add crucial infrastructure to our operation and send the message of liberty out far and wide.
Now that we have built our new studio and launched Infowars Nightly News, we need to expand our operation by adding more reporters and video editors to bring you the unvarnished truth and give the corporate media – financed by the elite and showered with your tax dollars – a run for its money.
All of you who have donated in the past, who have bought films and products from our store, and who have subscribed to Prison Planet.tv – you are the people who have made our success possible.
On Thursday, November 3, 2011, we will present a live, 24-hour video stream broadcast including never seen before seen interviews and other special features.
Mark your calendar for this special event – and please consider helping us to take the Infowars operation to the next level in the fight against the globalists as they unleash their plan to usher in world government and strip us of our liberty and sovereignty.

Also Watch On: Ustream, Justintv, Livestream

Now Playing 27 hour Live Broadcast Marathon! - Full Schedule Here

Donation Zone

More ways Don't have a PayPal account? Click here to donate through the InfoWars store
Real News. Real Issues. Right Now. Live and On Demand - Join PrisonPlanet.tv for FREE
To Call Into The Live Show:1-877-789-ALEX(2539)
Phone Donations: 1-888-253-3139
Mail Donations to "Infowars": P.O. Box 19549. Austin, TX 78760

United in rest: Russians to celebrate three-day weekend

03.11.2010, 17:07

Russia is getting back one of its holy shrines – a fresco icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker painted on the Kremlin’s Nikolskaya Tower about 500 years ago, and concealed from public eyes for the last 70 years.

04.11.2009, 09:05

Russia is celebrating the Day of National Unity. People all over the country are singing songs, dancing and flying big balloons in the air. Nationalists and anti-nationalists have staged marches in the capital.

//

Published: 03 November, 2011, 20:31

Monument to Minin and Pozharsky at Red Square (RIA Novosti/Valeriy Shustov)

(7.9Mb) embed video
To include this chart in your web page, paste the following HTML tag into your web page HTML:

TAGS: Russia, Holiday, Prime Time Russia, Anya Fedorova, Neil Harvey

Thursday has turned into Friday this week, as on November 4 Russians get a day off to celebrate National Day of Unity.

The public holiday was first marked in 2005, but it celebrates something much older: the liberation of the country from Polish and Lithuanian invaders in the 17th century.

During this difficult period, the Russian people united under the leadership of Dmitry Pozharsky and Kozma Minin. The two are now regarded as national heroes.

Celebrations will be held all around the country on November 4. A range of special events will be held at various Moscow parks, including Izmailovsky, Kolomenskoe, Sokolniki and Gorky.

There will also be plenty of political marches, both in Moscow and in the regions. On November 7, a large-scale march will go through the centre of Moscow. This marks the 70th anniversary of the first military parade in the city in 1941.

5,000 policemen will be on duty in the capital, while a number of roads in the centre will be closed.

If you join in the celebrations, it is a good idea to dress warm, as by the weekend temperatures are forecasted to drop to -7 degrees Celsius. Still, despite the freeze, forecasters do not predict any snow this week.

02.11, 23:03

As the New British Film Festival gets underway in Moscow, RT talked to British actor Luke Treadaway, who came to Moscow to present two movies at once.

Today: 21:26

As Siberian cranes have to fly over many danger zones every time they migrate, their numbers have taken quite a knock. Now the birds are receiving help from an unexpected quarter as an oil and gas producer aims to make up for any ecological damage.

View the original article here

Bill Gates takes OWS message to G20

03.11, 10:50

The G20 group of major world economies is meeting in France at a calamitous time for the euro. The eurozone is cracking at the seams, after Greece's shock announcement that it is to hold a referendum on the crucial EU bailout.

03.11, 17:47

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has scrapped his plan for a referendum on the EU bailout package. Earlier he denied rumors of his possible resignation.

Eurozone crisis 02.11, 09:18

Over 10,000 people have marched in Nice to protest against the upcoming G20 summit. The crowds, angry with the financial system and invigorated by the global “Occupy” movement, demanded governments focus on people more than corporations.

01.11, 22:09

Thousands of anti-capitalists have arrived in Nice on the French Riviera to protest against corporate greed ahead of the G20 summit in Cannes. International activists are urging leaders of the world's top economies to focus on people not finance.

Eurozone crisis Occupy Wall Street //

Published: 03 November, 2011, 20:54
Edited: 04 November, 2011, 00:29

A Robin des Bois member (C) poses with Oxfam France activists wearing masks portraying some of the G20 leaders during a protest in Nice, southern France, on November 2, 2011 on the eve of the start of the G20 Summit of Heads of State and Government (AFP Photo / ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT)

(16.8Mb) embed video
To include this chart in your web page, paste the following HTML tag into your web page HTML:

TAGS: Meeting, EU, Crisis, Protest, Politics, G20, Bill Dod, Daniel Bushell

Thousands of anti-globalists are mixing with anti-capitalists across the French Riviera to prompt the G20 summit for a little more action. They seem to have won an ambassador to promote the Robin Hood tax at the top gathering.

­Spreading from Nice up the coast to the tax haven of Monaco, the anti-G20 protest has taken on some strange forms with demonstrators turning up dressed as President Sarkozy, Chancellor Merkel or President Obama.

A mock press conference was held, which demonstrators insist was much more informative than the regular top level “vague babble.”

“We don’t see a problem with the world’s economy,” said a fake Nicolas Sarkozy according to RT’s Daniel Bushell.

“We are happy with Greece to have a referendum on a bailout as long as they vote ‘yes’,” added a fake Angela Merkel.

Monaco, as well as other tax havens, has gone on to the anti-capitalists’ agenda as the demonstrators are outraged that bankers who are bringing in huge bonuses while Europe is drowned in bailouts can move to Monaco without paying tuppence in tax.

Previous G20 summits brought a promise to shut down tax paradises, but the pledge did not seem to go very far.

Unlike some previous anti-G20 protests, this year’s demonstrations stress their peaceful disposition. But boiling across the French Riviera, the protest cannot enter Cannes itself. There, even local residents have to wear badges to get through the tightest security, which has even forced some people to move out of the city till the summit finishes.

Although the demonstrators are worried their message to world leaders might not get through, they do appear to have supporters among the mighty. Microsoft founder, Bill Gates and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, have both recently expressed their support for the Robin Hood tax proposed by the demonstrators. The additional tax targets financial transactions on each stock and bond trade.

"It is very plausible that certain kinds of financial transaction taxes (FTT) could work," Gates told the Guardian newspaper. "I am lending some credibility to that. This money could be well spent and make a difference. An FTT is more possible now than it was a year ago, but it won't be at rates that magically raise gigantic sums of money."

Bill Gates, who arrived in Cannes on Thursday, is expected to present this idea to the G20 summit and argue that the money raised could top up government aid budgets to fight poverty and deprivation around the world.

03.11, 20:14

While the Syrian government has agreed to an Arab league proposal that could put a stop to nearly eight months of violence, independent journalist James Corbert argues a media campaign is underway to help overthrow the Syrian government.

Syria unrest Today: 00:57

The sovereign debt crisis in the eurozone has dominated the first day of the G20 summit in Cannes. The Greek PM’s vacillating over a referendum in the country has brought added urgency to events as G20 leaders thrashed things out on Thursday.

Eurozone crisis

View the original article here

Almost seven percent of Americans live below half the poverty line

01.11, 23:39

Residents of the Washington DC metropolitan area make on average the largest annual income of any region in America. The nation’s capital also boasts a homeless population that is unmatched by many locales from coast-to-coast.

27.10, 22:53

A downtrodden economy eliminating hopes of heading out of the homestead has yielded a startling statistic from just released figures from the US Census Bureau. As of 2010, Americans are moving into new homes at the lowest figure since World War II.

25.10, 21:44

Even if the government is reluctant to say that the current economic situation in America is on par with a recession, the United States public seems to think so. A new study reveals that consumer confidence as at its lowest since March of 2009.

14.10, 23:41

For each job opening in the country, around 4.6 unemployed Americans remain without work, reveals statistics just published from the Department of Labor.

