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George W Bush visits Colombia

U.S. president George W. Bush visited Colombia for a few hours on Sunday 11 march 2007, to meet his Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe. They can be seen in the photograph below at each side of the table, with Pablo Escobar´s cousin Jose Obdulio Gaviria (center) presiding  the table.

 

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Colombian President Proposes Temp Migrants Tagging

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, known in his country as the proprietor of several cattle ranchs, has proposed the implantation of electronic tags (microchips) inside the bodies of Colombians travelling into the United States with temporary work visas so they can be tracked down and eventually deported in case they decide to overstay their visas in the US.

Somehow it reminds me of the German Nazi regime tagging of the "impure minorities", only this is the President of Colombia proposing such a measure on his fellow citizens.

 

 

Uribe’s perception of a Colombian Temp Migrant Worker

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London Terror Attacks

It didn’t, even after 911, occurred to people in Spain or the UK, that they would be the target of Islamic extremists. Not until their governments sided along with the US in invading Iraq. Iraq’s domestic problems were disguised as an international threat. We have known now for a while that there were never WMD’s that justified the invasion. "Regime change" are now the words of choice, and third party armies inside Iraq are still threatened. After this, the Japanese are taking measures and preparing themselves to face a terror attack that some foresee as imminent as Londoners did after the Madrid attacks.

 In Spain, almost a million people marched against the country’s involvement in Iraq’s invasion, but the conservative government anyway dismissed that call and went to war. When the terror attacks happenned they didn’t doubt in blaming the Basque terrorists on it. Many people in Spain that were against the war in Iraq knew best. A few days after the bombing, Aznar’s government was history, and some time later, the Spanish contingent in Iraq, withdrawn. In truth, the Spanish people had spoken. Some could still argue that they were brought to submission by the terrorists, but also many would respond that having the muslims at the back door, it wouldn’t be such a good idea for Spain to disturb them at all.

Bombing London is another story. London has fought war for centuries, it has caught fire and risen again upon its ashes, it was consistently bombed with V1s and V2s during WW2, terrorised by the IRA and also by radical nutters. London knows better how to cope with damage.

After the Madrid Atocha Station attacks, the UK’s Central Government and the London local authorities have been reassuring residents of the very real threat of a terrorists’ attack. A number of emergency drills have taken place, people trained as well about how to respond to suspicious bags and evacuation procedures, and I would say that it was probably through these damage limitation procedures that a huge number of casualties was avoided last Thursday.

Tony Blair’s Labour party have recently retained the parliamentary majority required to stay in power, so I don’t see how in the short term his grip on power could be threatened. If something, the number of rebel backbencher MPs could increase and give his government a bit of a run for their money. I have no doubt, however, that Blair’s spinning skills, far more elegant than the Hippo’s in Disney’s Fantasy, could spin the terror acts of last Thursday into the terrorists’ own people’s doom, even regardless of collateral damage. Alastair Campbell knows best.

Blair dismissed, at the time he sent Britain to war, the odds that he could be bringing that war into home turf. I wouldn’t, at this point, deny he didn’t.

The Morning After The Night Before

 

 

Live 8 – The Final Push

About 60000 people attended to the Live 8 gig at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield stadium today. Musicians present at the concert included The Proclaimers, Jamie Cullum, Natasha Bedingfield, Wet Wet Wet, McFly, 1 Giant Leap, Annie Lennox, Sugarbabes, The Thrills, Midge Ure,Feeder, Embrace, Neneh Cherry, Youssou N’Dour, Beverley Knight, Texas, Kathryn Jenkins and Snow Patrol.

 

 

Proclaimers’ Charlie Reid opened the  show.

 

 

"In this box are 38 million people who are ready to go to work on this issue, and that’s just the Live 8 campaign.

"When you add to that 157 million people who signed up for the global action against poverty in 75 countries, I would call that permission to spend your money."  Bono

Other stars present at the concert, to introduce the musicians and give a piece of their mind regarding Africa’s problems were George Clooney, Lenny Henry, Davina McCall, Eddie Izzard, Bono, Susan Sarandon, Claudia Schiffer, Fran Healy, and of course, Bob Geldof.

