Think Blogal Essay Weblog

The Swan Song

2006-07-29T01:01:00.001+00:00

Like others before us, and other that will follow, Think Blogal Essay Weblog has come to an end. We started out as a project set to comment on the world around us, from different perspectives motivated by our own standpoints. That was an objective as good (or bad) as any.

Think Blogal will not go offline for the moment. On the contrary, during the
months that this venture lastes, several very interesting texts were posted,
and they should be left online - eventually to become part of a growing
amount of cyber debris, but for the moment still a memory strong enough to
erase.

If you have any questions about this blog, contact Pedro Marcelino or Daiana Vasquez.

The Eternal Quest for English Proficiency by Angelo Meneses

2006-07-28T16:44:00.000+00:00

Mandarin is currently the most widely spoken language in the world. It was born in a country which is now a booming economy and which is getting more and more important in the international scene. Still, Mandarin is not a world class business language. English is. Probably due to the fact that China produces cheap and in a large number components and not (yet) have a word in the decision making. The future will tell the fate of Mandarin.

English is still today the language for business. By ways of its large empire, English started spreading as a trade language that came to develop even more with the American assertiveness in the world. Today, English is spoken in every corner of the world, being an official language in every continent. So everybody is learning it. Latin used to be the language of an entire world, French the language of the intellectuals and German the language of science, but nowadays English is asserting itself as a universal language. Does this happen because English is an easy language? Or just because it’s already everywhere? There would be many different answers to these questions that are, in fact, not at all relevant. English is the most common language online, the most common second language and everybody knows, at least, one word in the Queen’s language.

Japan has implemented a program – Japanese Exchange and Teaching program – some twenty years ago, in order to bring the business language into the education system. Obviously, English was already there, but there are many challenges in teaching and learning English in the land of the rising sun.

It’s widely known that Japanese people have a natural hard time learning English. Mainly because of the differences in the sounds and the syntax. For the first, the katakana makes it almost impossible for a native Japanese speaker to read English properly. Katakana is one of the four Japanese ways of writing (being Kanji, Hiragana and Romaji the others) and it’s used to write the imported foreign words, such as bus or bread (read as basu and pan, as this last word comes from Portuguese). Many times, the teachers translate the reading of English words into katakana in order to make it easier for the students to read. The problem is that Japanese language comprises syllable sounds and not single sounds as English. This is, except for the vowels and the sound of , Japanese uses syllable sounds, for example, for , and so on. With this, Japanese speakers are tempted to read English with the syllable sounds of their own language, creating words such as redo (actually, red), ando (for and), cuto (for cut), shidi (for CD), among others. It’s the well known Katakana English.

The second reason – the syntax – is even more complex. Japanese doesn’t have a definition for masculine or feminine (although English itself doesn’t make the distinction most of the times), as it doesn’t plural or articles. The latter being extremely difficult to explain to English language students, specially the difference between a and the. And it’s not only this. The basic structure for Japanese is SOV (Subejct, Object, Verb), while in English it’s SVO, which often leads to a change in word order. Nothing to worry about after a lot of practice, though.

This article is mainly about the learning of English in Japan. And Japan is really trying hard with the program already mentioned. It brings thousands of people (currently over 6000) to teach English in Japanese schools (from elementary to high school) in a team teaching system. And all this can only be good, as a simple “exposure” of Japanese students to a English speaking environment can work wonders. The problem is that, many times, that “exposure” is not fully used. As every other country, there is a system in Japan. Language learning is still pretty much based on memorizing, repeating and translating. And this is more than proved not to be the best way. Improvisation and adaptation are. Most part of the test consists of multiple choices, translation or fill in the blanks, not including answers to questions began with why or when or what, therefore imposing a limit on improvisation, adaptation and mere interpretation.

Another very interesting factor concerning language blending, is the natural correlation of languages, leading to word adaptation. In English, everybody knows what the word sushi refers to, still the word is borrowed with no changes at all from Japanese. As mentioned before, Japanese tends to borrow words from other languages, mainly English, adapting them to its syllabic system but also shoretnening them and sometimes changing the meaning. Examples are depatto for department store, post for mail, mansion for flat, among many others.

Interestingly enough, there is another very important factor conditioning the learning of proper English in Japan: the electronic dictionaries. They are really common in Japan, but nowadays, technology does not take into account the language pragmatics and from this gap to coining new meanings or misusing words in specific contexts it’s only a small step.

Language pragmatics (the real usage by real speakers in real contexts) is closely connected to the natural cultural differences between English and Japanese. Despite the natural cultural differences between European countries, for example, it is pretty easy to find equivalents for most of the words or expressions throughout Europe. This is much harder when referring to English and Japanese, Simple words such as genki have different meanings, varying from happy to energetic and asking genkidesuka will undoubtedly be answered with a yes or a no (although almost all the times it’s the first answer!), while in English asking How are you? Can lead to a plethora of answers. It’s the cultural heritage working on a language.

This same heritage can lead to awkward situations as the translation of itadakimasu (a thanking for the meal, but not in a religious tone as common as in the west) and the over use nice to meet you or enjoy. Just words directly transported from Japanese and conveniently and automaticly used in English regardless of their proper use. After all, an English native speaker does not say nice to meet you every time it sees somebody. But, in fact, the verb to meet can cause some confusion.

But Japan is doing the big effort of teaching English from elementary school (where there will be an official curriculum very soon) and bringing internationalization (a very trendy word in this part of the world) into the communities. The same cannot be said, for example, about the United Stated of America. After all, a regular North American student can go through the school system without learning a second language. And although English might be the common language everywhere, billions of people are not born speaking the language. Just check the employment adds. And many American workers will certainly be overtaken by people able to speak another language rather than English. Even in their own country.

It’s a Statistical Universe In My Pocket by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-04-02T10:58:00.000+00:00

Every year, cashing on a stats-obsessed world, The Economist publishes the Pocket World in Figures, a small booklet that every pundit-wanna-be can use as a favourite quoting source: China has the largest population; Niger has the fastest growing; etc. As usual, a note is made as to how unreliable statistics are, yada yada, how countries, say, like the US and Burkina Faso, collect data with… huh… let’s call them “different methods”, blah blah, how a limit must be set somewhere, and so only countries with more than 1 m. inhabitants or over 1 bn. US dollars GDP are considered. 182 of them. I am hardly the original creature that draws attentions to it, but here goes nothing: this is a highly questionable method. While The Economist‘s 2005 edition choses to open valid exceptions for Hong Kong and Macau – to name two – including them as statistical units albeit the fact that they are not actual countries, the above criteria leave behind places like the Cape Verde Republic and the Seychelles, both pointed out as the most successful nations in Africa for a long time. It leaves behind a score of Caribbean states, while including the figidy Cayman Islands or the very important Channel Islands. It includes Somalia and the Central African Republic, that surely supplied trustworthy statistic material, leaving behind Liechtenstein, Monaco or San Marino, all too insignificant to be considered and certainly with very unreliable institutions (Macau, oddly enough, is never too small).

The choices denote a sadly all too typical tendency to ignore anything that looks expendable, something Portuguese academic Políbio Valente once named “expendable States”. It denotes an utter, albeit polished, disrespect for any minor cultural unit struggling for its own identity in this ever flatter world. It is the selection of the big and powerful – at times uninformed and ridiculous, at times ethnocentric and revolting. Other than the ones already mentioned, were also missing: Saint Kitts & Nevis, Sao Tome and Principe, East Timor, Nauru, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Samoa, Djibouti, Belize, West Sahara – only those detected without an atlas.

Nonetheless, it always looks smart when a blogger drops a few interesting numbers in an article. Hence the decision to make this a tribute to statistics, by drawing your attention to some numeric oddities of 2005. Let the percentages begin.

Japan is the oldest country in the world. Over 50% of its population is older than 41.3 years. But in 2025, says the book, Italy will have taken its place, ranking first with an average of 50.5 years (as Italian girls search la dolce vita, not the dolce fare babies). In fact, the top 25 ranking is an European, all-white exclusive. My own country, Portugal, will be no. 15 in 2025, at 45.8 (which, I guess, includes me). All the youngest populations live in African states. Not only that, they also make the fastest growing countries. All but a small but resilient archipelago that fights on: the Cayman Islands. Could this be all babies, or would it have more to do with the immigration of the rich and beautiful?

The 50 biggest cities in the world all have more than 4 m. inhabitants. Most of them are in developing countries, many in China, Brazil and India. It is not worth mentioning which ones are the fastest growing cities, as most are virtually unknown. Well, Oporto is in, representing the developed countries with an astonishing 11.5% rate, ranking 28. Some countries show a bigger tendency to accumulate population in urban areas. There are the city-states like Singapore or Hong Kong, but also unexpected conurbations like Panama City (41% of the total population), Lisbon (40%), Yerevan (37.5%), Tel Aviv (32.8%) or Athens (29.4%). In Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Hong Kong and Singapore everyone lives in cities. That is one bizarre concept. Even scarier, all of these have well over 90% of urban residents: Guadeloupe, Macau, Belgium, Kuwait, Martinique, Qatar, Iceland, Bahrain, Andorra, Uruguay and Luxembourg. I wonder how do children learn about cows and corn and stars in those places.

The best cities to live in the world are measured against New York, of all places (=100). Oddly enough, they are all better: Zurich and Geneva, Vancouver, Vienna (all 106), Auckland, Bern, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Sydney (all 105), Amsterdam and Munich (both 104). For the record, here is the list of places not to live in: Baghdad, Bangui, Brazzaville, Pointe Noire, Khartoum, Sana’a, Ougadougou, Nouakchott, N’djamena, Luanda, Niamey, Antananarivo.

It is no novelty that Americans have a big purchasing power. The value, however, is not measured having in mind what one’s dollars buy while traveling, rather what your kwanzas buy in your corner store. Thus, Luxembourguese are the richest in the world, followed by Norwegian and American. Bermuda and Cayman Islands come next (surprise, surprise), and the top 10 includes Denmark, Ireland, Iceland, and Austria and Canada ex-aequo. Then come the oddities: Greenland is no. 34 (but what can you buy?), Brunei no. 39, Bahrain no. 48, and Equatorial Guinea is no. 70. That just blows me off. Turn into the quality of life page (human development index), however, and the alignment changes. Trinidad makes it to the top, like Belarus (hello??) and Lybia, as the only African country on the list (ahead of Cape Verde and the Seychelles, that would not be there anyway, as they were not worthy of the book). Rwanda closes the list, along with 20 other African nations.

Looking at economic growth, it is striking to find out where the Equatorial Guinean purchasing power came from: the country had the 4th biggest service growth in the last decade (after Bosnia, Georgia and Albania, all beacons of service quality in the world). For the matter, the top 10 still includes Ethiopia, Myanmar and Uganda. In short: if a country had virtually zero service and gets 100 new outlets, that is an increase of 1000%. Now do your maths.

In what regards foreign aid recipients, it is quite interesting to notice China in the 5th position, and even a rather proud country like Brazil in the top 50. Most recipients, though, are in Africa. China is actually one of the biggest donors to African nations as well, and it has been so for a few decades now. However, the Government does not disclose numbers, which raises the question: is it aid, or a poisoned present? The biggest Embassy in Cape Verde, for the matter, is not Portuguese, Brazilian or even American. It is – and by far – Chinese.

There is a funny group of charts concerning transport. Macau has the densest road network in the world, followed by Malta and Bahrain (!). Portugal comes 38, but it is no. 18 in the most used roads. The above mentioned countries are not on that list. The most nightmarish places to drive, by the way, are Hong Kong, the Emirates and Germany, where the number of cars largely outnumbers the driving areas… even if people have more cars in Lebanon, New Zealand, Brunei and Luxembourg than anywhere else (China, for instance… which proves that they’re not buying cars with the donated money). Stay off the roads in Rwanda, South Korea, Costa Rica, Kenya, India and even Portugal – where the most accidents happen. Above all, remember never to drive in Malawi, where more people die or are injured than anywhere in the world, in a proportion of 20:1 to the second on the list (India).

I guess that partially explains why are not India or Malawi on the life expectancy top places. Instead, we find Andorra, followed by Japan, Sweden, Hong Kong, Iceland and… the Cayman Islands (what miracle fell on the Cayman?). Could it be the number of telephones (84.9% of the population have one)? People in the Cayman phone more than anyone else, while Danish hear more music, Swiss are more on line, and Taiwanese spend a lot of time on their mobiles. Ukrainian teens watch more TV (over 20 hours a week, which makes me wonder when do they sleep or get some fresh air), Israeli drink more soft drinks and Americans are more obese. Greek kids are more on line than any others… followed by the Greenlandese! Maltese kids are always drunk, Canadian kids are always doped.

Speaking of drinks: Czech, the inventors of beer, have it aplenty, followed by other notorious drunks, the Irish and the German, and most western European countries – either beer is luxury or snobbery. The US come 11, and Canada comes 20 (no doubt, because beer is harder to buy than across the border). Wine, however, changes the ranks: Luxembourguese, French, Italian, Portuguese and Swiss give themselves to the pleasures of Bacchus by far more than others. With the exception of Uruguay, Australia and New Zealand, all the top drinkers are European. In terms of gross quantities, it is fair to assume that Luxembourguese are drunk quite often, as are Hungarian and Czech. Greek smoke more than anyone, and Japanese are not far behind (although they die later than others!).

Crime, in the form of serious assaults, is adrift in strange places: Australia (the sun?), Sweden (the snow?) and South Africa (bling bling?). In spite of that, only South Africa ranks the top 21 countries in number of prisoners (8th in the world) or even percentually (11th). The US have more prisoners, and in a bigger proportion than any other country: 701 per 100.000 people, against the 584 of Russia, 554 of Belarus… and 532 of Bermuda, 522 of Virgin Islands and 501 of Cayman Islands (it looks like not all is shiny in the kingdom of sun and sea).

Scandinavia and Canada are the most environmentally sustainable places, and even Costa Rica (9), Panama (17) and Brazil (20) make the cut. On the other end, Kuwait and the Emirates are an environmental time bomb, as are North Korea, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Haiti and Ukraine. The healthiest cities in the world are Calgary, Honolulu, Helsinki, Ottawa, Minneapolis, Oslo and Stockholm.

Now, if the Cayman are not healthier, and if the risk of going to jail is higher, why in the world are so many people going there? Laundry? (Pun intended).

A Matter Of Feelings by Arnild Van de Velde

2006-03-26T23:30:00.000+00:00

Dana Reeve (1962-2006), the loving wife of movie star Christopher Reeve (1952-2004), the "Superman", died on March 6th, of lung cancer, seven months after the public announcement of her illness. Dana, who never smoked, was also into acting. If not for one of her TV movies ("Law & Order"), or her work as a producer, she will be remembered for her dedication to husband Christopher during his nine-year fight for recovery from tetraplegic condition, after falling from a horse in 1995. With her pretty smile, she was the one supporting him and his faith in a long hoped but never experienced healing, as Reeve would die on October 2004 with a heart attack.

Like the unexpected - and also not welcome - guest, cancer reveals its presence without any previous sign. Differently from other diseases, it doesn´t show any noticeable symptoms until it challenges life with its tricky possession of tissues. No matter what kind – breast, bone or blood, to name three within a hundred – cancer is surrounded by an aura of ending times. It puts the average person in a confrontation with faith and hope, meaningless values when the heart is just breaking.

Not long ago, the disease seemed mainly to affect the elderly. Recently, the number of young people facing cancer is increasing. Dana Reeve was just 44. Breast cancer killed Linda McCartney, the wife of ex-Beetle Sir Paul McCartney, at age 56 (in 1998) and brought singers Anastasia and Kylie Minogue to
chemotherapy, on their early thirties. Despite the progresses in Medicine, or promisses of healing if discovered prematurely, cancer remains a threat, felt at every control check. "Those visits to my doctor thrill me", says K.C., a 29-year-old woman who developed an agressive type of breast cancer right after the death of her father, who also had the disease. Two years ago, one day before her 27th birthday, K.C lost her left breast; now she is dealing with its so-called "reconstruction". Trying to keep her head up, she appealed to religious faith and alternative methods to understand her fate. K.C believes she has "programmed" her own cancer, in order to show compassion for her father´s destiny. In her mind, while she keeps trying to "delete the file", she dreams of a future with a husband and some children.

It is exactly at revealing the uncertainty of a presumable future that cancer shocks the most. In fact, making plans when being ill awakes general consternation. Cancer patients sound to us - the healthy - like little children describing their expectations about Santa Claus´ visit: so innocent and so mad at the same time. Ironic for some, but wise for others, the disease seems to act as "mediator" between us and our feelings. No matter how we are - directly or indirectly - affected by it, cancer forces us to compassion, even if only for ourselves.

Noralis, a venezuelan healer I met few years ago, used to live wild and fast until cancer knocked at her door. Cancer, she told me, is like a child we carry; but instead of giving it to the world, we keep it to ourselves. It would be necessary to look deeply into our souls to find the real reason for cancer, she said. Modern treatment and frequent information though cannot be put aside, despite the increasing tendency to admit that cancer is caused by factors beyond genetics, environmental changes or bad personal habits (like smoking) as suggested by a
holistic approach to the theme.

Dana Reeve deserves all my respect, but she wasn´t really my inspiration for all this. A beloved friend, who is bravely facing the challenge of defeating cancer, withdrawed me from a world devastated by wars, bombings, kidnappings and all sorts of disgrace, including celebrities and their vain existence. Mother of four, she developed breath cancer, which metastased to lung cancer; she feels too weak for a new chemotherapy, but strong enough to come and visit me during the next european summer.

That is what really matters.

Love versus Reality by Dirk Salowsky

2006-03-22T12:43:00.000+00:00

Forbidden love is a very productive topic of literature. Only recently it has once again startled minds after the award winning Brokeback Mountain was put on screen. It tells the story of two cowboys from the North American Midwest who secretly pursue a romantic relationship over 20 years, beginning in the 1960s. The combination of the terms “gay” and “love” are a reliable scare to conservative minds already. Stories of happily married or engaged men leading a secret second, homosexual life, undermine the upright, impeccable image of marriage and family.

