Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Exclusives, FEB 05

INTERNATIONAL PLASTIC SURGERY
You can’t blame it on Barbie: The Color of Plastic Surgery
by ROXY VARZA, staff writer

If it seems as though the west has set the facial standard, this is not necessarily the case. Humans of all cultures and ethnicities tend to find symmetry and youthfulness attractive. This includes large eyes, young skin, small noses, and full lips.

Therefore, double eyelid surgeries and nose jobs may be the result of a global ideal rather than a western standard.

But it’s probably more fun to blame it on Barbie.




LIVE AID CONCERT
Jammin' Tunes to Save Lives
by ANH V. NGUYEN, staff writer

For one day, this concert united the world with a common goal and raised approximately $110 million for the cause. Never before had anything of such magnitude been organized.

Bob Geldof eloquently stated, “to die of want in a world of surplus is not only intellectually absurd, it is morally repulsive.” To this day, he continues to convince the UN, the EU, and the World Bank to cease the governments’ attempt to spend money to subsidize farmers on agricultural export dumping as millions still die of starvation.

The Live Aid DVD provides over 10 hours of musical satisfaction. The proceeds will go to the Band Aid Trust in Africa, continuing the effort to alleviate the suffering caused by famine.




REMEMBERING THE TSUNAMI - If Symbolism Sets in...
The benefit held by UCLA's International Institute raises funds, raises hopes
by SIMONE KUSSATZ, special guest writer

The first half of the benefit ended with a remarkable performance by the Californian dance group, Sri Dance Company. The three female dancers, Sri Susilowati, Caroline Chang and Sydney Cassatta expressed, in abstract and metaphorical movements, the suffering of women.

Dressed in white shirts, colorful skirts and yellow veils, the dancers moved their bodies in ways that complemented the gentle music of the composer, Albert Chang.




THE CAPTIVATING FADO - and Its Origin
by HABEEB SALLOUM, special guest writer

The name fado comes from the Latin fatum (fate). It is the popular song and music of the Portuguese cabarets and nightclubs - the entertainment par-excellence of that land. A type of urban melodies rather than folk tunes, its origin is not clear to numerous music historians.

A number of Portuguese writers, perhaps still sub-consciously fighting the Crusades, claim that the source of the fado is to be found in Africa, Brazil or the sailor songs on the high seas. However, others more objective in their observations have asserted that it is of true Moorish origin.

In the New Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Theophilo Braga states that the root of the fado lies in Moorish or Arabian tradition. R.Gallop in Portugal, A Book of Folk-Ways quotes Arménio Correia Lopes who claims that not only the fado but the Spanish tango and habaZera are the direct descendants of the Arabian majuri.