Needs No Introduction

Teamsters Canada held its 10th convention from June 8-11 at the Château Laurier in Ottawa. Jimmy Hoffa Jr, the General president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, addressed the assembly on issues including the new Obama regime, the economic crisis, organizing across borders, and the Columbia Free Trade Agreement. Hoffa is introduced by Teamsters Canada President, Robert Bouvier. To learn more about the Teamsters, visit http://www.teamsters-canada.org/

The Future of the Internet:  Access, Openness, and Inclusion A Town Hall Discussion. Open Internet Town Hall Meeting (TORONTO) Monday June 8, 2009, 7:00pm – The Gladstone Hotel (1214 Queen St. West) Speakers include: Mark Surman – Executive Director, Mozilla Foundation; Steve Anderson – Co-founder, SaveOurNet.ca; Rocky Gaudrault – CEO, Teksavvy Solutions Inc; Raymi the Minx of http://raymitheminx.com/ & Sass of http://zucket.com/; Derek Blackadder –  National Representative with CUPE. Special Guests: * Olivia Chow – MP
* Jesse Brown – Search Engine * David Skinner – Communications Professor, York University
* Kim Elliott – rabble.ca
* Mark Kuznicki – remarkk consultant

John Agnew, the president of the American Association of Geographers. He was speaking to the Canadian Association of Geographers at the 2009 Congress of the Humanities. Thanks for listening to Needs No Introduction on the rabble podcast network. Tune in again for more fresh ideas from speakers of note.

Alex Marland, Associate Professor at Memorial University, presenting at a 2009 Congress of the Humanities roundtable. Are Canada's political parties selling their image, or changing their image to suit you? Marland looks at the last two elections to answer that question.  The title of the session was The State of Political Marketing in Canada.

What made Obama's campaign marketing work so well? Dr. Jeffrey MacLeod presents research at the 2009 Congress of the Humanities.

This month is rabble.ca's eighth birthday, and to celebrate we convened a panel to talk about the media. It was called What's Wrong With Canada's Newspapers, and featured Linda McQuaig, Peter C. Neuman, and Wayne MacPhail. This is Linda McQuaig's address.

Jeff Halper is an Israeli human rights activist, anthropology professor, coordinator of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) and 2006 Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Halper toured Canada this winter, talking about how Canadians can participate in peaceful resistance against the Israeli siege of Gaza and the occupation in the West Bank. Jeff Halper spoke January 19th in Ottawa to the Middle East Discussion Group on Parliament Hill. This is part one of a two part podcast, including audience discussion and questions & answers.

Jeff Halper is an Israeli human rights activist, anthropology professor, coordinator of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) and 2006 Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Halper toured Canada this winter, talking about how Canadians can participate in peaceful resistance against the Israeli siege of Gaza and the occupation in the West Bank. Jeff Halper spoke January 19th in Ottawa to the Middle East Discussion Group on Parliament Hill. This is part two of a two part podcast, including audience discussion and questions & answers.

On March 9, 2009,  Mr. Husam El-Nounou and Mr. Hassan Ziada, of the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme addressed members of Code Pink in Gaza City.  They discussed the psychological effects of the recent Israeli attacks on Gaza, both on the general population, and on youth in particular. They also spoke to the need for Israelis to address their own psychological wounds as part of the path to peace. http://www.gcmhp.net/ The Gaza Community Mental Health Programme (GCMHP) is a Palestinian non-governmental, non-profit organization established in 1990 to provide comprehensive community mental health services - therapy, training and research - to the population of the Gaza Strip. Since that time, the Gaza Strip - one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with two thirds of the population being refugees and 50% being younger than 16 years - has witnessed extreme forms of violence and suffering, due to Israeli occupation and military operations. This made the extent of mental health problems in th

On March 9, 2009, John Ging, UN Director of Operations in Gaza, addressed a Code Pink delegation in Gaza City. Code Pink visited Gaza at the invitation of UNRWA - the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, UNRWA,was established by United Nations General Assembly by a resolution made in December 1949 to carry out direct relief and works programmes for Palestine refugees. In the absence of a solution to the Palestine refugee problem, the General Assembly has repeatedly renewed UNRWA's mandate, most recently extending it until 30 June 2011. On March 9, 2009,John Ging, UN Director of Operations in Gaza, addressed a Code Pink delegation in Gaza City. Code Pink visited Gaza at the invitation of UNRWA - the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, UNRWA,was established by United Nations General Assembly by a resolution made in December 1949 to carry out direct relief and works programmes

You're listening to a special edition of Needs No Introduction, Fresh ideas from speakers of note. British MP George Galloway was refused entry into Canada this week, Conservative Minister of Citizenship, Immigration, and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney learned he had taken aid that included food, money, and basic toiletries to the people of Gaza. Galloway was coming to Canada to speak about that trip following Israel's bombardment of Gaza earlier this year. Canada Border Services Agency barred his entry into the country, so Galloway could not be here in person. Instead the MP spoke via internet to packed houses across Canada. And at rabble.ca alone 36 000 viewers tuned in to hear his speech live. At the end of his address, he took questions by phone. Here now is the address by George Galloway.

Don Tapscott is the author of Wikinomics, a book on the way online collaboration is shaping the economy and society. He is one of the leading authorities on business strategy with an emphasis on business technology and how it changes government, society, and organizations. At the end of February, he spoke after the presentation of Us Now, a UK film about how the internet inspires community participation and collaboration. Here is his address as recorded by Volunteer Toronto and Taking it Global.

Deena Ladd was instrumental in organizing the International Ladies Garment Workers Union and continues to do so, teaching training workshops and continuing to fight discrimination for low-wage, home based, and immigrant workers. Here's some of what she had to say at the Good Jobs Coalition conference "Good Jobs for All" in Toronto last month.

Elena Durazo has been a labour activist for much of her adult life. She advocates for workers across the spectrum, and is the executive Secretary-Treasurer for the Los Angeles County Federation of Labour. In November, she spoke to the Good Jobs for All Conference.

The Executive Director of the Blue Green Alliance believes that with a focus on jobs that help the environment, we can help the economy and keep our planet running well. Foster spoke last month at Toronto's good jobs for all conference.

OnOctober  23rd, Media Democracy Day, rabble.ca celebrated the relaunch of our website. The evening included a panel discussion moderated by Duncan Cameron. Speakers: Maude Barlow, Jessica Yee, Murray Dobbin, and Anne Lagace-Dowson.

Susan Nathan, the author of The Other Side Of Israel speaks about the lives of Arab-Israelis.

Changes in government and changes in economics mean changes for unions too - Fletcher speaks about his bookSolidarity Divided: The Crisis in Organized Labour and a New Path to Social Justice.

TBD. 

Jim Stanford, CAW economist, speaking at the C.A.W. convention on June 12, 2008 in Toronto. He spoke about his latest book, Economics is for Everyone: A Short Guide to the Economics of Capitalism, published by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and Fernwood Press.