Brokeback Mountain was not a first-timer as far as the aspect of sexually deviant double lives is concerned. Examples are “Making Love” (USA, 1982) or “No se lo digas a nadie” (“Don’t tell anyone”, Peru, 1998). Peru was outraged by this film that shows young Joaquín (Santiago Magill) growing up in Lima’s upper class, trying to come to terms with his homosexuality in the utterly homophobic environment of a deeply catholic country. Culturally accepted values of heterosexual machismo make it even harder – and even more dangerous – to deviate from the norm, which is why at some point he ends up with a girlfriend. But also Joaquín finds a mate, Gonzalo (Christian Meyer Zender), who is the fiancé of his girlfriend’s best friend. Unlike the two cowboys, neither of them admit their love for each other. When Joaquín raises the topic of a relationship between the two after one further occasion sharing a bed, Gonzalo rejects the idea by stating that he is not gay. While at an early point of Brokeback Mountain both lovers utter the same lie, they later consciously abide by their love for each other. This very point, however, makes an interesting difference.

In “No se lo digas a nadie” Joaquín actually tries to force Gonzalo into a relationship by revealing their secret meetings and his real love to the girlfriends. He is taken for a lunatic and is only able to return to a normal life when he abandons the taboo of living as an overt homosexual and returns to live with his former girlfriend. He even meets Gonzalo on his wedding day, and only after reassuring him that his former plan of being gay was nothing but a foolish idea, Gonzalo offers to meet him again for regular sex. A Peruvian friend told me that for gay men in her country, this way of life in self-denial is a common solution. More than that, it seems to be an indisputable social norm. Sad but true, this means that “what must not exist, does not exist”. In such a context, who will dare talk of love between two people of the same sex?

Brokeback Mountain does talk about it – it is subtitled: “Love is a force of nature”. I smiled when I watched the movie and thought to myself: “So, why would a married guy drive hundreds of miles to see that one other guy if it was just about giving in to a ‘perverse sexual urge’ that can be satisfied way more easily?” And indeed, stating that homosexuals can and do really love their partners and not only select them to satisfy their ‘by-whatever-caused sexual drive’ still seems very significant. One has to keep in mind the country of origin and its cultural mindsets. Love is normal, love is natural, love is sane. Granting the ability to love makes it very hard to define homosexuality by merely sexual aspects and thus declare it a choice, a defect or a sin. It makes it hard – but not impossible.

As for cultural mindsets: Heath Ledger, leading actor of this film, was very busy telling everybody that he was happy thanks to his wife and their baby when he met reporters on the red carpet on the night of this year’s Academy Awards. He probably anticipated another round of being asked whether he was at least a bit gay or not. It was a shame, for he easily could have answered: “And what difference would that make for the movie?” or something to the same effect. At least Ang Lee, award-winning director, repeated the message his film tried to transmit by talking about the “miracle of love itself”. In the United States that message has actually reached some, while others still have to get over that romantic kiss by two men. There are many roads still to be walked down.

Needless to say that many other countries in this world won’t see a homosexual alive for long, and lives are rather taken than love granted. Reality is never where it should be, it is where you are.

The Great Dragon Is Not Idle Anymore by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-03-13T22:31:00.000+00:00

When, early in the month of January 2006, the Chinese Government announced the results of its trade reports for the previous year, not many people took it seriously. China’s lack of transparency now starts to upset western governments that can neither waive the country’s huge importing potential, nor live without many products – both raw and manufactured – that China supplies in huge amounts and low prices. In spite of that, many major commercial nations have begun low-profile talks with the People’s Republic, in an effort to curb an underlying anti-Chinese feeling in many of them.

China’s economic opening to the world did not occur massively until Hong Kong had been returned in 1997, and the two-year period between then and the date of Macao’s return (1999) had been used as a test. Chinese officials realised that the bet on “one country, two systems” had been the right one, at the right time. Reforms in selected parts of the mainland (mostly the Southeast) accelerated to full steam, and all the industrial sectors were propelled, aiming at international markets as a coveted goal. If China’s master plan goes ahead, Formosa Island will eventually join this effort as one of the crown jewels.

Although a big chunk of the world (namely Africa) had for long been receiving significant commercial and ideological support from China (as well as direct aid), it was not until the West felt that influence that the first reactions came. Shy, initially, but quite bolder in recent times. In mid-2004, the European Union, traditionally a protectionist economic group, stirred the waters with a blockade to the excessive textile products from China harbouring its coasts. For over a week, top level meetings took place. Eventually, Europe “saved face”, but China indeed won, stubbornly enforcing the position that ensured textiles were neither returned nor destroyed. For some reason, it seems to be one of the few nations that can almost always get away with permanently saying “no”.

Large areas of the country are now in full-fledged economic growth, and the Chinese were finally allowed to discover the positive aspects of capitalism (such as choice of produce). However, industrial efforts are nowadays more complex than in the times of the English Industrial Revolution. The dimensions of one and the other are not comparable, as Chinese industrialization implies massive consumption of fossil fuels and other raw materials that China does not own in big enough amounts. Anticipating energy crises in the middle of this century, Chinese officials invested ahead of their needs.

Discreetly, Chinese companies (both private and State-owned) started to probe resource-rich countries and regions, paying significant amounts to achieve strategic positions in energy and raw material companies throughout the world – such as gas or copper corporations. In locations where this capital is a major need, deals came cheap. But in countries with their own strategic views, the first signs of an anti-China reaction were observed. This was the case of Canada, when a major Chinese corporation tried to acquire a majoritary position in a big oil firm based in the Province of Alberta (the Canadian Texas). Many sectors of the Canadian business and political communities showed concerns that this would open a dangerous precedent, and that Canada would be selling itself cheap. Despite Chinese attempts for reassurance, looking at the enormous amounts of fuel consumption in current day China, it is quite likely that a major strategic operation is underway. An atmosphere of suspicion is set.

Simultaneously, Chinese emigrants have established and are establishing themselves evenly throughout the world, in the most unlikely places. They can today be found in the most out-of-the-way African city, as they can be found in the centre of any major European metropolis, although the type of activity differs greatly. In many parts of Africa, Chinese stores came (not always without conflict) to replace Lebanese, Indian and sometimes Ukrainian monopolies, and filled in an important gap: they provided impoverished communities with the possibility of buying cheap, short-lived goods for daily use. The same products do not enjoy an equally successful reception in Europe or North America, which already prompted a more sophisticated, market-specific response by Chinese industry leaders (e.g., 5000 € cars are soon to be made available to the European market). In any case, these emigrant communities create a privileged channel for imports straight from Chinese manufacturers, ignoring established commercial networks in host countries.

Hence, when the Government announced the 2005 results, it came as no surprise that China had a major joint surplus, even after deficits with energy-producing nations had been discounted. In fact, the mere announcement of the results drew attentions. The Chinese surplus rounds 101.9 billion US dollars… officially. Many economic observers, however, defend these numbers as unrealistic, when compared to the ensemble of reports from other nations. According to the American report, for instance, China’s surplus reaches 200 billion with the US alone. Adding the Japanese and European results, it swells up to 600. China is exporting massively, while its home market is reasonably self-sufficient, and the desire for foreign produce limited to specific items and strictly controlled. The country has been given warnings by all major players, including the IMF and the WTO, that it should put a brake on its own growth, to prevent more negative reactions from trade partners. In response, the Government slowed down investments in major infrastructures, but that does not seem to make the cut just yet.

Already in the US there are talks of a China-specific law that would impose a fat 27% tax on any Chinese imports. The bill, supported by trade hardliners such as Montana Democrat Senator Max Baucus and New York’s Senator Charles Schumer, could freeze trade relations overnight. George W. Bush, however, seems unwilling to play this heavy card so early in the game. China represents not only a major threat, but also a major opportunity. And it also represents a major player in the international scene, a force to be reckoned with (and that is increasingly proactive in showing it), and for the matter, one that will not easily be bullied.

Nonetheless, warnings that China should top up the value of the yuan (artificially kept in low levels, to foster exports) have found some reaction: the Chinese Government announced an appreciation… of 0.04 cents, i.e. close to nothing. Dollars keep flowing in, and American products staying out. Simultaneously, innuendos were created that China would soon be selling dollar reserves, and swapping them for euros, yens and gold, in an attempt to diversify the reserves, and become less dependent on the US.

Traditionally, nations such as US, France, Portugal or Germany stand on gold reserves as a secure investment (for all the above, gold reserves represent over 50% of national reserves). Other developed countries (such as Canada), chose currency instead, and limit gold ownership to less than 1%. China’s reserves consist of only 1.1% of gold. The announcement that the Chinese Central Bank could be buying big amounts of the valuable metal greatly appreciated its value in the international markets, pleasing gold-rich countries – Portugal, Switzerland, Italy and a few others. The Chinese diversification comes as a defense against bolder American protectionist laws, and it is not likely that the mentioned cash-strapped countries react against it, initially, when their governments struggle to keep budgets stable. But only time will tell if the United States are (once again) over-reacting, or if Europe is distracted.

The Pecking Order Paradigm by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-03-10T14:04:00.000+00:00

Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Walking down the wide streets of the post-war city, the choice of restaurants is appealing: from Italian to Indonesian, from Surinamese to Malayan, from Caribbean to Indian. The atmosphere is sophisticated, with Dutch as well as tourists enjoying exotic meals served in exotic-looking locations and served by exotic faces – just as they would in Latin America or in Southeast Asia.

London, England

Were it not for the architecture and the drizzle, the scene could well be anywhere in the Indian subcontinent. In Banglatown, a mix-mash of Bangladeshi, Iranian, Indian, Afghani and Pakistani restaurants and stores, but heavily influenced by a dominating Bangladeshi community, the sweet scents of spices dwell in the air, doormen invite passers-by into restaurants every second step. Further away, in Chinatown, shop windows exhibit menus in Chinese characters, others show unidentifiable animal corpses that will make it to someone’s plate. Long gone are the times of pie & mash, sausage & mash or fish & chips. Those are the rarities of the day. From the dull reputation of the 80’s, London became – almost overnight – the European capital of haute-cuisine, a place where the best of every world is assembled to created something new. It is not uncommon to find Brazilian chefs cooking Italian, or Srilankans cooking cajun.

Lille, France

A group of top-tier French chefs boards and airplane, on their way to Japan. They will be attending workshops with reputed Nipponic chefs whose techniques have gathered respect in the West of late. Proud French cuisine surrenders to changing times.

Lisbon, Portugal

Local fast food sides with high street Subways and Burger Kings. Dining out, however, might mean eating Moroccan or Spanish, Ukrainian or Brazilian, Mozambican or Capeverdean. Supermarkets’ fruit and vegetable departments are packed with produce from the five corners of the globe – vegetables with strange sounding names, fruits with odd shapes.

Hamburg, Germany

In the city center, Bratwurst or Currywurst with fries are not easy to find, and actually lie just short of anachronistic. Alongside American(ized) franchises, small Middle-Eastern bistros disseminate the intense smells of Lebanese or Turkish food – Lamacun pizza and Döner Kebab now listed as German delicacies.

Toronto, Canada

A recipe in Wagamama’s cook book requires mirin sauce and a couple other uncanny ingredients. Bruno’s Fine Foods is likely to have them all, and although the shop assistant has not heard of many of the things in the list, she risks pointing out a section. There it is, among dozens of other unidentifiable sauces from every continent. Shelf after shelf, Bruno’s supplies the most uncommon requests of the savviest, most demanding customers in North America. Toronto is considered (along New York and Sao Paulo) the gastronomic capital of the world. With over a hundred signficant minorities living in the city, fresh produce arrives daily from anywhere in the world to supply both their needs and those of restaurant-cultured Torontonians. Karnail, the Sikh check-out operator, comments: «when I arrived in Canada, the thing that surprised me the most was food. Food everywhere, all sorts of food I had never heard of. In India, there was barely enough to eat. Rich countries can pay, they can have any food they want, from anywhere in the world. It’s so different.»

Anywhere in Africa, 2006

Step into any regular African grocery store where the majority of the population gets supplies. The shelves are typically half full (or half empty, depending on the perspective), eggs are sold by the unit, as are oranges or carrots. Quite often, some of these items won’t even be easy to find. Availability oscillates greatly, and shortages are not at all uncommon. Rice, manioc, beans, yam or sweet potatoes might be easier. Imported goods are rare and expensive. Produced in Europe, in Brazil or Mexico, in China or in South Africa, they specifically target the African and Middle Eastern markets. Packaging is done accordingly, Arabic alongside English, French or Portuguese. Butter or oil are usually sold in tin cans, the Arabic wording making it hard to realise that it is produced in Holland. In some cases, local industries were overwhelmed by foreign giants. In West Africa, the guava paste industry went almost but bankrupt when Brazil started flooding the region with its super-production, cheaper despite the transport. Cans read “made in Brazil” in a discrete spot. The label shows the local flag crossed with the Brazilian green-yellow. Albeit being produced locally, sugar is valuable as a trading good, and is often more expensive than in rich countries. There are not, needless to say, international cuisine restaurants. In many cities, actually, there are no restaurants at all.

Within only a few decades, people in resourceful countries have grown used to variety and experimentation. Their vocabularies have increased with tropical nouns. In the Third World, large proportions of the best arable soils are used to grow low-rentability / hig-value produce, that can be sold in Europe, Japan or the US. Most of the world’s population, however, survives on roughly 100 different plants (rice and corn top the list), whose genetic codes have been losing quality. Cross-breed crops threaten the sustainability of the species that feed billions of people, yet genetically modified food is presented by interested corporations as the solutions for hunger.

According to different studies, the world could produce enough food for all of its inhabitants, if only the crop and supplies were evenly distributed. Some companies, such as Néstlé, take these markets seriously. The company has been accused of everything, from tampering with food quality that is destined to African markets, to abusing UN programmes with self-promotion rather than humanitarian objectives.

In a recent award-winning documentary, Darwin’s Nightmare, Europeans, Japanese and American are faced with the ugliest face of food globalization: every single day, empty airplanes flay to Lake Victoria and are pack full with fish sold expensive at home. Local communities are literally left to dwell in rottening piles of skin and fishbones.

Never as today has the world economy afflicted diets to such an extent. In the North for the better, with increased variety. But this variety is not accompanied by a due understanding of what that means in the South.

While a relaxed Saturday cook off in Philadelphia could consist of Danish herring and curry salad, Japanese tuna and beef carpaccio with Chilean wine and Costarican coffee, in other latitudes a family of ten will most likely share a small pot or rice and beans (if there are any beans).

It is after all, the law of nature, the law of the strongest. Bigger birds are higher on the pecking order, hence eating first and getting the nicer chunks. Smaller birds get the crumbs. But perhaps nature got it all wrong, perhaps it needs some fine tunning. Being aware isn’t but the first step.

Something Snuffy in the World by Pedro F Marcelino and Ana Maria Marcelino

2006-03-07T00:53:00.000+00:00

It was a normal night for me: one of insomnia. Sitting in front of my desk at 3 am, I finally deemed it necessary to close my laptop and force myself into bed. One hour later, still awake, I got up, sheepishly walked to the couch, turned the TV on and zapped away. Karla Homolka had been released from jail only a few weeks before, and that is perhaps why, in a show of sheer bad taste, one of the cable channels was showing this movie. I should have turned the television set off, or else zapped away, but I did not. In an act of typically human morbid curiosity, I watched scene after scene and could not believe my eyes, or my own thoughts for the matter. In front of me, supposedly, was a snuff film .

Let us make clear though, at this stage, that it was not a snuff film, and that I do not recall the title (thankfully). In innocent naïveté, snuff was totally unbeknown to me. So there I was, staring at the screen, scared that it might actually be true, that human minds could actually come up with something so horrible, so sordid, so cruel.

A snuff film, as defined in Wikipedia.com (which is only as reliable as you deem it), “is a film, sometimes pornographic, that allegedly depicts actual murder, produced for entertainment purposes.” Put this way, if you are one reader who ignored this social phenomenon as I did back then, you are now probably shocked.

Despite the late hour, after the movie was over I felt the need to sit down and search the web for explanations. There were thousands of them, and it is not easy to make sense of so much contradictory information. It appears to be that snuff is one of those above-the-average urban legends, that clanged to the western social tissue. Every time someone writes about it, the snowball grows bigger, wider, denser. So, should I even be writing this article? In fact, I have had it on file ever since, in the depths of all my most obscure web searches. Perhaps to redeem myself of some guilt, I invited my sister to contribute to this review with pathological approach. Perhaps it will finally result in something that makes sense of it all. The existence of snuff films is dubious. Skeptics relegate them to the realms of urban legend or moral panic. On the web, thousands of people will claim they exist. Yet, no one has seen one. Well, actually, a few weirdos claim to have seen actual footage of murder – but you will equally find others claiming the same footage is fake. Truth is, with legend so tightly interwoven with reality, and a certain conspiracy theory out there, it is difficult for any rational human being to swear that snuff movies do not exist. It is not unconceivable that something like the snuff film ring does not exist. Yes, snuff, some claim, must include profit, i.e., raping/murdering someone on tape, with the clear purpose of selling it to a few selected sickos. Well, what with the number of international pedophilia networks cracked on, with children kidnapped and raped on camera, it cannot be hard to believe some human beings would go the extra mile (it is ghastly that I use the term human). Other people claim that, if they exist at all, the mere act of a serial killer putting such a thing on tape, regardless of his reasons, would be snuff. As Mitch Walrath once wrote: If snuff films aren’t real, we might never know the limits of the human mind. Even if they are real, we might never know.

