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The Blogmanac: "On This Day" ... and much more
Think universally. Act terrestrially.
For in a hard-working society, it is rare and even subversive to celebrate too much, to revel and keep on reveling: to stop whatever you're doing and rave, pray, throw things, go into trances, jump over bonfires, drape yourself in flowers, stay up all night, and scoop the froth from the sea.
Anneli Rufus*
"The email era is coming to an end because replacement communication means such as Internet messengers, mini-homepages (dubbed 'one-man media'), and SMS are wielding their power. As a consequence, the stronghold of email, once the favorite of the Internet, is being shaken from its roots." Source: Chosun
Australia: "The Federal Government says that while torture is inappropriate, it has no intention of fighting plans by the United States Government to use evidence gained through torture in the trial of Guantanamo Bay detainees.
"A court in Washington has been told that military panels at the prison in Cuba can use evidence obtained through torture." Source: ABC Oz
[I can't believe I'm reading this about Australia and the USA, especially as their political leaders affect "values". Not until Bush was torture on the agenda of these two countries. If the citizens don't stop this madness, just imagine where it will end. Don't forget the new, extreme "security powers" the respective governments have legislated recently.
Which nations will remain to influence other nations for the better? Then what? Bush & Co will be dead and buried before long, as will you and I, but what about our children and grandchildren? Let's not sit by and allow this slide into barbarity which threatens to spread throughout the world. Pass it on!]
Don't get me wrong, I like hoaxes. I've done hoaxes, some that were a good idea at the time, and others that were not.
The hoax that the Yes Men pulled on the BBC this week was brilliantly executed, but they hit the wrong guys. The Beeb is one of the few major media outlets that is likely to show any real support for the victims of Bhopal. The Beeb is also reeling from immense criticism over recent events and needed this blow and all the criticism from reactionary media pundits like a hole in the heart.
The Yes Men are wonderful, and I've supported them here before, but to do this to the BBC was stupid beyond words. (It also briefly inflated the hopes of the Bhopal survivors.) They should have hit CNN, CBS, NBC, Fox ...
Next week I will be heading to a recording studio to begin the process of putting on disk 365 daily Almanac spots for radio. Each one will be one or two minutes long and I will record them throughout 2005. It will be "On This Day" with a difference: the pick of the Book of Days featuring global celebrations and so on, just like the daily Almanac ezine.
From January 1, Radio 2BBB-FM in Australia will be airing Wilson's Almanac once or twice in their morning programming.
I'm looking into the possibility of these recordings being available for radio stations (commercial and community) both in Australia and internationally.
Station WNMC-FM in northern Michigan, USA is also commencing a daily Almanac spot. If you'd like the Almy on your station, I would be grateful if you'd forward this email to station managers, or drop me a line if you like. I'll see what can be done.
"The lawyer defending Australian terror suspect David Hicks has called for an inquiry into whether the military commission hearing the case meets legal standards.
"The American military lawyer appointed to defend Hicks says his client will not get a fair hearing from an American military commission.
"Major Michael Mori is leading a defence team of Australian lawyers and is in Melbourne for a seminar on legal tactics.
"Major Mori says the commission system has been condemned internationally but Australia has yet to voice any dissatisfaction with the process.
"Major Mori wants an inquiry into the fairness of the commission system.
"'I would really like to see a sort of public inquiry into the actual commission process and does it meet international legal standards... the type of standards of justice we'd expect for anyone around the world,' he said.
"'England has come out very strong condemning the commission system and has said their citizens can not go through the commission process, and the US won't let its citizens go though the commission process, but Australia seems to be satisfied with it.'" Source: ABC Oz
... I think [Eureka] may be called the finest thing in Australasian history. It was a revolution – small in size, but great politically; it was a strike for liberty, a struggle for a principle, a stand against injustice and oppression. It was the Barons and John over again; it was Hampden and Ship-Money; it was Concord and Lexington ... It was another instance of a victory won by a lost battle.
