Eyes on the screen
I just got this email from our local friends over at Downhill Battle, as part of Black History Month they will be releasing the civil rights documentary “Eyes on the Prize” in full over the next few days via Blog Torrent, open-source peer-to-peer software. “Eyes on the Prize has been mostly unavailable to the general public for the last ten years or so due to copyright issues. DHB is looking to put the movie into the hands of who ever is interested in viewing it, and then organizing a nationwide screening of the film on Feb 8th.
Here is their press release in full:
Downhill Battle is now distributing copies of the legendary civil rights documentary “Eyes on the Prize”, which has been unavailable for ten years due to copyright restrictions. We are working to organize
nationwide screenings on February 8.The project is called “Eyes on the Screen”. Please see:
http://www.eyesonthescreen.orgPress release follows:
———————————-
Contact:
Lawrence Guyot, Former Leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic
Party
w: (202)727-4742, h: (202)332-5157Tiffiniy Cheng, Co-Director of Downhill Battle
w: (508)963-1096, tyc@downhillbattle.orgNicholas Reville, Co-Director of Downhill Battle
w: (508)963-7832, npr@downhillbattle.org————
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Eyes on the Screen
“Eyes on the Prize”, Civil Rights Documentary, To Be Released Over the Internet Despite Copyright DisputesA day of public screenings of the legendary documentary, to be organized for February 8th, 2005
HYPERLINK: www.eyesonthescreen.org - According to some, it’s illegal for makers of the civil rights documentary “Eyes on the Prize” to put it on DVD or show it in public? But at 8:00 PM on February during Black History Month, Downhill Battle (downhillbattle.org) is encouraging Americans to celebrate the struggle and triumph of the civil rights movement with screenings of “Eyes on the Prize” in homes and public places with the goal of having a screening in every major city in America. The
campaign is called Eyes on the Screen.“Eyes on the Prize” is the most comprehensive and revered civil rights documentary ever made. But the documentary has not been available for public viewing for the past 10 years because of unreasonable copyright laws that impose stifling restrictions on artists and filmmakers. In one instance, copyright holders believe they should receive licensing fees for the song “Happy Birthday,” which appears in footage of a group of people singing to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“To celebrate Black History Month, we believe that “Eyes on the Prize” should be seen by as many people as possible,” says Tiffiniy Cheng of Downhill Battle. “The civil rights movement is just too important for this invaluable resource to be denied to the public. So, we’re going to help distribute “Eyes on the Prize” to a mass audience and communities can have screenings.”
“‘Eyes on the Prize’ is one of the most effective documentaries ever put together that dealt with civic engagement,” says civil rights leader Lawrence Guyot. “This is analogous to stopping the circulation of all the books about Martin Luther King, stopping the circulation of all the books about Malcolm X, stopping the circulation of books about the founding of America… I would call upon everyone who has access to ‘Eyes on
the Prize’ to openly violate any and all laws regarding its showing.”“Eyes on the Prize” is an award-winning 14-volume documentary made by the late Henry Hampton, tracking the Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1965. Clayborne Carson, a Stanford University history professor, has said, “It is the principal film account of the most important American social justice movement of the 20th century” (Wired News, 12/22/04).
“Eyes on the Prize” was the first introduction to the history of the Civil Rights Movement for millions of people,” says Nicholas Reville of Downhill Battle, “But our corporatized copyright system is keeping it locked away.”
“The situation of “Eyes on the Prize” is a perfect example of why copyright law isn’t working for the public,” says Cheng. “It’s ridiculous that this documentary is languishing in copyright purgatory, instead of being shown in classrooms.”Eyes on the Screen” is a perfect example of how people can bring attention to bad copyright law and start turning the situation around.”
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downhillbattle.org
Asteroid named after Douglas Adams
The sci-fi writer who died back in 2001 of a heart attack was honored on Tuesday by the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center, here in Cambridge, MA, by having an asteroid named after him.
link (via slashdot)
As cool as that is, the Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy is still on schedule for a May 6th release .
link
Ben Goodger hired by Google
Ben Goodger, the lead development engineer for the Mozilla Foundation, announced on his blog today that he was recently hired by Google. He makes clear that his development role will remain the same at the foundation, which of course has prompted a flurry of conspiracy theories regarding Googles motivation in hiring Goodger.
As of January 10, 2005, my source of income changed from The Mozilla Foundation to Google, Inc. of Mountain View, California. My role with Firefox and the Mozilla project will remain largely unchanged, I will continue doing much the same work as I have described above - with the new goal of successful 1.1, 1.5 and 2.0 releases. I remain devoted full-time to the advancement of Firefox, the Mozilla platform and web browsing in general. I’m sure you have many questions. While I will be spending more time at Google, I will work out of the Mozilla Foundation offices regularly as the need arises.