Which brings us back to Karla Homolka. Together with her partner, Paul Bernardo, she kidnapped and used as sex slaves two teenage girls, only to do the same to her own younger sister later on. All were murdered. Homolka videotaped Bernardo raping the girls at knife point, while strapped and blindfolded, and urinating and defecating in one of them (which sends us back to Pier Paolo Pasolini, although not even him could have come up with snuff bizarries). The actual murders were not videotaped, despite the claims of some sensationalist press. In court, however, this disturbing footage was not shown (only audio). Bernardo was convicted to life in prison, whereas Homolka got 12 years in 1993. Amidst a movement of protest in Ontario, she is now living somewhere secret in Quebec, away from the media circus, but close to someone else’s children.

In 1989, the FBI arrested two men in Virginia, after they advertised on a message board their desire to kidnap a young boy (any boy), molest him and murder him, thus creating an actual pornographic snuff film (for sale). Although they have not actually committed a crime, and claimed they would not, both were convicted to over 30 years in jail. So, although the authorities reject that snuff exists, there are things out there, suggesting it otherwise. Maybe it is not the big wicked organization of the legends (as portrayed most recently in 8 mm with Nicholas Cage, Joaquin Phoenix and James Gandolfini), but I would not overrule it altogether.

In Italy, twice were paedophilia networks found, the last of which with international connections – in particular to Russia - where the ghost of snuff loomed over the investigation. With no evidence. In Germany, very recently, a man announced on a sexual web forum that he was searching someone who would eat him – literally. His perversion not much stranger than anyone else’s, it was shocking, however, that he found the man to do it (no video available). It is a global phenomenon, albeit not proved, with clear roots in developed countries and the socio-cultural vacuum that appeared in some of them.

Proved snuff does exist, however, with animals. As recently as 1998, Scottish police officers arrested a man who was distributing movies with women killing small animals such as frogs or mice. Wearing close to nothing, they would crush the animals under their high heels. British authorities admit such movies are available. As far as I am concerned, this is bad enough, and it is quite scary to think that someone actually pays to watch such a miserable show. Having said that, a famous “snuff” film, Cannibal Holocaust, was proved fake, with the exception of the animals, in fact killed on screen in a bloody manner. The movie is forbidden in many countries.

In fact, the legend lives mostly on implication, inference and innuendo . Hear-say, now made easier by the Internet, seems to be how the legend spreads. Regardless of any announcements that snuff does not exist and that not a single movie was found in over 30 years, collective panic is set, and suburban ecstasy seekers refuse simply to believe that version. The authorities, however, are vague. In L.A., actor and director Charlie Sheen once denounced one movie that got to his hands, and that he truly believed to be actual snuff. Flower of Flesh and Blood, of the Guinea Pig series, later proved to be another fake. Al Goldstein, owner of Screw Magazine, has offered $1 million to the person who comes up with a snuff film made for profit. No one has claimed the prize – in fact, should anyone find such film, would it actually be legal, let alone moral, to claim it? Or should the finder alert the police immediately?

Transformed in group hysteria, the snuff hoax keeps bringing money (and certainly inspired the philosophy of Blair Witch Project and other make-believe movies), amidst the media hype that grows in cycles. Truth be said, the whole cult probably started with the movie Snuff, released in 1975. Most likely, it all started then… in fiction. Although fiction based on true facts. Then it gets confuse, and the profusion of crossed references works like a Chinese box. It is hard, if not impossible, to know what started what.

On the web, discussion forums run wild. A selection:

“Who cares if it’s real or not? Snuff films are meant to be disturbing if they’re real or not! Most of the time they’re fake, but occasionally some are real, these are really rare cases though.” (here is someone who knows them, but has not called the police).

“Right, will someone help me out here? I’m 16 years old and I want to know what goes on the world. I just don't get it. WHY would you want to own a video of an innocent person being tortured and then killed? That HAS to be a stage worse than paedophilia, it must be. People must be criminally INSANE!? Why are these sites not publicized at shut down? It’s sick and wrong. Can someone tell me what is going on please?” (the confused teen).

“Lots of people visit this page. Hopefully some of them are capable of forming sane judgments.” (the sceptical).

I do not know what to believe. I know for a fact that there is a lot of evil out there, and some types normal people can’t even conceive. And that it is sick that such movies are searched on the web, and that close enough images are available on the web, starting with official decapitations, such as David Pearl’s and Kim-Il Sung’s (that do not qualify as snuff). Recently, rumours of a snuff circle in South East Asia, with connections to affluent countries such as Japan, US and Europe started to swarm the cyberspace. Likely, more smoke, no fire. It is hard to accept snuff is real. Yet, it is not unconceivable: the human kind as a group, and the worse individuals among it, have created far worse things in centuries of real history.

Summed up, one site I read said: “Fear of a thriving snuff film industry is what drives this popular myth. As a society, we're not all that concerned with the concept of serial killers walking among us, killing here and there. Clearly, they won't come after us. (…) However, we do fear the notion of a "murder as a business" set-up because that takes the slavering maniac right out of the picture and in his place substitutes the Reasonable Man Out To Make a Buck. Victims of such a scheme could be undeserving (innocent) -- this could happen to us! And it is on the back of this fear belief in the myth rides in on. We fear not the killers among us, but the businessmen.”

An analysis of this phenomenon should however still take into account two perspectives, respectively related to those who produce and take part in the films, and to those who watch and purchase them:

When thinking about snuff films, the first question that comes to mind is whether it is possible they are real. But perhaps we are not posing the right question: is the mind involved on the making of these films a “normal” mind? The answer may not be definitive, as there aren’t concrete enough studies to support any thesis. It would be possible to point out a few characteristics that suggest psychopathy, such as the quest for total control by subduing the other, or by inflicting pain to the limit. Or we could rave about sadistic sexual perversions that associate the enjoyment of sexual pleasure to suffering, cruelty and humiliation. One way or another, there seems to be a deviating behaviour that allows the enjoyment of pleasure or the seizing of benefits through extreme violence. The largest of these benefits could be the recognition, within restricted circles, and a reasonable fame that creates a slice of world for someone who was always unable to live up to the standards demanded by society. If the film is recognized, and because “fame” is addcitive, the logical next step would be to create new snuffs, more extreme, more intense, ever more violent, disturbing and ambiguous, hence furthering the perpetuation of this urban legend. The legend does not live from reality, but from the constructions that individuals make of it. Likewise, the “stage directors” of these plays feed on their own beliefs, and those of others, on this film style and on the social consequences that it could permit. What’s more, they are moved by the pleasure of violence proper, of staging or of perpetration of the crime by this character that they will never be in real life. If something absolutely condemnable is done, they may actually obtain some of the attention and visibility missing in their lives.

But one question remains: where is the limit? If human aggressivity can be increased by visual violence, would it be the one detail that conducts to the extreme point of wanting to do or see “the real thing”? When does the desire for entertainment ceasses to make place for the yearning for pure, realistic violence?

In fact, individuals that feel impotent in face of events on their lives, or marginalized by society are more easily seduced by this genre that offers a wider perception of control. Also violent individuals tend to appreciate violent films that further or justify their acts. The obsession with violence can reach the point of wanting to see someone actually being murdered in a barbaric manner. This morbid curiosity on its own cannot justify the acquisition and continuous visualization of this type of material – people accommodate to this style and no longer want to get loose, needing increasing doses of violence to obtain the shock and the emotion of pleasure...one sreen away…

I am not certain that snuff films can be associated with a deviation on morality or in the social behaviour patterns. What is a deviation in one context is normality in another. One thing I am certain of: we want more and we show more that that we least have – power, control, security, tranquility … And the means we use are at times distorted and even destructive, evidencing our strategies of adaptation as human beings.

In an article of 1999, Anne P. Dupre wrote: We may be enticed by violence on film because we are so afraid of it in life. We can sit in a theater, enjoy the violent scene on the screen from a distance, and then go home – we hope – to safety.

And the Oscar goes to… by Daiana Vasquez

2006-03-04T10:30:00.000+00:00

[Warning: this film review contains spoilers]

Tomorrow night the cinema world and the movie fans will be anxiously holding their breaths to finally know which of the films nominated for the best motion picture of the year will receive the desired statue. The competing films are: Brokeback Mountain, Capote, Crash, Good Night, and Good Luck, and Munich. What do they all have in common? The quality of their story – at least in the opinion of the jury.

On the other hand, it is a pity that there is no Oscar for the worst motion picture of the year, because some films just deserve it as well as the fans definitely deserve knowing which films they should better not waste their time and money on. Maybe the Oscar organizers should have allowed the very Oscar living on Sesame Street to hand over this special award at the end of the ceremony.

The worst motion picture of my choice would be a production of Imagine Entertainment, directed by Dean Parisot and released on the 21^st of December last year. It is a remake of a 1977 film with George Segal and Jane Fonda and at that time directed by Ted Kotcheff. I am still asking myself why such a story could ever be considered to be remade…

Fun with Dick and Jane is definitely misnamed. I would rather vote for Embarrassment with Dick and Jane. The film is arguable with a flaw story, bad acting and even worst message, to say the least: Dick (Jim Carrey) and Jane Harper (Tia Leoni) are a “lovely” couple living the American dream of “success” when their life suddenly and without warning turns into a nightmare: unemployment. The film presents this issue as if millions of people in this world had never experienced that. And even more astonishing is the solution they “propose”.

Dick works at Globodyne, a leading group in the consolidation of media properties. Jane is a travel agent, who is definitely tired of being yelled at on the phone by unsatisfied clients. After being promoted to vice president of communications of his company, Dick encourages his wife to resign. This is what she does, certainly to spend more time with their child, a boy fluent in Spanish rather than English, because of his Latin-American nanny, Blanca (Gloria Garayua), who is practically assuming the post of his mother. But their idea of an “even more successful life” goes offroad when Globodyne becomes involved in a scandal and goes bankrupt, because of illegal activities of his big boss, Jack McCallister (Alec Baldwin): he lets the ship sink and bags 400 million dollars on profits. And Dick, who could not enjoy even a single day of being vice president, is now unemployed. So is his wife.

They try “hard” to find a job, taking rather bizarre approaches towards the problem that are neither realistic nor funny. Dick begins working as a greeter at a warehouse, but he simply “does not fit”, probably because such a job is not suitable for an ex-vice president, and neither does Jane who starts as an aerobics instructor, a job which the film tries to sell as pathetic.

After these and some other frustrated attempts to obtain a job, they cannot pay their bills and are reduced to penury. This unsuccessful job search is setting the stage for Dick ingenious master plan, coming out of pure desperation, and certainly because there was nothing else he could have done instead: robbery in order to pay the mortgage for their house and to regain the upper-class lifestyle of his family. But hey, they are decent people, it is not their fault if the system does not give them a chance! And Dick specifically provides us and his wife with this justification for pursuing a criminal “career”.

What comes next is far from hilarious. The couple has no scruples. For instance, in one scene, Dick makes fun of one of their victims, dancing and grimacing (the only thing Jim Carrey seems to be able to do – and this is called acting) in front of the tied up man, and even torturing him by making him wear a dog-collar that discharges an electric shock when he yells (inspired by Abu Ghraib?). This certainly happens when the poor man tries to call for help. Is this the moment when we are supposed to laugh?

The most important thing however, is that they finally regain their lives, their goals are achieved. They obtain with the robbery actually much more than what they had before and are again surrounded by “old friends”. Even their sexual life is back –this parallel of criminal and luxurious life with a good sex life is even more disgusting.

And the story is not over yet. They go for revenge helped by one of the men involved in the frauds in the company, a man who is now poor, unemployed and alcoholic. Using their newly-discovered talent, Dick and Jane, the new advocates of moral, cheat on Dick’s former boss at Globodyne: in what is for the innocent victims sitting in their cinema chairs supposed to look like a Robin Hood act they distribute his money among the ex-employees of the company. The whole thing is carried out to look like a donation from Jack. The good guys (Dick, Jane and the alcoholic) do their good deed of the day and do not even want to take the credit for that!

If the whole film was supposed to do a spoof of life during economic apathy, it has unfortunately miscarried. It cannot be a satire if in the end the criminals are rewarded as heroes, saving thousands of lives. The only irony we might smile at is in the end when thankful cheers go to Enron and likewise companies for the inspiration.

And the trash bin Oscar goes to: Fun with Dick and Jane!

Wired Favela by Andrea Medrado

2006-03-02T21:23:00.000+00:00

Friday, May 7th, 2004. TV ROC’s team receives the daily agenda. The highlight is the inauguration of a small school, whose name is Brisa Rio. We’re talking about a garage that has been recently transformed into a school. It is located in front of a little soccer turf that is surrounded by trash, in Dionéia, one of Favela da Rocinha’s neediest areas. Around 20 kids of various ages and the teacher, Vivian, who looks much younger than her 21 years, are anxious to become protagonists of a TV story.

In the meantime, in Estrada da Gávea, an area known by its residents as the “asphalt border”, the reporter Paula Gomes folds a little piece of paper with a handwritten story and slides it into her pocket. To go to Dionéia, Paula hops on a “mototaxi”, a very popular transportation in Rocinha, consisting of a motorcycle used as cab. Another “mototaxi” takes Josivaldo, the editor, who doubles as camera operator. Going up the steep hills and narrow alleys of the favela on a “mototaxi” challenges the laws of gravity but what’s really scary is the bus drivers’ “get-out-of-my-way-cause-I’m-bigger-than-you” driving style.

Cable TV for everyone

In the telecommunications industry, just like buses do with motorcycles, the big and powerful push the small aside. TV ROC decided to challenge these laws. It was the beginning of 1996 when Dante Quinterno, an Argentinean businessman decided to carry out an innovative idea: to wire Favela da Rocinha with cable television. Favela means slum and Rocinha claims to be Latin America’s largest, with no less than 120,000 people jammed on two hillsides.

The idea sounded quite strange to most people because it did not agree with widespread thought that favelas are places for the poor, and the poor cannot afford luxuries such as having cable television.

The fact is Quinterno saw a gold mine in Rocinha. “I’ve always thought that cable TV could be directed to all targets: the classes A, B, but also the classes C, D and E. Our challenge was to demonstrate that there were potential consumers within the Brazilian (lower) economic classes. These consumers are, above all things, craving to be connected to the world. They want to see the diversity of languages and channels that exist in the world. The world does not end in the corners of Rocinha. Only the mind is the limit.”

According to Quinterno, this was an attempt to link marketing to social actions such as providing the community with information they could not otherwise obtain through the mainstream media, often much more focused on the violence and the drug trafficking.

This sum of marketing and social actions has turned into an irresistible equation for both national and international media. Stories about TV ROC can be found in the most important Brazilian newspapers and magazines, such as O Globo and IstoÉ, Brazilian TV stations, such as TV Cultura, and even in the BBC.

The marketing side of the TV ROC project is (well) represented by its cable branch, which deals with the transmission of national channels such as Futura, SBT and TV Senado as well as international channels such as Cartoon Network, Discovery and Fox. In order to have access to this programming, residents of Rocinha have to pay a monthly subscription of 25 Reais (roughly US$12), much less than what a middle-class family would have to pay for the same channels. The social side is represented by Channel 30, a community channel among many other.

Interesting to note that, as most companies that deal with customers in Brazil, TV ROC is affiliated with the Credit Protection Service (SPC). The system is a national database that keeps track of customers who do not pay their debts on time. Ultimately, not honoring the debts will result in the suspension of the service.

As for the number of subscribing households, the manager Rosangela Quarelli is unable to give a number. The subscriptions represent the company’s main source of income. Therefore this might be an attempt to avoid disclosure of TV ROC’s profitability. “It’s not possible to precise. Every month, we have a bunch of new subscriptions and every month there are people who do not pay and we have to cut the service. We have a very big oscillation. In the summer, Rocinha is crowded because everyone comes from the Northeast to work here, because there are many jobs. Then, after Carnival is over, everybody leaves. We have these ups and downs.”

TV ROC is not Globo

The subscription fees paid by the residents of Rocinha support TV ROC’s cable operations. Part of this revenue is invested on Channel 30, which is, in theory, a space that is truly dedicated to the needs and interests of the community.

According to the reporter Paula Gomes, TV ROC always highlights the positive aspects about the community and that’s why it has gained respect from Rocinha’s residents. “People in Rocinha care about TV ROC. They know it’s not Globo (Brazil’s major television network). Globo comes here whenever there’s shooting and somebody dies. TV ROC is here everyday to cover all the community events. These events would never attract attention from the mainstream media.”

It seems like there are good intentions in having a TV station that airs content made by its residents and for it residents. However, after 10 years in Rocinha, how does TV ROC benefit its residents? To what extent does the station keep itself loyal to the idea of “democratic information”, opening up a forum that meets the community’s needs?

A bridge between the favela and the asphalt

Community TV has created a lot of curiosity among the upper social classes. Most interns who are part of TV ROC Channel 30’s team comes from Rio de Janeiro’s private universities. According to director Dante Quinterno, this is an attempt to create a “bridge between the favela and the asphalt” (slang for the areas outside of the favelas), exposing middle-class students to the reality of a favela and therefore reducing their prejudices against it. Rosangela Quarelli, manager of TV ROC, explains why they have decided to employ college students as interns on Channel 30: “These interns come from private universities with the concept that the favelas are complicated to enter, that only criminals live there. We wanted to change this idea, bring these people inside. In the future, when they become great journalists and when they have to tell the news about a favela, a community, they will act in a more socially conscious way.”

The intern Priscila de Matos confirms that she has changed the ways she thinks about the favelas. “Before working here, I was really prejudiced. When I came, I came with fear. The first time I went up there (to the hillsides of Rocinha) I was suspicious. But then, after some time, I started to let myself go and to see that Rocinha is just like any other area or neighborhood.”

The reporter Paula Gomes talks about the fear the felt when working in Rocinha right after the drug trafficking war that happened in April of 2004. “I thought: I don’t wanna go there anymore, I’m scared. But everyone is scared. I don’t want to be scared and lock myself at home. I want to be scared and do something about my fears and the fears of others. I want to do something about other people’s lives as well. We have to show that their lives (Rocinha’s residents’) are not only about fear. They produce good things: art, culture, sports. They have a normal life within their patterns.”

