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Alt Media
by Amanda Sledz

Tired of the mainstream news sources that cater to the demands of advertisers and boring Bushism propaganda? Then head to the net, and check out the wonderful world of Alternative media! There are tons of options to choose from, and below you'll find some of the best of the left:

1.) Common Dreams (http://www.commondreams.org) An alternative news ground-zero, there's nothing more entertaining on this site than Russell Mokhiber's column "Ari and I." Based upon his interactions with Ari Fleischer during White House news conferences, the basic formula for the column is that Mokhiber asks, and Fleischer dodges. Not that you can blame Fleischer, seeing as though Mokhiber asks him loaded, dripping with sarcasm questions like, "President Bush called Ariel Sharon a 'man of peace.' Is this the same man that massacred 69 civilians in the West Bank village of Qibya in 1953?" In addition to a number of insightful columns, Common Dreams has wire news (primarily from the BBC and the Guardian), commentary, and top-notch investigative reporting. If you get started on an issue and don't want to stop, Common Dreams also contains a phenomenal collection of links to other online periodicals, magazines, news wires, and radio. Recent articles include a report on a recent WWF (World Wildlife Federation) statement revealing that the earth will expire by 2050 if we continue to exploit our natural resources at the present rate, as well as an article about (ha! I told you so!) the potential for the fast food industry to face a number of lawsuits.

2.) AlterNet (http://www.alternet.org) As much as AlterNet is a content monster, I need to first pause and say that in an era of butt-ugly web pages, AlterNet is grandly designed. With their own crew of reporters and columnists writing about rarely reported news, they maintain a great reputation for bringing America the best of the little known. AlterNet also plucks the best of the best from other web news sources (aka they do they crap weeding for you) and tap into sources as diverse as Women's Enews, Salon, the Nation, Reutor's, and Pacific News Services. AlterNet covers world news, national news, environmental news, feminist news, etc., and offers discussion forums to get it all off your chest.

3.) Kuro5hin (http://www.kuro5hin.com) This site offers a number of different options for the web surfer, from news articles written by individuals known only by web aliases, to random posts from a number of news sources, to diaries by members of the group. One of Kuro5hin's big bonuses is their message boards, which offer a wide variety of view points on a number of issues, completely void of the boring "let's nuke em" over simplification that makes Yahoo rooms so painful. Kuro5hin boasts columns, op-ed pieces, technology, culture, politics, as well as random media dissection. Overall, it's a great all-in-one news source. Recent articles include an update on the "Rave Act" recently introduced to Senate, which in its wording essentially serves as a means of controlling electronic music. Didn't know Senate was watching the movie "Footloose" a little too closely, did you?

4.) Independent Media (http://www.indymedia.org) Head to one of these sites, and soon you'll find yourself surfing through their branches all over the world. Want to know what the Indy Media is reporting on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict? Check out http://jerusalem.indymedia.org. Just about every major city in the U.S. has an Indy Media site set up, so you can check out whatever city has you curious and find out what's being reported behind the scenes.

5.) Znet. (http://www.znet.org). Upon first arriving to this site, your gut instinct may be to scream, "Arg! Get me out of here!" It's one of those sites that almost has too much going on. However, if you have an idea of a certain type of information you're looking for, this place will keep you busy for hours. No matter what you're researching, they can find an independently produced article, column, and picture about it-and it'll be good, well researched stuff. Wanna know where Michael Moore gets his 4-1-1? It's Znet. For many of you, that'll be more than enough said.

