Saturday, July 11, 2009
"Constitutional rule over Autocracy"-Obama
Excerpt from President Barack Obama's address to the Ghanaian Parliament: Time and again, Ghanaians have chosen Constitutional rule over autocracy, and shown a democratic spirit that allows the energy of your people to break through. We see that in leaders who accept defeat graciously, and victors who resist calls to wield power against the opposition. We see that spirit in courageous
I bought a bike.
Years ago, I used to bike to work regularly. But then I switched to walking — no bulky, stealable equipment to fuss with — and then to driving or walking. And then 20 years passed without my riding a bike at all. (Strange how many years can pass without your doing a particular thing when you are over 30... over 40... over 50....) But I'm in a new phase of my life now...
... so I got a bike. It's pretty fun to be at the level of mobility between walking and driving. You can get around rather quickly and still feel close to the things around you.
What kind of bike? A "comfort bike" was prescribed for me. I got one of these.
... so I got a bike. It's pretty fun to be at the level of mobility between walking and driving. You can get around rather quickly and still feel close to the things around you.
What kind of bike? A "comfort bike" was prescribed for me. I got one of these.
Gas analysis ...
...That Pledge.
On a lovelier note: Catalpa.
There used to a grand catalpa in our backyard in Germantown.The kids used to call it the popcorn tree.
On a lovelier note: Catalpa.
There used to a grand catalpa in our backyard in Germantown.The kids used to call it the popcorn tree.
Radio & Video: Tools for Agricultural Innovation
Africa News reports:“Farmers innovations are often shaped by capital limitations and mainly rely on locally available resources, of which knowledge is a key one,” said Paul Van Mele, a scientist at the Africa Rice Center. “Video proved a powerful, low-cost medium for farmer-to-farmer extension and to expose rural communities to new ideas and practices.”...Innovation levels of 72 percent were
Weekend News
Photo: Marion Curtis/StarpixPeople.com's introduction to the season six designers includes a quote from Tim Gunn about each contestant.
Carol Hannah Whitfield, 24: "She's young, just out of design school," says Gunn of the South Carolina native, who currently resides in Brooklyn, N.Y. But "people will be disarmed by what they see her achieve."
Ra'mon-Lawrence Coleman, 31: "He's someone who in my view thinks entirely too much," Gunn says of the Chicago resident, whose favorite designer is Marc Jacobs. "I was constantly surprised in the workroom – suddenly, there's a new design."
Johnny Sakalis, 30: A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles, Runway's new West Coast home, "Johnny will be polarizing," Gunn says of the L.A. resident. "People will love him, or hate him."
Irina Shabayeva, 27: A native of the Republic of Georgia, she counts Cleopatra as a style icon. And Gunn admires the designer's sense of proportion and fit. "Her models look as if they've been in for a dozen fittings," he says, "and they haven't."
Malvin Vien, 24: "When you see this guy, you won't believe he's from Colorado," Gunn says of Vein. Talk about an eclectic fashion palette: His style inspirations include rural Chinese farmers, Japanese ghost stories and insect anatomy.
Althea Harper, 25: "Everyone [thinks] she's only on the show because she's a tall blond beauty," admits Gunn. "But she's extremely talented. She's going to blow people away."
Qristyl Frazier, 42: Hailing from St. Louis, Mo., her style icons include Halle Berry, Whitney Houston and Gwyneth Paltrow. "Qristyl is a hoot," says Gunn. "She likes a lot of color, and print. She's entertaining to watch."
Logan Neitzel, 25: "Logan's from Seattle, and you get a crunch-granola feeling in what he does," Gunn says of the self-described "guys' guy" who likes snowboarding and cars as much as he likes John Galliano and Tom Ford.
Mitchell Hall, 26: "Mitchell looks like he just stepped out of Gossip Girl and I think that's who he'd like to design for," Gunn says of the Savannah, Ga., resident, who is a creative director for a Vera Wang bridal salon.
Ari Fish, 26: "She's deeply conceptual," Gunn says of the self-taught Kansas City, Mo., native, who doesn't sketch or drape her designs, but sews fast. Her influences include geometry, ergonomics, nomadic tribal wear and athletic apparel.
