Whales Found to Speak in Dialects
By Bjorn Carey, LiveScience
It turns out humans aren't the only mammals who speak in tongues. According to researchers at Oregon State University, whales have regional dialects too. 'Blue whales off the Pacific Northwest sound different than blue whales in the western Pacific Ocean, and these sound different than those living off Antarctica,' Bjorn Carey writes. 'And they all sound different than the blue whales living near Chile.' But can they understand each other? 'We don't know if they are part of a common 'language' that different populations of whales use to communicate with each other,' says researcher David Mellinger, 'or if they come from a confused juvenile who hasn't completely learned the complexities of communicating.' -- Leif Utne
http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/060103_whale_noises.html

Bechtel, Bolivia Resolve Dispute: Company Drops Demand Over Water Contract Canceling
By Paul Harris, San Francisco Chronicle
Just days before the presidential inauguration of Evo Morales, populism in Bolivia scored another success. When massive protests halted an effort to privatize the country's water industry, Bechtel Corporation sued the Bolivian government for $25 million. Earlier this month, the California-based company -- whose $17.4 billion revenues dwarfed Bolivia's $2.9 billion national budget in 2004 -- changed course, withdrawing the claim it filed with the World Bank. -- Bennett Gordon
http://tinyurl.com/8uew7
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Jan06/Schultz24.htm

Fair-Trade-Music-Network
By Staff, Fair-Trade-Music-Network
The times they are a-changin'. The idea of social responsibility is taking hold in businesses everywhere, and the Fair-Trade-Music-Network is bringing it to the music industry. The group's Fair Trade Music label will signal to consumers that the companies behind the music are committed to putting the power of music back into artists' hands, while making it affordable for consumers, too. The website needs some help with the English translation (it's originally in German), but spreading the idea of fair trade is music to my ears. (Thanks, Interrupcion.) -- Bennett Gordon
http://www.fair-trade-music.de/

Sierra Club Chronicles: 9-11 Forgotten Heroes
By Staff, The Sierra Club
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, many firefighters, police officers, and construction workers risked their lives in the call of duty. What they didn't realize was just how much risk they were actually taking. While the EPA deemed the air and water at Ground Zero safe, many of these workers have fallen victim to a variety of respiratory illnesses. Four years later, much of the general public has all but forgotten about their plight. The Sierra Club teamed up with filmmaker Robert Greenwald (of Outfoxed, and Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price fame) and a variety of organizations, including the ACLU and the Ford Foundation, to record the everyday struggles of the 'forgotten heroes.' The film follows four of these men as they petition Congress for $125 million in aid promised to New York and then rescinded (the money was restored after filming). The documentary is the first of seven in the Sierra Club Chronicles series giving voice to individuals fighting for community and environmental justice. -- Bennett Gordon
http://www.sierraclubtv.org/