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Posts by Deanna Zandt
Movie Review: "Body of War" by Phil Donahue
Posted by Deanna Zandt on April 10, 2008 at 7:25 AM.
Tomas Young called up an Army recruiter on September 13, 2001, wanting to chase down the evildoers that W trumpeted about from the burning rubble in downtown Manhattan. Instead, he wound up in Iraq less than two years later, and five days after setting foot on the soil of that country, he was shot and paralyzed from the chest down. "Body of War," a new documentary from Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro, tells his story.
Shot over the course of nearly five years, the film follows Tomas, his wife, and his mother as they struggle with his injuries and look for a new life together after Iraq. This is not a nuanced film: it is a blunt instrument, intentionally so, that shows the daily and inescapable moments of post-war anguish that only a family can intimately experience. Tomas develops not only into an unsilenced soldier, but an unsilenced recovering person with disabilities -- sex, bodily functions, and much more are out there in a way that often is wondered about but never shown or discussed in excruciating detail.
Where the film stumbles is its use of C-SPAN coverage of Congress debating the war in its leadup to the vote to authorize it. Using a computerized voice to count the "aye" votes along with the names throughout the entire movie is distracting and unnecessary; most of the people who will see this film already know how it went down. The rousing chorus of music (and, at my screening, audience cheering) for those lonely 23 senators that voted no is infuriating. Why celebrate this failure? What, as long as we're principled, we can feel better about ourselves?
The only exception is the footage of Sen. Robert Byrd's moving speeches, which should go on the books as some of the best modern oration. Clearly, the film was moving for the New York City audience I sat with, which included Alan Alda. Alda said after the screening, "Everyone in the theater was moved to tears, at least several times. You can't watch this movie and not be moved. What an achievment."
Tomas -- and especially his mother, with her unwitting insights and clarity -- has a story worth seeing and retelling. Visit BodyOfWar.com for more information and showtimes.
Iraqi Journalist Killed In Raid
Posted by Deanna Zandt, AlterNet on December 15, 2007 at 5:36 PM.
Via Nathan Freitas, I learned that last night that Iraqi journailist Ali Shafeya Al-Moussawi was killed during an Iraqi raid on his neighborhood in Sadr City:
On Friday the 14th at 11:30pm Baghdad time, Iraqi National Guard forces raided the street where Ali’s house is, one of the neighbors heard a gun firing after 15 minutes from the arrival of the Iraqi National Guard convoy to the street, the force left at 3:00am. His neighbors kept calling Ali’s phone and it was switched off all the time, so they called his cousin Amar because he lives one block away from where Ali lives.
Amar arrived in Ali’s house and found Ali shoot dead in the living room, Amar called the Iraqi Police and told them the story as he heard it from Ali’s neighbors. At 8:30 am Baghdad time the Iraqi Police took Ali’s body to the morgue, his two uncles received the body at 10:00am and they headed to Najaf to bury him.
Al-Moussawi was a journalist for the very poignant and generally excellent Iraqi video blog/show, Alive in Baghdad. They are collecting donations for his family via Paypal, but they themselves are also in desperate need of funding to continue the important work that they're creating. Please help if you can.
Take Back America Next Week in DC
Posted by Deanna Zandt on June 11, 2007 at 8:33 AM.
Next week, thousands of progressive activists are descending on Washington, DC for the yearly conference put on by Campaign for America's Future: that's right, everyone, it's time to Take Back America!
From June 18 -20, you'll have a chance to hear Edwards, Barack, Hillary and Dennis all within the few days of the conference. Not to mention Michael Moore talking about Sicko, plus loads of progressive and liberal elected officials laying out their plans. Add in the labor leaders, immigration reformers and other grassroots activists, and you've got a conference of folks coming together to hammer out their visions for the future of the country.
Register here for the conference, and if you're coming -- AlterNet will be there in the Progressive Media Row, so be sure to stop by our table and say hello!
Jessica Valenti takes on Stephen Colbert [VIDEO]
Posted by Deanna Zandt on June 5, 2007 at 10:33 PM.
