Daily Archives: February 15, 2022

Ukraine and Russia. We can’t commit to pursuing liberal ends abroad without also providing the means. – ConservativeHome

Posted: February 15, 2022 at 5:47 am

If Russia invades Ukraine this week, thus provoking the first full-scale war in Europe between two states since 1945, Britain will support the aggrieved party, as it should.

The full suite of instruments outlined on this site by Garvan Walshe should be deployed in response: thats to say, information, economic pressure, sanctions that target individuals, and military aid.

That help will stop short of the deployment of our troops in the Ukraine, but Vladimir Putin may nonetheless wage asymetric conflict against western countries, through cyber attacks, for example.

This is all that needs to be said about the short-term, at least for the moment, but the medium-term is a different matter.

For the crisis in Ukraine raises profound questions that the main political parties have been unwilling to answer about our foreign policy, our defence posture and the future of NATO itself.

Let me illustrate them by outlining two potential and different strategic approaches to Russia during the years ahead. Both would have the same starting-point: that its corrupt autocracy is necessarily antagonostic to liberal democracies.

With loyalist security forces, a subservient judiciary, a controlled media environment, and a legislature consisting of a ruling party and pliable opposition factions, [Putin] is able to manipulate elections and suppress genuine dissent.

Rampant corruption facilitates shifting links among bureaucrats and organized crime groups. Such is the verdict of Freedom House, amplified in British memories by the regimes Novichok attack on our own soil.

The first approach would be transatlantic in flavour at least for as long as America maintains its present stance on Russia and be marked by an idealistic projection of western values through military strength.

It would be consistent with the further enlargement of NATO, including membership for Ukraine, Georgia and Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Which would necessitate member states other than the US, Britain, Greece and Poland meeting the NATO minimum spending requirement of two per cent of GDP on defence.

Such a policy would doubtless write off consequent Russian movement further towards Chinas sphere of influence as a development that will happen anyway.

In effect, we would be committing to treating an attack on Ukraine, say, as an attack upon us under the terms of Article Five of the NATO charter and it would be necessary to be upfront with voters about the consequences.

This posture would have big implications for our defence policy, suggesting armed forces less orientated to projecting power outside the European theatre.

The second approach would be more European in tone, not unlike that currently being followed by Germany and, more prominently, by France (or at least by Emmanuel Macron), and stress realism.

It would recognise that there is little likelihood of many NATO member states spending the required minimum, accept that there are limits to our own defence budget, and view the public as essentially unsupportive of distant wars.

It might well conclude that it is sensible to concentrate our military resources in eastern Europe to support allies to whom we are already committed.

However, it would be resistant to the enlargement of NATO, refusing membership to Ukraine, Georgia, Bosnia & Herezegovina and almost anyone else who may apply for it.

It would toil to keep Russia within the western orbit as far as is possible, and seek to prevent it from lining up with China in a working alliance of non-democracies.

And while the first approach would be hard to reconcile with working with Russia as a partner on climate change, this second would see no such difficulty.

You will already have worked out that successive governments have all but led us to the position of committing to the first approach but with the means to deliver only the second.

Politically unengaged voters may not have been so quick off the mark. They are also likely to regard NATO, insofar as they have heard of it at all, as a pillar of UK defence policy and a fact of British political life.

However, the security and defence choices that this Government and its successors must make are bound up with the future of the alliance of which Britain has been a member for the best part of a century.

This is not the time to be debating the matter on the floor of the Commons, but I hope that our defence and diplomatic establishments and others are thinking about it very hard indeed.

NATO was the cornerpin of our security during the Cold War, having as it did a clear vocation to counter the Soviet Unions totalitarian aggression.

Since the collapse of communism, its membership has rolled into eastern Europe, and its influence well beyond. For example, Tajikistan is now a partner country.

When I last looked at an atlas, Tajinkstan was some distance from the north Atlantic. The relationship presumably, like that with Kazakhstan, the Kyrghyz Republic, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan makes sense in the Russian context.

This is what the Putin regime is seizing on in its complaints about encirclement. But hang on a minute. What has Colombias status as a NATO global partner got to do with Russia?

Answer: nothing much. NATO presumably has a foothold in the war on drugs. As it does in the Wests collective response to China, if Australia and Japans status as partners is anything to go by.

Furthermore, the NATO country with the second highest proportional GDP spend on defence is Greece in preparedness for potential hostilities with another NATO member, Turkey.

Its member states have otherwise mostly proved resistant to Putins overtures. And what one man might see as incoherence, in terms of the alliance taking military action, is another mans flexibility.

For NATO not only invoked Article Five after 9/11, but has sometimes taken action outside its terms for example, in Kosovo.

