Ellopia Press NY - May 2015 Issue 95
Soar the skies
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Monthly magazine, publishe by Ellopia Media Group in New York City Established 2002 Publisher ATHINA KRIKELI Chief Editor ANASTASIA KASIMATIS
May 29th, 1453 The fall of Constantinople GREEKS still consider Tuesday an unlucky day. May 29th 1453, was a Tuesday; the day that Constantinople, the place they called—and often still call— the queen of cities, or simply “the city” was overrun by the Ottoman forces that had bombarded its mighty walls for the past 40 days. In the history of warfare, this was a watershed. It proved that gunpowder could batter down the strongest walls enough to let the attackers in; the age of immobile, iron-clad soldiers defending big stone fortresses was over. But far more was over than that... The Byzantine defenders and their In the small hours next day, the final assault began, with a deafening noise of trumpets, drums and war-cries. The Genoese ran down to the sea after their commander was wounded; eventually a dozen Greek and Italian ships, laden with terrified refugees, reached the open sea. The besiegers—the irregular, illtrained bashi-bazouks and the elite janissaries—poured in. Smashing through the great bronze doors, they burst into the morning service at Saint Sophia. The worshippers were massacred or captured; many priests died by the altar. Later Sultan Mehmet, the impulsive 21-year-old who
Contributors S. Papathemelis (Greece), Arkas (Greece) G. Kalaras, (Chicago) Titos Christodoulou, (England) Writers G. Skabardonis (Greece) Costas Krikelis (Greece) Anita Diamantopoulou (USA) Kostas Mpliatkas (Hellas) Nick Christophers Senior Editor (English)
had flouted all his elders' advice in besieging the best-defended city in Europe, walked into the building and ordered an imam to claim it for the Muslim faith. But he stopped a soldier hacking at the marble pavings: looting—for one day, Music Editors not the usual three—all right, but not NIKOS TATASOPOULOS vandalism. CHRISTOS ALEXANDROU The fall of Constantinople brought to a PETROS HATJOPOULOS head many trends already under way. One was the slide of the Byzantine empire's power, as the loss of Anatolian Business Consultant lands left it short of revenue and recruits, and thus more dependent on fickle ItalMaria Papapetros Fashion Consultant ian allies; another the flight of Greek Nikos Eftaxias scholars (particularly brilliant in Byzantium's final years) to Italy, where they Creative Art Director Hellas helped to stimulate the Renaissance. kostas Krikeli But a part of Europe? Allied with GerAnna Papakonstantinou many in the first world war, and therefore stripped of their remaining Middle Advertising Director Eastern empire, the Turks by 1922 were LIA DELKOTZAKI strong enough again to drive Greece's troops, and centuries of Greek society, from Anatolia. Old enmities were reEllopia Media Group Ltd. USA sharpened by the Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus in 1974. If the Europe- KAUFMAN ASTORIA STUDIOS 141 East 55 str New York NY an Union still hesitates, despite Turkey's 10022 decades inside NATO, about its wish for Tel: (718) 720 4522 infoellopia@aol.com EU membership too, the real reasons lie www.ellopiatv.com centuries deep; not least in 1453. Facebook: ellopia-You Tube/ellopia Source; The Economist
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World’s 100 Richest Could End Global Poverty 4 Times Over The world’s 100 richest people earned a stunning total of $240 billion in 2012 – enough money to end extreme poverty worldwide four times over, Oxfam has revealed, adding that the global economic crisis is further enriching the super-rich. “The richest 1 percent has increased its income by 60 percent in the last 20 years with the financial crisis accelerating rather than slowing the process,” while the income of the top 0.01 percent has seen even greater growth, a new Oxfam report said. For example, the luxury goods market has seen double-digit growth every year since the crisis hit, the report stated. And while the world’s 100 richest people earned $240 billion last year, people in ”extreme poverty” lived on less than $1.25 a day. Oxfam is a leading international philanthropy organization. Its new report, ‘The Cost of Inequality: How Wealth and Income Extremes Hurt us All,’ argues that the extreme concentration of wealth actually hinders the world’s ability to reduce poverty. The report was published before the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, and calls on world leaders to “end extreme wealth by 2025, and reverse the rapid increase in inequality seen in the majority of countries in the last 20 years.”
“The richest 1 percent has increased its income by 60 percent in the last 20 years with the financial crisis accelerating rather than slowing the process,”
Oxfam’s report argues that extreme wealth is unethical, economically inefficient, politically corrosive, socially divisive and environmentally destructive. The report proposes a new global deal to world leaders to curb extreme poverty to 1990s levels by: – closing tax havens, yielding $189bn in additional tax revenues – reversing regressive forms of taxation – introducing a global minimum corporation tax rate – boosting wages proportional to capital returns – increasing investment in free public services The problem is a global one, Oxfam said: “In the UK
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“We can no longer pretend that the creation of wealth for a few will inevitably benefit the many – too often the reverse is true,”
inequality is rapidly returning to levels not seen since the time of Charles Dickens. In China the top 10 percent now take home nearly 60 percent of the income. Chinese inequality levels are now similar to those in South Africa, which is now the most unequal country on Earth and significantly more [inequality] than at the end of apartheid.” In the US, the richest 1 percent’s share of income has doubled since 1980 from 10 to 20 percent, according to the report. For the top 0.01 percent, their share of national income quadrupled, reaching levels never seen before. “We can no longer pretend that the creation of wealth for a few will inevitably benefit the many – too often the reverse is true,” Executive Director of Oxfam International Jeremy Hobbs said. Hobbs explained that concentration of wealth in the hands of the top few minimizes economic activity, mak-
ing it harder for others to participate: “From tax havens to weak employment laws, the richest benefit from a global economic system which is rigged in their favor.” The report highlights that even politics has become controlled by the super-wealthy, which leads to policies “benefiting the richest few and not the poor majority, even in democracies.” “It is time our leaders reformed the system so that it works in the interests of the whole of humanity rather than a global elite,” the report said. The four-day World Economic Forum will be held in Davos starting next Wednesday. World financial leaders will gather for an annual meeting that will focus on reviving the global economy, the eurozone crisis and the conflicts in Syria and Mali. Source: “World’s 100 richest earned enough in 2012 to end global poverty 4 times over”, from rt.com
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The Price of Precious The minerals in our electronic devices have bankrolled unspeakable violence in the Congo.
