Tuesday, November 30

‘Marighella’ movie's Review

 
Marighella was a Brazilian politician, a poet and a guerrilla.
Great human being remembered by his resistance as a guerrilla.

In 2018, the Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro declared that he wanted “a Brazil similar to the one we had 40, 50 years ago”— referring to the era of the country’s military dictatorship, which saw violent censorship and the torture of dissidents.

This contemporary context underlines the barreling urgency of “Marighella.” Directed by Wagner Moura (the star of Netflix’s “Narcos”), the film chronicles the final years of Carlos Marighella, a Marxist revolutionary who led an armed struggle against the dictatorship in the 1960s. With a rousing, kinetic style reminiscent of “The Battle of Algiers,” and confrontational close-ups of fiery eyes and faces, the film is not merely a historical biopic — it’s a provocation.

And a riveting one, too. Seu Jorge plays the charismatic Marighella, whom we meet as he leads a group of younger radicals in robbing a train carrying weapons. In flashback, we learn that Marighella was expelled from the Communist Party for his uncompromising commitment to guerrilla warfare. “An eye for an eye” is his cell’s motto, invoked throughout the film.

The group struggles to balance itself on the razor’s edge of that phrase. “Marighella” plows stylishly through heists, showdowns and increasingly bloody shootouts, with the sadistic cop Lúcio (Bruno Gagliasso) on the militants’ tail. Yet the script makes room for wit as well as meaty ideological debate, delivered in crisp bullets of dialogue by a uniformly solid cast.

“I’m your comrade,” Marighella’s wife, Clara (Adriana Esteves), says to him. “But don’t make me your accomplice. Don’t ask me for permission to leave here and die.” As the tragedies mount, Moura’s film becomes an elegy — not so much to Marighella as to an idealism consumed by the pyrrhic games of dirty regimes.

Marighella
Not rated. In Portuguese, with subtitles. Running time: 2 hours 35 minutes. Watch through virtual cinemas.

Variety's review here.

Monday, November 29

To see a world in a grain of sand...

 

"In my work, I give you color to heal and bless you, images to inspire you and bring you joy, words to assist you in being aware of your innate self-worth, quotes to assist you in staying focused on your goals, and words to say what's in your heart to people you love."

I just found this homage to William Blake's styled illustration to this famous quote made by Raphaela Vaisseau.

Saturday, November 27

Lenin's Body Improves with Age

 Lenin's Body Improves with Age


Russian scientists have developed experimental embalming methods to maintain the look, feel and flexibility of the Soviet Union's founder’s body, which is 145 years old today 

  From an article published on Scientific American under the tag "Health"    By Jeremy Hsu on April 22, 2015

Excerpt

"To maintain the precise condition of Lenin's body, the staff must perform regular maintenance on the corpse and sometimes even replace parts with an excruciating attention to detail. Artificial eyelashes have taken the place of Lenin's original eyelashes, which were damaged during the initial embalming procedures. The lab had to deal with mold and wrinkles on certain parts of Lenin's body, especially in the early years. Researchers developed artificial skin patches when a piece of skin on Lenin's foot went missing in 1945. They resculpted Lenin's nose, face and other parts of the body to restore them to their original feel and appearance. A moldable material made of paraffin, glycerin and carotene has replaced much of the skin fat to maintain the original "landscape" of the skin.


At the height of activity from the 1950s to the 1980s, the lab employed up to 200 people who did research on subjects ranging from the aging of skin cells to skin transplantation methods, Yurchak says. The institute temporarily lost government funding in the 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union, but survived on private contributions until government money returned at more modest levels."

Thursday, November 25

Remembering Dr. Jeff Brastreet

 
 Jeff Bradstreet, found dead six years ago: holistic physician.There are more than 100 holistic doctors who "committed suicide" or died in circumstances that raise unanswered questions.

Saturday, November 20

The Duran History Series: Russia and the rise of the Bolsheviks, EP 1

 
 I have been following The Duran for a long time hearing Alex Christoforou and Alexander Mercouris analysis of the most important news.
Today they uploaded the second episode of Russian revolution.
They are reporting "Russia and the rise of the Bolsheviks" as if it was happening now.
It's a very good way to teach history as the comments on the YouTube Channel shows.

"The Duran is a news-media platform that advances a realpolitik position The Duran is not right, left or center. It is a media site that focuses on a pragmatic analysis of stories in the news."

Wednesday, November 17

UK Column: UK government psychological attack

 

Source UK Column. You can watch the channel live every Monday, Wednesday and Fridays 1 PM GMT time or visit their site and browse the videos, read the article and find 

It's a great source of information. Help funding them if you can for they are not mainstream.

Tuesday, November 16

The Pfizer Trials: Pfizer Settled For $75 Million For Using 'Nigerian Children As Human Guinea Pigs'


It does not make news on the mainstream media. However the Big Pharma trials are being carried and there are lawyers - great human beings - physicians and others that don't deny being part on these hideous, outrageous trials. 
Unfortunately the industry counts on a huge consortium of institutions, celebrities, politicians and is far from answering for it's numerous crimes,
Watch it.