George Clooney

 

According to The Times’  Lisa Verrico reviewing the show:

MUSICALLY, it was never going to match London’s Live 8, but being staged on the day G8 leaders arrived in Gleneagles, against a backdrop of demonstrations all over Scotland, Edinburgh 50,000 had the feel of a real political rally rather than a worthy pop concert. This wasn’t about rock legends reforming, flashy Yanks flying in to steal the show or gauging which band got the best Queen-like handclap from the crowd. It was a rather haphazard event full of passionate people who appeared to care as much about ending poverty as listening to pop.

To a non-Scot, the opening act The Proclaimers might have seemed distinctly second-rate compared with U2 and their doves, but in front of a sea of Scottish flags, the local band inspired an instant terrace chant and genuine outpouring of emotion with their 14-year- old hit 500 Miles. “Who says specs can’t do sex,” said host Lenny Henry, before changing into a kilt and furry sporran with horns. From the outside, it might have looked like gentle piss-taking, but inside Murrayfield, being Scottish — or at least pretending to have some sort of Scots affiliation — was a bonus. So we loved Jamie Cullum for draping his piano in a St Andrew’s flag for All You Need Is Love, a duet with Natasha Bedingfield; we excused Annie Lennox in a tartan scarf for a disappointing rendition of Bob Marley’s Redemption Song and we even joined in with Wet Wet Wet — admittedly, after some hesitation and only in the knowledge that the television cameras were pointing in a different direction — during the dreaded Love Is All Around.

Some of the biggest stars on stage were presenters, and not performers. George Clooney, Claudia Schiffer and Susan Sarandon delivered speeches, while Eddie Izzard told terrible jokes, played piano with Midge Ure during Ultravox’s Vienna, and filled in during a technical breakdown by conducting the crowd in Flower Of Scotland.

Bono hotfooted it from Glen-eagles with a black box that contained 38 million signatures of support and said that he had been campaigning on our behalf. Nelson Mandela sent a video message and Saint Bob decided this was a bill that he was big enough for and played Rat Trap and The Great Song Of Indifference.

African artists did get a look in, although not as many as had been promised. Youssou N’Dour was joined by Neneh Cherry for a sexy 7 Seconds and One Giant Leap brought along two African musicians whose names Izzard was not able to pronounce.

For a while, the speeches overshadowed the songs, but the big guns of Scot pop handed a wet night-time back to the fans. Texas’s Sharleen Spiteri bounced around and let fans take over Say What You Want.

Travis were almost drowned out during Why Does it Always Rain On Me? and Snow Patrol’s Run was a truly spine-tingling moment. Want to know the difference between here and Hyde Park? Not one of them was wearing sunglasses. This was a rare rock concert it wasn’t cool to look cool at.

G8 Summit build up

 It is becoming rutinary that every time top level meetings of the world leaders take place, a number of protests and demonstrations are also organized to coincide with them, and while many of the events are peaceful and related to issues like the famine in Africa, global warming, and the pacifist movement, anarchist groups take advantage and turn the protests ugly.

 

 

Bob Geldof chats to Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins on board the train on his way to Edinburgh

 

 

Bob Geldof greets musicians after arriving at Edinburgh’s Waverley Station.

 

 

Survivors from Darfur enact the burning of their homes by militia forces in a demonstration near Gleneagles

 

 

Two young brothers join a pre-summit protest outside the Dungavel detention centre.

 

 

 

 

 

This year the meeting of the G8 at Gleneagles, Scotland, won’t be any different. Saturday’s Live 8 global concerts served to highlight he genocide in Africa with music, other demonstrations and events in Scotland are taking place or have been scheduled to pinpoint this and other issues. And  anarchists, already, have clashed with the police in Edinburgh city centre, with tens of people being arrested. 

 

The timetable of events, as released by The Times, looks like this:

 

 

 

 

 

Faslane Naval base, today

 

 

Faslane Naval base

 

Live 8

 

Makuhari Messe arena, Chiba, Japan  

 

Rize

 

 

Good Charlotte

 

 

Mc Fly

 

 

"I look at the news, I see people starving, I am crying, I’m a total mess.

It seems to me that the politicians of the rich countries are like VIPs.

They are untouchable and the rest of the public of their own countries and all the other countries in the world are like the other chunk that don’t have a voice."