By Jeffrey Gettleman Photograph by Marcus Bleasdale The first child soldier pops out of the bush clutching an AK-47 assault rifle in one hand and a handful of fresh marijuana buds in the other. The kid, probably 14 or 15, has this big, goofy, mischievous grin on his face, like he’s just stolen something—which he probably has— and he’s wearing a ladies’ wig with fake braids dangling down to his shoulders. Within seconds his posse materializes from the thick, green leaves all around us, about ten other heavily armed youngsters dressed in ratty camouflage and filthy T-shirts, dropping down
from the sides of the jungle and blocking the red dirt road in front of us. Our little Toyota truck is suddenly swarmed and immobilized by a four-and-a-half-foottall army. This is on the road to Bavi, a rebel-controlled gold mine on the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s wild eastern edge. Congo is sub-Saharan Africa’s largest country and one of its richest on paper, with an embarrassment of diamonds, gold, cobalt, copper, tin, tantalum, you name it—trillions’ worth of natural resources. But because of never ending war, it is one of the poorest and most traumatized nations in the world. It doesn’t make any sense, until you understand that
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militia-controlled mines in eastern Congo have been feeding raw materials into the world’s biggest electronics and jewelry companies and at the same time feeding chaos. Turns out your laptop—or camera or gaming system or gold necklace—may have a smidgen of Congo’s pain somewhere in it.
than five bucks, and then we’re on our way again, rumbling down an excruciatingly bumpy dirt road, past thatched-roof villages and banana trees. In the distance giant mountains nose the sky. When we get to Bavi, we sit down with the village elders and talk gold. The world gold price has quadrupled over the past ten years, but there’s no sign of development or newfound prosperity out here. Bavi has the same broken-down feel of any other village in eastern Congo: a clump of round huts hunched by the road, a market where the shops are made of sticks, shopkeepers torpidly selling heaps of secondhand clothes, and glassyeyed men reeking of home brew stumbling down the dirt footpaths. There’s no electricity or running water, and the elders say they need medicine and books for the school. The kids are barefoot, their bellies pushed out like balloons from malnutrition or worms or both.
The mine in the Bavi area is a perfect example. It’s controlled by a potbellied warlord called Cobra Matata, though “controlled” may be a strong word. There are no discernible front lines out here marking where government rule definitively ends and Cobra’s territory definitively begins, no opposing troops hunkered down in trenches or foxholes eyeballing each other through their scopes. Instead there are just messy, blurry degrees of influence, often very marginal influence, with a few Congolese government guys lounging under a mango tree in one place, and maybe two miles down the road a few of Cobra’s child soldiers smoking pot, and nothing in between but big, vacant, sparkling green wilderness. “We’re broke,” says Juma Mafu, one of the elders. “We’ve got a lot of gold but no machines to get it out. Our dig“Sigara! Sigara!” the child soldiers yell, seeking ciga- gers use their hands. No big companies are ever going rettes. Photographer Marcus Bleasdale and I quickly to come here unless we have peace.” Which they clearly push fistfuls of Sportsmans, a local brand, out the win- don’t. dow, and they are instantaneously gobbled up by fever- The birds are chirping, and the afternoon sun is slantish little hands. That seems to do the trick, along with ing behind us as we walk down the hill toward the gold a few thousand crumpled Congolese francs, worth less mine. First stop is to say hello to the “minister of mines,”
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who is at a pub in the market, sitting Buddha-like with his eyes half closed behind a forest of freshly polished- But the minister of mines shakes his fat head. “No, no, off Primus beer bottles. He is an enormous man and you won’t. You’re under arrest.” “For what?” I ask, my wears a cheap, silvery blazer stretched awkwardly over throat parched. the thick rolls of fat on his back. “For being in a zone rouge.” “Hujambo, mzee,” I say, giving him a respectful Swahili greeting. Isn’t most of eastern Congo a red zone, controlled by He burps—loudly. I tell him we’re journalists and we’d armed groups? I think. But I don’t say anything, because like to see the gold mine. the next minute we’re marched into a car for a five-hour drive to the larger town of Bunia, where we will be held He laughs a nasty little laugh and then says, “How do I at gunpoint and interrogated in a dark, little house with know you’re journalists? Maybe you’re spies.” mysterious stains on the floor. The story of Congo is this: The government in Kinshasa, The word “spies” shoots through the market like a the capital, is weak and corrupt, leaving this vast nation spark, igniting a crowd of people, who suddenly flock rotten at its core. The remote east has plunged straight around us. A one-eyed child soldier glares at us menac- into anarchy, carved up by a hodgepodge of rebel groups ingly and fingers his gun. Another young man abruptly that help bankroll their brutality with stolen minerals. announces that he works for the Congolese government The government army is often just as sticky fingered and intelligence service and wants to see our documents. wicked. Few people in recent memory have suffered as long, and on such a horrifying scale, as the Congolese. Where else are men, women, and children slaughtered Time to leave, I think. Time to leave, right now. As casu- by the hundreds, year after year, sometimes so deep in ally as I can manage at this point, though my voice is be- the jungle that it takes weeks for the truth to come out? ginning to crack, I say, “Fine ... uh ... no problem. Then Where else are hundreds of thousands of women raped we’ll just ... um ... go home.” and just about nobody punished?
MARIA PAPAPETROS
GIVE YOUR MOM A CALL!!!!!