Perhaps the ambiguities of NATO are inevitable in an age of multiple threats to western democracies, a challenge recognised by the Governments Integrated Review.

But there seems to me to be a distinct possibility that, in relation to Russia, we may eventually find ourselves with obligations to allies for which the electorate is almost completely unprepared.

And if the language of the late 1930s is appropriate Ben Wallace has been complaining of a whiff of Munich in the air Minister will have to provide the means to meet the end.

By 1939, remember, 48 per cent of all Government spending under Neville Chamberlain was going on defence. Not that even the most aggressive upping of our present spend would require that much.

Nonetheless, we are in collective danger of drifting towards hostilities this week with habits, assumptions and reflexes that are out of date.

The rest is here:

Ukraine and Russia. We can't commit to pursuing liberal ends abroad without also providing the means. - ConservativeHome

Posted in Liberal | Comments Off on Ukraine and Russia. We can’t commit to pursuing liberal ends abroad without also providing the means. – ConservativeHome

Chattanooga School For the Liberal Arts Holds 30th Anniversary Alumni Reunion March 12 – The Chattanoogan

Posted: at 5:46 am

Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts is celebrating its 30 Anniversary with an alumni reunion on March 12 from 1-3 p.m. The theme for the day will be Once an Eagle, Always an Eagle!

"This is the last school year that the school will be in the existing building, and we want to give alumni a chance to see the school one more time," officials said.

The event will be mostly outside on the front lawn, and will feature music from a crowdsourced playlist, food trucks, games and gatherings. Alumni students and faculty are encouraged to bring a picnic blanket or camping table to enjoy lunch on the lawn.

There will be tables with photos from each five years of the schools 30-year history. Alumni can connect with old CLSA friends, bringing memories, yearbooks and their own photos to share. Cornhole and parachute will be set up and ready to play.

There will also be an open house, with student ambassadors to give information about what is happening at CSLA now. A brief program will celebrate the past, legacy and future of CSLA. Alumni of Elbert Long Junior High are also welcome to join.

Click here for more information and to RSVP.

See more here:

Chattanooga School For the Liberal Arts Holds 30th Anniversary Alumni Reunion March 12 - The Chattanoogan

Posted in Liberal | Comments Off on Chattanooga School For the Liberal Arts Holds 30th Anniversary Alumni Reunion March 12 – The Chattanoogan

US urges its citizens to leave Belarus – Daily Liberal

Posted: at 5:46 am

news, world

The State Department has urged US citizens to leave Belarus immediately in a travel advisory update on Monday. "US citizens in Belarus should depart immediately via commercial or private means," the State Department said on Monday. The advisory warned the situation in Belarus was "unpredictable" due to an increase in unusual and concerning Russian military activity near the border with Ukraine," the advisory warned. Previously, the US government had merely advised its citizens to regularly reassess exit plans in case of emergencies. Travel to Belarus was already advised against - the highest risk category 4 still applies. Most recently, the State Department had ordered family members of US government employees to leave Ukraine's northern neighbour. Russia is massively increasing its troops in Belarus on the Ukrainian border. The State Department also revised its travel advice for Moldova - another country bordering Ukraine. Here, too, the department noted the "unusual and worrying Russian military activities around Ukraine". Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine are located between the Eastern European NATO states and Russia. For weeks, the US in particular has been warning that Russia could invade Ukraine. Tens of thousands of Russian soldiers have gathered close to the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied allegations that it plans to invade. Australian Associated Press

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-feed-data/887bb2cf-70af-4a80-b73e-5246d38706df.jpg/r0_74_800_526_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg

February 15 2022 - 3:28PM

The State Department has urged US citizens to leave Belarus immediately in a travel advisory update on Monday.

"US citizens in Belarus should depart immediately via commercial or private means," the State Department said on Monday.

The advisory warned the situation in Belarus was "unpredictable" due to an increase in unusual and concerning Russian military activity near the border with Ukraine," the advisory warned.

Previously, the US government had merely advised its citizens to regularly reassess exit plans in case of emergencies.

Travel to Belarus was already advised against - the highest risk category 4 still applies.

Most recently, the State Department had ordered family members of US government employees to leave Ukraine's northern neighbour. Russia is massively increasing its troops in Belarus on the Ukrainian border.

The State Department also revised its travel advice for Moldova - another country bordering Ukraine.

Here, too, the department noted the "unusual and worrying Russian military activities around Ukraine".

Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine are located between the Eastern European NATO states and Russia. For weeks, the US in particular has been warning that Russia could invade Ukraine.

Tens of thousands of Russian soldiers have gathered close to the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied allegations that it plans to invade.