She founded a sassy feminist blog, she wrote a book for young women on feminism, and now she's been on The Colbert Report. Check out PEEK contributor Jessica Valenti as she takes on Mr. Colbert himself.
Ralph Nader, An Unreasonable Man
Posted by Deanna Zandt on February 1, 2007 at 7:24 AM.
Mention Ralph's name in any variety of progressive circles and you'll often get an earful about the 2000 elections. You'll hear about how, sure, the person you're talking to voted for him, but somehow, Nader is effectively responsible for the war and every other sorry state the country is in, because he spoiled the election. Forty years of activism doesn't come up so much in that conversation, does it?
A new documentary aims to shed some light on a man who has managed to be vilified from just about every political angle: An Unreasonable Man premiered in New York City last night. Three sold-out showings on opening night must mean something... people must be curious to get a glimpse at the what's behind the curtains of the crusader.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Demanding progressive infrastructure
Posted by Deanna Zandt on January 12, 2007 at 7:05 AM.
In more ways than one, progressives are sorely lacking in some basic infrastructure that the right has had in place for years-- media machines, intensive internship programs to rear the young activists, business associations, etc. But one area that neither side has addressed, and which is rapidly becoming a blinding necessity as online interactivity skyrockets, is the area of technology standards and interoperability.
Inter-wha'? It's just a geeky way of saying that all our tools can play well with others. Fundraising technology, social networking, email lists-- believe it or not, all these things should actually talk together. Yes! Really!
Fortunately, a new group, helmed by former AlterNet Managing Editor Tate Hausman, is tackling these issues head on with the Integration Proclamation. Here's the dream:
Ask organizers about their tech tools, and you'll hear the same story over and over: too many overlapping databases, systems that don't work together, hours wasted importing and exporting and de-duplicating lists. In a recent study about progressive technology, lack of data integration was cited as the #1 universal complaint.
It doesn't have to be this way. Recent advances in web development make data sharing much easier. Past attempts at solving the problem have taught us valuable lessons. Technology vendors have become very open to integration (though individually, the market hasn't given them enough incentive to solve the problem themselves). And now, with this Proclamation, a wide community of progressive organizers, campaigners, vendors, consultants and technologists is demanding change.
Do you believe? I do. Sign the Proclamation, and help get the momentum strong enough to build out some of these tools that the left so desperately needs in its corner for the coming waves of technological advancement... 'cause we ain't seen nothin' yet.
Action alert: Shut down Guantanamo and stop troop escalation
Posted by Deanna Zandt on January 10, 2007 at 2:00 PM.
January 11th is the five-year anniversary of the horror show otherwise known as Guantánamo Bay, and a thousands of people are taking action against the torture and human rights violations the prison perpetrates. Coalitions including CODEPINK, United for Peace and Justice, Center for Constitional Rights and more, the Witness Against Torture campaign has a lot in store:
Not content with another stateside vigil for herself, though, Cindy Sheehan has landed in Cuba to begin marching to the prison gates from the Cuban side, as part of a contingent of activists organized by CODEPINK:
The 12-person delegation ... also includes ... Adele Welty whose firefighter son was killed on 9/11; retired U.S. colonel and diplomat Ann Wright who resigned over the invasion of Iraq; and legal director of the U.S. Center for Constitutional Rights Bill Goodman who has taken the cases of Guantanamo detainees to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Finally, MoveOn will round out the evening with rallies and house parties supporting its call to end the escalation in Iraq, as called for by Bush and his band of cohorts:
After the voters, the generals, and the Iraq Study Group all told President Bush to lead us out of Iraq, he is planning an escalation and will send more troops as soon as this month. Congress can block an escalation but it is uncertain if they will. They need to hear from us immediately.
You can find a rally near you, or volunteer to host your own. Don't let this day go by without making your voice heard-- that this torture and violence won't be carried out in your name.
Time's Person of the Year: you.
Posted by Deanna Zandt on December 17, 2006 at 8:19 PM.
