The situation in Oaxaca continues to heat up. Last Friday three people including New York journalist and activist Brad Will were shot dead by members of government backed death squad (see photo below). The crisis started, when Oaxaca governor Ulises Ruiz quelled protests after he allegedly stole the last election outcome in his state. A raid on a teachers' demonstration in the local Zocalo started riots, which still go on. Brad was a videographer for Indymedia, training fellow activists in documenting police abuse during hairy situations. He had established Indymedia branches in Latin America and had been beaten once while documenting an attack on homesteaders in Brazil.
In the US there were 15 demonstrations protesting his death. The gunmen are still on the loose. In a recent development the Zapatista are mobilizing for Oaxaca. In a speech in
Chihuahua City Subcomander Marcos announced the Zapatista rebels' total support for the people of Oaxaca and summarized the situation: "As of today, the federales have killed at least three people, including a minor; left dozens injured, including several Oaxacan women; and detained dozens, who have been illegally held in military prisons." Mexico seems to be falling back into the pre-democratic days of 1970s and 1980s Latin America.
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Brad Will's last report, when he filmed being shot
Brad Will sings at the Change You Want To See Gallery
Mexican report on Will's death and the crisis in Oaxaca
A memorial site for Brad Will with a letter of support signed by a.o. Tariq Ali, Noam Chomsky, Mike Davis, Eve Ensler, Danny Glover,Michael Moore, Mira Nair, Arundhati Roy, Alice Walker and Howard Zinn.
Of course the signing of 'Bruno' was the inevitable consequence of Borat mania. Universal won a heated bidding war, paying 42 million $ to Sacha Baron Cohen for the movie rights to his third alter ego, flamboyantly gay Austrian fashion reporter Bruno. Judging from his interview with pastor Quinn in Little Rock/Arkansas who specializes in gay conversion, this might be at least as funny as Borat. Which starts to suffer from over-exposure, Borat's Letterman appearance being the tipping point.
Turns out all that Christian posturing by the administration was pure political opportunism. Not that this comes as a too big surprise, but as always it took a whistleblower. In this case it is David Kuo, who used to work as the special assistant to the president and was responsible for the 
Last night's Choice Awards ceremony at Cielo was in large parts a memorial to Willi Ninja, who passed away September 2nd. MC Ultra Naté stepped away for a while to make room for Willi's favorite House diva Barbara Tucker, followed by the lastest incarnation of his House Of Ninja recreating most of his classic dance moves a dozen deep. It wasn't exactly a full-blown ball, but a heartbreakingly sincere celebration of the House founder's legacy. Which according to Guy Trebay now lives on all over the nation with balls and houses springing up as far as in LA and Arizona.
What greater joy than watching stars implode in public. They reran Jessica Simpson's last appearance on the Tonight show. Which was way beyond her usual ditz, charting the unknown territories of pharmaceutically altered behaviour. It was hard to decide, which moments reminded us more of that other Texan bombshell. Was it the well-choregraphed recurring apperances of her cleavage, the slight slur in her speech or her rolling eyes worthy of an early 20th century minstrel show? Although a highpoint in the genre of 'celebrities just moments before their puclic breakdown' (which actually came a few days later during her sister's birthday party in London), it was a sad moment for Jay Leno, who seemed to be remote-controlled by Simpsons' creepy father-manager. Working his way down a checklist of gossip issues Jessica wanted to spin her way, his execution seemed even more wooden than usual. Foreshadowing greater things to come might be Simpson's new video, in which she blatantly rips off pre-breakdown Mariah.
Why are African kids all the rage now? Because they are oh so cute and Bosnian kids look too much like your maid in London? Because South East Asia is so 1973 and Gary Glitter's escapades in Vietnam somehow made having Asian kids a bit degoutant? And what could be next in celebrity colonialism? Keith Richards buying himself a new liver, preferrably in the Muslim world?
After they had released 'Exile On Main Street' in 1972, the Rolling Stones commissioned cover photographer Robert Frank to shoot a documentary of their US tour. The result was a hazy film full of scenes like Keith Richards nodding off backstage, roadies doing groupies and staged orgies. The Stones never released the film. Frank sued them and was allowed to screen the film once a year only once. There are some bootlegs around. Excerpts have now found their way onto YouTube. Watch the first clip, when Keith Richards and a roadie throw a TV set out of high rise hotel room. Not as much glamour and rebellion as Rock myhtology might make you believe.