pirated cds destroyed in Ukraine

Ukraine's Channel 5 reports that Ukrainian polic are cracking down on technology pirates.

Nearly one million pirated CDs and cassettes have been confiscated by authorities since the beginning of the year. On Wednesday, 44,000 illegal discs and tapes were demonstrably destroyed in the capital in accordance with a court order.

In 2005, Ukraine was rated the second worst country for pirated media in the world. This year, it [is] seventh worst in the world. Ukrainian law provides for fines between 4,000 and 15,000 hryvnia and sentences between 2 and 6 years imprisonment for crimes violating intellectual property rights.

About the same penalties as human traffickers face, I'll wager... only with more prosectutions. In either case, it's the same old story:

... police say that the crime is difficult to fight, because it is so profitable.

Jews finding religious freedom in Ukraine

It's nice to read heartwarming stories like this about Jews in Ukraine ... and I suspect this sort of thing is closer to the truth than a lot of written (and audio-visual) works have led the public to believe.

Michael Kruk, a cantor at a Miami-Dade County synagogue, left Ukraine almost 30 years ago because he wanted religious freedom.

Living in the communist country forced him to hide his ''Jewishness.'' The government restricted his ability to pray at synagogues, study the Torah and converse with other Jews.

When his feet touched the ground in Ukraine a few weeks ago ... Kruk wanted to see signs of religious freedom in his homeland. He saw signs of hope inside the four walls of Progressive Judaism Community Temple in Lutsk, a small Ukrainian town. The 200-family synagogue chanted Hebrew prayers, met for Shabbat services and expressed Jewish tradition through colorful art. ...

Full article here.

Ukrainian company invents musical condoms

What will they think of next?

A Ukrainian firm has designed musical condom which plays music while in use. The prophylactic also boasts the ability to play music louder and faster as lovers reach a climax.

Read all about it here ... here and here.

I was disappointed that the article didn't mention what the melody is ... or whether they can be customized like ring tones on your cell phone.

You'd think the same melody would get, ahem, boring after a while. (Not that I'm in the market for them ...)

New Ukrainian movie

Here's the scoop on a new movie recently shot in Ukraine about Vyacheslav Chornovil, an outstanding Ukrainian politician and public figure.

According to the film director Volodymyr Onyshchenko, the movie shows unique chronicles from the life of the People’s Movement leader never broadcast on TV.

... According to him, Ukrainian folk-tale “Stone Country” has become the plot for the movie “The One Who Woke Up a Stone Country”.

The movie was shot in many Ukrainian cities and towns: Kyiv, Mariupil, Donetsk, Lviv among them.

Vancouver audio archives for Sept 24 and Oct 1, 2006

Whew! The nose is hitting the grindstone pretty hard now that vacation time is over for both hubby and me... but, it was a glorious summer! I've a bit of a backlog to clear up but regular blogging will resume henceforth.

Audio archives for Nash Holos are updated to yesterday, October 1. There was no Sept 24 archive for Chetverta Khvylia ... Pavlo is in the midst of moving into new digs so we'll have to cut him a bit of slack till he gets settled in!

In the meantime, on Nash Holos you can get the scoop on very seasonal dishes (a uniquely Ukrainian coleslaw and a pumpkin dessert, just in time for Thanksgiving), find out interesting places to see near Ukraine (hint: Poland), and finally learn why it is that Ukrainians seem to always do things three times.

The CD of the Week features Lvivski Muzyky (Oct 1) and West Coast Dulcimer Duo (Sept 24).

Myrna is back from her travels to Ukraine and she's got lots of juicy tidbits to share on Travel Tips to Ukraine and Eastern Europe. And since Nash Holos has just passed another milestone as BC's longest-running Ukrainian radio program, there's lots of excitement in the near future ... so stay tuned!

new book on copyright lobbying in Canada

From Michael Geist's blog:

Simon Doyle, the Deputy Editor of the Hill Times, has just published his new book Prey to Thievery...

... a study of CRIA's lobbying efforts from 1997 through 2005. It provides a remarkable perspective on the power of the copyright lobby and the intensity with which it has pursued DMCA-like reforms. The book is a must-read for anyone who wants a behind-the-scenes look at copyright reform in Canada. ...

... here's an excerpt ...