Well, well, well... it'll be the rage for these next 15 seconds, but Time has basically crowned "Web 2.0" the official whiz-bang-iest thing out there right now. It's all about you and me, and what we do with ourselves online these days. There's a great post over at Read/Write
Brian Williams, the darling of NBC, had this to say:
We work every bit as hard as our television-news forebears did at gathering, writing and presenting the day's news but to a smaller audience, from which many have been lured away by a dazzling array of choices and the chance to make their own news.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
My cell phone is bigger than yours...
Posted by Deanna Zandt on November 14, 2006 at 8:02 AM.
Just a short reminder that we're all hopeless monkeys trapped inside one giant National Geographic special, via TechDirt:
Well, it appears some things don't change much. Almost exactly six years ago, we wrote about a study that said that men tend to use mobile phones in the same way that peacocks display their plumage: as a mating call to try to impress women. A new study has found that this still happens. Men are much more likely to actively display their mobile phones in social situations. The article suggests it's a way to pick up women, but it also notes that men are just as eager to display their mobile phones to other men to make themselves appear more important. Of course, what makes this even more interesting is the study we saw this past summer that found that women use mobile phones for almost the exact opposite purpose. They do it to keep men from approaching them. That is, if they see someone approaching them, they may pull out the phone so they have an excuse to avoid talking to the man. No wonder the sexes have so much trouble communicating. They don't even use communication devices the same way.
Election Protection volunteers needed
Posted by Deanna Zandt on November 8, 2006 at 11:41 AM.
This just in from Ray Beckerman:
The Real-Time Data Analysis team of Election Defense Alliance needs some people to download returns from websites as they are posted and send them in to us. We are running an amazing set of mathematical and statistical computer models, using historical, demographic and pre-poll data, as well as precinct and county tallies, independent exit polls, and official returns -- in order to flag suspect patterns and anomolous returns.
If you would like to join us right now in this ground-breaking effort, please respond to me asap. I will send specific instructions. Best if you are comfortable and adept working with online data.
THANK YOU.
Sally Castleman
SallyC@ElectionDefenseAlliance.org
South Dakota votes to preserve women's rights
Posted by Deanna Zandt, Ann Friedman on November 7, 2006 at 8:33 PM.
Deanna:
By a 55-45 margin, South Dakotans struck down the abortion ban that left no exceptions for rape, incest or a woman's health. I'll refer to Jessica at Feministing to echo my more visceral emotions at the moment. Hurray!!
Ann:
I give the anti-choicers only a few days before they start pushing for a ban with rape and incest exceptions... which is, unfortunately, much more likely to be approved.
But for now, let's celebrate the fact that a direct challenge to Roe has been averted. This is good news.
Indy journalist slain in Mexico violence
Posted by Deanna Zandt on October 29, 2006 at 7:35 AM.
It was a horrific weekend in Oaxaca, Mexico. After months of teachers and other workers protesting against the conservative government of the state, and the country, pro-government forces cracked down on the protesters. Violence erupted, and people were shot and killed at the mercy of plainclothes para-military special forces removing a protest barricade.
Among those killed was American independent journalist William Bradley Roland, aka Brad Will, on location reporting for Indymedia. Also killed were striking schoolteacher Emilio Alfonso Fabian and Oaxaca resident Esteban Zurrita.
I knew Brad and was shocked to learn of his death via a front-page photo of his bleeding body in La Jornada. Here was a guy who believed so deeply in the power of making media, whose convictions drew him to struggles around the world for democracy and human rights, that they ultimately brought him his demise. Activist Ben Shepard had this to say:
"When I got the call [...], I knew exactly what had happened. [Brad] was always close. That's what made him an amazing activist. He lived on the cusp of history. He lived a historical life. And to be part of that history, he would take any risk. But he was not reckless. He was a caring, fun guy, who like most of us, was in it for the community, the history, and hopefully to get a little somethin' somethin'. And yet, while many such as myself, took a more comfortable route, he put himself at risk over and over and over. I know he was profoundly disturbed to see a woman burnt to death at a homeless encampment two years ago in Brazil. He lived history. Now he is part of it."