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY TO ALL OF YOU LADIES who have had the privilege of motherhood. It is a true privilege and blessing to have been able to conceive, and carry a wee one within you for months, give them birth, and hear their first cry as they took their first breath upon this earth. Remember the miracle of love coming over you permeating your entire being the first time they suckled on your breast and thumb? It was so strong it made you forget the woes of pregnancy and the pains of labor and delivery right then and there. Your cares and worries for them grew as they did. I am sure you remember the sleepless nights waiting for their fevers to break, their tears to dry, and the chasing of the monster from underneath their beds. As you think of the million worrisome times you’ve had over them coming home late from their prom dance, their first car, their first date, going to college, to the service and finally moving away from home, getting married and so forth. You wouldn’t change any of it for all the treasures of the world they are your treasures. HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all of you mothers who had issues with conception and fought so hard to become mothers, you are amazing souls. I admire all of you, thinking of the many trips to the doctors, hormonal treatments, the restrictions of adoption, the long waiting, and finally the trips around the world to bring, to bring your baby home, God Bless you. HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all the universal mothers in the world, maybe you did not bear a child of your
womb, but you have mothered so many people, adults, children, pets and more. We were born mothers, mothering is our nature, and it’s in our blood, as women we are blessed with the motherly instinct. HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all the mother’s whose children are no longer on this earth plane. I belong in that category and sharing with you the pain I have endured every year when loved ones refrain from offering their wishes to me. I understand why they don’t, and that does not lessen my pain. Our children may not be alive but we are still mothers as the live in our hearts. I always get sentimental around this Holiday, and in one of those times about twenty years ago something happened to precious not to share. Eleven in the morning, I was addressing my departed son in my journal asking him to help me find a card he had given me once on Mom’s Day, I had obviously misplaced. A few moments later I sensed his energy around me, I put the pen down on my pad closed my eyes and reveled in the vision of him. I had the feeling to go to the closet in my room as if hypnotized. I did, I felt led to look for a small brown bag I owned, I found it inside a bigger bag I was no longer using. I opened not even been aware of what I was doing. Well Glory Be, there it was; a hard plastic Mother’s Day card from a dime store with a yellow smiling face printed on it made out to me and signed by him. I looked at the bottom and it read NON EXPIRING. It is so precious to me; some things never expire such as mother-child love. GIVE YOUR MOM A CALL!!!!!
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A Gift from Greece and its People to the Boston Marathon
Congratulations to all Boston Marathon winners! We are so proud that the wreaths awarded to the winners come from Greece, a tradition that has lasted for 31 years! The Consulate General of Greece in Boston and the Alpha Omega Council of Boston presented the wreaths to the Boston Athletic Association in a ceremony that took place on April 16th.
The Marathon Wreath Ceremony was established in 1984 jointly by Greek Consul General Christos Panagopoulos (currently Greek Ambassador to the U.S.), Governor Michael S. Dukakis, Lieutenant Governor John Kerry, Mayor of Boston Raymond Flynn, Marathon Race Director Tim Kilduff and the Alpha Omega Council in recognition of the historical ties between the world’s first democracy in Ancient Athens -where the first marathon took placeand the people of Massachusetts who striving for freedom and human dignity started the American Revolution. Our Consul General in Bos-
ton Ifigenia Kanara, presented the wreaths to the officers of the Boston Athletic Association: “This is a wonderful event that helps remind everyone of the Marathon’s Greek origins.” Each year the wreaths are grown, cut and hand-crafted specifically to crown the four 1st place winners of the Boston Marathon, channeling Classical Greece’s tradition of crowning its victors with olive wreaths. For the second consecutive year an essay competition took place among the middleschool students of Hopkinton, where the Boston Marathon starts, and Timilty Middle
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I whisper, “I am Athenian and I am free.” School of the City of Boston, where the Marathon ends. The essays address links between the ancient Battle of Marathon, democracy, and the marathon run today. Consul General Kanara presented each of the winners with a marble olive wreath trophy and a certificate from the Mayor of Marathon,Greece. Here are some excerpts from the student’s essays:
ing, waiting for war. …Our general Miltiades gives an impossible command, and for the first time in history, “Athenians ATTACK!” As we charge, a monolith of thorns, I dread the thought of serving Persia. Thinking of the loss of our …democracy… a fire ignites.” Alexander Fomin, Grade 6 “My hands shook as I tightened my grip on the dagger. Wind blustered in my face as I tried to survey the hill on which I stood. It would have been a breathtaking sight if not for the thousands of Persians lining the base… they were only steps away. I could hear the rattling of my father’s shield besides me. “It’s okay Papa,” I murmured soothingly. “Think of the reasons we must fight.” He nodded and took a deep breath. “Freedom, Rights… Democracy…” Standing a little taller, knowing I may not be Greece’s best soldier, I realized… I must defend Greece, both for its people and for its principles.” Olivia Jones, Grade 6
“…I watch the massive Persian army gather on the plains below. My name is Aristides. I am twenty years old … and I stand with thousands of soldiers, who like me are ready to protect democracy at the battle of Marathon....I am proud and ready to protect our core beliefs: education; art; literature; and most of all, democracy...As we advance, I whisper, “I am Athenian and I am free.” Zachary Blair, Grade 6 “The sea air stings my eyes, which tear up, as I stand upon a hill of Marathon…Squinting at Helios, our great sun, I murmured a muffled prayer to Ares, our god of war. I can see the Persians in formation, silently lust- From: Greece in America
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Your Food. Your Temple. Your Choice.