11.10, 21:40

President Barack Obama will meet today with members of a dream team of supposed employment experts to help tackle the nation’s jobs problem dubbed the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.

Published: 03 November, 2011, 22:57

People wait in line to receive free milk from the Milk from the Heart program in New York City (Spencer Platt / Getty Images / AFP)

TAGS: Health, Crisis, History, USA, Employment, Culture, Economy

As unemployment remains stagnant, it’s easy to see that impoverished Americans are growing in numbers. A recent analysis of census data offers an even sadder insight, as a report reveals that 1-in-15 Americans live below half of the poverty line.

Nationwide, around 20.5 million Americans — or 6.7 percent — qualify as being among the poorest of the poor. For 2010 figures, that equates to a personal income of less than $5,570 annual or $11,157 for a family of four. Double those prices and you have what the US Census says is the actual poverty line — and a total of 46.2 million Americans can claims that’s where they stand.

The 6.7 percent marks not just an increase in the poorest of the poor, but one of statistical and historical importance. The year 2009 saw only 6 percent of America’s population being within that range, but the newest figure actually puts the percentage at the highest it has ever been since the United States Census Bureau began tracking the data 35 years ago.

The latest figures take into account national figures, of course, so some parts of the US see a smaller concentration of impoverished than others. In other locales, however, the statistics are astounding. In Washington DC, for example, the proportion of people below half of the poverty line is at 10.7 percent.

Washington is perhaps the most fitting example of a metropolitan region where the poorest of the poor — more than one-in-ten Washingtonians — provides a bizarre contrast with the wealth found elsewhere in the nation’s capitol. As RT reported last week, the 5.6 million residents in the metro DC region combined bring in around $221.4 billion each year, making it the wealthiest region in America. The average annual income of the DC-area surpasses that of any other region in America, yet DC is also in the top spot for having the most very poor.

Second and third on the list this year are Mississippi and New Mexico. The AP reports additionally that Nevada saw a surge in poverty in recent years, with the percentage of people living below half of the poverty line going from 4.6 percent in 2009 to 7 percent in 2010.

From coast-to-coast, every state is being affected. Of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, 40 states also saw increases in the poorest of the poor when compared with 2009 numbers, and no state in the entire country saw a decrease.

"There now really is no unaffected group, except maybe the very top income earners," Robert Moffitt or Johns Hopkins University tells The Associated Press. "Recessions are supposed to be temporary, and when it's over, everything returns to where it was before. But the worry now is that the downturn — which will end eventually — will have long-lasting effects on families who lose jobs, become worse off and can't recover."

Though the US government says that the last recession has officially been over for two years, the aftermath is still evident in not just these statistics but across the board. Consumer confidence in October was at the lowest it has been since the heart of the recession in early 2009, and the median household income, adjusted for inflation, has dropped 6.7 percent in the last two years.

03.11, 21:56

The White House is outraged today and says a request from Congress to hand-over emails pertaining to the massive loan the Obama administration okayed for Solyndra shortly before the solar panel plant went bankrupt is unprecedented.

Today: 00:57

Hackers with the online collective Anonymous say that they will press on with a war against their latest target despite threats of certain death. Anonymous says they are about to battle it out with the notorious Mexican drug cartel the Zetas.

View the original article here

Raising a foot to step on Mars: 17-month virtual trip over

The ambitious experiment simulating a manned mission to Mars is coming to an end on Friday, when the virtual space travelers will “land” back on Earth. RT has spoken to the head of the project Boris Morukov.

RT: Mr. Morukov, Mars-500 was your idea, and now the project will soon be over, and they will walk out of this chamber. How does it feel? It’s been 17 months. Are you anxious?

Boris Morukov: Of course I'm anxious! We were more anxious, though, when they just walked in. Now we are looking forward to the end of the experiment. Of course, such extensive isolation will require the crew to spend some time in rehabilitation. It will be hard work for us to analyze the results. But the very fact that the team managed to stay the course is a source of delight.

