U-C IMC Library

2002-06-06T12:44:00.000-05:00

Here's a site that every interested politico should check out: Bush Watch. It's a daily political internet magazine. Happy reading!

2002-04-10T23:28:00.000-05:00

"To know, to utter and to argue freely according to conscience above all liberties" -- John Milton. You MUST check out OpenDemocracy.net. Someone writes an article, someone writes a response to the article and so on. The amazing thing about OpenDemocracy is that the threads are connected together so that others can see the evolution of a train of thought. With main topics like globalization, media, 9/11, and interviews with prominant thinkers, this site is proof that the internet can create a new concept of media where readers, writers and thinkers converge.

2002-04-09T20:44:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the new look for the U-C IMC Library. Same old stuff with a twist. As always, email us, we love to get new ideas and collectable sites.

2002-04-09T20:37:00.000-05:00

Time to start thinking about May Day! At MayDay Festival of Alternatives learn about May Day, actions and events as well as past May Days. The site centers on May Day actions in England, but there's lots that can be of relevance here in the US. Check it.

2002-04-05T10:37:00.000-06:00

Well, I've been researching international government information and have come across a few good sites. Look for these to be added to
the research guides in the near future. First, there's Global Issues That Affect Everyone. This site has good information on trade-, human rights-, and environmental issues and does a good job at showing that
these issues are interrelated. Another good one is the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Also check out the Development Group for Alternative Policies (Development GAP!). These sites include well-researched articles, as well as practical alternatives for prevailing policies and programs.

2002-03-19T15:05:00.000-06:00

Has it been this long since I posted last? How lame am I?! I've been spending too much time on others' blogs to do much with mine. Anyway, here's a new one. You've heard of "catch-and-release" no doubt, but here's a twist on that concept: "read-and-release"! At BookCrossing.com, you read a book, put a BookCrossing label in it, leave it around somewhere like a park, cafe, doctor's office, etc, and the person who picks it up and reads it can visit the site to make a journal entry about it. Make the world a library!

2002-01-30T23:18:00.000-06:00

Hey, want to find out how much campaign funding your favorite politician raises--and more importantly from where? Check out OpenSecrets.org. You'll find everything you've ever wanted to know about campaign finances, who's giving and who's receiving. Of the people, by the people and for the people? Hmmm...

2002-01-26T09:28:00.000-06:00

Check out Research Foundation for Science,Technology and Ecology, based in New Delhi, India. The website has loads of information on Monsanto, ecological education, and issues such as food security, globalization, intellectual property rights, and gender and the environment. I just heard an inspiring interview on Alternative Radio by the director, Vandana Shiva. She talks pationately about biodiversity, conservation, and how the global economy is destroying the commons and peoples' ability to control their food supplies and hence their lives.

2002-01-23T16:04:00.000-06:00

As I'm taking a government documents class at the Graduate School for Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois, I'll probably be posting many sites having to do with government information. The first one is OMBWatch: promoting government accountability. This government watchdog group keeps track of issues surrounding the Office of Management and Budget. They also have an interesting site regarding government information that is no longer publically accessible since 9/11. Just one of the many repercussions of this crazy situation. Where's the line between freedom of information and "homeland security"?

2002-01-15T23:39:00.000-06:00

In the December, 2001 Sun magazine, there is an interview with George Draffan, the director of EndGame research services. The site offers a plethora of public information and research on a variety of progressive issues concerning the globalization of industry and capital.

2002-01-15T23:30:00.000-06:00

"Boom: the sound of eviction" is a very compelling video about the effects of gentrification in urban San Francisco. The video features interviews with dot-com workers, real estate developers, and mayor Willie Brown as well as those who challenged the new economic order with community organizing, direct action, and progressive movement building. If this interests you, then check out Netribution film network from the UK.

2002-01-14T23:47:00.000-06:00

Mia Culpa! I know it's been too long since I posted but to show that I've mended my ways, here's an interesting little site for you. It's the Zine Rack from NewPages.com alternatives in print and media. You won't be sorry that you browsed because there are some really interesting zines being published. Maybe you want to donate some to the IMC library?

2001-11-23T15:38:00.000-06:00

WTO History Project pulls together interviews from a wide variety of folks and organizations that took place in the Seattle protests as well as photographs, references and links to other resources.

2001-11-23T14:27:00.000-06:00

Happy "buy nothing" day! The Mahatma Gandhi Research and Media Service collects photographs, video, audio and text chronicling Gandhi's life and work.

2001-11-22T14:38:00.000-06:00

Happy thanksgiving to all! Check out FLIPSIDE ALTERNATIVE DAILY -- CURRENT FRONT PAGE HEADLINES. I found it from the site for the International Consortium for the Advancement of Academic Publication (ICAAP), a Canadian initiative that offers access to many online journals in the areas of political science, history, cultural studies, philosphy and the hard sciences. There are both mainstream and alternative viewpoints here. Happy reading! Peace --James

2001-11-12T15:46:00.000-06:00

DebkaFile : an independent, multilingual electronic newletter updated at least 4 times per day. The site mostly focuses on middle eastern news with a heavy dose of international affairs.

