http://www.vice.com/read/youtube-banned-in-iran
Youtube is added to the list of things banned in Iran. Currently, "high-speed internet, CNN, democracy, The Da Vinci Code, and gays" are banned. Iran, being an Islamic Republic, felt these videos were inappropriate and corrupting. This is only part of a trend where religious leaders have been censoring social media or any kind of mass communication. The Ayatollah has his hands in every aspect of Iranian life, and he enforces it strongly. Many see this as a continuous act of stopping the spread of western influence to Iran and these muslim countries.
Monday, April 21, 2014
Monday, April 14, 2014
Nigeria
Nigeria, being one of the biggest oil suppliers in the world, is the fourth biggest supplier of oil to America. It is estimated that in the past 50 years, over 10 millions barrels of oil have polluted the area. The people are blaming the oil companies for these oil spills and the oil companies are blaming the people for the oil spills because of their piracy. These oil spills have been killing livestock, harvests, poisoning water sources, and creating other health concerns. There have only been a few people that were successful in suing these oil companies for reparations of the damages lost. Shell gasoline estimates that it loses between 50-60 million barrels of oil a year due to piracy, which translates to a 7 billion dollars a year loss. Even though there are task forces that try to prevent and stop oil piracy, but it has largely been unsuccessful due to the terrain and areas they have to patrol. The water alone, is so unhealthy because of the pollution, that it is said to have 900x the limit amount of benzene that the World Health Organization deems "safe to drink". Even though these oil companies spend big bucks to invest in these communities, there are many complaints that the money does not get to the right people. At one point, the people got fed up and took militant action, where the nigerians kidnapped the oil workers and sabotaged the oil pipeline.
Scroll 14 minutes in to see the clip on Nigeria... http://www.vice.com/vice-on-hbo/vice-on-hbo-episode-9
Scroll 14 minutes in to see the clip on Nigeria... http://www.vice.com/vice-on-hbo/vice-on-hbo-episode-9
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Brasil: MMA
http://vimeo.com/18754690
With the poor conditions and lack of opportunities in the Brazilian favelas, many have turned to mixed martial arts (MMA) as a means to get out. MMA has been popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and other televised fighting organizations. Not many people know that the UFC was actually created by a Brazilian fighter who came from a long family line of MMA fighting, called the Gracies.
In Brazil, the MMA is called vale tudo which translates to "anything goes." The stuff you see on TV pales in comparison to the fighting in Brazil, because they are bare knuckle fights that do not care about weight or gender. Most of these fighters are from the slums and use "poverty as a discipline" (Shane Smith). To some of these fighters, winning is the equivalent to survival, because if they lose it might mean the difference between them eating or not. Some do not even get paid for fights, they simply do it in hopes of making it to the big leagues. The favelas themselves are often involved in heavy drug sales or other illegal activities that translate into high homicide rates. In the end, like all sports, only a few make it
With the poor conditions and lack of opportunities in the Brazilian favelas, many have turned to mixed martial arts (MMA) as a means to get out. MMA has been popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and other televised fighting organizations. Not many people know that the UFC was actually created by a Brazilian fighter who came from a long family line of MMA fighting, called the Gracies.
In Brazil, the MMA is called vale tudo which translates to "anything goes." The stuff you see on TV pales in comparison to the fighting in Brazil, because they are bare knuckle fights that do not care about weight or gender. Most of these fighters are from the slums and use "poverty as a discipline" (Shane Smith). To some of these fighters, winning is the equivalent to survival, because if they lose it might mean the difference between them eating or not. Some do not even get paid for fights, they simply do it in hopes of making it to the big leagues. The favelas themselves are often involved in heavy drug sales or other illegal activities that translate into high homicide rates. In the end, like all sports, only a few make it
Mexico's Border
http://www.vice.com/Fringes/mexicos-other-border
When people speak about Mexico's border, they immediately think of the US-Mexico one. The reality is that most of the people that come into the US illegally are from Central America. People tend to ignore the fact that Mexico has a southern border that almost all of the Central Americans use to eventually get to the US. At this border, like the northern border of Mexico, people cross illegally because they do no have the proper documentation. This means the trip is twice as hard for those people, because they have to make this dangerous and illegal border crossing twice (once into Mexico, then into the US).
Most of the people who make this journey are honest and hardworking, who only do so because the have family they need to support and have no other option. Just getting into Mexico can get the traveler into sticky situations such as extortion, kidnapping, forced to be drug mules, but mostly sexual exploitation for women travelers. Some women simply get stuck in prostitution and end up staying in these small towns. It got so bad that in Mexico, they setup a special federal division to prosecute crimes against migrants.
The end result is a flood of Central American immigrants in Mexico, especially between 2005 and 2009. This raises the ability of the cartels and gangs to use these migrants as pawns/victims of their organizations. Prostitution levels are rising, as well as sex trafficking and violence.
When people speak about Mexico's border, they immediately think of the US-Mexico one. The reality is that most of the people that come into the US illegally are from Central America. People tend to ignore the fact that Mexico has a southern border that almost all of the Central Americans use to eventually get to the US. At this border, like the northern border of Mexico, people cross illegally because they do no have the proper documentation. This means the trip is twice as hard for those people, because they have to make this dangerous and illegal border crossing twice (once into Mexico, then into the US).
Most of the people who make this journey are honest and hardworking, who only do so because the have family they need to support and have no other option. Just getting into Mexico can get the traveler into sticky situations such as extortion, kidnapping, forced to be drug mules, but mostly sexual exploitation for women travelers. Some women simply get stuck in prostitution and end up staying in these small towns. It got so bad that in Mexico, they setup a special federal division to prosecute crimes against migrants.
The end result is a flood of Central American immigrants in Mexico, especially between 2005 and 2009. This raises the ability of the cartels and gangs to use these migrants as pawns/victims of their organizations. Prostitution levels are rising, as well as sex trafficking and violence.
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