Mark Twain, on Australia's Eureka Stockade; More Tramps Abroad
December 3, 1854 The Battle of Eureka Stockade, an uprising of gold miners against the State of Victoria, Australia; six troopers and 22 miners died in the civil revolt by gold miners against the officials supervising the gold-mining regions of Ballarat.
Although the revolt failed, it has endured in the collective social consciousness of Australia.
Eureka has been variously described as the birthplace of Australia's democracy, republicanism and multiculturalism. It is often regarded as being an event of equal significance to Australian history as the storming of the Bastille was to French history, or the Boston Tea Party or Battle of the Alamo to the history of the USA. Its heroes include an Italian writer, a freed American slave, a former German soldier and sundry American democrats, Irish rebels and British chartists.
The miners held a series of huge peaceful meetings demanding fairer treatment (their main complaint was about miners’ taxes), but following the murder of a miner, those calls for non-violence were pushed aside. A 27-year-old Irishman, Peter Lalor, who'd never before addressed a public meeting was thrust into leadership; his first word: "Liberty" ... [more]
The Eureka flag At left is shown the Eureka flag, the tattered original of which is still in existence. Showing the constellation of the Southern Cross, a stellar feature that dominates the night sky in Australia, it is favoured by many Australians as a replacement for the national flag which still shows Britain's Union Jack even after 103 years of independence. However, many conservative elements oppose the Eureka flag, for obvious reasons, and there will likely be no change in the foreseeable future. One hopes that the sesquicentenary will further raise consciousness about this anachronism.
This is just a snippet of today's stories, and links to Australia's Eureka celebrations. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives, with many more links, at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date (or your birthday) when you're there.
"Teenagers and young adults who frequently use cannabis are increasing their risk of suffering from psychotic symptoms such as bizarre behaviour and delusions later in life, Dutch scientists say.
"Young people with a family history, or pre-existing susceptibility to mental instability, are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of the drug.
"'Cannabis does not act in the same fashion on psychosis risk for everybody. There is a group that is particularly susceptible', Professor Jim van Os, of Maastricht University in the Netherlands, told a news conference on Wednesday.
"He and his colleagues studied 2,437 young people aged 14-24 and identified those with a predisposition for psychosis. They also questioned them about their cannabis use and followed them up for four years.
"'The results show that in the group without vulnerability to psychosis, there was a small effect of cannabis on the onset of psychotic symptoms four years later', Van Os said. 'But this risk was four times bigger in individuals who had a personal vulnerability to psychosis'." [My emphasis - N]
Paisley and Adams on the brink of the deal to end all deals?
"Old enemies in Northern Ireland were edging towards a deal last night that could break the year-long stalemate in the peace process and pave the way for a lasting settlement.
"Months of poring over scores of differences have brought the two sides -- the republican movement led by Gerry Adams and the Rev Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionists -- within sight of a deal that a year ago seemed impossible ...
"Any political agreement will have to be festooned with safeguards, assurances and guarantees to make up for the almost complete lack of trust between the two sides. All negotiations between them, in fact, are being conducted at one remove since the DUP will not speak to Sinn Féin directly."
"New York (Reuters) - Human rights group Amnesty International called on U.S. law enforcement agencies on Tuesday to suspend use of Taser electric-shock weapons, demanding an independent inquiry into the devices, which Amnesty says have contributed to more than 70 deaths.
"The call comes amid booming sales of the weapons, which deliver a 50,000-volt shock that causes victims to lose control of their muscles ...
"According to Amnesty, U.S. police are using Tasers routinely on unarmed suspects, where lethal force would never be justified. It says the weapons have been used on children under age 16, as well as on old and mentally ill people.
"Amnesty also claims the weapons raise the risk of heart failure in cases where people are agitated or under the effects of drugs or have underlying health problems. It claims more than 70 people have died in the United States and Canada in the past four years in Taser-related incidents."
Amnesty International's report on the use of tasers in the USA also cites several cases in which parents have been prosecuted for child cruelty after using stun weapons to discipline their children. Stun weapons have also been reportedly used during the commission of crimes, or as instruments of torture or abuse, including of women by abusive partners or former partners. Amnesty International's report recommends that the sale of stun weapons for private use be subject to strict controls.
