ALR designletter [4.2]
[01] [02] [03] [04] [05] [06] [07] [08] [09] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Welcome to the new issue of the ALR designletter. As always we welcome your comments, suggestions, criticism and/or praise. Thanks for reading.
Noah Scalin, founder
ALR design
socially conscious graphic design
http://www.ALRdesign.com
--
[01] ALR NEWS
ALR’s Designletter was included in an article entitled “Wired News” in the Feb/March edition of Dynamic Graphics magazine (http://www.dynamicgraphics.com/). The article sites the Designletter as an effective example of a text based e-mail newsletter.
--
ALR’s logo design for Kilt & Bagel and our very own ALR logo appear in the recently released book New Logo World from the Japanese company PIE Books (http://www.piebooks.com/)
[02] CALENDAR
Mark April 25th, 2004 on your calendars if retaining reproductive freedom for yourself or your mother, wife, or daughters is important to you. On that day, Planned Parenthood, NOW, NARAL, and Feminist Majority are planning a major march and rally for women’s rights in Washington, D.C., the first joint effort of its kind. Full details can be found at http://www.MarchForWomen.org/
--
April 19-24th is TV turn off week. The folks at TV TurnOff Network explain why a week away from the boob-tube is a good idea and provide some healthy alternatives for families at http://www.tvturnoff.org/
--
Just a reminder, there’s still time before the March 12th deadline to register for the Designs on Democracy Conference we mentioned in our last issue. The conference, which deals with socially conscious design issues, runs March 26 –28 in Berkley California. For full details visit http://www.designsondemocracy.org/.
[03] WAR & PEACE
The folks at Antiwar.com want you to know the facts about our troops, so they created the Casualties of War page. It simply shows a running tally of the number of American troops that have been killed since the war started and also since it supposedly ended. They even provide an easy way for you to display this data on your own website. See for yourself at http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/.
--
People who watch Fox news are more likely to be wrong about the basic facts of the Iraq war, says a recent report from the University of Maryland’s Program on International Policy Attitudes. The study, which was the result of seven nationwide polls, found that 48 percent of the public believe the US found evidence of pre-war links between Iraq and al-Qaeda, 25 percent thought world public opinion sided with the US, and 22 percent thought troops found Weapons of Mass Destruction – all of which are misperceptions. The study cites television news as the main source of information for respondents who held the highest misperceptions, with Fox viewers ranking the worst (nearly 80 percent held at least one misperception and 45 percent believed all 3). The study also notes that Bush supporters who said they followed the news “very closely” were found more likely to hold misperceptions. The entire report can be read online at http://www.pipa.org/ (source: Inter Press Service 10/3/03 by way of AlterNet.org)
[04] NEWS
For those of you that haven’t been following the work of MoveOn.org, the political action group, a brief synopsis follows. After staging a nationwide contest for the creation of a 30 second advertisement to tell people about the misdeeds of President George W. Bush a winner was chosen by a panel of celebrity judges. MoveOn then raised over a million dollars and tried to purchase 30 seconds of airtime to broadcast the ad during the super bowl. CBS refused, saying that they did not broadcast advocacy ads (while agreeing to run a White House backed ad about Medicare, that it then pulled under pressure and has since started airing again). The winning ad did run on CNN during the time of the Super Bowl and MoveOn asked people switch over and watch it in protest. You can see this ad, as well as the runners up at http://www.bushin30seconds.org/. MoveOn is continuing its fight to have the peoples’ voices heard, see what they are up to now at http://www.moveon.org/. (thanks to several list members for reminding us that not everyone on this may be a MoveOn member or aware of the situation!)
Also from the folks at MoveOn.org: The Daily Mislead (http://www.misleader.org/): an up-to-date accounting of George W.’s “misstatements” and BushGreenwatch (http://www.bushgreenwatch.org/): a journal of Bush’s environmental actions, or rather non-actions, as the case may be.
[05] ACTIVISM
What do Sean Connery, the NAACP, and Shania Twain have in common? They’re all on the NRA blacklist and the folks at Stop The NRA think that’s good company to have. They are encouraging others interested in controlling semi-automatic weapons and preventing dealers from being exempted from lawsuits to join the list. See who else is there and add your own name at http://www.nrablacklist.com/
[06] QUICK-FACT
34 million people in Africa are infected with HIV. Less than 1 percent have access to anti-retroviral treatments. Learn more about this issue at http://healthgap.org/
[07] DESIGN
Mixing hip graphics with cleverly written copy, the folks at Flat have actually managed to make Public Service Announcements cool. The PSAs, which range from voting reform to environmental concerns for designers, are located on their Flrt page (http://www.flrt.com/). A model of socially conscious design, Flat has created an excellent introduction to some important topics using the same interactive design skills they offer their clients.
--
Once again non-profits have a chance to win a free flash animated movie from our friends at Free Range Graphics. As mentioned in our last issue, the 2003 grant took the form of the hugely successful “Meatrix” short. To apply this year go to http://www.freerangegraphics.com/html/valentine/. The application deadline is May 1st.