Nicolas Putvinski, 27: Born in Moscow, he's had designs commissioned for W and Vogue – and may be a bit of a fashion snob. "If you have such a bad taste in your mouth about American fashion," Gunn has wondered about the F.I.T. grad. "Why are you here?"
Shirin Askari, 25: "She's young, she's pretty, she's articulate," Gunn says of the Garland, Texas, resident whose style icon is Katharine Hepburn. "I'm not sure what is distinctive about her, other than the fact that she's good."
Christopher Straub, 30: "Christopher is very sensitive, very emotional. He wears his emotions on his sleeve," Gunn says of the Shakopee, Minn., resident, who appreciates volume, eye-catching fabrics and Victoria Beckham.
Louise Black, 32: Gunn describes the native Texan as "thoughtful, contemplative, and never a hair out of place." A fan of Christian Lacroix, the first garment the former clinical lab technician ever made was her own wedding dress.
Gordana Gehlhausen, 45: The Yugoslavia-born designer now owns a boutique in San Diego. Expect a lot of "textile development," says Gunn. "It wouldn't be a case of going shopping and using the fabric she brought back. She'd do things to it."
Epperson, 50: "He is the most senior in terms of design career and reputation," Gunn says of this self-taught designer who grew up in Harlem, N.Y. "He has a distinguished career. He's elder-statesmanlike."
Click here to read about Season Six designers Ra'mon-Lawrence Coleman and Christopher Straub in the Minnesota Star-Tribune. Christopher is an underwear designer who tried for Project Runway four times. Katy Gerdes calls Ra'mon-Lawrence "dramatic" and "interesting."
Click here for more about Ari Fish from pitch.com.
Project Runway season three designer, Kayne Gillaspie will be at Austin Fashion Week. Click here for details. We'd love a field report! Thanks Frank.
Brassai
If you've not read Brassai's Henry Miller: The Paris Years, let me suggest that you do so! This is a fun book - and the perfect companion to his clever set of interviews with Miller, aptly titled Henry Miller: Happy Rock. While both works chart Miller's development as an author, they provide an exciting account of French history and culture as well. When Miller gets going, there's no one else like him - except, perhaps, Brassai himself!
"Bruno" disappointed me.
I'm a big fan of "Da Ali G Show," where Sacha Baron Cohen plays 3 characters in short scenes that wrap up in half an hour. But, having seen "Borat" and now "Bruno," I have to admit I don't want to watch one of the characters for 90 minutes, especially "Bruno." I'm not a fan of story arcs. I love disjointed little bits. I like Bruno as the Austrian fashion reporter with the microphone in his hand. People who want to get on TV and to appear trendy will tumble into agreement with praise for Hitler or take direction that makes them look gay. (Here's an example I find especially funny.) But in the movie "Bruno," Bruno is fired from that job and comes to America to try to get famous again. That's not much of a story. It's just a narrative thread to connect different scenes — possibly generated after many of the scenes were filmed.
But why am I complaining? Didn't I just say I liked disjointed little bits? Well, but now Bruno is kind of down and out, and much of it is Sacha Baron Cohen trying to show us what Americans are really like. Fortunately or unfortunately, Americans failed to give him the homophobia footage he seems to have hoped for. I'm sure a ton of unfunny footage was thrown out, and that what went into the film was the closest he could get to hilarious, but most of these Americans simply remained stone-faced and tried to preserve their professionalism and dignity in the face of a very clownish man. Cohen did what he could — for example, wielding multiple big dildoes at a martial arts instructor — to goad people into flipping out about the gay guy, but — other than getting Ron Paul to blurt out "queer" twice — it just wasn't happening.
And the struggling Bruno can't be so outrageously bitchy. He wants people to help him. He's needy. He's more like Borat. But he's not lovable. I don't want him lovable. The Bruno I like needs to believe he's wielding power so he is able to trick people into showing their desire to leverage their fame through him. We see that in the movie in the one scene where some parents are trying to get their little kids hired as models. They think Bruno has some showbiz power, and they grovel before it. One woman is ready to make her 30 pound daughter lose 10 pounds in one week and to submit to liposuction if she can't get all that weight off. Now, that was something! It would be daring as hell to have 90-minutes on that level of pain. But that wouldn't be too funny, and it wouldn't be a blockbuster.
But why am I complaining? Didn't I just say I liked disjointed little bits? Well, but now Bruno is kind of down and out, and much of it is Sacha Baron Cohen trying to show us what Americans are really like. Fortunately or unfortunately, Americans failed to give him the homophobia footage he seems to have hoped for. I'm sure a ton of unfunny footage was thrown out, and that what went into the film was the closest he could get to hilarious, but most of these Americans simply remained stone-faced and tried to preserve their professionalism and dignity in the face of a very clownish man. Cohen did what he could — for example, wielding multiple big dildoes at a martial arts instructor — to goad people into flipping out about the gay guy, but — other than getting Ron Paul to blurt out "queer" twice — it just wasn't happening.
And the struggling Bruno can't be so outrageously bitchy. He wants people to help him. He's needy. He's more like Borat. But he's not lovable. I don't want him lovable. The Bruno I like needs to believe he's wielding power so he is able to trick people into showing their desire to leverage their fame through him. We see that in the movie in the one scene where some parents are trying to get their little kids hired as models. They think Bruno has some showbiz power, and they grovel before it. One woman is ready to make her 30 pound daughter lose 10 pounds in one week and to submit to liposuction if she can't get all that weight off. Now, that was something! It would be daring as hell to have 90-minutes on that level of pain. But that wouldn't be too funny, and it wouldn't be a blockbuster.
The Inspector General's Report and The Horse That is Already Out of the Barn Door
The Inspector General's report on the Bush Administration's domestic warrantless wiretapping program has been published. The unclassified version is here. It contains many important revelations, ably summarized by Steve Benen and Marc Ambinder. The most important thing to draw from the report, however, is something that nobody else seems to have noticed.
Through the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, Congress has legitimated many of the same things people are now complaining about. The horse is already out of the barn door.
According to the report, the domestic surveillance program did little good and other legal methods were far more effective in obtaining valuable intelligence.
Nevertheless, the President, the Vice-President, and members of their party repeatedly demagogued the issue, arguing that the warrantless surveillance program was necessary to save American lives, that people who opposed it would have blood on their hands, and that therefore it was necessary to amend FISA in order to permit the President to do legally what he was prepared to do illegally.
As a result of this repeated demagougery, Congress passed the Protect America Act in 2007 and the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. The former bill, the Protect America Act, was a terrible dismantling of the protections built into FISA. Allegedly designed only to permit surveillance of foreign to foreign communications, it essentially redefined electronic surveillance in order to escape FISA's warrant requirements. The latter bill, the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, effectively gives the President-- now President Obama-- the authority to run surveillance programs similar in effect to the warrantless surveillance program that is the subject of the Inspector General's report. That is because New FISA no longer requires individualized targets in all surveillance programs. Some programs may be "vaccum cleaner" programs that listen to a great many different calls (and read a great many e-mails) with any requirement of a warrant directed at a particular person as long as no U.S. person is directly targeted as the object of the program.
It is true that under the new FISA, the government cannot do exactly what the Bush program did-- it cannot directly target an American who has received phone calls from someone suspected of being an Al Qaeda agent. But a program like this may no longer be necessary. New FISA authorizes the creation of surveillance programs directed against foreign persons (or rather, against persons believed to be outside the United States)-- which require no individualized suspicion of anyone being a terrorist, or engaging in any criminal activity. These programs may inevitably include many phone calls involving Americans, who may have absolutely no connection to terrorism or to Al Qaeda. Now all of the work of excluding phone calls involving innocent Americans is done in the back end, in minimization. The new system is only as good as its minimization requirements. And those minimization requirements are largely out of the public's view, just as the original surveillance program was. New FISA may use minimization to protect the interests of innocent Americans from abuse. Or it may not. It all depends on how the system is implemented, in ways that are currently subject to only limited oversight.
In sum: the Bush Administration used an illegal program that wasn't effective, and when the public found out, it repeatedly used this ineffective program to scare Congress into passing laws that legitimated many of its illegal practices and gave the intelligence agencies greater leeway with less oversight.
Nice move, eh?
The lesson of this story is not that the Bush Administration used to do very bad things and thankfully we don't do them anymore. The lesson of this story is that Congress needs to require the Executive Branch to implement New FISA in ways that are accountable both to Congress and to a set of ombudsmen in the executive branch that Congress should now create. Congress needs to require audits of the kinds of surveillance programs the executive branch is now running. It needs to create a set of new checks and balances within the executive branch in order to prevent the sloppiness and the end-runs around consultation and checks on abuse we saw in the Bush Administration. Thanks to a successful strategy of repeated and shameless demagoguery, President Bush has handed enormous new powers of surveillance off to his successor, and to every President thereafter, regardless of party. The question now is what, if anything, Congress plans to do to prevent future abuses.
Through the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, Congress has legitimated many of the same things people are now complaining about. The horse is already out of the barn door.
According to the report, the domestic surveillance program did little good and other legal methods were far more effective in obtaining valuable intelligence.
Nevertheless, the President, the Vice-President, and members of their party repeatedly demagogued the issue, arguing that the warrantless surveillance program was necessary to save American lives, that people who opposed it would have blood on their hands, and that therefore it was necessary to amend FISA in order to permit the President to do legally what he was prepared to do illegally.
As a result of this repeated demagougery, Congress passed the Protect America Act in 2007 and the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. The former bill, the Protect America Act, was a terrible dismantling of the protections built into FISA. Allegedly designed only to permit surveillance of foreign to foreign communications, it essentially redefined electronic surveillance in order to escape FISA's warrant requirements. The latter bill, the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, effectively gives the President-- now President Obama-- the authority to run surveillance programs similar in effect to the warrantless surveillance program that is the subject of the Inspector General's report. That is because New FISA no longer requires individualized targets in all surveillance programs. Some programs may be "vaccum cleaner" programs that listen to a great many different calls (and read a great many e-mails) with any requirement of a warrant directed at a particular person as long as no U.S. person is directly targeted as the object of the program.
It is true that under the new FISA, the government cannot do exactly what the Bush program did-- it cannot directly target an American who has received phone calls from someone suspected of being an Al Qaeda agent. But a program like this may no longer be necessary. New FISA authorizes the creation of surveillance programs directed against foreign persons (or rather, against persons believed to be outside the United States)-- which require no individualized suspicion of anyone being a terrorist, or engaging in any criminal activity. These programs may inevitably include many phone calls involving Americans, who may have absolutely no connection to terrorism or to Al Qaeda. Now all of the work of excluding phone calls involving innocent Americans is done in the back end, in minimization. The new system is only as good as its minimization requirements. And those minimization requirements are largely out of the public's view, just as the original surveillance program was. New FISA may use minimization to protect the interests of innocent Americans from abuse. Or it may not. It all depends on how the system is implemented, in ways that are currently subject to only limited oversight.
In sum: the Bush Administration used an illegal program that wasn't effective, and when the public found out, it repeatedly used this ineffective program to scare Congress into passing laws that legitimated many of its illegal practices and gave the intelligence agencies greater leeway with less oversight.
Nice move, eh?
The lesson of this story is not that the Bush Administration used to do very bad things and thankfully we don't do them anymore. The lesson of this story is that Congress needs to require the Executive Branch to implement New FISA in ways that are accountable both to Congress and to a set of ombudsmen in the executive branch that Congress should now create. Congress needs to require audits of the kinds of surveillance programs the executive branch is now running. It needs to create a set of new checks and balances within the executive branch in order to prevent the sloppiness and the end-runs around consultation and checks on abuse we saw in the Bush Administration. Thanks to a successful strategy of repeated and shameless demagoguery, President Bush has handed enormous new powers of surveillance off to his successor, and to every President thereafter, regardless of party. The question now is what, if anything, Congress plans to do to prevent future abuses.
CHRIS WHITLEY: 2002 Long Way Around: An Anthology 1991-2001 (Columbia/Legacy Records 86082)
Chris Whitley was a true artist. A true bluesman. A true vagabond. A true musician. All of his records need to be listened to from start to finish to really appreciate his talent. Even more so, seeing him live on stage was like a religious experience.However, he did have some stand-out songs and was able to garner some radio play and mild commercial success during his career. Columbia & Legacy Records did a great job culling numerous tracks from numerous albums and numerous record labels over the first decade of his career, '91-'01. This record has sixteen tracks in all. You've got demos. You've got remixes. You've got edit versions. You've got unreleased songs. And you've got one hidden track. Everything you could possibly want for an overview of Whitley's career is right here. Fantastic liner notes and a brilliant photo collage on the inside of the disc add to the beauty of the record. You won't be disappointed. As always, more information on the man's life and career can be found at www.chriswhitley.com. (FULL SCANS INCLUDED)
Personnel: Alan Gevaert Bass Andy Rosen Mellotron Bill Dillion Guitar, Guitorgan, Pedal Steel Brady Blade, Jr. Drum Loop Brian Blade Drums Chris Whitley Synth Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Foot Stomping, Guitar, Producer, Foot Percussion, Bass, Vocals Daniel Lanois Soloist, Mixing, Guitar DJ Logic Turntables Dougie Bowne Drums Melvin Gibbs Bass Ronald Jones Drums
Stephen Barber Piano, Keyboards Steve Almaas Bass Steve Melton Mixing Tony Mangurian Mixing, Guitar, Producer, Bass, Drums
Stephen Barber Piano, Keyboards Steve Almaas Bass Steve Melton Mixing Tony Mangurian Mixing, Guitar, Producer, Bass, Drums
Tracks:
1.Home Is Where You Get Across [#][Demo Version]
2.Make the Dirt Stick
3.Big Sky Country
4.Weightless [Daniel Lanois Single Remix][#]
5.Bordertown
6.Bliss to Breakdown [#][Demo Version]
7.Aerial [Edit]
8.WPL (Wild Pagan Love) [Alternate Mix][#]
9.Narcotic Prayer [Alternate Mix][#]
10.A Pint of Lotion [#][Demo Version]
11.Guns and Dolls
12.Can't Get Off
13.Cool Wooden Crosses
14.The Wild Country
15.Accordingly
16.Say Goodbye/Long Way Around [#][Demo Version]
2.Make the Dirt Stick
3.Big Sky Country
4.Weightless [Daniel Lanois Single Remix][#]
5.Bordertown
6.Bliss to Breakdown [#][Demo Version]
7.Aerial [Edit]
8.WPL (Wild Pagan Love) [Alternate Mix][#]
9.Narcotic Prayer [Alternate Mix][#]
10.A Pint of Lotion [#][Demo Version]
11.Guns and Dolls
12.Can't Get Off
13.Cool Wooden Crosses
14.The Wild Country
15.Accordingly
16.Say Goodbye/Long Way Around [#][Demo Version]
Details
.. Year: 2002
.. Label: Columbia/Legacy Records 86082
.. Bitrate: 320kbps
.. Home-Page: http://www.chriswhitley.com/
.. Last fm: www.last.fm/music/Chris+Whitley ..
.. Buy: http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/7370769/a/Long+Way+Around:+An+Anthology+1991-2001.htm
.. Year: 2002
.. Label: Columbia/Legacy Records 86082
.. Bitrate: 320kbps
.. Home-Page: http://www.chriswhitley.com/
.. Last fm: www.last.fm/music/Chris+Whitley ..
.. Buy: http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/7370769/a/Long+Way+Around:+An+Anthology+1991-2001.htm
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http://2d6efa2c.linkbucks.com
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'Dirty Cowboy' sexual foreplay led to shooting
A woman accused of shooting her common-law husband to death told investigators it happened during a game of sexual foreplay they called "dirty cowboy."
Deborah Yvette Parker, 38, is charged with manslaughter in the June 30th shooting death of 58-year-old Broderick Craig Crachian.
Neighbours told police the couple had a heated argument a few hours before the shooting in the 2700 block of Lorraine.
But Parker said she didn't mean to shoot him.
"She describes it as playing 'dirty cowboy,'" Prosecutor Marcy McCorvey said. "She did admit to being in possession of the handgun and using it as a toy during foreplay with the victim's acquiescence and request for it to be used in that manner."
Parker's court-appointed attorney said she is "extremely distraught" about the "terrible accident." Parker is also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. She has previous convictions for misdemeanor assault, drugs and prostitution.
Deborah Yvette Parker, 38, is charged with manslaughter in the June 30th shooting death of 58-year-old Broderick Craig Crachian.
Neighbours told police the couple had a heated argument a few hours before the shooting in the 2700 block of Lorraine.
But Parker said she didn't mean to shoot him.
"She describes it as playing 'dirty cowboy,'" Prosecutor Marcy McCorvey said. "She did admit to being in possession of the handgun and using it as a toy during foreplay with the victim's acquiescence and request for it to be used in that manner."
Parker's court-appointed attorney said she is "extremely distraught" about the "terrible accident." Parker is also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. She has previous convictions for misdemeanor assault, drugs and prostitution.
Pablo Escobar’s hippopotamus gunned down in Colombia
Drug lord Pablo Escobar's hippo died the same way he did, hunted down and shot by the authorities for posing a danger to the public. The hippopotamus that escaped three years ago from a ranch once owned by Escobar was killed on orders of the government.
Cocaine king Escobar, who was gunned down by police on a Medellin rooftop in 1993, was so flush with cash that he flew in hundreds of exotic animals, including kangaroos, flamingos, elephants, rhinos and nine hippos.
Many were given away to zoos after his death and collapse of his drug empire. But two dozen hippos continued to live and mate on his former estate in northern Colombia.
A male and a female escaped in 2006, freely roamed the wetlands near the Magdalena River and even reproduced in the wild. They were rarely seen and became something of a local legend until two journalists found them grazing 100 kilometers (65 miles) away from the ranch last month. Colombia's environmental agency ordered the animals killed, saying they were carriers of disease and posed a risk to local communities.
Colombians were shocked by television images broadcast on Friday of the carcass of the male hippopotamus surrounded by hunters and soldiers. Animal rights groups denounced the killing. "They could have been captured and kept in a safe place until a permanent refuge was found for them," said Marcela Ramirez of a local group called Animal Protection Network.
The hunt was still on for the surviving adult hippo.
There's a news video here.
Cocaine king Escobar, who was gunned down by police on a Medellin rooftop in 1993, was so flush with cash that he flew in hundreds of exotic animals, including kangaroos, flamingos, elephants, rhinos and nine hippos.
Many were given away to zoos after his death and collapse of his drug empire. But two dozen hippos continued to live and mate on his former estate in northern Colombia.
A male and a female escaped in 2006, freely roamed the wetlands near the Magdalena River and even reproduced in the wild. They were rarely seen and became something of a local legend until two journalists found them grazing 100 kilometers (65 miles) away from the ranch last month. Colombia's environmental agency ordered the animals killed, saying they were carriers of disease and posed a risk to local communities.
Colombians were shocked by television images broadcast on Friday of the carcass of the male hippopotamus surrounded by hunters and soldiers. Animal rights groups denounced the killing. "They could have been captured and kept in a safe place until a permanent refuge was found for them," said Marcela Ramirez of a local group called Animal Protection Network.
The hunt was still on for the surviving adult hippo.
There's a news video here.
Dresden zoo forced to rename primate named 'Obama'
Facing accusations of racial insensitivity, the Dresden Zoo has been forced to rename a baby primate called ‘Obama.’ This spring the zoo in the eastern German city named a newborn mandrill “Obama” after freshly inaugurated US President Barack Obama. But an advocacy group for black Germans demanded that the primate be renamed this week, calling the zoo’s choice racist.
“It’s a catastrophe,” director of the Initiative for Black Germans (ISD) Tahir Della said. “Black people continue to be confronted by associations with the animal kingdom and primitivity.”
The baby mandrill, which belongs to a species closely related to the baboon, was born on March 23, Manuela Collmar, zookeeper at the zoo’s “Afrika Haus,” said. Each year the zoo names all newborn animals beginning with the same letter.
“This year they all begin with ‘O,’ and one of the zookeepers chose ‘Obama’ – it was meant to be positive and an honour in light of his visit to Dresden in June,” Collmar said, adding that neither she nor her colleagues were aware of the history of using monkeys to caricature and ethnically stereotype black people.
In an email response to ISD director Della’s complaint about the mandrill’s name on Thursday, zoo director Karl-Heinz Ukena echoed her sentiments.
“The possible associations of this name choice were not considered, and the racist charicterisation – particularly with the background that the US president recently visited Dresden – was far off,” Ukena wrote, adding that the zoo had meant to express its “esteem” for Obama. Ukena went on to apologise for any “irritation” the name had caused.
“It’s a catastrophe,” director of the Initiative for Black Germans (ISD) Tahir Della said. “Black people continue to be confronted by associations with the animal kingdom and primitivity.”
The baby mandrill, which belongs to a species closely related to the baboon, was born on March 23, Manuela Collmar, zookeeper at the zoo’s “Afrika Haus,” said. Each year the zoo names all newborn animals beginning with the same letter.
“This year they all begin with ‘O,’ and one of the zookeepers chose ‘Obama’ – it was meant to be positive and an honour in light of his visit to Dresden in June,” Collmar said, adding that neither she nor her colleagues were aware of the history of using monkeys to caricature and ethnically stereotype black people.
In an email response to ISD director Della’s complaint about the mandrill’s name on Thursday, zoo director Karl-Heinz Ukena echoed her sentiments.
“The possible associations of this name choice were not considered, and the racist charicterisation – particularly with the background that the US president recently visited Dresden – was far off,” Ukena wrote, adding that the zoo had meant to express its “esteem” for Obama. Ukena went on to apologise for any “irritation” the name had caused.
Unsuspecting guests, employees swept up in wave of hotel pranks
Lisa Kantorski took the call from the person who claimed to be a front-desk clerk about a gas leak in their hotel room near Orlando International Airport. She frantically relayed the information to her husband Mark, an Indian River County sheriff’s deputy. He followed the caller’s instructions ... and smashed out the window of his room with a toilet tank. "When I broke the window, I got suspicious," Mark said. "It didn’t seem right, but she (Lisa) was panicking, so I continued."
Just before 7 a.m. on Monday, the Kantorskis had no idea they were latest victims of a prankster — or pranksters — whose tricks are sweeping the US. The unknown pranksters dupe otherwise rational people into doing outrageous things, including driving trucks through storefronts and breaking hotel windows to test fire alarms.
With Lisa clutching their three kids, Mark listened to the caller as he barked out more instructions: Break the mirror on the wall. Check. Use the lamp to bash in the wall to get to the trapped man on the other side. OK. Throw the mattress out the window and jump for safety. Out the mattress went.
Room 204 of the Hilton Garden Inn was a shambles. "I’m not one to argue much with her," Mark said. "When you slow down everything, the situation was kind of odd." The Kantorskis never got the chance to jump. Hilton Garden Inn Manager Samir Patel appeared at the door to address a noise complaint, an Orlando Police report states. Patel broke the news to the Kantorskis: There was no gas leak, reports said.
When police officers arrived, Patel said he recently received a memo from his corporate office warning about "dangerous pranks" pulled at hotels in other states. Police don’t know who called the Kantorskis, who were not arrested "because he was responding to what he believed to be an emergency," police spokeswoman Sgt. Barbara Jones said.
The Monday incident follows others from around the country. (Two page article.)
Just before 7 a.m. on Monday, the Kantorskis had no idea they were latest victims of a prankster — or pranksters — whose tricks are sweeping the US. The unknown pranksters dupe otherwise rational people into doing outrageous things, including driving trucks through storefronts and breaking hotel windows to test fire alarms.
With Lisa clutching their three kids, Mark listened to the caller as he barked out more instructions: Break the mirror on the wall. Check. Use the lamp to bash in the wall to get to the trapped man on the other side. OK. Throw the mattress out the window and jump for safety. Out the mattress went.
Room 204 of the Hilton Garden Inn was a shambles. "I’m not one to argue much with her," Mark said. "When you slow down everything, the situation was kind of odd." The Kantorskis never got the chance to jump. Hilton Garden Inn Manager Samir Patel appeared at the door to address a noise complaint, an Orlando Police report states. Patel broke the news to the Kantorskis: There was no gas leak, reports said.
When police officers arrived, Patel said he recently received a memo from his corporate office warning about "dangerous pranks" pulled at hotels in other states. Police don’t know who called the Kantorskis, who were not arrested "because he was responding to what he believed to be an emergency," police spokeswoman Sgt. Barbara Jones said.
The Monday incident follows others from around the country. (Two page article.)
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