2001-11-12T15:17:00.000-06:00

The site of the day is: Daypop - a current events/weblog/news search engine. Quite handy to be able to search weblogs for current events/content.

2001-11-10T09:13:00.000-06:00

Bad Subjects: Political Education for Everyday Life. This collectively-run zine focuses on leftist and progressive politics and has been going for 10 years! Go ahead and read it, or better yet, add your voice to the dialogue.

2001-10-27T09:31:00.000-05:00

Is it literature? Is it activism? Is it news? NewsPoetry is a mesmerizing mix of all three, based right here in Champaign-Urbana. I'll be adding the site to several of the library's research guides under "local site" but thought I should get the word out. Sit, relax, read and enjoy what your fellow community members are thinking and writing!

2001-10-23T19:12:00.000-05:00

EDGE: "To arrive at the edge of the world's knowledge, seek out the most complex and sophisticated minds, put them in a room together, and have them ask each other the questions they are asking themselves." Take your mind for a spin!

2001-10-22T22:48:00.000-05:00

ARTISTS' TELEVISION ACCESS: "ATA's mission is to offer access to editing facilities, low cost media arts education, and to provide a venue for independents". Facilitation of media creation, just like the IMC!

2001-10-20T23:34:00.000-05:00

Wow, I just found an amazing archive of E-zines called the ETEXT Archives. Here you'll find e-texts of all kinds, from the "sacred to the profane". Enjoy!

2001-10-19T23:31:00.000-05:00

I know, it's been a long time since I posted something, but I've been a little caught up in grad school minutiae. Several people have asked me recently where to get transcripts of presidential speeches and here is a good site, straight from the horse's mouth so to speak: Search Page -- Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents. There is also a plethora of governmental information collected on the IMC Library's site on search engines and government documents. Knock yourselves out!

2001-08-30T19:32:00.000-05:00

Guardian Unlimited Books | News | Top 10 anti-capitalist books from the Guardian. I'd love to add these to the IMC Library if anyone cares to donate them!

2001-08-30T19:09:00.000-05:00

Simply put, babel will blow your mind. It is a search engine of sorts, but a one based on a 3D representation of the numbering scheme of the Dewey Decimal system. High art meets the virtual library! Check it out and prepare to be amazed!!

2001-08-20T17:05:00.000-05:00

Tune in to the Video Activist Network, an informal association of activists using video support social, economic and environmental justice campaigns.

2001-08-19T21:32:00.000-05:00

Just found a good site that I plan to add to the collection of webzines. Check out Found Magazine. Nifty concept, find s#*t and write about the circumstances of the find. Amazing what one can pick up these days in used books, laundromats, cafes... Enjoy!

2001-07-31T20:37:00.000-05:00

I want you all to read Propaganda in a Democratic Society by Aldous Huxley. This short essay really hits home in this time of 8 second sound bites and reality TV. While you're at it, try out Deoxy.org, the search engine for "denizens of alternate realities".

2001-07-26T16:59:00.000-05:00

The Organizers' Collaborative is an "educational and charitable organization established in 1999 to further the potential of computers and the Internet to increase communication and collaboration among those working for social change." Their comprehensive list of links is quite thorough indeed. Their tech tips provide information for the beginner through advanced computer user on everything from how to purchase a cheap computer to setting up a small network to using databases to track membership information.

2001-07-25T16:57:00.000-05:00

The Institute for Global Communications (IGC) has put out a valuable internet resource collection in order to help facilitate information gathering by progressive activists. Bookmark it now!

2001-07-19T16:09:00.000-05:00

Webzine, an annual non-profit event held in NYC (this year) showcases independent online publishing of e-zines in various genres. Check it out and go if you're in the neighborhood! We at the U-C IMC Library are currently creating an online 'zine collection which will soon be live!

2001-07-17T13:54:00.000-05:00

Pretty cool so far. Just checking this thing out... Go for it Mark. I'm sure you have some bookmarks you'd like to post! (JRJ)

2001-07-16T20:09:00.000-05:00

Wow, two postings in one day! Does that mean I'm surfing too much? Nah! Here's an article of interest called "One half of a manifesto" by Jaron Lanier, a pioneer in the field of virtual reality. In the article he argues against the "ideology of cybernetic totalism". Quite interesting and thought-provoking.

2001-07-16T19:53:00.000-05:00

Hey all! Here's an interesting site called "X-factor" that y'all should check out. They bill themselves as "a coalition for the advocacy of experimental media". Especially interesting is their tool to construct your own manifesto. Go ahead and try it. I dare you!

2001-07-15T21:38:00.000-05:00

Ok here's another one to test what this baby can do! Check out Alternatives in Print and Media, the portal of independent bookstores, publishers, literary periodicals etc. JRJ