MoPress

Author: mopress

  • Fahrenheit Opens

    Friday, June 25th, 2004: I was in Rhinebeck to see the opening of Michael Moore’s new film Fahrenheit 9-11, with a friend. There had been a 4:00 PM show which we missed. We arrived well before 7:00 but not only had the 7 PM show sold out but all shows for the day. My friend had gone to park the car, I saw the signs, and went back to the street to look for the car, no car, so I went to get a schedule. I had a twenty in my hand. This bald guy says, I got two tickets for the 7 PM show! A single woman said, “I want it, but I’m only one person!” He says, “I can’t sell just one, I gotta sell two. Who wants two! I wave my twenty and say I want two, I want your tickets. He looked to the movie theater officer who was standing there turning people away, and said “Can I do this? I can’t keep the twenty right?” NO! So he gives me some change, which is short but I don’t even count it cause heck its Michael Moore and I’m going to be a witness to history. Only the second showing (in this town, at the historic Rhinebeck Upstate Theater) on the first day outside of the “screening” theaters from this week. Money is not an issue! So my friend shows up, having parked fifty blocks away, and I say, “Here’s the tickets! I scalped em!” And we went in.

    The theater made a special announcement that we would all want to talk about this film, but don’t do it during the movie and don’t do it inside the theater afterwards. Everyone go outside, go to a restaurant, and talk. They had already heard of the reaction crowds have to this movie. Every seat was filled with fannies, and the crowd cheered and clapped at all the best places, but not so you’d miss a word. It was all very clear. There were lots of visual innuendos, but no false statements that I could see. A lot of information some leftists have heard before, but assembled to make a powerful statement. The visual juxtapositions were rather funny and maybe unfair, but he left out other damaging material that would have been justified. He hit the target with pleasing this audience and we all gave the blank screen a standing ovation at the end. We didn’t realize it then, but the next day and the next were reports of sell out crowds in red and blue states, as the film went on to gross $26 million in one weekend. What I love about that stat is that it accomplished this while carrying an R rating and showing only in select theaters, while pundits on every channel were trying to do flood control and poo poo the whole thing as a joke. What will happen next week when it hits 2000 more theaters? (That’s a lot of theaters! That’s 400 per state! They’ll have to stage another terrorist attack! I can see it now—code orange! Islamic militants to invade New York to see Michael Moore’s new film!)

    NOTE TO READERS: The previous ten days were ten exciting, thrilling, action packed days full of celebrity gossip and front-line derring do. I have it all on tape which is in a secret storage compartment, and I will transcribe it all for you over the weekend, barring another terrorist attack in which John Ashcroft, dressed in a turban, comes to my door demanding Michael Moore tickets.

  • A Question of Industrial Unionism?

    I have been looking up resources on the web to help
    with a story about the Korean solidarity movements.
    The Korean Teachers Union has interesting websites,
    including antiwar:

    http://antipabyeong.jinbo.net/

    I notice that KTU is affiliated with KCTU, a coalition
    that describes itself as an “industrial union”:

    http://www.kctu.org/2003/html/sub_01.php

    On the other hand there is another coalition of Korean
    trade unions FKTU with which another teacher’s group
    is affiliated KUTU. These are more conservative.

    Furthermore, I notice that, while both labor
    coalitions are opposed to the war, it is the FKTU that
    Muhsin mentions at his website.

    http://www.iraqitradeunions.org/archives/000042.html

    All this is leading up to a question. If I compare
    the Korean and Iraqi labor movements, would it be fair
    to say that “industrial unionism” in the Korean KCTU
    is parallel to “industrial unionism” in the Iraqi
    FWCUI? And more conservative versions of unionism,
    albeit anti-war, may be found in the Korean FKTU and
    Iraqi IFTU?

  • Korean Teachers Join Union Protest of Iraq Occupation

    Korea Teachers’ Union Announces Anti-War Classes

    Digital Chosun Jun 28, 2004

    The Korean Teachers & Education Worker’s Union announced that the days from June 28 to July 3 would be designated a mourning period for late Kim Sun-il, and they would hold “anti-war” classes during the period.

    The Korean Teachers’ Union said they decided to start classes against the war with the late Kim Sun-il’s murder as momentum, claiming that this is based on the decision that educators should be responsible for teaching the facts that peace is a universal value, and peace is precious. Teachers can download and edit materials for the classes from the union’s homepage.

    Materials against the war consist of Kim Sun-il’s profile, summary of the events, will, emails, Iraqis’ opinions about the troop dispatch to Iraq, the summary of pros and cons and the National Assembly’s resolution to stop and reexamine the plan of the additional troop dispatch.

    Meanwhile, an official from the Ministry of Education said, “After close examination, we think that the data on the homepage of the Korean Teachers’ Union is a collection of objective facts, and said that they would send an official document to schools to make sure that the class is not used to instill distorted points of view in students. The Ministry of Education said that if students and parents report teachers who conduct classes with ideological prejudices, the teachers would be investigated and taken care of according to the law.