Vancouver audio archives for Sept. 17, 2006

Vancouver's Ukrainian radio audio archives for Sept. 17 are now available!

On Chetverta Khvylia (4th Wave) join host Pavlo Manugevych for the latest news and views from Ukraine, in Ukrainian, as well as some great tunes!

On Nash Holos, get your pencils ready for another yummy recipe for shashlyk that Sylvia will share with you on Ukrainian Food Flair, along with some interesting trivia about the origins of this dish.

OnTravel Tips for Ukraine and Eastern Europe, Fr. Bruce will give you the scoop on church sites to visit in Ukraine. Fr. Bruce also introduces a new weekly feature called A Spiritual Moment, exploring our rich Ukrainian spiritual heritage.And of course, there's plenty of Great Ukrainian music!

This week's CD of the Week is a compilation CD, 24 Golden Ukrainian Hits Vol 3, featuring a variety of artists. (With thanks to Nestor Shydlowski of Baba's Records). Get your dancing boots on!

Vancouver audio archives for Sept. 10, 2006

Vancouver's Ukrainian radio audio archives for Sept. 10 are now available!

On Chetverta Khvylia (4th Wave) join host Pavlo Manugevych for the latest news and views from Ukraine, in Ukrainian, as well as some great tunes!

On Nash Holos, Sylvia brings you another yummy recipe on Ukrainian Food Flair - this week it's a delightful old-world dish, shashlyk. On Travel Tips for Ukraine and Eastern Europe, Fr. Bruce will give you the scoop on church sites to visit in Ukraine. Fr. Bruce also introduces a new weekly feature called A Spiritual Moment, exploring our rich Ukrainian spiritual heritage.

And of course, there's plenty of Great Ukrainian music! This week's CD of the Week is From Kozyn to Wadena, with Anne Pleskach and Bill Scherbatiuk.

light blogging this month

Blogging will be on the light side this month, but do check in now and then!

Or, better still, get yourself an aggregator and it will tell you when there's a new post up!

new segment on Nash Holos

Just thought I'd give any Nash Holos listeners a "heads -up" that there will be a new regular feature on Nash Holos called "Iz Dukhom tvoyim" ... "And with your spirit" starting this Sunday, Sept. 10.

It will be narrated by charming and charismatic Fr. Bruce Power, who has also been sitting in for Myrna Arychuk of Solaway Travel on our Travel Tips segment for the past several weeks.

Stepping back into his more traditional role, Fr. Bruce introduces this segment, reflecting on the spiritual history and legacy of Ukraine and Ukrainians, and setting the stage for future features.

Upcoming issues will include spiritual unity between Ukrainian Catholic and Orthodox Christians, the meaning of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the spiritual roots of the number "three" (i.e. why Ukrainians seem to do everything three times), and various other Christian and ecumenical topics.

Stay tuned!

surname-sake

This is nothing to do with Ukrainian music, or Ukrainian anything for that matter. Well, maybe marginally.

I just came across a blog called Knit like a man by some guy sporting my maiden name. The blogger lives in Toronto but is originally from Winnipeg.

No relation far as I know, but, you never know how far back these connections go.

Quite by accident ... through a client, actually ... a few years ago I found a 3rd cousin here in Vancouver by that same name (we figured out we have the same great-great grandfather). My newfound relative had in his possession a copy of an unpublished family manuscript written by my great-uncle years ago, which he very kindly shared with me.

Funny how these things happen.

So anyway if you're into knitting, check out his blog. H/T to Inside the CBC

Hunky Bill still sizzling at the PNE

Came across this Vancouver Sun article Institution was born on a bet, about Vancouver's famous (or infamous) Hunky Bill.

Billie Konyk was a salesman when a friend bet him $10 he couldn't get a PNE booth to sell Ukrainian food. Billie Konyk is in his 40th year with the PNE .

You can read this delightfully entertaining article here.

I happened to be at the PNE on Sunday with hubby and we had a great time. We wandered by Hunky Bill's food stand, but unfortunately found it shortly after we had finished eating a traditional PNE greaseburger.

But it smelled wonderful at Hunky Bill's ... you just can't beat the smell of fried tsybulia. My only complaint is that I didn't hear any Ukrainian music there.

Ah well, there's always next year.