Issues news

I’m as partial to a bit of political satire as the next person and luckily for me Australia’s recently called federal election looks set to become fertile ground for such pursuits. One of the best I’ve seen so far is this little beauty from Sydney comedy trio Axis Of Awesome.

I think Mr Rudd is displaying some pretty good flow there, wouldn’t you agree?

Have you ever wondered where fast-food joint KFC get their chickens from? If you answered animal cruelty farms then you'd be correct.  According to PETA this multi-national fast food chain was responsible for killing over 850 million chickens last year and most chickens were "scaled to death in feather removal tanks and had their throats slit while they were still conscious". To help campaign against this inhumane cruelty of chickens join the peta2 street team here and win yourself a limited edition "Evil Colonel Sanders" bobble-head pen. You can even use it to write a serious letter of complaint to this cruel company.

We want to let you know that a history making campaign to improve the lives of animals worldwide is now underway, and WSPA needs you to help make it happen. WSPA's 'Animals Matter To Me' is a global effort to obtain a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare. We'd really appreciate it if you could head to the petition that WSPA has setup - here you'll be able to learn more about this vital initiative an make a difference by signing the petition.  Please pass this information onto your friends and family and ask them to lend their support also.  You can do this online by clicking 'Email this' at below left, or if you've recieved this by email, simply forward it on to your contacts.

Thanks everyone for your help - this is very important.

So I’m sitting here writing this entry whilst simultaneously posting inane and poorly spelt comments on friend's MySpace pages about how lame television is at the moment. Meanwhile the radio is on and the DJ can barely contain his own laughter at cleverly bringing up Kevin Rudd’s “strippergate” scandal again.
It's suddenly dawning on me just how many of us take our freedom of speech for granted.
In 1949, Tibet was invaded by the communist Chinese government- a move that paved the way for an overthrow of the country's leadership, years of turmoil and the death of millions of Tibetans who dared protest. Currently there is still no freedom of speech, religion or press there and, as filmmaker Lara Damiani puts it, Tibet "remains an oppressed and violated nation”. Damiani’s film ‘The Tibet project’ provides a contemporary view of the Tibet situation; an issue she believes extends beyond Tibet itself to embody “the struggle against power, greed, injustice and exploitation on a global level”. Currently available for purchase from the films website are stunning 2008 ‘Pictures of Tibet’ calendars. Not only will money raised from the calendars help fund the continued production of the ‘Tibet project’ (due for release in early 2008), but a portion of the proceeds will go to the private, family-run Dickey orphanage in Lhasa, Tibet.

Dealing with climate change is now a normal every day happening in our lives (or should be, if it isn’t). While YEN often reports on stories related to the environment, I thought we should take it one step further. So every issue I’ll be looking for a bunch of young women to test out ‘eco’ products and services. It’s just another way to come up with suggestions to make it easier for you guys to become more environmentally friendly than you already are. If you wanna join the Eco-girl YEN Test Team give me a holla. Thanks to WWF, who supplied this amazing image.

Having trouble securing a rental property? Well, you're not the only one in Sydney, or should I say Australia, that’s experiencing a rental crisis. Life in the renting lane has become extremely difficult. I’ve been searching daily online, and every Saturday for the last couple of months, but still haven't been successful in landing a new pad. I showed up to an open for inspection last Saturday with 50 other people already in line to check out this particular property. How crazy!! So I decided to do a bit of investigation into the problems fueling the housing shortage and unfortunately it seems like things aren't going to change anytime soon.
"We have a supply and demand problem," explains Christine Castle, the president of the NSW Real Estate Institute. "There aren't enough investors. They’re an ageing group and are investing their money elsewhere like into superannuation." But what does this mean for us poor renters? Christine suggests, if you can, to stay out of the current market. And think about buying your own property. If you’ve got any stories like mine, let me know about them via the comments section.

Dita Von Teese, the sexy spokesmodel for the MAC Cosmetics Viva Glam campaign, who has graced the pages of lingerie catalogues and glossies worldwide, recently posed for an advertisement to promote People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' new ABC-Animal Birth Control-campaign, urging people to have their companion animals spayed or neutered. Nearly 4 million dogs and cats are euthanized every year in the United States
alone simply because there are not enough good homes for them. Meran more about real puppy love here.