Ready Yourself for A20
by Amanda Sledz

Looking for something different to do this weekend? Well, you might want to consider joining the tens of thousands of concerned citizens descending upon Washington D.C. to demand justice, peace, and civil rights throughout our country, as well as the global community, in a demonstration called "United We March."
The D.C.-based and national groups responsible for the organization of the event called A20 (for April 20th) include the A20 Mobilization, the Mobilization for Global Justice, ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), the National Youth and Student Peace Coalition, National Coalition for Peace and Justice, 9-11 Emergency National Network, and NYC Labor Against the War. The reasons for the demonstration include protesting the annual IMF/World Bank meeting, to demonstrate for Palestinian rights, the Bush Administrations "assault on civil liberties and immigrant rights," and to protest the United States escalation of the War on Terrorism to other nations outside of Afghanistan, as well as to protest war in general.
"Shamefully, the Bush Administration is setting the groundwork to invade nearly any country it wishes," said Julia Beatty of United States Student Association. "We oppose the expansion of this war to Iran, Iraq, the Philippines and Colombia; global war sows global insecurity."
A20 will also serve to protest U.S. foreign policy in general, which French Prime Minister Hubert Vedrine called "simplistic," and said that Bush's policy "reduces all the problems in the world to the struggle against terrorism."
A number of high-profile speakers have been lined up to speak at the various rallies and workshops, including Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III, Julia Beatty (president of United States Student Association), Medea Benjamin (Green Party Senate Candidate), Phil Berrigan (Nobel Peace Prize Nominee), Ron Daniels (head of Center for Constitutional Rights and expert on police brutality and hate crimes), Hussein Ibish (Communications Director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee), Michael Ratner (International Human Rights Lawyer), Erica Smiley (Black Feminist Caucus), and Brenda Stokely (President of AFSCME Local 215 in New York City).
Organizers stress that the protest will be strictly non-violent and no weapons will be permitted. They also urge protesters to abstain from drugs and alcohol during the weekend-events, and remind attendees that all groups will be united under the common banner of peace and justice throughout the entire global community.
The protests are supposed to be of the same puppet-carrying, sign-waving, drum-banging, radical-cheerleader screaming variety that got so much attention in Seattle, with hopefully a more relaxed reaction from local law enforcement.
According to the Washington Post, D.C. police officials have all ready asked the federal government for $9 million to assist with security preparations and police overtime. While D.C. police estimate the appearance of between 10 and 20 thousand protesters, others speculate that number of protesters could emerge from the New York City area alone. The ANSWER portion of the rally is scheduled to begin at the Ellipse (the south side of the White House) on April 20th at 11 a.m. The National Youth and Student Peace Coalition will host another rally to take place at the same time at the Washington Monument Grounds at 11 a.m. where Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III will speak, followed by a unified march to conclude near the U.S. Capital.
For those that want to stick around, civil-disobedience protesters plan to conduct a demonstration on April 22, when Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon speaks at the AIPAC conference in Northwest Washington. On the same day, an un-permitted march is planned to demand an end to U.S. support for military, economic and ecological injustice in Colombia.
No word on whether any Athens group as a whole plans on attending the events, but individuals from a number of different groups plan to attend. Individuals that would like to attend but who are having trouble securing a ride can contact one of the many Athens-area peace and justice groups to secure transportation, or check out the website: http://www.riseup.net/april2002/ride.php. For 35 dollars interested parties can hitch a ride both ways from Akron, or join a group of 33 people leaving from Columbus. Ohio State University has also rented a bus to accommodate students, and while 49 people have signed up all ready, some seats are still available.

For more information, check out:
http://www.internationalanswer.org/
http://www.soaw.org/colombiaMobilization.html
http://www.globalizethis.org/s30/

Sidebar: Why is the A20 protest taking place?
The groups responsible for the organization all list the following as their list of demands:
· A U.S. foreign policy based upon social and economic justice, not military and corporate oppression.
· An end to racial profiling and military recruitment targeting youth of color and working class youth.
· Government funding for programs to benefit the economic victims of the 9-11 attacks and the recession.
· An end to the degrading and secret imprisonment of immigrants.
· Increased funding for non-military-based financial aid for education
· Full disclosure of military contracts with universities.
This sidebar information found on http://www.a20stopthewar.org

How to make an Herbal First Aid Kit
by Amanda Sledz

As more and more people turn to herbal remedies for their medicinal needs, it's only natural (no pun intended) that they would want an herb-equipped first aid kit as well. A number of natural options are available for those who encounter every-day cuts and bruises but would rather leave the sprays and chemicals alone.
Every first aid kit should contain the essentials, such as band-aids, gauze, tweezers, a thermometer, cotton balls etc. The following is a list of natural first aid remedies:

1.) For upset stomachs: Sabrina Gorbett of the Farmacy carries candied ginger with her at all times in order to combat nausea. Also good for hypothermia, (as it promotes circulation), ginger has a soothing property--which is why mom might have given you ginger ale when you had a stomachache as a kid. Peppermint tea can do the trick for gassiness and bloating, chamomile tea can calm and soothe, and an infusion of fennel can help aid digestion after a meal.

2.) For bruises: arnica is the number one choice for both Sabrina Gorbett and herbalist Seanna Tully. Available in both pill and gel form, the pills are recommended as a preventative method for use immediately after receiving an injury where a bruise seems likely. Gorbett recommends the use of the gel for light skin bruises. Both options are useful for pain reduction.

3.) For panic attacks/hysteria/promotion of general relaxation: Gorbett recommends the use of Rescue Remedy, one of Bach's Flower Remedies. This is a flower essence comprised of five different flowers; Star of Bethlehem for trauma and shock, clematis for passing out, cherry plum for anger, impatiens for irritability, and Rock Rose for frozen terror and panic. It is available as a cream or a tincture. The cream is also good for bruising, as it contains crab apple, which is soothing. The tincture can be placed under your tongue or dropped into water. "It calms your heart but your head remains clear," Gorbett said. Herbalist Seanna Tully calls Rescue Remedy good "for everything." She finds it especially effective for pepper spray wounds, when four drops of the tincture are added to Maalox.

4.) For bug bites: For this, Gorbett recommends lavender oil. Never use pure lavender essential oil--always dilute with something such as almond oil or olive oil. It's just too potent straight, and can damage skin. I use this in the summer to ward off mosquitoes, and I've had a lot of success. For stings, I use an aloe-vera/witch hazel combo to soothe the stinging and irritation. For bee stings, herbalist Seanna Tully recommends apis mel, as it takes away both the sting and the swelling.

5.) For burns: Gorbett recommends Chinese Burn Cream or Ching Wan Hung. While the burn still needs to be cooled first, as the ointment won't take the heat out, it will speed up the healing process. "This cream cuts the healing time for any burn possible, heat, chemical, etc," Gorbett said. Another top pick for burns of any kind (including sunburn) is aloe vera, a notorious folk cure for burns, cuts, and skin problems. A subject of constant research by dermatologists, it's believed by some to be capable of saving tissue near a burn by inhibiting the release of thromboxane, which is responsible for permanent scarring. Aloe also accelerates the healing process and the growth of new tissue. I have had tremendous success with an aloe vera/witch hazel combo--especially with kitchen burns. When splashed on immediately, it prevents the formation of blisters. Tully recommends using an aloe vera/lavender mix to cut the sting of the burn and promote healing.

6.) For cuts: Tully recommends powdered yarrow to immediately stop the flow of blood. The legend behind it is that the centaur Charon taught Achilles the benefits of yarrow to heal his soldiers bleeding wounds. Tea tree oil is also tremendously useful as an anti-bacterial antiseptic. It can be applied directly, or as part of a wash. Gorbett states that all cuts should always be washed first-even the little ones. "Some people blow off small cuts, and those are the ones that get infected," she explained. For larger cuts, Gorbett recommends People Paste, which is a combination of four herbs mixed together; Goldenseal powder (which is an anti-biotic that helps cut and fight infections), ground yarrow, myrrh gum powder, and slippery elm powder. The four herbs should be mixed in equal parts, and then stored dry. When it comes time to use it, mix a little bit with clean water, and apply it directly to the wound. Put clean gauze over it, tape it or wrap it, and change it once a day. "This speeds up healing time, and the wound heals from the inside out," Gorbett said. Calendula ointment is also recommended, as it stops inflammation and speeds healing. Comfrey will also speed healing and prevent scarring.

7.) For headaches: Sorry, but I'm of the feeling that in extreme situations, just take an ibuprophin and a nap and leave it alone. But if your headache is mild, try peppermint, rosemary, or chamomile tea. If you're working with a migraine, try eating a leaf of feverfew. Some doctors actually prescribe this leaf to be eaten once a day for extreme migraine sufferers. For other pains, in particular cramps, clary sage can work wonders if the oil is inhaled. Clary sage even comes recommended by my sisters, who think using herbs is cheesy and dumb-except for clary sage.

8.) For poisons: Tully recommends activated charcoal as a means to immediately purge your body of ingested poisons. For those of you that have ever been poisoned and visited the emergency room, you probably were told to drink a hearty cup of this--which would make you vomit immediately. It also absorbs any inorganic matter, and therefore can be used on bee stings and for snakebites. In addition, it can be good for nausea and diarrhea, as well as for poison ivy and poison oak. Charcoal can be applied as a compress, taken orally, or mixed with bath water.