With so many brands of food available these days, and with so many mixed messages from medical professionals and organizations, it has become extremely difficult to make the right choice. by Nick Polizzi
Let’s start with simple common sense. Here are 3 general tips to get you started:
I was just in a ceremony with a legendary Maya medicine woman, and when someone asked her what the 1) Eat what you can recognize. To me, it’s not really food most powerful treatment she knew of was, she answered if it’s got more than 5 or 6 ingredients, or it comes with simply, “Not getting sick in the first place.” lots of fancy packaging. It doesn’t take a degree in nutrition or medicine to figure out if something can be clasI think we all intuitively know the key to keeping the sified as fresh produce, meat or grains. If it looks and doctor away, but I’ll say it anyway – OUR FOOD. smells like it just came from a farm (preferably an organic one), you’re halfway there. However, if you were Yes, there are lots of factors that are out of our control to show this item or product to your grandparents and when it comes to our health. But one thing we CAN they have no idea what it is, then it’s a pretty good sign control is what we put into our bodies, specifically the to avoid it altogether. Just remember that the more prekinds of food we eat. With so many brands of food avail- servatives or additives it has, the further it is from being able these days, and with so many mixed messages from real food – as in the actual fruits and veggies that grow medical professionals and organizations, it has become out of the ground, or well raised meat from a farm or extremely difficult to make the right choice. fish from rivers, streams, lakes, or the sea. Perhaps the best way to begin the discussion is by re- 2) Sugar and gluten (wheat based foods), If they’re hard moving as much complexity from the issue as possible. to find in nature, why should they be easy to find in a
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store? I’m not talking about the raw ingredients this time – I’m talking about what’s actually in the food itself. When you’re outside, whether your a human or a monkey, a lion or a lamb, a bird or an elephant, you actually have to look for and work for the stuff that tastes good or that’s pleasurable to your palate. There’s a reason why sugar and gluten aren’t available at the drop of a hat in nature, that’s because our bodies aren’t designed to process a lot of them at once. But at some point, scientists figured out what that “sweet spot” is, the perfect balance of sugar and gluten to not only keep our taste buds satisfied, but our minds hooked – to the extent where even cigarette companies and their executives have acknowledged how effective these guys were. So if you can lay off the salt and gluten, the stuff that’s not served on a platter by mother nature, then you’ll be going strong out of the gate.
ing down while you eat. Chew more so you can not only give your digestive system a little break, but also enjoy every bite. You can also pre portion your foods, and do so in smaller containers, so you’re never indulging by eating out of a box, a bag, or a large container or dish. And make note of any food weaknesses or constant cravings you have – heck, you can even treat them like a bad ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend and give yourself hints and reminders not to go backward, and instead go forward in your life by cutting them out altogether. These are just a few suggestions to help you start making the right choices when it comes to deciding which foods, and how much of those foods you consume. Remember, these are based on common sense, so there isn’t any rocket science or profound methodology behind them.
3) Quality NOT Quantity. While finding quality food may not be a simple task these days, one thing you can Many times, you can learn a lot more and do a lot more do that IS simple is cut back on the quantity of food you when you keep things simple and go one step at a time. eat. And not specific types of food either, just food in general. Last, but not least, if you want more tips like this to help you navigate today’s dizzying array of food choices, One thing you can do to cut back includes actually slow- check out the 2015 Food Revolution Summit:
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Η Θεσσαλονίκη εκτός των τειχών Του ΚΩΣΤΑ Δ. ΜΠΛΙΑΤΚΑ , Δημοσιογραφου-Συγγραφέα
H Λεωφόρος Χαμιδιέ (σημερινή Εθνικής Αμύνης) το 1890 που συνδέει την πλατεία του Λευκού Πύργου με την πλατεία Συντριβανίου. (φωτογραφία του P.Zepji). Από το βιβλίο «Η Θεσσαλονίκη Εκτός των Τειχών, Εικονογραφία της συνοικίας των εξοχών» που κυκλοφορεί από τις εκδόσεις University Studio Press
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Η αρχιτεκτονική φαίνεται ως ήταν μόνο η αφορμή για τον Βασίλη Κολώνα καθώς χρησιμοποίησε την υψηλή επιστημονική του αρτιότητα καθώς και την αγάπη του για την αρχιτεκτονική ιστορία της Θεσσαλονίκης για να τεκμηριώσει και να πει ‘’άλλα πράγματα’’ μέσα σε ένα βιβλίο . Ο καθηγητής της Αρχιτεκτονικής Ιστορίας στο Πανεπιστήμιο της Θεσσαλίας μας διδάσκει χωρίς να μας καθοδηγεί , θέματα αλλά και ‘’ανοιχτές πληγές’’ της ιστορίας της πολυεθνικής, και μαρτυρικής πόλης. «Θυμάμαι ζωντανές πολλές από τις βίλες των Εξοχών από το διαμέρισμά μας σε μια από τις πρώτες πολυκατοικίες στη Βασιλίσσης Όλγας. Τις θυμάμαι όμως και να γκρεμίζονται. Πάντα ήθελα να κάνω κάτι γι’ αυτά τα κτίρια» λέει χαρακτηριστικά . Η μελέτη και η έρευνα του συγγραφέα για τη συνοικία των Εξοχών σε άγνωστες μέχρι στιγμής πηγές, σε κρατικά αρχεία, ιδιωτικές συλλογές, και μουσεία φέρνουν στο φως νέα στοιχεία για την περιοχή αυτή της Θεσσαλονίκης, μια συνοικία αυτόνομη, μοντέρνα, ξεχωριστή, γοητευτική. Σπάνιο και πλούσιο φωτογραφικό υλικό (περισσότερες από 550 εικόνες) με παλιές αλλά και σύγχρονες λήψεις από επαύλεις, διώροφες κατοικίες, σχολεία, εργοστάσια, θρησκευτικά και διοικητικά κτίρα, χώρους αναψυχής
-κάποια από αυτά τα κτίρια, ακόμη εν λειτουργία (Αυτοκρατορικό λύκειο, Παπάφειο Ορφανοτροφείο, Δημοτικό Νοσοκομείο, Γενί Τζαμί, Μύλοι Αλαττίνι, Κάζα Μπιάνκα, επαύλεις Π. Χατζηλαζάρου, Σεϊφουλάχ πασά, Καπατζή κ.ά.) αποκαλύπτουν την εικόνα μιας πόλης η οποία ταλαντευόταν ανάμεσα στην παράδοση και τη νεωτερικότητα. Αδημοσίευτοι χάρτες και σχέδια, άγνωστες φωτογραφίες δρόμων και κτιρίων της πόλης που δεν υπάρχουν πια παρουσιάζονται στην έκδοση και εκφράζουν τη δυναμική παρουσία του κρατικού εκσυγχρονισμού και τις φιλοδοξίες της κοσμοπολίτικης κοινωνίας της Θεσσαλονίκης. Το βιβλίο φέρνει στο φως νέα στοιχεία για τον σχεδιασμό του αστικού χώρου, την εθνοτική και κοινωνική σύνθεση του πληθυσμού της πόλης, την αρχιτεκτονική των κτιρίων της εποχής και αποκαθιστά την εικόνα της συνοικίας που χάθηκε τεκμηριώνοντας την ιστορία των κτιρίων και των ενοίκων τους. Τα κενά στην ιστορία της αρχιτεκτονικής μιας πόλης δημιουργούν κενά στην ιστορία της πόλης. Η ιλιγγιώδης ταχύτητα των αλλαγών των μεταπολεμικών χρόνων δεν άφησε περιθώρια διατήρησης της συνοικίας των Εξοχών στη μνήμη των κατοίκων της πόλης. (Ο Βασίλης Κολώνας είναι Καθηγητής του Τμήματος Αρχιτεκτόνων του Πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλίας).