RT: From the very start, there has been much controversy over Mars-500, especially among professionals. Some people said that you can’t become a Formula 1 driver by spending a year and a half in the driver seat. Ordinary people who don’t know much about the experiment are likely to ask, what’s the purpose of spending $15 million to isolate six able-bodied men from the rest of the world for 17 months?

BM: The purpose is as follows. The experiment has been designed to define the limits of human capacities. A mission to Mars is an idea that’s been on people’s minds for at least 50 years. Feasible projects of flights to the Red Planet were developed as early as in the 1960s. Then space exploration took a different course, but the beginning of the 21st century was again marked by a growing interest in flights beyond the [Earth’s] orbit, flights to other planets. It will put space science on a new level, in terms of technology, knowledge and extended limits of human capacities. The work on the International Space Station is viewed as a preparation for interplanetary voyages.

RT: You say the experiment is supposed to define the limits of human capacities. But does it give you any specific answers like when can humans first reach Mars, who will be the pioneer to step on to its surface?

BM: As a friend of mine once said, it’s not even the first step. We’ve only lifted our foot to take that first step. Before we decide on the equipment that will be used in a flight to Mars, we first need to have an understanding of the limits of the human body, its psychological and physiological capacities. Secondly, we need to decide on the amount of resources to be taken along, about the way our life support system will operate during such long missions.

Communications between the crew and the Earth will be a different ball game. In orbital flights, much of the work rests on the shoulders of the specialists on the ground. An interplanetary mission is also characterized by autonomy, independence. You cannot turn back. It’s a totally different situation.

And without testing and identifying the primary elements – the life support system, the volume of the resources needed, and human capacities – it’s difficult to make plans even on an initial design of a future spacecraft. Research in human capacities should go before the design of a spacecraft, though our scientists are quite active in designing new vehicles. This is an experimental facility. It can serve as a model or give us the data on the real size that will be needed for a real flight.

Anyway, a mission to Mars will most likely consist of four crew, not six. The mission will need to cut the amount of resources that will be taken aboard.

RT: The problem is the crew members know that in case of any emergency scientists can interfere at any point, unlike in space, and resolve it in a way that would be different to space conditions. Does this fact devalue the scope of the experiment?

BM: No, it doesn’t, although this is a major factor. On a real trip you realize that you are away and you cannot make a U-turn, even if you wanted to, that you will take the road back only after you’ve reached the goal. In contrast, the crew locked up here is fully aware that they are not far away from the center of Moscow. It’s very hard to imitate this factor. But what we can imitate is the isolation from the outside world. Although at the same time we seek to keep some form of interaction between the crew and the world because it’s a kind of psychological support.

One of the limitations we’ve introduced was the ban on direct real-time voice contacts. Only digital exchange of information was allowed. That limitation lasted for 420 days, and when voice calls were allowed again, their faces grew much brighter, it raised their mood a lot. Before that, they led a very isolated life. Of course, like on any space mission, they sought ways to vent their dissatisfaction, they made friends with the ground control dispatchers, they had friends and maybe even enemies. But in principle, this project was marked by a higher level of isolation.

RT: What were the crew motivated by? What can encourage a person to stay away from their relatives and friends for 17 months? It’s not really a flight to Mars – the experiment won’t make them world famous and proud to be the first to land on Mars?

BM: There’s a profession called a test engineer, and I think I could count myself as part of this group. It’s the people who are always one step ahead of what’s actually going on in space or in case of an emergency.

RT: So they are enthusiasts helping mankind to move forward?

BM: Not just enthusiasts…

RT: Seventeen months is a pretty long period of life…

BM: It’s really long… For me, too, I am among those who’ve been affected.

RT: But they are surely paid enough money for that?

BM: No, this is not big money, in my view.

RT: Is it a secret?

BM: No, it’s not. We’ve promised to pay 3 million rubles (about $97,500). We have agreed that the amount of compensation for the Europeans and Russians will be roughly the same. The Chinese agency employs different criteria. Anyway, the point I would like to underline is that it’s an international crew. There have been many concerns that they would split into groups according to the language. The Chinese member is a representative of a totally different culture, an ancient culture.

RT: There was a report saying that three months before the experiment’s scheduled ending, the crew members stopped writing letters. Is that true and, if yes, what are the reasons?