However, some residents of Rocinha are more skeptical about this “bridge between the favela and the asphalt”. Selma is 23 and works as a hairdresser’s assistant in a beauty parlor in the upper-class neighborhood of Botafogo. She thinks that “TV ROC is a business. I believe it’s like 70 percent business, right? They are there to sell subscriptions and make money. I believe that’s how it is.”

Eliezer, another community member makes a suggestion: “Maybe they could lower the price a little bit, even if it that meant offering less variety of channels. Then, they could make Channel 30 more visible, airing it outside the favela, showing all the good things that happen in Rocinha to people who live outside of Rocinha. Maybe they could even start a soap opera with actors from the community. Channel 30 would become the channel people watch the most and everybody inside the community would be better informed.”

Community TV and Social Change

To what extent does community TV contribute to reducing the prejudices against the favelas, the social gaps between the favela and the asphalt and even the social gaps that exist within Rocinha itself?

The manager, Rosangela Quarelli, believes that TV ROC’s most visible benefit is generating jobs for the residents. The company employs 28 people, in which 10 are residents of Rocinha. Beside the jobs, working for the community channel (Channel 30) can open up doors for a career in journalism. Araújo, who works as a volunteer cameraman for Channel 30, explains how this experience can help him in the future: “Working here is like the first step. I can gain some experience without that much pressure. Later, I intend to move on and find a job in a bigger station.”

According to Quarelli, Channel 30 is open for any community member who wants to produce his/her own programs. She explains this process. “In the beginning, they come here and say: I’d like to have my own program, I could do it, I have my camera… In the beginning, we have always helped them, we do the editing. Then, after a month, for example, they start to look for sponsorships. If they get a sponsorship, TV ROC no longer does the editing. Then, we create a circle, generating more work at Rocinha. There are many people who film Christenings, birthdays, those things… there are people with editing bays. So, we give them work. They can get a hold of these tapes and do the editing. They start to walk with their own legs.”

These “sponsors” are local merchants such as restaurant and bars owners, among many other establishments. Community members who have their own shows go to them to ask for money, equipment or other contributions. In exchange, program producers do what they call in Rocinha informal advertisements for these local merchants. It means that people in charge of the community-generated programs will say “hello” or “send a hug” to their sponsors on air or they will recommend the viewers to check out the sponsor’s establishments.

Public Utility

TV ROC creates jobs and gives a few residents the opportunity to produce their own shows for Channel 30, however the station’s role as a social change agent is limited. Some community members indicate that TV ROC might be increasing the social disparities within Rocinha by not paying enough attention to the residents who live in its most needy areas.

On the other hand, some residents say they have benefited from the information TV ROC provided them with. Eliezer, for example, describes the reasons why he likes Channel 30: “Having Channel 30 is like having a key to the community. If there is a neighborhood meeting, they go there. If some politician, someone like the secretary of safety comes here to talk to community representatives, they cover the entire meeting, so that the community can be aware of the important issues being discussed. If there’s a vaccination going on, or milk distribution for children… the channel lets us know about it.”

While it’s not so possible to see how community TV can contribute to social change, it’s worth remembering what it can do best. Tião Santos, who is a member of the Viva Rio NGO, puts it very simply: “There was a research about community media and one of the questions was: why watch community television or listen to community radio? The answer with the largest percentage was: because it tells me things that are of my interest, because it tells me things about my community. This indicates that the more the medium gets close to people’s daily lives, the better.”

TV ROC’s Channel 30 takes this idea of being close to people’s daily lives very seriously. It covers neighborhood meetings, forró (a rhythm from northeastern Brazil), concerts, school inaugurations, birthday parties, among other not so glamorous events. It also airs ads about lost documents, lost dogs and even messages from husbands who are asking their wives to forgive them.

Community TV as a mirror

Besides being useful in daily issues, the community channel has the ability to raising its audience’s self-esteem. Instead of pretending that the favela is invisible, like the mainstream channels do, its cameras focus closely on the houses, tents and wooden shacks with their clotheslines. The community channel also treats people who are used to being seen as criminals as celebrities (even if for only 5 minutes).

The resident of Rocinha Rodrigo Carvalho illustrates this concept well. “Channel 30 is cool because instead of watching soap opera, people start paying closer attention to their own neighbors. This helps us see the good in our community. We see our neighbors on screen, not some Globo artist.”

And so, we go back to the beginning of this article and to the protagonists of the story about the inauguration of the school Brisa Rio. The kids are not blond and blue-eyed like the kids of the prime-time soap opera. They also do not have those ready-to-go, smart and annoying answers. In front of the cameras, some act goofy while some hide their faces. And how about Vívian, the young teacher portrayed in the story?

Some people have changed the world with a great scientific discovery and became news. Others became news by turning their lives into a gossip circus. Why not give space to this young woman who has changed the lives of children who live on the hillsides of Rocinha by turning her garage into a school?

Excuse me! Did you mention 'freedom of speech'? by M.J.Ferreira

2006-02-26T01:12:00.000+00:00

Excuse me! Did you mention ‘freedom of speech’? by M.J.Ferreira

In this contribution I was supposed to continue to tell a story about ‘epistemic communities’ and how they might influence world power. However, a January 2006 article from the ‘Los Angeles Times’, signed by Stuart Silverstein and Peter Hong caught my attention and led me to decide to tell another story. Not a story about theoretical questions, but a story about ‘freedom of speech’.

In the last few days, we have heard much about ‘freedom of speech’. The recent ‘cartoons’ story (I must say, a very well told story) depicts a drama like a movie scene where western societies are the ‘victims’ of a well organised Muslim scheme to denounce liberal values and to endanger democracy and free thinking. However, we hear and discuss very little the events that are happening inside our ‘western fortress’ and that represent real, even if micro, attempts to curtail our resilient liberty.

The situation I’m about to describe and comment on constitutes one of many examples of how ‘freedom of speech’ is fragile even in century old democracies and how the concept might be differently interpreted by political entities (I consider every citizen as a political entity) who adjust its interpretation of true ‘freedom of speech’ to their political biases and objectives. The following story shows how democracy and liberty are always held on thin strings that need to be firmly grasped by all those that believe in the so-called ‘western values’.

In their 20th January ‘Los Angeles Times’ article, Silverstein and Hong say that a former US Republican congressman has resigned from the advisory board of the University of California (UCLA) alumni group after he discovered the latter was offering students money to point and accuse ‘radical’ and ‘liberal’ professors in this academic institution. James Rogan, who served two terms in office, claimed that he did not want his reputation tied to the inquisitory activities of this alumni association. Rogan's resignation follows those of the Harvard historian Stephan Thernstrom and professor emeritus Jascha Kessler who, for the same reasons, also left the board. Thernstrom said he joined the alumni group's more than 20-member advisory board last year because he believed it "had a legitimate objective of combating the extraordinary politicization of the faculty on elite campuses today."

The University of California alumni association, led by 24 year-old Andrew Jones, has been offering students up to US$100 to supply recordings and notes from classes in order to denounce professors suspected of upholding liberal political views and of passing them to their students. Those are encouraged to provide information on instructors who are "abusive, one-sided or off-topic" in advocating political ideologies.

Andrew Jones graduated in June 2003 and was chairman of UCLA's Bruin Republicans student group. Jones defends his association’s idea claiming that its objective is to expose UCLA's teachers that have given signs of being "actively proselytizing their extreme views in the classroom, whether or not the commentary is relevant to the class topic." Although the group says it has a general concern about ‘engaged’ professors of any political field, it has distributed an initial "Dirty 30" of teachers, considered sympathetic with left-wing or liberal ideologies.

He said his organization, which is registered with the state as non-profit, does not charge dues and has no official members, but has raised a total of $22,000 from 100 donors. Jones' group is following in the blueprint of various conservative groups that have taken steps, including monitoring professors, against what they regard as an overpowering leftist incline at North-American elite colleges and universities. He said many of these efforts have not been able to properly document their claims. As a result, the Bruin Alumni Association is offering to pay students for tapes and notes taken from classes. Jones claims he plans to show what he considers biased material to professors and administrators, in order to ensure that teachers present more balanced lectures or possibly face reproach. Jones alleged to have lined up one student who, for $100 a class session, has agreed to provide tapes, detailed lecture notes and materials with what the group considers inappropriate opinion. He does not name the student or the professor whose class will be monitored. Jones characterized the work a non-commercial news gathering and advocacy that does not violate university policy. On one of its websites, the Bruin Alumni group names education professor Peter McLaren as No. 1 on its "The Dirty Thirty: Ranking the Worst of the Worst." It says "this Canadian native teaches the next generation of teachers and professors how to properly indoctrinate students." The website also lists history professor Ellen DuBois, saying she "is in every way the modern female academic: militant, impatient, accusatory, and radical — very radical."

Targeted professors complain of a true witch-hunt: Peter McLaren says that any “sober, concerned citizen would look at this and see right through it as a reactionary form of McCarthyism”. He also claims that the teaching atmosphere at UCLA is being poisoned by these bounty offers to students willing to track down their own teachers.

The University said it will notify the association that selling copies of professors' lectures violates campus regulations, specifically concerning copyright protection. UCLA authorities recognise they will not develop immediate legal action. They will only notify Jones and alert students that selling course material without the consent of the instructor and Chancellor violates university policy. Patricia Jasper, a university lawyer, said UCLA will reserve the right to engage into legal action if a student is proved guilty of unauthorized selling of materials. Adrienne Lavine, chairwoman of UCLA's academic senate, agreed that the University could do little more at this point. She said she found the profiles on the alumni group's website "inflammatory" and "not a positive way to address the concerns that Mr. Jones has expressed. “Still”, she said, “I certainly support freedom of speech and that extends to Andrew Jones as much as it does to every faculty member on campus."

In spite being only a local event that seems not to be achieving very high success, this story can be considered an example of how difficult it is to sustain a proper balance between freedom and responsibility. All freedom has a limit, a kind of boundary that gives sense to freedom itself. Freedom is not practiced in an anomic environment. Freedom is relational. Our freedom should uphold the freedom of the people we enter in relation with.

All freedom is watched and it should be. Otherwise we would have a return to what Rousseau described as a primitive society. However, the references used to limit the practice of freedom (freedom of speech, freedom to teach, freedom of association, freedom of manifestation through public initiatives, etc.) have to be clearly stated, have to be coherent, have to be tolerant, have to be felt legitimate. The question is to ensure that western freedom is not considered hierarchically superior to Muslim rights (namely cultural rights) or that students’ right to a non-politically biased education (as if that could exist) does not constrain their teachers’ ‘freedom of speech’.

Excuse me! Did you mention freedom of speech?

Chatting, cheating and paranoia by Arnild Van de Velde

2006-02-21T20:51:00.000+00:00

As the majority of readers – at least as I imagine it – I was raised to face monogamy as the most acceptable type of relationship between lovers. Morover, I was also taught to praise values such as respect for individuality, as people´s sacred, untouchable rights. These days though, fidling around with newspapers and magazines, I was shocked finding out that jealousy (as a side effect of monogamy) is getting people to investigate the habits of their beloved ones on the Internet. Aiming to fight cyber cheating, the current and fashionable form of infidelity which is turning love life into a nightmare, ladies and gentlemen won´t hesitate in breaking rules of privacy, in order to make sure that "if trusting the partner is good, controlling him is better". Fearing the threat behind the monitor, possessive personalities are demanding access to their partner´s Internet connections, including their passwords, to check out what he or she does when browsing the web. Furthermore, some even hire a virtual detective to bring their mistrusting to an end – or to confirm it.

Cheating on the Internet does not necessarily involve sex. It thrills exactly for its virtuality: on the web, anyone can be what he or she wants to be, there are no compromises, no preoccupations , no intimidations, no hesitations. In the virtual world, love is like a dream within a dream. Behind the screen, desire overcomes all sorts of taboos, in a way that "real time dating" would rarely do. Using a computer, men and women easily undress, to use a metaphor. E-loving, as I will call it from here onwards, offers the perfect protection of identities, and this is indeed what encourage individuals to loose their personal sense of moral and religion, and then give place from harmless to bizarre fantasies, without feeling guilty. Cyber cheating provides a comfort zone for those who believe that fooling the partner without having sex, is not really what it seems. So far, hiring a spy to investigate the privacy of husband or wife, girl or boyfriend, it´s not too bad. In fact a defender of freedom, I these days come to re-think the role of monogamy on the base of several conflicts of our times. I might sound weird, but not daft.

When George Orwell wrote his "1984", conceiving Big Brother as a unique control-freak, he was just too far away from what the popularization of the web would bring to people´s lives. Nowadays, everytime you start touching your keyboard, someone, somewhere starts feeling uncomfortable. In fact, the internet seems to have revealed the grotesque in each one of us: some feel they are God, others they are worth a conspiracy. I myself know a bunch of anonymous wannabes whose days and hours are spent with strange thoughts about how many millions of people would be interested in destroying their lives by stalking them on the internet, or just by having an e-affair with their love what sometimes can be true, but this is not for me to say. Tormented but unnable to just give up - in my opinion - the best invention of men after the wheel, they prefer not to love or leave it; the real thing is to scan those who use it, no matter what will bring.

A virtual detective is either a hacker whose work consists on tracking back activities of individuals on the Internet, or programs already available on the web, such as Spector Pro 5.0, eBlaster, Keylogger and Screen Logger, easily installed in any computer via e-mail. The ability of these programs to capture every little thing done in the machines is astonishing. If the computer-to-be-attacked is corporate-owned, for example, the strategy to hack it is rather sophisticated: an investigation about the person´s habits helps to create a trap, generally an e-mail with false information on issues of interest of the victim. By opening the message, the spy program is immediately installed and starts sending all information to whom it may concern. The market for these products is increasing proportionally to the cases of divorce caused by cyber-cheating. Could spicy e-chats really harm a solid relationship? Some 80% believe so, while 60% of those who meet in an extramarital relationship, via the web, end up in bed. The question that remains open is whether the Internet powers infidelity, or if infidelity is taking advantage of the Internet.

Asked to comment on the tendency, psychologists of universities around the globe are suggesting that couples should introduce the matter intothe relationship priority list, considering it as important as the decision of having children or not. The use of the web to express sexual tension - in many cases a cyber-affair involves old friends who never had the courage to show their feelings to one another - is an effective tool to break an old pattern of behaviour: inhibition. In a number of cases, this can be healing. But, if like me, you´re not bothered by the collateral effects of the Internet - gossips, conspiracy theories and even spells - at least remain attentive next time you open your e-mails. Somebody could be watching you.

A Cultural Enlightenment by Dirk Salowsky

2006-02-17T18:09:00.000+00:00

Getting along with each other has never been easy. Since September 11th many have for good reasons been afraid of what cloaked religious fanatics may be able to do next. Unfortunately, the step from “fanatic islamists” to “merciless Muslims” is not that big at all. Likewise, it is not a big step from “a blasphemic caricature” to “the ignorant Europeans”, as recently seen in the outrage over the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten‘s caricatures. Blind generalizations aside, why should a Danish caricature insult a Muslim in Beirut or Ram’allah? Are the incident and the consequent protests symptoms of a dawning clash of civilizations? Just what has happened?

The Course of Events

The provocative caricature in the Danish newspaper recently stirred relations between major parts of the Islamic world and Europe. While it was already printed in September 2005, only at the end of January did it lead to violent reactions in a couple of Islamic states, following a reprint in the Norwegian Magazinet on January 10, 2006. (See also Daiana Vasquez’s recent article). The original sacrilege are various depictions of the prophet Muhammad, including one with a bomb-shaped turban. After national and international protests to the Danish Government, in October, the Prime Minister refused to distance himself from the caricatures referring protesters to freedom of press. Then, a group of Danish Imans, Islamic prayer leaders, travels to the Middle East to organize protests throughout the Islamic world. At the end of January, several Islamic countries issue official notes of protest, Saudi-Arabia and Libya call back their Ambassadors to Denmark. A couple of European newspapers reprint the caricatures in support of the freedom of press. The first escalation takes place on January 30, when members of the Al-Aksa Brigades seize a EU office in the Gaza Strip. In the following days, there are various demonstrations, flags are burnt, Norwegian and Danish embassies are attacked. There even are casualties among the enraged crowds in Lebanon, Afghanistan and Somalia. On February 6 and 8 the League of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference urge protesters to calm down. The following days (up to this day) pass without further violence.

Analyzing the Reactions

Of course the violence against embassies was a shock and fed concerns about the degree of the outrage. I will only concentrate on two questions: Was this the beginning of a fight against the western world? And how did Muslims even get angry at such small western nations?

Pretty soon it became obvious that violent protest and attacks only became possible in countries where the responsible officials let the mob proceed more or less unhindered. The Syrian regime had had trouble with Lebanon and its own citizens, so an outrage against western Kafirs was a welcome distraction. Palestine, Lebanon, Iran and Afghanistan are countries with either a strong influence of radical Islamists (Hezbollah, Taliban) or political problems with Europe and North America (the Hamas in power confronting Israel and supporting nations, Iran and its nuclear program). In general, any faux pas of a part of the western world is a welcome chance for radical groups to rage against it. In any case, did someone ever compare the number of violent demonstrators to the rest of the respective population?

Mostly, western nations represent the economic world elite. It is not hard to understand why also moderate people in Islamic countries (that have not been invaded under questionable circumstances) might not appreciate western culture. In the eyes of not so well educated Muslims, western countries will mostly show up to tell, urge or threaten an Islamic State to behave according to their ideas, while they do not help by even causing people to suffer (e.g., collateral damage in invasion wars). There are enough unfavorable incidents to raise suspicions.

But we may relax, a permanent clash with Islamic Nations is probably not imminent. It is hard to tell how prominent the conviction that “western nations are ignorant suppressors” really is, but there clearly are resentments. Likewise, people in western countries maintain resentments against Muslims “with inhumane habits and traditions”. Neither of us should forget that a group always consists of different individuals, however.