Australian Associated Press

See the article here:

US urges its citizens to leave Belarus - Daily Liberal

Posted in Liberal | Comments Off on US urges its citizens to leave Belarus – Daily Liberal

NT posts a rise in COVID-19 infections – Daily Liberal

Posted: at 5:46 am

news, national

The Northern Territory has reported 1086 new COVID-19 cases, with the government hailing its handling of the pandemic as parliament returned for the year. Tuesday's case numbers were a rise on the 757 reported on Monday. There are 156 people in hospital with the virus including one person in intensive care. Active infections stand at 7233. The government said it would build on a "proud record of managing COVID-19" in the year ahead as it also kept the region's economy strong. "We are focusing on the exciting year ahead, on the new investment, jobs and opportunities coming to the Territory, because we are keeping on top of the pandemic," leader of government business in the parliament Natasha Fyles said. "This parliament sitting week will build on the work we have done, supporting industry and positioning the Territory as a better place to live." Ms Fyles, who is also the health minister, recently left isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month. Australian Associated Press

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-feed-data/baefa21b-6655-4cb8-a539-e66999ffbee3.jpg/r0_74_800_526_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg

February 15 2022 - 5:48PM

The Northern Territory has reported 1086 new COVID-19 cases, with the government hailing its handling of the pandemic as parliament returned for the year.

Tuesday's case numbers were a rise on the 757 reported on Monday.

There are 156 people in hospital with the virus including one person in intensive care.

Active infections stand at 7233.

The government said it would build on a "proud record of managing COVID-19" in the year ahead as it also kept the region's economy strong.

"We are focusing on the exciting year ahead, on the new investment, jobs and opportunities coming to the Territory, because we are keeping on top of the pandemic," leader of government business in the parliament Natasha Fyles said.

"This parliament sitting week will build on the work we have done, supporting industry and positioning the Territory as a better place to live."

Ms Fyles, who is also the health minister, recently left isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month.

Australian Associated Press

Excerpt from:

NT posts a rise in COVID-19 infections - Daily Liberal

Posted in Liberal | Comments Off on NT posts a rise in COVID-19 infections – Daily Liberal

ACLU says Journalists and Citizens Should Not be Barred from Public Meetings – The Southland Journal

Posted: at 5:46 am

ACLU says Journalists and Citizens Should Not be Barred from Public Meetings For years, Rebecca Glenberg has been fighting for the rights of freedom of speech and rights for the public. Many people dont know their individual rights in their city or suburban municipalities at public meetings as citizens and journalists.

Everyone should have the right to attend a public meeting, said Rebecca Glenberg, ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) Illinois attorney. If people behave in a disruptive way or interrupt people while speaking, those are activities that could get you kicked out of a meeting. But if you are engaged in public comment, the fact that you express a very strong opinion, the fact that you criticize your government or members of the public body should not be grounds for cutting you off or removing you from the meeting.

She said only your individual conduct would cause any discipline from the board or public body. There are also some standard rights for journalists who attend public meetings.

Journalists have the same rights as the public to attend the meeting. They have the right to take notes, and by statute, have the right to record the meeting and report out anything that is said at a meeting. Journalists should not be barred from a public meeting merely because they are journalists or because they have said things that are critical to the public body in the past, added Glenberg.

For nearly 100 years, the ACLU has been our nations guardian of liberty, working in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and the laws of the United States guarantee everyone in this country. With more than 4 million members, activists, and supporters, the ACLU is a nationwide organization.

In addition to freedom of speech, the ACLU protects the right to be free from discrimination on the basis of race, religion, sex, LGBTQ status, national origin and religion. It protects the right to vote. It protects the right of immigrants to due process and fair treatment, said Glenberg. We really protect a broad range of issues related to civil rights and Constitutional rights. We are the biggest organization that tackles all these individual issues.

Some of the ACLU highlights include standing almost alone in denouncing the federal government intermittent presence of more than 110,000 Japanese Americans in concentration camps and representing an interracial couple in 1967 landmark Supreme Court cases Loving vs. Virginia. The court ruled that the state ban on interracial marriage was unconstitutional. In 2015, the ACLU won a constitutional case on same sex couples to marry, and in 2018 won a case where it was ruled that sensitive cell phone location data is protected by the Fourth Amendment, requiring the government to get a warrant to access it.

Glenberg also talked about protesting regulations. She said municipalities can require permits for large gatherings, especially those that will block a busy street, but they can not require permits for a small group of people who are going to be in an outdoor space or corner where there are no opportunities to disrupt traffic or businesses.