Although it seems like nothing more than a great career move, it will certainly be interesting to see what if anything will move with Ben from the Mozilla camp to the Googgle camp.
link via mozillazine
update: don’t miss the obligatory slashdot discussion
In a sort of related bit, keep an eye out for the upcoming WIRED magazine which features Firefox, and the people behind it, as the cover story. link
Whats the Mac Mini really for?
In his latest column Robert X. Cringely offers up yet another rather insightful take on what is at face value another confusing piece of technology. The Mac Mini.
Steve Jobs is so enigmatic. A couple weeks ago at MacWorld, he introduced the 2.9 lb. Mac Mini and the reaction was so great it was like he had re-invented the PC. Readers are all excited by the little box and have been asking me for my take on it. Like everyone else, I had to scratch my head a bit and ponder what this thing is really for. I know, I know, it is for all those PC drivers who bought an iPod and are now supposed to trash their Windows PC for a Mac Mini. Yeah, but what’s it REALLY for? Movies.
It may be a stretch, but it’s a great read.
SpellBound spell checker extension for Mozilla
SpellBound 0.7.3, a seamless spell checker that can handle any text field in a browser window, has been released for the Mozilla suite and Firefox. This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for in a web browser. I constantly browse with OpenOffice Writer open to use as a spell checker, and although it works, it’s a pain in the ass.
Firefox really is changing the way I use the web.
What are you thinking?
That’s all Simon Hoegsberg wanted to know.
link
who’s your daddy? web zen
Well Satan of course.
But I’d still hit it.
get back to work
For the most part I have never been a big fan of kuro5hin, but every once in awhile someone hits them with a great piece. This one, from a user named marktaw, is just that piece. It deals with procrastination and time management; and is exactly what I needed to read today. I suggest you do the same.
Procrastination is a habit. People aren’t born procrastinators or hard workers, it’s something you learn, like biting your fingernails. Luckily, it can be unlearned as well.
Put out an extra place setting for dinner tonight
The Journal of the British Interplanetary Society has prepared a report for the January/February 2005 issue which deals with some recent discoveries/theory’s in astronomy and physics which make extraterrestrial visitation seem a likely occurrence.
“We are in the curious situation today that our best modern physics and astrophysics theories predict that we should be experiencing extraterrestrial visitation, yet any possible evidence of such lurking in the UFO phenomenon is scoffed at within our scientific community,” contends astrophysicist Bernard Haisch.
Haisch along with physicists James Deardorff, Bruce Maccabee and Harold Puthoff make their case in the JBIS article: “Inflation-Theory Implications for Extraterrestrial Visitation”.
The scientists point to two key discoveries made by Australian astronomers and reported last year that there is a “galactic habitable zone” in our Milky Way Galaxy. And more importantly that Earth’s own star, the Sun, is relatively young in comparison to the average star in this zone — by as much as a billion years.
Therefore, the researchers explain in their JBIS article that an average alien civilization would be far more advanced and have long since discovered Earth. Additionally, other research work on the supposition underlying the Big Bang — known as the theory of inflation — shores up the prospect, they advise, that our world is immersed in a much larger extraterrestrial civilization.
Makes me feel much more comfortable talking about the anal probe in mixed company.
No really, I’m just paying for school
A carer advice speaker at a Palo Alto middle school may have seen his last paying gig at the school after recommending stripping to a group of 8th graders. From the AP article:
Management consultant William Fried told eighth-graders at Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School on Tuesday that stripping and exotic dancing can pay $250,000 or more per year, depending on their bust size.
“It’s sick, but it’s true,” Fried said in an interview later. “The truth of the matter is you can earn a tremendous amount of money as an exotic dancer, if that’s your desire.”
Fried has given a popular 55-minute presentation, “The Secret of a Happy Life,” at the school’s career day the past three years. He counsels students to experiment with a variety of interests until they discover something they love and excel in.
Now I can see why parents may be unhappy with this, but in a marketing culture that is more and more willing to embrace the tween as a profitable segment of the population, can we really pretend to be offended with a straight face? In the years before she went to college I tried to convince my sister that stripping was the thing to do, if it was done right. How many young women have the skill sets right out of high school necessary to earn $250,000 a year? Is it really that bizarre to exploit yourself for profit if it is done safely and with solid investment and exit plans? By the age of thirty one could be looking at a comfortable retirement opposed to just begging to climb the corporate ladder with a sense of direction. As a parent what is healthier, teaching your children to safely exploit their assets or be exploited as a consumer by Mary Kate and Ashley?
link via metafilter