“Enlightenment” vs. Religious Devotion

For Islamic and Christian nations, skepticism and a lack of understanding is, in my opinion, a mutual reason for negative or even hostile attitudes towards each other. And our two worlds are very different. The western democracies are secular. In a long process starting with the Age of Enlightenment, the division of religion and politics became a logical consequence and requirement for a fully functional democracy. Any action against anyone or anything is only legitimate in accordance to secular laws. Personal welfare mostly stands above the welfare in one’s afterlife – if one even chooses to believe in it. Traditions have become hobbies or commercialized holidays. There are only few left who lead a life devoted to religion.

Most Islamic nations have not had anything like an “Age of Enlightenment”. Few of them are democracies. They have not had a slow and strenuous reform forcing them to reevaluate religion and the influence of religious leaders. In fact, Islam does not even have a clergy. There are, however, changes and foreign influences in the Islamic culture, but one can easily argue that many of them are “forcefully” imported (Palestinian/Israeli coexistence, Afghanistan, Iraq). Islam means “submission (to the will of God)”, and the five pillars of Islam define lifetime principles that are ingrained in Islamic culture. This hardly comes as a surprise as three of these principles are very ritual: Salah, 5 prayers a day; Sawm, the fast during Ramadan; Hajj, the pilgrimage to Makkah. All of them connected with a number of other rituals. One cannot help living by the rhythm of religion, as everybody is a regular part of a religious community. Traditions play a much more vital role in life. Actions are much more likely to be legitimized by religious rules. This is indeed a very problematic difference.

Thus, while Enlightenment is not only an understood part of western culture, bearing a dash of superiority (“I am enlightened – you are not.”), daily worship of Allah and ensuring the welfare of all fellow Muslims is an understood part of Islamic culture. A Muslim is a person “submitted to the will of God” and, by definition, even a Christian might be called Muslim. One does not need to visit the Amish to imagine how decadent, hypocritical and godless western culture may seem in the eyes of a Muslim.

The Avoidable Jihad Factor

To Muslims, the mere depiction of the Prophet is a sacrilege. Idolatry itself is. One of the basic principles of Islam is to abstain from any divine imagery, icons, idols in favor of the true worship of the Almighty. The implications connected with the Prophet wearing a bomb on his head do easily reach beyond the domain of satire (which may be a necessity of this genre). Not having seen all of it, I can imagine what the cartoonists were aiming at with their work, keeping in mind that the caricature was issued in order to solidarize with a disdained author who failed to publish a book about Muhammad. But satire is a very liberal genre in a very secularized culture. In western cultures it is a commonly accepted type of discourse in order to exchange and analyze thoughts and views. It is tacitly acknowledged that the author’s work is never to be taken literally.

I dare say that Islamic culture is nowadays way more religious than Christian culture. Accordingly, religious symbols are “more sacred” and untouchable. Thus, a provocative caricature using a central element of the religion is a very painful insult. With the given mutual respect for either cultural background the “Jyllands Posten Affair” might have been settled rather quickly and without a defensive focus on the freedom of press. But a certain stubbornness in defending the own cultural convictions and principles made it worse. The affair was given the chance to be exploited and to be declared an attack against the Islam. Not only Islamists know that “Islam permits fighting in self-defense, in defense of the religion, or by those who have been expelled forcibly from their homes […]. The concept of Jihad (struggling in the cause of Allah) is stated in the Qu’ran […].”(www.iad.org). It is a matter of interpretation to decide how grave an attack against the religion is, and with a misinformed crowd at hand, a radical Imam may easily instigate a noisy protest. But it were the Taliban to once again (ab)use the word Jihad as a reaction to the affair.

Right and Wrong

Freedom of expression is a fundamental liberal democratic norm. But in my opinion it was not this freedom that caused the affair. It was a lack of dialogue. The affair was a matter of respect that was at least underrated in the aftermath. It was a matter of insufficient understanding of a different culture and value system. And it was a matter of putting one’s own value system above another. Among various reasons the western value system is good because western culture was allowed to choose it and did choose it when it had reason to do so. I know that this statement is controversial when it comes to human rights in general. However, a desired change of culture or social norms in Islamic countries can only emerge from inside of their societies. It requires a careful dialogue, for nobody will force change into anyone’s head. A dialogue requires mutual respect and understanding. May this article add to it.

The Idiot’s Guide to Democracy by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-02-14T00:31:00.000+00:00

For the second time within three weeks, Capeverdean citizens used their right to vote freely, a rare condition in Africa. On January 22nd, in the legislative election, voters opted for continuity, and re-conducted the PAICV Government, despite the opposition’s claims for over 29,000 fraudulent votes.

Democracy as a concept is far from perfect. As a practice, it is flawed, to say the least. The system is often twisted even in mature democracies such as the United States' (Bush vs. Gore), Italy's (Berlusconi’s direct or indirect ownership or control of 85% of all Italian media as well as other irregularities) or Germany's (with vote results forcing a negotiated Government). In Africa, of late, very few countries endorsed democracy permanently. Kenya often slides down the slope, and so does Mozambique, Angola or Egypt. Cape Verde and The Seychelles have for long been pointed as beacons of democracy in the continent – and what beacons they are, the geographic positions of both making them more similar to lighthouses for democratic endeavours, one on the Atlantic, one on the Indian coast.

Cape Verde has gathered the trust of the international community over the last 15 years, so much so that it has repeatedly been lauded for the almost inexistent corruption in the use of foreign aid monies. In February 12th's Presidential election, as in many others, foreign observers were absent, based on that trust. Yet, as in many other “mature” democracies, situations occurred that were therefore muted.

Independent since 1975, the Republic of Cape Verde was luckier than most young nations in continental Africa. There was no colonial war, no rebellion, and all opposition to the regime in the national territory was peaceful. However, many Capeverdean independence supporters joined the Amilcar Cabral-founded PAIGC (African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde), and played active roles in the wars of the time. Military training in Cuba or in the depths of Africa, guerrilla war in Bissau - Commander Pedro Pires was among them. One year after the Red Carnation Revolution in Portugal, Cape Verde was finally independent. Behind the stage, the split between Guinea-Bissau and the islands was masterfully albeit traumatically orchestrated, and PAIGC eventually became a strictly national entity (PAICV), one that was to rule in a single-party regime for almost 16 years. In 1991, with Pedro Pires in power, and despite his claims that the people were not ready for a democratic change, a coalition of small parties, led by Carlos Veiga’s MpD forced an election. On January 13th, 1991, the Second Republic gave the first steps. It is reminded as one of the grandest days in this young republic's history.

Little after, a new flag for a modern country would be created, along with a new national anthem and a new shield of arms, leaving behind the country’s Marxist-Leninist post-independence past. Despite Chinese and Cuban tacit support, PAICV’s days as sole ruler were over.

With Mr. Veiga’s election for Prime Minister, and later with President António Mascarenhas Monteiro, Cape Verde progressed rapidly and leaped to the forefront of Africa, gathering respect and an aura of stability rare this close to the tropics. Ever more capital transfers were made by its overseas community, and investment in the tourism sector as well as direct foreign aid were attracted. In just 15 years, the country’s economy changed deeply.

In 2001, Carlos Alberto Wahnon de Carvalho Veiga, born in the country's second city of Mindelo, ran for President against the independence-veteran and former single-party regime leader Pedro Pires. Amidst loud claims of electoral fraud, PAICV re-gained power, after Onésimo Silveira’s withdrawal in its favour. The army and police forces were divided, and civil unrest was feared for a few days. Mr. Veiga nowadays claims, somewhat exaggerating, that he alone chose to spare the country a civil war, by accepting fraudulent results.

On January 22nd 2006, PAICV’s Government was confirmed, and the long expected heavy-weight Presidential campaign started. Mr. Pires’ campaign was one of confrontation and aggressive speech from both him and his representatives. Supporters scouted the streets flying First Republic flags (Marxist, implying a union with war-ravaged Guinea), and several claims of incitement to violence were filed. The Supreme Court received complaints of fraud in the legislatives, while the recently elected PM campaigned alongside Mr. Pires.

Whereas Mr. Pires safely stood on his party's grounds, Mr. Veiga claimed to be above any party divide. According to the Constitution that Veiga had helped approve himself (against PAICV’s wishes, whose deputies abandoned Parliament), the President should act as a referee and should dialogue with the whole of civil society. Whereas Mr. Pires’ motto was “vote for PAICV, for a stable governance”, Mr. Veiga concentrated on explaining why his candidature was the right one. Whereas Mr. Pires refused any debates on radio or TV, Mr. Veiga continuously requested them. Whereas Mr. Pires cashed on masses of people with little education and civic formation to gather many of his votes, Mr. Veiga’s mistake seems to have been treating them as grown-up voters. Or was it...?

On the night of the election, claims of irregularities with votes were heard. The electoral system key had been stolen in 2001, remaining adrift in the country or abroad. All the informatics corrections to date were insufficient to curb possible hacking attacks. In Mindelo, as in the capital city, Praia, special intervention forces were deployed to prevent any clashes as a consequence of the heated atmosphere. MpD’s HQ was surrounded by close-faced officers. Very closely, down the street, at PAICV’s HQ, another police barrier prevented supporters from mixing. The National Elections Commission claimed the ballot had been transparent, albeit several misdemeanours.

On TCV, sole national TV network (not so much public, rather a State channel), the special broadcast presented three pro-PAICV and one pro-MpD commentators. The moderator seemed somewhat biased, to say the least. One and a half hour before the vote was closed in the circle of the Americas (mostly Brazil, Canada and US), TCV infracted the law, by showing the first temporary results. With 60% of all votes counted, Mr. Veiga was ahead at 50.49% against 49.30%, in what seemed a perfect plot for a turnover. Later, with 90% of the votes disclosed, she smilingly announced that Mr. Pires was now ahead with 50.38% of the votes. Mr. Veiga’s results were repeatedly not revealed. Meanwhile, police protection to MpD’s HQ mysteriously disappeared around 10 pm, when the vote was closed in Boston and Toronto. TCV interrupted the special at that point, only to return 49 minutes later, with final results that gave a clear victory to Mr. Pires. According to the temporary results, Veiga had won among half-million inhabitants of the islands (with little more than 50%), but lost among 1-million Capeverdeans abroad (in a proportion of 61.5% to 34.9%), even if the abstention rate nationally was only 46% against 67% abroad.

With the results seemingly decided (Mr. Pires’ 50.8% vs. Mr. Veiga’s 49.2%), MpD supporters returned home, leaving the streets to the celebrating crowds in yellow. On TV, the moderator asks for final comments. The lonely pro-MpD commentator is scarce in words, followed by three buoyant PAICV supporters. Not able to hide her enthusiasm with the results, the moderator points out that history repeats itself, and requests comments to both the 2001 and 2006 votes. In 2001, she says, Carlos Veiga lost with 50.7% of the vote, while Pedro Pires won with 49.3%. She is baffled and confused for two seconds. Then, she says, “no, it cannot be, the computer must be wrong.” After having been Prime Minister for 15 years, much of which in a single-party regime, Mr. Pires has presided to the country’s destinies for the past five years, so he must have won, you would think – actually, so says history, in 2001 he indeed won by only 12 votes, hardly an acceptable margin elsewhere. All of a sudden, MpD’s claims of fraud seem consequent. Could the wrong result announced by TCV’s moderator actually not be “wrong”?

The country woke up in peace, though, and once again, PAICV rules over all the branches of political power, offering the people plenty of music in the streets. It could happen in any democracy. It happened in the United States of America. But in any normal democracy, however, a reasonable doubt would remain as to why are all the electoral results so close. And why are they always turned around at the last moment. In a regular democracy, when claims that thousands of votes were irregular are made, and the winner has only 12 extra votes, the ballot would be repeated. It may well be that nothing irregular happened this time – yet, so goes the saying, where there is smoke, there is (usually) fire.

Borrowing from Bill Clinton’s campaign: this is democracy for you, stupid – African style, that is.

This text is also available in Portuguese here (Manual de Democracia Simplificada)

Read more on Cape Verde in Pedro Marcelino’s previous article.

Where are the limits? by Daiana Vasquez

2006-02-11T09:53:00.000+00:00

The world is shocked with the readiness for violence from the part of many Muslims offended by the publication of cartoons depicting Muhammad, for instance wearing a bomb-shaped turban. Even worse, it seems that in some countries government and spiritual leaders are encouraging the protests, instead of controlling them.

On the one hand, nobody but the attackers seems to agree with this kind of reaction. From all over the world we hear and see politicians, journalists, people, believers or not, claiming that brute force is not only an inadequate reaction, but it is outrageous and shall never be accepted.

On the other hand, barely anyone but the offended Muslims seems to agree that also freedoms of speech, expression and press have a limit and on the moment you expose the belief of a group to ridiculousness and associate it with terrorism this limit is transgressed.

For Islam the image of Muhammad, their holy prophet, must never be shown. Some people contest that this rule is not in the Koran. But even if so, it does not change the fact that the Muslims believe that the face of Muhammad should not be exposed and that they are hurt in their religious feelings when this happens. Shall the press ignore all this in the name of its freedom?

Some journalists say yes, the Muslims have to accept that in the Western countries there are such things as freedoms of speech and press, which in many cases they do not have the chance to experience in their non-secularized countries. This is the case of the Dutch reporter of the German Magazine Der Spiegel, and writer Henryk M. Broder that gave his opinion on this issue for the German newspaper Der Tagesspiegel on February the 3rd. He believes that one should be allowed to make fun of Christians, Jewish, Muslims, etc, even with the danger of hurting their religious feelings. And he justifies this by saying that what for one believer is a belief, is for the other superstition.

But should not the difference be exactly the motive for respect and tolerance instead of for ridiculousness? We must accept that we are different. And being different means that perhaps some things that do not bother one group of people are really disgusting for others. Shall I ignore that some things I say may be offensive for others just because if they said the same to me I would not care? Am I not by doing this measuring the others with my canons instead of accepting and respecting the fact that they might have their own? Is my culture superior?

Many other newspapers, although more moderate than the journalist cited above, see in the printing of the cartoons an expression of press freedom. Does it mean that in the name of freedom of press everything can be published? Is there no distinction? No limit?

For many believers, Muslim or from other religions, as well as for politicians in high positions, the press should respect religious feelings. The Vatican, for instance, has condemned the publication of the cartoons, according to the Brazilian online newspaper Globo. According to the Vatican’s opinion, the freedom of thought and speech shall not include the right to offend other people’s religion.

Some media in countries such as Norway and Germany printed the cartoons following the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, despite the fact that they already knew how offensive the cartoons were to Muslims. What was the aim of doing that? Certainly not only to inform people, since this could have been perfectly done without printing the polemic cartoons and leaving Muslims with the feeling they were being provoked and offended on purpose.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan also seems to believe that the press should avoid throwing more oil on fire. He said, according to BBC News, he was "distressed and concerned at the whole affair" and appealed for no-one to "inflame an already difficult situation".

What is the role of the press? Is it to inform people, to open the debate, to analyze and criticize facts, theories, etc or to provoke, cause commotion and sensationalism for more audience and readers? Is it under any responsibility? Should it carefully balance its content because of its possible consequences? Or shall it print everything blindly without measuring the effects it may have?

These questions appear not to be so difficult to answer, but the thought that freedom of speech and press has a limit and also a responsibility has still not found so many echoes in the media. They are concentrated on showing the world the scandalizing violent protests of some of the offended Muslims against the countries where the cartoons were published and on arguing for the right to publish them based on the principle of press freedom. However, it would not harm anyone if they would also direct some attention to their role, their responsibility and maybe exercise some self-criticism.

Once again regarding this concern it is UN Secretary General Kofi Annan who puts things in its right terms: "I share the distress of the Muslim friends who feel that the cartoon offends their religion," he said, according to BBC News, and continued: "I also respect the right of freedom of speech. But of course freedom of speech is never absolute. It entails responsibility and judgment."

When the press does not ponder how a report should be announced it can come to serious problems. This was the case in Brazil, as a central news network reported on a school in which children were supposedly sexually abused. After all this, it was proven to only have happened in their imagination. The owners of the school were ruined even though the press reported the true version afterwards. Another examples are the paparazzi who disturb the privacy of Caroline of Monaco or those who were jointly responsible for the early death of Diana, Princess of Wales. The list is endless. It does not make any sense to go on. The point is that whatever freedom we are talking of, it must have limits. There is no absolute freedom of press. And it is more rational and desirable that the press itself control its publications within reasonable boundaries instead of denying its limits.

In any case, the fact that some published cartoons are the cause for such violence is unacceptable. There are many other ways to protest than the violent path chosen. It is not only shocking that it came to such a conflict but unfortunately also scary, since the whole world saw what some people might be capable of doing in the name of Allah (or in this case, of his prophet). Is there any limit to their use of force?

To live in an economically globalized world does not mean that we have a global culture. We do have a variety of cultures that should be respected for there is not a better one. Not even God is legitimized to say which culture is superior, since there are different Gods in different cultures. No one is legitimized to say what is an offense and what is “only” hypersensitivity or idiosyncrasy. In order to have peace, we must reciprocally accept each other within our differences.

And the question that remains on my mind is not where these limits are, namely the limits of the freedom of press and the limits of the reaction of the offended Muslims, but mainly if we (believers or not) are going to be able to manage this commotion without killing each other.

Epistemic Communities as Normative Hegemons I by M.J.Ferreira

2006-02-09T11:28:00.000+00:00

Hegemony in International Relations has always been perceived as a material phenomenon. Superpowers have such qualifications for they possess the material resources that enable them to gain control over other states’ actions and purposes. Recently, theorisation on hegemony developed in order to gain a more relational nature. Actors in International Relations play a hegemonic role if they are able to determine how the global system thinks and acts. In two words: normative power.
Following Deutsch’s cybernetic approach to social science, political systems are fed through inputs converted into outputs by a decision-making process. Both inputs and outputs are never free from an ideological perspective. They always underpin a normative framework for reality: a wish about how political communities should be regulated.