Bjork

Over 100,000 at the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin

 

Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong

 

Brian Wilson

 

 

 

150,000 crowd at Hyde Park, London

 

 

Bob Geldof

 

"I need to get over the shock that this thing is actually happening and that thousands of millions of people around the world are watching.

I’m just listening to the bands – they have had hardly any planning but have been just fantastic."

Bob Geldof

 

 

Paul McCartney

 

  

U2’s Bono and Paul McCartney

 

 "The rock stars and hip hop stars can’t change anything, but the audience can.

They can put the politicians who can do something in and out of office.

We are not looking for charity, we are looking for justice. We cannot fix everything but the ones we can we must.

Eight of the most powerful men on earth are meeting in Gleneagles in Scotland. We have a message for them. This is your moment too. Make history by making poverty history."

Bono  

U2’s The Edge and Bono

 

Keane’s Tom Chaplin

REM’s Michael Stipe

 

 

Ms. Dynamite

 

 

 

"We’re trying to bring attention to something that needs to be addressed.

It’s a positive thing to do. There are so many negative things at the moment that this is a positive step.

I hope it makes a huge difference to the G8 summit when it meets in Edinburgh."

Elton John

Elton John

 

 

 

Coldplay’s Chris Martin

 

 

"This is the greatest thing that’s ever been organised probably in the history of the world.

Can we take this opportunity on behalf of all the bands and on behalf of you people to say to Bob Geldof he is a hero of our time and he deserves all the credit he gets."

Chris Martin 

 

 

Richard Ashcroft

 

Dido

 

Dido and Youssou N"Dour

 

Travis’ Fran Healy

 

Madonna with Birhan Woldu, an Ethiopian whose life was saved by Live Aid in 1985

 

"Are you ready, London? Are you ready to start a revolution? Are you ready to change history?"

Madonna

 

Madonna

 

Razorlight’s Johnny Borrell

 

Annie Lennox

"Africa is a can of worms. It’s very, very complicated, but we have to make a start. We cannot walk away from genocide, which is what we’ve been doing. Thank God for Bono, thank God for Bob. "

Annie Lennox

 

 

Annie Lennox

 

Joss Stone

 

Mariah Carey

 

 

 

 Robbie Williams

 

 

The Who’s Pete Townsend

 

 Pink Floyd

 

"On behalf of the poor and the voiceless and the weak, I thank you"

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan

 

"I’ve learnt that success depends on knowing what works and bringing resources to the problem. We know what to do – the generosity we are asking for can save millions of lives.

Some day in the future all people, no matter where they are born will be able to lead a healthy life. We can do this and when we do it will be the best thing that humanity has ever done."

Bill Gates

 

 Every 3 seconds a child  dies of extreme poverty in Africa.

 

 

 

Palais de Versailles, Paris

 

Circus Maximus, Rome

 

 Duran Duran

 

Moscow’s Red Square

 

 

Museum of Art, Philadelphia

 

Will Smith

 

Black Eyed Peas

 

Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil in Barrie, Ontario, near Toronto.

 

Africa Standing Tall Against Poverty – Johannesburg

 

Zola

 

 

"Do not look the other way, do not hesitate… It is within your power to prevent a genocide."

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela

 

 

Kenya’s Ayub Ogada playing the nyatiti, during the Live 8 Africa Calling show in Cornwall

 

 

Edinburgh  Protesters March, over 200,000 people

 

Please sign the Live 8 list at http://www.live8live.com

Live 8 Update

Glastonbury, Sommerset, 25 June.

 

In a week’s time Live 8 will take place. Bob Geldof rallied the crowd (estimated at 180 thousand) at Glastonbury festival today. All performances stopped to allow everyone to listen to his speech:

"I want you to individually believe you can change the condition of the most put-upon and beaten-down people on this planet, I want you to grab the hand of the person beside you, Not as some big hippy rock festival thing, but because you want this to happen. Lift your hands and say together, ‘make poverty history’."

 

"On 6 July we will face down those eight men that can do this thing. This is not a question of money. To die of want is an intellectual absurdity and it is morally repulsive. I would ask the people watching this on television to imagine half of this field dying now. And the other half dying tomorrow. And between them, those men at the G8 would have resolved it in 10 seconds" 

The video of Bob Geldof´s full speech is available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/avdb/news_web/video/9012da680013188/nb/09012da6800131a2_16x9_nb.ram