new york
Καμπάνια "Χτίζουμε το σχολείο της Ελευθερίας των Λαών στο Κομπάνι" Στα τέλη του Φλεβάρη μια αποστολή εκπαιδευτικών από Συλλόγους Εκπ/ κών Π.Ε. και ΕΛΜΕ, επισκέφτηκαν την περιοχή του Σουρούτς, στα σύνορα ΤουρκίαςΣυρίας, παραδίδοντας ανθρωπιστική βοήθεια στους πρόσφυγες από το Κομπάνι (Ροζάβα-Δυτ. Συρία).
M
Στο Σουρούτς υπάρχουν αρκετοί καταυλισμοί που φιλοξενούν κυρίως παιδιά, ηλικιωμένους και ηλικιωμένες. Όλοι οι καταυλισμοί λειτουργούν μέσα από το δίκτυο αλληλεγγύης του τοπικού πληθυσμού των Κούρδων της Τουρκίας και με τη στήριξη συλλογικοτήτων που δραστηριοποιούνται εκεί. Σε κάθε καταυλισμό υπάρχει σχολείο, πολιτιστικό κέντρο και κέντρο γυναικών. Η εκπαίδευση έχει για αυτούς πρωταρχικό
Mesta
ρόλο, γιατί θεωρούν ότι μόνο έτσι οι άνθρωποι θα αποκτήσουν κοινωνική συνείδηση, θα γίνουν ικανοί να μην τους εκμεταλλεύονται. Παλεύουν να διατηρήσουν την κουλτούρα και τον πολιτισμό τους και για πρώτη φορά διδάσκονται στα σχολεία τη μητρική τους γλώσσα. Τα σχολεία των προσφύγων λειτουργούν μέσα σε αντίσκηνα, με ό,τι υλικά συγκέντρωσε
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ο ντόπιος πληθυσμός. Είναι ωστόσο γεμάτα με τα χαμόγελα και τη θέληση των παιδιών για μάθηση, με την πίστη ότι θα επιστρέψουν στο Κομπάνι, την πίστη στη νίκη του αγώνα απέναντι στο φασισμό και τη βαρβαρότητα των ISIS. Σιγά σιγά οι πρόσφυγες επιστρέφουν στο Κομπάνι και προσπαθούν να ξαναχτίσουν την πόλη τους, τις δομές, τα σχολεία τους. Κουβαλούν μαζί τους κυρίως τη θέληση και τη βεβαιότητα ότι θα ξαναχτίσουν τη ζωή τους σε συνθήκες ελευθερίας και ισότητας (ανεξάρτητα από φυλή, φύλο και θρήσκευμα), χωρίς εκμετάλλευση ανθρώπου από άνθρωπο. Την κοινωνία που είχαν αρχίσει να χτίζουν πριν από την εισβολή των ισλαμοφασιστών Η μαχόμενη εκπαίδευση ήταν πάντα στο πλάι όσων “άναβαν φωτιές” για να διώξουν το σκοτάδι του φασισμού, της βίας και των πολέμων, έχει δείξει αλληλεγγύη στους αγώνες των λαών για γη και ελευθερία και θα το κάνει για μια φορά ακόμα. Για να συμβάλλουμε στο ξαναχτίσιμο της πόλης, οι εκπαιδευτικοί μαζί με άλλα εργατικά σωματεία και συλλογικότητες, συμβάλλοντας με διεθνιστική αλληλεγγύη, ξεκινήσαμε μια μεγάλη καμπάνια για να δουν τα παιδιά από το Κομπάνι να χτίζεται στον τόπο τους ένα σχολείο! Καλούμε τους Συλλόγους Εκπαιδευτικών Π.Ε. και τις ΕΛΜΕ από όλη την Ελλάδα καθώς και σωματεία από τον ιδιωτικό και δημόσιο τομέα και όποιες συλλογικότητες ενδιαφέρονται, να συμβάλλουν σε μια μεγάλη αυτοτελή οικονομική καμπάνια αλληλεγγύης για το χτίσιμο του ΣΧΟΛΕΙΟΥ
ΤΗΣ ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΙΑΣ ΤΩΝ ΛΑΩΝ στο ΚΟΜΠΑΝΙ! Τα χρήματα που θα συγκεντρωθούν θα δοθούν απευθείας στο Κομπάνι, σε συνεργασία με το σωματείο εκπαιδευτικών της Τουρκίας, Egitim Sen και την Eπιτροπή για τη Ροζάβα-Rojava negi. Σύλλογοι Εκπ/κών Π.Ε.: Αθήνας “Αριστοτέλης”, Α. Λιοσίων-Ζεφυρίου-Φυλής, Νίκαιας Πειραιά, “Περικλής”, Αμαρουσίου, Κερατσινίου-Περάματος “Ν. Πλουμπίδης”, Ανατ. Αττικής “Κ. Σωτηρίου”, Λαγκαδά, Β΄ Θεσ/νίκης “Μ. Αλέξανδρος”, Αιγάλεω, Γ΄ Θεσ/ νίκης “Πλάτων”, Δυτικής Αττικής, Μολάων “Γ. Ρίτσος”, Ροδόπης, Ζ΄ Θεσ/νίκης “Φίλιππος”, Ιεράπετρας “Μ. Λιουδάκη”, Στ΄ Θεσ/νίκης “Αριστοτέλης” ΕΛΜΕ: Ε΄ Αθήνας, Α. Λιοσίων-Ζεφυρίου-Φυλής, Γ΄ Θεσ/νίκης, Πάρου-Αντίπαρου, Ηρακλείου Εργατ. Σωματεία: Υπαλλήλων Βιβλίου-Χάρτου Θεσ/ νίκης, Μισθωτών Τεχνικών Αθήνας, ΠΑ.Σ.Ε. ΟΤΕ Λέσβου, Αρχιτεκτόνων Θεσ/νίκης, Υπαλλήλων Βιβλίου-Χάρτου Αττικής Συλλογικότητες: Εργατική Λέσχη Λέσβου, Εργατ. Λέσχη Νέας Σμύρνης, Σύλλογος Γονέων Δημ. Σχολείου Σαρωνίδας, Εργατ. Λέσχη Κερατσινίου-Δραπετσώνας, Πρωτοβουλία Γυναικών σε Δράση Έδεσσας, Εργατ. Λέσχη Βόλου, Χώρος Αλληλεγγύης Γυναικών Θεσ/ νίκης-Πρωτοβουλία Γυναικών Ενάντια στο Χρέος και τα Μέτρα Λιτότητας, Λαϊκή Συνέλευση ΣεπολίωνΚολωνού-Ακαδ. Πλάτωνα, Λαϊκή Συνέλευση Φιλαδέλφειας -Χαλκηδόνας
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Start your weekend off right at the smartest party in town, hosted by the American Museum of Natural History.
New York city More kids (and adults, for that matter) should have this chance. The President happens to agree, and he wants to make two years of community college free for up to 9 million Americans who are willing to work for it.
Tom Hanks
What Chabot College did for me:
The road to a higher education Let's make it a reality for every American. Read and Share: White House Education Content
Chabot College is a rambling series of academic buildings situated on 94 acres in Hayward, California. It offers more than 100 associate degrees and certificates, an intercollegiate national championship-winning ultimate disc team, and parking for a couple thousand cars. It's also my alma mater. Chabot's a community college -and in the early 1970s, it was all free, save for the effort you put into it and the price of used textbooks. As a student there, I went to school alongside Vietnam vets, moms, and middle-aged men, as well as a few thousand young people like me who needed time to sort out our lives and our options. We were looking to get our general education requirements out of the way, to learn skill sets to improve our employment prospects, or to dis-