Neo-realist perspectives on International Relations, specifically on foreign policy analyses, traditionally focus on the formality of decision-making processes, thus neglecting the content of political decisions grounding them to mere problem solving mechanisms.

New theories have just started to analyse how several non-state actors are capable of influencing decision-making processes in foreign policy. The aristocratic and elitist nature of traditional diplomacy is slowly fading away. Maquiavel, Metternich and Bismarck would be surprised to see how their “Princes” and “Kings” could hardly now invoke La Raison d’ État in order to take decisions outside public scrutiny. Decision-making process in foreign policy is becoming increasingly more open and democratic.

The democratisation of foreign policy decision-making processes is vital in an international context where neoliberalism is becoming the solution for all world problems. The economic hegemon is promoting Francis Fukuyama’s vision about the End of History. Globalisation seems to be homogenising the economic mechanisms to regulate societies. Even the specificities of the European welfare state are being questioned by a growing market-led European Union. In the wake of such neo-liberal hegemony, big powers try to promote polyarchyc models of governance in recent African, Asian and Latin-American democracies. Robert Dahl describes polyarchies as low intensity democracies where popular participation is confined to regular voting procedures. Those low intensity democracies are quite suitable for neo-liberalism, for individuals become accustomed to be simple commodities consumers and not full citizens with governance responsibilities.

Western societies, who consider democracy as the ‘normal’ regime, are not immune to the polyarchyc modes of authority. The depolitisation of citizen’s participation in governance frees state’s elites from accountability. Among public policies, this lack of accountability is more visible in the foreign policy domain. Two questions arise: who is resisting? And who is doing the thinking?

Who is resisting?

Resistance to the neo-liberal order is clearly being led by worldwide social movements who try to alert societies to the dangers of what Tocqueville called “the worst kind of tyranny”: the tyranny of the mind. This means the government capacity, even in a democratic framework, to control the political will of its citizens. Again two words: normative power.

Nationalist movements are also performing resistance. Nationalism has been perceived by academics as a dead ideology. However, there are those who claim that nationalism belongs to the future and not to the past, that nationalism is not the product of pre-modernity but of a postmodern international order. This leads us to question the nature of political communities. If we picture the evolution of political communities as a cycle we can identify three stages: the imperial system, the feudal state and the nation-state. And after the nation-state (in fact, I must say that a small number of states are true nation-states) what will come? Will it be a neo-medieval system or a transitional period after which we will have a back to the nation movement? Post-modernity should have brought a more cosmopolitan way of governing the international society. However, cosmopolitanism is being resisted by a perceived need to an origin’s return. Whether those origins are local or regional or national, the ties that connect people to their territory are already under discussion. The question is: can we ground citizenship in a non-territorial basis?

Who is doing the thinking?

The neo-liberal order is being sustained mostly by private actors that perform advisory roles near governmental elites. Among those private actors I would like to call attention to what Peter Haas has called epistemic communities. Haas defines such communities as “(…) a professional group that believes in the same cause and effects relationships, truth tests to assess them, and shares common values. As well as sharing an acceptance of a common body of facts, its members share a common interpretive framework, or ‘consensual knowledge’, from which they convert such facts, or observations to policy relevant conclusions. They identify problems in the same manner and process information similarly. They also share a common vocabulary, common political objectives to which such policies should be addressed, and a common network in which findings are exchanged and shared concerns are formulated” (Haas, 1990).

This definition underpins the normative framework of epistemic communities. They are a group of people, scattered by several areas that produce technical knowledge and that are forming among themselves networks of communication. In some Anglo-Saxon literature we find epistemic communities under the label of ‘think-tanks’. Slowly, such groups are setting the bases for a new international order. They are highly politicised groups with a tendency to disguise their normative functions under the clout of technical knowledge. Epistemic communities deserve a more profound study. I will undertake such analysis in my next contribution to Thinkblogal.

I will try to do the thinking.

Seeds Of Tomorrow by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-02-06T22:58:00.000+00:00

The 80’s. The idea of a seed bank appears for the first time, when politics is dominated by the oppressing, castrating threat of a major nuclear showdown. The idea was not original: Noah’s Ark, so claims the legend, was filled with a male and a female specimen of each animal of the Creation. Ancient Egyptians and some pre-Hispanic peoples of South and Central America traditionally kept special seeds in safe houses, perhaps as a last resource in case of… anything. In the 60’s, US children ritually filled time capsules with childhood memorabilia to be dug up decades later in someone’s backyard.

(The tradition persists, with 21st century space crafts being sent astray with seed samples, text databases and audio libraries for the passing-by alien of the future.)

Spitsbergen Island, in the archipelago of Svalbard, Arctic Polar Circle, was back then pointed as a perfect location to host a seed bank for future generations. With only 2,330 inhabitants and strict laws that limit any new arrivals, Spitsbergen is perhaps one of the most isolated human communities in the world. Located at about 81 degrees north latitude, it has only two significant settlements, Longyearbyen and Ny Ǻlesund. The northernmost phone booth and mailbox are located there, as are the northernmost marathon and polar jazz festival (both in June), among other chilly superlatives. Summer temperatures are scarcely above the freezing point, and typical winter temperatures neighbour -30, or even -50 with wind chill.

The location would have been appropriate, if it were not for Star Wars: the Cold War was far from over. A 1920 treaty with Norway gave Soviet Union’s mining companies exploitation rights in coal-rich Spitsbergen, and perhaps the presence of the “enemy” represented too much of a jeopardy for such a sensitive project. That attitude, in fact, potentially implied the anihilation of the Soviet Union, or the desire to save only non-Communists after a major catastrophe had taken place.

Whichever the case, the idea never went through, ending up in a drawer. Nor did a major catastrophe occur (yet).

In 2004, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the Global Crop Diversity Trust and the Foreign Ministry of the Kingdom of Norway signed a treaty that finally opened the road for something feasible, which was to be announced as the first step in an ambitious, albeit necessary, project. Sponsored by the Norwegian Government and the private trust, the seed bank now means to establish a workable basis for a new start, should nuclear war occur, but also in case of major crop diseases or any catastrophic natural disasters (such as earthquakes, extreme climate changes or gigantic volcanic eruptions). This resource will only be used when all other alternatives have been explored. In the words of Cary Fowler, the Trust’s Executive Secretary, “if worse came to worst, this would allow the world to reconstruct agriculture in the planet”.

Established in association with FAO, the Trust’s mission is the collection and preservation of edible plants diversity, mostly resourcing to seed banks the world over. Ideally, several other modern seed banks will be placed in safe points of the globe, using a similar co-operative structure.

A vast majority of the seeds being safeguarded by this project will be received from existing banks in Africa, Latin America and Asia, where security and climate conditions do not guarantee preservation. Experts have warned that the world subsists on a relatively small number of crops, and that most of the population uses little more than 150 species as a nutritional basis. Genetic diversity is decreasing swiftly, as the risk for major perturbations visibly grows.

The vault is to be installed in the depths of a sandstone Spitsbergen mountain covered with permafrost, where one-metre-thick concrete walls will enclose the seeds, kept sealed from terrorists, global warming or nuclear radiation by blast-proof doors. If electricity fails, for some reason, permafrost will promptly naturally replace the artificial deep-freeze. This will be the world’s safest gene bank to date.

From a global situation where nuclear weapons were available to a selected few – the US, the USSR, Britain and France, the “European nuclear umbrella” – the international community saw China acquire them, followed by India and Pakistan (technically, still at war), allegedly also Israel and South Africa. Not only that, but many other developed and developing nations chose, with mixed results, to invest in nuclear energy to supply domestic needs – Spain, Brazil, Italy, Germany, Canada, to name a few. The fall of the USSR in 1989 brought an unprecedented danger, as the world’s second nuclear nation suddenly was unable to assure the security of its own weapons and power plants, scattered throughout a score of new independent republics (mostly in Ukraine and Kazakhstan). But in an era when any status quo is old within months, it is hardly surprising that Iraq eventually started its own nuclear programme, followed by uranium enrichment (did it ever happen?). Or that Iran now follows suit. Or that countries such as North Korea or Syria conduct their own programmes. It is difficult to justify to any nation why it is that nuclear endeavours are limited to those who can, as opposed to those who want – the best gig in realpolitik. It grows harder as many western countries, simultaneously, develop their own energy-oriented programmes for the first time, as the easy way out of oil dependency, while the UN’s directorium does not seem to bother them. Finally, as the world’s first nuclear power becomes a bullying state – in the eyes of many – it is only fair that third parties ask themselves why should a traditionally aggressive, war-driven nation be allowed to possess an array of nuclear weapons, while preventing others from an equal right. Why should only the power circle have that privilege, and why not, say, Djibouti? With these dilemmas on today’s agenda, and the rule of war over politics seemingly far from a 20th century anachronism, it is understandable that the nuclear threat still dwells on our minds – and feasible that it actually looms over our heads. This project is only a scary reminder of human history.

Having seen Ice Age (and the squirrel who lost his pre-historic nuts), however, three questions loom in my mind: who will be around to remember where the seeds are, after a nuclear war? And if someone is indeed around, how will they reach Svalbard to fetch them, anyway? Even if they do, how is the safest safe to be open?

Alfred Einstein’s words, dozens of years ago, on the brink of the nuclear revolution that would change Earth forever: “I do not know how will World War II be fought, but the Third I know: it will be with sticks and stones.“ (sic)

The World of Flying by Angelo Meneses

2006-02-03T17:26:00.000+00:00

In the beginning it was just a dream. Icarus tried it, but the Wright brothers did it. Since then, aviation has developed from an elite-only luxury to an all public basic service. But it has many new challenges ahead and many other developments to be expected.

It’s a fact that the world is running at an astonishingly fast pace and that, more than ever, time is money. Business men need to be in different places in the world almost at the same time. And, although new technologies make it possible to be somewhere without really being there, there are many occasions that still need a physical presence. Thus, the importance of transportation, especially, aviation.

But the interesting aspect of the modern aviation industry is the massification of flying, specially for tourism purposes. From intercontinental flights that took many days, had stops aplenty and would cost a big amount of money, the aviation industry has evolved to a point where it is possible for a passenger to cross the Atlantic in under 8 hours (and in fact, until recently, in less than 4 super-sonic hours).

It’s a paradox that the Concorde has been put to sleep, when many other models of aircrafts have had more accidents and the need for speed in air travel has seen an increasing demand. But the low demand on Concorde flights definitely dictated its future, specially in an era where profit is the number one aim for the airlines.

But if speed is not the only bet for the future, what is it then? Actually, there are two answers for that, depending on where you seek them. In the USA, Boeing is targeting a more regional style of flying, whilst in Europe Airbus is betting on long-haul flights, with its A380, for which there are now over 150 requests from airlines all over the world. The truth is that both companies are probably right. The future of flying will in fact include more and more short-haul flights between small regional airports. It is already happening. Just look at the North American market and all the low cost airlines booming through out Europe. But passengers won’t stick to short-haul flights in a world that is apparently shrinking every minute. What to do when one needs to get to the other side of the world? One will, obviously, need to take a long-haul flight.

And for this mixed future, the airplane construction companies are getting ready. Boeing will introduce the Dreamliner, which will mainly provide flights for short distances. And Airbus will lead the way with the A380 on the long distance flights, providing a spacious aircraft, able to take off with up to 800 passengers. Whether we look to one or the other, some things are obviously common: the worries about fuel efficiency, safety and construction costs and materials (specially with composite materials of the Dreamliner).

But the massification of air travel brings up another very important aspect: low-fare flying. This complex idea is based on three main pillars: the proximity to the clients’ needs, a natural low cost in exchange for no frills, and a lower cost for handling the aircrafts in smaller airports (which nowadays have to compete among themselves). For many years now, low cost airlines have been thriving in North America and Europe (where they still find room to grow), but they haven’t stopped growing. Southeast Asia has now more than one option and even India and Pakistan have their own low-fare carriers. But they still have something in common: the short distance of destinations. But even that will change soon. Entrepreneurs in Hong Kong will launch the first long-haul low cost airline, with cuts up to 80% over the cost on traditional airlines (according to its own sources). Whether this will be successful or not is not even a question. The question is how fast will it become a success?

Another challenge airlines will have to face in the future, specially in countries such as Japan, Germany, Spain or even China is the growth of high speed train travel. And it’s a rather unfair fight that airlines may actually lose: why should a passenger bother going out of town, all the way to the airport, checking in and out, then to another long transfer to the centre of the city upon his arrival? High-speed trains, on the other hand, will nowadays get you from one city centre to the other in almost the same time, with much less hassle.

But, on the other hand, there is a very interesting aspect going on in developing countries. The increase of business making and the growth of the middle class in those countries will bring an all new public to airlines, making it possible for them to grow domestically and also internationally. China is no good example, as it changes every hour, but the transformation of the flying market there is a good example: In 2000, for example, very little foreign companies flew to Guangzhou – only 7- , nowadays there are 16; even Shanghai had to build a new airport (Pudong) only to cope with the influx of flights and a second terminal is already underway, with two more to go. But other places show how different things are nowadays: Dubai was a small emirate for centuries and its airport had little if no importance until the 90’s. Nowadays it’s the hub to one of the fastest growing airlines, consistently voted as one of the best, Emirates. It receives flights from over 60 different airlines; and projects for a second airport in Dubai are already under way. Even in Latin America, LAN (from Chile) has grown into a multi-national company, filling the voids in countries such as Peru or Ecuador.

Finally, there is yet another element to take into analysis: the future of the airlines themselves. In Africa, for example, every day seems to bring new airlines to life (mainly because of failed ventures – as Air Afrique – and political instability, despite the good performances of TACV or Ethiopian Airlines), but in Europe, for example, major airline take-overs are becoming more common, as Air France proved when it bought KLM, and even the failed businesses have their importance: the recent attempt by TAP to purchase Varig; the previous attempt of merging KLM and Alitalia; and the doomed merging of Swissair and Sabena (one of the first airlines in the world). In North America, airlines seem to live on the edge every day, buffered by governmental aid. But the future will certainly see the reinforcement of the present alliances, drawing new companies into themselves and the widening of cooperation agreements.

Today, we live in a world of flying, where more people than ever are getting a chance to fly and where non-first time flyers tend to fly more. The massification of air travel is a fact, and there is no turning back, despite all the set backs. But the niches can always be explored, being low cost, business or very long non-stop flights (A380 will make it possible to fly from Europe to Australia non-stop). And that is also a fact. All this will happen long before Man can hop in a spacecraft to spend a weekend on the Moon.

Of Cultural Globalization and Uniqueness by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-01-31T22:43:00.000+00:00

Can a small city in a West African country not feel African at all?
Mindelo, in the tiny Republic of Cape Verde, can.

The small archipelago located about 400 miles west of the Senegalese coast was only discovered in 1420, by Genovese navigator António di Noli, serving the Portuguese Crown. The first settlement took place in Vila da Ribeira Grande that was to become the earliest European colonial capital in Africa, and one of some importance. For centuries, the town develops and grows in number of inhabitants, prospering as a slave-trade hub, until the Crown decides that slaves are to be taken directly from the Guinean Coast. This marks the decline of what is nowadays known as Cidade Velha (Old Town), a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Without the profits of slavery, pestered by years of droughts and attacked by English, French and Dutch pirates, the islands decline steeply, and an early Capeverdian emigration process takes place. If in a first moment the islands (mostly Santiago, where the capital was located) were exposed to African influences, and those of Brazil and Europe, everything would change in a second moment. Emigration, albeit the fact that Cape Verde was a mere colony, gave the native people – by then, already mostly mulatto or creole – a chance to contribute with different inputs. Constituted mostly by free citizens, many sailed to North and South America, others to Europe, and a big number of them would actually return, along bringing cultural influences that slowly started to change the islands.

In the 19th century, Capeverdian, along with Azorean men, were said to be the strongest, sturdiest and most reliable hands on whalers. Boston, Cape Cod and other communities in New England quickly become one of the major reference points for the islanders, now in the center of a cross that that region with Lisbon, Dakar and Rio de Janeiro. Growing in each generation, the numbers of Capeverdians in America reached a ceiling of an estimated 300.000 in our days.

The same century, however, would bring something more to the islands: the English. Having been colonized mostly by Azorean and southern Portuguese from the mainland, as well as West African and Bantu slaves, the islands had seen only a residual number of European from other origins. When the English Crown forces the Portuguese to allow a coal supply outpost in the deserted island of São Vicente, a major step in the europeization of Cape Verde is given. Over the following two centuries, the harbour would grow to become the city of Mindelo, famed for its warm weather, warm girls and warm music. As a major port, Mindelo attracted Capeverdians from all other islands, with their different habits and ethnic origins, but attracted also sailors from all over Europe. Most influential were the Portuguese and English settlers, but also Brazil started to leave a mark in the islands.

These multiple inputs are visible today in the local vocabulary, that includes many English, French, and Brazilian words, and even in the accent, from a certain fashion of imitation of English mispronunciations. But it is mostly visible in music. Mindelo developed as a posher, more cosmopolitan city than most of the colony, and very early was awarded the first high school in the islands. Its existence would prompt the formation of a well-educated population, whose critic mass would eventually lead to the modernist movement of Claridade (Clarity). The claridosos, as they were known, were painters, writers, poets, bards, and enjoyed the sophistication of knowledge coming from four different continents to rest in their city. The height of the movement took place in the 1920s-30s, in par with the early fascist dictatorship of the colonial metropolis (Estado Novo, or “New State”). Many of the local intellectuals would spend years in political imprisionement, but the change of times could not be prevented. Amílcar Cabral, the independence leader, was born to politics out of Mindelo’s High school and Lisbon’s Technical University, and would unite Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau in a war to achieve freedom. He died before that objective could be reached, in 1975, after the fall of Salazar and his fascist regime.

