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Friday, April 11, 2008

Wikinews held an exclusive interview with Jeremy Hanke, editor of MicroFilmmaker Magazine. The magazine, which is free to read online, was started as a resource for the low budget moviemaker and features book, independent film, equipment and software reviews as well as articles on film distribution, special effects and lighting.

He says that one of the goals of the magazine is to “connect low-budget filmmakers via a feeling of community, as many…..often compete so viciously against one another in film festivals for coveted “shots” with Hollywood, that they can quickly forget their similarities.”

When asked if films made on a shoestring budget can really compete with those made for millions of dollars, he replied, “no…yes…and absolutely. Allow me to explain.” And so he does in the interview below.

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

“Jeremy”, an airplane pilot in Nelson, has put his uniform on sale for NZ$1.00 at New Zealand auction site TradeMe. The pilot had lost his job when Origin Pacific Airways fired 230 staff because of financial difficulties and is now trying to “make ends meet this week,” the pilot said. The auction has already reached 31 bids and reached $101 as of 7.30 a.m. August 15.

‘Jeremy’, the pilot, said on the auction page, that he is offering “a rare piece of Kiwi aviation history,”.

“This is an authentic Origin Pacific Jetstream pilot’s uniform lovingly drycleaned for one last time before its unfortunate retirement. It’s travelled many stormy nights and many sunrises and has seen almost 50,000 Kiwis safely to their destinations from Invercargill to the Far North. It has 778,000km on it, yet it looks as crisp today as it did when it was born,” the pilot described on TradeMe.

One bidder had offered $40 if he sold the uniform immediately but that offer was turned down in order to see the auction go until Sunday.

David Collier, Origin Pacific passenger services general manager, said “The uniform was Origin Pacific’s property and the pilot should not be selling it, but I think it’s probably one of those things you’d have to grin at and move on.”

Jay, Waitakere, asked on the auction page if the uniform came with a plane. The pilot replied “No, but if you want to start an airline I know where you can find a great bunch of people.”

The auction is closing on August 20, Sunday.

Wednesday, November 17, 2004

ENGLAND — UK Health Secretary John Reid has proposed widespread legislative and health care changes in a new white paper on public health released Tuesday. Titled “Choosing Health”, the paper details government plans to restrict smoking in public places, limit ‘junk food‘ advertisements to children, make available “lifestyle trainers”, campaign against sexually transmitted diseases and tobacco, and improve food labelling.

The white paper comes after extensive public comment that involved 150,000 people.

Smoking would be restricted in enclosed public spaces, restaurants, workplaces, and some pubs. The ban would be enacted gradually, affecting government and NHS buildings in 2006, enclosed public places in 2007, and private property in 2008. Permanent exemption would be granted to pubs that do not serve prepared food — though not at the bar — as well as private clubs, a decision that has provoked some to call the measure incomplete. Up to 90% of pubs are expected to be affected. The Scottish executive proposed a complete ban on smoking in enclosed public places last week, and Ireland has already banned smoking in pubs and restaurants.

Food advertisements targeted to children would be banned until 9pm, under the White Paper’s proposals. The restriction is a measure to tackle rising rates of childhood obesity. The government also intends to develop voluntary standards on food and drink advertisements to children with industry, only threatening legislation if an acceptable standard is not reached by 2007. Additionally, low income families would receive vouchers for fresh fruit, vegetables, milk, and infant formula. School lunches would also be held to stricter nutritional standards. Reid has warned that unless childhood obesity is tackled, “we face the prospect of children having shorter life expectancy than their parents”.

Food labelling would also be improved, with a “traffic light” system implemented. Packaged food would be evaluated based on its fat, sugar, and salt content.

The paper is unusual for suggesting a more holistic approach to health care, offering for the first time “lifestyle trainers.” The National Health Service would be funding with an additional £1bn to make people’s overall lives healthier, which is expected to save £30bn in preventable illness.

The paper additionally makes mention of reducing accidents, which affected 2.7m people last year and is a leading cause of child death, curb binge drinking, and reduce substance abuse among youths.

The paper has been criticized by many parties. The Tory Shadow Health Secretary has criticized the Labour government’s comprehensiveness and creation of a “new nanny state approach”. He has additionally described it as “gimmicks”. The Liberal Democrats have accused the government of not being comprehensive enough. It has also been criticized by the British Medical Association as being implemented too slowly, saying “When lives need saving, doctors act immediately”.

Mr. Reid has argued against the nanny state label, saying “In a free society, men and women ultimately have the right within the law to choose their own lifestyle, even when it may damage their own health. But people do not have the right to damage the health of others, or to impose an intolerable degree of inconvenience or nuisance on others … This is a sensible solution which balances the protection of the majority with the personal freedom of the minority in England”.

The full white paper “Choosing Health” can be read here.

Thursday, July 28, 2005

The Provisional Irish Republican Army, in a statement released earlier today (in one form as a DVD, with the statement being read by Séanna Breathnach), has declared that it intends to end its campaign of violence and decommission its weapons.

The move comes after international pressure to decommission weapons and cease all violent activity, particularly after allegations regarding the murder of Robert McCartney in Short Strand, Belfast, and a burglary of the Northern Bank in December of last year.