cover the road to new, unimagined careers. We all found a different home at Chabot, but it welcomed all of us. Later today, the President is heading to Watertown, South Dakota to deliver the commencement address at another community college -- called Lake Area Tech. (NOTE: If I had grown up in that part of South Dakota, my alma mater would be none other than Lake Area Tech.) He'll talk to students who, like those of us at Chabot all those years ago, are going to go out into the world and do great things. And they'll owe it in part to an educational institution that ought to be an option for more Americans. You should tune in and hear what he has to say -- and then add your voice to a growing conversation about how we can make college a
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Add Your Voice to the Conversation: Maybe it was a teacher who showed you that your voice mattered. A book that opened your eyes to a world that stretched further than the end of your street. Or an opportunity from a community college that saw your potential — and shaped it into a career. Help build a conversation big enough to reach every American who dreams of reaching higher: Share what made your education possible. reality for more of us. I drove past Chabot's campus a few years ago with one of my kids and summed up my two years there this way: "That place made me what I am today." Here's why: Over the course of my career, I've only continued to reap the benefits of the classes I took there. I produced the HBO mini-series "John Adams" with an outline format I learned from a pipe-smoking historian, James Coovelis, whose lectures were riveting. Mary Lou Fitzgerald's Studies in Shakespeare taught me how the five-act structures of "Richard III," "The Tempest," and "Othello" focused their themes. In Herb Kennedy's Drama in Performance, I read plays like "The Hot L Baltimore" and "Desire Under the Elms," then saw their productions. I got to see the plays he taught, through student rush tickets at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and
the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Those plays filled my head with expanded dreams. (I also got an A.) Here's my bottom line, and it's simple: More kids (and adults, for that matter) should have this chance. The President happens to agree, and he wants to make two years of community college free for up to 9 million Americans who are willing to work for it. I hope that's an idea that sticks. You can help make sure it does. Add your voice to a growing conversation about how we can make college a reality for more Americans. Share what got you where you are today. Then, stick around for the President's remarks. He reminds me of a guy I had in a Public Speaking class at Chabot -- the best in the room. Thanks, Tom Hanks
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Generation YouTube:
Today's fastest-rising stars aren't coming out of Hollywood
by Joan E. Solsman
Thanks to the popularity of online media sites like YouTube, mainstream entertainment soon may look more like that kid clowning around in front of a laptop camera.
Hanging out on a graffiti-coated movie set in Los Angeles in October, Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox laugh as they recall the first time they were recognized in public. It was 2005, and the two were visiting a Subway shop in their hometown of Sacramento, Calif., when a customer spotted them as the "Mortal Kombat guys" from YouTube. Calling themselves Smosh, the shaggy-haired teens had lipsynched the video game's theme song and pretended to high kick each other in a mock fight staged in Padilla's childhood bedroom. The sandwich buyer told them what he thought of their
3.5-minute video -- his review included an expletive and the word "sucked" -- and then asked: "You guys take that shit seriously?" They certainly do, and they’re not the only ones. Smosh’s send-ups of video games and movies have spawned a multimillion-dollar brand for the now 27-year-olds. Their Mortal Kombat takeoff has been watched more than 27 million times, while their channels on Google’s YouTube video site have tallied more than 7 billion views. Their fan base sometimes swarms into mobs the pair calls “scary.” Today, more than 20 million people subscribe to their main YouTube channel.
