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Peace and Justice Issues (6)

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Sandblasting - A Deadly Trend

By David Ng On May 02, 2012 | 3 Comments

Ethem Ozguven is one of our volunteers from Turkey. He has made a film about the dangers of sandblasting, which is a technique used to distress jeans. This technique causes long term damage to the body, and has also been proven to be lethal. Ethem and David discuss the issue and how it is connected to multinational corporations.

Denim – something that was developed for its durability, and longevity when used as clothing for hard labour has emerged as a hot fashion item in the past decade, with fashion designers implementing new innovative technologies to create new looks and to set trends. I’m sure most of us have at least three pairs in our wardrobe!

What is shocking is the technology that is still used in some parts of the world to create these distressed looks. One technology we want to look at particularly is sand blasting. This technique is basically sand that is blasted at a very high speed out of a hose (held and controlled by a human being), which causes the denim to distress. Most countries have laws banning this practice, as it has been linked to silicosis, which is a form of lung disease. However, countries who are seeking foreign investments may lower their labour regulations in order to make their communities more appealing. As in the film The Corporation, the classic example of this is sweatshops – where countries (usually developing countries) are pressured by multinational corporations to lower their labour standards in order to invite corporations to come in and set up factories to create jobs.

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David Ng is a Hello Cool World veteran with experience going back a decade. David first worked with us when he was just 14 years old as a participant in the youth advisory group for the sexual health education program Condomania. Now an accomplished videographer passionate about the issues of gender and power, he is currently on sabbatical in South Africa while he pursues a Masters in Gender Studies with a focus on international developme

OWS & ACT UP Demand Wall Street Ante Up

By Jennifer Slattery On April 16, 2012 | 1 Comments

One of our volunteers, Jennifer Slattery, is heading back to the Occupy Wall Street site in New York and will be reporting live via twitter. Check back frequently to see what is going on at #OWS! There will be a LIVE "Occupy Your Future" twitter feed where you will be able to see what is happening on the ground at #OWS.

ACT UP X OCCUPY After a long winter, it's time to go back to Wall St. for this activist. And I am very excited about the first action I will be attending this Spring:

To commemorate its 25th anniversary, ACT UP (the activist group that took on AIDS issues in the 80's) will team up with Occupy Wall Street to hold a massive demonstration and march on Wall Street. Why Wall Street? Because the corruption of the corporate class has a ripple effect throughout our society that goes far beyond jobs, and debt. The crisis they cause leads to human suffering. On Wednesday, April 25 we will gather at City Hall and march on Wall Street. Act Up, in many ways, served as a model for the Occupy movement's leaderless, non-violent, and creative, direct action tactics. It is an honor to not only carry on their fight, but to have them stand beside us, and teach us from within our own ranks.

When I first arrived at Liberty Square six months ago, reporters asked me what real solutions I personally wanted to be achieved by protesting. My answer, repeatedly, was the need for a Financial Transaction Tax. None of the reporters ever printed my answer, instead running the same lie over and over for months: no one at Occupy has any ideas, no solutions. That was a lie, and I know because I heard many others talking about the same thing. We never stopped talking about it, and the media may choose to ignore us, but we will only get louder. A "Financial Speculation Tax" (Fi.S.T.) on Wall Street will be our rallying cry with Act Up on the 25th.

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Jennifer Slattery is a dedicated human rights activist, former private investigator, and a member of the Occupy Movement. She lives in NY, and would be happy to answer any and all questions you might have: occupierjenvs@gmail.com

On Corporate Coups & The Totalitarian TipToe

By Jennifer Slattery On February 28, 2012 | 2 Comments

Pictured: Lloyd Blankfein, currently the CEO & Chairman of Goldman Sachs since 2006 when Hank Paulson became Secretary of the Treasury.

In our world, societal catastrophe seems to strike like lightning. A bolt from the blue blindsides us; turning conventional wisdom on its head. Often it comes in a thunderous crack: in an assassination, or an explosive attack. Sometimes it comes with a crash, as another bubble bursts and collapses under the weight of its own corruption. These events shock our view of everything we thought we knew of our past, and of a future we thought we had built on foundations unshakable. But the startled paralysis of catastrophe wears off as surely as our illusions do, and we are left with a clear choice: change or break.

The Corporation film exposed the machinations of these artificial entities that empower the most sociopathic tendencies in human nature. It showed in stark terms how the Corporate Identity relieves the conscience of the individuals on the inside of guilt. Corporations see no limits; it's only goal is to gain more, to grow bigger, to feed endlessly and explicitly without remorse like a machine. Even when massive amounts of wealth are attained their desire for conquest turns to control of the rule of law in order to amass even more. In the 1930's major corporations went for a millitary Coup to overthrow FDR, and failed. These same entities funded the rise of fascism in Europe simultaneously, and for a time succeeded.

From The Producer of The Corporation: Pax Americana is falling from the sky near you...

By Katherine Dodds On May 18, 2010 | 0 Comments

“A MUST-SEE!” From the producer of THE CORPORATION

Pax Americana was executive produced by The Corporation's Mark Achbar and also features the same 'voice' of meliflous Mikela Jay. Co-writer Harold Crooks was also a writer on The Corporation. The film is a compelling wake up call to action(if it doesn't terrify you first) to prevent the weaponization of space. It appears, that the sky really is falling...

Check out the HelloCoolWorld video interview with Harold Crooks.

Distributed in Canada by KINOSMITH - it's opening in the following theatres in June:

VANCOUVER, BC | Vancity Theatre | June 4-8 2010

OTTAWA, ONTARIO | Mayfair Theatre | June 25-27, July 6, 2010

TORONTO, ONTARIO | Royal Cinema | July 2-8 2010

WATERLOO, ONTARIO | Princess Cinema | August 2-26 2010

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Katherine Dodds AKA "Kat" is the founder of HelloCoolWorld.com, the grassroots team behind The Corporation, and is featured in a "Grassroots Marketing" segment on The Corporation DVD set. She is dedicated to harnessing the power of the film to rein in corporate abuse through the development of the Campaign 4 Corporate Harm Reduction.

PAX AMERICANA tonight at DOXA in Vancouver!

By Katherine Dodds On May 11, 2010 | 3 Comments

Screening at Vancity Theatre Tuesday, May 11 at 8:30 PM

If you love this universe — come out tonight to the Vancity Theatre in Vancouver! It's one of the new 'collection' from Mark Achbar of The Corporation. It's stunningly shot, extremely engaging and chillingly important.

We spoke to Pax Americana writer, Harold Crooks yesterday about the film: