In the 1950s, amid prosperity and a booming economy, Allen Ginsberg defied conventions and the mainstream by openly standing forward as a homosexual, a socialist and a sharp critic of the capitalist American society he lived in. For this he was persecuted in a famous obscenity trial, which he ended up winning. This is portrayed in the feature film Howl from 2010, now available here on DVD.
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The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists: 100 years on
Today (Feb 3rd) is the 100th anniversary of the death of Robert Tressel who wrote "T
he Ragged Trousered Philanthropists."
DVD REVIEW: Battle of Algiers (1966)
In the first of a regular
column where we look at DVDs which may be of interest to socialists, we pick up
on a DVD reissue of the classic film, Battle of Algiers.
Copyright - keeping ideas under lock and key
Copyright is in crisis. Photocopying, scanning, audio and video
recording, computers and now the internet have all made it increasingly
difficult for the owners of copyright to enforce their rights. There
has been a renewed effort, such as the Digital Economy Bill, to restore
the balance of power in favour of big business, but levies and legal
penalties only serve to patch holes in an already leaky system. The
flaw lies not in the technology, or in piracy or file-sharing, as
corporations would have us believe, but in the very notion of copyright.
Music industry: an era of crisis or opportunity?
The House of
Lords has just approved the Digital Economy Bill. It has caused ripples
across
the technology world, most notably because of its proposals regarding
the
suspension of repeat file sharers’ internet connections, and gives the
courts
power to issue injunctions against websites accused of hosting
copyright-infringing material. Internet freedom campaigners have reacted
with
dismay.