People have the right to protest in such a way that they do not block pedestrian or vehicular traffic unduly and dont cause property damage. You need to look at your particular city, town or county ordinance to see whether you may need a permit to protest, she said.

ACLU says Journalists and Citizens Should Not be Barred from Public Meetings

Read this article:
ACLU says Journalists and Citizens Should Not be Barred from Public Meetings - The Southland Journal

Posted in Fourth Amendment | Comments Off on ACLU says Journalists and Citizens Should Not be Barred from Public Meetings – The Southland Journal

Editorial: We recommend Scott Walker in the GOP primary for Criminal Court of Appeals, Place 5 – Houston Chronicle

Posted: at 5:46 am

One reason Texas highest courts have nine members is so that justices with different perspectives can test their ideas in conference. They challenge each others ideas until arriving at a majority opinion. The states final arbiter on cases involving everything from murder to public intoxication the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals ought to have at least one member with extensive experience in trials defending clients.

Currently, the judge on the court with that experience is Justice Scott Walker, 68, who is facing off against a Harris County assistant prosecutor in the March 1 Republican primary. A graduate of Dallas Baptist University and Baylor School of Law, Walker practiced law before judges and juries defending people facing civil and criminal charges. In 2016, he won a six-year term to Place 5 of the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals.

His opponent, Clint Morgan, 40, says Walker writes too few opinions and takes too long when he does. He told us he suspects thats because Walkers defense attorney mindset finds few converts on the all-Republican court, where no other member brings a substantial background as a defense lawyer. Morgan notes hes won 10 of the 12 cases hes had before the Court of Criminal Appeals. If elected, he says hed rely on his own substantial appellate experience to produce more opinions, and bring a prosecutors mindset to his work.

We believe Morgans criticisms miss their mark by a wide margin. Its not a defect that Walker brings a defense attorneys perspective into the justices deliberations. And we think Walker makes sense when he offers no apology for being assigned to write fewer majority opinions than other justices.

Im not going to change my mind or water it down so I can get the vote, Walker told the editorial board. Im very careful to follow the Constitution and the laws.

He argues that he has, over time, brought greater balance to the court. In Ruiz v. Texas, for example, Walker joined the majority in refusing prosecutors to use as evidence results from a blood-alcohol test taken without a warrant from a hospitalized, unconscious man who was suspected of drunken driving.

The 2019 decision impacted cases across Texas, and Morgan said it made prosecutors jobs harder in DWI cases. Its an example of an over-emphasis on procedure that is more typically part of a defense attorneys mindset, he said.

And yet both the district court and a court of appeals had already ruled that the evidence could not be admitted.

Walker defended the opinion on purely constitutional grounds.

The Fourth Amendment, and its protections from search and seizure, is the supreme law of the land, he said.

By any definition, Walker is a conservative justice. But even during a surge in violent crime perhaps especially during such a time Texass highest criminal court benefits from judges who bring as wide a variety of backgrounds as possible, and ones who arent afraid to remind their colleagues of defendants fundamental rights.

We should strive for an efficient system that follows the law and Constitution. Towards the end of our call with Walker, he talked about a tremendous workload before the court. Primary voters should give him a chance to continue should he prevail over Democrat Dana Huffman in the general election.

More Recommendations from Editorial Board

Link:
Editorial: We recommend Scott Walker in the GOP primary for Criminal Court of Appeals, Place 5 - Houston Chronicle

Posted in Fourth Amendment | Comments Off on Editorial: We recommend Scott Walker in the GOP primary for Criminal Court of Appeals, Place 5 – Houston Chronicle

The Tall Planner Kate Smither On How Careful Hedonism Is The New Trend – B&T

Posted: at 5:45 am

In this guest spot, The Tall Planners, Kate Smither shares with B&T about what the next wave of consumerism is going to look like.

Human beings love a bit of hedonistic behaviour occasionally. But, for the last two years, the world (and pleasure) has been put on hold. It has seen a day to day where inaction has become more common than action and delays have become expected. It has been a world where tragedy has replaced joy. Two years on hold has resulted in a today marked by pent up emotions, pent up energy and the stalled pursuit of pleasure.

Consumerism has gone through stages that mirror the different types of hedonism. From egoism to utilitarianism and everything in between. So, when it comes to understanding the next wave of consumerism framing it up through the lens of hedonism, sheds some light.

The question is, how will this pent-up consumer energy manifest? Will it release as unadulterated hedonism? or will it be a more cautious, more careful pursuit of something more significant and accessible?. And for our industry, how will brands, advertising and marketing respond to a new consumer mindset whichever way it reveals itself?