[08] ELECTIONS
Too cool to vote? The folks at the punk rock record label Fat Wreck Chords want to convince you otherwise. The site they started, PunkVoter.com, explains in no uncertain terms why your vote will matter in the upcoming elections. Backed by NOFX, Green Day, Bad Religion, Good Charlotte, The Offspring, Blink 182 and others in the punk rock community, their goal is to get the masses of young non-voters to come out and make a difference this election year. Check it out at http://Punkvoter.com/
--
Americans aren’t the only ones interested in bringing Democracy to the world. In fact the Swedish group Democracy Aid ’04 (http://hem.passagen.se/democracyaid/) wants international citizens to help make sure the upcoming American presidential election proceeds in a fair and legal manner. The group encourages contributions to a variety of US based voter initiative groups and backs a petition for sending international observers to oversee the election.
[09] EDUCATION
Rather than spend their time on the beach partying, nearly 30,000 college students are choosing to take an “alternative spring break”. These students work on service projects that connect them to local communities. One organization that helps coordinate these projects is Florida’s BreakAway, which works with over 60 schools and 230 service groups. Learn more at http://www.alternativebreaks.org/ (Source: Christian Science Monitor 3/21/02)
[10] NATURE
If you are interested in environmentally friendly decorative mulch you may be interested in Rubberific. Their mulch is made from 100% recycled truck tires yet looks and works like traditional mulch. Rubberific is also heavier and lasts longer than wood mulch so there is less need to replace it. For more details go to http://www.rubberificmulch.com/
(thanks to list member Coryndon for passing this along)
[11] MEDIA
If Comcast, the cable television company, succeeds in its attempt to purchase the Walt Disney Corporation, the result would be the creation of the largest media company in history. What would the ramifications of this be? The media policy group Free Press, explains this and more on their Media Monopoly Made Simple page (http://www.mediareform.net/media/). Particularly useful is their interactive database showing who owns whom when it comes to the major media players.
[12] BOOKSHELF
If you aren’t familiar with the phrase “liberal media bias”, you haven’t been watching enough TV. The recent book by Saturday Night Live writer Al Franken “Lies and The Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look At The Right”, sets out to prove in no uncertain terms that not only does this bias not exist, but that the media is much more prone to swing to the conservative side of things. While typically filed under humor, the biting wit of his book is not without basis in truth. Page after page is meticulously referenced so that readers can see the facts for themselves, something Franken claims is not the case in books by conservative pundits like Ann Coulter. Alternately funny and depressing, the book is a must read for people who need a relief from the “liberal” media they encounter daily. A special bonus is that the book survived a lawsuit from Fox News who claimed that the use of the phrase “fair and balanced” was a copyright infringement and that it did not qualify as parody since its use was “subtle”.
--
If you don’t trust a liberal comedian to tell you the truth, how about a former conservative journalist? David Brock made a name for himself trashing Anita Hill and writing venomous anti-liberal pieces for conservative journals. After being dumped by the conservative set for writing a more balanced book on Hillary Clinton, the openly gay writer decided to set the record straight. The result, his mea culpa, is “Blinded by the Right”. Seeing the machinations of the conservative press from the inside is disturbing to say the least. While Brock admits to many a wrongdoing, there seem to be several personal vendettas being waged in the book, which makes it difficult to take the work as entirely objective. Still, to get a glimpse of the “vast right-wing conspiracy” from a former believer’s eyes is worth the price of admission.
[13] LEXICON
Resource Wars (Noun Pl.) - Refers to the brutal fighting in countries that starts out as territorial disputes but ends in the plundering of resources for profit. The most well known are the diamonds in Africa which fuel wars in Angola and Sierra Leon. Yet many people don’t realize that a trace mineral used in cellphones, coltan, has fed conflict in Congo. One way to prevent such wars is to get corporations to publicly acknowledge where and how they get their materials. Learn more at: http://www.globalwitness.org/ (source: Christian Science Monitor 12/5/02)
[14] NOSH
Cell phones have the shortest lifespan of consumer electronics: only 1.5 years. This is due, however, more to fashion trends than actual wear and tear. (source: International Association of Electronics Recyclers http://www.iaer.org/ by way of the Christian Science Monitor 1/1-2/04) [See issue 2.1 for info on cell phone recycling]
--
The ALR Designletter is a semi-regular update on the activities at Another Limited Rebellion design, the world of socially conscious design, and beyond. You are on this list because you have worked with, contacted, or have a personal connection to ALR design. The names on this mailing list will never be sold or given away. If you no longer wish to be on this list, just respond with "REMOVE" in the subject section and there will be no hard feelings. Back issues can be found on our web site in the ISSUES section.
Sources are listed when information was found in one specific location. However, articles are not quoted verbatim in this newsletter. The addresses provided below are to encourage further reading and support of these fine publications and information services:
Christian Science Monitor: http://csmonitor.com/
close