Yet the community that Brad ran with is turning his death into movements of activism, in an effort to bring to light the severity of the issues that Brad died reporting on in Oaxaca. A protest at the Mexican consulate in New York City has been organized for Monday morning at 9am (details and updates available on NYC Indymedia). Other cities are planning events here, and additional media activism plans are in the works. Those wishing to give donations supporting the movement in Oaxaca are being directed here.
Brad, you taught me how to walk with my videocamera and not mess up the picture, and your giant smile will be missed at gatherings and protests. Rest in peace; we are only comforted knowing that you were doing not only what you loved, but what you so deeply, deeply believed in.
UPDATE: A new site has been launched to serve as a clearinghouse for information and related actions around Brad's death and the ongoing situation in Oaxaca: Friends of Brad Will
Crossfire with Jeff Cohen and Robert Novak, January 1996: For Vengeance.
Posted by Deanna Zandt on September 19, 2006 at 12:00 AM.
Check out AlterNet's full interview with author and commentator Jeff Cohen: Cable News Confidential.
Novak: I don't know whether capital punishment is a deterrent. I don't much care -- what it is, it provides vengeance against some of these brutal killers, and maybe countries that don't provide this vengeance are just over-civilized.
Cohen: But, Bob, you're sounding like the ayatollahs of Iran. I think the death penalty is not a deterrent; it wastes money, because it costs more money to execute than it does to do life imprisonment. It's racist, it's immoral.
Novak: Vengeance! Do you deny vengeance?
Cohen: Yes, I am not for vengeance.
Novak: Wow.
Cohen: From the left, I'm Jeff Cohen. Good night from "Crossfire."
Novak: From the right, for vengeance, I'm Robert Novak. Join us again next time for another edition of "Crossfire."
Crossfire with Jeff Cohen and Robert Novak, February 1996: Feminist Weenies
Posted by Deanna Zandt on September 19, 2006 at 12:00 AM.
Check out AlterNet's full interview with author and commentator Jeff Cohen: Cable News Confidential.
Novak: Jeff Cohen, since men are voting Republican in rather substantial numbers, under the gender gap, against the things you believe in, do you think it'd be better if men were a little feminized? Became more feministic [sic]?
Cohen: Yes, I do in fact think it'd be good.
Novak: I thought you thought that.
Cohen: If men became ,ore feminist.
Novak: I said "feminine."
Cohen: I'm saying "feminist."
Novak: What's the difference?
Cohen: The difference is that feminist means you're a man who supports independent women and equality for women.
Novak: Kind of a weenie, weak-kneed, want the government to take care of them...
Cohen: There's nothing "weenie" about supporting strong women.
Novak: ... can't stand up for themselves...
Cohen: What I think is "weenie" are the men who are afraid of strong women.
Novak: How about the women like my wife who are pro-life, who believe in raising a family, who are appalled by these conventions of shrieking females.
Cohen: Feminists believe in raising a family. I've got a 4-year-old daughter, and I thank Patricia Ireland and Ellie Smeal and the feminist movement for opening all these doors for my daughter. From the left, I'm Jeff Cohen. Good night from "Crossfire."
Novak: From the right, I'm Robert Novak. Join us again next time for another edition of "Crossfire."
AOL exposes private info in the name of 'research'
Posted by Deanna Zandt on August 7, 2006 at 7:19 AM.
From the Department of "Oh No They Didn't" comes this report via Adam D'Angelo and SiliconBeat -- AOL decided to publish a research report last week in which they used 500,000 of its users as unwitting guinea pigs. They've collected the search terms used by randomly selected users between March and May of this year to use for its analysis. And even though the information collected has been "anonymized" to protect users (each person was given a unique number as a reference), Adam had this to say:
Among user 545605's searches are "shore hills park mays landing nj", "frank william sindoni md", "ceramic ashtrays", "transfer money to china", and "capital gains on sale of house"....I'm leaving out the worst of it - searches for names of specific people, addresses, telephone numbers, illegal drugs, and more. There is no question that law enforcement, employers, or friends could figure out who some of these people are...
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
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