Experts in the science of brands can assert this with more authority than I can, but I think there has been a shift in hedonism and our consumerist tendencies. I think our relationship with brands has changed forever. I think we are entering a new era of the more pragmatic, more realistic consumer, where brands are no longer being looked at as advertising one-night stands. They are being seen as more enduring, more authentic and this is ringing in a new era of long-term brand building.

Back in the Gordon Gekko days of greed is good, hedonism and revelling in everything excessively without control defined what is now seen as the golden age of consumerism. The days when advertising just had to drive desire and the consumer craved more and more. They lapped up the new and success was marked by the things they had. It was an era of hedonistic egoism. But this mindset could never last. It had to max out before competition and craving consumed itself.

With financial collapses in the decades that followed, consumerism swung back the other way and the: austerity era entered. Marked by a lack of fanfare and a consumer weightiness it held people back. But, there are no signs of that the same weightiness rising again in 2022. The whole world has been paused and this mutuality of experience, is making people reframe everything, consumerism included. Its not making them stop. Its making things such as hedonism less about self and more about a utilitarian collective. More about happiness for all as an aim.

The language of this new middle ground hedonism relies on words like happiness, nurturing, joy, comfort, empathy. All very fundamental human needs and emotions. All very shared and less me. They show a shift in aspiration towards more realistic and more meaningful products and people. They show what people are craving rom brands, more empathy, more humanity.

This new realism is echoed in the 3 big trends that Accenture identified coming out of the pandemic. A retreat to local and the desire to maintain the connections people have developed, a more conscious consumerism and awareness of the social impact and (finally) an increasing focus on health. Together these trends show a more collective and aware consumer, a consumer trained into a scarcity mindset rather than one of abundance. A consumer who is more aware than the ones who came before and for whom happiness is as great a thrill as unadulterated pleasure.

So where does advertising sit in this more pragmatic world?

Advertising still has to entertain, and it still has to drive desire and meet consumer needs, It still has to even be a bit sexy. None of that has gone away. It just needs to do it in an accessible, more enduring way. It needs to deliver it in a way that is true of the brand and that these more realistic and self-aware consumers cant (and wont) call bullshit on

Analysis from Depsoitphotos published in The Drum gives a small peek into the way creativity is starting to respond to the craving for happiness and contentment in the aesthetics of communications. It is showing up in what they call the meeting of the old and the new. They suggest that 2022 will be the year where the future and the past co-exist and stand side by side. They cite a rise in searches for pastel images, psychedelic 70s inspiration and even an increase of 383% in the number of searches for candid faces as clues to this new relevance

If the early ads from the Superbowl are anything to go by, this retrofuturistic co-existence of future and past is playing out in the big brand ads well all be looking at in the next few weeks.

From a reunion of Austin Powers to the being themselves lives of celebs (in Amazon Alexa) to harking back to brand icons from Budweiser, brands are projecting happiness that eases people back into life with a degree of familiarity and playfulness.

In the spirit of the realistic yet still aspirational, there are three examples that stand out, Booking.com, Expendis and UberEats.

Booking.com, with its Idris Elba led, very honest presentation of the brand, sells not the dream of travel, but it sells the very grounded does what it says on the tin expertise. UberEATS shows a similar honesty. In its Dont eats work, it brings a smile to viewers by not hiding from its own branding confusion, instead just having some fun with it. Finally, there is the accurately entitled Stuff from Expedia where Ewan McGregor delivers an ode to the practical approach of a new consumer mindset.

A brilliant planner I used to work with had a phrase that feels like the best advice to brands and marketers right now, the phrase was pull yourself towards yourself. Not let yourself go crazy and lose yourself, not even pull yourself together but instead a call to really understand who you are and why you exist. To take the time to understand your DNA and what is fundamentally your difference.

The brands that have spent the time pulling themselves towards themselves over the last couple of years will be the ones that let people show their hedonistic sides in a careful, conscious way.

These are the brands that will grow in the long term and build trust along the way. These are the brands that are a match fit for a new wave of consumer passions coming their way.

See the article here:

The Tall Planner Kate Smither On How Careful Hedonism Is The New Trend - B&T

Posted in Hedonism | Comments Off on The Tall Planner Kate Smither On How Careful Hedonism Is The New Trend – B&T

Hedonism is back! From drag nights to micro-raves, heres where to party in London – Evening Standard

Posted: at 5:45 am

I

t was during either my third or fourth live-streamed DJ set, not long into the pandemic, when I broke down in tears. I wasnt alone and in the months that followed, too many of my fellow DJs began to hang up their headphones. Many people in the scene retrained; it felt like the game was up. But fast forward to today and as people emerge from the cocoon of Covid restrictions, the rest of the year is somehow shaping up to be one of the most exciting, vibrant and even revolutionary times in Londons club scene for a generation.