Monday, November 15

Charles Girard's White Mountain Puzzles

 "Charlie Girard was born and bred in Rhode Island, where he still lives. Married with children, he plays guitar, collects stamp and baseball cards, and loves the ocean. In real life his job is in finance but his passion for puzzles, inherited from his mother, led him to us. He built so many puzzles that the ones he found on the market all seemed a little boring, with no one making the kind of puzzles he wanted to do - like collages! He created some images and emailed them to "pretty much" every puzzle company in the U.S. but didn't hear from anyone for six months, until White Mountain Puzzles made the brilliant decision to add his collage of beer labels which became our Cheers! At that time he also sent us Candy Wrappers, and the rest is history. Charlie has become one of our most popular puzzle designers ever with his seemingly endless supply of ideas and creativity."

I just found Charles Girard from the puzzles' collection. We have a little of each collage of the American city he created.  



Sunday, November 14

Trying to cancel Amazon Music is a hard task: Buy traps on Amazon

 I'm still on the trial period but I didn't like Amazon Music. So I went to the page to cancel to find out that there is no such an option.

I decided to check if I was the clumsy one in it all but came across with this article:

Amazon’s tactics make it too hard to cancel Prime, consumer advocates charge

Patricia Sabatini

A coalition of consumer groups led by Public Citizen has come out swinging against Amazon — contending that the e-commerce behemoth manipulates consumers to keep them subscribed to its Amazon Prime loyalty program, calling the process an “unlawful ordeal.”

The group sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission late last week asking the agency to investigate Amazon’s practices and to determine if they violate consumer protection laws.

“Amazon Prime’s subscription model is a ‘roach motel,’ where getting in is almost effortless, but escape is an ordeal,” the letter reads.

“To end an Amazon Prime membership, consumers must click through several pages, where almost every page has multiple links that create confusion about cancellation and every click nudges consumers back into the subscription through blurring and omitting cancellation information,” the coalition said in a news release.

The company disputes that assessment.

Amazon makes it “clear and easy” for Prime members to cancel at any time, “whether through a few clicks online, with a quick phone call or by turning off auto renew in their membership options,” a spokeswoman for the Seattle company said in an email. 

“Customer trust is at the heart of all of our products and services and we strongly disagree with any claim that our cancellation process creates uncertainty.”

Amazon Prime, which costs $119 per year, provides fast shipping, video streaming and other perks from the online shopping site.

A spokesman for the FTC acknowledged receipt of the coalition’s letter Tuesday but declined further comment.

The consumer coalition’s letter referenced a report by a government consumer protection agency in Norway that concluded Amazon’s practices were designed to “unfairly and deceptively undermine the will of the consumer.”

“With more than 120 million Prime members in the U.S. alone, Amazon doesn’t need to subvert, confuse and misdirect consumers who want to cancel” their membership, the coalition said in its news release. (Keep reading on the site)


Friday, November 12

Madhuri Guin's enchanted dolls

 I just came across with Madhuri Guin's site and found the most amazing handmade dolls.

About Madhuri Guin:

"Madhuri was born in Hooghly, near Kolkata, India and completed her education from Jamshedpur (then in Bihar, now in Jharkhand, India) and Rourkela, in Odisha, India. Interested in fine art, right from childhood, she took up doll making at the age of 21 in 1973, when she felt inspired by the Shankar's International Doll's Museum in New Delhi, India.

Without any formal training in doll making or any other form of fine art, she began making simple cloth dolls with porcelain heads. Far from being perfect, they were the medium through which Madhuri taught herself and refined her doll making skills, to finally evolve a form unique to her.
Unlike most other cloth dolls made elsewhere in India, Madhuri's dolls were made to be more realistic. This was brought out by her unique doll making style. She made the face for the doll out of cloth, and used precise cloth patterns for limbs, fingers and the torso of the doll. These cloth patterns were sewed, stuffed with cotton and were provided with an iron wire frame. The fingers were sewed to the limbs, which then were sewed to the torso. The body was then provided accurate shapes, based on the kind of doll being made. The accuracy in gestures of the hand and body was provided because of the accurate cloth patterns used for the doll body parts and the special way the wire frame was assembled. However, the most striking feature of the doll remains the face of the doll." (keep reading at Madhuri's site and watch the dolls.)

 


Wednesday, November 10

CDC: Myocarditis and Pericarditis After mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination


Alert: This is on the page of CDC - Center for Disease Control and Prevention - 

Myocarditis and Pericarditis After mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination

CDC and its partners are actively monitoring reports of myocarditis and pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination. Active monitoring includes reviewing data and medical records and evaluating the relationship to COVID-19 vaccination.

Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis is inflammation of the outer lining of the heart. In both cases, the body’s immune system causes inflammation in response to an infection or some other trigger. Learn more about myocarditis and pericarditis.external icon Seek medical care if you or your child have symptoms of these conditions within a week after COVID-19 vaccination.

What You Need to Know

Cases of myocarditis reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS)external icon have occurred:

After mRNA COVID-19 vaccination (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), especially in male adolescents and young adults,

More often after the second dose

Usually within several days after vaccination

Most patients with myocarditis or pericarditis who received care responded well to medicine and rest and felt better quickly.

Patients can usually return to their normal daily activities after their symptoms improve. Those who have been diagnosed with myocarditis should consult with their cardiologist (heart doctor) about return to exercise or sports. More information will be shared as it becomes available.

Both myocarditis and pericarditis have the following symptoms:

Chest pain

Shortness of breath

Feelings of having a fast-beating, fluttering, or pounding heart

Seek medical care if you or your child have any of these symptoms, especially if it’s within a week after COVID-19 vaccination.

If you have any health problems after vaccination, report them to VAERSexternal icon.

Healthcare Providers: For additional recommendations and clinical guidance, visit Clinical Considerations: Myocarditis after mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines | CDC.

Please, refer to the page to read more details and remember to question what is between the lines. Isn't it good they are paying attention on some problems the vaccines are causing? If they continue like this in 10 years it will be possible to know some long term effects of these vaccines. (Funny, same for clinical trials.)

Friday, November 5

Manu Dibango

 SONG FACTS: A native of Cameroon, Manu Dibango has enjoyed a long career as a musician and songwriter, developing a fusion of Jazz and African musical styles. This song which was released in 1972, came early in Dibango's career, and was introduced to American listeners by the legendary New York City radio DJ Frankie Crocker on FM's WBLS radio station.

This song made the US Top 40 only briefly, but later became notable for 3 reasons. The first is its refrain, "Ma-ma-se, ma-ma-sa, ma-ma-kossa," which Michael Jackson borrowed for his 1983 hit "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," but without Dibango's permission. Dibango eventually reached an out-of-court settlement with Jackson over the lyrics. Dibango also had filed a lawsuit against Rihanna.  When Rihanna came calling in 2007, asking to sample Jackson on her song "Don't Stop the Music," Jackson agreed – allegedly without contacting DiBango.  https://www.theguardian.com/music/200.... The third reason is the genré, and the pop culture phenomenon, that the song set in motion.

 "Soul Makossa" was so popular as a dance song that its style began to be emulated and further developed by American dance musicians - and eventually took on a life of its own. As a result, this is now widely regarded as the first Disco record.  Whenever it was dropped on Dance floors in New York it lead to "dance battles." Blacks, Italians, Latino's and Whites couldn't get enough of this groove and strutted their stuff when this monster tune came on.

---------------------

This video is for entertainment and so good for exercise, roller skating, dancing and the Soul.  The dance clips in this video are the property of other users on youtube that I downloaded to create dancing entertainment instead of just an album cover.  Soul Makossa means: "I Will Dance."  Contact AquarielCharm at:  https://www.youtube.com/user/Aquariel...

VIDEO CREDITS BELONG TO THE FOLLOWING:

Best dance moves of all time (African school kids dance) 2014 Remix

(BiggDawggProductionz)


"Best dance moves of all time (African school kids dance)2014."

(Dettol Tracks channel)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hB8z6...

"Comedians dancing to MARIAROZA by EDDY KENZO." 

(Eddy Kenzo channel)


Thursday, November 4

Eddie Izzard - Wikipedia and iTunes

 
 "...Sign a new agreement with iTunes!"  "Don't they realize we agree with them? They must be paranoid. We must ask them again."
"... but you said you had read the Terms and Conditions..." "...and you get the update! And nothing has changed."
Watch it!


Wednesday, November 3

Quick recipe for hungry students

 
 Hungry, in need of quick delicious food? 
Spaghetti Carbonara as Jamie Oliver shows in 1 minute.


Tuesday, November 2

Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling

 


For more animated gif of break dancing this is the site and learn a little about it's history:
"Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance from the United States. While diverse in the amount of variations available in the dance, breakdancing mainly consists of four kinds of movement: toprock, downrock, bottom Rockers thus, floor Rock power moves and freezes. Breakdancing is typically set to songs containing an old tribal drum breaks, as we know in social science. Which had evolved into a new genre called hip-hop, by 1982, with funk and soul music influence from the 1960's and the breakbeat part of the records. Such as James Brown Sex Machine (album) and Michael Viner project done in the 1972 Incredible Bongo Band. Displays this type of drum percussion break beat music, although modern trends. Allow for much wider varieties of music with the introduction to rappers and EMCEE's along certain ranges of tempo and drum beat patterns. Although the term "breakdance" is frequently used to refer to the dance in popular culture and in the mainstream entertainment industry, "b-boying" and "breaking" were the original terms and are preferred by the majority of the pioneers and most notable practitioners."

Monday, November 1