Further information at: Not-so-Random Information: Introduction and Table of Contents
I. Education
Abby Martin interviews Richard Grove on Russia Today’s “Breaking the Set” (RT) - John Taylor Gatto playlist available at: The Ultimate History Lesson.
II. Peak Oil
New Zealand Parliament: The Next Oil Shock? - “The US Department of Energy (DoE) calls oil ‘the lifeblood of modern civilisation’. Around 86 million barrels (13.7 billion litres) are consumed each day. Oil supplies 37 percent of the world’s energy demand, including 40 percent of New Zealand’s energy demand. It powers nearly all of the world’s transportation, without which production and trade would grind to a halt. Studies have shown that GDP growth is very strongly related to increased use of oil. When the price of oil increases, the cost of nearly all economic activity rises. This often induces recessions. High oil prices have been associated with three major periods of economic recession in the past 40 years, including the lead-up to the recent global economic crisis. The world’s oil production capacity may not be sufficient to match growing demand in coming years. The potential for short-falls arises from geological, infrastructure, and political/economic constraints limiting the ability of world oil production capacity to grow while demand continues to rise. If oil supply cannot meet demand a price spike may be triggered, with major detrimental effects on economies, especially those heavily dependent on oil imports like New Zealand.”
III. Prohibition
Canada's War on Weed - “With a reported value of over six billion dollars, it's no secret that marijuana in British Columbia is big business. However, due to the recent legalization of weed in Washington and Colorado, the draconian crime laws pushed forward by the Canadian Conservative government's omnibus crime bill, and recent changes to medical marijuana regulations, the entire industry is suddenly facing an identity crisis. VICE Canada went west to talk to the people directly affected by these recent events: from the legalization activists and the large and small scale growers, to the illegal traffickers and law enforcement, we talked to the people on the front lines of the battle for control over one of Canada's most undervalued resource.”
IV. Cannabis Experiments
Local woman took part in weird 1972 experiment in marijuana use - “In the winter of 1972, 20 young women took part in one of the weirdest scientific experiments in this country’s history. For 98 days in a downtown Toronto hospital, their brains, hearts, kidneys, livers, blood and urine were rigorously tested and analyzed. A team of nurses kept round-the-clock records of their behaviour, logged at half-hour intervals. Just how was marijuana affecting the 10 who had to smoke it every day? Forty-one years later, these women are still wondering what exactly happened to them during their three-month stretch as human guinea pigs.”
V. War on Nature
Culture in Decline | Episode #4 "War On Nature" by Peter Joseph - “In this episode, Peter investigates the nature of War and human conflict; the White House declares War On Nature itself; a french chef prepares an international delicacy for the kids; Louie the Logic Gremlin returns to piss everyone off and our Man on the Street gets rowdy. Special guest appearances by Stephane Chivot, Katie Goodman & Rick Overton.”
VI. Privacy
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) 2013 Privacy Report: Who Has Your Back? - “In this annual report, the Electronic Frontier Foundation examined the policies of major Internet companies — including ISPs, email providers, cloud storage providers, location-based services, blogging platforms, and social networking sites — to assess whether they publicly commit to standing with users when the government seeks access to user data. The purpose of this report is to incentivize companies to be transparent about how data flows to the government and encourage them to take a stand for user privacy whenever it is possible to do so.”
VII. Birgitta Jónsdóttir
Icelandic Lawmaker Birgitta Jónsdóttir on Challenging Gov’t Secrecy from Twitter to Bradley Manning (Part 2) - “Icelandic Parliamentarian Birgitta Jónsdóttir played a critical role in WikiLeaks’ release of the ‘Collateral Murder’ video, which showed a U.S. military helicopter in July 2007 as it killed 12 people and wounded two children in Iraq. Jónsdóttir joins us on her first trip to the United States since a secret grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, began its investigation of WikiLeaks and Julian Assange. She also discusses her role at the center of another closely watched legal case — challenging of the government’s effort to obtain her Twitter records without a warrant — and why she has come to the United States to champion the cases of military whistleblower Bradley Manning and the accused hacker Jeremy Hammond.”
VIII. Resistance
The Fossil Fuel Resistance: As the world burns, a new movement to reverse climate change is emerging - fiercely, loudly and right next door - “It got so hot in Australia in January that the weather service had to add two new colors to its charts. A few weeks later, at the other end of the planet, new data from the CryoSat-2 satellite showed 80 percent of Arctic sea ice has disappeared. We're not breaking records anymore; we're breaking the planet. In 50 years, no one will care about the fiscal cliff or the Euro crisis. They'll just ask, ‘So the Arctic melted, and then what did you do?’ Here's the good news: We'll at least be able to say we fought. After decades of scant organized response to climate change, a powerful movement is quickly emerging around the country and around the world, building on the work of scattered front-line organizers who've been fighting the fossil-fuel industry for decades. It has no great charismatic leader and no central organization; it battles on a thousand fronts. But taken together, it's now big enough to matter, and it's growing fast.”
IX. Thatcherism
Glenda Jackson launches tirade against Thatcher in tribute debate - “Causing howls of outrage, and grimaces on fellow Labour MPs faces, Glenda Jackson MP defies the respectful mood of the chamber by launching a nasty, angry and ferocious assault on 'Thatcherism' - earrings bouncing around - in a debate marked by calm tribute to the late great Lady Thatcher.”
X. Sustainability Experiment
Arcosanti - “Arcosanti is an experimental town that began construction in 1970 in central Arizona, 70 mi (110 km) north of Phoenix, at an elevation of 3,732 feet (1,130 meters). Architect Paolo Soleri, using a concept he called arcology, started the town to demonstrate how urban conditions could be improved while minimizing the destructive impact on the earth.”
XI. Dandelions in Permaculture
Dandelions in Permaculture - “Eden Gal from True Nature Farm in Boulder, Utah starts off by telling us about how dandelions will soften soil. Alexia Allen pf Hawthorn Farm in Woodinville, Washington shows a polyculture with a lot of garlic and some huge dandelions. She finds a dandelion leaf that is more than half her height. And eat it. She talks about which leaves are less bitter and how her taste for bitter has developed as she has gotten older….”
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