THE WORLD Star quality These stars might be nobodies to many viewers over 25, but that won't last long. Baffled by how to
Thanks to the popularity of online media sites such as YouTube, today’s fastest-rising stars aren’t coming out of Hollywood. They’re teens hamming it up or breaking it down in front of a computer to create a new kind of entertainment.
reach the most coveted and commercially influential audience -- 16- to 34-year-olds -- Hollywood's biggest players are starting to back these invisible celebrities. "The star-making machine is outside big corporations for the first time," says Jason Hirschhorn, a longtime digital media executive and CEO of news curation site Redef. "The idea of what something costs or the craft that's involved ... is totally lost on the younger generation. They look at whatever entertains them." What entertains them can be found more often on the Internet. Today's younger audience watches more than a third of their "TV" online, nearly triple the percentage viewed by people 35 to 64, according to a Verizon survey last
year. Young people also put more stock in stars like Smosh than in big-name celebrities. The power of creators Want to behold the mania of online fandom? Head to VidCon, an annual confab held in Southern California where the biggest You Tubers -- the term for anyone making a career through the site -- draw their most obsessed fans. The three-day event attracted more than 19,000 attendees last year, up from 1,400 visitors four years ago when it began. “It’s absolutely nuts,” says Smosh’s Hecox. “Every YouTuber, it’s required for them to get a security escort.” Fans use their phones to record live appearances by their favorite YouTubers. Joan E. Solsman/ CNET Teen girls make up the core at gatherings like VidCon and other live “social star” events, including DigiTour and DigiFest. Thousands flock to see their beloved icons from YouTube and Vine, Twitter’s video service of six-second clips. Teenybopper fan crazes are nothing new, and today’s parents may be just as perplexed by YouTube stars as their parents were by MTV, even as Beatle mania stumped the previous generation. But with The Beatles, the older crowd knew the Fab Four were
THE WORLD those floppy-haired boys on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Today, many don’t know who these online stars are, says Meridith Valiando Rojas, co-founder and CEO of DigiTour Media, which organizes performances for online stars. DigiTour expects its 2015 slate of 141 stage shows and concerts to attract 350,000 attendees, up from 120,000 last year. “If I can’t name a social star, how can they be so famous?” she says, explaining the typical view of online celebrity. But famous they are. YouTubers Andrea Russett and Jenna Marbles answer fan questions live on stage. Joan E. Solsman/CNET Andrea Russett, a teen who kept her YouTube videos a secret from her Fort Worth, Ind., classmates for fear of being teased, has millions of followers who chase her down the street like Britney Spears. The 19-year-old has collected 2 million subscribers over six years of video blogging, or vlogging. When she moved to LA after turning 18, her YouTube clips of teen-life opinions and high jinks reeled in sponsorships from Pizza Hut and Sour Patch Kids. “This is our business,” Russett says of the vlogs she and her three roommates, also YouTubers, create. With top online stars, business can be big. Money talks Beauty vlogger Michelle Phan started posting makeup tutorials in 2007 after being turned down for a job at a Lâncome beauty counter. Those tutorials evolved into a YouTube channel with more than 7 million subscribers and more than 1 billion views. Her explainers are now the foundation of a mini-empire that includes a L’Oréal makeup line, a book of beauty tips, and a $10-a-month service called Ipsy that delivers “glam bags” of cosmetic samples to more than a million subscribers. Michelle Phan is one of the most-watched women on YouTube. Mark Von Holden “As my YouTube following grew, I was soon earning as much from advertising revenue as from waiting tables, so I quit my job,” says Phan. “My boss thought I was crazy, which just made me more determined.” Phan, 27, hasn’t disclosed revenue from her ventures, but Ipsy’s subscriber base alone suggests an annual sales rate of about $120 million. Missing the point
Though it has turned some online stars like Phan into moguls, YouTube’s economic draw still pales in comparison to broadcast and cable TV. Spending on all interactive marketing last year was about two-thirds of the $84.5 billion in advertising revenue that US TV networks pulled in, according to Forrester Research. That money problem, and a lack of understanding about digital media, explains why many of Hollywood’s traditional players have been slow to recognize the economic potential of online entertainment. Take Alexis G. Zall, whose talent agency was unimpressed when her YouTube channel of comedy vlogs reached 100,000 subscribers. Hitting that subscriber mark is a key milestone for landing lucrative product placement deals. “They were like, ‘It’s just the Internet,’ “ says the 16-yearold aspiring actress, who writes, produces and edits her videos while taking online college courses. “They didn’t see the business possibilities.” Forrester estimates spending on interactive marketing will eclipse TV ad revenue next year. And nothing beats YouTube for reach. With more than 1 billion unique visitors a month, YouTube attracts one out of every seven people on the planet. Stats like that have the old guard paying attention. Joining the mainstream Maker Studios is the most eyebrow-raising example of how traditional Hollywood is starting to value online video and why this content won’t be invisible to the mainstream for long. An online content creator and curator, Maker oversees a network of 55,000 YouTube channels that attract more than 10 billion monthly views. Walt Disney bought Maker for $500 million last year, with the total deal value at nearly $1 billion if Maker meets performance targets. Disney CEO Bob Iger says he wanted Maker in part for its expertise in creating and distributing “shortform videos.” In May 2013, DreamWorks Animation bought teenskewing channel AwesomenessTV for $33 million. In July 2014, Viacom took a minority stake in Defy Media, which bought Smosh in 2011 for an undisclosed sum. In September 2014, media executive Peter Chernin and AT&T bought a majority stake in Fullscreen, a rival to Maker, that values it at as much as $300 million.