Just like standard first aid kits, there are ready-made kits available that you can purchase. One such kit is Burt's Bees Natural Remedy Kit, which includes items to protect you against stings, burns, cuts, etc.
If you have any questions or concerns about these treatments, it is highly recommended that you consult a herbalist to find out how to best use them. You may also want to consult your family doctor to evaluate the benefits. In addition, in Athens you can get advice wherever herbs are sold, which includes Mount Nebo Herbs and Oils and the Farmacy.

Sources:
Balch, Phyllis A. "Prescription for Herbal Healing." Avery Publishing Group, 2002.
Griggs, Barbara "The Green Witch Herbal." Great Britain: Healing Arts Press, 1994.
Murray, Michael and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.s "Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine." Rockland: Prima Publishing, 1998.
Interviews with Sabrina Gorbett of the Farmacy, and Seanna Tully, an herbalist based in Chicago.

Movies that will make you an activist
By Amanda Sledz

Since we are constantly reminded of the level of influence movies have on us, it seems like a fairly good idea to recognize those movies whose influence has been a positive one. The following is a list of movies available at local video outlets that can perhaps get you better in touch with your inner-activist. They are listed in no particular order, because the film makers would have wanted it that way.

1.) THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE Seattle Independent Media Center/Big Noise Films 2000
A 70 minute documentary about the unforgettable 1999 anti-WTO protests in Seattle where activists of all flavors united to defend the integrity of our nation against government leaders hell-bent on destroying it. The protest also served to silence all the stuffed-shirt baby-boomers (like Clarence Page) who like to believe that activism was born, bred, and killed in the sixties. This movie reminds you that the WTO's goal is to increase the powers held by global corporations--not the preservation of the environment, or public health, food safety, democracy, and sovereignty. This film shows not only what the protesters were fighting for, but what they endured to shut the WTO down. Narrated by Michael Franti and Susan Sarandon

2.) INCIDENT AT OGLALA Directed by Michael Apted, Produced by Robert Redford 93 minutes.
Back in the day before Rage Against the Machine released the song "Freedom," Michael Apted was visiting the Pine Ridge Reservation to find out what exactly happened when two FBI officers were shot and killed. The reservation had been rattled by violence for years, due to the hostile attitude of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The violence grew even worse when desperate traditional people contacted the American Indian Movement for support. Leonard Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement, was imprisoned for killing the agents, though virtually no evidence linked him to the crime. With the help of this movie, Leonard Peltier became one of America's best known political prisoners.

3.) ROGER AND ME written, produced, and directed by Michael Moore. Warner Brothers 1989
Before there was TV Nation, and "Stupid White Men," there was "Roger and Me," Moore's debut feature-length documentary film. In this film we follow Moore as he seeks out Roger Smith, the head of the world's largest corporation, General Motors. Smith and his posse of fearful rich white men have shut down a plant in Moore's hometown of Flint, leaving the area completely destitute, to the tune of 20,000 people standing in line for government handouts. Moore's desire is to find Smith and ask him how he could do such a thing. Moore is himself the son of an auto-worker, and when he's not hunting for Smith he's introducing the viewer to a number of characters who descend upon Flint, Michigan in hopes of saving it's soul. Moore is the ultimate battle-ax for the working man, demanding answers from companies that make big-bucks and hand nothing down to loyal workers; who out-source labor overseas to sweatshop working conditions, and who build a community around their corporation and then abandon it like a child at an orphanage. The situation in Flint is so bleak, that this movie has never shown there--not because of lack of interest or corporate hostility, but because all the theaters have closed.

3.) HARLAN COUNTY, USA Directed by Barbara Kopple 1976, 103 minutes
The Academy Award Winner for Best Documentary in 1976, this film focuses on 180 families in Harlan County, Kentucky, attempting to secure a union contract. The strike begins when the Eastover Mining Company miners join the UMW, and its corporate parent, Duke Power, refuses to sign the union contract. Through interviews and archived media footage, Kopple captures the desperation felt by a group of people working to receive labor standards amid state troopers keeping roads open for scabs, and guns-blazing showdowns between strikers and strikebreakers. The contract with finally signed by the coal company after their refusal to do so was condemned by the National Labor Relations Board, and pressure was applied by federal mediators.
Interested parties might also want to check out the recently released movie "Harlan County War" starring Holly Hunter, which focuses on the role of the coal-miner's wives.