The hunger to go out has never been greater and the desire for different experiences than what we had before is palpable. After years of stasis, a new generation of talent has finally broken through plus everyone is looking kinda amazing out there at the moment, which I put down to the inordinate amount of naughty club wear bought during dull lockdown days. So take this VIP wristband and saunter through whats new in 22.

Sex sells

Queer House Party

Probably the most interesting party in London right now is Crossbreed, a rave that celebrates kink and sex positivity. Its staggering popularity reflects the story of our shifting sexual attitudes a story which, frankly, everyones too busy having fun to tell right now.

Motivated as much by activism as hedonism, Crossbreed parties (crossbreedworld.com) offer both top DJs and purposeful spaces for sex. No surprise, theyre absolutely not for everyone. Uncomfortable with queerness? Not for you. Scared of wearing something provocative? Dont bother. Unwilling to take onboard issues like consent, white male privilege, neuro-diversity or the basics around pronouns? Stay home. Trust me.

As a signifier of the huge community it has created, and the general desire for nights that are both progressive and pervy in a consensual way Crossbreeds parties have tended to sell out in minutes. So from February, they will be held weekly at Hackney Wicks Colour Factory (8 Queens Yd, E9, colourfactory.com), which is currently being overhauled to accommodate a permanent playroom, a sweet new soundsystem plus an erotic installation from filmmakers Four Chambers. Theres a simultaneous spike in popularity for like-minded events such as Meat, Thorn, HTBX and HOWL (which are nomadic nights, but will also appear at Colour Factory), or established parties like LGBTQ+ fetish night Klub Verboten (which likewise moves around, with venues released on the day) proof that Londoners crave human adventure more than ever. The next Klub night is on February 18, with another two planned for March. Another not to miss is Queer House Party (@queerhouseparty), who play regularly across town; theyre next at The Garage (20-22 Highbury Corner, N5, thegarage.london) on February 26.

Four to the floor

If you havent been out in too long, heres a warning that the tunes are likely far harder and faster than you might remember. London has gone techno mad in the last few years and a fresh wave of female DJs are leading the hardcore charge. Pay attention when you see Saoirse, Loraine James, Elkka, Peach and Or:la on a bill, to name just a few, while venues such as Phonox (418 Brixton Rd, SW9, phonox.co.uk), E1 (110 Pennington St, E1W, e1ldn.co), Pickle Factory (13 The Oval, E2, ovalspace.co.uk), Fold (Stephenson St, E16, fold.london) and Venue MOT Unit 18 (Surrey Canal Rd, SE14, @venuemot) are typically able to scratch any techno itch.

Its also worth noting that London has its own non-male festival coming in April to various venues across Hackney Wick: Risen (ra.co) will celebrate the divine feminine, which according to festival director Kitty Bartlett signifies the energy of all the amazing women, non-binary and trans individuals across the entire music industry, who are fighting against the traditional patriarchal structures that clearly arent showing any sign of weakening after the pandemic. Risen also has a frankly outrageous amount of DJ talent on its line-up already, including Jayde Ward, Scarlett OMalley, Amaliah and more. If youve seen that price list doing the rounds online that charges straight, white, cis men more for entry, then youre already onto what Risen does.

Play safe

Feel It

Its ironic that as trends gently hark back to the Nineties heyday of renegade illegal raving think fast breakbeats, bucket hats, trance-evoking artwork and a Cyberdog-ish contrast between noir and neon clothes the reality is that the warehouse party era is, sadly, well and truly over. One positive byproduct of things being more legit is that security is slowly getting much better in clubs many London promoters are doing the work to educate security staff to: not assume gender, treat people whove overindulged with care (and not like criminals), and smile and listen, rather than to shout and intimidate. As a general rule of thumb, check to see if a club has a respect policy posted online. Im proud of Little Gay Brother (littlegaybrother.com), a queer night Im a resident at, for doing great work in this area. Im also proud that at their NYE bash, the dancers did a routine that reimagined a Downing Street party fortified by poppers rather than M&S finger foods. If youre into Little Gay Brother, try the weekly nights they host with Jodie Harsh, Feel It. These run every Friday at Omeara (6 OMeara St, SE1, omearalondon.com) from 10.30pm. With nights stretching until 5am and last entry at 3am, its one for those looking to go the distance.