Throughout the 20th century, despite all the economic and intellectual boom, the bulk of the population, particularly rural inhabitants, was left with little or nothing to live on, facing drought after drought. Again, the only resource was emigration, that scattered Capeverdians all over Europe (mostly Italy, Holland, France and Portugal), USA and Brazil. Along with the high numbers of forced deportations to Angola and São Tomé, the amount of Capeverdians living abroad would quickly double the amount of those staying home.

The eternal dilemma of the islands echoes in its music and poetry in the form of a popular sentence: wanting to leave but having to stay, wanting to stay but having to leave. It marks the true uniqueness of a country that, albeit having one of the highest human development indexes in Africa, has few resources to match.

Walking the streets of Mindelo, one perceives both the cosmopolitan past, and the scarce African influences (that the island received in a limited way, given its late colonization), both the cultured atmosphere and the near desperate poverty of those who had no chance for an education. It does not feel like Africa. It feels like Cape Verde.

Being Susanne Osthoff by Arnild Van de Velde

2006-01-29T00:40:00.000+00:00

Being Susanne Osthoff

The news of Susanne Osthoff's kidnapping last November 2005 had already shocked the German public, as the abudction of 43-year-old archeologist Osthoff represented the first direct attack of modern terrorism against the country. But few weeks later, after Osthoff was released from captivity somewhere near the German Embassy in Baghdad her compatriots were again surprised, as Mrs Osthoff, speaking on television, declared her love for Iraq despite the ordeal that could have cost her life. Since then, she has been having a hard time regaining sympathy in her homecountry, where diplomats, politicians and other negociators have played a key role for her libertation on December 18th.

Murphy's Law

Until her first interview (after three weeks as a hostage in Iraq), Susanne Osthoff was being regarded as a frail and humiliated victim of islamic terrorists. All over the country people signed plea lists claiming for her life, and her family - to which she has almost no contact - kept appealing to the kidnappers to set her free. At the beginning of all misunderstandings, she disappointed her fellow Germans by presenting herself as a "friend of Iraq", on Arab TV Channel Al-Jhazeera. As a matter of fact, German journalists never really understood why she preferred to speak to Al-Jhazeera, instead of giving to Germany's press the chance to release those "breaking news" .

Days later, Susanne Osthoff manage to make worse what was already bad enough. Speaking live from Katar to journalist Margaretha Slomka, from German public Channel ZDF, she sounded extremely confused. But nothing she'd say would be more "disgusting" than the Burka she wore during the interview. From that point on, Mrs. Osthoff was a kind of "fallen hero". "The woman must be nuts", thought a great number of Germans. At the same time the press developed a theory she might be 'mentally disturbed'. Also a local psychologist, known for his work with victims of kidnapping , stated she could have been a" willing party to her own abduction ". Since then, the archaeologist's pleas for compassion have been rejected.

A chronology of facts is necessary to explain the transformation of Susanne Osthoff. From hostage of a not yet officially identified group with links to terror in the Arab world, to a person "whose rights to come and go should be suspended" or "who should have her German passport withdrawn", as suggested by outraged readers of the daily "Bild", misled by a fatal translation error during Osthoff's interview to Al-Jazheera. Speaking to the Arab TV channel, the archaeologist was said to have mentioned her will to go back to Iraq "as soon as possible". As she spoke Arabic, German translators just messed up her words, and their correction afterwords came just too late for her reputation.

Osthoff , who had been working in Iraq for the past 13 years, recovering archeological treasures all over the country, explained later that, as a Muslim, she had to attest publicly that her kidnappers have been respectful to her during those three weeks. "This is a question of honour. Arabs understand this well, and I had to do it", she told, to justify her interview to Al-Jhazeera, as part of the negociation of her freedom. Besides work and faith, Susanne Osthoff also found passion in the Middle East, where the father of her 12-year-old daughter comes from. "I belong to the desert", she keeps saying. The more she tries, Susanne Osthoff can't hardly control her anxiety. She gesticulates wildly, smokes one cigarette after the other, seems about to cry but instead of of having a public nervous breakdown she just manages to say: "I think Germany hates me". She was under intolerable mental strain, being moved from a place to another in a car trunk, with a gun pointed to her head, with no idea what was coming next.

The dream's over

Since former chancellor Gerhard Schröder announced Germany's opposition to America's war on Iraq, Germans have assumed they, as well as their country, would be safe from terrorism. This assumption seems to follow the typical German way of thinking, in which facts and the consequences they might bring stay in a causal relationship to each other. "If we have been kind to them, they will be kind to us", they thought - and felt reasonably good about it. The abduction of Susanne Osthoff put an end to their dreams of safety, despite all the warnings pointing out to the contrary. The behaviour of Susanne Osthoff, who dreams of a life in a tent in the desert, scratched the national pride, for she never showed any homesickness, as she's sure can have it better somewhere else.

On day 12 of her kidnapping, Susanne Osthoff was told she would be submitted to a trial, accused of betraying Islam. Weakened and afraid to die - she was under suspicion of being a spy working for Israel – she challenged her "brother in faith" and told him that she, as himself, had no judgement to face but Allah. He then got the message. On day 24, she was released, probably after payment and secret negotiations. Osthoff, now accused of having served German secret service, is thus sentenced for being herself.

Race Difference by Felix Schürmann

2006-01-24T16:14:00.000+00:00

Fantastic Films and “Race”

Albeit every feature film is a fictional piece, there are qualitatively different levels of claiming to be fictional. In this regard the genres horror film, fantasy film, and science-fiction film – the so-called fantastic film – share an interesting characteristic: While they are more obviously notional on the narrative level than other genres, these films nearly always operate with the conventional cinematic techniques for constructing the impression of depicting reality on the formal level. Within this area of tension between turning away from and turning towards realism, the category “race” gets negotiated in fantastic films, among other things.

Interestingly, nearly all milestones of the genres within the spectrum of fantastic film are full of “racial” metaphors and allegories. To begin with a well-known example, the 1933 box office record King Kong is not least an expression of Western discourses on “race”. James Snead sums up his widely recognized analysis of King Kong and its follow-ups as follows: (Snead 1994: p. 35f.)

“The Kong trilogy remains a perhaps unequaled dissection of the various layers and strains of Western racial and sexual fantasy, and serves up a perhaps endless menu of contradictions, compromises, and subterfuges, all in service of what the films of the thirties did best: the glorification and mythification of archetypal white male and female types, and the canonization of their typically lopsided alliances.”

A new version of King Kong has recently been shot by Peter Jackson, one of the most prominent directors in fantastic film at present. Interestingly enough, Jackson initially earned his reputation with a Zombie film, Braindead (1992). This is interestingly therefore, that the Zombie film has its origins in a representation of “race issues”, too. The initial film for this genre, Night of the Living Dead (1968), confronts a black hero with a crowd of white enemies, wherein it makes hardly a difference between living and dead whites, male and female whites, or white families and police squads. In his seminal essay “White”, Richard Dyer analyzed Night of the Living Dead and its follow-ups in-depth and dwelt on “the explicitness of their political allegory” (Dyer 1988: p. 59). Basically, Dyer reads the film as a multi-layered metaphor for “white loss of control” (ibid. p. 63), be that in terms of control over the US or of control over the white body:

“’The fear of one’s own body, of how one controls it and relates to it’ and the fear of not being able to control other bodies, those bodies whose exploitation is so fundamental to capitalist economy, are both at the heart of whiteness. Never has this horror been more deliriously evoked than in these films of the Dead.” (ibid.)

In Braindead, Peter Jackson didn’t pluck up the racial allegories of Night of the Living Dead, but he strongly referred to King Kong in the opening sequence. There a monster got snatched by white adventurers on an island inhabited by black “savages”, and – likewise in King Kong – this island is depicted as a natural space without a history, whereas the urban space is populated solely by whites. “Race” is also a major explanatory category in Jackson’s biggest success so far, the triple-feature Lord of the Rings (2001-2003). In 2002, the British newspaper The Guardian published a poignant polemic on the films and the underlying novel, which got straight to the heart of the subject as follows:

“The Lord of the Rings is racist. It is soaked in the logic that race determines behaviour. Orcs are bred to be bad, they have no choice. The evil wizard Saruman even tells us that they are screwed-up elves. Elves made bad by a kind of devilish genetic modification programme. They deserve no mercy.

To cap it all, the races that Tolkien has put on the side of evil are then given a rag-bag of non-white characteristics that could have been copied straight from a BNP leaflet. Dark, slant-eyed, swarthy, broad-faced – it's amazing he doesn't go the whole hog and give them a natural sense of rhythm.” (Yatt 2002)

Science Fiction and the “Extraterrestrialization” of the Other

But out of wide and intriguing area of representations of “race” in fantastic films, I want to focus the science fiction genre, in particular two films of the science fiction boom in the 1980s, Blade Runner (1982) and Brother From Another Planet (1984). Among others, a major feature of science fiction stories is the presence of non-human creatures, these can be human-made “cybernetic organisms” (“cyborgs”, hybrid-beings constructed of organic and synthetic components, e.g. like in Metropolis/1927) or extraterrestrial “Aliens” (most-known example might be Alien/1979). Several film scholars read the cyborgs/Aliens in science fiction films as a metaphor for immigrants. Charles Ramírez Berg for example interprets that like the monsters in German expressionist films in the 1910s and 1920s (e.g. in Der Golem/1914 or Homunculus/1916) have been “projections of a socially unconscious dread of the Jew” (Berg 1989: 16), Aliens in science fiction films can be read as “symbols for immigrants” (Berg 1989: 4):

“As we know, since the days of silent cinema not just Hispanics but all ethnics have been dealt with in American movies mainly by stereotyping. Now an interesting distortion has occurred: Hispanics and other ethnics have become Creatures from Another Planet, Aliens that must be eliminated – either lovingly, or by returning them to their native environments (…) or violently, by destroying them.” (Berg 1989: p. 5)

Albeit I think Berg overestimates his point a bit, his analysis leads to the fruitful idea of an interpretation of the boom of the science fiction genre after World War 2 as a displacement of xenophobic fears out of the real-life sphere into outerspace – as an “extraterristrialization” of “the Other” –, with regard to the discrediting of explicitly xenophobic representations of immigration issues in Hollywood (e.g. like in Cecil B. DeMille’s The Cheat/1915) by the experience of the consequences of Nazi racism.

In this respect it is an interesting question why two films out of a further boom of the science fiction genre in the 1980s, Blade Runner and Brother From Another Planet, attack the borders that mark-off the difference between the humans and the cyborgs/Aliens. In both films, the cyborgs/Aliens are visually indistinguishable from humans – from white humans in Blade Runner, and from black humans in The Brother From Another Planet. For Blade Runner, Berg himself gathers from this fact that the film supports a quiet progressive claim:

“By seeing the Alien Other in human terms, it once again forces consideration of how the long-range aims of immigration reform in this country conflict with the nation’s cherished humanitarian ideals. True to one side of its generic roots, the film noir, in the end Blade Runner ruminates on the existentially inexplicable, raising more questions than its futuristic private investigator – or we as a society – are able to answer.” (Berg 1989: 14)

Blade Runner

It is part of the great reputation of Blade Runner that it allows a wide range of possible and plausible readings. For example, not only the replicant’s dilemma of deceasing in a few years – but not knowing exactly when –, but also the lifetime shortening disease of J. F. Sebastian could be read as a footnote on AIDS, what came up in the time when Blade Runner has been shot. Furthermore, there is also a wide religious imagery on the formal as well as on the narrative level: The head of the replicants, Roy Batty, leads them out of slavery like the prophet Moses did with the Jews, he spikes his hand like the hands Jesus Christ have been spiked, and in his dialogue with Tyrell, who lives in a Babel-like mega building and is represented as the big creator, he depicts himself as the lost son.

As I mentioned before, in respect to the topic “race” the cyborg characters are a key element for the analysis. As in other science fiction films not only but especially of the 1980s, the cyborgs in Blade Runner cannot be visually distinguished from humans. In James Cameron’s The Terminator (1984), which obviously got strong impulses from Blade Runner, the human cyborg hunter Kyle Reese mentions: “They look human: sweat, bad breath, everything. Very hard to spot.” In Blade Runner, cyborg hunter Deckard makes a similar experience, the replicants are invisible. They embody the old racist fear of the blurring of visual “racial” boundaries. Deckard’s special ability is to make the boundaries visible again by identifying the replicants with the so-called “Voight-Kampff-Test”, which gets used to provoke emotions (allegedly) only humans can feel. In contrast with Charles Ramírez Berg, my argument is that the metaphorical imagery of Blade Runner in respect to “race” is reaching far beyond American migration issues and among others is also strongly referring to anti-Semitism.

The sharp contrast between the film noir-like hardboiledness of the human characters and the emotionalism of the replicants – especially of Roy Batty in the final sequences –, discredits the “Voight-Kampff-Test” as absurd. Not only that the German-sounding name of the test is evocative of the history of fascism (at least for American audiences), but also it is one of many hints in the film illustrating the brutality and arbitrariness of the rule. A lot of significant science fiction films project elements of fascism onto their imaginations of future social order, for example Metropolis (1927), Fahrenheit 451 (1966), A Clockwork Orange (1971) or Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984). But in none of these films the references to anti-Semitism are as distinct as they are in Blade Runner. Besides the ominous “Voight-Kampff-Test” with its questions for origin, there are the Hebrew-originated names of the replicants Rachael and Zhora which evoke associations to the Nazi practices of identifying Jews.

In Fact, Deckard’s problem to identify an “invisible race” among whites is comparable with the problem of the “Aryan” characters of Jud Süß (1940), the most notorious anti-Semitic feature film shot in Nazi Germany. Both films use the conflict of identifying an “invisible race” for their major objective, what is to construct difference in the case of Jud Süß and to deconstruct difference in the case of Blade Runner. In Jud Süß it is the Jews and in Blade Runner it is the replicants, who are causing the film’s major conflict by leaving the place assigned to them and irrupt with an emancipatory intention into an urban sphere where they are not allowed to be. A further interesting similarity is the confusing inconclusiveness in both films when it comes to the intelligence of the “racial Other”. In Jud Süß, when the young “Aryan role model” Faber is frustrated and states: “We’ll never be as clever as the Jews”, his old counterpart Sturm answers encouraging: “The Jews aren’t clever. They are just more cunning.” A likewise woolly logic is expressed in the opening crawl of Blade Runner, which says replicants are “at least equal in intelligence” to humans. But while Blade Runner intensifies this insecurity and eventually leaves open if replicants are more intelligent than humans, as it doesn’t make a hundred per cent clear if Rachael is a replicant or if Deckard is a human, Jud Süß turns to highlight difference and lets the Jewish project fail at the end.

The Brother from Another Planet

Two years after Blade Runner premiered, another science fiction film with a strong and at first sight even more obvious racial metaphoric hit the cinemas: In John Sayles The Brother from Another Planet (1984) an Alien (the “Brother”), which is physically (nearly) identical with a black human, crash-lands in Harlem. Like many science fiction films of the 1980s, the whole story takes place in the urban space of a metropolis. The continuous symbolism of the film is announced right in the beginning, when the spaceship of the Alien is crashing just in front of an “immigration center”. Like Blade Runner, The Brother From Another Planet is full of references to the sphere of fantastic film (for example, a white computer gamer is compared with a Zombie) as well as to the sphere of religion (the “Brother” is able to heal by laying on of hands – machines as well as human bodies, what is also interestingly indeed). Furthermore, black heritage and identity is an omnipresent issue in the film, be that dialogues on slavery, the “Brother”’s visit of an exhibition on Afro-American history, or the characters representing different parts of black history in the US.

An important difference between these films is that Blade Runner uses the cyborg Other while The Brother From Another Planet works with the Alien Other, and that Blade Runner‘s characters are solely white, while The Brother From Another Planet works mainly with black characters. The latter features an Alien Other which is visually indistinguishable from the Black Other. But in contrast to Blade Runner and other science fiction films of the 1980s, the Alien is widely passive. The “Brother” gets treated by humans, he doesn’t make nearly no decisions by himself. Depicting different kinds of treatments, the film unfolds how the Other gets constructed in the American society. In particular the film highlights the attempts of black humans to integrate the “Brother” into their identity concepts. In The Brother From Another Planet, the major factor for the process of constructing the Other is inclusion, not exclusion. Even though a symbolic black community eventually drives away the white bounty hunters who are chasing the “Brother” (and, by the way, introduce themselves as “immigration officers” in the pub), the film unmistakably deals out criticism on black identity politics. Besides, the black pub patrons are not free from xenophobic fears, when they talk about Haitians and Polynesians.

However, the most astonishing element in this process seems to be that the construction of the Other doesn’t need no communication. While Blade Runner is negotiating “race” mainly within the sphere of the visual, The Brother From Another Planet centers the hearing-related sphere of communication. Because he can’t speak (at least the language of the humans), the communication between the “Brother” and the humans is limited and always single-edged. This one-sidedness works up to a derisive climax when it comes to the dialogues between the “Brother” and white characters. While communicating with black humans is very difficult for the “Brother”, communicating with white humans is nearly impossible. The white women who cares for the “Brother” as well as the lost students in the pub give endless monologues. Contrary to the black humans in the film, they even hardly recognize the one-sidedness of their communication. Like in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, for the Alien a real communication is only possible with a child. However, unlike in Steven Spielberg’s box office record, in this case “going home” is no way out for the Alien in the end. Rather it seems that the film is suggesting that there is no home for the Other.

Conclusion

Blade Runner and The Brother From Another Planet unfold and discredit the process of constructing difference. Following this objective, Blade Runner uses the cyborg Other while The Brother From Another Planet works with the Alien Other. Per definitionem, cyborgs are artificially constructed while Aliens are “naturally different”. Blade Runner questions the artificiality of the cyborg, and The Brother From Another Planet unfolds that “natural difference” is socially constructed. In this regard, both films break with the narrative tradition of science fiction film. A further major contradiction to the conventions of the genre is the ending in both films: The objective of classic science fiction narratives featuring heroes fighting against cyborgs/Aliens is no less than restoration. LeiLani Nishime notes that

“Within the generic logic of horror and science fiction, these Others must be expelled or destroyed to restore the status quo. It follows that films in these genres can also be read as simple expressions of racism or xenophobia as they seek to reinforce and solidify differences.” (Nishime 2005: p. 35)

However, in Blade Runner as well as in The Brother From Another Planet restoration is impossible in the end. In Blade Runner, Deckard has become the Other, while in The Brother From Another Planet the Alien Other has merged in the human Others. But even though both films let come true a lot of racist nightmares, they end not too optimistic: The hero gets confronted with a dangerous future without a perspective for home and identity.