BM: They are very avid writers. Even now that they have an opportunity to make voice calls, at least with ground control, they still write letters, and write a lot.

RT: So they never stopped writing?

BM: Never. There was a moment though, which was during a scheduled emergency blackout, when any means of communication was cut off. They didn’t have access to any information. It only lasted a week.

But you know the interesting thing about it was that they didn’t complain. They said they even liked it – it’s so quiet. They worked in an autonomous mode; they had instructions on how to behave, and a plan of action.

RT: What do they usually write about? You just said these are long messages. What’s in them?

BM: We have four information channels to transmit medical data, in-house information, scientific information accumulated for research and experiment and the space crew’s private correspondence. I learned that one person on the team is writing a book. I am not sure what is to become of it, but nevertheless…

RT: What is the book about – the experiment?

BM: Yes, the book is about the experiment. Excerpts of the crew's notebooks get published. This is what distinguishes Europeans from the representatives of Russian culture – they are used to describing their experience in blogs and on Live Journal pages. And, rather naturally, these publications generate massive response. The writers get a lot of information in response.

RT: So the Europeans get some feedback from the public, do they?

BM: Exactly. The public sends their messages to us first and we redirect them to the crew. There are two sides to this – a positive and a negative one. If the message contains some distressing reports, it may trigger a negative reaction.

RT: What kind of news do the crew members receive? Do they know about the war in Libya, do they know that a tsunami almost wiped out Japan, or do you screen the information that’s coming to them?

BM: They know. Global catastrophes are a major concern to them. For example, the news of the explosion at Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow was not delivered to them immediately. Despite the sadness of such reports, they should be delivered on time. Withholding information can trigger a negative reaction.

RT: These people don’t get any sunlight; they’ve given up on their favorite occupations for quite a time. What kind of psychological impact does it all have on them? Is there a risk that the project’s participants will encounter some kind of psychological fallout later, when they’ve left the capsule?

BM: I am not sure about the consequences but I do know that a person needs social rehabilitation after such experiments, because he practically drops out of his everyday life for quite a long time. I remember one case when a man was afraid of crossing the street after taking part in a long-term experiment. Such things happen. He returned back to normal later, of course, and even crossed the street running in inappropriate places.

All I want to say is that such experiences always leave traces. A person gets used to living in a capsule, his life stereotype undergoes changes. Everything is planned for him by other people, though the crew are offered the opportunity to take their own decisions, or introduce changes, from time to time. But all the same, we rarely know what we will be doing in a week's time in real life, and there everything proceeds according to the plan.

RT: Has any of the crew surprised you personally?

BM: Yes, the Chinese participant surprised me. I was surprised by the smoothness with which he joined the team. He established good, stable relations with every crew member. There are always certain tensions between people – you can't help it – but he made really huge progress in the course of the experiment, it was almost visible. He became a professional. The Russian participants surprised me too, in a way.

I should say we made the right choices when forming the crew. There was absolutely no dictator among the participants, no self-proclaimed commander. They based their relations on consensus, when you can talk and reach an agreement. Even if something has gone wrong and someone is dissatisfied, it is important to be able to put the common cause and interests of this small group of people prior to your own feelings and ambitions.

RT: Does anyone of them have a chance of taking part in a real Mars mission?

BM: It's a question of time. We don't know when it will happen.

RT: Still we’ve been exposed to so many movies about Mars missions that it has become almost an obsession to colonize it. When do you think we will finally make it?

BM: To inhabit Mars is not the same thing as to perform one space trip to Mars.

RT: Let’s start with the first trip. You can’t colonize Mars without first landing on it.

BM: It is technically viable. There are a number of projects and our designers are working on them. But whether we fly to Mars or not depends on two things: this space flight should be authorized and international cooperation should be established, because it won't be an accomplishment of one single nation or a group of people but rather of the entire global community.

RT: Was it an intentional decision to leave women out?

BM: No, it was not intentional; moreover, we had applications from women candidates. And in one of the preliminary tests we even had a female commander. There are two things that can account for the absence of women on the team: we did not make a point of the candidate's sex or make distinctions between men and women. We looked at the level of proficiency, character traits, the ability to work on a team and many other qualities.

