Scissor Sisters of the Poor

As if it's not enough to be an awesome band who helps people get down on the dance floor...

Digital Spy reports:

"The Scissor Sisters are to donate some proceeds from their latest UK tour to charity.The New York band will help 17 organizations in total, giving money raised during last month's UK arena tour." link

And to top it off they want to educate their fans about all the awesome cultural references that inspire them check out Scissor Sisters University.

pic via

Translation: "Paper, Scissors, Rock"

The Virginia Interfaith Center's post 9-11 anti-bias program A More Perfect Union is running a bus ad campaign in Richmond, VA that features untranslated Arabic texts, which are actually just innocuous phrases like "paper or plastic" and "paper, scissors, rock" (shown here). Their goal of encouraging discussion on anti-Muslim bias seems to be working.

Via our friend in the Netherlands Houtlust

"Freedom in Peril"

Wonkette recently uncovered this hilariously terrifying pro-gun booklet (PDF) from the NRA. The illustration of "animal rights terrorists" (at left) is just a taste of the nonsense within.

via Boing Boing

Just Don't Do It?

Nike recently canceled a contract with the Pakistani factory that produced its soccer balls due to child labor violations, however the loss of 5,000 jobs may do more to damage the region than help the children. From the Christian Science Monitor:

"They could have found some alternative way with Saga," says Khawaja Zakauddin, who heads the anti-child labor wing of the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry. "To go away is the worst solution. If Nike moves from here, these people will have no work."

...
Some say that Nike could have done more. Adidas maintains its own internal monitoring cell in Sialkot; Nike does not, observers say.

Read the entire article here.

Global Orgasm: Friday, December 22nd

You have a couple more days to prepare for the Global Orgasm. The project, an off-shoot of the anti-war group Baring Witness (see photo), is an attempt to "effect positive change in the energy field of the Earth through input of the largest possible surge of human energy a Synchronized Global Orgasm" on the Winter Solstice. And hey, even if the results don't register at The Global Consciousness Project at least it will feel good!

Thanks Marian!

Who Knew?

Who Knew? is a series of documents created by students of Art Center College of Design that visually explore/explain complex and often controversial issues. The current issue includes the follow questions:

Are we running out of water?
Is your bling funding a war?
Is your food pyramid out of shape?
Is your doctor killing you?
Can a designer do good?
Can you pick a fine wine?
Does your life depend on a bird?
Does your soap have a dirty secret?
How toxic is your home?
How e-wasted are you?
Who controls your internet access?

via Social Design Notes

Thai Ban on Liquor Ads

Thailand is considering banning ads for liquor as part of an anti-Western moral campaign that includes restrictions on erotic dancing and lotteries as well. From the Christian Science Monitor:

Last week, the administration of appointed premier Surayud Chulanont approved a bill that would raise the legal drinking age to 20 from 18 and impose jail terms for alcohol executives who promote products or advertise in print, television, radio, online, or in outdoor media. The law is scheduled to come into effect in January, pending a legal review and a stamp of approval from the junta-appointed legislature.

Read the entire article here.

I'm Dreaming of a Green Hanukkah.

You have a few more nights of Hanukkah, to participate in the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life's A Light Among Nations campaign. COEJL would like you to celebrate the Jewish festival of lights by installing compact fluorescent bulbs in your home (and synagogue) to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. You can even download a PDF of a special prayer and ceremony for the occasion!

Thanks Mim!

How To Protest

The book PRO-TEST looks like a great handbook for activists (assuming you can read German).
You can get a page by page tour here (just click on the images to go to the next page).

via Sum1

News Challenge

You still have a few weeks to submit your ideas to the Knight Brothers 21st Century News Challenge. The philanthropic Knight Foundation will be giving out 5 millions dollars to folks who have ideas for using online news to positively transform local communities. According to the site:

We're looking for:

• New ways to understand news and act on it, including new ways to collect, prepare and distribute information, news and journalism that reveals hard-to-know facts, identifies common problems, clarifies community issues and points out practical courses of action.
• New ways for people to communicate interactively to better understand one another, to generate real passion in solving local problems and to share the know-how they need to improve their communities;
• New ways for people to use information, news and journalism to imagine their collective possibilities as communities, and to set and reach common community goals.

We want proposals that increase the clarity, not the cacophony. We’re looking for ways to increase a community’s capacity to both understand what’s wrong and to fix it.

The challenge is open to anyone, anywhere via a simple application.

Knitting for Peace

My mom just picked up the new book Knitting for Peace and is very happy with it:

There's information about different groups
that knit, or that accept knit wear, as well
as patterns. A brief history of people knitting
for causes is included. Some of the
groups are The Ships Project, to which I have
sent hats, Warm Up America! Afghans for needy
people, Afghans for Orphans in Afghanistan,
Hats for Preemies, Cuddlies for Shelter Animals, etc.
I like the subtitle: make the World a Better Place
One Stitch at a Time.

Look for it at your local independent bookseller.

Thanks Mim!

Blood Diamonds

While the film Blood Diamond has gotten rather poor reviews, it has at least given the public more opportunities than ever to learn about conflict diamonds and the horrible reality of their origins. And while I personally think that we would be better off avoiding buying diamonds altogether, there are still many people who believe they are a necessity for wedding rings and the like. If you fall in that category you may be interested in conflict-free certified diamonds from Dreams of Africa an initiative that gives 100% of their profits to World Centers of Compassion for Children International (WCCCI).

Thanks Mica!

Smartetarian

According to the BBC there is a link between high IQs and vegetarianism...

A Southampton University team found those who were vegetarian by 30 had recorded five IQ points more on average at the age of 10.

Researchers said it could explain why people with higher IQ were healthier as a vegetarian diet was linked to lower heart disease and obesity rates.

Read the entire article here.

Thanks Mica!

Call me old fashioned...

Just wanted to share this bit of retrofitting/recycling I did recently. I plan to switch to only using a cell phone in the office soon and decided I needed a way to talk on the phone without increasing my chances of brain cancer while sitting at my desk. It fits in with my decor and is much more satisfying than talking on a headset.

Thanks to Spencer for his help with the wiring!

Money Accessibility

A recent ruling against the United States Department of the Treasury requires that U.S. currency be redesigned to help blind and visually impaired people distinguish between the currently bills. According to the deciding judge, we are the only paper currency issuing country (out of 180) that has same size and color bills with no tactile marks. The Treasury Department has a chance to appeal, but the American Council of The Blind which brought the case says they will continue to fight.

More at It's Our Money Too.

Eat your greens.

The Green Restaurant Association can help you eat out more environmentally with their Certified Green Restaurant Guide. Certification means that the restaurants meet the following standards:

1. Use a comprehensive recycling system for all products that are accepted by local recycling companies.
2. Free of polystyrene foam ("Styrofoam") products.
3. Commit to completing four Environmental Steps per year of membership.
4. Complete at least one Environmental Step after joining the GRA.

The guide is new so only a few places are listed so far (in fact only one restaurant in my home state of VA is even included) but hopefully it will continue to grow.

Better than a ribbon magnet.

True Majority is selling a car magnet that shows the disproportionate amount of our federal budget that goes to the Pentagon. The dotted section shows the amount that could be used to fully fund all the other categories (including health, education, and energy alternatives).

And doughnuts too.

It's official the NYC Board of Health has banned trans fats from restaurants in the city.
In addition fast food restaurants will have to display the caloric content of menu items on or near their cash registers or menu boards. From the New York Times:

Restaurants will still have until next July 1 to eliminate oils, margarines and shortening from recipes that contain more than a half-gram of trans fat per serving. By July 1, 2008, they would have to remove all menu items that exceed the new limit, including bread, cakes, chips and salad dressings.

But under terms adopted yesterday, some foods will fall under the later deadline, including doughnuts, fritters, biscuits and deep fried items that the board said were particularly hard to prepare with a trans fat substitute.

Read the entire article here.

Throne of Weapons

Throne of Weapons
by Kester Maputo, Mozambique 2001
Made from decommissioned weapons following the end of the Mozambique civil war.

More info at the British Museum

via 1+1=1

Free Web Hosting for Nonpofits

DreamHost is offering web hosting to 501(c)(3) nonprofits for free...forever!
Get the full details here.

Imaging Today's Labor Movement

Activist artists Zoeann Murphy and Josh MacPhee (JustSeeds.org) want to put a new face on the labor movement. To that end they've put out a call for poster designs, the best of which will be exhibited in NYC and also printed and distributed nationwide. The full details are below:

The American labor movement has an amazing history of graphic production, creating some of the most effective political images in the history of this country. However, work and workers, along with the labor movement, are often depicted as experiences of the American past: photographs of children in factories in the early l900’s, paintings of Joe Hill or Rosa Parks, historic strikes and Rosie the Riveter.

Now the labor movement needs new images of the issues confronting workers today. We are asking innovative artists to create posters that relate to today’s workers. Twenty-five posters will be chosen to exhibit. Five designs will be selected for mass printing and distribution in union halls, schools, and community centers around the country.

Posters can be in full color, and must be 19” x 25” (horizontal or vertical). All submissions must be received by February 12, 2007 for an exhibit in April. The exhibit will be at the Bread & Roses Gallery in the Martin Luther King Jr. Labor Center in Time Square, New York City.

This project is sponsored by the Workforce Development Institute, Bread and Roses Cultural Project of 1199SEIU, and JustSeeds.org., and curated by Zoeann Murphy and Josh MacPhee (Stencil Pirates). For more information contact Zoeann.Murphy[at]gmail{dot}com or josh[at]justseeds{dot}org.

Specifications:
We are asking you to design a poster (or multiple posters).

- The poster designs can be full color
- All posters must be 19"x 25", either horizontal or vertical orientation
- Posters must be made available as full-sized 300 dpi digital files. If you do not work digitally, we can work out scanning of your design if it is chosen.
- The posters designs should fall into one or more of the following categories:

The Environment & Labor
Immigration & Labor
Women & Labor
Diversity in the Labor Movement
Organizing

More information about each of these categories is available from Zoeann. If you want a list of resources, you can contact her at: Zoeann.Murphy[at]gmail{dot}com or by mail at
The Workforce Development Institute, 24 4th St. Troy, NY 12180.

Deadline:
All poster designs must be received by February 12, 2007. Designs can be sent in two ways:

Via email-
Initially send 9.5"x12.5" images as 72di jpg files. We will follow up with you to receive full size files (remember, design your posters at 19”x25”, 300 dpi or larger!).

Via regular mail-
a) You can send a CD of your full size file (300dpi, 19"x25")
b) If you are sending actual artwork, please send protected and flat, or in a tube. We will not be able to return artwork unless you include money for return postage.

Shop RVA

Students in my socially conscious design course: Design Rebels, in the graphic design program at Virginia Commonwealth University, have chosen to create a shop local campaign in Richmond, VA as their final group project this semester: Shop RVA

After reading and discussing a wide range of articles on corporate power, the effects of marketing/advertising on society, as well as the options of ethical designers, the students had to make proposals for a community project to complete in six weeks with a $100 budget.

The class then chose one project to realize as a group. In previous years the students have created zines, talked at area high schools, and done public performance. This year the students created a campaign to promote local businesses via brochures, a website, posters, and window stickers.

Misfit Toys

These misfit toys (and more) were created by Design Rebels students (and me) as a fund raiser for their group class project: Shop RVA.

Stay Free in VA

Thanks to Carrie McLaren of Stay Free! who came to Virginia Commonwealth University's Graphic Design Department as part of the Objects + Methods lecture series and also spoke with my class Design Rebels.

Fair Trade Rice

You can now add rice to the list of imported foods that you can buy in good conscience (assuming it has a Fair Trade label). From the Real Money article:

Most of the white and brown rice we eat in the US is grown on US farms. But most of the sweet smelling “aromatic” varieties of long grain rice—which are increasingly popular in the US—come to our tables from Asia: Jasmine and Coral from Thailand, and Basmati from India and Pakistan. If you’ve had a meal including aromatic rices recently, chances are that that rice was grown in rain-fed paddies and that small-scale farmers harvested it by hand. Unfortunately, what smelled so sweet on the stove may not have reflected a sweet deal for farmers. These producers are vulnerable to shifting prices and exploitative middle merchants, so they often earn far below a fair wage on which they could support their families.

Read the entire article here.

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread is an Austrian documentary on industrial food production that looks absolutely gorgeous and disturbing. It's now in limited release in the US.
You can watch some clips here.

Thanks Mica!