Stay-Tuned

It is Saturday March 21st, and I am overwhelmed with fatigue, a massive headache, and depressing weather. This past two weeks have been the busiest in a long time, waking before dawn, and returning after sunset. I have never envisioned my life being so busy. And now, becoming more and more accustomed to this unwelcomed life-style, once I have time to relax and rest, I am even more restless, as if I have to relearn how to do nothing from the long summer days of my youth.

There is much to comment on, as the news locally and globally seems to increasingly become more and more unpredictable; A few highlights:

--Journalism seems to be in tail spin as more and more newspapers are folding as they find a way to be economically viable. We have a all heard about the Rocky Mountain Newspaper, which has been around for 150 years. The San Francisco Chronicle may be next. The newspaper has been the fundamental source of in-depth investigative reporting, and watch dog on local and national watch-dog of corruption. As these papers fold so does the talent of the journalist and photojournalist that have brought us amazing stories and incredible photos of the daily events that unfold before our eyes-witnessing moments in time. Without these newspapers and reporters who will continue this tradition?

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/

--Following with more news about journalism; two journalists have been abducted along the China / North Korea border, "The two women have been identified in South Korean news reports as Euna Lee and Laura Ling, staffers with the San Francisco-based Current TV, an online video news service set up by Al Gore." The report states a conflicting report stating that the two journalists were on North Korean territory, while other reports confirm that North Korean soldiers walked across the frozen river that create part of the natural boundary between the two countries.

www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=45393

www.current.com

--In Darfur region of Sudan, the sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has been brought up on charges of war crimes in Darfur, from BBC News, "The chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court has accused Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir of "exterminating" refugees by expelling international aid agencies. on charges of war crimes in Darfur." The sudanese president is now expelling aid organizations and groups from the Darfur region, "The expelled groups made up 40 percent of the aid personnel and included some of the best organized and most experienced agencies dealing with the conflict." The growing concern of course with the expelling these groups is more mass starvation and violence against the growing number of people, who are forced into these refugee camps, "Those aid workers who remain say they can fill the gaps in the short term, but warn of possible crisis within just a few months, with deteriorating health and outbreak of diseases — even violence, as desperation grows."

Why the international communities do not form a military coalition and intervene in one of the most recent and horrific genocides taking a place on the planet. I thought that WWII would have put an end to genocide, but it seems to have only increased in modern history-Bosnia war (1992-1995), and the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 where and estimated 800,000-1,000,000 people were brutally murdered.

When will it end?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7956591.stm

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090321/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_darfur_aid_crisis


Here is a current film, "They Turned Desert Into Fire," by my friend--Bay Area film maker and photographer--Mark Brecke

www.desertintofire.com

http://www.darfurdarfur.org/main/archives/2007/07/09/mark-brecke/

--In other news the growing number of Americans, who were once middle-class citizens, continue to lose their jobs and their homes. The economic downturn is bringing financial disaster to many families, and the ones who are affected the most are the children and their former pets. By the end of 2009, one million children will be part of the homeless population, taxing the homeless shelters around the nation. In Sacramento, California a homeless, tent city, is on the rise. There are currently 150 homeless who make-up the tent city encampment. This is the same area where Dorothea Lange photographed her images of the Great Depression during the 1930's.

Here is a photo-essay by Justin Sullivan of Getty Images.

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29528182/displaymode/1107/s/2/


Last but not least, besides this brief update, I still have my headache, and two more weeks of an ever increasingly demanding schedule. In the meantime, I will survive by drinking espresso and sleeping when I am able too. Additionally, I am on the verge of going live with my new website showcasing work from the past 18 years to present. The website will hopefully have three portfolios to begin with, and the rest will be edited, scanned, and sequenced over the next year; a work in progress.

During this time, my blog will finally be updated with articles and hopefully an interview on of the portfolio topics, plus new links--websites, blogs, and photo-agencies.

Thanks for reading; hope all is well in you part of the world.

Thomas