RT: But women are weaker?

BM: No, there are different women. But personally I would be sorry to put a woman in such conditions because a man can break his daily routine much more easily than a woman, it applies to the private life, family and even the professional career. A woman cannot afford to lose so much time; she should never stop collecting points.

RT: Mr. Morukov, thank you very much for the interview.

BM: Thank you.

View the original article here

NATO faces ICC war crimes probe

31.10, 13:18

After seven months, NATO’s mission over Libya is winding up on Monday, despite calls from the interim leadership for the operation to continue.

02.11, 06:12

Human rights groups say the number of revenge killings by revolutionary forces in Libya is escalating sharply. HRW suggests NTC fighters are terrorizing displaced residents of the coastal town of Tawergha for supporting the old regime.

Libyan conflict 01.11, 14:24

The ultimate goal of the US is to take the resources of Africa and Middle East under military control to block economic growth in China and Russia, thus taking the whole of Eurasia under control, author and historian William F. Engdahl reveals.

Arab world protests Eurozone crisis US debt crisis //

Published: 03 November, 2011, 13:04

Libyans inspect the damage at a factory targeted by NATO air strikes in Bir Ghanam on August 6, 2011 (AFP Photo / COLIN SUMMERS)

TAGS: Crime, NATO, Politics, Libya, War

The prosecutor for the International Criminal Court (ICC) says his office will investigate alleged crimes committed by NATO during the civil war and intervention in Libya along with those of the Gaddafi regime and the rebels.

Luis Moreno Ocampo did not provide any details on allegations against NATO forces as he reported to the UN Security Council on Wednesday.

The ICC will probe into war crimes allegedly committed by anti-Gaddafi forces, including persecution of civilians, killings of combatant captives and the death of the former Libyan leader himself, the prosecutor said.

The investigation however will focus on alleged crimes of the ousted regime and particularly on those attributed to Muammar Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam and his head of intelligence al-Senussi. Both men are still at large, presumed to be somewhere in Libya.

"It is up to the UN Security Council and states to ensure that they face justice for the crimes for which they are charged," Ocampo said.

Russia backs the ICC’s effort and hopes that all parties which violated the international law will be brought to justice, the country’s deputy envoy to UN Sergey Karev said.

"The number of civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure from actions of all the belligerent parties in Libya is are very high. Unfortunately, actions of the NATO-led coalition resulted in civilian deaths too,” the diplomat said. He added that Moscow expects “all those guilty of serious crimes – according to the international law – committed in Libya will be punished.”

Karev added that Russia fears that the new Libyan leaders, who promised a full investigation into the death of Gaddafi, will fail to deliver.

“We can’t help but doubt that a proper investigation will be possible immediately in the country, with ruined governing structure and virtually no functioning law enforcement or prosecution bodies,” he said.

Russia calls on the ICC to closely monitor the investigation, and “if at some point the Libyan side will for some reason be unable to perform such an investigation, the ICC will have to take over,” the diplomat explained.

03.11, 12:33

New clashes have erupted in Oakland, California, between anti-corporate protesters and police, who have entered their camp. Up to 100 people have already been arrested, and the standoff at the camp continues.

Occupy Wall Street 03.11, 15:12

The US and its allies, such as the UK and Israel, may launch a missile attack on Iranian uranium enrichment facilities in the next 12 months, media speculate.

View the original article here

Gang profiling: UK council wants eye on social networks

01.11, 12:46

Britain’s Metropolitan Police have purchased a system which can identify, track and possibly shut off every cell phone in a 10-square kilometer area. The Orwellian system has raised concerns over potential abuses and violations of privacy.

01.09, 18:25

London Metropolitan police have reportedly urged British media outlets to hand over footage of the riots that swept the capital in early August voluntarily, without recourse to official procedures.

UK riots 24.10, 16:47

On Monday the British Parliament is to vote on whether to stage a referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU. The UK Conservative Party MP says Union involvement harms Britain's sovereignty.