4.) KILLING US SOFTLY I-III: Advertising's Image of Women, Jean Kilbourne The Media Education Foundation 1979, 1987, 2001
Anyone who's ever taken a Women's Studies class at Ohio University has probably seen at least one of these films that focus on the way gender is presented in advertising. In the most recent incarnation of the film, Kilbourne takes us through the past twenty years of advertising and questions whether the role of women has changed since Larry Flynt pushed one of us through a meat grinder. Perhaps a kinder, gentler version of bell hooks' call for a viewer to perceive images in the media as an "enlightened witness," Kilbourne asks women to look more closely at media images and question what aspect of such things comes to impact our psyche--and what it leaves men thinking about women, and women thinking about themselves. No one loves you? Nothing a cellulite cream won't cure! Kilbourne reminds us that not only are the anxieties of women increased by advertising, but perhaps they are created by it.

5.) MALCOLM X Written and Directed by Spike Lee Warner Brothers 1992
I credit two things with changing the inner-city I grew up in: Public Enemy, and the movie "Malcolm X." Had these two things never happened, no one would have ever questioned what we were reading in history books as fact and what we were leaving out as unnecessary. While Malcolm X (Denzel Washington) begins his life as the crime-committing "Detroit Red," his prison sentence proves to be the turning point of his life, as he joins the Black Muslim movement of Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm X then sheds his last name and becomes a notoriously fiery speaker, and one of the most charismatic members of the Black Muslim movement, where he declares white people the enemy and urges black people to proclaim their independence. Before all is said and done, X makes a pilgrimage to Mecca where he is embraced by Muslims of all races, and returns to America convinced that there are good people of all kinds.

6.) WACO: THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT
You know you've got a good documentary on your hands when in spite of the number of awards and praise it's won, the first two web pages that pop up accuse it of being a hoax. The ninth anniversary of the tragedy will be this April 19th, which would be a good time to catch this documentary about the 76 men, women and children of the Branch Davidian religious sect who died of fire and gas at the hands of federal agents. The footage in this film will shock you, as it serves to demonstrate the lengths our federal government is willing to go to in order to maintain control.

7.) FIGHT CLUB
Ever want to blow up a credit card company? Yeah, me too, but that's beside the point. "Fight Club" came out during a time when a slew of fed-up-with-corporate-culture classics were hitting the theaters and shelves, including the highly-celebrated "American Beauty," and the sleeper hit "American Psycho." The topic of all three is somewhat similar: bored American white men with nothing better to do and no sense of purpose inevitably go bonkers. Edward Norton and Brad Pitt play the conflicting-sides of Tyler Durden, who forms fight club after his catalogue-accessorized apartment mysteriously blows-up and he loses his luggage on an airplane. The fighting serves to remind the viewer that man is but an animal, and the way in which we have designed our lives to neglect both instinct and desire in exchange for what advertisers tell us we want in essence creates a human Molotov-cocktail. Fight club then branches out to other areas as more and more individuals respond to Tyler's discordian assignments, which finally culminate with the destruction of credit card companies, which "brings us all back to zero." Though violent in a "Clockwork Orange" kind of way, the message screams far louder than the explosions, and as one colleague said, "It's an exercise of imagination, which I think is crucial to revolution."

8.) BUTTERFLY Doug Wolens, 2001
I have to admit that I have mixed feelings about Julia "Butterfly" Hill, especially after reading her book "The Legacy of Luna." At one point she wrote about how she sent down a picture of herself in make-up in order to show the loggers that she "was just like them." Um...okay Julia. Anyway, what makes this movie important and bound to stir your inner-activist is that it details the hostile take-over of Pacific Lumber by notorious tyrant Charles Hurwitz (who unintentionally united labor activists and environmentalists in their mutual hatred for him) and what irresponsible, ill-planned logging can do not only to the environment, but to the people in the surrounding community.

9.) GANDHI Columbia Tri-Star, Richard Attenborough, 1982
This mega-award winning film is the story of an educated lawyer who became the head of a historic movement to liberate India from the tyranny of British Colonialism. Though his peaceful activism was often met with violent response, Gandhi consistently greeted his opponents with pacifism, and launched a whole new kind of movement which would later be put into practice in America through Martin Luther King Jr.