Drag never drags

Having flown the flag for a certain lineage of tongue-in-cheek, east London drag for more than a decade, last week Sink the Pink (sinkthepink.com) announced its last ever party on April 15 (tickets sold out in 10 minutes, but theres a resale happening in April). And while that side of town is still the heartland check out Mimis at Bethnal Green Working Mens Club (42-46 Pollard Row, E2, workersplaytime.net) these days you dont even need to be east to experience east London drag culture. In the former cells of Bow Street Magistrates Court, in the heart of Covent Garden, sits Common Decency a spanking new late-night lounge bar under the Nomad Hotel (28 Bow St, WC2E, thenomadhotel.com). Adding to the bars mischievous air and cocktail-fuelled giddiness, inveterate DJ huns including Bestley and Jonjo Jury, plus drag icons such as Maxi More create a mood as stellar as the names who passed through the cells in its previous incarnation: Wilde, Westwood, Kray, Pankhurst and even Doherty.

Tear up the usual

Charlie Bones

If the tyranny of unchanging tempos and the hegemony of that 4/4 hntz-hntz sound leaves you cold, refresh yourself with the polar opposite by seeing Beiruti record collector Ernesto Chahoud and London hero Charlie Bones throw down at their wild parties at Peckhams Well Seasoned (95a Rye Lane, SE15, peckhamlevels.org). Both Chahoud and Bones come with boxes of truly divine and obscure records from a sweltering mix of styles breakneck blues, psych rock, gritty disco and Arabic jazz and then purposefully throw them down with a gleeful disregard for the dull convention of beat matching. It makes every song an explosive event, and combined with their genuine, non-dickish boisterousness, makes for a great party. The pairs latest gig has just passed, but Charlie plays next on February 18 at Well Seasoned, and you can follow his Instagram @doyoubabyyy for show updates. Chahouds next gig is at Dalstons Jago (440 Kingsland Road, E8, thejagodalston.com), when he presents the Beirut Groove Collective & 60s Rebellion. Hes on @ernesto_chahoud.

Other destinations for escaping conventional dance music include DJ nights at Cafe OTO (18 Ashwin St, E8, cafeoto.co.uk), late-nighters at arts space Ormside Projects in Bermondsey (32 Ormside St, SE15, ormside.co.uk), and coming up soon General Echo Sounds punk special in Walthamstow on Feb 11 (61 Tower Hamlets Rd, E17, @generalechosound). Incidentally, if you ever feel adrift from the sounds of London DJ culture, dial in Londons galaxy of amazing radio stations: Rinse, Balaami, NTS, Worldwide, Amateurism, Soho Radio and Charlie Bones own Do!! You!!! Channel would all be a wonderful way to start.

Go big or go home?

Printworks

London still has big spaces made for big nights out, but they are getting fewer and fewer. Vast post-industrial playground Printworks (Surrey Quays Rd, SE16, printworkslondon.co.uk) remains an incredible destination, while stalwarts such as Egg (5-13 Vale Royal, N7, egglondon.co.uk) and Fabric (77a Charterhouse St, EC1, fabriclondon.com) gave themselves a cheeky mid-pandemic refurb the latter boasting a whole new look to Room 2. Meanwhile, after three decades dancing, the Ministry of Sound (103 Gaunt St, SE1, ministryofsound.com) is still a thing; each week, theres something on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

London loves little

TOLA

Still, what the city currently excels at is intimacy: small events in small venues that create a big, big mood. At late-night parties at Spiritland Royal Festival Hall (Belvedere Road, SE1, spiritland.com), people tend to arrive at the same time, stay to the end, and then leave as one like a church congregation. Theres not a constant churn of punters coming in and out. Instead you always build a rapport with people around you, a bit like a party on a desert island. Its a genuinely lovely vibe, even before you factor in the honey-dipped soundsystem, delicious cocktails and their expert DJ programming which takes in Lakuti and friends on March 12 and Severino and Josh Caff on March 18.

Similar spots that boast world-class DJs in unnaturally small spaces include The Gun in Hackney (235 Well St, E9, thegunwellstreet.com), TOLA in Peckham (56 Peckham High St, SE15, tolapeckham.com), NTs Loft in Dalston (1 Westgate St, E8, ntloft.co.uk) plus Lion and Lamb near Old Street (46 Fanshaw St, N1, thelionandlamb.co.uk) where Fabrics Craig Richards and friends often perform beguiling techno hypnosis in a space smaller than most superclubs cloakrooms. Another spot to look out for is an ornate former chapel called Stone Nest on Shaftesbury Avenue (136 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1D, stonenest.org). Wildly influential DJ and producer Joy Orbison has just launched a monthly Thursday session there called Just For You. Its free entry but get there early theres only space for 250 dancers.

Hopefully see you at the next one in February, and frankly at all the places mentioned above. And never on a DJ livestream, ever, ever again.