Eurozone crisis //

Published: 03 November, 2011, 12:32

British riot policemen stand in front of a burning building in Croydon, South London on August 8, 2011 (AFP Photo / LEON NEAL)

(23.9Mb) embed video
To include this chart in your web page, paste the following HTML tag into your web page HTML:

TAGS: Scandal, UK, Protest, Matt Trezza, Social networks, Laura Smith

The UK is desperately searching for a cure to the spread of gang culture after the summer riots. But a proposed strategy of monitoring social networks and spying on teens may see potential troublemakers totally isolated – with uncertain consequences.

­The reality of life in East London – young teens take part in a workshop on gang violence.  

With the government laying the blame for August’s riots firmly at the door of gangs, one London council is talking about making youth workers spy on gang members and monitor their social network activities.

Anything suspicious would be passed to a special anti-gang unit.

But the MP for Hackney, where some of the worst unrest took place, says it is not the technology to blame.

“There were riots in this country in the 12th century, and there was no internet, there was no text messaging then. So it is nonsense. Time would be better spent looking at the real causes of riots rather than blaming the messenger,” Hackney MP Diane Abbott says.   

For some young people, the youth club is a safe haven in an uncertain world. And message monitoring could undermine the important relationship between a youth worker and vulnerable team, making them less likely to turn to them in a crisis, and so more susceptible to gang overtures, and ultimately crime and violence.

Naz Ali has been working at this youth center in East London for two years. Young people spend time in a relaxed environment, and eventually, he gets to know them and see them when they are in trouble. He says money would be better spent looking at those who are already in gangs.

“The money they are going to spend they should actually spend with the gangs, each gang member, and try getting the gang members, and spend the money with them, where gang members can change their gang members. So that’s how they should spend the money. Monitoring: I don’t think so,” Naz believes.

During the riots, social networks like Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger were used by rioters to pinpoint the next location earmarked for destruction. The government went as far as proposing shutting down the services, while two men were jailed for four years each for inciting rioting on Facebook. But teens say spying risks isolating the very people they are trying to help.

“If that happens, people wouldn’t come to youth centers,” says one of the teenagers, Maten Mechmount.

There are undoubtedly social issues, and solving them requires walking a fine line between coming down hard on troublemakers, and preserving civil liberties for everyone. But it is clear that this measure, which would cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to enforce, could also cost the trust and goodwill of the same at-risk youth the authorities are so concerned about.

03.11, 11:35

In the US, all eyes are now on Oakland, where anti-corporate protests see their first casualty after a young man was hit by a car. Thousands took to the streets in the Californian city and shut down operations in one of America's major sea ports.

Occupy Wall Street 03.11, 12:33

New clashes have erupted in Oakland, California, between anti-corporate protesters and police, who have entered their camp. Up to 100 people have already been arrested, and the standoff at the camp continues.

Occupy Wall Street

View the original article here

Cirque du Soleil’s magic back in Moscow

24.03, 19:13

Color, fantasy, and the magic of human transformations. A display of the best Cirque Du Soleil costumes has opened in Moscow offering to meet those inspiring characters from the famous Canadian circus Company all over again.

21.02, 16:52

Cirque du Soleil, the legendary Canadian Company is planning to stage their new major acrobatic show Zarkana right in the heart of Moscow - the Kremlin palace. The show will be running in the Russian capital from February through April 2012.

01.05.2010, 17:39

Canada’s Cirque du Soleil is once again ready to invite their audiences into their charming and mysterious world of fun and fantasy. The European premiere of “Corteo” is set to be held in St. Petersburg next month.

07.08.2009, 21:07

The popular Cirque du Soleil is planning to establish a permanent platform for their shows in the Russian capital, just like in Tokyo, Las Vegas and many European cities.

06.06.2009, 17:12

The Chekhov Festival in Moscow welcomes a one-of-a-kind circus – the “Invisible” one. This stunning performance of two talents, Victoria Chaplin and Jean-Baptiste Thiérrée, celebrates fantasy and kindness.