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Μια ολιστική αγωγή υγείας με αποτελέσματα σε βάθος Σιάτσου, στα ιαπωνικά, σημαίνει «πίεση με τα δάκτυλα». Είναι μια αγωγή υγείας που εμφανίστηκε ολοκληρωμένη στην Ιαπωνία στις αρχές του 20ου αιώνα και βασίζει τη θεωρία της στην Παραδοσιακή Κινέζικη και Γιαπωνέζικη Ιατρική, όπως και ο βελονισμός. Το Σιάτσου λοιπόν είναι μια μέθοδος που στοχεύει στη διασφάλιση και τη βελτίωση της σωματικής και της ψυχικής ευεξίας. Ο πρωταρχικός του σκοπός είναι η αποκατάσταση της ψυχοσωματικής ισορροπίας. Ενεργοποιεί προς αυτή την κατεύθυνση το εγγενές σε κάθε οργανισμό θεραπευτικό δυναμικό, ενώ σημαντικό ρόλο στα αποτελέσματά του παίζει το άγγιγμα και η ανθρώπινη επαφή.
Το Σιάτσου είναι μια αγωγή υγείας, Χειροπρακτική, Ενεργειακή, Ολιστική και Συμπληρωματική, που στοχεύει στη διασφάλιση και τη βελτίωση της υγείας και της ευεξίας.
Κάθε ενόχληση, σύμπτωμα ή ασθένεια δείχνει, κατά τη θεωρία του σιάτσου, μια ανισορροπία στη ζωτική ενέργεια του ατόμου. ΠΩΣ ΜΠΟΡΟΥΜΕ ΝΑ ΘΕΡΑΠΕΥΤΟΥΜΕ ΑΠΟ ΤΟ ΣΙΑΤΣΟΥ ΚΑΙ ΠΩΣ ΕΦΑΡΜΟΖΕΤΑΙ Αρχικά ο θεραπευτής καταγράφει ένα λεπτομερές διαγνωστικό ιστορικό που αφορά τα συναισθήματα, τη νόηση και το σώμα του ασθενή.
Ο ασκών χρησιμοποιεί τους αντίχειρες, τα δάχτυλα, τους αγκώνες ή τα γόνατα για να εφαρμόσει πιέσεις αλλά και άλλες τεχνικές (διατάσεις κ.α.) στους «μεσημβρινούς», τα «κανάλια» μέσα στα οποία ρέει η ενέργεια σε όλο το σώμα. Αξιοποιεί μία ευρεία γκάμα από διαφορετικές τεχνικές, όπως μαλάξεις, διατάσεις, κινητοποιήσεις των αρθρώσεων και την πίεση ειδικών σημείων. Με ήπιους ή δυναμικούς χειρισμούς, εργάζεται κατά μήκος των επηρεασμένων μεσημβρινών διεγείροντας ή καταπραΰνοντας επιφέροντας σταδιακά την αποκατάσταση της υγείας. Γίνεται επίσης χρήση τεχνικών οι οποίες είναι κοινές με άλλες μεθόδους σωματικού χειρισμού όπως η φυσικοθεραπεία, η χειροπρακτική και η Οστεοπαθητική. Με αυτόν τον τρόπο βοηθάει στην αποκατάσταση της ροής της ενέργειας και στην ανακούφιση των ενοχλήσεων, προάγοντας έτσι αυτό το αίσθημα ευεξίας, σωματικής και ψυχικής, που συνδέεται με την υγεία. Μία συνεδρία σιάτσου συνήθως διαρκεί 50-60 λεπτά και γίνεται με τον δεχόμενο την αγωγή ντυμένο με άνετα ρούχα και ξαπλωμένο - ως επί το πλείστον - σε ένα στρώμα (φουτόν) στο πάτωμα.
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TIMES SQUARE: WHAT’S IN THE NAME
Times Square circa 1905
Claudia Gryvatz Copquin is a New Yorkbased journalist, author, and essayist.
Times Square stretches between Broadway and Seventh Avenue, and between West 42nd and West 47th Streets. A subway station at the corner of 42nd Street and Broadway marks the name. Prior to 1904, the area, a busy horse and buggy intersection, was called Longacre Square, after the carriage district in London. Longacre Square became Times Square once the New York Times built its headquarters there, moving from 41 Park Row in downtown Manhattan to their Gothic skyscraper (25 stories!) in January, 1905. The newspaper launched the traditional New Year’s Eve ball drop from the top of their building, but by 1913 they had outgrown their new digs and moved to 229 West 43rd Street. The Times has since moved again; the building is now known as the Times Square building. Because the interior of the building is too narrow to attract many tenants, today it serves mostly as the site for the massive electronic billboards that are iconic of Times Square. (Broadway is often referred to as “The Great White Way” due to all of the bright signs and marquees that light up the streets.) The area draws millions of tourists and visitors. If you plan on being among those, do take a Times Square History or Broadway Walking Tour. By the way, to keep tabs on foot traffic, an automated counting system tallies up how many people walk through Times Square. The current estimate: 360,000 pedestrians enter the heart of Times Square each day What else to do when you visit? Times Square offers a plethora of activities for the entire family, such as Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, Ripley’s Believe it or Not Odditorium, and a 60-foot Ferris wheel inside Toys “R” Us. For grub, you’ll find tons of options at Restaurant Row on West 46th Street between Broadway and 9th Avenue. For dessert, follow the scent of chocolate to the Hershey’s store and M&M’s World. Featuring a new cast, this interactive comedy encourages audiences to be the wedding guests at each performance. And to celebrate their 2014 return to New York City, Tony and Tina have an exclusive wedding invitation for Parade readers: just answer this Times Square trivia question and you could win a FREE three-night stay at the new Generations Riviera Maya, by Karisma. (Be sure to toast a hearty “Salute” to the happy couple if you win!)
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