Catalonia Land of Meat

Original Source:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djgZUXJkhcI

World Revolution. LPAC TV

Original Source:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfsxjVF5klg

9/11 and the destruction of the shared understanding of antisemitism

9/11 and the destruction of the shared understanding of antisemitism.

Copyright on musical recordings extended by twenty years in EU

The Council of the European Union voted on September 12 to extend the term of copyright on sound recordings by twenty years, from 50 years to 70, preventing a number of early recordings of 1960s rock musicians including The Beatles from entering the public domain. The 1962 hit “Love Me Do” would have entered the public domain in 2012 if this legislation had not been introduced. EU member states have to enact the copyright extension within two years.

The news was welcomed by representatives of the recording industry and by some recording artists. Cliff Richard has campaigned for term extension. Mick Jagger from the Rolling Stones said the decision was “obviously advantageous” to performers, and Bjorn Ulvaeus from Abba welcomed the continued control over the group’s recordings: “Now I won’t have to see Abba being used in a TV commercial”. Geoff Taylor from the British Phonographic Industry said “[a]n exceptional period of British musical genius was about to lose its protection. As a matter of principle, it is right that our musicians should benefit from their creativity during their lifetimes, and that they should not be disadvantaged compared to musicians in other countries.”

Extension of the copyright term also has critics. Jim Killock, from the British digital rights advocacy group the Open Rights Group (ORG), said the move “puts money into the pockets of big labels” but will be “unlikely to benefit smaller artists and it will mean that a lot of sound recordings that are out of print will stay out of print”. Singer Sandie Shaw, of the Featured Artists’ Coalition, said the move would be “extremely good news for record companies and collection agencies, but bad news for artists” and would lead to artists having “20 more years in servitude to contracts that are no longer appropriate to a digital age”.

The extension to 70 years is less than that EU Commissioner Charlie McCreevy proposed in 2008. At that time, Wikinews interviewed Eddan Katz of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Becky Hogge, then Executive Director of ORG, in Brussels. The two organisations were gathering like-minded groups to oppose harmonisation with the US’s 95-year term. Characterising the sought extension as “Cliff Richard’s pension”, Hogge asserted, “[w]hat you’ve got at the end of the day with copyright term extension is basically [...] rent seeking by special interest groups lobbying governments to change the law in order that they may economically gain directly.”

Two reviews of intellectual property rights in Britain have concluded it would not be economically beneficial to extend copyright terms on sound recordings. The Gowers Review of Intellectual Property in 2006 concluded extension of the copyright term would “negatively impact upon consumers and industry”. The Hargreaves Review of Intellectual Property and Growth in 2011 concluded it would be “economically detrimental”. A study conducted by Bournemouth University’s Center for Intellectual Property Policy and Management concluded 72% of the economic benefits of the term extension would go to record labels, with 28% going to artists, only 4% of which are going to less successful artists.

Original Source:

http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Copyright_on_musical_recordings_extended_by_twenty_years_in_EU?dpl_id=282918

International trade: Balance of payments

Original Source:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCI3uaExEM4

Channel in Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/lostmy1

Spain keeps growing

It seems we will keep growing after all. I would like to know the exact percentage of manipulation behind those numbers. Well, at least there is something to raise our hopes.

CNA / Albert Segura

Brussels (ACN).- The Spanish economy will grow 0.1% in this third quarter, another 0.1% in the fourth quarter and 0.8% for the whole of 2011, according to the European Commission. Brussels has not lowered its growth forecasts for Spain and for the Euro area, despite tensions in the markets and warnings from the IMF. The European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, Olli Rehn, considered this Thursday that it “unlikely” to relapse into a second recession, but also warns that the possibility “can not be excluded.” Germany will grow more than expected this year, 2.9% instead of 2.6% which was predicted in the spring, while other EU Member States fail to perform as expected, such as Great Britain (which falls on 1.7% to 1.1%), Italy (1% to 0.7%) and France (1.8% to 1.6%).

“Prospects for the European economy have deteriorated, recovery after a financial crisis is often slow and full of pitfalls,” admitted the European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, Olli Rehn this Thursday. “The sovereign debt crisis has worsened and turbulences in the financial markets are likely to slow down the real economy,” Rehn warned. It is “essential to ensure financial stability” and “more important than ever to achieve structural reforms to encourage future growth potential” he said.

“It is expected that growth in the second half of 2011 will be faint, reaching an almost stagnation state at the end of the year”, said Rehn. However, the European Commission maintains its growth forecasts for the Euro zone made in last spring, which suggested that the 17 members of the single currency area will experience a growth of 0.2% in the third quarter and a 0.1% growth in the last three months of the year, marking a 1.6% increase over the whole of 2011. However, Rehn reduced the growth forecast for the entire European Union, passing from 1.8% to 1.7%.

The European Commission also maintains the growth perspectives for Spain, which would grow 0.8% for the whole of 2011. Inflation rate in Spain for the whole of 2011 will be 2.9%; the same rate expected for the whole of the EU, but almost half a percentage point above the 2.5% expected in the euro area.

Original source:

http://www.catalannewsagency.com/news/business/european-commission-maintains-its-growth-forecast-spain-08-2011

Israel can do videos too

The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released a video describing the history of the Israeli Palestinian conflict from their own official point of view. I won’t be the one saying who is right or wrong. We already know what pro-palestinian groups say.  Judge by yourself.

Israel Palestinian Conflict: The Truth About the Peace Process

 

Original Source of Information:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAuBc_cbXo0&feature=

Another dimension after the attacks

It is still difficult for me to say how I felt that day. I am not from New York, I am not even American, but I will never forget the moment when those huge towers collapsed.

Since that day everything is different, everything changed globally.

I was watching TV yesterday morning when I heard a pretty anchorwoman saying: “It was like if we all had passed across an invisible gate to another dimension, to a new era”. That would be a close description.

 I have been looking through the net searching for updated information about the subject and I have found an interesting and well-documented article called “Ten Years Later: The Global Impact of the 9.11 Attacks” which explains carefully all the consequences, from the “War on Terrorism” to the “Patriot Act” and Guantanamo Bay. I highly recommend you read this piece of knowledge.

Website: Globalization101

Link: www.globalization101.org/news1/9-11-Attacks

International trade: Absolute and comparative advantage

Original Source:
http://youtu.be/Vvfzaq72wd0

Channel in Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/lostmy1

Demand for money: Active and passive

Original Source:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tooU9RnYAPM&feature=channel_video_title

Channel in Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/lostmy1