Members have been ordered to dump all arms and cease all paramilitary activity as of 16.00 BST (15.00 UTC) today, and the organisation’s leadership states that it will pursue its aims through exclusively peaceful means. The statement reaffirms the IRA’s view that its “armed struggle was entirely legitimate” as a means of pursuing the organisation’s goal of a united Ireland, but states that many suffered during this conflict and that society is now compelled to build a lasting peace.

In its statement the IRA also appealed to the British government and Northern Irish Protestants to renew negotiations with them.

Reaction to the statement has been mixed.

• “I think it has all the clarity that people have looked for this past 12 months. Of course there are lots of other issues in the peace process, which we have to continue to build on and build confidence on” — Bertie Ahern, Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister)
• “This may be the day when finally, after all the false dawns and dashed hopes, peace replaced war, politics replaces terror on the island of Ireland. […] It is what we have striven for and worked for throughout the eight years since the Good Friday Agreement.” — Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
• “For the first time we have heard directly from the IRA not Sinn Fein that henceforward they are going to adopt peaceful means in seeking their political objectives” — Peter Mandelson, European Union Commissioner, former Northern Ireland Secretary
• “11 years after the first IRA ceasefire these are the words that we needed and wanted to hear.” — Alex Attwood, SDLP
• “I know there have been some who have been sceptical about whether republicans, the IRA in particular, were really interested in this process. I think today’s statement shows that they are. The IRA doesn’t have to do this. It is only doing this to try and give some assurance to those who are nervous or who are genuinely concerned. The IRA is not just stretching itself. It is actually overstretching itself to try to bring about the restoration of the peace process.” — Gerry Adams, Sinn Fein President

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Ernest Krajniak from Chilton, Wisconsin in the United States has been charged with arson after a lit cigarette ignited gasoline soaked clothes, setting his apartment ablaze.

On Friday April 3, Krajniak, 47, cleaned his entire apartment with about five gallons of gasoline, wiping everything down with the soaked clothes. After he was finished, he piled the soaked clothes in the center of his bedroom, lit a cigarette and then threw what was left of the still lit cigarette, into the pile.

Krajniak never called the fire department and never pulled the alarm. Instead he yelled ‘fire’ a few times then walked to the police station where an ambulance took him to a local hospital for the treatment of minor burns. The fire department later arrived to put out the blaze and his apartment was extensively smoke damaged. 11 other apartments were also damaged, leaving the occupants without a place to stay for at least a week.

“I should have never used that,” said Krajniak during a court appearance on Monday. He admitted to knowing that gasoline was highly flammable. He was arrested and his bond has been set a US$2,500. Krajniak’s next court appearance is scheduled for Monday, April 13. According to WISinfo.com, Krajniak has no prior criminal record.

The careless smoking of cigarettes has been blamed for thousands of fires across the U.S. In January 2008, an unnamed elderly woman in Buffalo, New York was receiving oxygen for medical problems in her home and lit a cigarette and began to smoke it. The oxygen coming from her mask then facilitated the ignition of her clothing, setting her on fire.

In the U.S. in 2002, only 4% of all residential fires were reportedly caused by smoking materials. These fires, however, were responsible for 19% of residential fire fatalities and 9% of injuries. The fatality rate due to smoking is nearly four times higher than the overall residential fire rate; injuries are more than twice as likely. Forty percent of all smoking fires start in the bedroom or living room/family room; in 35% of these fires, bedding or upholstered furniture are the items first ignited.

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Santa Clara, California, USA. The adult literacy program Read Santa Clara marked its tenth anniversary today with a gathering of program participants, staff, and supporters from the community. Read Santa Clara trains volunteer tutors and matches them with adult learners who wish to build their literacy skills.

In the presentation, program staff and supporters reviewed the program’s history and growth, honored long-time participants, and looked toward the future.

Santa Clara Mayor Patricia Mahan spoke at the gathering, noting, “Read Santa Clara joins people who need to learn with people who need to teach, and what a powerful combination that is.” She added, “I think adult literacy is so important.”

Program coordinators estimate that tutors volunteered some 5000 hours last year. City Manager Jennifer Sparacino estimates, “That’s worth about $100,000 per year in volunteer time.”

Learners also spoke about what Read Santa Clara meant to them. Raymond Moreno said, “I hope it stays for another ten, twenty, thirty years, because we need it.” Juan Velasquez said, “My life has changed a lot…I did many things I could not have done without help.” And Ike Moore said, “To be able to express myself…What a gift!”

Monday, November 28, 2005

SpaceX called off the much-delayed inaugural launch of their new Falcon 1 rocket on Saturday from Kwajalein’s Omelek Island launch site. The intent was to launch the U.S. Air Force Academy’s FalconSat 2 satellite, which will monitor plasma interactions with the Earth’s upper atmosphere and magnetosphere.

The launch was delayed, then finally cancelled after an oxygen boil-off vent had accidentally been left open. The oxygen was unable to cool the helium pressurant, which then proceeded to evaporate faster than it could be replenished. A main computer issue, probably serious enough to cause a scrub on its own, was also discovered.

This long-anticipated flight was originally expected to be launched in January 2005, however a series of setbacks forced a series of delays, with the flight most recently scheduled to be in early 2006. It was intended to be launched from the Kwajalein atoll in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

The maiden voyage was originally intended to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California with a Naval Research Laboratory satellite and a Space Services Incorporated space burial payload.