Continue reading here:

Hedonism is back! From drag nights to micro-raves, heres where to party in London - Evening Standard

Posted in Hedonism | Comments Off on Hedonism is back! From drag nights to micro-raves, heres where to party in London – Evening Standard

8 Anti-Valentines Day Films That Will Make You Happy to Be Single – Vogue.com

Posted: at 5:45 am

After a decade of codependency, flatmates Laura (Holliday Grainger) and Tyler (Alia Shawkat) grow apart when the former starts dating a pianist (Fra Fee). Their millennial ennui and freewheeling hedonism are the driving forces behind Sophie Hydes poignant drama, adapted from Emma Jane Unsworths novel of the same name. Its magic, however, lies in the chemistry between its leads and their depiction of an all-consuming friendship. As they trawl through Dublins dive bars and dingy clubs, you cant help but follow them down the rabbit hole.

How to Watch: Stream on Amazon, Apple TV, or YouTube.

In the first installment of Joanna Hoggs two-part coming-of-age saga, we meet aspiring filmmaker Juliea hesitant, sensitive young student played to perfection by Honor Swinton Byrnewho is in love with a troubled older man. In this ravishing follow-up, we see her finding her feet in the wake of that relationship, honing her skills as a director and attempting to turn her pain into art. Most touching? A moment towards the end when shes surrounded by friends at a birthday party, single and looking more content than ever before.

See the rest here:

8 Anti-Valentines Day Films That Will Make You Happy to Be Single - Vogue.com

Posted in Hedonism | Comments Off on 8 Anti-Valentines Day Films That Will Make You Happy to Be Single – Vogue.com

Futurama Has Been Saved From Cancellation Again, But Is Currently Missing One Star – CinemaBlend

Posted: at 5:45 am

Boy, I hope I don't wake up a short while from now only to realize that I'm just a head in a jar, because I'd rather be celebrating. The long-dormant animated comedy Futurama, which has been cancelled twice at this point, is now making a newly established comeback. It'll be via streaming this time, as Hulu has stepped in to revive the influential and endlessly hilarious series. But at the moment, it's missing one of its core stars.

At this point, almost the entire main cast is set to return for a 20-episode new season, with that list including Billy West, Katey Sagal, Tress MacNeille, Maurice LaMarche, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr and David Herman. Theres a pretty obvious name missing from that lineup, with John DiMaggio currently not having yet signed on to reprise the beloved role of Bender, he with the kissable shiny metal ass, and others. While there is active hopes from both sides for the actor to join the new episodes when they premiere in 2023, according to Deadline, he apparently held out during contract negotiations, forcing 20th Television Animation to go forward without him.

At this point, the role is being recast ahead of Futuramas first table read, set to take place on Monday, February 14. We can hopefully expect a positive update before that happens, or soon afterward. John DiMaggio can currently be heard on Netflix's Disenchantment Season 4, which is another creation from Matt Groening.

Speaking of the legendary animation giant, Matt Groening and fellow co-creator David X. Cohen will also be returning, with Groening offering the pitch-perfect statement below:

Its a true honor to announce the triumphant return of Futurama one more time before we get canceled abruptly again.

Hopefully that won't happen after this first 20-episode stretch, though obviously stranger things have happened to beloved TV shows. Futurama was first cancelled on Fox after its initial four-season run, and was then revived for a set of direct-to-DVD features before officially returning in episodic form to Comedy Central in 2010, where it lasted for another 52 episodes that concluded in fine form in 2013. Not that it was completely dead at that point, either.

In 2017, the Futurama cast and creative team reunited for an audio podcast, which seemed at the time like it might be fans' last chances to catch up with Fry, Leela, and obviously Calculon and Hedonism-Bot, the true stars of the show. Even after that, though, some of the characters appeared as an easter egg within the aforementioned Disenchantment, where other Futurama easter eggs can also be found.

Futurama made Hulu its official streaming home back in 2018, following its exit from Netflix, and apparently that was a successful enough acquisition to inspire the execs to order up some brand new episodes. And for it to come together seemingly as quickly as it did, since production is already going into effect this month. Considering Hulu also became the official home for Seth MacFarlanes sci-fi dramedy The Orville going into its third season, which also once called Fox its home, its only natural for it to also be behind new Futurama installments.

Until we know more about when to expect new episodes of Futurama, be sure to stay up to date with our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what other hilarious and/or space-faring series are on the way.

Go here to see the original:

Futurama Has Been Saved From Cancellation Again, But Is Currently Missing One Star - CinemaBlend

Posted in Hedonism | Comments Off on Futurama Has Been Saved From Cancellation Again, But Is Currently Missing One Star – CinemaBlend