A satirical look at how our generation participates in global events and expresses itself that was made in Australia and taken from lewisish’s Youtube Channel.

Previously on aspecks: Pure Apathy; Cynical Optimist

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If you speak Swahili; can you please let the rest of us know what usinibore means?  This exceptional music presentation is by the coyly-named creative collective Just-A-Band from Kenya and taken off their sophomore album 82. The lyrics convey a poignant message of individual self-empowerment “Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do – I can change the world“. Just-A-Band are unconventional in the sense that they have a photographer and an animator in their ranks so that they make all their own videos for their music, which has an eclectic fusion sound. Their website and infopack do not provide as much insight into their story as we might like but we’ve been able to gather a few tid-bits about them which can be found in the featured videos below.

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The Z-Boys should be proud. The appeal of the skateboarding subculture has extended so far and influenced so many that it surely must have surpassed their expectations by going from Venice Beach, California in the 1970s to Uganda today with the emergence of the Uganda Skateboard Union.

The Union’s story, one that bucks the trends and defies stereotypes, is a testament to cultural exchange. Like many others, the Union’s following has found escapism and even taken on a new identity based around the global skating culture.  They watch and are obviously influenced by skate videos but like other skaters they express their individuality in their styles.  Furthermore beyond being an escape; the pastime offers lessons in ingenuity and tenacity (eg. overcoming obstacles such as building a park and having to repair their own shoes).  The story of their self-made skatepark begins with Jackson Mubiru who (according to the BBC) was introduced to skateboarding by a European enthusiast. The video below shows them in action and tells more of their tale in detail.
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Depending on who you are; when you are hungry a penis restaurant may not feature very high up on your list of places to go to satisfy your cravings. In fact, for large number of people it would not even make the list at all, however in China eating sexual organs is seen as a treatment for the libido, one that helps to increase virility rather than test of the strength of one’s stomach.

Indeed the Chinese believe that the penises from different animals can be good for different parts of the body, something that is echoed in many cultures where the use of unusual parts of animals or plants are an entrenched part of traditional medicine. However, the Chinese are far from the only people eating “exotic” and wonderful foods, the Japanese of course have Fugu the infamous pufferfish that is highly poisonous unless cooked with extreme care. In El Salvador people eat Iguana meat which like frogs (infamously a delicacy in France) tastes like chicken, only tougher. The French themselves have until recently gorged on an endangered songbird know as an Orlotan, which is swallowed whole, bones and all. In Lancashire, a county well known in the UK for the variety of its traditional dishes,you can buy lamb testicles that have been peeled, bread-crumbed and fried, whilst throughout Southern Africa, worms that look similar to caterpillars found in mopani trees, are and can be eaten alive, or fried and are an important source of nutrition.

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The devastation caused by the earthquake has led global society to rally round in such an extraordinary manner. If it was not before, Haiti (the poorest country in the Western hemisphere) is on everybody’s mind at the moment. The vivid extensive media coverage and availability of modern technology has ensured that global society has been able to rapidly coordinate a program of much needed relief through donations of cash and kind. This is a true testament of human empathy – Governments (like Senegal’s have even offered free land for resettlement), along with celebrities and individuals alike whom have also risen to the occasion after having been compelled to respond creatively and give generously. A new report by the Inter-American Development Bank estimates that the total cost of reconstruction from ‘the most destructive disaster of modern times‘ could be as high as $14 billion.

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