When I'm not whingeing that I have too much correspondence to manage, I'm bellyaching that nobody emails me any more. But I do get some beauts, like this one from Vladimir yesterday:
"I've been reading your website trying to find an answer. I hope you can help me.
"As you know after The Imperio Inca( TAHUANTINSUYO) was divided in two. Cuzco which was the capital and HAUSCAR the chief(PERU) The Kingdom of Quito which Atahualpa was King (ECUADOR) I have clear that Huascar was born in CUZCO, but there is nothing clear that Atahualpa was born in Cuzco as well, although they are half brothers. Where was he born? Do you think he was born on North of the Inca Imperio actual Ecuador. If you think he was born in Cuzco actual Peru, would you mind to give me facts. The only fact I have is that PACCHA Queen of The KINGDOM OF QUITO was Atahualpa's mother. Please I'll really appreciate your help."
Nothing can stroke one's ego like having people think you know hard things. And nothing can make you hard like having your ego stroked. I know less than nothing about Incan history, but if you know whether Ecuador can claim the great Atahualpa as its son, you can tell Vladimir through me.
Ledj of Didj I'm also a sucker for anything that groans and whines (except for George Bush, Alexander Downer and other people's children), especially bagpipes and didgeridoos, and especially when they're used in rock music , which they have been sometimes in Aussie rock.
So I surfed up last night to the website of the world's most acclaimed didgeridoo maestro, Charlie McMahon (http://www.charliemcmahon.com), formerly with Gondwanaland and now playing with Gondwana. I sent off a quick email to the Living Ledj of Didj thanking him for making some sample mp3s available on his site, and to my surprise he shot this reply back to your almanackist.
"The almanac you do has the kind of content that interests me, good stuff, thanks. Anyway my attitude to [music file sharing] is that as copying gets easier so copyright declines and rather than pissin in the wind the best tack is to get copied a lot to get better known and have a higher profile for live stuff ... some Deutsch fans have made a site about my seismis audio www.face-bass.com"
Just when I was starting to really get the shits with the Net I appreciate it all over again for the many cool opportunities and networking it opens up even to destitute shmendricks like yours truly. And I think Charlie's got the right attitude about snagging mp3s off the Net. Some cultures aren't as mercenarily hung up on copyright and even plagiarism issues as ours, and use of one's material is seen as tribute rather than theft. Having said that, if you pinch anything from the Almanac, it's not tribute, it's bloody robbery, got it?
Charlie sounds like a good bloke. Make sure he plays your town.
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Australia: "The Federal Government says that while torture is inappropriate, it has no intention of fighting plans by the United States Government to use evidence gained through torture in the trial of Guantanamo Bay detainees.
Next week I will be heading to a recording studio to begin the process of putting on disk 365 daily Almanac spots for radio. Each one will be one or two minutes long and I will record them throughout 2005. It will be "On This Day" with a difference: the pick of the 
US lawyer wants inquiry into Hicks trial process
At left is shown the Eureka flag, the tattered original of which is still in existence. Showing the constellation of the Southern Cross, a stellar feature that dominates the night sky in Australia, it is favoured by many Australians as a replacement for the national flag which still shows Britain's Union Jack even after 103 years of independence. However, many conservative elements oppose the Eureka flag, for obvious reasons, and there will likely be no change in the foreseeable future. One hopes that the sesquicentenary will further raise consciousness about this anachronism.
"New York (Reuters) - Human rights group Amnesty International called on U.S. law enforcement agencies on Tuesday to suspend use of Taser electric-shock weapons, demanding an independent inquiry into the devices, which Amnesty says have contributed to more than 70 deaths.
"According to Amnesty, U.S. police are using Tasers routinely on unarmed suspects, where lethal force would never be justified. It says the weapons have been used on children under age 16, as well as on old and mentally ill people.
So I surfed up last night to the website of the world's most acclaimed didgeridoo maestro, Charlie McMahon (