Published: 03 November, 2011, 13:41

Cirque du Soleil to premiere new show in Moscow

TAGS: Art, Show, Russia, Circus

Legendary Canadian circus company Cirque du Soleil has brought its new show Saltimbanco to Moscow. Thursday will see the premiere of the program, which will be running at the capital’s Luzhniki Arena through November 13.

After Moscow, the show will move to St. Petersburg and then to Kiev, for the first ever appearance of the world-famous circus company in Ukraine.

Cirque du Soleil’s visits to the capital have already become a beloved tradition. Muscovites had the chance to enjoy the shows Varekai in 2009, and Corteo in 2010.

Saltimbanco, which celebrates the company’s 20th anniversary, is another beautiful performance, fusing the huge work and outstanding talent of the team to amuse the audience and bring the fairy-tale spirit into the old building of the Arena.

Saltimbanco show is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year

­The first show, Varekai was a completely new experience for Moscow. It stunned the audience with sophisticated acts, acrobatics and humor, while the second, Corteo, was a magical drama performance, sensual and gentle. Saltimbanco does not aim to beat the previous two. Its charm lies in its simplicity. It offers a chance to take a sneak peek at the history of the legendary Cirque du Soleil.

The history of the company and circus as a whole goes back to street performing, where actors often involve the audience. Saltimbanco is exactly that kind of show.  Prepare to find yourself onstage, or get tapped on the shoulder by one of the actors from behind.

Stunning acrobatics, the trademark of the circus company, are also there, along with captivating dance and music.

Based in Montreal, Canada, Cirque du Soleil was founded by Guy Laliberte in 1984. The company today employs over 5000 people, which allows it to give several stunning performances in different parts of the world, at the same time.

02.11, 18:25

A biographical book about Russian opposition politician and writer Eduard Limonov has received a literary award in France. The Renaudot Prize was awarded to the book’s author Emmanuel Carrere.

Today: 15:51

The New British Film Festival has opened in Moscow, and will screen 15 movies recently mentioned and awarded at international film festivals. The screenings will run at Moscow’s Gorizont cinema.

View the original article here

November 3 in Russian history

31.10, 22:43

The burial of the Soviet Union’s most controversial leader and the birth of a renowned chess champion made this day in Russian history.

27.10, 21:46

Russia’s “Black Monday” and the most expensive Soviet construction project ever made up this day in the country’s history.

24.10, 22:21

Football’s first arrival in Russia and the birthday of the country’s richest businessman are celebrated in tonight’s Historama.

04.02.2010, 20:59

Post-World War II divisions, Moscow metro’s first ever test drive and other big events which happened on February 4 in Russian history with RT’s Historama.

//

Published: 03 November, 2011, 22:52

Space weddind: first lady in space marries third man in space (RIA Novosti / Michail Kuleshov)

(9.7Mb) embed video
To include this chart in your web page, paste the following HTML tag into your web page HTML:

TAGS: Religion, Space, Prime Time Russia, Historama, Anya Fedorova, Neil Harvey, WWII

The space wedding of two Soviet cosmonauts and the demolition of a major Kiev cathedral are recalled in tonight’s Historama.

On this day in 1961, two Russian cosmonauts created the first "space family."

The world's first female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova tied the knot with Andriyan Nikolaev, the third man in space.

The wedding attracted lots of media attention around the world, with Nikita Khrushchev among the guests.

Some say the Soviet leader actually put pressure on the cosmonauts to marry.

Tereshkova and Nikolaev stayed together for 19 years before getting divorced.

The cathedral of the magnificent Kiev Pechersk Lavra was destroyed 70 years ago today.

It happened during the occupation of Kiev in World War II.

Historians still debate who was responsible for the demolition. Some say the church was blown up by the Nazis, while others blame the Soviet secret police and partisans.

The cathedral was built in the 11th century, and many imitations were built across ancient Russia.

Thanks to a restoration 11 years ago, tourists can again enjoy its original splendor today.

Read more on this day in Russian history

03.11, 22:50

A perfect getaway from Moscow’s concrete jungle, Sokolniki Park has a fascinating history and plenty of stories to tell. RT invites you on a trip into its place’s thrilling past.

View the original article here