    (Ahn Seok-bae, sbahn@chosun.com )

    Solidarity Message with Korean Trade Unions

    via email, Jun. 28, 2004

    Statement of UUI and FWCUI regarding the Opposition of Korean Trade Unions to the Deployment of more Korean troops in Iraq

    Dear Friends in Korea

    Dear Friends in KCTU and Labor Uninos of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines

    The Workers in Iraq welcome the opposition of Korean Trade Unions to the plan of Korean Government to dispatch more troops in Iraq.

    The labor unions of the nation’s two airliners, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, declared Thursday June 24 .2004 that they refuse to transport anything related to the troop dispatch to Iraq, including Korean soldiers to be stationed in Iraq along with armor and related equipment. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions – KCTU demands on June. 23rd 2004 cancellation of the plans to dispatch troops to Iraq, as one of its main demands for the first half of this year, in order to avoid sacrifice of further lives. We demand that the Korean government not play puppet to the foreign policies of the US and that it take a firm stance again it, and that it protect the rights and the lives of its citizens.

    War and occupation of Iraq diverted the Iraqi society toward instability, chaos and battle fields of a terrorist conflict between political Islam and US -led coalition.. In short, untold misery and suffering have been imposed on the people of Iraq. The U.S. government has placed Iraq on the verge of total collapse and within arm’s reach of dreadful scenarios like, civil war, religious sectarianism, ethnic cleansing, and tribalism. The invasion of Iraq brought terrorism not only to people of Iraq but also on the global scale. Democracies, freedom of Iraqi People from the fascist government of Iraq ….ect were only war propaganda. Iraq War was one of the steps of USA to establish its New World Order and to implement its hegemony and Dominance over the World at the same time the political Islamic groups in Iraq have transferred Iraq to a battle field of their terrorist actions. Terrorism, insecurity and violence against the human rights, labour rights and women rights are the prominent features and part of the daily lives of the people of Iraq. People of Iraq became the victims of the war of terrorists both state terrorism of USA and Islamic terrorism. The workers in Iraq suffered on one side from the aggression of Saddams regime for 35 years and on the other side from the economic embargo for 13 years, war and occupation of USA- led coalition on Iraq.

    Last year on February 15, millions of people and workers worldwide opposed to the war on Iraq and demanded to stop the aggression and war crimes of USA government to launch war on Iraq. Thousands of trade Unions and workers organisations along with freedom loving people protested until now against the occupation in Iraq and demanded immediate withdrawal of the occupying troops from Iraq. We the independent labour unions in Iraq have launched an international campaign to end the occupation and for labour rights in Iraq since March 2004 and until now labour leaders and unions from more than 40 countries have supported the demands of this campaign and an appeal presented by us to ILO for full implementation of ILO conventions Nr. 87 and 98 in Iraq confronting the oppressive steps of the US- civil administration and Iraqi Governing council in violating the labour rights in Iraq.

    The UUI is a genuine representative of unemployed workers. The UUI, along with the Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq-FWCUI , is striving to end the occupation in Iraq and pressing all governments who sent troops to Iraq to withdraw them from Iraq, struggling for a secular government, for political freedoms, for improvement in the security situation in Iraq, for improvement in the living conditions of Iraqi people and put forward a democratic labour law as alternative labour legislation which guarantee unconditional freedom for Iraqi Workers to organise and strike and full implementation of the ILO conventions in Iraq.

    We hope that you will be successful to prevent intervention and military involvement of the Korean – Government in Iraq because the result of all these Conflicts are only more blood sheds of the millions of innocent people in the war of Terrorists and we express our full solidarity in your actions against the deployment of Korean troops to Iraq and for withdrawal of not only Korean troops but also all occupying troops from Iraq.

    We call all labour organisations and Unions worldwide and specially in USA and UK to join this action of Korean trade unions to end the occupation in Iraq and for immediate withdrawal of all troops from Iraq and for a better future for Iraqi society and the working people of Iraq.

    Long live freedom and equality.

    Long live Willpower of the Labour Movement

    Aso Jabbar

    Representative abroad of Union of Unemployed in Iraq and the Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq

    June 28 2004

  • EPIC Turns to Employment Crisis

    EPIC believes catastrophic unemployment – conservatively estimated at 30% – is fueling Iraq’s security crisis. “While foreign contractors are making windfall profits, millions of Iraqis are unemployed. That is fueling a lot of anger and resentment, which in turn, strengthens the insurgency,” says EPIC Director Erik Gustafson. “To help restore security and save lives, aggressive job creation should be the number one priority.”

    http://www.epic-usa.org/Default.aspx?tabid=266

    Featuring a Special Report on Iraq Jobs by John Howley

    http://www.epic-usa.org/Default.aspx?tabid=262