Read more on this in Dirk Salowsky's article Excuse Me, Do You Match This Stereotype?

Realism and Utopia by M.J.Ferreira

2006-01-20T15:28:00.000+00:00

As a research area, International Relations is still in its youth. The evolution of a scientific field is often judged by the development of methodologies, theories and concepts. The autonomous construction of concepts by an academic field demands a thorough reasoning about epistemological and ontological questions. This degree of intellectual maturity is only attainable with the constitution of a scientific research community willing to underpin such efforts. The autonomization of a scientific area entails, frequently, a walk in a tortuous path, for the academic locus is one of the most fearful terrains for power and knowledge competition.

The scientific study of International Relations emerged from the ashes of World War I. Academics were asked to study the causes of conflict and war so that politicians could learn how to avoid and prevent them. Hence, it is fair to say that, since its inception, International Relations was related and compromised with reality. The founding fathers’ mission was to discover ways to improve the international society. A normative framework was always present, being truly seriously upheld by the first generation of International Relations’ investigators. Thus, they were politically and socially empowered not to describe reality but to work, think and be engaged on it. Later, and for that reason, they were accused of being idealists. Utopia became synonymous of thinking beyond existing reality.

This critic was built and reified by International Relations’ second-generation scholars, among which Edward Carr was one of the most significant personalities. Calling themselves realists, this second generation set a distinction between two types of internationalist thinkers: those who wrote about the so-called international reality and those who worked on normative hypothesis, meaning what international relations should be. The science evolved, framed by this distinction.
After World War II, realism gained a hegemonic status. Its theoretical beliefs became epistemologically and ontologically engrained in the form International Relations were thought and explained. The bipolar international system that followed contributed to empower such a vision.
Realism can be described through three simple words: states, anarchy and conflict. This kind of trilogy was perpetuated and is still present in the late 1970’s version of realism: Kenneth Waltz’s neo-realism.

The theoretical assumptions of the realist school constituted the framework for concepts construction (the proper word is, indeed, construction, for all science is a construction) in International Relations almost until the end of the century. One good example is the concept of power. Realism framed the concept of power in materialist terms. Power became identical to strength. Strength, measured by the possession of military instruments, was understood as the main attribute of states in their endless struggle to survive in a self-help international system. The immaterial dimension of power was considered extraneous. To construct concept, academic set aside factors considered irrelevant. In a positivist framework, to make science investigators must have independent analytical variables, along with causal mechanical relations and established truths.

When we analyse the realist framework for power we are led to assume that the purpose (the proper word is purpose, for all science has a purpose) is to reproduce the existence of a security dilemma among states as well as the quality of states as the main actors in international relations. Studies about the origins of war state that one of its most probable causes lies in the existence of a war industry that needs markets for its products. States are portrayed as consumers ready to be convinced about the goodness of a certain product. The persuasion process entails the subsistence of an aggressive environment, conveniently fed by private economic actors. Wars are often staged dramas, thrillers or comedies with a proper combination of puppets, fiction and reality. However, constructing international power from a materialist framework serves another purpose: depolitising the immaterial nature of power.

Power is fundamentally linked with obtaining results. Actors only get results if they are able to shape the environment that surrounds them. For that they need to have the capacity to determine how such environment thinks and acts. That kind of capacity is immaterial and is all about knowledge and asserting values. Power in different social fields cannot be understood without its normative content.
This normative dimension of power is especially important in International Relations, for its environment is devoid of state-like structures capable of imposing a social order to prevent anarchy. The inexistence of a super state turns international anomy a more credible image. An image easily presented by realists and neo-realists as the truth. Therefore, normative power is a way to construct order patterns on the international scene. However, realist scholars converse this argument, stating that it is precisely the inexistence of a social international order that empties norms of its relevancy. International values become the Utopia. International reality becomes depolitised, for it can only be managed and staged, and never modified.

Several authors, especially from the 1970’s forward, have tried to frame International Relations on new grounds. They claim that the international arena and the domestic environments are connected by what James Rosenau calls “linkage politics”. The increase of transnational flows among several kinds of actors is the background for the image of international interdependence. Following Alexander Wendt, international society is understood not as a given structure of relations but as a social construction open to change and evolution.

The transnationalist school of thought understands the concept of power as a product of material and immaterial elements. Special importance is given to the difference between power and influence. Power is to impose behaviour through control. Influence is to lead behaviour through persuasion.

To state that there is a linkage between international and domestic environments, and that both systems are socially constructed through coercion and persuasion equals to assert that order in the international scene cannot be maintained through international power balances or occasional international agreements. International order is assured through the existence of a normative hegemony. Such hegemony needs to be understood, exposed and questioned.

As an academic research area, International Relations is still in its youth. Its tortuous path towards scientific maturity is showing how norms do make a difference.

The Democratic Value of Lobbying by Dirk Salowsky

2006-01-15T10:00:00.000+00:00

Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on or by imbeciles who really mean it. -Mark Twain

January 4, 2006. Jack Abramoff is in the newspapers. A lobbyist out of thousands (actually tens of thousands!) who will unveil his professional secrets and pleads guilty to charges of tax evasion, fraud and conspiracy. In a very cynical way one might ask: So, isn’t this what lobbyism is all about? Arguing with the first amendment to the U.S. constitution, lobbyism officially is only a more sophisticated kind of petitioning. Sounds honorable indeed.

I will not deny that lobbyism, as such, is a democratic way of advertising public interests – by U.S. law, anyone can send out a lobbyist and have him registered, as provided in the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (the most recent modification of a lobbying regulation). And as J.W.Baran pointed out in the Washington Post on January 8, “there are now more than 27,000 registered lobbyists petitioning“. Lobbyism is regulated, usually well documented and said to not usually be prone to fraud and conspiracy. Very well. In favor of honorable lobbyists I have to admit that with so many “grievance petitioners” around it is hard to see why Members of Congress would require overly extravagant tokens of sympathy at all – they should already be drowning in a regular flood of all kinds of support-enhancing commodities. And even though the value of a gift (this includes invitations, dinners etc.) must not exceed certain limits, the abundance of donors will certainly not have any member of the House suffer from a shortage of little somethings. Of course there are not only the gifts, but also profitable contacts. Those tend to last longer than a gourmet dinner.

Indeed, who will ever be able to tell which decision in favor of a lobby was legally influenced by righteous lobbyists and supported by righteous politicians? Who knows whether all gifts, invitations, donations are acknowledged by uninvolved eyes? Who knows what remains hidden or happens “in private”? Secrecy is a useful ingredient in all kinds of influencing – albeit to keep other parties from counteracting. And obviously also a considerable number of elected legislators is pretty well aware of the benefits of secrecy. It is only useful that their circles are exclusive – in several meanings of that word.

Exclusiveness is, when not a matter of status (and if so even the more) connected to money. You pay money to your lobbyist or rather to your lobbying firm. You do need money to prepare and undermine the petition. And you will need money to get attention and indebt someone to favors. In order to achieve anything you simply can’t be “anyone” hiring a lobbyist. This is the first drawback as far as democracy is concerned. It is a democracy of the rich. Well-known drawback number two: many lobbyists are hired by companies and associations. (Let anyone trying to argue that companies feed and feed on working citizens be reminded of the terms “globalization” and “outsourcing”.) But I am not aiming at the (dis)advantages of a liberal economy for the people. My point is influence.

The original democratic idea of grievance petitioners was certainly not to enable affluent persons or entities to ensure that their assets be protected and more easily amounted, as seen in the most prominent cases of lobbying. There is another drawback: let’s call it the “Halliburton Factor”. U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney was Halliburton’s CEO, and after the second invasion to Iraq in 2003 his former company benefited from several contracts related to the war (troop’s food supply, restoration of infrastructure). If we allow common sense to draw the obvious conclusions from officially still unproven implications, in this case a lobbyist wasn’t even needed to influence decisions in favor of a legal entity. The best lobbyist is definitely someone from inside the system. But not only a former CEO is a useful lobbyist. According to Public Citizen there has been a clear trend among former lawmakers, i.e. former members of Congress, to enter the lobbying business. The advantages for a former member are too obvious to be recounted.

So where are the people in this rule of theirs – democracy? You do not need an Abramoff to find that influence on legislation is hardly where it belongs, that it is hardly with the people. But even without lobbyism as it is, in a country of over 200 million a truly representative democracy is an illusion. Europe could face a similar fate in a globalizing Union. I caught myself asking: if citizens are underrepresented anyway, why do I care for politics at all?

January 8, 2006. Tom DeLay steps down as House majority leader due to connections with Jack Abramoff. No doubt it would have been better if this whole affair had never happened. But would it ever have become a scandal if citizens didn’t care?

News we should be ashamed of in 2005 by Andréa Medrado

2006-01-12T08:00:00.000+00:00

A new year is just beginning. Browsing the magazines, I read about the most important events in 2005. I see the shocking pictures of a flooded New Orleans, the smiling face of Condoleezza during her world travels, and the not-so-smiling face of Benedict XVI, the new pope. I am also drawn to the eye-candy Hollywood couple, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, find out about the hottest celebrities of the year and, surprise, learn that Ronaldo, the Brazilian soccer player, is dating another model.

Following the examples of the magazines’ and TV shows’ end of the year specials, I decided to blog about the news that caught my attention in 2005. The difference is that I will not simply list the events (and, hopefully, they will not be as shallow). The stories I chose indicate that our society has not evolved beyond the prejudices and brutality that still take place up until the present day. Although only two in zillions of news that can make us angry, they illustrate a world of cruelty, injustice, and inequality we should all be embarrassed about.

Story 1) The US carried out its 1000th execution.

On December 2, 2005, the 1000th person was put to death in North Carolina. Kenneth Boyd, a convicted killer, was executed for the murder of his wife and her father. Boyd spent 11 years on death row after being convicted of stalking and shooting his wife, Julie, and her father, Thomas. According to BBC, he never denied his guilt, though he has claimed that his experiences in Vietnam contributed to his state of mind on the day of the killings.

There is no doubt about the grievousness of the crime Boyd committed. I can definitely understand that an outraged victim of crime seeks extreme punitive measures for the murderer. The history of mankind is filled with war, violence and revenge. However, I cannot help but notice the irony of this incident. Boyd was a Vietnam veteran, which leads me to the conclusion that the state played the following roles in this case: it taught a man how to kill, by training him for war, it annihilated his mental health, by sending him to war, and finally, it literally killed him, by applying the lethal injection.

The question is: how legitimate is it for the state to kill its citizens? In the midst of the 21st century, capital punishment is immoral, cruel and inhumane.

Recent pools do, however, indicate support for death penalty is starting to wane. Courts have been less inclined to use it.

Story 2) Another school barrier for girls in Africa: no toilet.

Written by Sharon LaFraniere, the article ran on the New York Times on December 23, 2005. It talks about schoolgirls struggle for an education in sub-Saharan Africa.

In Balizenda, a rural community in Ethiopia, Fatimah Bamun is the only girl of the 23 students in her class. In fact, she is one of the three girls in the school who have made it past third grade. In a school where there is no latrine and no water, the onset of puberty makes it very difficult for girls to keep attending school.

According to LaFraniere’s story, “in a region where poverty, tradition and ignorance deprive an estimated 24 million girls of even an elementary school education, the impact of nonexistent school toilets and water on girls' attendance was until recently unfit for discussion”.

That impact of the lack of hygiene and privacy is substantial. “Researchers throughout sub-Saharan Africa have documented that lack of sanitary pads, a clean, girls-only latrine and water for hand-washing drives a significant number of girls out of school. The United Nations Children's Fund, for example, estimates that one in 10 school-age African girls either skip school during menstruation or drop out entirely because of lack of sanitation”.

International organizations, African education ministries and women’s rights movements are increasingly rallying behind the notion of a "girl-friendly" school, one that is more secure and closer to home, with a healthy share of female teachers and a clean toilet with a door and water for hand-washing.

On the positive side, the article points out that Unicef is building latrines and bringing clean water to 300 Ethiopian schools. Still, more than half of the nation's 13,181 primary schools lack water, more than half lack latrines and some lack both. Moreover, those with latrines may have just one for 300 students, according to Therese Dooley, Unicef's sanitation project officer.

Final Words

Stem cell research, the Women’s Liberation Movement, the Internet. There is no denying of the advancements we have made in the past century. However, reading about the Ethiopian girls’ battle for something as essential as a toilet, and that the world’s most industrialized nation’s way of punishing its wrong-doers does not differ much from that of the medieval times, I realize that our society still has a long way to go.

How Werner Herzog Sank In Loch Ness by Pedro F Marcelino

2006-01-09T21:38:00.000+00:00

It’s the year 1999 – last century, to be exact. It seems so far away today, the time when we actually wrote years not starting with the number 2. The Internet was finally thiving as high-speed connections gave the first steps, after six years of very-slow-to-moderate growth. The Blair Witch Project’s media-savvy, show-making producers had the whole of the western world drooling in anticipation for their soon-to-be-biggest-story-flop-of-the-year, despite their clever manipulation of this new communication medium.

Scotland is on the edge. One night, at the fall of darkness, there is a boat party in Loch Linnhe. I attend, as do a score of Swedes, a score of French, a small wedding party of eight and a few more Scots. The barge sets off to the middle of a foggy and somewhat creepy loch. There is fiddle playing, highland dancing, drunken singing. I wear a kilt as tradition orders, and feel my lowlands freezing in the cold lake temperature. It should be close to midnight when we feel a strong bump on the rowdy boat. Sure, some of us are innebriated, but we all feel the bump. With a few yelps, everyone climbs up on deck within seconds and looks out into the quiet night. Someone drops a bottle of beer into the depths of the loch. The surface ripples mildly, the moon shines in one spot of the black water. Nobody understands what has happened. And then, the reflection of the moon blackens with what appears to be the shape of an animal. We are in Fort William, front door to the Western Highlands and gateway between the North Sea via Firth of Lorn and the Loch Ness via Loch Lochy.

Time ellapses: 2005. The Blair Witch Project isn’t but a sad memory in the history of thriller movies. The world without Internet is now unimaginable. I am sitting in my living room – zapping away – and land in IFC (where all the cool movies go). A close up of director Werner Herzog fills the screen, as he speaks straight to the camera. His wrinkles are trustworthy, his strong accent gives him that small edge that makes him eccentric rather than mad. I remember watching documentaries about him, remember watching his movies – serious, heavy works of cinematic art, for the most (The Wild Blue Yonder, Woyzeck, Fitzcarraldo, Cobra Verde, Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Nosferatu The Vampyre, My Best Friend), many of them made masterpieces by the genious acting and vicious off-camera stories of Klaus Kinski.

It takes me the better of twenty minutes to quite gather what Werner Herzog is doing on my screen. He had apparently accepted a proposition to follow the story of the comings and goings of mythical Nessie. For most, a silly legend, Nessie is a true obsession for many, and a perfectly feasible story for those who allow themselves to be lost in Scottish folk culture. How much of it is true and how much is a product of imagination, is a difficult question. But if you ever were bumped upon on a barge in Loch Linnhe, you certainly will want to see the movie. Yet, why would a man like Herzog risk his reputation for a story such as this? On the other hand, he actually had a reputation for risky stories, wherever in the world there was story to be told. The movie, a making-of documentary on the Enigma at Loch Ness, suggested a methodic approach by the director, and explored the decision making process for the production. My television set’s information sheet informed me the movie was actually called Incident at Loch Ness (IMDb). And this was when things started to grow stranger: the events on Werner’s barge were uncommon, it was not clear how did he expect to track Nessie in a loch that spans 80 km in width, and the tone of the whole production kept me aback. I was glued to my seat as the last minutes of the movie evolve. And then I ran to surf the web, something we can all easily do in these days of the twenty-first century. I cannot really say more without being a spoiler. Werner Herzog did something the Blair-Witch-junkies only dreamt of: he created fear, awe and confusion – at least in my limited mind. And the public loved him for that (yet again).

Scotland, back in those dark days of 1999. From the window of my Fort William flat, looking straight into Loch Linnhe, I can see the shores on most days, and with any luck, the fog will actually clear for a few minutes every day and allow me to look on to Camosnagaul, across the waters. It is in one such day that I take off to Glasgow on a very old fashioned train. The ride crosses Glencoe, leaves the mighty Ben Nevis behind and crosses sceneries of lush beauty, serious imponence and scattered highland cows. On the way back, the weather has predictably changed. I take the bus this time, and as it leaves Glasgow and ventures into the winding roads around Loch Lomond, it starts raining. Or actually pouring – the window acts as a waterfall. But as far as Scotland goes, the weather is ever elusive. As fast as it started, the rain stops, the fog lifts and reveals the calm gray waters. Simultaneously, a dash of sunlight pierces a low, heavy cloud, and shines near the bank, shedding a gorgeous golden light on the mossy munros across the lake. The bus halts, as if to allow a better view. A small, soaked Japanese lad boards, and addresses the butch driver in a flimsy English – ‘I would like a ticket to Loch Ness, please’, I made out of his broken sentence. The man laughs out loudly and places a friendly, tattooed arm on the lad’s shoulder: ‘Which part of it, mate…!?’
Everyone, all over the world, wants to meet Nessie. Not me.

The expected tune plays on the radio.

Oh, ye'll tak the high road, and I'll tak the low road,
And I'll be in Scotland afore ye;
But me and my true love will never meet again
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o' Loch Lomond

[You can read more on Scotland’s Western Highlands in Dirk Salowsky’s article here]